//------------------------------//
// Chapter 35: Equestria On Edge Part 1 
// Story: To Equestria And Beyond (Rewrite In Progress) 
// by NightFurySpeedey8156 
//------------------------------//

"Aru mashu kara inu. Aru yeva laka. Neru sa ka."

Fury was meditating, trying to focus himself. He knew he had to prepare himself for what was coming, so he took the time he had to isolate himself within his villa to maximize his concentration. 

I have to be ready for when Tirek comes. Nothing must distract me. 

He then heard the slightest rustling.

He opened his eyes and leaped at the bush. It was a rabbit that was put into his garden. Fury smiled.

"I'm getting better with my senses. Heh, sneaky little guy." Fury said as he let the rabbit go and went back to his meditation. Fury knew he would be more ready in case Tirek tried to sneak past him.

While he was meditating, many other things were happening around him. The princesses had started to make announcements to ponies about Tirek and his ensuing plan, urging them to stay inside for as long as necessary and not to go out during the night. While many ponies didn't like having their day cut short and their business interrupted, they understood that I'm such a time, it was a necessary sacrifice.

"Basina Aria Lopona Mitushi. Sephora Natu Ati Colapa. Retulan Foro Ecanti Erus." Fury chanted, his energy in perfect balance. 

I feel one with the aura. I feel relaxed and complete. This is quite pleasant, I definitely need thi- Hold on, it seems someone is here. I guess I'll give my guest a warm WELCOME!

Fury leaped at the target. 

"Surprise fool! Watch me rip you to shreds!" He called out, but then a familiar voice shot back.

"Fury, chill out!" 

"Wait… Cadence?" Fury looked down and saw that he had indeed tackled the Princess Of Love. He got back up and felt a little awkward in this situation. "Heh, sorry about that. Meditation really makes me go unhinged sometimes, heh." Then Fury's face turned inquisitive. "Wait, why are you on my patio and how did you get in here?"

Cadence answered. "Well I was knocking on your door for ten minutes. And so I decided to use the key you gave me a while ago. So that's the answer."

"Once again, meditation." Fury responded. "I'll have a better sound system to snap me out of my meditation mode. But you didn't answer my question of why you visited me. Is something the matter?"

"Nah, just wanted to check on you and see how you were holding up. Especially with all this happening." Cadence said.

"Oh… Right." Fury sighed. 

"Well it seems you're quite well prepared. It seems like it'll be hard to sneak up on you." Cadence said. "I can see why my husband likes your methods."

"Well, when you spend all day walking in the jungles, you start to be very aware of every creepy crawly thing around you. Not that you're one of course. I mean, you don't have wings made of chitin, an exoskeleton or eight legs." Fury chuckled. 

"Thank you for pointing that out." Cadence chuckled. "But I would like to ask, are you sure you'll be absolutely ready? If you need any help, I'll be sure to provide all the support needed." 

Fury was confident in his ability to stand up for Equestria and all that inhabit it, but he had a certain feeling like he was reaching way too far out of his league. He had to admit, he's faced a demon king, a bloodthirsty prince with racial motives, a delusional power hungry Speed Shifter that wanted to strip him of his power, and his own personal demons. But what bothered him the most was that as time went on, the quite literal target on his back that resembled a lighting strike, would grow bigger as his destiny became more well known across the land. 

"I don't know. I would appreciate all the help. It's just that… I feel like I'm heading down a road I never had to go on. Don't get me wrong, I like being a warrior and all but I'm getting thrown down a well of sudden responsibility and expectations that I didn't ask for." Fury said. Cadence understood his struggles with coming to terms with his newfound power. After all, she had to go through the same thing when she was adopted into the royal family at a young age.

"I understand what you're going through. It's not easy to take on such a huge responsibility that you practically got thrown onto your shoulders without any prior warning. But let me tell you, you're not the only one who has gone and is currently going through that same issue." Cadence said.

"Really?"

"Of course. How do you think I felt when I was adopted into the royal family and was instantly expected to hold up a reputation for not only myself, but the entirety of the royal family? As a matter of fact, how do you think Twilight is feeling right now with having to deal with real threats to Equestria and having to deal with ponies looking up to her for guidance?" Cadence reminded him. 

Fury knew she was right about Twilight, she had come to him multiple times about her stress of fillies coming to her to ask about being a princess and older ponies looking up to her for guidance as if she was one of the Royal Sisters. 

"Well at least I'm not alone. Was it hard to get through that phase of growing into responsibility for you?" He asked.

"Believe me, that phase is still not over for me. It's still hard to govern and to lead a whole city. I have to deal with so much." 

"Well that helps a lot." Fury said sarcastically.

"But let me say this, I'm more used to it now. I'm more prepared. And most importantly, I've grown from it. You will too, I assure you. Whatever challenges you have, just remember to be calm and tackle it in the best way you can. You might not be used to it at first but with time and experience you get better. That's what I believe."

This made Fury a bit more relieved.

"Now that makes me feel better. You could have just told me that from the beginning." He said with a smirk.

"Oh come on. You can only appreciate the good stuff when you compare it to the bad stuff." Cadence said with a chuckle.

"Ohhhhh, like how you give the worst hugs on the planet?" Fury said smugly.
"Yeah I guess so. But seriously, thanks for helping me out. I really needed it."

"Glad to help you." Then Cadence's face darkened. "And for your information, my husband very much appreciates my embraces. No need to put them down."

"I doubt it, I just can't believe that you of all ponies would give good hugs." Fury said, pushing even further. 

"Alright, you little furball, I think you need to be taught a lesson. Let's see what you think about my hugs now!" Cadence said, lunging forward and glomping Fury tightly.

"Oof!" Fury said, feeling his breath being pushed out. Cadence gave him a good squeeze and pulled him in close, not allowing any avenues for escape. She then smiled and looked at him, almost muzzle to muzzle.

"You were saying those things just to get a hug from me, weren't you?" She asked with a smirk. 

"Hmmm… Maybe…"

Cadence raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, guilty as charged. And it looks like it worked." Fury said, smirking. "I always liked your hugs ever since that little romance lesson you gave me. Your fur is just so cozy and soft."

"Awwww, you're too much." Cadence said. "Thanks."

"So is there anything else you wanted to talk about?" Fury asked. 

Cadence yawned. "No, I think I'm good. I'm going to go see how our Princess of Friendship is doing now. If I'm to guess she's probably swimming a sea of books now."

"As if she doesn't do that anyway." Fury chuckled. "Hey, do you think she applies Sunscreen Chronicles before she dives in?" He laughed. 

"Yes. Yes. She does. As she basks in the sun, that is her reading lamp." Cadence said. "Well, I better make sure she doesn't go too far. I'll see you, Fury."

"Catch you later, love maker." Fury quipped, earning a giggle from Cadence as she walked off. Fury was glad that he had such a good friendship with her, she had so much wisdom to give and was a very funny pony to be around. Maybe this whole thing with Tirek wouldn't be so hard after all?

Maybe I'm thinking too hard about all of this, I have the best group of friends to help me along and be there for me. I guess that's all that really should be on my mind. I'll catch up with them later and see what's up. 

Fury thought to himself as he went back to his meditation and took a little nap in the process.

–

Later on… 

Pyro Flare and Tirek were walking on the roads near a guarded fortress, both cloaked so as to hide their identities. 

"Are you really going to attack a fort of pony guards?" Tirek asked. "I don't want us to be discovered!"

"Oh be quiet you." Pryo said dismissively "Here's the thing, we need to attract some attention. Our goal is to lure our prey like bait. And our first job…"

They walked over to a small fort filled with some guards. "We need to cause a bit of a stir. If I pull this off, Night Fury will come in with naivete and we will catch him by surprise."

"Okay, fair enough, but this had better work!"

"Do not fear. You only need to come in when the time is right. If things go south we can both flee and they won't know of your presence." Pyro said in a reassuring voice. "Besides, we Speed Shifters like to have a little fun with our prey." She said her soothing voice turned bloodthirsty. "Don't be too scared of what you witness."

Tirek rolled his eyes as he saw the Speed Shifter sneak her way to the fort. He noticed she had what looked like an unlit torch.

"Ah, the Thestrals. The warriors of the night. I'm sure a certain princess cares oh so deeply for them." She said with disgust. "So it's time to give the ambassador's sweetheart a little gift."

She saw two thestral guards patrolling. She turned into a snake to slither by the guards. She figured it was best not to risk possible discovery.

As she made it to the wall, it was just as she figured. This fort was simply made of wood, surrounded by a palisade. It might be enough to protect against bandits but to a Speed Shifter, it was just a joke. It was clearly not made to protect against such powerful beasts.

She transformed into a mole and dug under the palisade, and she kept on going until she got to the central fort but it was solid stone. The floor was too hard to bury into.

"Dang it, how do I get in here?" The reddish black mole pondered for a moment. She looked if there were any possible cracks. She realized she had to venture out of the dirt to find a crack in the wall and risk possibly being seen.

