Twilight gasped.
She turned to Starlight, bewildered by what she saw.
"The notebook, Twi! Quickly!"
She fumbled it up and turned to an empty page. Starlight yanked it from her grip and rapidly tore out six pages, arranging them into a larger rectangle and bonding them together in an instant. Then she touched her horn to the center and color began to flow out from the tip of her horn.
A sinister face manifested around her horn, followed by the odd landscape and vehicle they had seen. Twilight watched the image take form, impressed by Starlight's control. She wondered how much of that was the artifacts and how much was pure talent. Either way, she swelled with pride for her student.
Finally, the image reached the edges of the paper and Starlight stepped back, nodding with satisfaction.
"Phew. No bucking way I could describe all this without a picture."
"Yeah... and what a picture, too. I didn't even know the spell could do that. Good job capturing it."
Starlight's ear twitched, then she turned to Anon, floating the image toward him.
"This make any sense to you?"
Anon looked at it, then quirked his lips and said, "looks like somewhere in Africa, but beyond that, no clue."
He looked up at Lizzy, who was still talking rapidly into her phone in another language.
"Hey, Overture girl. Lizzy, I think?"
She glanced at him and muttered at the phone.
"Yes, Doctor Mous?"
"Think your people could find this?"
He held out the paper and Lizzy, eyes going wide, immediately snapped a picture and began texting it to someone.
"I think so. Looks like maybe South Africa. We have agents there, I'll check with them."
Then she began speaking in her language again, still on the phone with whoever she had been talking to.
"Starlight?" Anon asked.
She glanced up, still seeming a little wary of him, "Uh, yeah? What's up?"
"You said you have unlimited power. How far could you teleport us?"
"Hmm... Pretty far, if I knew where to go."
He turned to Twilight and said, "We'll need to go about as far as we just flew. Do you have units of measurement to explain that to her?"
"Oh. Well... Starlight, what's the furthest you've teleported before?"
"Uh, from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire. Once. And I missed."
Twilight resisted the urge to smirk as she thought about why Starlight might go to the Crystal Empire.
"With all your enchantments, do you think you could go three or four times as far?"
"F-Four times...? Tartarus, Twi, you don't ask for much, do you? Let me experiment a bit. I haven't tried teleporting with these artifacts yet."
She kicked off gently into the air and floated there for a second, then vanished with a little pop. All three of them winced as their ears were instantly assaulted by the overwhelming noise of the crowd still surrounding them, nearly forgotten. Twilight immediately cast her own bubble, breathing a sigh of relief at the renewed silence.
"Goodness, that's so nice," Lizzy said.
"Mmhmm."
Twilight didn't say anything more, still not trusting Lizzy. Then Starlight reappeared, looking a bit haggard.
"No. Hay no. That's just too bucking far. I could maybe teleport half that distance, but even then I'll be worn out and need to rest for a few hours, especially if I was bringing you two with me."
Anon frowned, "I thought you said that artifact gave you infinite power?"
Twilight shook her head, "It's not that simple. That's just her magical energy store, which prevents her from what we call 'sparking out,' where your horn sparks and your magic just abruptly cuts out."
"Like when you dropped me from the ceiling?" he said with a teasing smile.
Starlight made an incredulous noise in her throat, "You dropped him from the ceiling!?"
"Accidentally!"
"Pfft!" She raised a hoof to her muzzle to suppress her laughter.
"ANYWAYS. It also takes a lot of focus to cast spells of great power, and you only have so much willpower to go around. Getting unlimited willpower is a whole other kind of tricky."
"Oh. So she only kinda sorta has infinite power."
"Yeah," Starlight added, having gotten her mirth under control, "Think of it more as a specific large amount of power, but infinite times. You can't dump infinite power into a single spell, after all."
Lizzy looked up from her phone and said, "Anon? We're narrowing down the location. It's definitely in South Africa, probably northern Kwa-Zulu Natal. It's the most likely area to have acacia trees, leopards, antelopes, and known poachers all in the same area."
