Within Twilight's Mind.
Twilight was currently standing face to face with the manifestation of her sorrow and rage. Horizon Storm. Similar to Lunar Ire, only, Horizon Storm had been forgotten about. Never popping up again, not even in rare instances. That is until now during Twilight's process of emptying out all of her magic.
Horizon Storm chose to get aggressive and much to Twilight's chagrin, it was unavoidable as she was keeping the Princess of Friendship inside of her own mind.
"I still don't want to have to do this to you, Horizon," Twilight said, trying once more to reason with her.
"That's why you're too weak to be in control. I'd said that I'm better fit to take your place. And even as the Princess of Friendship!"
"Now you're just starting to sound like the Empress a bit...Aren't you against her too just like Ghetsis and the others?"
"Don't compare me to her!" Her rage showed once more as out of thin air, she created a purple combustion of magic that had pushed Twilight away. Twilight yelped as she received the first hit, sliding and rolling on the ethereal floor.
"Fine then!" Twilight quickly recovered, standing up as quickly as she was knocked back. Her horn flashed before unleashing a magical beam. In response, Horizon did the same as both beams of varying colours clashed. Purple and dark purple respectively. An equalizer had been met with them with both beams blowing up in front of each other.
Horizon Storm continued to be on the offensive than Twilight Sparkle. Horizon stomped her hooves on the ground, unleashing what seemed to be a torrent of magic that mimicked a sandstorm. Twilight squinted before then stomping her hooves as well. Instead of destroying the torrent, she simply used her magic to redirect it. With the full force of her magic which also made the Princess of Friendship grunt, she had managed to manipulate the storm of magic, redirecting it to her vengeful counterpart.
"What?!" Horizon Storm gasped before being hit by her own attack. Twilight spread her wings out, flying into the torrent right afterwards without anything happening to her thanks to some magic coating. Twilight used her magic within the torrent, adding a ray to it. Horizon Storm was being showered by both her own attack and Twilight's magic.
"Why don't you just diminish?!" Horizon Storm just had one eye closed with the other eye viciously staring at Twilight. With a flash of her horn, she ended up shrinking Twilight.
"Huh?" Twilight blinked, realizing that she had now become minuscule. The young princess looked at her smaller self, stunned that Horizon Storm could just do that to her. "Oh!"
"I'll crush you with my bare hooves!" Horizon Storm, now appearing larger than Twilight, separated the torrent of magic with her shadow casting over the little Twilight. "Bye, bye! My Little Pony!" With her hooves, she drove them down as it looked like an entire roof was falling on Twilight.
Twilight grit her teeth before then deciding to get risky. The hoof was already too close to do anything else. So the best option was to use her own hooves. And she did just that, raising them to catch the incoming one from Horizon Storm. "Ow!" Twilight cried out as her smaller hooves twitched from this.
She looked down, using her magic directly on the ethereal floor. And if anything, that was the best option as she ended up pushing herself upwards with the force of the downwards beam. Even though she was smaller, her magic was still effective.
Horizon Storm could feel the pushback as her physical strength was failing her. Once Twilight had held her back she changed the direction of her magic, unleashing it right onto the hoof that was over her. It was already in the best position to hit as Horizon Storm felt Twilight's magic sting to a severe degree.
"Gah!" She groaned, pulling her hoof away. Once free, Twilight decided to use her smaller appearance to her advantage.
She immediately landed on Horizon Storm's back, taking a ride on her for a bit. Upon being on her back, the miniature Princess of Friendship unleashed bolTs of magic that would normally feel like tickles depending on whatever smaller entity was attacking. But since her magic didn't shrink with her size, it was painful to Horizon Storm.
Horizon Storm turned her head, zapping some magic promptly, only for Twilight to be as skittish and nimble as a mouse, flying away from her back. Right on time as Horizon Storm had only dealt damage to herself.
The enraged counterpart to Twilight growled with her anger rising gradually. Twilight then started flying around, causing Horizon to start shooting magic as much as she could until she could hit the little pony. Twilight managed to evade them, making Horizon unable to land a single hit. And at the same time, Twilight would tackle her and unleash small rays of magic from every side, irritating Horizon.
"This is getting annoying!" Seeing that Twilight was harder to confront when smaller, Horizon undid the spell. And the moment Twilight returned to her original size, she took advantage of that as well. A devious grin met her face as she unleashed on last magic blast right in front of Horizon Storm.