"Well they probably don't know what a Speed Shifter mole is, so I bet I can do this with ease." Pyro said to herself as she returned the way she came and looked for an opening. At a glance, nothing seemed out of place for entry. That was, until she found a small hole in one of the edges. 

"Hmmm, perhaps a smaller form is needed?" Pyro said as she turned into an earthworm and slowly but surely squeezed through the hole and into the compound. 

"Heh, heh, so much for their security." She said after transforming to a mouse. She hid behind some barrels and looked around to see thestrals eating and playing cards. They all seemed distracted.

She saw the door she had to go into. It was unguarded and so she went up quickly before the guards went back.

She finally made it to her destination, the kitchen. Her goal was to start a fire with the stove.

After the chef left the stove, she went in quickly and made sure to use her torch to set fire first in the kitchen then let it spread to the other areas.

She also made sure the plumbing system was clogged up. And even added a special crystal to make the smoke toxic. And for the final touch she used an explosive crystal she smuggled from the Crystal Empire, a gift from Blueblood. Once the fire spread to it, it would explode.

She made a mad dash out of the tower. Everyone noticed the fire and was panicking. But before they were able to put it out…

BOOM!!!

The fort collapsed on itself. All of the guards were panicking trying to get the others out of the wreckage.

"Hello soldiers of Princess Luna." Pyro said behind them. "I know you want to save them but the truth is," Her claws started to show. "Their days are over and so are yours."

—

Fury had another round of meditation over with. He decided he would read the news.

He opened the mailbox, got the newspaper and dropped it on seeing the headlines.

"What?! 'Riverside Fort burnt down!? All soldiers except one killed?!"

Fury even saw skulls of the thestrals on stakes. He was horrified. Who could have done this?

He read on ahead with the rest of the article.

"Reporters say that Tirek was NOT at the head of this deadly attack, but another being the perpetrator. Supposedly a plus one to his campaign to rule over Equestria. High Stakes, the president of the Equestrian Federal Bureau Of Investigation (Or E.F.B.I), Suspect that by the paw marks leaving the now scorched and collapsed compound that this act of mass genocide and terrorism was acted out… By a Speed Shifter?!" Fury gasped, he had no idea that this had happened until now.

"Wait, they don't think I did it right?" He read on ahead.

It seems at least they said it was not likely Fury and perhaps it was one of his rivals from the other tribe. As he was reading he noticed the pictures of the skulls had a strange symbol carved into the Captain of the Thestrals.

A lightning strike with a cross through it, written in blood. Is this some sort of threat to me because of my birthmark being the symbol of the next All Powerfuls?

Fury had known that after saving his parents and bringing them to Equestria with him, he would have a target on his back. But why not come to attack him directly, or at least in secret like Blueblood? 

"If my birthmark is getting engraved in the skulls of the dead, then I'm going to have to hunker down somewhere safer. And this villa ain't gonna cut it. As a matter of fact, I don't even think Canterlot Castle is okay! Maybe I should go… further out?" Fury thought. He wasn't sure what to do now that it was made clear that the figurative bull's-eye on his back was at the forefront of someone's nefarious plans. Just then, a scroll with the insignia of the royal family landed in front of him. 

"Luna?" He opened the scroll and saw that it was in fact from her.

Dear Night Fury,

I am sure you're aware of the disastrous arson attack on the Riverside fort, and I must agree in your thoughts that this is a terrible outcome. My sadness and anger are at an all time high with this new development, especially with the captain of my guard being made into a gruesome decorative piece that now lays on display in the ruins of that outpost. I send this letter as not only a way to inform you, but also as a warning. You may not be safe in your home for much longer and that not only scares me, but my fellow princesses as well. Please come to Canterlot with most urgency, we must discuss the actions of this new villain.

With much love and concern,
Luna

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Fury said, rushing to the train station. 

—

Fury had finally made it to Canterlot. He found it much harder to get in with all of the tightened security. He also saw a lot of fear in many citizens' eyes as he passed by. But not just them but he saw his own parents looking quite upset.

"Mom? Dad?" 

They saw him. "Oh Fury! It's terrible!" His mother said with dread. "They're back! The Shadow Shifters!"

"It looks like they finally came to get their vengeance." Obsidian said.

"Yeah, I heard. Look, let's just get to the throne room with the princesses and we can hopefully clear some of this up." Fury suggested. His parents nodded and followed his lead to the throne room. 

When they went in, they saw many of the elites filing into the throne room. Most likely going to ask questions of the princesses to assess the situation. Fury decided that he would go with the flow and followed them in, coming to see not only Celestia and Luna, but Cadance and Twilight as well. 

When they entered the throne room, they saw all the Princesses in their seats with a grave look on their faces. While they were silent, the room wasn't for all the elites sputtered out different questions

"Are we in danger?"

"Will speed shifters try to invade?"

"How are we to avenge those guards?"

"Who is to blame for this catastrophe?!"

There was so much noise in the air, Fury felt like he would be dizzy from all the panic. Even so, he could understand what they were feeling. An entire fort was burned to a crisp and many lives were taken at the paws of his own kind, who most ponies knew were very powerful based on his own image. 

"Woah. I haven't seen the nobles scattered this badly since Blueblood and the bombing incident." Fury said.

"They look so disturbed, so broken." Said Black Ice said with sympathy.

"I don't blame them, I would be scared too if I found out seemingly out of nowhere that a base of operations was burned down and all of its crew were killed." Obsidian said sternly. 

"Even so, I have a job to do. As ambassador, I have to be present too. And Luna didn't send me that urgent message for nothing." Fury gave a loud whistle and got the attention of the royalty at the head of the room, almost completely silencing the rest of the nobles. 

"Hey, ladies! I'm here!" He called out from within the crowd alongside his parents who waved at them.

"Ah, Night Fury, it is good to see you in these troubling times!" Celestia answered back.

"Indeed." Luna said with a melancholy look. "You are most needed. Come forth."

"Sweet. C'mon guys, let's get you clear of the ruckus." Fury said, directing his parents to the thrones while he hopped up and out of the crowd, transformed into a small bluejay and floated down to Luna's side where he transformed back and kissed her.

"Hey sweetheart, I'm sorry about what happened at Riverside. You must be devastated." Fury said, attempting to soothe her. 

"They were some of my most loyal guards. One of the few creatures that respected me and showed loyalty to me. They were honorable even if society was not always honorable to them. And now they are gone." Luna said with tears. "Not even in an honorable battle, but by assassination."

"Truly shameful behavior." Obsidian said with his wife nodding. "It figures they would be so cruel."

"Shhh shhh… it's okay. I'm here for you. Go ahead and cry if you need to, I'll be here for as long as you need me."

"Th-thank you, Fury." She hugged him while crying and then separated from him.

"But I have no time to grieve. I will leave that for those poor spouses. No. I am here to avenge their honor." Luna stood up.

"You're not alone, I'm with you." Fury stood with her. "You have my word, Luna. I will avenge their dignity and honor. And I will bring this monster to justice! I swear on the aura that flows through me."

"We're with you too, your highness." Said his parents in unison. Luna was grateful that they stood by her in this tragic time, it was like she had a family right alongside her. 

Luna smiled at this. "Thank you."

Then Fury turned to all of the nobles. "You hear that? You don't have to worry one bit, I'm going to take care of this!"

"But do you even know who did such a thing? Or how to even find this vile beast?" asked one of the nobility.

"I am well aware that the perpetrator was another one of my kind that is a part of a group that has tried to dispatch me in the past. And I assure you, I have thought of ways to track them down." Fury spoke. 

Celestia then stood up. "Exactly. We will find out all of these answers. The only thing you need to know now is that we are indeed doing an investigation. But for now, we must keep this private. We ask that you all leave for the sake of confidentiality."

Some of the nobility were panicking and still wanted more answers but the guards made sure to escort them out. Black Ice and Obsidian also sped up the process as no one wanted to mess with them even if they were friendly.

Twilight spoke up. "Do we have any photos or other evidence for who this could be?"

"I actually do." Fury said. "As a matter of fact, when I got into the city, the president of the E.F.B.I caught up to me and gave me a few pictures, along with a couple of evidence bags to pass on to you all."

Fury then passed on a small bag filled with the evidence to Celestia who extracted a few photos of the scene, a small blood sample, a fur sample, and what seemed to be the remains of the torch that was used to start the fire. 

"I see." Twilight said. "At least we have this to go on. Have they done any tests yet and do they have a report?"

"A couple of specialist DNA scientists who broke down their chemical analysis of the samples we've been given will be here soon to give a full report." Fury replied. "But I do have a theory of who it could be."

Fury explained. "You see, when I freed my parents in the Cursed Woods, it was apparently a labor camp led by some renegade tribe. Even if I took out Moon Beam, they're probably still more than him. I'm sure whoever did this was aligned with the Shadow Shifters who kidnapped my parents, or have gotten a call from Blueblood to carry out his plan while he recovers from my beating."

