In the wake of the Sorceress’s attack on Ponyville, the entire community came together to help the children that had lost their parents. Some children got in contact with their grandparents or aunts and uncles while others sought help from neighbors and any adults able to help out. Children that had no relatives nearby occupied several rooms in the crystal palace. Inside the map room, Pinkie Pie, Buttercream, Starlight Glimmer, Sunburst, Trixie and several other adults were inside tending to them with snacks, water and tissue boxes. Some of them even sat down with the children to console them and provide as much encouragement as possible.
“I hope they’re all right,” Annie said as she wiped her tears while Chip had his arm around her.
“Me too. What kind of monster goes after parents?” Pumpkin asked.
“We’ll find em, Pumpkin,” Pinkie told her. “Your parents are tougher than they look. Trust me. I’ve known them for a while now.”
“Just where is that dumb Sorceress?” Stormy said, angrily while flying. “I’ll make her pay for taking Mommy and Daddy from me! She’s got it coming!”
“Now, now, Stormy.” Windy Whistles told her grandson as she patted him on the head. “We have the Elements of Harmony and all the teachers are in town. I’m sure they’re on their way here right now.”
“It’d be nice if we didn’t have to use them though,” Chip said. “I’m sure Discord could take on this creature and beat her lickety-split.”
The doors then swung open and Luna, Spike and all the teachers showed up. Everyone turned their heads and Starlight and Sunburst rushed forward to talk to Luna.
“Luna, Spike! Uh…where’s Flurry?” asked Pound.
“She had to stay behind,” Spike answered. “Since her parents are gone, she’s the princess regent and she’s gotta help out in the Crystal Empire.”
“Oh. Yikes. That’s gotta be stressful. I hope she’s doing okay right now.”
“Well, what about the Sorceress?” asked Starlight
“We had an encounter with her in the Crystal Empire. She is more powerful than I was expecting,” Luna responded.
“Wait… Princess, you fought her?” asked Gallus.
“Yes, but I barely stood a chance and Discord could not stop her either.”
“Geez, even Discord was outmatched?”
“Discord is powerful, but he was no match. We cannot rely on him right now, but none of that matters anymore. We have the Elements.”
“Well what are we waiting for!” shouted Stormy. “Let’s go beat that Sorceress to a pulp!”
“Hold on now, young Storm Streak. There is more you all must know about the Sorceress. The Sorceress is a nightmare, just like the one that infected me and brought about Nightmare moon. This one has taken a pony we are all familiar with: Cozy Glow.”
Everyone in the room gasped collectively.
“WHAT?!” Pinkie exclaimed.
Stormy suddenly looked very afraid. He began to shudder, remembering the time he first met her when she had the Alicorn Amulet.
“Co-Co-Cozy Glow?”
He zoomed away at high speeds and hid behind his grandparents. Everyone else began to murmur in their confusion.
“That thing is Cozy Glow?” Trixie asked, scratching her head.
“Little pony… turn into Sorceress?” asked Yona.
“I guess that makes sense. She’s been so depressed about not knowing her parents; she’s taking her anger out on every kid the same age as her by going after their parents. Our parents made the cut too,” said Sandbar as his little sister walked in next to him.
“That poor filly,” Ocellus added as she hung her head. “If Luna’s transformation is anything noteworthy, Cozy is in a constant state of suffering right now.”
“Nightmare demons are complicated beings,” Luna said. “The Sorceress isn’t truly Cozy Glow; it is a physical manifestation of the misery and pain she has been in throughout her entire life. Once it has built up, it takes over and uses her body as a vessel. I have already seen how much anguish the child is in. We must free her.”
“Poor Cozy. I know she’s done a lot of wrong before, but I can’t help but feel bad for her,” said Buttercream as she petted Fern and Pine Cone.
“Do we still not know who her parents are?” asked Fern.
“Not yet,” said Spike as he walked over to comfort Annie and Chip. “Twilight’s been looking everywhere for them. She managed to locate the orphanage that Cozy was raised in, but it went out of business years ago and the building is dilapidated. We haven’t found anyone claiming to be her parents yet.”
“Well, we still have the Elements,” Silverstream said.
“That’s right. Spike, can you show us where they are?” Smolder asked.
“Right over here.”
Spike walked over to his crystal chair in front of the Cutie Map and slid it aside. While he did this, Buttercream walked over to introduce herself to Smolder.
“Hey, you’re Smolder, right?” she asked.
“Yeah? Oh, you’re Spike’s sister, aren’t you?” Smolder replied as she shook Buttercream’s hand.
“That’s me. It’s great to finally meet you. I’m just sorry it had to be during a time like this.”
As they spoke, Spike finished sliding the chair. Underneath was a trap door. He tapped it firmly with his foot and the door opened to reveal all six of the Element pendants. Luna used her magic to take them all out and give to each of the teachers.
“So that’s what the Elements look like?” asked Pound as he flew in to examine the pendants.
“Wow, they do look pretty nifty and unique,” Pinkie added. “Back when we had ours, they all looked the same apart from the little cutie mark gem thingies in the center.”
“But will they work? I thought they didn’t work on Cozy back when she had the amulet,” Pine Cone said.