Now the blast was normal-sized, engulfing the entirety of the enranged alicorn. Horizon Storm cried out afterwards with Twilight flying back to avoid any immediate retaliation from Horizon.
"This shouldn't be happening..." Horizon Storm growled, holding her head. "Since when were you stronger than me?"
"I just met you. How am I supposed to know? But if I had to guess...maybe, it's everything I've been through over the past 3 years that have made me into a stronger pony than I've ever been. Just a guess."
"Tch. I could make you stronger, no doubt." Horizon Storm scoffed. "Believe me when I say that!"
"I believe you. Magic such as this is always prime to have something amazing with it. But I can't accept what it'll be used for. That's why I'm going to sort it out now that I have the chance."
"I'd like to see you try. The things I can do dwarf what you're capable of." To demonstrate, Horizon Storm had conjured another spell. But this one was for the sake of summoning. Twilight stood ready for whatever would be thrown at her. Even though she was prepared, she certainly didn't expect what came next. Or rather, who came next. Right next to Horizon Storm was a familiar visage of one of Twilight's friends.
That would be Applejack. But with an altered appearance. Twilight's eyes and jaw opened up to see that the familiar face of Applejack was influenced by Sorrowful Rage Magic, exuding the same aura and even having a different colour alteration.
"Applejack?!"
"Like what you see? I can summon my friends to my side here. Stronger versions of my friends. Of course, they only exist here. But soon, I can do the same on the outside when I'm free."
"Stronger versions of my friends? Now that's just pushing it." Twilight narrowed her eyes. "My friends are already strong. And they can get stronger without needing that. Especially with how much they're improving in this world of Pokemon we live in."
"Yeah, but they're only safe because of the Pokemon. You remember Pheromosa, don't you? Without our Pokemon, any Pokemon can finish us off faster than the eye can see. In this massive world of Pokemon, these Strange and Wonderful Creatures practically own us with how powerful they are. Being a Pokemon Trainer is just a way to avoid that."
"You don't seriously believe that, do you?!" Twilight couldn't believe her ears. "Pokemon are also our friends! You're me so you should know that!"
"I know that there's a chance that all of this will be forgotten once the Rift leaves. Granted, I don't want that either, but why shy away from the truth and possibilities? I may forget about Eve and everyone else if that day comes."
"That day won't come. If you're me, you would have some faith and hope in us keeping the two worlds connected."
"Since when were we optimists? And besides! It's going to be me that sorts everything out. Because not only will I deal with Ghetsis and everyone else who've threatened our loved ones, I'm going after the Rift!"
"Okay. Now you're completely insane." Twilight could see that Horizon Storm certainly had bigger ideas and ambitions than her. But those thoughts weren't exactly the brightest in any way.
"I'll prove it to you!" She raised her voice as she was still at odds with Twilight. All while Twilight from the outside was still emptying her magic. Albeit slowly thanks to Horizon Storm.
Equestria. Ponyville. Twilight's Castle. Afternoon.
Speaking of which, Twilight was still in this static pose with her body letting out purple magical energy. But she did not respond in any way as Cold Colt waved his hoof in front of her face.
"She's not moving! Is Twilight okay?" The worried Cold Colt looked at Zero and Zecora.
"She's stuck in a petrified state. Either her magic power is high enough for this to take a while...or something else is happening."
"What else?" Cold Colt asked.
"Tell me. Does it normally take this long for magic to be pulled out in this world?"
"Nope. Usually, it's some big bad that comes over and they do in just a few seconds. But this is way more than a few seconds."
"Then there's a problem. Something's not right here. Unless your teacher can solve it first, we might have some inner interference."
"But the magic's still pouring out. So...it's working, right?" Cold Colt squeed.
"I suppose so. But we-" Zero was cut off once a wind pressure came through. That was the result of Reshiram and Zekrom racing once more. "Ahem. We should continue focusing on this work. She had the clever idea of emptying out her body of magic so that Rift Energy can become a vessel. I'll put my faith in her for that. But if it all goes south...any ideas?"
"Umm...Oh!" Fairly quickly, Cold Colt had an idea. His attention turned to Twilight's ace. Espeon. "Eve!"
"What about the Espeon?" Zero raised an eyebrow.
"If it's something inside, then Eve can help. Twilight's a student herself, ya know. First, a student to Princess Celestia and now a student at the Pokemon School. One of her teachers is Olympia and she taught Twilight something great. The Mindscape!"
