Spike was relaxing in his cozy seat in front of the Map. He was reading the latest Power Ponies comic while eating beautiful gems from a bowl. As he flipped through the pages and ate a sapphire, he saw two unicorns in the distance talking to each other, with one occasionally sharing surprised looks with the other. He couldn't hear their conversation all too well, but he was sure he heard the words "Magic", "Spell," or even "Dangerous," from the two.
Spike figured that Twilight left Starlight and Trixie alone at the castle again while doing her errands. He remembered the last time that had happened, and he couldn't help but call them from his spot as he saw the two enter a room. "Don't do anything crazy, ok?" He shouted to them.
They either heard him or not since they didn't respond to the dragon. He saw the last bit of their tails before they closed the door behind them.
Spike couldn't help but be worried by that. He knows very well that Starlight was careful when it came to performing dangerous spells, but "careful" didn't mix with the carefree, wild Trixie. He had the urge to go into the room and check on them, but he feared that if he did that, he would somehow get caught in the crossfire of whatever spell they were doing. He prayed to Celestia that they would be safe and cautious.
Trying to put his worries aside, he went back to reading while eating the gems. So far, things were quiet. Occasionally he would hear the two chattering in the other room, but it was muffled and barely audible.
Spike let out a soft groan as he reached the last page of his comic. He loved Power Ponies, but he wished that they would publish longer pages so it didn't take 20 minutes to finish the entire thing.
Spike stretched his arms before putting the comic down on the Map and he was prepared to walk into the kitchen, ready to put away the gems for later. However, as he made his way out of the main room, he walked past the door to the room where Starlight and Trixie were in. He couldn't resist the urge to check on them.
He placed his ear on the door, and there he could hear an audible conversation between the two. He didn't usually eavesdrop, but it would be for a quick peek.
"I found this old spell that would totally blow away the crowd." Trixie's ecstatic voice can be heard above the sound of papers rustling.
"I don't know. That seems pretty advanced." Spike could detect the worry in Starlight's voice.
"Nothing is too advanced for the Great and Powerful Trixie!" She boasted. "Come on, Starlight, it won't hurt to try."
Spike heard a sigh that he presumed was Starlight's.
"Fine, but let's put safety measures just in case this backfires. I don't want Twilight screaming at the both of us for lighting these shelves on fire, let alone a single book."
At least Starlight is being cautious. Spike thought with ease as he left the door behind and made his way to the kitchen. He figured they would be fine once Starlight was there to supervise and make sure things were safe. At least, that was what he hoped.
However, before he could even enter the kitchen, he heard the castle doors open and close. Spike saw Twilight return. She was carrying a bag filled with books, Spike presumed.
"Glad to see the castle still up and running," Twilight noted as Spike greeted her. "How were Starlight and Trixie? Did they do anything?"
"So far, they did nothing except talk a lot," Spike answered her with a wave of his claw.
"That's a relief," Twilight said as she entered another room and levitated the books out of her bag. "I went to a nearby library and found these books I never found before." She told him as she put them away.
"I didn't think any library would have any book that you don't have." Spike joked as he ate a gem from his bowl.
Twilight chuckled. "Oh, Spike. I doubt that we don't hold every book—"
She was cut off abruptly when the two heard magic zapping and the sound of crashes in a room nearby. Twilight and Spike both jumped at the sudden sound.
"What in Celestia's name was that?!" Twilight gasped as she fluffed her wings out of fright.
"I don't know, but we better find out!" Spike responded to her quickly before he dashed out of the room. Twilight was right at his heels.
As the two ran out of the room, they quickly looked around. Which room did the sound come from?
"Do you know where it came from?" Twilight asked Spike, who helplessly shrugged his shoulders. He too was perplexed by the source.
"Oh, sweet Celestia, no!"
Spike's heart jumped when he heard the frightful voice of Trixie. No, no, no, no, no! Spike thought with fear as he and Twilight ran down the hall to find the room. Fear-filled thoughts filled his mind as they got closer to the door. Please let it be alright, please let it be alright...
They arrived and slammed the doors open. The sound of the doors slamming onto the wall startled Trixie. She looked at them with pure terror in her eyes.
"Trixie! What happened—" Twilight was about to ask before her gaze was shifted to a body at the end of the room. Starlight was levitating from the ground. Her eyes were white and blank as her mouth slightly gaped open. She was holding an open book with one hoof.
"Starlight?!" Twilight shouted her name. She whipped her head to face Trixie. "What did you do?" She demanded.
"I didn't do anything!" Trixie shouted, raising both of her hooves. "I swear, we were doing some spells, and then that happened!" She pointed at Starlight.
"What kind of spell?" Twilight asked. Spike could tell that she was trying to hold in her anger.
Before Trixie could reply, Starlight suddenly dropped to the ground. What unsettled Spike the most was that she made no sound.
"S-Starlight?" Spike was terrified by what happened to his friend.
And then, Starlight's body changed colors. Her lilac-colored coat was changed to gray as her mane magically changed to her old bangs. She started to blink open her eyes, which were the color as her body.
"Phew! It feels good to stretch my legs!" The gray-colored Starlight exclaimed as she got up and stretched her hind legs. She looked at the stunned faces of Trixie, Twilight, and Spike. "What are you staring at?"
"Starlight?" Twilight muttered her name before speaking up again. "Why and how are you gray?"
"Oh, I'm not Starlight anymore." She said, before backtracking. "Actually, I kinda am, but way different. I'm Control." She introduced herself.
"Control?" Spike tilted his head. What kind of name is that?
As Control stepped away, five other forms of Starlight leaped out behind Control. As they did that, Starlight's original body was laid lifelessly on the ground.
Trixie, Twilight, and Spike braced themselves as these new colored forms faced them, and Spike saw that Control was watching the scene with half-closed eyes, and a tiny sneer curled her lips.