What started as a game between two young teams was now on the verge of being a potential villain battle, the first big one since the start of The Accords.
Rumble and his team looked ready for a fight, except for Apple Bloom. She knew they wouldn't have a chance against villains such as these.
"So, you ready to lose to us!?" Dinky asked. "We're pretty tough, wouldn't blame you for turning tail and running!"
"Dinky! Get out of the stadium!" Derpy ordered.
"I got her," Susan said, floating out to the field, joined by the other heroes in attendance, as well as Spike, Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust.
"Luna, go clear an exit, the ponies are going to need a quick evac," Steve said just before going down as well.
"Yes Captain," Luna said, flying off.
Twilight wanted to go down as well, but she was more worried for the ponies in her group, especially her daughter. "Everyone, follow me quickly."
"But what about Dinky?" Derpy asked.
"Peter will protect her, right now I have to protect you, come on," Twilight said. "Ben can you help me?"
"Sure thing Twilight," Ben Grimm said.
"Thanks," Twilight said, leading away her friends. "Everypony else! Single file out of the stadium, quick!"
Down below, the heroes stood ready for a fight, but so did Rumble's group, with the exception of Apple Bloom, who was ready to book it.
"Kids, make a run for it!" Peter warned. "This is not safe!"
"Oh come on Peter, let us fight with you!" Rumble insisted.
"Rumble, this isn't a game, Wizard is pretty tough," Peter said.
"Of course, all of us together can take him out," Johnny boasted. "I've even solo'd this guy on occasion."
"What occasion?" Bobby joked, getting an annoyed reaction from Johnny.
"Real funny dude, Wizard was my rival first!" Johnny said.
"Seriously though, I'm ready to go," Bobby said, readying his ice.
"Same, time to go all in," Remy said, twirling his staff.
"Alright, curb the enthusiasm here," Tony said, readying his suit. "Gambit, keep in mind that you're not fully authorized to fight any villains."
Remy raised his eyebrow in confusion, "Excuse me mon ami? What do you mean I can't throw down with dem villains?"
"You never signed on with The Accords, legally you can't fight a villain, you can help the other ponies, but I can't allow you to engage in combat," Tony explained.
"You can't be serious," Remy said. "I've been doing hero work for years without issue!"
"I'm kind of with Gambit there Tony, he's been protecting Equestria for a long time, does he really need The Accords?" Steve asked.
"Law says he does," Tony said. "Nightcrawler, Jubilee, Logan, Deadpool, Laura and Lighting Dust, that goes for the six of you as well."
"You can't really mean that Tony!" Jubilee said.
"Yeah, you need our help!" Lightning Dust said.
"Whatever then," Deadpool said, putting his swords away and trotting off to find the Pies, he'll at least keep them safe.
"There's plenty of heroes here, or rather there's me and Steve since we're the only ones authorized to work other towns," Tony said.
"You can't be serious," Logan said. "How is this helpful!? You have an army to take him down!"
"We don't need an army, less is more," Tony said. "Better to use a hammer than a wrecking ball."
"Poor heroes, doesn't work so well when the laws you fight to uphold works against you," Wizard taunted. "Such is the fate of the self-righteous."
"Is this guy serious?" Bobby said. "Dude you're still going against two of The Avengers, they're more than enough to kick your ass!"
"Steve and I can handle this on our own, the rest of you keep the crowd safe," Tony said.
"It would be foolish to underestimate me," Wizard said. "Your Accords will be your downfall."
"We'll see about that," Tony taunted. "Peter, I trust you in leading the others to escort the ponies to safety."
"Oh, they're have to do more than just escorting," Wizard said, gesturing outside of the stadium.
Suddenly fireballs rained down, taking all the ponies by surprise as they frantically tried to avoid the heating blaze.
"What's happening!?" Johnny asked.
"Johnny! Absorb that fire! Quick!" Peter ordered.
"Sure thing Pete!" Johnny said, trying to keep the fire under control.
"Good thinking Peter," Steve praised. "The rest of you should find whoever's doing this and make sure you escort the ponies to safety."
"Looks like Twilights' already on it," Peter said, gesturing to his wife and her friends getting the ponies to safety.
"Follow her lead," Tony said. "Those of you signed with the Accords, I deputize you to detain that villain. Gambit, Jubilee, Nightcrawler, you do what you must but avoid combat."
Remy groaned in annoyance, "Fine, you do what you want, I'll go check on my family." Remy trotted off, muttering to himself, "And confirm something for myself."
"Remy wait, I'll come with ya!" Apple Bloom said, trotting after her brother-in-law.
"Kurt, Jubilee, why don't you help my wife, make sure everyone's safe," Peter said. "You can start by getting Rumble and his friends out of here."
"No way! We want to help!" Rumble said.
"Rumble, you're not even on the Accords either!" Peter pointed out.
"I don't need the Accords," Rumble said, eyeing Wizard. "I'm an Element of Harmony!"
"Rumble you're not an Element, you're a kid who's in way over his head!" Peter scolded. "Now get going!"
"But-!" Rumble again tried to plead.
"Let's just go, you don't want to make him mad," Dinky said, then whispered to Rumble. "I heard rumors of what he's like when he's mad, and I know you've heard them too."
Rumble does seem to remember stuff he's overheard from Lightning Dust, while he knows Peter is not one to normally be overly violent or aggressive, he'd still rather not get on his bad side. "Alright fine, let's go ladies."
"With you Rumble," Sweetie Belle said, then turned to her brother-in-law. "Good luck Bobby!"
Sweetie Belle led her friends away, Dinky looking back at Wizard with a mistrustful gaze. She wished she could do something, especially knowing it would validate herself and her friends as an Element, perhaps in the future.
"Time to put the glory of my plans to work!" Tony said, flying in with his suit. "Take this!"
As Wizard blocked and clashed with Tony, Peter and company began leading the ponies away to safety.
"This way! Follow us!" Peter said, gesturing towards the exit. More fireballs rained down, but Susan was quick to put up a forcefield to protect the ponies from harm.
"We gotta find out who's doing that," Bobby said.
"I'll do it!" Rainbow Dash said, flying toward the direction of the fire.
"Should we help?" Bobby asked.
"Rainbow Dash is fast, she can handle it for now," Peter said. "If she needs help then she'll let us know."
When Rainbow Dash arrived at the source of the fire, she spotted The Scorcher spreading his fire everywhere. "Found our guy." She landed beside him, getting his attention, "Hey Chump, you got a lot of nerve throwing fire around, didn't anyone tell you that fire is dangerous?"
"Oh gee, I'm so sorry," Scorcher fake apologized. "Maybe I should stop-NOT!" Scorcher tried blasting Rainbow Dash, but she was quick to move aside. He continued spreading around, trying to blast her out of the air.
Rainbow Dash quickly flew in and kicked him back. It wasn't long before she noticed everything else on fire. "Johnny's gonna have a lot of work cut out for him."
As Peter and friends continued to lead the ponies, among them was a bit of trouble. In the midst of these ponies was Martin Li, and the Demon leader was eager to cause a little chaos. Though he would have to be careful, Suri was here too, and he would rather she not get hurt.
"What's the point of having heroes here if their villains are going to follow?" Suri commented. "More trouble than they're worth honestly."
"Hey! We heard that!" Bobby said, not too far off.
"How great, your hearing is working," Suri said. "Just do your job if you're so insistent on playing hero, okay?"
"Now Suri, let us be appreciative of our heroic allies," Martin said. "Their job is hard enough as it is, what with the villain attacks and the panicking ponies."
"Yeah, that guy gets it," Bobby said. "Thankfully nopony here is panicking."
Martin grinned sinisterly and started spreading his negative energy to some nearby ponies. It wasn't long before a few of them started acting strange, something Peter's spider sense picked up on.
"Something's happening!" Peter turned and saw that a few of the ponies were scrambling around in fear. "Hey! Get back in formation!"
"We're gonna die! It's not safe!" a pony shouted, trying to shove through. "Out of my way!"
"Hey watch it!" another negative ponies said, knocking the first pony back. It wasn't long before these ponies started fighting amongst each other.
"Oh crap, everyone's fighting!" Bobby said, trying to get in the middle of them. "Yo, I need you all too-"
One pony blasted Bobby back with his unicorn magic, something Suri found some humor in.
"Oh come on!" Peter went to restrain a few, despite them trying to fight him off. "Stay focused!"
"And now they're freaking out, what a bunch of weirdos," Suri said. "Spider-Mane, you can just knock them out right?"
"I'm trying to save ponies!" Peter said, dodging some magic. "Not hurt them!"
"Peter!" Twilight flew over, using her magic to detain a few ponies and teleport them away.
"Twilight! You need to get to safety too!" Peter urged.
"I'm fine, I'm more worried about everypony else," Twilight said. Though as she said that she felt some pain in her stomach. "Nothing I can't power through."
"Twilight, please, think of Benjy," Peter urged.
"But what about-" Twilight was then nearly rammed into by a negative Pegasus when Logan punched it out.
"The hell is with these ponies?" Logan wondered, then turned to Twilight. "Look Twi, I get yer worried fer yer subjects, but Parker's got a point, you need to take better care of yourself. Plus, look around, things are getting bad."
"Hey! Snap out of it!" Laura shouted, prying two ponies apart.
"Back off!" Trixie warned, zapping at the hooves of a pony
Twilight hated having to leave, but perhaps it was better that she got to safety and wasn't potentially in everyone's way. "Alright." She turned to find Spike, the young dragon fending off a couple of ponies, "Spike! Mind sending a letter to Celestia!? Let her know what's happening."
"Uh sure," Spike said, hoping to find a paper to write on.
Peter turned his attention to Wolverine, "Hey Logan, I hate to burden you, but would you mind keeping Twilight safe?"
"You call that a burden?" Logan replied, smirking a bit. "I'll keep an eye on her."
"I owe you," Peter said.
"This one's on me," Logan said, quickly trotting toward Twilight, "Let's hurry."
Logan led Twilight away while the heroes tried to calm the panicking ponies. However, Martin continued to use his powers on other nearby ponies, this eventually leading into a massive riot across the stadium.