"Esp? Espeon!" Espeon gasped, catching on to what Cold Colt was saying. She saw through his plan because of this.
"Mindscape?"
"Eve. Go in there and help Twilight! She could be in her mindscape, but you can still enter her mind either way. See if Twilight's there." said Cold Colt.
"Espeon!" Espeon would do just that. She faced her best friend, ready to enter with her. But she wouldn't be alone in this. Worried about Twilight, Ninetales, Absol, Cinccino and Togekiss had approached. The Sun Pokemon turned around to see her teammates standing by her side. "Esp?"
"Cinccino." Cinccino and the others nodded as they made it clear that they were coming along. Twilight was their trainer and friend after all.
"Eon..." Espeon understood loud and clear before nervously chuckling. "Espeon!" She had revealed one crucial detail. Unfortunately, they all couldn't come along as they did not have access to the Mindscape, neither could Espeon bring them along. Not only that, but only Espeon and Twilight could do so.
"Ab?!" Absol and the others jerked back upon realizing this.
"What are they saying?" Cold asked.
"How should I know?" But Zero didn't have the answer to that. He was not a Pokemon Translator.
"Espeon..." Espeon would close her eyes, allowing her mind to link with Twilight's. It was represented via a purple string of Psychic energy that flew out of the gem on her forehead. Once the string touched Twilight's forehead, Espeon could begin the synchronization. The trip to Twilight's mind.
Twilight's mind.
Speaking of Twilight's mind, she was currently feeling the elevation of Horizon Storm's aggression. A Sorrowful Rage variation of Applejack being summoned was certainly causing some problems for her. But it wasn't just that. Horizon Storm had summoned more of her friends to overwhelm Twilight. Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie had been summoned next via Horizon Storm, showcasing just what she could do.
Soon, Twilight stood face to face with corrupted variations of her friends that she had been evading mostly instead of retaliating. Twilight had to admit it, but so soon, Horizon Storm had put her on the backfoot.
"Impressive, right?!" Horizon Storm put on a menacing grin. "I can overwhelm anyone so easily with these. Not to mention that I have so many friends so there's no limit to it! I'd have my own army when you think about it."
"No way. You're beginning to sound more like Empress Twilight yet again. I'm starting to get more worried for you. And it's getting harder to reach you too..."
"Big talk for someone who wasn't attacked them yet." Horizon chuckled. "What's wrong? Won't attack your friends? They're not even the real ones and you already feel as if you can't lay a hoof or a beam on them. If you're hesitant to attack fakes...then how can you protect them if something similar to this were to ever happen?"
"Mmmrrgh..." Twilight growled, knowing that Horizon Storm had major truth in what she was saying.
"Guess you're too soft." She shrugged. "Oh well. Don't you worry. I'll have complete fortitude when I get outside."
Twilight could see it all too clearly. Horizon Storm's thirst for revenge had blinded her to many things. Her measures were extreme. Way more than what Twilight was expecting. Now she was simply worried about what could happen if Horizon Storm were to ever overtake her. But as she thought that, Twilight ended up gaining her own ally in all of this.
Espeon.
She had appeared within Twilight's mind via a purple flash. Twilight and she were connected as the Sun Pokemon made her surprise appearance.
"Espeon!"
"Eve!" Twilight was happy to see her, naturally. "Oh, thank goodness you're here! Great timing too."
"Esp."
"That's all the help you're getting?" said Horizon.
"Eve is more than enough to be of great help. She's my tried and true partner. And real instead of what you've just created." Twilight replied. "They may be my friends but they're not who they truly are."
"Yet you still won't attack them. But you'll attack me. How curious..."
"Darn." Twilight lowered her head as Horizon Storm got her there.
"Espeon!" Espeon was another story. She stomped her paw on the ethereal ground before snarling at Horizon Storm. Even though she resembled Twilight, Espeon could already tell that there were many things that deviated from the trainer she loved. "Espeon!"
"You're right, Eve." Twilight looked to her partner as Espeon was already giving a pep talk to her. "I shouldn't hold back. I know you won't hesitate to attack them. How about you attack them first and I'll go from there."
"Esp!" Espeon agreed as she and Twilight reached that agreement.
"Go!" Horizon ordered them as each of the enraged variations of the Mane 6 had transformed into these mist and smoke-like entities with only their heads sticking out.
"Espeon!" Espeon roared, refusing to let any harm be done to Twilight. She didn't see them as Twilight's real friends, giving her all the reason in the world to attack. And she did so by using Dazzling Gleam. First, she emanated a blinding light that had befuddled them and right after that, rays of rainbows had been unleashed.