Twilight nodded. "Interesting. Do any of you know anything about this Shadow Shifter tribe?" She asked the speed shifters.

"Honestly, we don't know a lot about them. We don't know much about them and they only do a few raids, not major invasions. We know they come from some far away place. But they manage to keep their whereabouts a secret and even if we find a base they just move around." Obsidian said. 

Fury continued. "After they kidnapped my parents, they stopped doing any major raids. I suppose by the order of Moon Beam, they diverted all resources to finding me and stealing my power to 'Realign the stars to their rightful place as Speed Shifters take their throne once more'. Or something like that."

"Well I'm glad you still have it, darling. We need your strength to keep everyone safe." Black Ice said, making Fury smile. Just then, one of the guards popped into the throne room.

"Your highnesses, a few ponies from the E.F.B.I have come to see you." The guard spoke.  

"Send them in." Celestia ordered.

Two scientist ponies with lab coats came in. One looked like a stereotypical nerdy scientist and the other looked like a hardboiled detective.

"Your highness, we analyzed the results and have some new information." Said one scientist. 

"What have you learned?" Cadence asked.

"Based on our DNA analysis, we can confirm that this attack was carried out by a Speed Shifter. Also, we have come to the conclusion that with the partial blood sample you possess, the perpetrator was female. Middle aged probably in her late thirties or early forties with a blood type of AB Negative."

Obsidian scrunched his face. "Hmmm, older than my cousin but younger than me and my wife, no offense. Well that could still be a lot of Speed Shifters. Are there any other details you two found?"

Twilight spoke up. "Well the problem is that these are Speed Shifters. We ponies don't have any records to cross examine since the Night Fury and you two are basically the only ones we have contact with."

Fury came over. "Okay Twily, let Fury take over from here." He looked at the two. "So, from what we have here, we have a Shifter who is middle aged. Does anyone have pics of her paw prints?"

"Yeah, here you go." One of the scientists said.

"Hmmm… Wide spread toe pads, oval shaped foot pad, deep imprints in the surface…" He looked at the size of them. "Almost the same size as Princess Cadence's hooves. From what I can tell, she's a bit plump with a wide strut to her stride. Maybe she's eaten a bit too much meat and laid around thinking what to do next." He said with a chuckle.

Black Ice rolled her eyes. "You always have a joke, rather crude too, about something, don't you?"

"Yep, and I'm not sorry for being funny, mom." Fury said with a smirk. "After all, it just means she likes to cook like someone I know."

"Ah that's sweet of you… wait a minute. Who is this certain someone you're comparing to?" She asked in a hostile tone. Fury just shrugged it off. 

Twilight interjected before they got into an argument. "Ahem, it's quite impressive how you can analyze Speed Shifters with just paw prints, Fury."

"Well nothing is certain but you tend to be able to see the signs if you go out exploring. And speaking of which, I have one last thing I wanted to check out…." Fury looked a little grim. "I need to see that skull where she inscribed her symbol."

"I see." The scientist gave it to him.

Fury was focused in particular on the lightning strike symbol carved in. He wanted to see if there were any other symbols. And also the way in which she cut the skull. His parents also looked at it.

"Don't we already know enough about the skull?" Cadence asked.

"Of course. But the fact about that is, it's my birthmark and the telltale signal of my position as an All Powerful. The way she seemed to cut the skull wasn't engraved, it almost seemed as if it was burned in with a high power laser. Take another look at the carving, notice the slight burn marks around the tip of the lightning strike and the char dust around the circumference. Clearly, this was carved out by a direct beam of light." Fury said. Twilight was amazed that Speed Shifters had this ability. 

"What?! Speed shifters can actually do that? Especially with this amount of power?" Twilight asked.

"While it is not one of our best techniques, it is something we have done before. One of the previous All Powerfuls, Burst Ignition, came up with a technique to redirect the energy flow within ourselves to create beams and attacks to aid in battle and exploration. It seems that whoever this is, has a fire aura like he did and can use it in a very precise manner. She must have done extensive training to do this." Black Ice confirmed. 

Fury then turned to the blood sample in his possession. "I have to ask, have either of you tested her blood for a certain ignition reaction?"

Both of the scientists were confused. "Uh, I don't think we have done so, ambassador. But why does it pique your interest?"

"You see, a Speed Shifter's blood contains a fair amount of their aura, allowing the energy flow to be maintained passively from active use. If my theory is right about this certain Shifter having a certain fiery aura, then a test of a chemical reaction should be able to help us find her by using said ignition to pinpoint a location like a beacon." Fury explained.

"Ah, that's my son. Always coming up with the strangest ideas possible." Obsidian chuckled while smiling. "I'm curious myself how this will work out."

"Well dad, I can tell you that even I have to ask for help with this one. Excuse me while I notify an associate of mine." He spoke as he went to write a scroll to said associate. 

"I wonder who Fury has on his mind?" Twilight wondered aloud.

"I don't know. But if my son's got an idea on how to make tracking this monster easier, then I'm all for it." Black Ice replied as they continued to question the scientists while Fury was away.

–

Later on, in a secluded part of Canterlot Castle… 

"Thanks for coming out on such short notice, Zecora. You're the only one who knows just as much about Speed Shifters as I do, so your input is a major factor." Fury said as he led the zebra shaman, the princesses, and his parents to a smaller and more isolated part of the castle that he had set up for Zecora's arrival. 

Zecora bowed. "It is my pleasure to assist, for to help I cannot resist. And it is also a pleasure to meet those who raised you, as these are your parents if I were to assume."

The two parents each shook her hoof. 

His father spoke up. "It's nice to meet you, Zecora. I heard you helped our son with his instincts. You have no idea how hard it was to help him with that." He chuckled.

"Yes, his control over his carnal instincts has proved. As he no longer tears through meat as soon as it moves." Zecora joked.

"Heh, as if he doesn't do that anyway. I've seen him rip through a whole basket of salmon in less than 3 minutes." Black Ice chuckled.

"Hey! At least I'm not the one who snuck in a few snacks everyday whenever I cooked, Ms. Butterball!" Fury snorted. 

His mother had a look of simultaneous anger and guilt. "H-h-how dare you, young boy!  I manage my diet very well! I don't engage in such dastardly acts like you." She rebuked him while raising her nose to the air.

"Says the one who ate three cakes in a day because 'It was necessary for her daily sugar intake'." Fury jabbed at her.

"But I… needed… it." She said trying to defend herself but knowing she already lost. "Hmph!" She turned away.

"Yeah I thought so." 

Then Night Fury went back to explaining about the experiment they planned to do with the blood.

"Now, the reason we're here is this. Speed Shifter blood has a certain reaction to other types of energy. Each Speed Shifter can have a different reaction to certain energy sources, giving us our strengths and weaknesses. Some skills have to be worked for. Others are just naturally there from birth. And some abilities are completely cut off no matter how hard one tries. Every speed shifter can relate to that." Fury said explaining shifter biology. "But when exposed to others of our kind, our auras can be… charged in a way."

"I have a theory that if we mix some of my aura with the blood sample, we could supercharge the energy reaction and use it as a sort of beacon to detect our mystery figure. And to do that, I had to call in the best maker of potions and elixirs I knew." Fury explained. 

All of the princesses, especially Twilight, as well as his parents were all quite interested. 

"Amazing! The abilities of zebras and Speed Shifters are extraordinary!" Twilight said.

"Well, Speed Shifters and zebras actually have had certain dealings in the past. So I guess we are technically partners in this." Fury recalled, thinking of his history lessons on trade deals when he was a cub. 

"Indeed. Now let me have silence. For I must carry out this science." Zecora said as they entered the special potion room. The room was old and unused, having not been used since Luna was banished to the moon. But with a little cleaning and brightening up, it would be good enough to carry out the tests needed. The group opened the doors and were immediately met with a wave of dust. 

"Phew, this place sure is dusty. Achoo!" Fury sneezed. 

"Yeah, it's certainly not the cleanest of places. Spike would have a field day with this room." Twilight said.

"Let's get this over so we don't have *achoo* be here for too long." Cadence said as she wiped some dust away.

Zecora walked into the middle of the room.

"Are you sure you do not need any help, Zecora?" Luna asked. "I have some… experience with spells. For better or worse." Luna said not preferring to remember her incident with Nightmare Moon magic.

"I assure you, no assistance is needed. For my skill allows many potion mixes to have succeeded." Zecora said.

"Well, I guess there's no need to keep you held up. Achoo! Achoo!" Fury said, sneezing a few more times.

"Maybe you should step outside while we handle the dust, kitty cat. I don't think your nose can take much more." Cadence chuckled.

"I have to agree, sweetie. Your nose seems to be under attack at the moment." Black Ice added. "You've always been sensitive to heavy dust."

Fury tried to ignore the feeling in his nose. "Nah, I'm fine, mom! A little dust never stopped me… hee… heagh…" Fury started before he started to glow with energy as a bigger sneeze began to charge up.

"Oh dear…" His mother whimpered. 

