//------------------------------//
// Ghidorah's Return: Vengeance And New Discoveries (Part 1) 
// Story: The Battle for Equestria: Spike vs. King Ghidorah 
// by Dashzilla93 
//------------------------------//

Fluttershy returned home with Harry, Daryl, and Balkzardan, all four looking around at the damage; Balkzardan winced in dismay at what she saw and the bears were stunned by the damages around the area, but Fluttershy was silent. Like before, everything was still a wreck – all but her home. Barely scratched, but still intact. They even noticed the poor fallen forms of the birds and the ruined chicken coop – the feathers of what used to hold the chickens slowly blowing away from the mess. 

Harry gasped lightly, realizing that despite their best efforts, some of his little friends that he had here at the cottage couldn't make it into the safety of the cottage fast enough. Balkzardan frowned softly as she examined the damages, deep down – she already knew. Only Ghidorah would pull such a cruel cheap shot like this.

Fluttershy… she looked up at the sky, now realizing who it was that did this damage around her home, thanks to being filled in by Balkzardan. The sky was still pitch black and any form of movement of it moving on was out of the question. Even if she used Balkzardan's weather manipulation power, it'd feel like a waste. 

She gritted her teeth and snarled like a canine, Ghidorah did this. He did this to her home. She didn't care if he was a massive three-headed dragon monster… she swore, right here and now, that Ghidorah will pay for this. She was almost caught in her anger for that monster if it weren't for the sound of a concerned grunt that caught her attention.

Harry looked at Fluttershy worriedly. She promised him earlier to take him and Daryl to see Grace. He didn't forget the talk they had before Balkzardan showed up. They arrived as she said; so, where was she?

Fluttershy froze in hesitation, remembering where she was. She looked at him firmly, but with a hint of sadness and regret, despite being still just like Balkzardan, but deep down she was scared and nervous to even show him. She feared he and his son wouldn't take the loss real well. Yes, they had that talk and she gave him the news, but she felt reluctant. She didn't want Harry and Daryl to suffer any more pain than they'd already got. She felt just as much pain telling them as much as experiencing losing Grace, but she had to tell them soon or else anxiety would keep her from accepting how Harry and Daryl would handle it.

Balkzardan, having shrunk down to Harry's size, approached Fluttershy calmly and gently nudged her side, 'I wouldn't keep it from them, Fluttershy.' Balkzardan said. 'It's best if you show them instead of hiding it. They need to know…' Like Fluttershy, Balkzardan felt the same way about all of this. Fluttershy's idea to spare them from suffering such devastating pain had good intentions, but it would cause a rift among them and put them at odds with one another. And they were already here, so there was no point to it.

Fluttershy nodded up at her and looked back to Harry, 'Y-You're right. They deserve to see her.' Fluttershy looked over to Harry, gazed down sadly, and simply motioned him and his son over to the fallen tree near them quietly. The bears look over and found the tree she pointed out, and then they all approached it.

Once Harry looked around the area near the fallen tree, he was immediately struck with shock and horror when he suddenly spotted the body of his mate, his eyes widen in disbelief and horror. He let out a low groaning gasp before his son rushed up, squealing with glee upon finding his mother. 

'Mommy!' Daryl howled in delight as he ran over. 'Mommy! It's you!' He groaned happily, ecstatic to find his mom.

But, Harry… he paused and looked at what used to be his beloved mate, Grace. Her form would've fooled someone that she had been asleep with how still her form was, but piecing what happened together – it was anything but.

Her lower body, crushed from the weight of the fallen tree, and despite it being removed, the damage had been done and she could only use the last of her energy to tell Shy to tell him of what happened to her, before laying her head down and taking her last breath, her final thoughts thinking of him, Daryl and Fluttershy.

Pain and sorrow racked his entire body. Harry reached a paw and tried to call his son back, but he couldn't. His calls were lodged deep in his throat as the unbearable pain of his heart breaking in two began to creep around his body. He slowly dropped down on his backside as tears began to roll down his fuzzy cheeks. Just one look and he knew what was wrong. His mate, his true love, and the mother of their beautiful little cub… was gone. The storm had claimed her; His beloved Grace was dead, and she had left them behind – to continue on without her. He never got a chance to say goodbye.

'Grace…' He weakly groaned, looking at the body of his mate in sheer heartbreak.

Daryl rushed up to his mother, squealing so happy and delighted to know she was there. Was she asleep? He placed his small paws on the side of her head and pushed on her a couple of times with a few happy grunts. That always woke her up. Daryl waited for a second with a bright smile, cooing to her. 'Momma, you can get up now! The storm's over.'

Nothing? 

Odd, why didn't she wake up? Curious, Daryl let out a small shriek before he planted his paws on her cheek again and shook her to wake her up, a little harder this time. 'Mommy, c'mon. Naptime's over!'

Again, nothing? What was going on?

'Mother?' He grunted in concern, 'Why aren't you waking up?'

Why wasn't his mother waking up? Daryl didn't understand, he gazed around her, was she hurt? 'Did the storm hurt you, mommy?'

She had to be playing with him. She'd sometimes be stubborn, but she would always wake up whenever he shook her by the head. Daryl ran around to the front of his mother's head and let out an underdeveloped roar to desperately try and wake her. 'Momma, wake up! What's wrong?!' He let out a weak bellow in her face, 'Wake up!'

If she was in a deep sleep, that was his only option; that would've woken dad up, too.