The rainbows had crashed into them, pushing them back even with their misty bodies. Once Twilight saw them take a hit without even letting out cries of pain, the gloves were off. Thanks to Espeon, she felt some confidence in attacking them.
"Thanks, Eve!" Twilight grinned before exuding a vast flash of magic from her horn. Horizon Storm and her summoned allies squinted from this overwhelming light as they already just finished dealing with Espeon's light.
The misty ponies started flying in different directions as they had suddenly opened their mouths. As if Twilight needed any further proof of these being fakes, gigantic sharp and fierce fangs could be seen when their mouths were opened. They were certainly horrific variations of her friends that would rather rip something apart rather than talk.
"Use Psychic!" Twilight cried out as she and Espeon started attacking these terrifying apparitions. An invisible blast of Psychic energy had blasted away the face of a fake Pinkie Pie including Rainbow Dash in the process whilst Twilight cleared out the fake Rarity and Fluttershy.
With Espeon by her side, Twilight performed much better. Working alongside a friend made Twilight show off her best qualities as she and Espeon stood side by side, blasting away at the faces of their fake friends. Horizon Storm eventually approached Twilight with her hooves out.
Twilight responded to the approaching enraged alicorn, putting up a shield. Horizon Storm ended up forming a shield of her own. And instead of using it as a defensive option, she used the shield as a weapon, bashing it against Twilight's shield. There was a stagger straight through it at Horizon's shield managed to push Twilight back. Twilight stood her ground, keeping the shield active as she was forced away from Espeon.
"Espeon!" Espeon called out Twilight's name as she was occupied with her fake friends. Espeon used to Quick Attack, leaping into the air to jump over an incoming head charge from Pinkie Pie before then using Shadow Ball on it. Even though she landed a successful hit on her, she was then knocked out of the sky by a blast of magic from Rarity. "Esp!"
Espeon fell down from it. Only to recover right afterwards. She saw another one coming from the Fake Rarity, causing her to use Psychic in retaliation.
"You can't beat me!" Horizon Storm declared. "I'm everything you can be!"
"No, you're not!" Twilight roared before expanding her shield "But you'll still be one with me! Where we can work together!"
"As if! You'd be holding me back! Everyone within my sights needs to pay! Especially that other me from the Human World."
"What? Why her?" Twilight wondered as her human counterpart had been brought up.
"Isn't it obvious?" Horizon Storm closed her eyes, snarling. "She got to kiss Ash before us."
"...That's worth taking revenge for?!" Twilight was blown back by that reason. It seemed pettier than what she was expecting. The others made sense but that one was just bizarre.
"Well, don't you feel the same? Hm?"
"Not to that extent! That's it, we're ending this!" Twilight let more of her magic out. Her shield overpowered Horizon Storm's, shattering it. Horizon Storm gasped. She was sent flying by the power that Twilight emanated.
"Help me here!" She called out to the others. Espeon's battle with the fakes had been halted once they immediately flew over to Horizon Storm's aid.
"I don't think so." Twilight casually said as she only increased her magic further. This confused Horizon Storm as she believed that they were equal. The fakes of Twilight's friends had been stopped in place, unable to move.
"Espeon!" This gave Espeon the chance to finish them off. She leapt into the air, having Dazzling Gleam up and ready. She had a rainbow ray for all 5 of them. 5 of these rays had been shot out at full force, having sizes large enough to engulf them. The fakes had been engulfed as the combined efforts of Twilight and Espeon managed to destroy them.
"Impossible! We should be equal! I should at least be better than you!"
"Sorry but...you never were." Twilight shook her head, approaching Horizon Storm with a magical aura that was brighter than anything she's seen. The aura outlined Twilight's entire body as she looked like a giant standing over Horizon Storm, who had sat down. "My strength comes from my friends. And the drive to see them all happy. I'd never take revenge. Maybe I would have a few years back, but not anymore."
"Espeon." Espeon ran to Twilight's side.
"I'd like to see things be put on the right track as you too. But there are better ways to do that. You should know. You're me."
"Darn it..." Horizon Storm stomped her hoof on the ground. It was just now that she realized she didn't stand a chance against Twilight. She was severely weaker than here.
"Come on. Don't be like this." Twilight held her hoof out. "We're one in the same. We can work together and make things right. And I didn't say I wouldn't use your power."