"Uh oh, giant sneeze incoming!" Obsidian exclaimed. 

"Everyone make a force field around the potions!" Luna said, knowing what force a Speed Shifter can sneeze.

Everyone did so and braced for the loud sneeze.

"HA CHOOOOO!!!!" He caused a slight rumble as his electric energy shot out of his body, but every delicate item was okay.

Everyone gave a raised eyebrow to Fury. 

"So what were you saying, dearie?" Black Ice asked smugly.

"Sweet mother of Equestria, that was huge!" Twilight said.

"Heh, I think the universe has made its point clear." Fury said. "But, that doesn't mean I can't adapt."

Fury then took off in another direction before returning with a mask with the flag of Equestria on it. 

"See! And I never would have expected a flag on a mask of all things. But I do admire patriotism." Fury said. "Anyways, now the dust bunnies won't have their way with me."

"Ah, good. So now we shall proceed with great speed." Zecora said. She had already mixed some potions while the others were talking about dust.

She had mixed a bit of her own herbs  from her bag into a red potion. She also shook the vat around. And after mixing it properly the next, possibly dangerous, came. Have this potion make contact with the Shifter blood. 

"One of you princesses, must make for me a shield. So that I may be protected and not yield. Who shall it be?" Zecora asked.

"I'll provide the protection." Cadence said, igniting her horn and forming a teal bubble around her.

"Mom, Dad and I will stay on the outside for this, I can take whatever happens. Speed Shifter energy doesn't do much when applied to another one of its kind, so I'll be fine." Fury said as he handed the blood sample to the zebra. 

"I shall do so." Celestia said. "I am experienced with force fields so it shall be done." She flew a few feet yards away from the sorceress.

Zecora nodded and uncapped the small sample before pouring it into the vat. The mixture then turned a bright orange color, the same color as the fur that was collected.

"Now that the blood has been combined together, all we need is the sample of another." Zecora said, looking over at Fury.

"Leave that to me." Fury said. He extended a claw and raised it to his face, energizing the tip before slashing his own face and drawing his own blood. 

"Fury! Why did you do that!?" Twilight said, concern spread across her face along with the other royals. Although his parents seemed less shocked at the procedure.

"To give a bit of my energy in its purest form. Not worn out by time and from one of the most potent areas. The face." He said as he rubbed the blood onto his paw and held it above the vat.

"It's very true." Black Ice said surprisingly unworriedly. "Sometimes in our schools, we have to draw blood for certain spells like transformations."

Obsidian nodded. "Yeah, don't worry it's scary at first. But that's how we taught Fury to stomach it and deal with the fright. Not only by seeing the blood of others, but his very own blood."

"Well, if you say so." Twilight said even if she didn't quite understand fully speed shifter medical traditions. The others watched as Fury's blood trickled down the tips of his claws and into the vat, sparks of his energy turning the orange mixture into a reddish orange. The vat began to bubble slightly and swirled slowly, the Speed Shifter's powerful essence churning the vat around passively.

Twilight and Cadence were looking with some worry. Celestia tried to keep her cool but still looked a bit worried. Luna was simply staring at the formula. Black Ice was also a bit tense and Obsidian looked more calm seeing the mixture. Zecora nodded and told him to keep mixing it.

As Fury mixed it more the bubbling started to make a noise like they were boiling in a pot.

"Alright, that should be good." Zecora said. "Now that the mixture is bubbling, we go to the most dangerous part. What we will do is shake the vat and then we shall open the vat, place it on the floor and be far away as it carries out the final reaction." Zecora explained. "Otherwise even the forcefield might not protect against all damage."

The other princesses seemed worried and  Fury's parents too. But Night Fury was not going to let that stop him

"I've done more dangerous things as a kid. How do we do it?" 

"At this stage, any exterior shaking would make the mixture volatile with your essence. Perhaps an inside out procedure will allow answers to make their presence." Zecora explained. Fury tapped his chin and came up with a rather insane idea.

"Zecora, I've got a stupid idea that might work." The Speed Shifter began to whisper his idea to her, her eyes widening as she heard the idea. She ultimately agreed and thought the idea could work. 

"Though your thought process is wild, I will not lie. I suppose we should at least give it a try." Zecora said. 

"You'll at least find it interesting regardless of what happens to me." Night Fury chuckled. 

He proceeded to open the vat. He now had to be quick before too much gas left. He then transformed into a creature he had rarely done. It was long but small, similar to a snake but more aquatic. 

"Well, that's a new form I haven't seen him carry out." Luna said in surprise. 

"What is that?!" Cadence asked.

"I believe it is an eel." Twilight said. "But why would he be one- Wait, is he…?"

Fury flopped right into the vat. He made himself comfortable.

"Fury! Are you insane?!" Twilight and Black Ice said, trying to go toward him. But Luna restrained her.

"Trust Fury, he seems to be master of the jungle after all."

"Yes, our son is… unorthodox in his ways. But isn't transforming all about thinking outside of the box?" Obsidian asked his wife

Twilight calmed down and Black Ice too. Meanwhile Fury used his new form to get some accurate readings of the liquid before popping his thin black head out to reveal protruding teeth and two small fins grasping the edge. 

"I have never seen an eel before. And to be honest, you look kinda cute like that." Cadence admitted. 

"Aww, shucks. But this cute little thing is about to make a big bang today!" Fury said as he dove back down into the vat. He began to hit the walls of the vat causing it to shake around. Then, he swirled the mixture around by swimming in circles, causing bubbles to rise up above him. 

The crowd above the surface not only saw bubbles but they even heard a certain sound similar to electricity.

"It's working!" Twilight said enthusiastically. 

"Don't stop now!" Black Ice cried out.

"Alright, time to kick up the voltage." Fury said as he began to release his electric charge. Bolts of lightning skipped across the surface, Fury's form glitching as his body was becoming more and more pure energy.

Luna and his parents were amazed at what they were seeing. It was a form more akin to the windigos from which the Speed Shifters got their powers than any physical entity. Was he becoming his aura?

"Uh, Fury… I think now might be a good time to get out of there." Twilight warned the small eel. 

Fury looked at the vat and saw it was boiling like his mother's stove. His work was finished and in fact he probably overdid it in excitement.

"Okay, time to skedaddle out of here!" He quickly jumped out of the vat and into Cadence's arms.

"Oof!" Cadence said she was knocked over by the black eel. "Ewwww, What in the world is this stuff?" She said feeling the glowing slime.

"I guess my aura congealed into some sort of slime when mixed with the liquid. But hey, on the bright side, it does make my skin feel cooler. And by extension, yours." Fury said. 

Black Ice facepalmed at that. "Oh Fury…"

"Gee, thanks for your gift." Cadence said, rolling her eyes.

"Everyone, you must be silent. For the vat is about to be violent." Zecora said pointing to a red sparkling glowing container.

"What shall happen?" Luna asked.

"You'll see, Moon Pie." Fury said. "At least I hope so."

The vat kept on shaking and shaking. It turned from red to pink. They could even see lightning in the vat. The sound was like thunder.

"Um, is this safe?!" Twilight exclaimed worriedly.

"At this point, I don't even know. But it's our only chance of finding out who we're dealing with." Fury responded.

Cackle! 

They saw the substance in the vat swirl around and the vat even floated.

"Perhaps we should at least give some sort of barrier!" Celestia screamed as she summoned one along with other princesses. "Be ready!"

It kept on swirling and crackling when… 

Then they heard nothing. It went back to the ground.

"Um, is that it?" Twilight asked. "Maybe we forgot some ingredients?"

Fury was confused too. "I thought I put everything in there. Maybe we'll try something el-"

Thooooooooom! 

All of a sudden, the whole group was flung back to some trees. Trees burst into splinters and the soil became a dust cloud. It seemed like one of Fury's EMP blasts when facing his foes.

After a few seconds of shock, someone got up.

"Is everyone okay?" Cadence asked.

"Fine here. Celestia, Luna?"

"We are stable." The sisters said in unison.

"Us too!" Obsidian said getting his wife back up.

"Your highnesses, I'm afraid all is not well. For Night Fury is incapacitated from the explosive spell." Zecora said. All of the princesses looked over and saw that Night Fury had indeed been knocked out by the blast, his passive energy flowing along his face as a glowing crack across his right eye. 

"Fury, are you alright?" Luna said, trying to wake him up. "Come on, Fury! This is important!"

"Wake up right now!" Black Ice yelled in a loud voice.

Fury seemed unconscious at first but then opened his eyes quickly. "W-w-what happened? I feel different. Wait, the vat!"

Fury ran to the batch of fluid and looked inside, his eyes widening as he saw what was inside.

"Guys, come check this out!" 

Everyone ran to him. 

"Oh my word…" Celestia said, surprised.

"By the gods…" Obsidian said.

What they witnessed was pure energy in front of them. They saw what looked like an orange-red mist. 

"Is that the enemy Speed Shifter's aura!?" Twilight asked.