Tony and Wizard continued to battle in the air, the armored hero sending a beam at his opponent, Wizard blocking and zapping Tony back.
Steve tossed his shield toward Wizard's direction, knocking him back a bit, allowing Tony to fly in with a punch.
Wizard shook it off, but rather than immediately fight again, he took note of the riot below, seeming satisfied. "Looks like the ponies are rightfully fearful of my presence."
"Huh?" Tony saw all the ponies freaking out, many of them destroying the stands, others getting into fights, plenty of magic beams shooting through the air. "What the hell's happening down there!?"
"Don't be so surprised Iron Man, after all, it's not the first time the public has lost faith in The Avengers," Wizard taunted. "Perhaps this world is no different than Earth, just another lost cause of a population."
"Oh don't even, I know this has to do with your mind control tricks," Tony said. "I'm not unfamiliar with you or your Frightful Four buddies."
"You misunderstand Iron Man, you see, I had not even had the chance to cause this," Wizard said. "If it were my control, I would have them fight for me. This is their doing."
"Spare me your crap," Tony said, readying a beam. "I'll knock you out and break their control."
"A futile hope," Wizard said, clashing once again with Tony. Steve was about to help but found himself surrounded by ponies.
"All of you, out of the stadium!" Steve ordered. One by one however, each of the ponies tried to attack him, but Steve niftily dodged each attack. "What is wrong with you ponies!? Is this really The Wizard's doing!?"
Just outside the Stadium, Sandbar and his friends were waiting with Jubilee for Nightcrawler to come outside with Gallus.
"I hope Kurt got to the infirmary just fine," Jubilee said.
"Why is it taking so long? He can teleport!" Smolder said.
"He just went inside Smolder, and he's probably making sure Gallus isn't too sick to move," Silverstream said.
"What could have happened to him?" Ocellus wondered. "Was it something he ate?"
Cozy Glow placed her hoof on Sandbar's side. "You're not sick, are you?"
"I'm fine Cozy, this had nothing to do with you giving us water," Sandbar reassured.
"He probably caught a stomach flu or something," Silverstream said. "I just hope he's able to move to safety in this chaos."
"We'll make sure he-" Jubilee then noticed some ponies making their way toward them, very menacing like. "Uh, can we help you?"
The ponies lunged in, ready to attack, but Rainbow Dash showed up and kicked them all aside. "That was close."
"Rainbow Dash, what just happened?" Jubilee asked.
"I'm not sure, all the ponies just started freaking out all of a sudden," Rainbow Dash said. "Might be the doing of that one guy here."
"Did you see who started throwing that fire?" Silverstream asked.
"Yeah, some guy, never got his name though," Rainbow Dash said.
"Scorcher!"
"Scorcher, well I knocked him..." Rainbow Dash's eyes widened when she saw the villain in question nearby.
"Time to burn!" He sent a huge gust of fire in the direction of Rainbow Dash and company, everyone quickly dodging out of the way.
"Jerk!" Jubilee was about to attack when Rainbow Dash stopped her.
"Remember what Iron Man said, you can't engage a villain," Rainbow Dash said.
"You wouldn't last against me anyway," Scorcher said.
"Hey you!" Smolder shouted, stomping toward Scorcher. "I don't know who you think you are but coming at a dragon with fire earns you a one-way ticket to pain!"
"Smolder, I don't think you're allowed to fight either," Sandbar said.
"Yeah kid, don't want to break the law, would you!?" Scorcher then blasted more fire at the group.
"Alright, that's it. "Law or no law, I have a right to self-defense!" Jubilee rushed in with her fireworks to knock Scorcher off balance.
"Eh, Tony doesn't have to know," Rainbow Dash said. "Go get'em Jubilee!"
Jubilee continued her attempts at attacking, sending more firework attacks Scorcher's way, the villain returning with more fire, scattering around the area, and causing everyone to lose track of what was happening.
It wasn't long before everyone got separated, Rainbow Dash flying up to try and get a bird's eye view of each friend's location. "This isn't good, all this fire is causing too much of a smoke screen!" She glanced around, hoping to find Johnny, though he likely had his hooves full of other fire to stop, she quickly had to think of another alternative. "Wait, I got it!"
Using her speed, she started assembling clouds together, though for her plan to work, she needed a decent amount, and there weren't too many clouds nearby. Fortunately, she had confidence in her speed to get everything she needed to know.
"None of you can escape!" Scorcher taunted as he continued to spread the fire. "You're just a steppingstone to bigger plans!"
Smolder stood close to Ocellus and Yona, the three separated from their allies. "Sandbar! Silverstream! Jubilee!"
"Smolder!?" Jubilee called, the girl close to Sandbar and Silverstream. "We're safe!"
"Jubilee! I'll follow your voice!" Smolder said, about to progress.
"No!" Jubilee called, coughing a bit from the smoke. "It's not safe! Stay where you are!"
"Hey, is Cozy Glow with you!?" Sandbar asked.
"Sandy!?" Came Cozy Glow's voice.
"Cozy Glow!?" Sandbar quickly looked around to find the filly, coughing a bit as the smoke passed through. "Where are you Cozy Glow!?"
"I'm over here!" Cozy called from beyond the fire.
"Should we fly up?" Silverstream asked, coughing from the smoke.
"Might be too dangerous, just stay low," Jubilee said. "With any luck, Rainbow Dash should be handling the situation!"
"We can't wait for her, I gotta do something!" Smolder said, charging through the fire. "Hey, Scorcher guy! Come and get me!"
"Smolder be careful!" Jubilee warned, trying to wave off the smoke. "Rainbow Dash, hurry up!"
Meanwhile Remy and Big Macintosh were making their way through a panicking crowd, the card dealer hoping to find who he spotted before, "I know they around here somewhere."
"And you're positive you saw them?" Big Macintosh asked.
"Of course, Cheerilee was there too, she can vouch," Remy said.
"Well ah do trust the both of ya, but what are the odds they'd still be here with all this chaos?" Big Mac asked.
"You're right, they ain't still in town," Remy said, gesturing to the two fleeing the scene, making their way out of town. "Come on, let's catch up to them."
The two trotted after the escaping brothers, both hoping to get out of harm's way.
"What a day," Flam said, gesturing to the air battle between Tony and Wizard. "Things are getting pretty serious."
"I don't get why some ponies find fights like these exciting, it's dangerous stuff," Flim said. "What a shame too, this seemed like the perfect spot to sell our cider."
"Your Cider!?" Remy called, making his way over with his brother-in-law.
"Oh boy," Flim said. "Let's get out of here!"
The two brothers hoped to trot away with their cart, but Remy had tossed some cards nearby, far enough not to hurt them but close enough to give them a scare.
"Stay where you are," Remy warned.
Flim looked a bit nervous at first, knowing the consequences he might receive, but he hoped to play this off with his charm. "Hello gentlemen, may we help you?"
"Big Macintosh, have you gotten stronger?" Flam asked. "You look like you've been hitting the gym."
"Don't try flattering me," Big Macintosh said. "We want to know about that cider you're selling."
"High quality stuff, farm raised apples too," Flim said.
"Farm raised?" Remy asked. "Which farm may I ask?"
"Oh just something local," Flim said, using his smooth talk skills to hide anything suspicious.
"Funny you say that, lately our farm has been missing a few barrels and crates of apples, and here you are selling Apple Cider, a specialty of my wife's family," Remy said. "You wouldn't happen to have taken some apples, would you?"
"That’s quite the accusation," Flim nervously said. "I can assure you that me and my brother would not do something so tactless."
"Somehow I doubt that" Remy said. "I wasn't too different from y'all growing up, I can smell a con a mile away."
"Con? My good stallion, you insult our character," Flim said. "Our work is purely honest. We made the cider ourselves and have been selling it at a marketable price."
"Fine, how about a sample of this cider then?" Remy asked.
"Sorry, no free samples," Flim said. Remy got in closer, trying to intimidate Flim, and as he did so, made the stallion back up and knock a barrel off the twins' wagon.
"Huh?" Big Macintosh looked at the barrel in question. "Property of...Sweet Apple Acres!?"
"So you were nabbing our apples then!" Remy shouted in annoyance. "Y'all still messing with my wife and her family after all these years!?"
"Oh that barrel, it's just an old souvenir from our time in Ponyville," Flim nervously insisted.
"You serious?" Remy sarcastically asked. "Look pal, it's like I said, I know a con when I see one. You don't survive as long as I have without picking up on this type of mindset."
The twins quickly huddled together, hoping to come up with a compromise. Once they finished, Flim turned his attention back to Remy. "Let's make a deal my good man, we'll give you a cut of our profits, and we'll call it even, deal?"
"Here's a better deal, two of you are gonna put a stop to this cider business and leave this market to the professionals," Remy said.
"Make the right choice here," Big Macintosh warned.
"Oh, is that really necessary?" Flim nervously asked. "Why think of all we can accomplish, all we can-"
A minor explosion had startled everyone present, though while Remy was distracted by the nearby chaos, Flim and Flam attempted to make a run for it in their cart.
"They're getting away!" Big Macintosh noticed.
"No they ain't!" Remy said, tossing another charged card at their cart, destroying it's while and knocking everything over.
"Forget the cart! Just run!" Flim said, running off with his brother.
"They're getting away!" Big Macintosh said.
"I'd go after them," Remy said, then turned around. "But we should go check on the family. Last I saw they were heading to the train station with other ponies." He faced the cart again, "First thing's first though. “Using his powers, Remy activated his Kinetic energy on the cart, the whole thing turning pink. "Start running!"
The two quickly dashed away before the explosion, leaving nothing left of the cider stand.
"That's one way to put a stop to that business practice," Big Macintosh said.
"Come on, let's hurry!" Remy urged, the two dashing back to the stadium.
Meanwhile Rumble and his friends had gone somewhere to hide from the fire and this newly formed riot, the boy looking quite irritated from how things turned out.
"Dang it! This was supposed to be our big moment!" Rumble said. "Why did that stupid villain have to show up!?"
"At this point it's hardly a surprise," Dinky lamented. "So many guys from Earth want revenge on these heroes, including Spider-Mane."
"They won't even let us fight, this is so bogus," Rumble said.