“We are out of options, little one,” said Luna. “They did not work on Cozy last time because of the Safeguard Bracelet. The Elements were used on me to exorcise Nightmare Moon; they have to work on Cozy.”
“Well, now’s our chance to give it a try,” said Smolder as she and her friends all donned their pendants. “You guys ready?”
“Yona ready!” said Yona.
“Just one question: how do we know where she’s gonna be?” asked Gallus.
“I think we just got our answer, sweetie,” Silverstream said, pointing to the map.
Everyone gathered around the map to see the hologram of Equestria appear. There was a glowing orb hovering over Canterlot.
“So she’s in Canterlot. That was helpful,” Smolder said.
“Well, Princess, think you can teleport us there real quick?” Ocellus asked Luna.
Before Luna could reply, everyone heard Spike burp and blow fire. They all looked to see he had just received a letter from Twilight. He quickly opened the letter and read it aloud.
Spike, get the Elements for the teachers and send them to Manehattan immediately. I’ve just received word that the Sorceress is starting to abduct parents over there. Send me a reply letting me know when they’re ready.
Twilight
As Spike began writing a reply on the back of the scroll, everyone else began questioning the contents of the letter.
“Wait, she’s in Manehattan?” asked Starlight.
“Then why map show us Canterlot?” Yona added.
“Maybe that’s something else,” Sunburst said as he carefully observed the map. “It could be a friendship report that’s unrelated, but I highly doubt the map would show us that in such a time.”
“Then what’s happening in Canterlot that’s related to all this?” Buttercream asked.
“We don’t have time to deal with Canterlot,” Luna told them. “If the Sorceress is in Manehattan, than it’s Manehattan we must go. Everyone, gather around me and link arms. Spike, stay here with the others and keep the children safe. When we are done, we will bring Cozy Glow back here and hopefully all the parents will reappear by their children automatically.”
“You got it, Luna. Take it easy out there, guys,” Spike replied, giving Luna thumbs-up.
All the teachers did as Luna said and linked their arms, while Ocellus and Sandbar at the end put their hooves on her shoulders. Luna cast a teleportation spell, and in an instant, they were on a sidewalk in downtown Manehattan. They all let go of each other and looked around to find the streets full of national guardponies tending to crying children and directing other ponies into buildings for shelter. The city had already experienced enough kidnappings in such a short amount of time.
“Princess Luna!” shouted one of the guards as he rushed towards her.
“Sir, where is the Sorceress?” Luna demanded.
“We aren’t sure, but she’s already taken tons of parents. According to witnesses, she’s been able to take multiple ponies in several different locations at once.”
“She’s growing more powerful.”
“We’re too late,” Silverstream sighed.
“Is she even in Manehattan now?” Smolder asked. “How do we even know exactly where to find her?”
“Canterlot,” said Sandbar. “She’s obviously in Canterlot like the map said. Twilight must’ve sent her note too late.”
Suddenly, one of the large screens in the central square began to play the breaking news music for a local news station. The anchor began to speak nervously to the audience.
“We have breaking news: the nightmare alicorn known as the ‘Sorceress’ has just been spotted in Cloudsdale. Just moments ago, she was seen abducting one of our reporters and several other ponies near their children in the area.”
The screen then switched to live feed of Cloudsdale. Pegasi were scattering as a few citizens were being engulfed by the smoke. The Sorceress could be seen walking in the background while laughing. The children in view were crying bitterly and looking everywhere to find their parents. Some pegasi dropped equipment on the Sorceress in retaliation before being swept aside with her magic. As she got closer to the camerapony, the lens was obscured by smoke and then fell to the ground on its side. All that could be seen were the legs of the Sorceress walking by. The screen then showed the message ‘Please Stand By’.
“I stand corrected,” said Sandbar. “Cloudsdale it is.”
“Everyone stand still. This will help you traverse Cloudsdale,” Luna said as her horn glowed and she cast temporary spells on each of the teachers to allow them to walk on the clouds of Cloudsdale.
They all got together again, while Luna teleported them to the city in the sky. The moment they arrived, they were in the same area where the news crew had been just filming, but there was no sign of the Sorceress.
“Where is she?” Luna asked everyone. “I have the Elements with me! We are going to take her down!”
“We aren’t sure, your highness,” replied one of the crewmembers, picking up the camera. “Looks like she’s gone off somewhere else.”
“UGH! How are we supposed to catch this thing if she keeps blipping all over the place?!” Gallus complained.
Suddenly, a bright burst of light appeared next to everyone. They looked to see Princess Celestia there. She looked around, horrified to see all the children without their parents. A few of them came over to her for help.
“Princess Celestia! She took my mom and dad!” said one filly, weeping.
“What do we do, Princess?” asked a colt.
“Children, I’m so sorry to hear about all this. I’ve come to assist my sister and the teachers of the School of Friendship with tracking down the Sorceress.”
“Celestia, have you seen her yet?” Luna asked.
“I haven’t, Luna. I’m guessing you have already encountered her. Is the possession as bad as we thought?”
“Much worse, sister. We must exorcise her quickly, but we are having a hard time tracking her down.”