…But there was still no response. Why? Daryl looked at his sleeping mother, confused and grew worried. He approached his mother's face and nudged her nose, waiting just a little bit – wanting to hear her, to hear her say something.. anything! He listened closely, only to hear nothing. No snore, no groan, no breathing. His mother wasn't waking up!

Really worried, Daryl began to hyperventilate. Something was wrong with his mother, he knew it. 'Mother?' He groaned pleadingly, 'Mother?!' Gazing to her chest, he gasped lightly and scurried over, crawling under her paw, letting it blanket him some. He nuzzled into her fur and listened to her chest, wanting to hear her heartbeat… but to his horror, he didn't hear anything. He had only seen this type of state when his parents brought home fish – at first, the fish would respond a bit, but… then oddly, they stopped – not a sound, not a flap of their tails, not a gasping breath, nothing. Oddly, he couldn't hear a sound from his mom… just like…; the realization soon hit him.

Horrified, the cub started shaking, whimpering lightly as he looked at his mother in fear and horror, tears starting to form in his eyes, 'M-Momma? Y-You can't be… you just… can't be…!!'

Before the others knew it, he started bawling out loud and tried desperately to wake his mother up but to no avail, 'MOMMA!!! GET UP!!!' He screamed at her, trying to get her to rise. Climbing on her back, he shook her shoulders desperately, globs of tears running down his face as he wailed. 'Mom! Mommy! Wake up!' He whimpered as he slid down, but continued to slap his paws on her body, pleading with all his heart that she could hear him. 'Momma…! Please…!' His wailing started to die into whimpers, yet he begged still, 'Don't leave us, momma…'

Fluttershy watched in utter pain as her beloved friends wallowed in grief over their loss. She watched in dread as Daryl looked around the area, likely for someone to help his mom. He charged out a few steps and cried out in vain, 'Help!!! Somebody! Please!!!' He looked around desperately for someone to come help them as he hyperventilated, calling out at the top of his lungs, 'Anybody! Help my mommy! Please!!!' 

'Daryl…' His father sadly but weakly grunted to him, unable to take this much longer, gazing at his baby boy in grief. He wanted to deny this just as much as his son did, but he was no fool. '…She… She's gone…'

His son whimpered and sniffled as he regretfully gave up when he realized no other creature was here but them, hiccupping one last whisper for help. 'Help…' Breaking down into tears, the cub let out tearful whimpers before he looked back to his mother's body, sadly returning to her side. Carefully climbing under her arm like how she would cradle him close when they slept together, he looked up at his mother's relaxed, unresponsive face and placed his head on his mother's furry cheek. His cries were muffled in her fur from his heartbreak and anguish.

She looked over to Harry who sat still before his mate with his head hung low. Sounds of soft, huffing groans could be heard before she hesitantly walked over to him.

"Harry?" Fluttershy tried to grab his attention as she placed a hoof on his back, hoping to get a response. She got one as he slowly turned his head, red eyes of pain and sadness leered down at her. 

'Not now, okay...?' He growled at her a bit firmly, but begging her to leave him be, so he can have a moment

Fluttershy quickly backed off as Harry wiped his teary eyes with his paw before he gazed back at Grace's corpse. He slowly made his way over to her side and laid his body down next to her, as if being near her would warm her body up. He sadly gazed down at his grieving son who nestled and quietly sobbed into her fur, he looked up at her face with great pain. Gingerly rubbing her cheek with a paw, her head only nestled in his claws, her face showing no signs of waking up. With a grieving groan, he rested his head on top of his wife's head, shedding tears of sorrow; he had no words to say, his wife was gone… Fluttershy had fulfilled her promise of bringing him and Daryl here, and now he knew why she had been looking for him, looking so upset when she did. Despite his firmness with her, he knew he couldn't put this kind of blame on her. This wasn't really her fault, he knew it. But, now… the only thing he can do now is bid his wife goodbye, without her being able to hear him and their son crying for her. 

Fluttershy got the message and went back to Balkzardan who felt just as bad for them as she did. Balkzardan watched the two bears with regret, she had winced sharply when she watched Daryl discover on his own why his mother wouldn't respond to his attempts at waking her, and she felt great sorrow for Harry when she saw that anguished, heartbroken look in his eyes when he looked at his caretaker… it was a look she too had on her face once before long ago.

As she joined her, Fluttershy wondered something, if Balkzardan was the daughter of Gaia, "Balkzardan…" She looked up at her slowly, her new friend gazing down at her with her attention grabbed, "Is... is there any way to bring Grace back?" She asked somberly. She gained so much knowledge from Balkzardan after they merged souls and was excited to share this info with her friends, but her excitement neglected to let her ask that part. If there was a way, she would try and do whatever she could to find it.

Balkzardan hesitated when her little friend and merge partner asked her that. She didn't want to outright lie or be straight with her, that would just worsen the pain; she knew Fluttershy was agitated and wanted to push death away from her friend. But, in her years of experience, she's learned the hard ways of life and she pleaded for it to stop; the pain was too much for her. The grieving was overwhelming. "Fluttershy," she said to her in a somber tone but also tried to keep her calm demeanor. 

She had to choose her words wisely here. Even with powers like hers, not even she could fight death back… it was just out of her claws. "I'm so sorry… but… not even gods can help escape death's touch. There's nothing I can do to help her..." She's lost so much growing up. Friends, family, and followers, as a creature born from Gaia, she was given a long lifespan. To some, it would be a blessing; others would find it a curse. But, Balkzardan was split down the middle. Her youth made her believe that it was amazing and that she could be with her followers much longer. But, as time moved on, she began to realize her error of belief and watched as her followers – who she considered friends and family – faded one by one. Even the next generation began to reject her and refuse to worship her for reasons she did not know.