"Rumble, we ain't exactly superheroes," Apple Bloom said. "That's why we have actual superheroes to do this for us."
"But we're trying to be Elements of Harmony, part of that means fighting bad guys," Rumble said. "You remember what Twilight said, we need to take down a villain."
"She didn't actually say that though," Apple Bloom said. "You just made that up right now!"
"It's about reading between the lines babe, a skill every great leader has," Rumble boasted.
"Well, it's not like it matters," Apple Bloom said. "You heard what Mr. Stark said, only registered superheroes can fight, and yer not registered."
"We can be sneaky about it," Dinky suggested.
Apple Bloom groaned in annoyance, "Just mah luck that ah got separated from Remy in this chaos. Fire everywhere and ponies losing their minds."
"It is kind of strange that they're acting this way, maybe something's up," Sweetie Belle said.
"Probably has to do with the guy that Iron Stallion is fighting," Dinky said. "I don't suppose anyone here knows about him."
"No, sorry," Rumble said.
"Never heard of him," Sweetie Belle said.
"I don't know much about any of the heroes' villains, even some of the ones that came here," Wind Sprint said.
"I think I do actually, I heard his name from Johnny once," Scootaloo said. "I think this is one of his enemies actually, he was part of some group called The Frightful Four."
"Frightful Four? Like the Fantastic Four?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Wait, so there's more of them!?"
"Maybe that's where the fire is coming from," Dinky said. "But wouldn't that mean there's two more around here?"
"Better keep an eye out then," Rumble said, looking into the crowd. "Hope my brother's alright."
"He should be fine, I mean he's trained to fight villains, isn't he?" Dinky asked. "He even has experience."
"Yeah, he fought some monsters and robots years back, but he hasn't done much since then," Rumble said. "Well aside from fighting some Storm King guards but he left most of that to the heroes."
"Still, he's a tough guy," Scootaloo said. "Johnny's out there too, and so are Bobby, Logan, Twilight and especially Peter."
"Wish ah could count Remy, apparently he ain't allowed to fight, like what's up with that?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Rules of The Accords," Rumble said. "Preventing me from fighting too."
"You'd lose," Apple Bloom bluntly stated.
"Wow, been getting lessons from your sister in being honest?" Rumble joked.
"Cute," Apple Bloom looked around. "Ah hope mah family's alright, I'm worried about my nephews and niece."
"I'm worried about mom and Quibble," Wind Sprint said. "Ugh, I can't just stay here, I gotta do something."
"It's dangerous and against the rules!" Apple Bloom said.
"Hey, you were the one saying that you want your brother-in-law to fight," Wind Sprint said.
"Doesn't mean I want him breaking the rules, or any of us," Apple Bloom said.
"You know what, you stay here if you want, I'm going to find Quibble and my mom," Wind Sprint said.
"I gotta find Derpy," Dinky said.
"And I gotta find Flitter, CC and my brother," Rumble said. "I'm not letting some itty bitty fire stop me!"
"That fire is not 'Itty Bitty'!" Apple Bloom shouted. "Rumble, don't you dare go-"
"Follow me fillies!" Rumble declared, completely ignoring Apple Bloom as he along with Dinky and Wind Sprint sped off to find their families.
Apple Bloom shook her head in annoyance, "That boy, I swear." She turned to her friends, "Let's just stay here until it's safe, with any luck, Iron Stallion and Captain Equestria should be able to put a stop to that guy. Maybe Peter too if he's allowed to."
"Actually, I kind of want to go out and see if I can help too, maybe Rumble could use the back-up," Scootaloo said.
"Same here, just to keep him out of trouble," Sweetie Belle said.
"You two can't be serious! It's dangerous out there!" Apple Bloom said.
"We're not gonna get into a fight, I wouldn't want to ruin things for Bobby," Sweetie Belle said. "It took a lot of convincing from my sister to get him to sign on, and I want this to go smoothly for him."
"Plus, there's no law against helping ponies stay away from danger," Scootaloo pointed out. "Come on Sweetie Belle, if we pull this off, it'll keep up our momentum after winning that game!"
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle dashed off, leaving Apple Bloom behind, the filly looking annoyed. "Things have changed way too much."
Rumble, Wind Sprint, and Dinky arrived back in front of the stadium, though they had to huddle together to avoid all the oncoming ponies. To their surprise, a few of the ponies seemed to be fighting each other and the heroes trying to escort them.
"Geez, this riot is really bad if the heroes are struggling," Rumble said. "Gonna be hard figuring out how to help without 'breaking the law' or whatever."
"Hey if things get really bad, they will have to deputize us or something," Dinky said. "But first thing's first, let's try to find out families and make sure they're safe before we make further plans."
"Hey watch out!" Wind Sprint said, the trio quickly dodging a blast from a unicorn.
"What the heck dude!?" Rumble shouted. "Hey if I attack him, is that considered breaking the law? He tried attacking first and I think I have a right to self-defense, I mean-"
"More!" Dinky shouted, the trio avoiding several magic beams, most not even aimed at them, but it did not stop them from nearly getting caught in the crossfire.
"This is ridiculous!" Wind Sprint said. "Should we leave!?"
"Uh..." Rumble darted his eyes, he hoped to find Thunderlane and then see if there's a way he could save the day, but given how bad this riot looked, he wasn't sure if there was anything he could do.
"Rumble! Make a choice or I will!" Dinky said. On pony got knocked toward her, nearly falling on top when she used her magic to shove him away. "It's getting way too hectic."
"Yeah, guess you're right," Rumble said, looking ready to call it quits. He then heard his name called.
"Rumble!" It was Scootaloo, with Sweetie Belle right by her side.
"Girls! Change of plan, we gotta go!" Rumble said. "This place is too wild, if we stay we might get hurt!"
"Huh?" Scootaloo looked a bit disappointed. "But what about being heroes!?"
"We'll have other chances, let's just get out of here," Wind Sprint said. "Would really like to find my mom and Quibble, if only this crowd wasn't such trouble."
Not too far off, Martin had taken note of the five ponies. These same ponies reeked of negativity earlier, so much pride and arrogance too, it was too good for him to resist. "If you desire power over this stampede of ponies..." Martin began using his powers, slowly affecting their minds. "Then I shall grant it to you."
Nearby Smolder was still going after Scorcher, trying to find him in the fire. She had to be fast since it was really starting to spread. She hoped Johnny was fast enough to absorb the fire, though he always seemed confident about his speed.
Speaking of which, she really wished Rainbow Dash would hurry up with whatever she was doing. "Hey show your face Scorcher guy!"
"Right here!" Scorcher shouted, trying to attack from behind, but Smolder whacked him back with her tail.
"Gonna have to do better than that!" Smolder breathed fire in his direction, the villain dodging out the way.
"Nice fire kid, appreciate the assistance," Scorcher taunted.
Smolder quickly clamped up, realizing her slip up, "Dang, can't make this worse!"
"Oh don't be shy now!" Scorcher taunted, sending more fire her way. "Sometimes you gotta let things burn!"
"I'll start with you!" Smolder said. She was tempted to attack with fire but in her worry, she hesitated, not wanting to risk anymore damage.
"Shy are we, allow me to demonstrate!" Scorcher was about to attack, but Nightcrawler had teleported in and kicked the villain in the face.
"There will be no more damage from you!" the teleporter said.
"Try to stop me!" Scorcher tried attacking again but Nightcrawler teleported and kicked the villain on the sides.
"With all due respect, I don't think I will need to try that hard," Nightcrawler taunted. He teleported around, kicking Scorcher at several angles, leaving the villain open to one more attack.
"I got this one!" Jubilee rushed over and blasted Scorcher with some fireworks, knocking him over the fire.
"Nice one Jubilee!" Smolder said. "Now we just gotta round up our friends."
"Don't let your guard down just yet," Nightcrawler warned. "The danger isn't over."
"It's nothing we can't handle," Smolder confidently said. "We'll find him and beat him up!"
"Get away from me!" came Cozy Glow's voice.
Jubilee gasped in worry, "Cozy Glow!"
Scorcher was cornering Cozy Glow, looking ready for his next evil scheme, "Sorry girl, I'm gonna need some leverage, and you just happened to be in the most opportune place."
"You'd be smart to back off! Do you have any idea who I am!?" Cozy Glow shouted.
"Yeah," Scorcher grabbed the girl and held her captive. "My hostage!"
Nightcrawler teleported over, seeing Cozy Glow at the mercy of Scorcher. "No!"
"Stay where I can see you, if you know what's good for this girl," Scorcher warned. "The moment you teleport, I burn her. Think you're fast enough?"
"Look friend, tell me, do you honestly believe you could live with yourself if you caused harm to a child?" Nightcrawler asked. "Is it that worth it!?"
"You do what you gotta do to survive," Scorcher said. "Plus I do have a job to pull off, can't let you hero types get in the way of my work."
"Who are you working for? Wizard?" Nightcrawler asked.
"Sorry, can't tell you, I'd lose big time trust," Scorcher said. "Just keep your distance and I'll let this kid go when I'm far away enough."
"You think we'll trust you!?" Jubilee shouted, jumping over to Scorcher's location. "You put Cozy Glow down this instant!"
"Cozy Glow?" Scorcher said, as if the name sounded familiar.
"You don't want to upset a friend of mine, do you?" Cozy Glow whispered to Scorcher.
The villain barely had time to process as suddenly rainfall came pouring down, courtesy of the clouds that Rainbow Dash was putting together.
"That should take care of the fire," Rainbow Dash said. "Now for the villain."
"Dammit!" Scorcher held his hoof out, trying to back away. "Keep your distance, all of you!"
Suddenly Sandbar had rammed him from the side, knocking him over and freeing Cozy Glow. "That's for taking my friend hostage!"
Cozy shook the cobwebs out, then turned her attention to Sandbar, "My hero!" She flew up and planted a big kiss on his cheek, getting a blush from the young stallion. "You're so brave!"
"And so dead!" Scorcher tried to stand but Rainbow Dash flew down and kicked him in the head, knocking him out cold.
"Not so tough without a screen of fire to protect you," Rainbow Dash said.
"Took you long enough to get those clouds," Jubilee sassed.