"I think it's more than that, Twi. Look closer." They all leaned in and took a closer look, the most clearing a bit to reveal a face. A face that looked a lot like Fury, but orange and more feminine. 

"Is that… her?" Cadence asked.

"It appears to be." Zecora said. 

"Wow… she really is on the plump side." Fury said bluntly. "I guess she did too much laying back."

"Sometimes I wonder if I failed as a mother." Black Ice grumbled at her son's jokes.

"If you did, I'd be as stuck up as you." Fury chuckled. His mother simply pouted which he found humorous.

Luna looked at the Speed Shifter. "So… we have finally found the culprit?" 

"Yep. It seems so." Fury said.

"Thank you Night Fury. I owe you so much." Luna said. 

"Don't thank me yet, we still have to find her." Fury said. Then a small bit of the liquid splashed up onto his face. 

"Ahh! What the?!"

"Fury, are you okay?!" Twilight asked.

"Yeah yeah, I'm okay! Wait a second…" Fury took a moment to sniff the air. "Does… does anypony else smell something sweet?" 

"Huh, it does smell a little sweet in here. I wonder what that is?" Cadence asked.

"It smells familiar." Obsidian said.

"It's that liquid on Fury's face. How strange…" Luna pointed out. Fury looked down at his muzzle and extended his tongue, licking some of the liquid off and tasting it.

"Mmmm… it actually tastes pretty good! As a matter of fact…" He went over to the vat, cupped a little of the liquid in his paws and sipped at it.

"Hey… I don't think we just made some random potion. I think we just made the biggest batch of strawberry lemonade!" Fury said. 

"What?!" Luna, Cadence and Twilight asked. 

"Did you put that drink into the potions, Fury?" Black Ice asked.

"This isn't a prank, Mom. I'm serious! Check it yourselves if you think I'm lying!" 

His mother took some of the mixture in her paws and drank it. Her eyes widened. "Wow, it really does taste like strawberries and lemons. It's probably one of the sweetest things I ever tasted."

"Aw, you're too kind. And you thought I couldn't be sweet." Fury laughed.

"Who would have thought this mixture could make something like that?" Twilight said. "And… wait. Is that a lightning mark?!"

They all looked back at the potion in the vat and saw that a lightning mark was surfacing in it.

"Wait a sec… if that copy of my birthmark is in there… does that mean…"

"Your energy turned the potion into strawberry lemonade!" Twilight said with surprise. 

"Well what do ya know? Even my mom and dad didn't tell me about this technique! I could have had a free drink all the time!" Fury said. "I guess my charm really can turn anything sweet. Even princesses." He smirked at Luna.

Luna just rolled her eyes while blushing.

"We didn't even know something like this existed!" Black Ice said, and yet she knew something about it smelled familiar.

Meanwhile Zecora and Celestia were thinking of what they just saw. And wondered if they could attain some clues.

"Fury, let me ask you. From this scent, to this mist. Is there anyone you know who resembles these features?" Celestia said.

"Probably not. These Shadow Shifters are pretty distant from us." Fury said. "Although they do have similar bloodlines at times. And some traitorous Speed Shifters go to their side." He paces around wondering for any clues.

"Though I don't know anyone off the top of my head. There were a lot of Speed Shifters who were similar in color and body type. There was Chili, the pepper grinder who made chili dust for cooks. Lava Mold, one of my dad's old colleagues from his smithing days. Heat Seeker, one of our best artillery officers. And then there's Pyromancer, one of our own shamans that made cures for certain ailments. But none of them are girls, so that's pretty much a bust." Fury sighed. 

His parents agreed with this assessment. It appeared that orange was a rare color in Thunder Hollow. 

Fury kept on wondering if there was any clue he could pick up from this. Would he just have to wait for the next attack?

"Well, I've got nothing. But at least we know who we've got to look out for and what they look like." Fury said.

"Agreed. We now have a little more information on what we must be vigilant about." Luna said.

"Even so, it's not much to go off of." Twilight added.

"Yeah, it's not much. But hey, look on the bright side…" Fury dashed off and retired quickly, making a quick loop around the vat and scooping some of the liquid out into a pitcher with eight cups on a tray.

"At least we get to enjoy the fruits of our labor, with a little help from my electric charge." He said in his usual bright attitude. "Anyone wanna drink?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Fury, we don't have time for- mmm." Fury put the cup in her mouth and she just relaxed into it. "Well, maybe we do have some time. I have to admit that it is delicious." Twilight said.

Celestia nodded and so did Cadence. They enjoyed it.

"I must admit, I am curious to see how this tastes." Black Ice admitted. "Mmmm."

"Glad you're enjoying it." Obsidian said as he partook in it.

"How about you Moonpie, want some?" He asked Luna.

"I just hope we find her." Luna said. "I really thought we would bring her to justice."

"We will soon, sweetheart. But for now, let's try and take a little weight off our shoulders, huh?" Fury said, offering a cup to her. 

She did have to admit it was quite tasty, the sweetness dancing on her tongue. It felt a little like her childhood.

"I suppose a little refreshment is what I could use right now. And it's thanks to your energy that brought it to light." She said, hugging him with a wing. "Cheers to Night Fury and his powerful being! May his charm and sweetness live on! Here here!" 

"Here here!" The princesses, Fury's parents and Zecora cheered him on.

They chugged away. They felt it was a bit fizzy like pop at times.

"You know now that I think about it, this kind of tastes like something you would make, mom." Fury said. "Maybe a little more sweet than usual, but I can kinda taste the energy in this."

"Well, energy is what makes good Shifter dishes into divine Shifter dishes. It's like when Granny Smith showed me Zap Apple jam. That energy made it all delicious and resplendent." Black Ice said. 

"Wait. Your energy?" Twilight asked.

"Yes, even if it takes a lot of energy, you can make delicious dishes with them. Of course some shifters' auras are worse for taste than others. My family just happens to have a very good aura for cooking."

"That's it!" Twilight cried out. "Black Ice, your aura is similar to our suspect!"

"Woah, Twilight, you better not be saying…" Fury hissed. 

"No. Listen to me! Black Ice, do you have a record of your relatives that look orangish?" Twilight asked. 

"Well, I don't know everyone. But I did have a record of my family relatives. Being part of an important family, we keep track of our relatives and their physical features and auras too." She said, pulling out a small book. It had Shifter text but it also had illustrations of different members.

"This book holds the record of everyone in the family from me and Obsidian. From our own parents to distant cousins, this book holds it all. It's also simultaneously a photo album for us." She said as she flipped a few pages over to where she and Obsidian were shown. 

"Ah, I remember this Book of Records. Boy, some of our cousins and uncles sure had weird powers and faces." Fury said pointing at some wrinkly and unusual faces, one with a nose ring on it. 

"Hey, that's me!" Obsidian said. "It was in style back in my day!"

"Yeah, I feel bad for your generation." Fury pointed out. "I feel worse for your parents."

"Oh, so you want to point out the oddballs, huh? Well, I guess you won't mind if I flip to your section." Black Ice said cheekily. 

"N-n-no, let's get back to work." Fury tried to get the book away, but Obsidian grabbed the book and gave it to his wife.

"No no no no!"

"Let's see… Oh my. How gorgeous." Black Ice said as she pointed at a picture. Fury on the other hand was embarrassed to see his teen self with an ear piercing. He even had a tattoo roughly translating in pony slang 'I am da boss! Fear me!' 

"That was a phase I never wanted to remember." He sighed. 

"Oh! I almost forgot I had some baby pictures in here. Now, where are they?" Black Ice flipped through the book and stopped. "Aha! Here he is! Everyone, gather round!"

Everyone looked to see. And they all uttered the same interjection.

"AWWWWWWW!!!"

"Look at him trying to chase a ball, how cute!" Celestia said.

"Oh, he tripped." Cadence chuckled.

"Ah my Lightning Bug was always a big eater. Look, he's eating his first steak." Luna said, pointing at one where he had stuffed cheeks from the food he had.

"Awww, look at this one. Baby's first bath!" Twilight cooed as Fury seemed to be fighting to get out as Black Ice tried to clean him.

"Ahhh, and look at this. A noble warrior has humble beginnings. For he had to face swimming." She pointed to cub Fury struggling to swim with his parents.

Fury was as red as a sunset as his friends saw his infant years. But then, he just let it go and decided to actually take it up a notch. 

"Ya know what, I'm not even embarrassed. But it gets better…" He turned to the door and raced off, returning with his Memory Sealer.

"So you guys find my baby years adorable, huh? Watch this." He grabbed his first bath photo and opened the Memory Sealer. He then slotted the picture into a small slot on the side and watched as his first bath began to play back on the device. 

–

"No!!! Mom!!! Lemme go!" A young Fury cried out.

"Hold still! I want this to be a memory we won't forget."

"You won't get me, woman! I'm stronger than that! You'll have to fight me!" He said holding a rubber duck as a weapon.

"Oh no, I'm so scared!" She said in pretend fright. "Come and slay the foul beast!" She said.