Seeing that the future was going down a dark path and how it was treating itself, Balkzardan could no longer accept any worshipers. She was now a free spirit to do as she pleased. She never looked back, but she could sense that the current generation of her past followers was dwindling in numbers. Yet, there was no call for help, no prayer, nothing that warranted her attention. She ventured on and scoured Equestria for many years until she took refuge in the very forest Fluttershy called her home.

As much as she wanted to help and as far as her knowledge went; even with the powers she currently had that could provide, even if she wanted to, she wasn't sure she could even return life to Fluttershy's fallen friends, or poor Grace… she hated to say it, but from the looks of it, there wasn't anything she could do. "I'm sorry…" She sadly said to her merging partner, looking regretful.

As much as she hated to hear that, it wouldn't be wise to lash out at her for being as honest as she could. Fluttershy got her answer and now there was no other option left to try and bring Grace back. She tilted her head down a little and closed her eyes to mourn her friend once again. But after shedding a few tears, then she began to snarl. Her teeth sharpened as they grit and grind. Her grief turned into anger, and that anger turned into rage; Rage turned into hate! If there was anyone to blame for any of this, it would be the pony that released King Ghidorah from his prison. If she was not gonna bring Grace back then her only option was to find that heartless pony... and beat them with every inch of their life. 

Her blood boiled, her teeth clenched, her hooves balled up, and her heart raced! Adrenaline kicked up like a jet engine. Her wings spread open as electricity crackled between her feathers and then streamed around her entire body. Balkzardan watched as the once timid, kind, and peaceful Fluttershy took a backseat, and in her place stood a sparking, deiform phoenix of vengeance and fury.

Fluttershy looked up at Balkzardan. Her eyes beamed with eagerness and determination; she was ready to fight. And with Balkzardan's teachings, fear had no part in any of this.

Balkzardan shared the same determination and willfulness to fight. She may not be as powerful as King Ghidorah, but that wasn't gonna stop her. And besides, her fellow guardians were not far behind.

"You ready?" Balkzardan asked Fluttershy. The charged-up mare gave the thunder tiger a confident smile.

Fluttershy nodded, "Let's kick some ass."

Balkzardan brightly scattered into light particles and, like a river, streamed over to Fluttershy and began to merge with her. Like a will-o-wisp glowing in the night sky, Fluttershy's body began to light up, catching her grieving friend's attention just barely as the light spread, shining as bright as the sun. They looked on in disbelief as Balkzardan's power transformed her...

Like Balkzardan, Fluttershy's head sprouted a shark-like fin that met at her forehead. Her yellow fur was replaced with a smooth cotton-white as armor-like plates coated parts of her body from legs up to her neck; She bore no spikes on her armor like Balkzardan had but she possessed black ridges on her shins and forearms that overlapped one another in fours. Her tail slithered and morphed from its pink droopy style to a long, white whip-like tail that nearly resembled the bark of a cedar tree. The stubs of her wings hardened and turned into dark-colored, wing-like protrusions with a single claw between the joints; her feathers were vaporized and in their place formed electric feathers that generated power – almost as if they were ghosts of the previous feathers.

Fluttershy folded her new wings and snapped her eyes open as small sparks flew out. She looked around before she gazed at her new form, surprised and somewhat shocked. She expected to merge with her new friend, but she never expected something like this.

Then it dawned on her, "Huh, now I know how Twilight felt when she became an alicorn." Though, unlike Twilight's case, she didn't float in the air like some cheesy cartoon cliché where the main character underwent some kind of transformation. Hell no! This was the kind of transformation that was down-to-earth and quick on the draw. That was the kind of badass transformation she liked and it felt great that it happened to her. Not only that, but she felt powerful, too.

She smiled deviously. The number of ideas to kick whoever was behind this whole things ass was in the millions. She then thought about the abilities Balkzardan mentioned. Weather manipulation was one, but... there was also...

"That's right, I almost forgot," admiring her new form was gonna have to wait. She turned to face Ponyville and hunkered down a bit like she was in a track race. She gazed back a little to see Harry and Daryl, eyeing her in awe, disbelief yet the grief they had was still in them as they almost clung to Grace's body, their eyes wide in shock at her transformation. They almost wanted to ask what she was doing, but they couldn't – because a part of them, deep inside, may already know what she was doing. She softened her firm face and let them see the regretful look in her eye, but the loving face she had always given them… "I promise… whoever unleashed the bastard who did this…" Her glare returned as she looked to the stormy sky, "…I will make sure they pay dearly." She scowled before her body began to charge up. She will get revenge; mark her words she will get revenge for Harry and Daryl; Grace's death will not be in vain. Fluttershy looked straight ahead at Ponyville with a firm glare... 

'Extreme Speed,' Fluttershy thought as she launched herself forward, instantly making a highspeed dash to Ponyville with lightning trailing behind her.


**** 


Twilight started to regain consciousness. Her eyelids quivered as she grunted groggily. Slowly, she started to crack her eyes open, but that proved to be kind of a challenge. Whatever hit her earlier hit her harder than anything she's ever felt before.