"Hey it was hard at first to tell cloud from smoke, and I needed a lot of clouds to put the fire out," Rainbow Dash said. "At the very least this should free Johnny up. Now the rest of you need to amscray, things are going downhill fast."
"Rainbow Dash is correct," Nightcrawler said. "The ponies are gathering at the train station, Princess Luna is keeping watch over them and making sure the trains leave properly."
"Wait, what about Gallus?" Smolder asked.
"He's with the other ponies, I saw Spike and Janet Van Dyne boarding the train, he should be out of town hopefully," Nightcrawler said. "Now let's hurry."
"I'll go help Peter," Rainbow Dash said, flying off. "Stay safe!"
"You'd think she'd escort us since she's a registered hero and we're technically civilians," Smolder said.
"It just means she has faith in us, or at least in Professor Wagner and Jubilee," Silverstream said.
"Silverstream, I've told you before, you may call me Kurt outside of school," Nightcrawler said.
"Sorry, force of habit," Silverstream said. "You just seem so professory, even outside of school."
"Yeah, yeah, all friends, now maybe we should head to that train station before another villain shows up," Smolder said.
"I hope Wizard didn't bring a friend," Jubilee said. Though as they were about to approach the station, the group was suddenly blocked by Rumble, Dinky, Wind Sprint, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.
"Huh? What are you five doing here?" Smolder asked.
"You don't seem happy to see us, of course given how ashamed you must be after getting your butts kicked, I don't blame you," Rumble taunted.
"Listen you!" Smolder said, angrily stepping forward before getting stopped by Sandbar.
"Not the time," Sandbar then turned his attention to Rumble. "Look dude, this isn't the time for you to be all high and mighty. In case you forgot, there's a villain here, and he is not sight-seeing."
"I'm aware of our visitor, but he's not the one you should be worried about," Rumble said, he and his team getting into a threatening position.
"Are you out of your mind or something?" Sandbar asked. "We need to get to safety!"
"Ladies, let's show these losers what happens when you mess with the best," Rumble said.
"Rumble, this is not a-" Jubilee's lecture was cut off when some civilian ponies tried to attack her.
"What in the world!?" Nightcrawler said, before getting attacked himself.
"Hey what's happening!?" Sandbar shouted, then took a headbutt to his face, courtesy of Rumble.
"Sandbar!" Smolder shouted in worry, then found herself lifted by Sweetie Belle's magic.
"Bye-bye dragon!" Sweetie Belle said as she flung Smolder away.
Dinky used her magic to zap at Yona, Wind Sprint flew in and rammed into Ocellus while Scootaloo rushed over and kicked Silverstream.
"What's going on!?" Sandbar said, trying to locate Rumble. The boy was pretty fast and got in a few strikes to Sandbar.
"Sandy!" Cozy Glow shouted on worry. "This isn't good, I don't want Sandbar to get hurt, but I can't fight Rumble, he's cute!" She turned toward the Changeling of the group. "I don't want Ocellus to get hurt either." She saw Smolder flying back, wanting some payback on Sweetie Belle, but got blasted back again. "Eh, couldn't care less about her, or that stuck up Griffon, hope he's puking his guts out."
Sandbar got knocked to the ground by one of Rumble's kicks, the Pegasus standing tall over him. "Had enough? Admit that I'm better."
"Well you are better at being a jerk," Sandbar said. "But I'm not done!" Sandbar got a punch to Rumble, then rammed him against a tree.
Wind Sprint continued to attack Ocellus with flying kicks, the Changeling did not want to have to fight, but she was left with little choice, "That's it!" She used her magic to turn into a Timber-Wolf and whacked Wind Sprint back, knocking her against a bench. Once she changed back, she noticed the girl was out of it, "I hope I didn't overdo it, I don't want to actually hurt her."
Wind Sprint shook it off, glaring at Ocellus, "Lucky hit."
"What's going on with you? I know you've been a bit bratty but this is too much," Ocellus said.
"It's about superiority!" Wind Sprint said, some negative energy emanating from her.
"Wait a minute, of course!" Ocellus looked around. "Everypony here is being mind controlled by something, that's the only way this makes sense!"
"Take this!" Wind Sprint shouted as she tackled into Ocellus, the two continuing their brawl.
Not too far away, Logan had led Twilight and his family toward the train but took note of the brawl between Rumble's group and Sandbar's. To make things worse, it looked like Jubilee and Nightcrawler were preoccupied by the rioting ponies.
"One thing after the other," Logan lamented.
"Now Rumble's acting like this!?" Twilight asked. "It has to be The Wizard's doing, I hope Tony stops him soon."
"I'm not sure that's it though," Logan said. "Wizard is good at mind control but I don't think he would be this fast. Plus something about these ponies feels off."
"If it isn't Wizard, who could it-" Twilight felt a pain in her stomach. "Ow..."
"You alright?" Logan asked, checking over the girl. "How are your stomach pains?"
"They're getting really bad..." Twilight nearly fell over with Fluttershy and Laura being quick to help her maintain her balance. "My stomach really hurts."
"Hey, you're not going into labor are you?" Laura asked. "This is a really bad time to do so!"
"We need to get her to the Hospital," Fluttershy said. "Logan, you go help Peter, Laura and I will-"
"Wait!" Twilight urged. "I'm sorry but, I really want Logan here, I'd feel safer if he were around."
"Wow really?" Laura asked.
"Laura!" Fluttershy scolded, then focused back on Twilight. "I don't think Logan minds staying then, right dear?"
"Not like he can do anything," Lightning Dust said. "He's not registered."
"Like that would stop me," Logan said. "But for Twilight's sake, I'll stick around."
"Alright, Logan, you go with Twilight, I'll go check on Rumble, see if I can get him and his friends to snap out of their funk," Laura said.
"Do what you have to, just don't cause trouble," Logan said, helping Twilight onto the train, hoping to find some room for her to sit as it prepared to leave.
"I'll do my best," Laura sinisterly said. "Dust, let's go!"
"On it!" Lightning Dust said.
As Sandbar's group continued fending off Rumble's, Cozy Glow stood to the background, contemplating her next choice of action.
"Something strange is happening, could it be Wizard? Or is it something else?" Cozy Glow looked around, seeing all the ponies rioting. "Seems strange that he would hypnotize them like this, I feel like he would want to get them on his side, but everypony is acting too wild and crazy. Is this Discord's doing? Did he mind control them? Or did he send someone that not even Wizard knows about?" She turned back to Sandbar, who had just caught Rumble with a buck kick to his ribs. "Regardless, I really should try to stop this before my friends get hurt. Forgive me for this Rumble."
As Rumble flew back to attack Sandbar, Cozy Glow tackled him down, taking him by surprise, "Hey! Get off!"
"Not until you stop attacking Sandy!" Cozy Glow shouted.
"He deserves it! He's one of the punks that treat you like garbage!" Rumble said.
"Quite the opposite, he's really nice to me, and as much as I like you, I can't let you keep hurting him!" Cozy Glow said. "Now snap out of whatever's messing with your mind!"
"Messing with my..." Rumble felt a surge of a headache, almost as if hearing a voice in his head, ordering him to keep fighting. "Not until I prove my superiority! I'll prove I'm more worthy than he is to succeed Twilight and her friends!" He used his wing to push Cozy away. "Now stay out of this, right now it's between us!"
"Dude, you're fighting me for a title I don't even want," Sandbar said. "You want to be an Element, then go for it. I couldn't care less about succeeding Twilight, that's not even my goal."
"Not your goal huh? So, Peter just called you the new Twilight for laughs?" Rumble asked.
"Look if it bothers you that much, take it up with him, I'm not interested in being Princess Twilight, I'm more focused on my own future," Sandbar said. "All of my friends are, we're not striving to be like anyone else, because we're all comfortable enough in our own skins. It sounds like you're the one who needs the vindication of being compared to someone great."
Rumble's eyes widened in shock, thoughts processing through his head. Though quickly as they came, he shook them out, glaring back at Sandbar. "Don't you look down on me you jerk!"
"I'm not looking down at you! I'm just trying to get through to you!" Sandbar said. "You really need to-"
Suddenly he was lifted and tossed away by Sweetie Belle, the filly looking quite satisfied with herself, "I don't really care much for stallions who are all talk."
"Sandy!" Cozy Glow shouted in worry.
"Nice work Sweetie Belle," Rumble said. "Took care of that bothersome dragon?"
"Not yet!" Smolder shouted, flying in and breathing fire at Sweetie Belle, the filly quickly jumping out the way. Rumble flew around and kicked Smolder toward where Sandbar was.
"That's no way to treat a lady," Rumble said.
Sandbar pulled himself up while assisting Smolder, "You way that as you kick a girl."
"You know, it's really hard to tell that Smolder's a female," Rumble said.
"Like you're one to talk!" Smolder shouted in annoyance.
"Hey at least I'm attractive," Rumble boasted.
"Sure are," Sweetie Belle said, planting a kiss on Rumble's cheek.
"Aren't you dating Apple Bloom!?" Smolder asked.
"Eh, what she doesn't know, won't hurt her," Sweetie Belle said. "And I know you wouldn't want to hurt her."
"No, but I'll hurt you!" Smolder shouted, breathing more fire at the two, both quickly dodging toward Cozy Glow. Smolder breathed fire again, while Rumble and Sweetie Belle dodged, Cozy Glow quickly ducked as the fire came her way, the flame leaving a singe on her tail.
"Watch where you're aiming you klutz!" Cozy Glow shouted.
"Hey don't call me a klutz, you're the one who lost the game for us!" Smolder said.
"Not important!" Sandbar insisted.
Nearby Jubilee had finally gotten free and dashed over to the fighting foals, "Hey snap out of it!"
"Stay back!" Sweetie Belle warned, blasting some magic at Jubilee, knocking her back.
"Jubilee!" Smolder shouted in worry, then proceeded to run over and kick Sweetie Belle away. She went for a punch to Rumble, the colt dodging and trying a punch of his own, though hurt his hoof against Smolder's tough skin.
"What are you made of!?" Rumble asked, then took a punch to the jaw from Smolder, knocking him to the floor.