Fury smiled at how naive his mother was as he squeezed the duck and shot water at his mother's face.

"Ahhh! I wasn't expecting you to actually have something to do about it! Obsidian, take the photo, quick!" 

"Gotcha, you little rascal!" Obsidian took the picture at the last moment and caught him holding a rubber duck while squirting his mother. 

–

The playback ended and the screen went blank as the photo ejected itself and Fury pulled it out. 

"See, mom, you can't underestimate my many tricks and deceptions. You gotta be prepared." Fury said smugly.

"Ah you always were a little troublemaker, weren't you?" She said, rustling Night Fury's fur. "Like the first time you discovered mud?"

Black Ice proceeded to take another photo and slot it into the device, starting another playback of Fury walking down a path with his mother and his father's cousin, Amethyst. 

–

"It's a lovely day out isn't it, Amethyst?" Black Ice asked her somewhat grumpy friend.

"Yeah, I guess it's better than yesterday when it got cold and all the recruits could barely move without complaining about the breeze." Amethyst said. "What about you, squirt? How are you handling this walk?"

"Ugh, it's sooo boring! Why are we even doing this, mom?" A young Fury moaned. 

"Because, you've been cooped up in the house for too long. And besides, what's wrong with getting some fresh air?" His mother asked. 

"It's not napping and relaxing in the comfort of my own room." Fury mumbled. 

"Your kid's a real worker." Amethyst whispered sarcastically.

"Indeed. He'll get over it… Someday." Black Ice sighed. 

They kept walking for a few more minutes when a new and unusual sight caught Fury's eye.

"Hey Amethyst, what's that brown sludge?" Fury asked. 

"Eh? Whatcha talkin' about, runt?" She looked at him.

"That weird puddle over there, it doesn't look like the rain puddles I've seen." 

They both saw large basins filled with what looked like mud. 

"Oh those? That's our valley's special mud. It's not normal though, It has a bunch of special properties that will soothe you. Sometimes our warriors go into it to relax themselves. Only true warriors get to go in there." 

Fury looked over to the mud puddles with trails in-between them and his curiosity peaked. He walked off the path and stopped next to the puddles, his ears askew as he looked down at them.

"Hm, I guess he's curious about the mud." Amethyst said.

"Huh? How can you tell?" Black Ice whispered.

"From the time I've been with him, I know that his ears are very expressive. Look at how one is flat and the other is at an angle, that's how I can tell when he's confused or curious." Black Ice was amazed at the attention to detail Amethyst had. Even she didn't know that about him. Reading expressions was a skill taught by Amethyst's and Obsidian's family that they were experts at.

Fury bent down slightly and sniffed the puddle, the strange stench catching him off guard for a moment. He waved a paw around his nose and blew away the stench as he got closer. Amethyst and Black Ice watched as Fury dipped a paw into the mud and played with it a bit, his face lighting up as he took a few steps back and raced forward before jumping into the mud with a loud… 

Splat! 

"Fury!" His mother cried out. He seemed to be gone. "Oh no, what happened to him?!"

"Relax, Ice. The squirt's probably just playing in there. It's a lot of fun to be in there."

"Well, I'm not taking that chance!" Black Ice jumped into the mud which she was known to hate to try to find him. "Fury, come out now! Where are you?" But before she could try and pull him back out, he popped his small head out of the mud which he was now covered with.

"Mom, check it out! This mud is awesome! It's so cool and wet, like you're chilling out in a pool but the water sticks to you! Hahaha!" Fury giggled as he jumped out of the mud pool and landed in a much shallower puddle. 

His mother was relieved but then realized she got dirty for nothing and was very annoyed. Terrific, I just got my fur groomed. "Fury, you can be very irresponsible sometimes."

"Hey I just wanted to learn! That's something you like me to do." Fury said to his mother's annoyance.

"And wow, you can really feel the strange liquid." Fury said. Then he looked to his mother. "Hey mom, why do you look like you just came out of an Ursa Minor's nose? Because you look like a giant booger."

Amethyst heard what Fury said and began laughing, she had never heard Fury rip into his mother with such brutality. 

"Don't encourage him!" She cried out to Amethyst.

"Oh come on, Ice! Fury's telling the truth this time! You do look like an ursa minor's snot!" Amethyst laughed. 

Amethyst while being strict in the training and the battlefield, she could be very playful too which made her both fun and feared to Fury. Especially compared to his stricter aristocratic mother. Then, Black Ice got an idea to teach her son a lesson. 

"So, I look like a giant booger? Well, how about I show you what a real disgusting monster looks like?" Black Ice said.

"A monster? What monster?" Fury asked.

… 

"A Mud Monster! Raaaah!" She said expanding and transforming. She appeared less like a Shifter and more like a giant bear with mud all over and snot running down its nose.

"Would you like to know what our boogers feel like, you two?!" She asked.

"Uh Oh! Run, Amethyst, Run!" Fury called out as he jumped on her back and held on as she ran around the muddy patch. 

The two ran as fast as possible but despite Ursa Minor Ice being giant, she was remarkably quick.

"Ah keep on going, Amy!" Fury cried out.

Finally, a way to get that little runt to do some training. Time to get to work, Fury! 

"Sorry kid, we gotta split up. You're too heavy!" Amethyst said. 

"No I'm not! We gotta stick together." Fury protested, but Amethyst didn't budge. 

"Fury, you have to do this for me." Amethyst said. "So that I might survive!"

"Likely story! I'm staying here and nothing is going to stop- Oof!"

Amethyst moved under a branch, leaving the poor cub by himself.

"You dirty traitor! I'll remember this!" Fury yelled before he noticed his mother running to him.

"I have you now, boy!" His mother cried out.

Fury had to think. How could avoid her lunging at him?!

Climb… Climb, you fool! 

Fury jumped on the tree, scaling it inch by inch. It was hard to do with his juvenile paws and them being all muddy, but Fury kept on climbing out of desperation.

"I will survive!" Fury cried out narrowly dodging his wrathful mother. He kept climbing up and up and up to the first bough he saw.

He took deep breaths. He had never climbed that much before. But at least he was safe.

Until he saw his mother pounding the tree with her body. She was going to feel it!

Bam… bam… bam…

"No no no! What now!?" Fury saw another tree near the bough he was on. He knew he had no choice.

"Come on, Fury, give it up!" His mother told him. "Mommy always gets her way!" She said as she gave the final bash.

"NEVER!!!" Fury said as he made a huge leap to another tree and slid down the trunk. Landing on the ground, he put his legs to work and ran. His mother kept up with him and was almost on his tail, but then Amethyst came to his rescue. 

"I've gotcha, squirt! Climb on!" Amethyst said.

"Oh, so now you're helping me!" Fury said. 

"You wanna whine or do you want your mommy?" She said as Ice was closing in on them.

"Better alive and well than squished and dead, let's go!" Fury said as he climbed onto Amethyst and they took off together. 

"See, you can climb! All it took was some encouragement." Amethyst said with a self-confident grin.

"Is that what you call it?!" Fury asked. "You're the worst!"

"Hey! Just be thankful I came back for you. At least we're now both safe!"

But what all three of them didn't know was that something was, quite literally, about to trip them up.

Amy was running fast and self assured when she tripped on a rope and all of a sudden dropped down.

"Ahhhhhh!!!!" The two both screamed as they dropped down into another mud pool below them.

Splat! 

Once they resurfaced, Amethyst shook herself off now that she was just as muddy as the Speed Shifter she was carrying.

"Yuck! Now I'm just as muddy as you!" She said.

"Not so funny when karma bites you in the tail, is it?" Fury snarled. 

"Okay, okay, you win." Amy said, wiping the mud off. "But someone worse than karma will bite both of our tails off. Now let's get outta here!" She said, dragging Fury out of the mud. But something else met them on the other side.

"Oh, you're not getting out that easily, you two." Black Ice said from in-between them, her giant muzzle poking out from the middle of where they both stood. 

"Ahhhhh!" Both of them screamed.

Fury's mother came out of the mud roaring. "Did you think you two could escape?" She said as she grabbed the two. "Well, I don't think so. Now, face your punishment in the eternal bath of mud and tickles!" Black Ice called out as she pulled them back into the mud pool. 

"No please, I'll do anything! Even clean all of your knick knacks!" Fury pleaded.

But they fell on deaf ears as his vengeful mother put them right into the mud.

"Are you having fun now, my boy?" Black Ice asked while cackling.

"This isn't what I was thihihihinking!" Fury laughed as he was tickled mercilessly. "Amethyst, help mehehehehe!"

"What do you want me to do, hahahahah!" The normally tough Amethyst laughed. "You're the one who put us in this mess! What do you think!?"

"What the heck am I supposed to do?!" The helpless cub asked.

But maybe she has a point. I don't wanna be tickled like this forever. There's gotta be something I can do. Think Fury think!

He looked around while laughing looking for a solution to his problem. And then he had an idea. 

With his paws that were still free, he grabbed a leaf. And then he fluttered around his Ursa Minor mother's nose.