She then heard muffled voices next to her as the ringing in her ears slowly cleared. How far, she didn't know and couldn't tell. Her head throbbed too much to even make a guess who was with her or where she was at. She drained so much of her magic that she assumed she was gonna be in a coma or something. All she knew now was that she wasn't in a coma, she was very much alive and she was somewhere with someone. And as for that someone, the only words she was able to pick up from them were 'wake up', 'rags', and her name. She then felt something soft, light, and warm embrace her body, and something fluffy and just as soft cup the back of her head. She had no idea what was going on, but she was fine to know she didn't wake up to any trouble. Once her brain finally stopped its unbearable rattling, she could only make a few guesses as to where she was at. And judging what was on her, she was in some kind of bed. A hospital, maybe? That would be a great relief for her. She mentally sighed to herself, but that quickly backfired when her body began to tense up as the pain she received before came back to catch up on old times.

Twilight grunted and groaned from this unbearable pain. She made a mistake using up all her magic like that and now her body was straining to stay together. Ironic as it was, no amount of healing magic could fix what she caused on herself. But, she had to know where she was at. So, much like how her brother deals with physical pain, she powered through it like a soldier and slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry and all she saw was an orange blur but she could barely tell who was in the room with her. The muffled voices came back and seemed as though they were talking directly at her. Try as she might, she couldn't hold it back any longer and the pain came back. She winced in agony and held herself close, "Ow, son of a – " she cried out from the pain but the orange blur suddenly reached out and placed what felt like a hoof on her shoulder. Twilight froze from the touch.

"Take it easy, Twi," the ringing in her ears finally cleared as she heard a familiar southern voice next to her. Twilight blinked a couple of times before her vision finally cleared up, "You're gonna be fine, now." Twilight saw Applejack, but Mrs. Cake and Rarity were with her, too.

Twilight was relieved she was among friends, but, 'fine' was not the right word to use to describe how she felt right now. "A-Applejack, w-what happened?" she asked as she tried to sit up, but another hoof placed itself on her shoulder once Applejack removed hers and stopped her before she could. "Where are the others?"

"I wouldn't get up so quick, dear," Mrs. Cake said, calmly and had to prevent Twilight from pushing herself so soon. "You and Rainbow Dash took a nasty crash through our roof. You two were lucky you both landed on a bed." When she and her husband rushed to the guestroom just upstairs they found them unconscious but alive. Pinkie Pie didn't waste any time helping before they went to work. 

"The others are fine. Rainbow Dash woke up minutes before you and she went outside with Pinkie Pie," Applejack explained to hopefully calm Twilight down. "Rarity, the cakes and I have been keeping an eye on you."

Twilight looked at Mrs. Cake, calmly. As much as she wanted to get up, Mrs. Cake had a point. She lay back on her bed but grunted in pain when she did.

"Twilight, darling, how are you feeling?" Rarity asked, worried out of her mind about what happened to her and Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash got up fine earlier, but Twilight looked like she wasn't gonna wake up for a long time, then hearing her in pain didn't make things any better. She felt ashamed she didn't learn any healing spells growing up. It would've been really helpful right about now.

Twilight grunted before she looked at Rarity and cracked a small smile at her to let her know she was fine, even though, "I feel like I got stomped on by a Celestia-damn hydra and my head hurts like I got flicked aside by an adult dragon – like that red one we dealt with years ago, but, other than that, I'm doing just fine," Twilight tried to joke with her to lighten Rarity's mood a little, but she did feel like hell. That made Rarity lighten up a little, but she wouldn't deny that the worry and scare in the room was an obvious elephant. 

"I'm fine, girls. Really. Don't worry about me," Still, she couldn't remember much of what happened earlier. It was all so bizarre. Twilight rubbed the left side of her head to ease her slight headache but she hissed sharply and jerked her hoof away. She must've hit her head harder than she thought. Just her luck.

Yet, Rainbow Dash was involved in the crash? When did that happen? Twilight looked at Applejack, Mrs. Cake, and Rarity, worried and curious about what happened while she was out and what happened to everyone else. She had to know about Rainbow Dash. What happened after that crash. "What happened to Rainbow Dash?" then it dawned on her that the cloud outside might still be out there! "Is.. is that cloud still around?" She started to remember and the cloud was the first thing that came to mind.

Twilight expected worried looks from her friends, but to her utter surprise and confusion, all three of them shared the same confused look as if they had no idea how to answer that question; in fact, they couldn't.

"Well, it's a little tough to explain, but..." Applejack replied.

But Rarity chimed in and calmly explained it as best as she could. For what they saw when Twilight was out cold needed a proper explanation, "Well, Twilight, while you were unconscious, Rainbow Dash woke up the minute you two crashed into Sugar Cube Corner."

Twilight raised a brow, confused as all hell as to what Rarity just said, "Okay, I'll bite. Are you telling me that she woke up before me? That's good, right?" She didn't see anything wrong with that. Rainbow Dash waking up before her should be good news. So, why were they behaving so dumbfoundedly?

Rarity shook her head, "No, Twilight. Well, yes, it's good she did, but what I mean is that when you two crashed, you were unconscious on top of her and she got up like nothing ever happened. No scratches, scraps, bruises, nothing. It's like she brushed it off like it was nothing."

