In Canterlot Castle, the guards had all been subdued. None of them were dead, but they had all been beaten into various states. Now, they were all tied up and currently being held in the throne room. There, Halberd was sitting upon Twilight's throne, the earth pony smiling at the situation as the Overthrow Soldiers stared at the beaten guards. After all, anypony that tried to even move into a more comfortable position were given a swift kick in the side.
"Now now," he told the soldiers, "Let's not get overzealous with our friends. After all, we'll all be on the same side eventually."
The guards looked up and glared at him. "We'll never join you!" Cobalt yelled, only to cry out when a soldier kicked him in the stomach.
Halberd shook his head at this, "Don't be silly. We're offering you the chance to do what you came to this castle to do. Protect Equestria. Face it, the guards have no respect in this kingdom. Whenever a threat arises, who do the citizens turn to? Not us. They expect the princess, or the Royal Knights, or a farmer and a party planner to be the heroes. Not us."
"The Royal Knights are part of the guard!" One spoke up, "Grand Hoof. Skybreaker and Cold Steel. They trained as guards and became knights."
"But what about the other members of the knights? First Aid and Heather were never guards. They never had to wake up at the crack of dawn, get screamed at and called worthless by drill sergeants. Spent hour after hour, standing guard when nothing's happening. They never worked for the title, but were still given Celestic Gears so they could outmatch us."
"That's why you're doing this?!" Cobalt groaned, "You're just jealous!"
"Of course not," Halberd replied, "I'm doing this so that Equestria will never have to rely on anypony except the guards. And when we have complete control over this kingdom, you will all be given the chance to gain the power our soldiers have. The power of the Phantom Magic. The power to do many amazing things. With it, the Royal Guard will never be seen as weak again. The next time a threat appears in Equestria, we will destroy it."
Cobalt and the other guards all shared a glance before staring at the pale white coat and manes of the soldiers. They all had a feeling that if they were given this 'Phantom Magic', they would all end up the same way.
Meanwhile...
Iron and Cold were in a completely different part of the castle, both tied up and being dragged along by a bunch of Overthrow Soldiers while following Mould Breaker as they made their way through the castle. And eventually, they arrived at a location the two were well aware of: The Canterlot Vault.
"Why'd you bring us here?" Iron asked as he and Cold were thrown to the floor.
Breaker smirked as he pointed to the vault. "Behind these doors is a plethora of magical artifacts, hidden away from the world instead of being used to protect Equestria."
Cold glared back at him. "They were locked in there because they were too dangerous to let anypony wield them! You can't seriously be planning to use them, can you?" Breaker looked back and smiled. "It doesn't matter if you want to use them or not. Those doors are impossible to open or break down. The only way in, is with the princess' magic."
As if on cue, the doors behind them burst open and a pegasus flew in.
"Did you get it?" Breaker asked as the pegasus held out a crystal.
"Twilight Sparkle's magic. Also managed to douse her and the others with Phantom Magic. They won't be causing us any problems for a while."
Breaker smiled as he took the gem and turned to the vault. Iron and Cold watched as the unicorn raised the crystal up to the doors before it unleashed a stream of magic, which flowed into the door's lock and caused it to start clicking. It soon unlocked itself, the doors swinging open.
"No way," Iron whispered.
"At last." Breaker chuckled as he vanished inside, the knights just staring at the open doors before Breaker came back a few minutes later. In his magic was a metal plate-like object that looked like a triangle with the ends cut off and in the center of it was a clear round gemstone. "Here we are. This should do quite nicely."
"What is that thing?" Iron asked, Cold grimacing at the sight.
"Remember the story Halberd told you about before? About the relic that could grant the wielder incredible power?" Iron nodded, "Well, that's it."
"But I thought it was out of power." Iron replied.
"It is," Breaker nodded, "But when Halberd told me about this, I realised it wouldn't be difficult to re-energise it. Especially for somepony with the Phantom Magic." His horn started glowing and unleashed a clear white magic, which flowed into the device and made it start to glow. The relic's gem started changing colour, as if it was filling with a hazy white fog.
Slowly, the relic moved to Breaker. The unicorn removed his body armor and when the relic touched his chest, magical strands began to flow out of the parts where the tips should have been. One of them moved under Breaker's chest while the other two flowed over his shoulders. They moved down his body and eventually came to a stop as a glowing ring materialized behind his legs and the strands connected to it. The light then began to fade, revealing metal straps connected to a band.
Breaker took a deep breath at this, now feeling the power of this relic flow, "Excellent. Now, nothing can stop me." But in that moment, the doors of the room flew open as a bunch of soldiers rushed inside.
"Breaker!" One of them yelled, "We've got a problem!" The unicorn raised an eyebrow at this, noticing the soldier's suits were burned and one's chest was seriously blackened. "We went to Ponyville and attacked, just like you commanded."
Iron's eyes went wide at this before growling, the knight now squirming against his bonds. Breaker saw this and chuckled before turning to the soldiers, "Go on."
Another soldier continued, "We fought against Grand Hoof and several ponies that were trying to stop us from attacking. They were no match for us after we nullified their magic." Iron and Cold almost flinched at that, "But then these ponies showed up and they were completely immune to the Phantom Magic!"
"Immune?!" Breaker yelled, "That's impossible!"
"It's true!" another nodded. "We definitely hit them, but they were still able to use their magic afterwards. We don't know why, and they didn't seem to know either!"
Breaker let this info sink it, the soldiers expecting him to get angry...only to see him smile, "How interesting." He looked down at the relic now strapped around his chest. "It looks like I'll have a reason to take this out for a spin. Who were these ponies?"
Back in Ponyville...