"Poachers?" Anon asked, "What do they have to do with anything?"
"We're fairly confident the face in the image is Arno Mthembu, infamous in southern Africa. He's a wily one... He'd be smart enough to know not to kill her outright, to know he has something special and to keep her alive so he can continue harvesting... stuff. It'd be more profitable than just killing her."
Twilight shuddered at the thought, "That... That's horrible!"
Anon nodded, "Poachers are disgusting people."
Starlight looked like she might be sick, "I guess I was wrong..."
"About what?" Twilight asked.
"I told Princess Luna I didn't think it was humans who hurt Celestia." Then she gasped, "Princess Luna! I told her I'd update when you arrived!"
Twilight gasped in return, "You can contact Princess Luna!?"
"Yes! Only one way though, she can't send messages back."
"Ohhh, because of the homeworld stability."
"Exactly. Look, don't bother me for a few moments, okay? I gotta concentrate to do it."
"Okay."
Starlight closed her eyes and her horn began to glow dimly.
Lizzy spoke again, "This is actually good news. If Arno has your other pony, then the local authorities will be more than happy to cooperate--they want him captured just as bad as you want your friend back."
Twilight jumped as Anon suddenly leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Don't let Lizzy leave the bubble."
She frowned, but nodded, her horn flashing once as she tweaked the spell. Anon straightened and faced Lizzy, who looked concerned by their sudden secrecy.
"Lizzy, I'm going to be frank with you. We don't trust you, or Overture in general. You lost that privilege when Peter manipulated Twilight into making that portal." He stepped closer to her, knowing he himself was not much of a threat, but knowing the two ponies behind him absolutely were. "You are trapped in here with us. Tell me, who is Overture, what do you do, and how do you have so many connections?"
"Wait!" Twilight cried, then her brow furrowed in concentration. Her horn pulsed with silvery light, then it beamed straight at Lizzy's throat.
Lizzy flinched, then when nothing seemed to happen, asked, "What did you just do to me?"
"You cannot lie."
"What?"
"It's a spell that prevents you from lying. The spell to force you to tell the truth requires rare and exotic reagents, but preventing you from lying is much easier."
Anon frowned, "Uh, what's the difference?"
Twilight huffed impatiently, "The difference is a truth spell compels you to answer truthfully whether you want to share or not. This spell, Lizzy doesn't have to answer, but if she does, and she tries to lie, her throat will tighten up on her."
"I see."
Lizzy, looking nervous now, had backed up against the side of the bubble, finding it to be quite firm to her touch, "N-Now hang on, I've been nothing but helpful--"
She gagged abruptly and her eyes widened.
"You were saying?" Anon said with a grin.
"Ugh! Okay, fine, I have been helping you--I really do want to help you get home--but I've also been sharing intel with my superiors, anything I can learn about you ponies, which isn't exactly to your best interest."
"Why not?"
"Don't play dumb, Doctor Mous. We're an international corporation, why do you think? If they can make a profit off of this, they will." She hesitated, then added, "I'm only telling you this because I know we're private and I honestly really like you two, but... I have to follow orders, you know? Just--please don't give away where you got this info."
"Aren't they going to know it came from you anyways?"
"They'll suspect, but they can't prove anything unless you tell them. So, y'know, don't."
Anon looked down at Twilight and shrugged.
"I guess we can handle that."
"Thank you."
Twilight stepped forward and asked, "Why do you want to help us so bad? What do you have in mind for us?"
Lizzy sighed and said, "Okay. Look, we don't have any specific plans to--"
She choked again and a look of frustration passed over her face"
"Alright, dammit! We do have a couple of specific plans, but they're only for hypothetical scenarios we think might be possible. We don't know much about you or your magic, so we're kind of flying blind, but all our plans revolve around me getting you to trust Overture, or, failing that, at least to trust me."
"Then why tell us all this?"
"Because Overture is really not that bad, and they have a lot of reach. More than you know. More than I even know, I think, and I'm no rookie."