Twilight looked a little befuddled before she widened her eyes in disbelief when the realization finally hit her. Was she being serious right now? No, she had to be joking right now, "Wait, wait, that can't be right. Both of us crashed, right? Then both of us should have been unconscious if the impact was that hard. You're telling me she just got up and walked it off like it was no big deal?" That didn't make any sense at all. And Rarity said she was on top of Rainbow Dash out cold, too; that part made sense. But she couldn't wrap her head around the part about Rainbow Dash. Her head was already hurting enough, she didn't need this brain-twister!

Applejack spoke up next, still confused about all of this, "Honest, Twilight, it was the most weirdest thing we've ever seen too. We would've confronted her about it, but we had to let you know first." Applejack looked at Twilight with firm, serious eyes. She wasn't lying if her life depended on it and what she and the others saw looked like it belonged in a dream. She was no wizard at math, but seeing two ponies crash into a building at such a high speed to create a strong impact should've equated to two very messed up, very battered, very broken, very without-a-doubt KO'd ponies in the impact zone. Apparently, math decided to exit stage left while saying 'to hell with this!' and never came back.

And believe she did. One of the best things about Applejack was her habit of always telling the truth; whether good, bad, or just wanting to be a bitch with her gift, Applejack's tongue never told a single lie. And that the truth was always her specialty. So right now, if Applejack was acting like this, then no doubt there was something going on here. Whatever Rainbow Dash did got her, Rarity, and Mrs. Cake nervous and speculating.

Then it started to come back to her, piece by piece, "Okay, I believe you girls." Ever since that thundercloud showed up, things haven't been acting right. And speaking of said cloud, Twilight looked out the window next to her and saw darkness linger over the sky. Ponyville wasn't encased in a dark haze, so that was good. So, the first thing that needed to be done was to go find the others and see what they know, "Still, Applejack, I don't know how long I'll be here, so I'd like for you to go and find – "

"Twilight!" Pinkie Pie suddenly burst the guestroom door open and made a mad dash towards Twilight, leaving a small gust of wind passing Rarity and Applejack. The excited pink mare lunged and pulled Twilight in for a hug so tight the others thought they heard Twilight squeak like a squeaky toy. As much as she liked to admit it was easy to find Pinkie Pie, Twilight didn't expect her to suddenly bust in shedding tears and nearly crushing her already hurt ribs. Pinkie Pie knew from the get-go Twilight was awake and she couldn't help but make a dash faster than Rainbow Dash's record-breaking dash to go see her; that was her Pinkie sense in a nutshell. And she was glad it was right. Pinkie Pie was so happy to see Twilight was awake and not dead. That would've been a bad day for not only her but everyone else, in her honest opinion, there's been enough doom and gloom for one day.

"Pinkie, ...choking, ...not breathing," Twilight was thrilled to see Pinkie Pie was back, but damn it, she could use some air right now! Not to mention, "Body...in... incredible... pain!" If her body didn't sound like it was breaking, her body sure as shit did now and it became incredibly obvious.

Applejack winced and quickly called out to Pinkie Pie, "Pinkie, let her go! If she wasn't hurt before, she is now!" Applejack got that Pinkie Pie was happy and relieved, but she needed to cool her jets and let Twilight breathe for Celestia's sake!

"Huh?" Pinkie Pie looked back at Applejack then back at Twilight who looked more purple than her already purple face and tried so hard to keep air perfectly sealed in her lungs, but were failing miserably. Pinkie Pie gasped, "Oh!" before she quickly released Twilight so she could inhale as much air as she could before breathing easily, "Sorry, Twilight." Pinkie Pie smiled apologetically and innocently before she wiped the tears from her eyes.

Twilight took a few deep alleviating breaths as she was finally able to steady herself after enduring Pinkie Pie's infamous death-grip hugs, holding herself carefully yet steady with wide eyes from such a grip. But she reassured her, "It's alright, Pinkie. At least you popped my back into place," She joked, but she wouldn't lie to herself thinking she didn't need more of a reason to get severe pain medication after that, although her lungs were still intact, and that was awesome in her book. She looked at Pinkie Pie and chuckled at her, despite being in slight pain, and wanted to let her know she was alive and well. But, she still needed to get up regardless if she was still injured because of the issue outside. If that cloud was still out there, they need to know what it was doing.

Twilight's calm demeanor shifted to serious. At this point, she didn't care if she was injured, she had to be out there, "But, I can't stay in this bed any longer. I have to know what's going on outside. Why a cloud is suddenly came to life." She threw her sheets off her and slowly tried to get out of her bed, but she was stopped when Rarity spoke up.

"Careful, Darling," Rarity warned her, "That nasty crash nearly tore you up. All of us are surprised you're still in one piece, but please don't strain yourself." Then it clicked to Rarity, she brought over a mirror outside of the hall and place it in front of Twilight so she can take a look at herself. "Take a look, Twilight." She almost forgot about that. It probably wasn't a smart move to show Twilight her injuries. But, she had to know one way or another. Probably should've done that before.

When she looked in the mirror, Twilight gasped a little at what she saw. She widened her eyes in shock and got a good look at herself, her eyes drifting down toward her body. That explains why she had a bit of trouble moving. Her head and horn were wrapped in white bandages but a gauze pad with a fainted, dried bloodstain stuck out from the left side of her head, being wrapped and pinned by a single secondary layer of bandages – that explained the sharp pain in her head.