“She’s just outside of Dodge Junction right now. I’m using my powers to the best of my ability to track her, but it’s so erratic because she’s dancing all over the map of Equestria. I don’t think I can use a tracking spell and teleport at the same time much longer, so leave the tracking to me while you do the teleporting.”
“That sounds like a plan. Everyone hold hands again. We are going to Dodge Junction.”
The teachers all came together in formation and linked arms, while touching Celestia and Luna. The royal sisters both held hooves and Luna cast her spell. The temperature got a little warmer as they found themselves in the desert right outside of the Dodge Junction town. They saw children running around crying just as they expected. The Sorceress had just started disappearing in a cloud of smoke.
“She leave already? This getting irritating!” Yona bellowed, stomping on the ground.
“She’s in Baltimare!” Celestia said while using her tracking spell.
Everyone came together and Luna teleported them again. They were in the Baltimare Inner Harbor where more children without parents were crying. This time the Sorceress stayed around a little longer before disappearing. She was on top of the aquarium right before vanishing again.
“Alright, everyone stay together! Luna, we’re going to need to link our spells so you automatically teleport wherever I sense her!”
“Affirmative!”
Luna teleported them again and they were in Hinnywood, seeing the same exact thing. The Sorceress laughed as she kept vanishing from place to place. Next they all showed up in Appleloosa and the Sorceress left again. Next was Vanhoover, then Rainbow Falls, and finally on a large rock inside the Ghastly Gorge. They could not see the Sorceress anywhere, but a giant quarray eel stretched its neck out of one of the caves in the cliff and bit down on them. Thankfully, Celestia put up a magic shield to protect them all. The quarray eel groaned in pain from the bite and retracted into its cave. Another eel came out to feast but Luna teleported them safely to the cliff-top.
“Where is she now, sister?” Luna asked, impatiently.
“She…she hasn’t left. She’s still around here!”
“Quick, everyone get your elements ready!” Gallus said before they were all interrupted by a blast from behind.
All the teachers flinched as a bright light shone outside of a magic shield. The Elements were shining and had used their own passive powers to protect all six of them, but Celestia and Luna were knocked back in the commotion.
“So, the new wielders really did want a second round,” the Sorceress laughed as she landed next to them.
“Cozy! Please, we don’t want to use these!” Sandbar hollered.
“Blah blah blah! Do you idiots ever learn?!”
“Cozy, we’re not kidding! We know you’re in there, now we’re going to use the Elements to get rid of that evil spirit!” Ocellus added.
The teachers all closed their eyes and held hands. The Elements shone but nothing was happening aside from the shield they had created with their power. The Sorceress kept attacking, until Luna and Celestia started blasting her with their own magic. The Sorceress directed her attention to the princesses and fought back while the teachers tried to power up the Elements. Once again, the Elements refused to work.
“Darnit all!” Smolder grumbled. “What’s the point of being an Element of Harmony if they don’t work?!”
“Smolder, maybe it’s just like last time!” said Ocellus. “Maybe there’s another way to stop her.”
“What other way could there possibly be to stop this thing?!” Silverstream asked frantically.
Just as he spoke, the Sorceress could be seen firing a very powerful blast at Luna and Celestia. She then quickly turned to the teachers again and charged up an even more powerful spell from her horn. The blast was fired and the teachers all closed their eyes as a bright flash of light appeared just before the beam came in contact. There was an explosion of dirt and fire right where they had been standing. As the dust settled, the Sorceress saw a large crater, but no sign of the teachers or the Elements.
“Well Golly, that was unexpected! Looks like the Elements of Harmony aren’t as invincible as you all thought they were! AHAHAHAHA!”
Celestia and Luna got up and stared at the crater in horror. They had already begun to fear the worst.
“Did…did she just…” Luna asked, horrified.
“No…no, it can’t be!” Celestia cried.
“HAHAHAHAHAAAAA! Well I hope you losers have learned to stay away from me now! I mean it! Cozy Glow’s desire for parents and not having them all these years created me, and I will not rest until I have all the mothers and fathers out there in my grasp. Follow me and maybe I’ll start imprisoning you as well. I’m not afraid to use these powers against others who dare oppose me!”
The Sorceress spoke gravely to the two alicorn princesses before vanishing one last time. Celestia and Luna could do nothing but stand momentarily.
“That…that couldn’t have just happened,” said Luna. “They can’t be gone! They just can’t!”
“They’re not gone, Luna,” Celestia replied. “The Elements of Harmony wouldn’t allow such a thing to happen.”
“Then where are they?”
“I don’t know, but wherever they are, perhaps it’s what She intends.”
“She? Do you mean…”
“Yes. They are in the caring hands of Harmony now, and I don’t mean the afterlife.”
“Still. We are without any means of stopping the Sorceress. This does not bode well.”
Luna bowed her head and closed her eyes. Celestia put her wing around her sister to comfort her.
“The Spirit will give them guidance. It is not necessary that we understand it, but we must move on now. Have faith, sister. We will overcome this. Those parents will all be returned and Cozy Glow will be free.”
“I hope you are right.”