"Tougher stuff than you," Smolder said. She saw that Ocellus had grabbed Wind Sprint in a magic spell and that Silverstream had knocked out Scootaloo, the hippogriff looking a little regretful.
"I didn't think I hit her that hard," Silverstream said. "I hope she's not injured.
"Oh she might be worse than that, jerk," Wind Sprint said from her position.
"Hey, no more out of you," Ocellus scolded.
"Well that's four, where's Yona and that Dinky girl?" Smolder asked.
"Get pony off me!" Yona shouted, the yak being ridden rodeo style by Dinky.
"I can stay on all day!" Dinky cheered, pulling on Yona's fur.
"Don't want you on!" Yona shouted, running around in circles. Fortunately, Smolder was quick to fly over and kick Dinky off her friend's back. "Thank you Smolder."
"My pleasure," Smolder said.
Sandbar shook his head in shame, he really did not want to get aggressive, but Rumble and his friends left him with little choice. "Let's just get these kids to the train where it's safe."
"Good idea," Nightcrawler said, having gotten free himself. "Things are getting worse, I fear there may be a sinister force awaiting us."
"Should we try finding their families?" Ocellus asked.
"Yeah, I can't wait to tell my mom and Quibble how you beat us up!" Wind Sprint said.
"Yeah, yeah, go cry to your momma," Smolder said.
"Smolder, please don't make it worse," Jubilee said. "And you Wind Sprint, you need to dial down this attitude of yours."
"I'm not taking that from some wannabe hero!" Wind Sprint said.
Sandbar glared at the little filly, his patience wearing thin, "Watch yourself, don't disrespect Jubilee."
"I'll go find her parents, hopefully I can find Thunderlane too," Nightcrawler said, teleporting off.
Jubilee turned to the stadium, "It's all up to you now Iron Man."
Tony and Wizard continued to do battle, taking their aggression across the skies in viscous combat.
"Who sent you here anyway!?" Tony asked. "Does this have to do with that Discord guy!?"
"Oh you would love to know for sure, wouldn't you Stark?" Wizard taunted.
"It's never a straight answer with you villains," Tony said, sending a blast at Wizard's chest. "I'll make you talk one way or another!"
"Always so confident you heroes are," Wizard said, flying up and out of the way of a punch from Tony, blasting him to the ground.
"Tony!" Steve tossed his shield, but Wizard blocked and tossed a disc like device at Steve's chest, levitating the hero off of the ground.
"What in the world!?" Steve struggled to remove the device from his chest, allowing Wizard to fly in and zap Steve across the air, sending him crashing down.
"Hey, try that on me and see what happens!" Tony said, flying in and sending blasts at The Wizard, narrowly missing.
"Gladly!" Wizard tossed a few discs at Tony, the hero blasting each of them out of the sky before they hit him, but it just left him open for a blast strong enough to cause minor short circuiting in his suit.
"Crap, not good!" Tony said, quickly landing to figure out a quick fix. "Guy's tougher than I gave him credit for."
Above, Wizard was checking his hooves, feeling satisfied with himself, "My new body has adjusted well to this world, I feel my strength returning to its full glory. Once I wipe out The Avengers I can begin turning the world of Equestria into my domain." He readied some of his electricity, "Time to end this, Iron Man will be no more!"
Tony could see that Wizard was preparing a big attack, he had to get ready to fight otherwise he'd be toast. Just before Wizard's attack could land, Peter had webbed Tony and pulled him out of the way.
"Tony, are you ok?" Peter asked.
"I'm fine, thanks for the save though," Tony said. "My suit's a little fried, gonna need a second to readjust things."
"Spider-Man!" Wizard called. "Have you come to try your luck!?"
"Hey Tony, I know I'm not authorized for this town," Peter began. "But it looks like you're gonna need help. Any chance you can deputize me?"
"Sure, here," Tony waved his hoof as if he were casting a spell. "There, deputized. Now go kick the crap out of that guy."
"You got it!" Peter jumped into the center of town. "Alright Wizard, time to send you back to your Emerald Castle!"
"Ah, Spider-Man, I know a select few who wish for your destruction!" Wizard shouted, sending a blast Peter's way, the hero easily dodging. "Show me why you're this world's great savior!"
"Don't gotta ask me twice!" Peter said, propelling off the wall and ramming into Wizard, knocking him back.
Wizard rebounded and hit Peter with an electric blast, hoping to keep him down long enough to attack again, but Peter webbed his face, blinding him for a second. Peter then webbed Wizard and slammed him down once, then again towards a wall.
"Go Spider-Man!" Tony cheered as he continued fixing his suit.
"Mr. Stark!" came the voice of Spitfire, the Wonderbolt leader landing nearby. "I came as soon as I could!"
"Hey Spitfire, wait how'd you know about this?" Tony asked.
"Spike sent a letter to Princess Celestia, and since I was around, she asked me to come and check on things," Spitfire said. "She also sent some of my squad to The Crystal Empire to get Captain Marvel."
"That might have been a bit unnecessary, but I know how much Celestia worries," Tony said. "She's gotta remember why I made these accords, too many heroes and things get hectic and clustered, but thankfully all the heroes here are keeping order. Somewhat at least."
"Is there anything I can do?" Spitfire asked.
"Just make sure the trains are running and ponies are safely getting on," Tony said. "Just be careful, there was fire before, I mean it looks like it's been sorted out but keep an eye out just in case."
"Sure thing Mr. Stark!" Spitfire said, flying off.
Tony focused back on the fight, and it looks like Peter had lost his advantage, the hero was blasted back by Wizard. "You can do this Peter!"
Peter pulled away from the wall, jumping over and trying to web Wizard, though the crafty villain had dodged and sent a blast at Peter, the hero using his webs to pull himself to safety. He propelled off the wall, going for a punch but Wizard side stepped and sent a blast at him, knocking him through a wall.
Wizard flew in, ready to attack again, but just as Peter was about to counterattack, Steve's shield had whacked Wizard on the sides, leaving him open and distracted enough for Peter to go for a kick.
"Thanks for the assist, Cap," Peter said.
"It's no trouble Spider-Man," Steve said. "Come on, let's bring this villain to justice!"
"I think not!" Wizard sent a blast that knocked both back, Steve dropping his shield. Wizard rushed to attack Steve first, blasting him again into a wall. He focused on Peter, the hero quickly grabbing Steve's shield and using it to block the attack.
Peter then tossed the shield at Wizard's head, then jumped up to kick him down, stunning him long enough for Steve to slide over and grab his shield. "CHARGING STAR!" Steve rammed the shield right into Wizard, knocking him across the ground.
"Did you just yell out your attack name?" Peter asked, trying to stifle a laugh.
"It's oddly satisfying," Steve sheepishly admitted.
"Yeah, you're right," Peter said, then jumped over to The Wizard. "ULTIMATE WEB THROW!" He latched onto Wizard, spun a few times, and then tossed him into the stands.
"Great work Spider-Man, very easy to see why you're such a beloved hero in this world and our home world," Steve said.
"It's nothing, just doing my job," Peter said. "I really appreciate you guys being here. I don't think I would have lasted by myself."
"Nonsense Peter, you've kept this world safe on your own for five years," Steve said. "Twilight's told me about your battles against King Sombra, and I remember your battle on Earth against Goblin's forces. You've even survived a Dystopian future."
Peter turned away in shame, "I'll never forget that future, it was probably the darkest time for me."
Peter still seemed lost for a second, something that worried Steve, "Peter?"
The boy snapped out of it, "Sorry, you were saying?"
Steve looked a bit worried, figuring that Peter had probably been through a lot in that world. He would discuss this later, now was not the time. "Just consider this Peter, her spell did say the Greatest Hero in the multiverse, and given how big that is, the fact that you were chosen says something."
"I still don't get why I'm this great hero though, what makes me better than someone like you? Or someone like Tony? Or Thor? You guys are The Avengers," Peter said. "Me, I'm just regular old Peter, I was only nineteen when that spell chose me, I still can't figure it out what it saw in some scrawny kid like me."
Steve chuckled a bit, "Peter, if you want a scrawny kid, you should see pictures of me in my youth, that's scrawny. Still, you did a lot of amazing things during the four years on our world that you took up The Spider-Man mantle, between your battles against Doctor Octopus, Venom and especially The Green Goblin, I'd say you earned the merit to being the best. Something tells me you've done more that even I don't know about."
"Would you believe me if I told you I fought Thanos and beat him?" Peter asked. Suddenly he started to feel strange and foolish. "Actually, never mind that."
"No, I believe you, mainly since Luna told me you did," Steve said. "I've confirmed this with Twilight, her friends, even Logan and Johnny Storm since they all looked into your memories. I know you used the Infinity Gauntlet to stop his plan, and I know it made it so that his plan never happened. No one remembers your feat, and it's a shame because that’s something I wish I could remember, but it really shows the type of person you are, you're not in this for the glory, you just want to keep people safe. You saved many realities, not just this world or ours, but all of them. Everyone owes you a thanks."
"It's nothing really," Peter said.
Steve started chuckling at Peter's humility, "Only someone like you would be so modest about saving the multiverse. If that's not proof of how great a hero you are, I don't know what is." Steve placed his hoof on the spider hero's shoulder, "I'm really proud of you Peter."
"Wow, thanks sir," Peter said, feeling a little elated. His inner fanboy was rejoicing at the praise he received from one of his favorite heroes.
During this, Wizard had recovered, injured but still ready to fight. "I'm not done yet." He was about to attack when Tony intercepted.
"SMART BOMB!" Tony sent a blast that sent The Wizard flying. This got the attention of Peter and Steve. "Yeah those fight loving jerks got to me as well."
"Looks like they did," Steve said.
"So Peter," Tony said, getting his attention. "What's this about you defeating Thanos?"
"It's nothing, you don't have to make a big deal out of it, I mean it technically never happened," Peter said.
"Still, I'm proud of you too, you showed guts and heart, especially today," Tony said. "Peter, I think it's time we made it official. I want you to join The Avengers."
"Me!? An Avenger?" Peter asked.
"I'm with Tony, you have what it takes," Steve said.
"I...I don't know about this guys," Peter said. "I mean I'm-"
"Clam it, you did great, and I can tell this is only the start," Tony said. "I've seen you grow both in this world and ours, and in my honest opinion, you're long overdue for this. I want you in The Avengers."