The rest of her body from her back legs to her chest were wrapped in similar bandages with some blood stains seeped through. She looked at her wings and noticed her right wing had another gauze near the stem and it almost lacked some feathers on it as if they were pulled out. Her left wing was snug against her body being held and wrapped by a second layer of bandages that were wrapped around her ribs. She tried stretching her wings to no avail; they were pinned pretty well.  She winced at herself for what she became and couldn't believe she survived the ordeal. Not only did she feel like a wreck, but she also looked like living roadkill. She was beside herself but she didn't fuss about it. It did embarrass her a little to find herself looking almost like a mummy, though her friends were right – she was alive, and that should really matter.

She glanced at her friends once Rarity moved the mirror back outside the hall. Ignoring the sore pain in her body and the injuries she sustained, she had to know what happened while she was out. Was there an attack? Did anyone else survive?

"What happened while I was out?" Twilight asked, a look of firmness in her eyes. "How long was I out?"

"You were asleep for four whole hours, Twilight. Four. Whole. Hours!" Pinkie Pie chimed. "We tried everything from water to balloons, but nothing would wake you up. You were unconscious longer than Rarity when she hears about or sees a celebrity pony." Pinkie Pie joked as she smiled crookedly, trying to joke to lighten the mood. So, jabbing at one of her friends was the best thing she pulled out on her mane, aside from the water bottle, balloon, and various other things she stored in that pocket dimension she called her hair. 

Rarity wasn't too keen on that little jab and just couldn't help but give Pinkie Pie a light scowl and her lower lip out in a puffy pout at her bubbly friend, "Hey!" Pinkie Pie just snickered and cheekily and cutely stuck her tongue out, expecting a look like that from Rarity.

Twilight tilted her head in slight confusion, blinking a few times and trying so hard to process what she just said. She was out for four hours? Really? "No, no, that can't be right, can it?" She looked to everyone else for a second opinion. Pinkie Pie was always good with jokes and it was hard to tell if she was serious or not; hopefully, someone else can confirm that.

Lucky for her, someone did! Applejack chuckled at Pinkie's silliness and shook her head before she stepped in and took over, confirming her cousin's words, "It's true. What Pinkie said was no lie, sort of. You were actually unconscious for two hours, not four; that was an exaggeration." Applejack didn't look at Pinkie Pie, but she heard her whistle behind her; she knew what she did! "We tried all we could to wake you up, but we couldn't budge you even if we tried our hardest. And I thought a hungry ox on Hay Day was impossible to budge. We thought that crash tore you up something fierce. So, we just decided to wait until you woke up on your own."

"That's what I just said!" Like Rarity, Pinkie Pie made the same pouty face at Applejack but Applejack did not give two ounces of a damn about it.

Jabs aside, though the throw-back by Applejack was well deserved, Rarity spoke next and explained her side of the story, and felt some pony needed a little bit of praise, "But, lucky for us, Mrs. Cake had a first-aid kit to patch you up before you could wake," Rarity said as she patted a very bashful, blushing Mrs. Cake on the shoulder when she was revealed to have the appropriate kit to help patch their friend up. "Really, she did all the hard work." She would've gladly stepped up and helped Mrs. Cake, but mother-mode was on high alert and she had no issue with patching Twilight up. She made a mental note to ask Mrs. Cake for advice later when this whole cloud shenanigan was dealt with.

Mrs. Cake blushed brightly and smiled enthusiastically. The praise wasn't well needed, but she appreciated it nonetheless, "Oh, it's was no trouble, at all. I just didn't want to see our new princess all beaten up."  It wasn't. Once they got Twilight on her bed, she went to work right away. Her husband also worked on the hole left in the roof, albeit with extra wooden boards, but he did pitch in, too. But, it was more important to save the princess.

Twilight smiled at Applejack's honest answer and was glad to know it wasn't longer than four hours. Pinkie Pie had to work on controlling her excitement, "Thank you, Applejack. It's good to know it wasn't that long." Still, she looked at Mrs. Cake astonished that she went through so much trouble just to get her to recover. "And thank you, Mrs. Cake. I'll make it up to you and your husband when all of this is over." Though deep down, she wished Mrs. Cake didn't refer to her as a princess, but she refrained as always. 

Then she started to panic. Rainbow Dash hadn't returned and there was an unknown force outside that might be dangerous to Ponyville, "What are we still doing standing around? We have to stop that cloud before it – " Twilight hopped off but Applejack quickly caught her so she could trip over herself.

"Whoa, whoa!" Applejack carefully held onto Twilight's shoulders. "Relax, Twilight. I wasn't finished, yet," She released the alicorn and continued, "The cloud is still out there, but it hasn't done anything, so far."

Twilight raised a confused brow once she gained her barrings. She may have woken up, but her body didn't win the race and was a little late, "It hasn't?" For the past few hours, the cloud hadn't done a single thing? Twilight was now curious more than anything.

Mrs. Cake shook her head and told Twilight, "No, not at all. All it's been doing is just standing around making weird, ominous noises… and a creepy sound like bells ringing, unlike anything I ever heard." Just like her, everyone else nodded in agreement. So, there was no point in checking in. "But, I'm guessing Rainbow Dash is still out there keeping an eye on it."

At least she now knew where Rainbow Dash was. But she still wanted to see the cloud, too. Twilight struggled to move but her legs were only wobbling her to fall back down, "Uh, a little help, Applejack?" Twilight asked as Applejack caught her before she went down. Her arm wrapped around her shoulder.

"Okay, you're in no condition to walk, but we know there ain't nothin' gonna stop you," Applejack said. "Might as well just use me as crutches for now." Applejack chuckled, making a joke that got a legit laugh out of not only Twilight but Pinkie Pie and the others, too.