"Doesn't that feel soothing, mom?" Fury asked.

Black Ice started to feel sensitive around her nose, her snout twitching as the small leaf brushed against her face.

"Ahh… Ahhh… Achoo!" 

The sneeze was more akin to the sound of thunder than a sneeze. She let the two go unintentionally.

"Now's our chance!" Fury said, hopping onto Amethyst. "Let's get outta here! Back home!"

"Better than being her toy!" Amy said as she ran forward as quickly as possible. The two hopped out of the mud pool and left the Ursa Minor behind, heading back towards Thunder Hollow in a dead sprint.

–

The playback cut off and Black Ice pulled the photo away.

"Hoo boy, were we muddy by the time we got home. Obsidian almost dropped his coffee when he saw us walking in." Ice laughed.

"Hehe, yeah. Safe to say, we all took a looooong bath after that one." Fury chuckled. 

Cadence chuckled. "You Speed Shifters are crazy. Well maybe except Obsidian here."

"Oh I have my own quirks. I just hide them better than the rest." Obsidian bluntly said. 

"Ah, and here are all of my orange colored relatives. It's been so long since I've seen any of them. Night Fury, a lot of these Shifters are your cousins and aunts." Black Ice said. 

Fury was astonished. Their colors stuck out. They were stunning.

"Wow, I'm surprised I haven't seen more of these orange Shifters." Fury said.

"Let's just say they like to keep to themselves. They're the type to think of themselves as better than the rest too." Black Ice said. "After all, their family has some of the most revered Shifter warriors in all the Speed Shifter tribes, are law abiding and are usually rich."

"Now that reminds me of someone…" Fury said smugly, slowly directing his gaze in his mother's direction. 

"Well I'm the exception. I'm not judgemental or snobbish like them." She boasted. "I'm humble and treat others with equal dignity."

"The stench of lies floats high and blows strong." Luna spoke up, getting a chuckle from her elder sister. 

"Everyone's a critic." Black Ice muttered as she looked away from them as Fury and even Obsidian also chuckled.

Twilight then decided to get back to work.

"So are there any relatives you think might look like our culprit, Black Ice?" Twilight asked.

"None really stick out to me, except for this one." She pointed out one Speed Shifter that looked identical to the one they saw in the vat.

"That's it, that's her! And her name is… Pyro Flare. Says here, she's one of my aunts and mom's 5th sister!" Fury said, surprised.

"But that's impossible, my mother only said she had four children!" Black Ice said. Then she realized.

"Unless…"

"She's a sister from another mother." Cadence quipped. 

Black Ice seemed horrified at this. "No. No. My father had many problems. But he was a loving shifter. He would never do that! He would never betray me and my mother"

"Uh, mom? You might want to look at the date." Fury directed the attention to the date under Pyro's face.

"Oh, thank goodness. The date says she was born before my mother married my father. So this one must be from a previous relationship of my father's. This is my father's book of records, so it would make sense that he may have included some of his previous flings." Black Ice sighed with relief, she was glad that her father was still loyal to her mother. "Although it does figure that he would have a lot of flings with different women before settling down." She admitted.

"But who is this Pyro Flare supposed to be?" Twilight asked. "Do you know the mother?"

"Not me, but maybe this book can tell us." Black Ice said, flipping through the book and finding a whole two pages full of a different family.

"Look, there's grandpa!" Fury said. "And there's the wife, her name's Fire Starter. From what's visible, grandpa had two children with her. Pyro Flare and another one named Hotshot."

"So this is that other family. Are there any notes on said family?" Twilight asked. 

"Luckily for us, he had a diary separate from this as a way to express his thoughts. He never really spoke out about anything personal to him. Can you go get it, sweetie?"

"Back in a flash, mom." Fury said. 

He flashed away quickly and was back with the diary in no time flat.

"Here ya go!" Fury said. 

"Alright, let's see what we have. All I have to do is correlate the dates of when this Fire Starter married my father and we'll find out more about her." Black Ice flipped through the diary until she found an entry that was around the time Fire Starter would have been at her one year anniversary. 

"Dear diary, Fire Starter is as happy as ever as always. She and her family are very rich and planned an event for our anniversary. While I have gotten used to having a rich Mother and Father-in-laws, I can't feel like I'm out of place with my more rural upbringing. Their beautiful stone mansions can't match the peaceful feel of a hut. Everyone is so much more uptight too."

"I also noticed that they have much more… extreme views of the world, with anyone else below their own social level not being acknowledged in the slightest. But now that I've married into the family, I'm technically on their level. Even so, I still get the occasional stink eye for where I was born and raised. Signed, Ice Monger."

"Wait, grandpa's name is Ice Monger?" Fury asked curiously. Black Ice was confused, had Fury never known his grandparent's names?

"Wait, you didn't know your grandfather's name?" She asked.

"You do realize that I basically had no contact with the rest of the family after the first few months of my birth, right?" Fury said. 

"He is right, Icey. We didn't really go over for many visits after Fury was born. You were so hyper focused on raising him right and keeping his destiny a secret from those who might want to seek him out that you never at least once made a little playdate for him." Obsidian added. Black Ice now realized how awkward it was that Fury hadn't heard the names of the ones in his family, but there was no time like the present to let him know. 

"Yes, it is. And your grandmother's name is Snowflake. Both of their families were ice carvers that hauled ice blocks in sleds in the winter, at least the males did. That's where you got your strength, baby." Black Ice said. "Not to say your father isn't strong, but running is more of his capability."

"That's true. As well as lightning powers." Obsidian said. "You're not quite the fastest or the strongest of all Speed Shifters, Fury. But rather you're a good mix of them." 

"Ah I see. I guess it explains why I have no orange in me. I don't have any orange shifters in me." Fury said. "By the way, what abilities do they have? Let me guess, they have some fire abilities?" 

"Yes they did. Your aunt Flaming Passion had the ability to ignite her body with flame, and your aunt Smoldering Coal was able to transform into a pure fireball-like state where she could start fires with her aura."

"Whoa!" Fury said. "They might be snobs, but I can see why. That is a cool ability." 

Then Fury got a little jealous. "I wish I had the ability to use fire. Maybe shoot fire like one of those dragons."

"That could have been troublesome for a little prankster like you." Obsidian said. "You might have burnt the village down.

"Oh come on, dad. If anyone was gonna accidentally burn down the village, it's Ms. Hothead over here. You might be cold as ice, mom, but you're hot headed like your oven."

"I'm not that hot headed! If anything, the giant sized quadruped goose behind me has more of a temper than me!" Black Ice said blindly. Everyone was stunned that she would say such a thing in Celestia's presence, everyone except for Fury and Luna who were laughing about it all while Celestia got a smirk plastered on her face. 

"So I'm a goose you say?" Celestia inquired.

"N-no, Your Highness! M-my apologies! I was um… talking about someone else. Yes! Not you!" Black Ice said stumbling, not being used to herself acting improper.

"I don't think so, momma! You were speaking with intent!" Fury laughed as he transformed into a goose and began honking. 

"I'll show you intent!" Black Ice grumbled. "Um, I mean um… how regal you look Princess! Ha ha ha!"

"Stop lying, you've been waiting to rip into her! I bet you've had it sitting in the back of your mind that you would've ripped her a new flank for allowing me to date her sister!" Fury said, still honking as a goose. 

"I'm your mother, Fury! You should be more trusting of me! And at least not berating me as a goose!" Black Ice said.

"Sorry, you told me to always speak the truth. And so I'm doing just that. So as I was saying… HONK HONK HONK HONK!"

Black Ice saw it was hopeless. She looked into Celestia's expressionless face. "Y-you don't believe him, right? He likes to joke around…"

Celestia chuckled. "Oh Black Ice, are you trying to trick me? I know what you said. But don't be afraid. I understand how I could resemble a big goose. If I just had a beak I would fit the bill."

Fury laughed at this pun.

Twilight meanwhile was still pondering about Pyro Flare.

"Speaking of fiery abilities, no wonder why that fort got burnt down. Her powers must have made it easy as pie." Twilight said.

"I wouldn't doubt it, she probably made it look like a cake walk. But the thing is, how did she get in to begin with?" Cadence pondered.

"If I'm going off of anything, she probably turned into something small like a worm to squeeze through the walls or dig under the surface." Fury said. "Grandpa did have some transforming capabilities after all, I guess it figures it got passed down."

"This lady sounds really powerful. She was able to defeat multiple thestrals." Cadence said. "Do you think you would be able to take her on?"

"I can definitely do that. I'd love to take her on… and watch her blood splatter across the ground… bones cracking and crunching under the pure force of my blows… her cries for mercy ringing through my ears as I bring her to an end." Fury said, slowly dissolving into his underlying bloodlust. 

Everyone around him looked in either shock or discomfort, except for Luna who seemed stoic and a little pleased at this.

"Fury, I think you need to calm down." Obsidian said. "You're in one of those moods. Don't do it now, especially not in front of non-speed shifters."