Anon looked skeptical, "Uh, just how much reach are we talking? If they want us to trust them, then they can pull some major strings for us, right?"
"'Can' and 'will' are very different."
Anon folded his arms and said, "You didn't answer the question."
She hesitated, then said, "They have headquarters around the globe and agents spread out everywhere worth noting."
Anon let out a low whistle, "And you do... what, exactly?"
"We, uh..." She gulped nervously, "Look, I can't lie, but I really don't want to go into details. You have no idea how much trouble I would be in if they found out. Is it enough to say that we watch for unique events?"
Anon looked down at Twilight, who shrugged her shoulders and quirked her lips in a sort of 'meh' face. He looked back up and silently raised an eyebrow, waiting for more.
Lizzy glanced nervously between them, then sat down suddenly, muttering, "I... I really can't say much, but I suppose..." She took a slow deep breath as if bracing herself, then looked up and said, "We aren't just a corporation. We're more of an agency like the CIA or MI6, only... international. We deal with things other agencies can't, things they don't even know about."
Anon scoffed, "What, like aliens? Area 51 shit?"
Lizzy just stared at him.
His sarcastic smirk evaporated, "You... can't mean actual aliens, right?"
She glanced significantly at Twilight and back.
Anon rested a hand on his forehead.
"Great, we're dealing with the fucking Men In Black. Women In Black," he hastily corrected.
Twilight shuffled her hooves nervously, "Something doesn't feel right."
Anon nodded and set a comforting hand on the back of her head, then looked back at Lizzy.
"What if we refuse to cooperate?"
Lizzy sucked in a breath and said, "You don't want to do that."
"But what if we do?"
"You... will be convinced to cooperate."
Anon removed his hand, much to Twilight's chagrin, and then gestured at both her and Starlight.
"You're gonna threaten these two? Do you have any idea what they're capable of!?"
"No, but we intend to find out."
"I don't think you'll enjoy what you find."
Twilight looked nervously up at Anon, "Anon, I told you, I don't like--"
"I know, Twi. But from what I've seen, she wouldn't mind at all," he said, jerking a thumb towards Starlight, who was just opening her eyes again and seemed amused to find herself being discussed.
"Wouldn't mind what?"
"Overture isn't giving us a choice," Anon said sardonically, "Either we cooperate, or they make us cooperate."
"Now hang on," Lizzy said, "I don't mean anything cruel or--" Her voice cut off abruptly and she slapped her thigh angrily, "Oh for God's sake! I mean for as long as possible, alright? Anything like that would be our absolute last resort. We are already trying to make ourselves useful to you so you will work with us, then we would try flattery or even gifts, then gentle coercion, then maybe more serious coercion, then, and ONLY then, would we try anything that could be construed as harmful to you."
Anon shook his head, almost amused.
"You really think you could do anything at all to these girls? Twilight has already shown me some amazing abilities beyond what you even think is possible--"
"And we have resources at our disposal which you do not even think are possible."
They both stared fiercely at each other for a moment, then Lizzy relaxed and sighed.
"Look, I'm trying to help you, really I am. Twilight said I don't have to answer. I wouldn't be telling you all of this otherwise. We're on the same--" She swallowed uncomfortably, then quickly continued, "Okay, well, mostly the same side. I do still report to my superiors and if they take charge I will have to obey, but they have deferred the task to me, and will continue to trust it to me until they believe it necessary to step in. Particularly after Peter bungled your trust so badly. Like I said, our goal is to make you trust us."
Twilight took a step forward, "And how do we know you weren't ordered to give away just enough info to make it seem like you're on our side?"
Very deliberately, she replied, "I was not ordered to do any such thing. It was not even suggested to me. This is entirely my own decision and of my own initiative."
"...Well, I guess that settles that."
Lizzy crossed her arms smugly. Then she raised her eyebrows and pulled out her phone again.
"Ah, we have confirmation. She is definitely in the northern Kwa-Zulu Natal area. We'll make contact with the local authorities and alert them to the situation." She looked up at Anon again, "We should get moving. We can take the same jet we just left, it should still be available for our use."