But then it dawned on Applejack, "Wait, Twilight, before we go out there. I gotta ask you something." Twilight looked at her curiously. "What exactly happened out there? You looked like you and the other unicorns had everything under control. Then, suddenly, you exploded back to here. What happened?"

That was a good question and they almost forgot that even happened. Twilight, Amethyst, and the other unicorns involved with that barrier all seemed like they had everything under control. Then, suddenly, she started to freak out over something and that disrupted the flow of keeping the barrier in place. And, all of a sudden, there was an explosion, and Twilight was sent back, making it to where they are now.

Twilight paused when that question was asked. She took a moment to think back about an answer to it. Applejack was right. Amethyst, the other unicorns, and she did have everything under control and it seemed like they had things in the bag. Then, everything just went black and she couldn't figure out where she was. Until she saw... something. She couldn't quite figure out exactly what it was or who she met, but she recalled it was interested in her, for some reason. Then it started to flash before she snapped out of her stupor and went crazy.

If explaining to her what happened to Rainbow Dash was hard, then this was gonna be damn near impossible for her to explain to her friends. In fact, how could she explain it? Was it a demon? A ghost? A giant spirit? Its eyes looked bug-like so could it be one of Chrysalis's relatives trying to get a hold of her? She just didn't know and it baffled her.

"Uh," but she had to keep this on the down-low. She didn't want to confuse her friends any further, so she had to come up with something. Anything! They were waiting for an answer, "I, uh, I... sneezed! Yeah, I sneezed."

Everyone just looked at her confused, as always. Really? She just sneezed and that was what made the barrier crumble and almost got herself killed? Applejack looked a little suspicious when she noticed Twilight wasn't acting all serious with it. She then looked to Rarity for a second, then back to Twilight, and pondered.

"Alright, then," Applejack said, buying it, for now. Even Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Mrs. Cake were having a tough time believing it, but they'll roll with it. They had more pressing matters to attend to.

Twilight was relieved, but she mentally pummeled herself for lying to her friends like that. 'This'll bite me in my ass later. I know it will, I just know it.' Twilight thought as she predicted what might happen down the line. Seeing as how Applejack was a walking lie detector, that was so clearly the case!

As they walked into the hallway, Mrs. Cake heard her foals crying in the master bedroom. She sighed softly and knew what that meant, "Looks like my husband is having trouble calming the twins down. You girls go on ahead." 

Pinkie Pie wanted to say something but she knew she had to be with her friends if there was bigger trouble. She watched Mrs. Cake leave but felt like the twins would've calmed down if she were there, too. But, it was all for not, "I'll see you soon, Mrs. Cake. If you need help with the twins, I won't hesitate to come back and help." Mrs. Cake took note of that, but when she left it was just them now.

Once they were outside, they were met with a sight that looked like it came straight out of a horror movie. The cloud was there, above and around Ponyville. It nearly covered the skies in thick darkness, blocking the sun's light. It moved like it mimicked the wind yet it seemed like it stayed perfectly still. What baffled the ponies just as much was that the theory of a dark haze looming through Ponyville was out the window because Ponyville was perfectly intact and not covered in mysterious black fog like they thought it would be. Not even a hint of light mist. Nothing. Other ponies and buildings could be seen as clear as day; everything was in one piece. Her friends were right. The cloud never budged, but that didn't stop it from making it give them an unwanted chill down their spines. This wasn't making a whole lot of sense.

Twilight took a moment to think about what they were dealing with. Then she thought back about what Rainbow Dash told her and the others, 'If what Rainbow Dash said was true and that clouds wouldn't normally behave this way, then, what if...' her ears perked up, and her eyes widened, "What if it isn't a cloud?" It may be a crazy thought, but there couldn't be any other reason and now she just realized.

Her friends looked at her confused by what she meant by that. Not a cloud? That can't be right, can it?

"Uh, Twilight? I think you hit your head harder than we thought," Applejack said, not sure how to process what she just heard. "I don't recall anything controlling a cloud that big."

Rarity nodded, agreeing with that notion. It just didn't add up one bit, "She has a point, Twilight. What else could it be other than a cloud?"

Twilight shook her head and threw their words out of her ears, but a small ounce of her couldn't help but agree that it did sound outlandish, "I know it sounds crazy, but think about it. What if this isn't a cloud? What if something inside there is producing this … whatever it is?" She motioned to the hazy wall before them. But, still, this was beyond anything she could comprehend, and trying to figure out what was be causing it would be a much bigger headache. If what Rainbow Dash said was true, then this would be something different, something new, and something possibly way more dangerous than they could handle. The thoughts kept rushing through her head until Pinkie Pie erupted her vocal cords and got her attention.

"Well, why don't we ask her? She's right there with Amethyst," Pinkie Pie Pointed to the bridge where Rainbow Dash and Amethyst stood.

Pinkie Pie was right. There was no time to waste anymore. Twilight nodded and motioned her friends to move. They needed to tell Rainbow Dash what they discovered... or what Twilight discovered. They rushed as quickly as they could to Rainbow Dash. Applejack held Twilight steadily as she did, even though it really would've been best if Twilight stayed in bed, but she never listened to her. So, why bother?


******


"So, what are we doing just standing around?" Pyrah asked, getting impatient with his brothers and their little stowaway, all three who are keeping their eyes keenly on the town, searching for who dared tried to link with them. "Let's kill these gnats before I get bored here!"