"Hmph." Horizon Storm crossed her hooves as she proved to be strikingly different in personality to Twilight. Cockier and far too proud of herself to an extreme degree. "This battle didn't count..."
"You're such a kid..." Twilight sighed, frankly having enough of Horizon Storm's stubbornness. "Just grab my hoof."
"Mm!"
"Fine then." Twilight scoffed, turning her head away. "If you won't cooperate, then we'll take another time. Right now, I have some Rift Energy I need to absorb. You'll be gone for a bit once all of my magic is emptied out. But I'll bring you back."
"Why would you even after what just happened?"
"I wouldn't get rid of a future friend."
"We aren't friends..." Horizon Storm grizzled her teeth. Despite being essentially the same pony, she didn't see Twilight as her friend. Or rather, herself as a friend.
"Whatever you say. It wouldn't kill you to love yourself though." Twilight chuckled. "Come on, Eve. Let's go." It was time for them to leave. Horizon Storm's magic was no longer affecting Twilight, allowing for her to continue the process. Horizon Storm could already see herself fading away, grumbling. Her path to revenge had been blocked off. But that urge was still there.
Twilight's Castle.
"Oh!" Upon returning, Twilight had also managed to empty out all of her magic. She was now an empty vessel, devoid of any magical power. Espeon blinked, witnessing her best friend feel befuddled. And that was only natural. Without magic, Twilight felt weak. She even lost her colours, appearing pale. "S-Success..."
"Twilight! Are you okay!? What happened?!" Cold asked.
"Just a battle with my inner demons, I guess. Don't worry. I'm okay now." She said with baggy eyes.
"You don't look okay." Zero approached. "You look like a withered plant. But I assume this means that you are now a viable vessel for Rift Energy.
"I am...Let's do this. Zecora." Twilight looked to Zecora, knowing what needed to be done. Zecora already had a cup of Rift Magic available, adding some spices to make the taste bearable. Once it was brought over, Twilight could drink through it.
Twilight held her breath, already needing some to drink with her body being dry and devoid of magic. As if she was drinking her least favourite thing in the world, she gulped down the cup of Rift Magic. All of it. Twilight stuck her tongue out as even with the spices, it tasted rather bitter.
As to be expected, upon drinking it, a newfound power had been given to Twilight. The power of the cosmos was flowing within her. Twilight's natural colours started returning to her. Not just that, but upon interacting with this body, the Rift Energy had rebirthed her magic. No need to find a way to bring it back when it had already been done. Her mane started flowing as stars were flying out it.
Everyone stood back and watched in awe as Twilight was reaching a potential of magic that she thought she'd never experience physically. With her own body, of course. And deep within, Horizon Storm had returned. She noticed herself fading back into existence, surprised that it took Twilight this quickly to bring her back.
But even Twilight didn't expect it. The burst of magic was short-lived as the lights faded. But even with all of that dying down, Twilight had now become a vessel. A creature with both magic and Rift Magic within her. "Oh..."
"How do you feel, Twilight?" Cold Colt asked.
"I feel...I feel...Incredible." She looked at her hooves, seeing a purple spark of magic emerge for a split second before vanishing. "So this is what it's like to have Rift Magic."
"And it seems that your theory worked." Zero smiled. "Becoming a vessel allowed you to harness the power of Rift Magic without any drawbacks or random effects."
"It did." Twilight's theory proved to be successful. A new way to harness Rift Magic had been discovered by her. "I took a bit of a gamble there."
"A big one. You're now permanently full of Rift Magic, Twilight." Cold Colt replied.
"Oh!" Twilight had just realized this. Now that she was a vessel, this magic would be forever one with her.
"But this means that you can understand it much better now that you own this power." Zero looked to the bright side. So. What say you? Should we see what you can do?"
"Right. Let's do it." Twilight was eager to see what could be done. "And maybe now, you can be my teacher, Cold."
"Oh geez." Cold Colt laughed as did everyone else at Twilight's joke. All except for Zero, who simply let out out a smirk but was later followed by a tiny chuckle. They had work to do as the race between the two dragons and the two sisters was still going on. But it would be reaching its end soon.
Twilight Sparkle had managed to confront her inner counterpart Horizon Storm, proving to have a larger conviction than her as well as harnessing the power of the Rift. Truly, Twilight felt that she had indeed come far. But there were still ways to go. Including the definitive mission of keeping the two worlds together as the journey continues.
Chapter 770 End.