"I'm completely fine, pops. Do I look like something's wrong with me?" Fury pulled his head up and revealed his slitted eyes and crackling energy, his inner predator revealing itself on his exterior. Obsidian was about to calm him down when Luna stepped up.

"I believe I know why he is in this certain mood," She spoke. "He is going through a withdrawal."

"Withdrawal, you say?" Celestia asked her younger sister. 

"Yes. He has been holding back his instincts for the sake of others around him. But now he's had enough. Especially if it's for the sake of someone very close to him." Luna said, referring to herself. "To be honest though, I think I appreciate the gesture." Luna said with a smile.

"Luna? What do you mean?" Twilight asked.

"What I mean is… my poor guards have suffered greatly at this monster's paws. If Fury were to put her through the same things my guards went through, I would not mind one bit." She said with a dark smile.

"Your Highness," Black Ice said. "You shouldn't encourage him like that. He could go on another um… rampage. He might not be able to control himself!" She said.

"Woah woah, wait a minute… Another rampage? Just when did I have one before?" Fury questioned her.

Obsidian spoke up. "Remember your race against that griffin and earth pony? You seemed to have had a primal instinct swell up. You even used a spell that not even our oldest sages ever heard of. I'm just worried if you're not careful, this Pyro might try to use that against you. You need to be careful. I've faced orange Shifters before and they can be more dangerous than a Cragodile."

"I was able to take that wimp Moon Beam down easy though!"

"First of all, he was barely a warrior. Probably some spoiled aristocrat who got to be chief because of his family, not talent. Not like Pyro Flare. Even so, we're still concerned that you might go off track." Black Ice said. Fury stood there in shock, were his parents really trying to not get into conflict?

"Okay let me get this straight. First, I get called out and shamed for not stepping up when I had to in the past. I do exactly that to save both of you, and now you're telling me not to take the fight to her and deal with this problem permanently?" Fury said. 

"Listen, we're just saying you have to be careful." Black Ice said. "You have powers beyond your understanding. Who knows what may happen?"

"I know, she's gonna die by my paws and the problem will be solved. Since when did you guys value the life of someone who literally went on a genocide run?!" 

"We don't value her life, son! She can rot in Tartarus for all we care, it's you we cherish. We just want you to stay on the right path." Obsidian defended. 

"Right, because if I don't I'll be just as bad as Moon Beam?" Fury huffed. "Sorry, but no. She made a wrong move and now I will tear her to pieces. Not for my sake but for those thestrals and for Luna."

"Fury, this is not as much about her as much as it is about you." Obsidian said. "Ever since you had that scar, we have worried about what you will become. We want you to be in control. Your aura is so powerful it might overwhelm you and make you out of control."

"Are you underestimating how much I can manage my powers? Guys, I have done way more training than you could ever know! I'm not weak like what others said before about me. And I swear I will destroy this Pyro gal and be just as in control as ever!"

"Don't you care about the reputation we might lose though?" Black Ice said. And at that point, Fury laughed.

"So that's what this was all about, huh? Reputation? I guess you really can't change, mom. You will always have the reputation of our blood running through your mind like rats in a forest fire. Heh, I should have known you'd be so weak." 

"Reputation is important! It allows us to be trusted and make allies. My family's reputation has helped us to prosper even if our money was lost. We speed shifters might lose our standing with the ponies and start a war on us!" Black Ice said. 

"And yet the lives at stake from Tirek and this Pyro are less important? How could you be so selfish? I'm trying to do the right thing and you're going around talking about how other ponies see us? They've seen me kill, they've seen me draw blood. How can you say that reputation is more important than saving the ones who took us in?" Fury argued. 

"As a pony, I absolutely agree," said Luna, marching to his side. "Fury is absolutely right in this. He wants to bring this fiend to justice and save others and all you worry about is your honor?! HOW DARE YOU?!?! YOU CALL YOURSELVES WARRIORS AND HEROES?!?!" Luna yelled out.

The parents were silent. They couldn't even respond.

"You know something that I've realized about us? We can't let go of our past failures and stubborn ideologies. That's why the chief put in that 'Trust no other creature' policy. Not just for the sake of our way of life, but to stand high above others as the one who took the responsibility to change something we couldn't solve outright."

"You know how you two look right now? Weak. I've never been more insulted to have been born to such disappointments in my entire life." Fury said coldly. "To think you used to be some of the fiercest, most powerful Shifters I knew. But ever since being imprisoned, you've become spoiled and weak. Where's that warrior pride you once had?"

The parents were silent. They had never thought of it like that before. Had they become so spoiled they forgot what it was to fight for a noble cause?

"Well, now that I've gotten a grasp on who's gonna do the right thing and who's gonna sit on the sidelines, pondering about how they look to others, I'm gonna go do something with my life. And as for you two… Pfft, I dunno, go back home and get softer than you already are. You've already proven yourselves to be useless, I don't need you two making me wish I was an orphan." Fury said bluntly as he walked out. 

"Fury, wait!" Black Ice called out, but Fury was already gone.

"No." Black Ice said on the ground. "We turned him against us again." 

"I might not be a Speed Shifter." Luna said. "But I understand him well. I think you underestimate how powerful he is. You always think he will be defeated. You should be more confident in your son, even if his reputation was lost he would get it back."

"I should say the same, coming from a pony who used to try and plan you her entire year to maintain a sense of order." Twilight said. "Honestly is one of the core pillars of Relationships, Familial or Romantic. And if I'm being brutally honest, you two took a dive off the deep end, hard."

"It's just… ever since we were imprisoned or even before that, we worried about Fury's future. He used to not be the fastest or bravest." Obsidian said. "He didn't have too many close friends except one. I want him to be safe and in control and to not do anything he will regret."

"Well, he has more now. And he knows how we see him on a daily basis. We know he can be violent at times, we know he can be lazy, we know he can change his views based on what is at the forefront of his radar. And right now, he sees that you two are doubling back on what he was taught many years ago." Celestia spoke. 

"We know he holds his views dear, but what about how this could shape him? Thinking about killing creatures constantly"

"Isn't that your whole world view, that any creature who steps over the line needs to be dealt with permanently?" Cadence reminded her. 

"That world view is exactly the reason why we're currently taking steps towards a less pacifist lifestyle for ponies. He made it clear through his actions, he only destroys those that are irredeemable and he does it to save others from their destruction. And as he's said through concise and factual arguments that if we didn't toughen up in everyday life and continued to lean towards trying to make friends with creatures that clearly do not have any intention of accepting out of pure ignorance, we may be in more trouble than we realize. And this troubling time of figuring out how to deal with Tirek and Pyro Flare is the perfect time to truly show how we see the world ourselves." Celestia said.

Black Ice looked down in thought.

"I think our son might be right. Maybe we have gone soft. And lost our honor." Obsidian said.

Black Ice started to see the truth. "And I just told him he was still not honorable enough to make his own decisions… I'm ashamed of myself."

"You should be, you went too far. I am truly appalled that his own parents would be this unsupportive, even after he basically saved you from your deaths." Twilight said bluntly, her expression flat and blank. Celestia was truly surprised by this, she had never known Twilight to be so cold and blunt under all of the optimism that she has shown over the years. 

"Twilight… aren't you being a little harsh?" Cadence said.

"Yes I am. But it's well deserved. And they need to hear it. They need to know they did wrong and that this is unacceptable." Then she softened. "Just like I did. I'm not perfect either. I said some terrible things to Fury and put into question his decency or if he should even be our friend." Twilight admitted. 

"So if that's the case…" Black Ice askes. "What should we do?"

"Simple. Go to him. Admit all your mistakes and make things right with him. And make sure he knows you are confident in him." Twilight said.

"We will. But I think we should give him time to cool down to a point where he'll be willing to talk, we shouldn't rush to get his approval just yet." Obsidian said. Black Ice nodded in agreement, she knew that running after him would make them seem desperate for forgiveness. 

Ever since she saw him again in Ponyville, she has started to realize that with Night Fury she had to be more careful and more sensitive to Fury's psyche. And so she was thinking what to say to him. To tell him she trusts him. 

And so she waited. She then was wondering more about this Pyro Flare. She always wondered what happened to her father's first wife and why he never told her or his other daughter.

"I wonder what my father was thinking at this time…" She said aloud. "I never knew he had a previous family before me and my mother. Why did he never say anything?"

Obsidian sat by her. "Does the diary say anything more?"

"No. It looks like this diary ends early. Maybe he has another one?" Black Ice said, still wondering. 

"Well, we can worry about that family history later." Obsidian said getting up. "I think he's probably cooled off now. Let's go find him."

She nodded. "Thank you Zecora for helping my son find this culprit."

"It is a pleasure." Zecora said, waving to them and bowing. Then Fury's parents went off to find their son. Tensions were high, questions were to be answered and regretful things were said. But nothing would be able to come between them if they stuck together. At least, that what was thought at the time as the impending threat would soon cause things to go overboard and new terrifying power from both sides to be revealed.