"Calm yourself, brother," Anidelpha said. "Did you forget a link bearer resides in this location? It's best we try and find out who it is before we attack."

"Tch, whatever," Pyrah huffed and looked away. "I still think we should attack anyway. I'm itching for blood here!"

Yet, he was ignored by his other brother and their little ally who eyed Ponyville carefully. Grevada knew damn well someone tried to link with him and his brothers. Unlike them who wanted one thing, he wanted both. Talk first, then destroy; it was a perfect balance he at least abided by.

"Shit, I'm not seeing anything… even with our size, I can't make out anything down there," Grevada said, mildly agitated. He looked down at his ally, "What about you? Do you see anything?"

The hooded mare, however, didn't have a lot of trouble and spotted little in that small town. And that little was right in front of them and never moved an inch. She tilted her head, curiously and announced to him, "There," she pointed through the mist wall down at two ponies who stared at them with powerful concentration. "I believe she came to us, boys." It was a hypothesis, but she had a feeling one of those ponies could be the link-bearer that bother them earlier.

Grevada, Anidelpha, and Pyrah lowered their heads down to her level and peered down in her direction, spotting a pegasus and unicorn leering up at them, looking all serious and stuff. From their point of view, the two ponies were unaware of their presence. But to the brothers, it was a hilarious sight seeing them show no fear. But, oh they will when they see them.

But, to the hooded mare, something about what happened had her pondering. If a pony was able to link, what does that mean for other ponies who can do the same? Can all of them do that? No, that couldn't be the case. Something didn't add up here and it seemed like she had to take this personally. As much as she hated to admit it, she'd have to put her plan on hold and find out just what the hell was going on. What was a link-bearer?

"Ooo, nosey neighbors, huh?" Pyrah cackled menacingly, eager to deal with them. "Let me have a go. I want to see some roasted –"

"I'll talk to them, Pyrah," the hooded mare cut in.

He faceplanted on the ground and growled, looking very displeased "—Bitch!"

"Are you sure?" Anidelpha asked, curious about her intentions there. "I don't know if that's a great plan. What if they accuse you of something like this?" He knew she was a strong spirit, but even she couldn't take on a mob of ponies possessed with accusations. They could jump her like a pack of zombies. And he really didn't want that.

That was a good observation, but she doubted that would ever happen. Anidelpha did not know about today's ponies and how unbearably dense they can actually be. She heard rumors that one pony shared a lie with another and that pony believed them without a second thought; it caused a pandemic of hate and malice that she couldn't help but laugh at her own kind for how easily moronic they can be. If only she met the one who started that, she'd shake their hoof, claw, or whatever.

She merely shook her head with a light chuckle and said in a focused tone, "You forget how gullible modern ponies can be, Anidelpha." She then snickered deviously, already forming an idea that could possibly fool these morons down below. "I'll act as a survivor that crossed through this wall you three made. They'll wonder how I survived and ask what I've seen. I'll play it off like I saw something, and... Pyrah, you'll get your fun." As much as she hated him, she knew she couldn't leave him out specifically on this part. "If one of those ponies is a 'Link-bearer', they'll try to link back up to you and you'll get a chance to scare them as much as you want. I'm sure scaring is on your to-do list or something." 

Pyrah's to-do list actually involved blood, carnage, and screams. His epicurean view of a burning world was a sight he longed to see and he wanted nothing more than that. He scoffed at the thought of scaring measly whelps. Scaring was not as fun as – then again… that had him thinking. He loved killing, that much was obvious, but he also adored the fear on his victims' faces before he executed them. Hearing them scream was a marvelous chorus to him and it did make sense to hear that rather than going for an immediate kill. He looked at the hood mare surprised before he ultimately cooperated with her on this, for once, "Fine. At least I'll have SOME fun with this." He found it hard to believe this pony was thinking of him when she planned this. She really does care! And he absolutely hated it.

"Hold it," Grevada said, yielding the mare before she could go. He noticed something off as he quickly brought up something crucial she should hear. "If you're going to use that plan, you might want to remove that hood of yours. It'd be best if they see your face rather than that disguise."

He didn't really care what went down, but he was keen on finding errors when it was necessary. But, this plan she concocted seemed thoroughly calculated. But, there was a piece in that plan she neglected to tell them. Almost as if she wanted to hide it for a bit before telling them. Grevada kept that note mentally locked and if what she was doing was true, he'll bring it up to her.

The hooded mare took a minute to think about that. She felt contumacious about throwing the hood away; hesitant, even. Ever since she went down this path of revenge, the hood – no, her robe was the only piece of her life she had left that defined who she was. Because of it, she hid herself from the world and confined her appearance so no one would look at the monster underneath. What Grevada said was a good point, but would she risk throwing away something she held on to for so long? Ponies were oblivious creatures, that much was true, but they weren't that oblivious to notice something off with some random stranger. She winced at the thought and shook her head, refusing to remove her robe. 

"I see your point, Grevada," the hooded mare said before she swiped her hood back to reveal a vanilla-colored unicorn mare with a mahogany-mane that reached to her shoulders. She leered her cotton-white eyes with dark-gray circle patterns around them down at Ponyville; the underside of her eyes was also accompanied by a light-red coloring that trailed down to the bottom of her jaw. Her umber irises beamed at the two ponies still in her sights.

"But, I'm still going along with my plan," The hooded mare known as Scarlet Gem started to ignite her horn with electrical magic before she disappeared in a sudden bolt of lightning, heading directly to Ponyville.