She stood up but Twilight raised a hoof, "Hold on there, filly. I still don't understand why you've taken such risk to tell us so much. It just isn't logical."
The woman hesitated, then shrugged.
"I like you. Does everything have to be logical?"
Twilight lashed her tail in annoyance and opened her mouth to retort, but was interrupted by Starlight's snort of laughter.
"Maybe not to you, but to Twilight here--"
"You hush!"
She tossed a spark of magic at Starlight who casually brushed it aside and giggled, but her laughs died away when she saw Twilight's worried expression.
"Fine," Twilight said, "The lie-less spell does protect us somewhat, and we do need you in any case. Celestia is counting on us. You're right, we should go." She looked at the crowd all around and said, "Uh, won't they think it weird to exit the airport then immediately go back inside and leave? Especially after I just did that greeting announcement..."
Starlight shrugged, "Eh, they all saw me waiting here for you, and they heard my announcement yesterday. Obviously you were just meeting up with me. And besides, buck them, who cares? Celestia is more important."
Twilight blinked, "Right. Yes, she is. Come on, let's go. Brace yourselves..."
And with a flick of the horn, the bubble dissipated.
They were surprised to find the crowd relatively quiet. There was definitely a general hubbub about the place, but not the raucous cheering they were expecting.
Anon muttered, "I guess we got boring."
Starlight grinned, "I can fix that if you want."
"Just no disintegrating buildings this time, yeah?"
"Ah, that was just for show, I wouldn't have actually done that." Then she added in an undertone, "Probably."
Twilight shuffled her hooves uncomfortably, not liking any delay now that they were decided, "We really should be going..."
Starlight snorted, "I don't think one short moment is going to make or break saving Celestia. Come on! You look like you could use some lightening up. How about that lightshow we did for Yakyakistan?"
Twilight sighed, then looked up with a wry grin and said, "No, let's give them the Crystal Celebration."
"Oooh... but, here? Are you sure?"
She shrugged, "Why now? We've proven it's harmless and it wears off quickly.
"Uh... what's harmless?" Anon asked nervously.
Twilight merely winked at him, "You'll see."
Then she spread her wings wide and a hush fell over the crowd. As one, Starlight and Twilight leapt into the air, swirling around each other in a spiral, leaving a trail of glittering light behind them.
"People of London, we bid you farewell!"
"But before we do, here is a harmless little gift!
"Don't worry, it'll wear off soon!"
A nervous mutter went up among the crowd, but there were a few whoops of excitement, too. Their voices normal again, Starlight murmured, "Ready?" And Twilight nodded, "Ready."
Then they focused on the love and friendship they felt for each other, letting it envelop them like a blanket, warming them from the inside. They floated slowly closer together, smiling kindly at one another, and Twilight felt the magic begin to take hold. Starlight's horn began to glow with a unique iridescence, and she knew hers was doing the same.
Then they came together in a hug, Twilight tucking her head over Starlight's shoulder and angling her head back so that their horns came close, but did not quite touch. That was the hard part--they had to get close enough together to trigger the reaction but could not touch or it would rapidly overpower them. But, they had practiced the motion extensively in preparation for the Crystal Empire's most recent celebration, and those ponies had been very surprised when someone other than their prince and princess had managed the feat.
Their magic began to resonate, rapidly compounding on itself and causing a chain reaction until there was a soft "whump" and a wave of the purest harmony exploded outwards in a shimmering ripple. The crowd let out a cry of surprised confusion as it passed over them, and Twilight grinned.
It felt strange, she knew, but also wonderful.
She and Starlight released each other and looked down. The humans were all staring at each other, their murmur slowly growing into an excited fervor. Someone cheered, and like a dam bursting, everyone instantly took up the cry, their crystalline bodies glittering in the dimming sunlight.
The ponies glided slowly back to the ground, smiling at Anon, who was staring at his own translucent limbs in awe.
"But... how?"
"It's magic, Anon."
"We don't have to explain it!"