"Wow, if you insist...sure," Peter said, trying to contain his joy. "I won't let you down!"
"I know you won't" Tony said. "Now let's wrap this up."
"Aw, how cute," Came Discord's voice. The trio turned to see the Draconequess with a box of tissues. "Enough to bring a tear to these old eyes."
"You again?" Peter said.
"Is that anyway to great an old friend?" Discord asked, tossing the box of tissues away. He poofed up a picture of himself and Peter happily posing for a camera. "I thought we were pretty tight-knit."
"Never posed for that!" Peter pointed out.
"What do you want Discord?" Steve asked.
"Nothing really Captain, just came to give a personal congratulations," Discord said. "I mean, you triumphed over The Wizard! That's...alright I guess. Probably not much to congratulate."
"How about we triumph over you," Tony said, aiming his blaster.
"Oh I'm not here to fight, I'm just here to grab an old friend," Discord said, snapping away The Wizard.
"No!" Steve shouted, then turned to Discord. "Bring him back!" He leapt to attack but Discord had snapped a rope around Steve, binding him up for a moment.
"You can have the other one if you want, fair trade," Discord said. "I should hurry, I know that rope won't hold Celestia's little eye candy for long."
"Excuse me!?" Steve asked in frustration, and slight embarrassment.
"What are you planning Discord!?" Tony asked. "No more riddles!"
"But riddles are fun," Discord said. "Just like chaos, and I do love me some chaos. Alas, I shall take my leave for now, and I hope you do something about this riot, seems like ponies can be so 'Negative'."
Discord quickly snapped away just as Tony and Peter attempted to blast and web him respectively.
"Shit, he got away," Tony said.
Steve stood up and powered out of the rope, looking a bit annoyed, "We'll find him." He turned to Tony, "By the way, Language!"
"Don't start that crap with me again!" Tony warned.
Meanwhile Peter was tapping his chin, thinking over what Discord said. "Negative?"
Outside the stadium, Martin casually passed by the rioting ponies, hoping to reunite with Suri. She had already gotten on a train and left to a nearby town, but he wanted to wait a bit before leaving, see if there was more he could do.
"Martin," Came Discord's voice, getting his attention. "The game's over, I advise you turn everypony back to normal for now."
"If you insist," Martin said.
"We'll be keeping in touch," with that, Discord was fully gone as Martin began reversing his negative effects on anypony he could reach. It wasn’t' long before rioting came to a halt, many ponies not sure what had happened.
Even Rumble and his friends seemed to be normal again, though still felt a little beaten up after all that happened. Once the rioting fully stopped, ponies began to board the trains properly and were escorted to the same nearby town that Bobby, Janet and Spike were temporarily guarding.
Twilight was sitting against a tree, trying to relax herself with some breathing while Logan sat by her side, gently rubbing her stomach. He hoped that Twilight could wait til they got to the hospital, fortunately Fluttershy was searching for one nearby.
"I got you Twi," Logan said, hoping to reassure the mare.
"Thanks, I'm sorry to be a burden," Twilight said.
"You ain't a burden, yer like family to me, and I protect my family," Logan said.
Twilight looked around, "Where's Mayday?"
"She's with Shining Armor, Cadance and Aunt May, same with Franklin and Flurry," Logan said, turning to the trio of kids. Flurry seemed to look a bit frightened, but Franklin was doing his best to comfort her, as was Mayday.
"Oh good," Twilight said. "I hope that villain got stopped."
"Me too," Logan said.
Gallus was not too far away, trying to contain his stomach pains, "This sucks, how long am I gonna be sick!?"
"You'll be fine," Bobby said from nearby. "Luckily there was a nurse on that train, and she said it's just an upset stomach, so you'll live. Might need to just puke it all out."
"Not very reassuring," Gallus lamented.
"Gallus!" Came Silverstream's voice, the hippogriff running over with her friends.
"Hey everyone, looks like you..." He took note of Cozy Glow. "Oh no, it's you!"
"Dude, enough, Cozy was not trying to make you sick," Sandbar said.
"It's true," Cozy said, trying to look cute.
Gallus groaned in annoyance, he did not believe Cozy Glow, but at the moment he had no energy to argue this. "Just...fine, whatever."
Jubilee knelt beside him, "Maybe you need some ginger ale, that's always good for stomach problems."
"Nurse said it would be gone soon, hopefully by tomorrow," Gallus said. "Things really got bad back there huh?"
"It got real bad," Silverstream asked. "Villains attacking, ponies rioting, we even got into a fight with Rumble and his friends."
"Those six jerks attacked you?" Gallus asked.
"Five, Apple Bloom wasn't there," Ocellus said.
"The only one that has any common sense," Sandbar said.
"They might have been mind controlled though," Jubilee said. "Hopefully the other heroes have an explanation."
"Here they come now," Silverstream said, gesturing to Peter, Tony and Steve, the trio making their way through the crowd.
"First thing's first! Is anyone here missing any friends or family members!?" Peter asked, getting some hooves raised. "Alright, we'll help you find them, there's still at least one more train that is being supervised by Princess Luna, we hope to reunite you with your loved ones!"
"What happened with those villains!?" Trixie asked.
"Well Scorcher has been apprehended and will be taken to Canterlot Dungeon," Peter confirmed. "Wizard got away unfortunately, so we're going to be in alert for now."
"You let one escape!?" Suri shouted. "I thought you were competent!"
"Hey can it lady!" a mare shouted.
"Yeah, Spider-Mane did his best!" a second mare shouted.
"Don't be such a prude," came the voice of a stallion.
"Easy ponies, I appreciate the concern, but she does have a right to be upset, we should not have let him escape," Peter said. "We will search the entire country and beyond to find him, as well as his accomplice, Discord."
"Discord?" Twilight said. "So he was there too?"
"Figures," Logan said. "When I find that guy, I'll give him hell."
"Heroes will be continuously stationed across Equestria, we'll be there to keep you all safe from harm," Tony said. "I will personally search for this villain as well, along with my fellow Avengers, Captain Equestria and Spider-Mane!"
"Avenger?" Logan said. "So he got the promotion."
"I'm so proud of him!" Twilight delightfully stated.
"Excuse me, but when can we go home!?" Suri asked.
"Soon, once everything is accounted for," Peter said. "We have to make sure everyone's alright, both physically and emotionally, get the families reunited, and get to the bottom of certain other things."
"How long will that take?" Suri asked.
Peter rolled his eyes in annoyance, "As long as it needs to."
With a groan, Suri stomped off, “This is a waste of my time, okay. I have a business to run!"
"That mare..." Peter said, hopping off the train.
As he made his way through the crowd, mostly to look for Twilight, he took note of the stallion that was next to her, and for some reason or another, his spider sense went off. Something about this stallion was very familiar, and it didn't help that the stallion seemed to be eyeing him.
Peter quickly made his way over to Johnny, who happened to be nearby, trying to find Scootaloo. "Hey, Johnny."
"Yeah bro?" Johnny asked.
Peter stealthily gestured to Martin, "Keep an eye on that guy, he seems a bit suspicious."
"Uh, you got it," Johnny said, trying not to look directly at Martin.
Of course the crime lord in disguise had a feeling that Peter was onto him. He decided to take his leave, hoping to find Suri, and continue his own plans.
"Of course Suri Polomare is being uncouth about all this," Rarity commented, regarding the mare's earlier outburst. "Like Peter's job isn't hard enough."
"It'll happen," Bobby said. "As long as most of the ponies are cooperative."
"Also what business is she talking about?" Rarity asked. "Coco mentioned it as well in a letter she sent. Plus I believe Jubilee mentioned it as well."
"Probably trying to start over," Bobby said. "As long as she isn't doing anything she shouldn't, I think it's best we don't pay much mind to it."
"Yes, of course," Rarity said.
"Big first day on the Accords for me," Bobby said. "Wish I could have done more."
"You've done plenty dear, soon you'll be regarded for your talents as a superhero, you deserve it after all," Bobby said. "I'm so glad you signed up."
"Wish I could get Remy to sign up too, he doesn't really trust this though, he said it reminds him of a similar registration we mutants had to do on Earth," Bobby said.
"Well, this isn't Earth, this is a world that will accept his talent, and he has a chance to make great use of his powers, and follow Peter's wonderful little phrase, 'With Great Power comes Great Responsibility'," Rarity said. "But I believe in time he will come to realize that."
"Don't count on it, Remy's great but can be stubborn as hell," Bobby said.
"Maybe I can talk with Applejack about this and see if she can help him come to that sense," Rarity said.
It wasn't long before the final train came, everypony accounted for finally in one location. Ponies began reuniting with their families, including Rumble and his friends reuniting with Thunderlane and the other guardians.
There were many injuries though, either from the rioting or the fires. Once the full reports came in, Tony would know for sure the damage, and if any lives were lost this time around. However, there was more to be addressed, something Carol had to address with Tony.
"That so? Well I'll sort this out," Tony said. "Mind rounding up the ponies in question? Meet me near the station entrance."
"Sure thing," Carol said, flying off.
"Tony, is anything wrong?" Luna asked, making her way over to the stallion.
"Some violations with The Accords, gotta set some things straight," Tony said.
"Sounds unfortunate," Luna said.
"My plans still need a lot of work, it's just difficult getting heroes to come to Equestria, I'm basically asking them to leave their homes," Tony said. "Which is why I'm hoping the Equestrian Avengers initiative works out, to create home grown heroes. Fortunately the training is going well, Steve told me of four ponies who have gotten increasingly better."
"Is it those four ponies from Starlight Glimmer's village?" Luna asked.
"Those are the ones, in time they can join our ranks and be able to keep parts of Equestria safe as well," Tony said. "Plus it seems like Steve is close to getting Sam and Bucky to fully sign on, but we're still negotiating the some details, nothing I can't handle."
"Well, after today, are you interested in anyone else? Like the winning team today for example?" Luna asked.
"They got potential, and I can definitely see them as Avengers, at least when they're a bit older," Tony said. "But it's not just Rumble's team, that other team did pretty well today too. They put up a good fight, not to mention some of them seem to be close to their village's leaders, and I do have a good start on help outside of Equestria. I already have The Dragons as allies, thanks to Wasp and Spike, and a bit of help from Hercules. Dragons respect strength and from the sounds of things, he's already made a few friends."
"At least we still have access to one God from your world," Luna said.
"Two if Thor comes back in time," Tony said. "Of course, he is a bit stubborn."
"My sister and I can reason with him if need be," Luna said. "I do worry about his ventures to Asgard."
"Yeah, me too, I thought about asking Banner to go check up on him, if we can find out where he is," Tony said. "Loki can be anywhere, especially with those friends of his by his side. Speaking of which, have you learned anything new about this Storm King?"
"Not so much, we just know that he wanted Queen Novo's pearl to further his domination of Equestria," Luna said. "However, there may be a lead in Klugetown."
"Klugetown, that run down old place that Black Cat went to?" Tony asked.
"Yes, she believes she saw the Storm King's logo around there," Luna said. "If you wish to learn more, you may need to send some heroes to that location. But be warned, it's a terrible run-down place with shady creatures, mostly aquatic."
"Aquatic? Like fish?" Tony asked.
"Something like that," Luna said. "Pirates are known to make deals there as well, so be sure to send capable heroes."
"I can come up with a few," Tony said. "Bobby just joined The Accords, this could be his next mission, I'll let him pick a team. Maybe I'll send Spike and Janet as well, see what they can figure out."
"That sounds like a great idea," Luna said, then took note of the oncoming ponies. "Are these the ponies in question?"
"According to Carol, yes," Tony said as the hero in question brought over Remy, Big Macintosh, Jubilee, Nightcrawler, Cozy Glow and the Student Six, minus Gallus.
"What's this about Tony?" Remy asked.
"Hey, remember earlier when I asked you not to cause trouble?" Tony asked.
"You said not to engage dem villains, so I didn't," Remy said.
"But you still caused trouble, according to Carol, a pair of salesmen said you and your brother-in-law here threatened them," Tony said.
"You mean Flim and Flam?" Remy asked. "Those guys stole our family's apples and tried to sell them for their own profit!"
"Eeyup," Big Macintosh confirmed.
"Just ask Applejack who they are, ask anyone," Remy said. "Luna, you heard of them?"
"I do remember my sister having to clarify something with Twilight Sparkle once, after an unusual letter from Applejack, bragging about being right about something," Luna said.
"She sure was proud of herself that day," Big Macintosh said.
"I'll look into these guys, but you can't go and blow up their stuff," Tony said. "Did you forget the fires!? Or Wizard's attacks?"
"Nopony was there," Remy said. "In fact it was out of town."
"Still, don't do something like that again, I'll let you off for now but if you mess up again, I am going to have to crack down on you," Tony said.
"You kidding mon ami?" Remy asked. "What we did was justice, we-"
"Remy," Big Macintosh interrupted, then stepped forward. "It won't happen again Mr. Stark."
"You can't be serious Big Mac," Remy said.
"He's just being smart," Tony said. "And we know how smart of a stallion Big Macintosh is."
"It ain't about smarts, I'm just watching out for my brother-in-law," Big Macintosh said. "Ah just ask that you do yer part and deal with those con artists so mah family does not have to be inconvenienced by this. This is not something we need shortly after the birth of mah niece."
"Will do big guy," Tony reassured.
"Remy! Big Mac!" Came Applejack's voice, the mare making her way over with Cheerilee. "Everything alright?"
"This doesn't concern you mares," Carol said.
"It's mah husband and brother, it concerns me very much," Applejack said.
"I concur, we as their wives have a right to know what's happening," Cheerilee said.
"It's all good ladies," Remy said. "We were just explaining to Stark here about Flim and Flam, and how they should not be messing with our family."
"And we were telling your husband not to cause destruction," Carol said.
"Hey whatever those charlatans did, they probably deserved what happened to them," Applejack said. "Where are they anyway?"
"Last I saw they were distancing themselves away from the chaos, I offered them a lift but they turned me down," Carol said.
"Well if yer done, mah daughter wants her daddy back," Applejack said.
"Sure, go be daddy, just make sure daddy doesn't give us a reason he can't see his daughter until she's ready for school," Tony said.
Both Remy and Applejack cast a fierce glare at Tony, even Big Macintosh and Cheerilee looked displeased by that statement.
"Let's go," Applejack said, walking off with her family.
"That's taken care of, for now," Tony said, then turned to Jubilee and Nightcrawler. "As for you two, it sounds like you came into direct contact with Scorcher."
"He attacked me first," Jubilee said. "I was not going to take that."
"She should have a right to protect herself," Nightcrawler said.
"I...can't argue that, which is why I'll let you two off as well, but next time, just make a run for it and get someone authorized to handle this," Tony said.
"But we can handle it just fine," Jubilee said.
"If you want to handle it, then sign on with The Accords," Tony said. "It's pretty flexible."
"I came to Equestria to get away from this registration nonsense, I'm not signing up just to protect myself and my friends from a villain," Jubilee said.
"Watch your tone," Carol said. "Tony, you need to crack down more."
"I got this Carol," Tony insisted. "Look, just avoid this, I don't want to have to send you to the dungeon as well."
"Send me to the..." Jubilee shook her head in shame. "You know what, fine, have it your way, see how well this works out for you in the end."
She immediately stormed off, leaving the others behind. Nightcrawler looked a bit worried himself, somewhat vocalizing this to Tony, "Are you positive about these Accords?"
"We could use a guy like you," Tony said. "Consider it, unlike Earth, this helps you save lives."
Nightcrawler looked to the skies, almost as if hoping for some divine guidance, "I'll think about it, but I still worry how limiting this feels."
"We got it under control Kurt," Tony said, then focused on the students. "Now, as for what you've all done. Is it true you fought the villains?"
"Like Jubilee said, he threatened us first," Smolder said. "I had to teach him a lesson."
"Still, like I told the others, that's not permitted, you need to get licensed," Tony said. "I can't let you five do something like that."
"It wasn't all of us sir," Sandbar said. "Just me and Smolder."
"What he said," Smolder said. "Ocellus, Yona, Silverstream and Cozy Glow stayed out of trouble."
Tony turned to Nightcrawler, "Is this true?"
"Jubilee would know more, but I trust Sandbar, so yes," Nightcrawler said.
"Excuse me, Mr. Stark," Cozy Glow said. "Sandbar only attacked that villain because he took me hostage, he just wanted to protect me."
"That is admirable," Luna said.
"So you can't be mad at him, he saved my life," Cozy Glow said.
"What about Smolder?" Tony asked.
Cozy shrugged it off, "Eh..."
"Cozy..." Sandbar scolded.
"I wouldn't have tried to save you anyway," Smolder said.
"Smolder!" Nightcrawler scolded.
"Look, I'll let this slide too, but you kids need to be especially careful, you're somewhat representing your countries, and I know you don't want to make Neighsay look like he was in the right about you," Tony said. "I'm glad that Yona, Ocellus and Silverstream didn't do anything that they shouldn't, that way I won't have to hear it from Rutheford, Thorax or Novo. Thankfully Gallus wasn't involved at all either, less of a headache from Gruff. But you, Smolder, remember that Ember wants you on your best behavior, the Dragons just joined us, don't blow it."
"Ugh, fine," Smolder said.
"But...if you are ever interested in signing up for this, I can arrange something," Tony said. "You kids seem pretty tough, and you handled yourselves well. There's always room in the Equestrian Avengers for those with your heart."
"Sandbar would be amazing, he's really strong!" Cozy Glow said. "And Ocellus can change shape, that's super handy!"
"Oh I'd love to get Ocellus and The Changelings in on this," Tony said. "Has Thorax given any more thought?"
"A little, if you ask him, he might be willing to meet with you again," Ocellus said.
"Good," Tony turned to the others. "What about the rest of you?"
"Queen Novo doesn't want anything to do with this, sorry," Silverstream said.
"Prince Rutheford don't think heroes can protect town as well as Yaks can," Yona said.
Tony groaned in annoyance, "What a pain in the neck. Well there's still Farasi, if Zecora can get through to them. I also gotta figure out what to do regarding that Kirin place."
"Oh, that reminds me, my sister recently got into contact with The Abyssinians if you wish to try your luck with them," Luna said. "The Dog Kingdom might be open for discussion as well, same with Saddle Arabia."
"Sounds great to me," Tony said. "I just hope one of them agrees. Alright if that's all-"
"Wait a minute," Carol said. "These students also got into a fight with another group at the Stadium, including the little sister of Rarity."
"They attacked us first, also they're not villains!" Smolder said. "Well not officially at least. They should be here too!"
"They were under mind control, they barely recall what happened," Carol said. "I got this information from Laura Kinney."
"Who?" Smolder asked.
"Wolverine's clone, or daughter, or whatever she is," Tony said. "Look that sounds like a personal squabble between them, I won't even give them a warning about that, that's more Twilight's jurisdiction anyway."
"I really hate those freaking kids!" Smolder said. "If I could get my claws on them again..."
"Smolder," Nightcrawler interrupted, hopefully before she made things worse for herself. "Don't let them get under your scales, I know you're better than that."
"But Kurt!" Smolder insisted.
"It's ok to be angry, you have the right to be, mind controlled or not, Rumble was not very professional, and I will be discussing this with his brother, same with Wind Sprint's parents, Dinky's parents, Scootaloo's aunts and Sweetie Belle's sister and parents," Nightcrawler reassured. "But please, promise you'll dial back your anger, I don't want it to consume you. A pretty face like yours should show more happiness than resentfulness."
Smolder blushed a little at the compliment, though did her best to hide it, "Don't call me pretty, I'm too tough to be pretty."
"Who says you can't be both?" Nightcrawler teased. "Still, promise me."
Smolder sighed in annoyance, "Fine, only for you Kurt."
"I thank you," Nightcrawler said, then turned to Tony. "I will be seeing you."
Nightcrawler left with the students, leaving Tony in thought, "You know, later, I should ask Gallus to join too, he has a ton of potential."
"Are the Griffons joining?" Carol asked.
"They're... quite stubborn but Rainbow Dash is helping with that by talking with her friend Gilda," Tony said. "If I can get through to Gallus, that would help as well."
"It's all coming together," Luna said. "Thanks to your hard work."
"Well it's nothing without my fellow Avengers, especially Peter," Tony said.
"Peter? You recruited Spider-Man?" Carol asked.
"Of course, Peter deserves it, he's a well-loved hero and I think he's earned a spot on The Avengers," Tony said. "Not only is he strong, but he’s also smart too, and he knows ways of resolving conflicts non-violently if he has to. Plus with him as an official Avenger, he can also be like the poster child for The Accords, it's a great way to keep this country safe, after Equestria, comes Earth. Together we'll fight for a better tomorrow."
"Peter is a one of a kind individual, he has that personality that's irritatingly charming," Luna said.
"He certainly does," Carol said.
"Peter is going to have a similar clause to myself, Steve and Carol here, and The Wonderbolts to an extent. Being able to do hero work in any city aside from his home city," Tony said. "He's got the power for it. I can assign missions that only he can handle."
"Maybe bring him to Canterlot to train some recruits too," Carol said.
"Excellent idea," Tony said. "Luna, you and Peter are pretty close, maybe you can be his official partner."
"Me?" Luna asked.
"Well yeah, I heard you two make quite the team," Tony said. "Especially on Earth. Plus you two are best friends already, you're the Godmother of his child, and you're usually there for him. I'd ask Twilight to join but given that she's due any day, I imagine that she's going to be busy, especially after her baby is born."
"I would be more than happy to assist Peter," Luna said.
"Awesome, maybe I'll send you both to Klugetown instead," Tony said. "If you're up for it."
"I'm up for anything," Luna said.
"Wait, is Luna properly registered?" Carol asked.
"Carol, Luna's a Princess of Equestria, that's enough of a registration," Tony said. "I dare say she and her sister are higher than me and Steve, you too of course."
Carol looked a little unhappy by that remark, but she relented, "Well as long as she and Spider-Man get the job done."
"They're more than capable," Tony said. "Now, let's get this wrapped up so we can get everyone home."
While they spoke, the students along with Nightcrawler hoped to reunite with Gallus and Jubilee, Smolder still looking a little upset.
"Hey you're not still mad are you?" Sandbar asked the dragon.
"Today was a wreck, losing that Buckball game, getting attacked by villains, getting into a fight with Rumble and his herd, then having Iron Stallion chew us out, today was bogus," Sandbar said.
"There are still other days," Sandbar said. "Just take a chill pill, everything will be fine."
"Yeah," Silverstream said, going up to Smolder. "Remember what Prof-I mean Kurt said about your pretty face."
"Stop calling me pretty!" Smolder said.
"But you are, you're adorable," Silverstream said. "Right Sandbar?"
"Uh..." Sandbar began to blush, not sure how to react. "Right?" One look from Smolder caused him to panic, "I mean, I'm just saying that as a friend, I mean friends can call each other pretty right? I think all you girls are pretty."
Not only was Smolder blushing, now Silverstream, Yona, Ocellus and Cozy Glow were blushing too, Sandbar feeling awkward right now, even Nightcrawler could sense it.
"Wow...um, that's nice of you to say," Silverstream said.
"Yona like compliment," Yona stated.
"You're quite the charmer Sandbar," Ocellus teased.
"You really know how to make a filly feel special," Cozy Glow bashfully admitted.
"Pfft, flirt," Smolder said.
"Uh-huh...glad that's settled," Sandbar said, hoping to move past this ASAP.
Nightcrawler felt for the boy, but at the same time, he was relieved that situation was handled well, though he does have to wonder if the dynamic between them would change, or if they would just brush this under the rug. Most likely the latter.
From a distance, Rumble, who was observing with Dinky and Wind Sprint, observed with a scowl on his face, "When I saw Captain Marvel round those losers up, I thought she'd have them thrown in a dungeon or something."
"Guess it's not time for that yet," Dinky said. "Still, they're probably under warning for violating the accords."
"They should be, I mean, we held back, and we totally would have thrashed that Wizard guy, along with whoever started that fire," Rumble said. "I mean, what do we have to do to earn a little respect!?"
"Join The Avengers," Wind Sprint said.
"Easier said than done," Rumble said. "Ugh, if only Twilight just made it official with us, I mean we've earned it, haven't we?"
"We'll get through to her," Dinky said. "Just be patient."
"In the meantime, let's stay on top of our game!" Wind Sprint said. "We already have some fame for winning that Buck Ball game, let's maintain our momentum."
"Then, we rise to the top, where we belong," Dinky said.
"You girls are right, if anypony can do it, we can," Rumble said. "We have the skills and determination, with the Cutie Mark Crusaders by our side as well, we're unstoppable!"
"You're one confident kid, aren't you?" Laura said, making her way over to Rumble.
"Sup Laura, need something from us?" Rumble asked.
"No, but I may have something for you," Laura said. "I saw you kids going toe-to-toe with Sandbar and his punk friends, and you did well at first, until the fight turned around against your favor. Still, you have good potential, and I bet with some training, I can make you all better, be the ponies worthy of respect, like you deserve."
"That's great, can you help us with that?" Rumble asked.
"You bet," Laura said. "It ain't gonna be easy though, but I think I can pull something off for you. I mean, I'm helping to train Fluttershy to fight, if I can manage with her, I think I can manage with you kids."
"That'd be amazing if you could help us," Wind Sprint said.
"Sweet, we'll work something out after we get home," Laura said, then trotted off. "Catch you kids later."
"Heh, this is gonna rule," Rumble said, a sinister smile forming on his face, the two fillies having a similar grin.
Not too far off, Rainbow Dash and Johnny were reporting their success to Spitfire.
"I managed to take care of most of the fire, it became easier once Rainbow Dash gathered up the rain clouds," Johnny said.
"After that, I knocked out the villain," Rainbow Dash said.
"Good work, you two are doing well so far," Spitfire said. "Come by the Academy tomorrow, there's a couple of recruits I want you both to train."
"Training huh? Sounds good to me," Rainbow Dash said.
"We won't let you down," Johnny said.
"Also, think you can keep an eye on Lightning Dust?" Spitfire asked. "She and her Washouts group are becoming a bother for The Wonderbolts."
"Uh, sure, I guess," Rainbow Dash said. "What's she doing exactly?"
"Trying to run us out of business," Spitfire said. "She's been booking shows left and right, and it's getting harder for us to book shows."
"Does it matter?" Johnny asked. "I mean, The Wonderbolts are allied with The Avengers, do we really need to do these fancy shows?"
"These shows allow a Pegasus to show off their skills and honor our ancestors," Spitfire said. "It's a proud tradition, and I don't want Lightning Dust messing that up for us. Plus the last thing we want is for even Tony Stark to prefer her group over us."
"Didn't take you for the competitive type," Johnny said.
"I'm a Wonderbolt captain, I thrive on competition," Spitfire said. "Think of this as a respect thing, just keep an eye out and let us know what she's planning as far as booking goes. Anyway, you're both dismissed."
Without another word, Spitfire flew off, leaving Rainbow Dash a bit confused, "Strange..."
"Eh, it's no big deal, I mean I don't know what she wants us to do with Lightning Dust though," Johnny said.
"Guess we gotta figure it out or something," Rainbow Dash said. "Worry about it later, I really want to get home, I miss our daughter."
"Bad time for her to get sick, she would have loved the show," Johnny said. "Until this crap happened, still, I'm glad your parents were able to foalsit."
"You know my parents, always there for us," Rainbow Dash said. "Can't wait to tell my dad what happened though."
Things were starting to settle down, everyone got their bearings together after a hectic day. Peter was able to check on Twilight again, she really needed to go to a hospital, fortunately Logan and Fluttershy were there to assist her. The Apples discussed what had happened regarding Remy and Big Macintosh nearly finding trouble with The Accords, Nightcrawler had a nice chat with the guardians of Rumble and his friends regarding his actions and Gallus received assistance from Jubilee, his friends, and a reluctant Cozy Glow. Suri and Martin were getting ready to return to Manehattan, where Daredevil, Elektra and Night Thrasher continued to bust his on the Demon Gang in that city.
Meanwhile in Tartarus, Wizard had come to, finding himself surrounded by Shocker, Electro, Mysterio and The Dazzlings.
"Hey, welcome back," Shocker said.
Wizard looked around to observe his surroundings, "I'm back in Tartarus?"
"Discord brought you here after your fight against Spider-Man, Iron Man and Captain America," Electro said. "That's pretty impressive."
"You're a lot better than I thought, guess you just needed to get used to your pony form," Adagio said.
"Perhaps," Wizard said. "What of Scorcher?"
"He didn't come back, I think he's been caught by the heroes," Shocker said.
"Not like we need him or anything," Aria said.
"His performance left a lot be desired," Mysterio said. "You however, have made our main cast."
"Do you always talk like you're in a movie or something?" Aria asked.
"It's his thing, just ignore him," Shocker said.
"Excuse me, I resent that," Mysterio said.
"But he is correct," Discord said, appearing beside Wizard. "Welcome to our group, we're excited to have you joining us."
"I am delighted," Wizard said.
"I think we're just about done, the start of our plan is almost a year away, but I can't help but feel like we need to stir some things up a bit more," Discord said. "The Avengers will still be trouble, though their new plan could work against them with some careful tweaking, especially with assistance from our dear friend, Martin Li."
"He already did a lot in town today," Adagio said. "Stirred up quite the riot."
"So there was another there, Wizard said. "Made things really interesting."
"Who else are you going to bring over?" Sonata asked.
"I'm thinking to either fill this world Doom, or expose it to Dread," Discord said.
"Preferably not the latter," Shocker said.
"Why are you so worried? The Avengers are gonna do the fighting, not you," Electro said.
"Yeah, we just sit back and watch," Adagio said.
"You won't be sitting back for long, I have a few quests for some of you to embark on," Discord said, getting their attention.
"What type of quests?" Shocker asked.
"Oh my good friend Herman, I'm really glad you asked," Discord said, ready to reveal more of his plan to them.
The Accords, Ragnarok, so much to worry about in the future, little did the heroes know, things were going to take some drastic turns.