Lightning and the others had gone to the School of Friendship. Many expected to use some of Spike's jarred fire, but Starlight had something else in mind. "Twilight and I made this to talk whenever Spike was out on some other task." They went into her office and sitting on her desk opposite to Phyllis the Fern, was a crystal.
"What is that thing?" Script asked, as Starlight sat on her desk and spun it around.
"It's something similar to what the changelings used during their secret takeover of Equestria." The gem glowed before a light shot out of it, then formed an orb of light above the crystal. "I just hope Twilight has it on her."
A moment later, Twilight's face appeared in the light. "Starlight! This is not a good time! That is, unless it has something to do with Overthrow."
"Overthrow?" Grand raised an eyebrow. "I'm guessing they're a bunch of ponies that attacked you, like they did us?"
Flash's face suddenly appeared beside Twilight's. "You were attacked too?" They all nodded, "That's not good. I'm guessing they gassed you all with some kind of white mist?"
"And it completely shut off our magic!" Trixie cried.
"And mah strength!" Applejack added.
"And my flight!" Rainbow finished.
"So they attacked three places," Twilight sighed, "Have any of you heard anything from Canterlot?"
This made them all go wide-eyed, Script now saying, "Don't tell me they attacked Canterlot!"
Twilight nodded back, "We got a scroll from Cold stating that Overthrow had invaded Canterlot. It also said that the invaders had something called the Phantom Magic, which nullified the magic of anypony it touched."
"Not just ponies." Springer appeared beside them. "My Aura powers have been shut down as well."
"Seriously?!" Rainbow yelped, "What the heck is this stuff?!"
Grand then turned to Lightning and his friends, "Do you have any idea why this Phantom Magic didn't affect you?"
"What?!" Twilight yelled, "It didn't affect you?!"
"Pretty much," Wild nodded, "We all got a full blast of it, but we're still able to use our magic without a problem." His puppets flew around him, Pinkie appearing on the screen and looking relieved to see he was alright.
"Maybe they didn't breathe it in?" Flash guessed.
"I don't think it's that simple," Twilight replied while shaking her head, "There has to be something you four did to make you immune to whatever that Phantom Magic did. Think. Has anything out of the ordinary happened to you recently?"
The four shared a glance, only for Script's eyes to go wide. "The hot spring!"
"Hot spring?" Applejack asked.
"When we were at the fair," Script responded, "We came across a natural hot spring that had recently appeared. We all took a dip and relaxed, but then something caused the water to blast out like a geyser. We were all blown out of the spring. And now that I think about it, the air was filled with some kind of white mist..."
"Yeah," Gorgenia nodded. "And afterwards, we didn't feel so good."
"It made you sick?" Fluttershy gulped.
"I wouldn't say sick," Script shook his head, "But our bodies ached like crazy. We were constantly sore, barely had any energy and we...couldn't use our magic."
Lightning nodded, remembering the day and a half they had spent shivering in bed. He had been constantly hungry, but everything he tried to eat made him want to throw up. At one point, he had actually prayed to Celestia and Faust to put him out of his misery. "That's why we're back so late. We were held up in our hotel room as sick as a dog." He turned to Springer, "No offense." The jakhowl raised an eyebrow as he continued, "And when the doctor came to look at us, he couldn't find anything wrong."
"But then we just woke up this morning feeling good as new," Wild continued, "The doctor suggested staying a little while longer, but we felt fine. So we came home."
Script nodded. "I did intend to have myself checked out when I returned to Canterlot, but I don't think we need to wonder what caused those ailments. We must have been exposed to this Phantom Magic...but what the heck was it doing inside a hot spring?"
At the grand hotel, Twilight was also wondering the same thing. "This is so...strange. Why haven't we ever encountered this before? What is this...Phantom Magic?"
Flash crossed his hooves, "Well, we know that whatever it is, it doesn't originate from Faust."
The others turned to him at this, "What makes you say that?" Pinkie asked as Flash raised his hoof and tried to activate his power.
"See? I can't summon my Sacred Light, or the Corrupted Shadow. The Phantom Magic neutralized them both. Sacred Light is immune to anything that originated from it, and the Corrupted Shadow's the same. So if the Phantom Magic did originate from them, it shouldn't have been able to de-power them."
Twilight nodded at this, "And since the Sacred Light and Corrupted Shadow both originated from Faust, that means the Phantom Magic didn't come from here."
"Exactly," Flash nodded. "So the question is...where did it come from?" But as soon as he asked that, he suddenly clutched his head. "AUGH!" Everyone gasped as Flash almost fell over, Twilight about to ask if he was okay, only for Flash to let out a gasp before saying, "Okay. Go for it."
"Go for what?" Springer asked, only for Flash to open his eyes and reveal they were glowing white.
"Flash?" Twilight asked.
"Not exactly," he replied in a feminine voice. This made everyone flinch, some fearing the Phantom Magic had done something else to Flash...but then Springer recognized the voice.
"Faust?"
Flash nodded. "Yes. It's good to see you all again. Flash has allowed me to borrow his body so I can explain what's going on. But I'll have to be quick, since Flash's body won't be able to hold my consciousness for too long."
The group all shared a glance at this, Script slowly asking, "So...you know what the Phantom Magic is?"
"Phantom Magic? Is that what you're calling it? Yes, I know what it is. A mistake. Created during a time when the world had nopony to keep it from going haywire."
"What do you mean?" Springer asked.
Faust sighed and shook Flash's head, "As you all no doubt remember, about a year ago, my consciousness was extinguished and almost lost forever. It's only thanks to Flash that I was able to return." They nodded back before she continued, "During the time that I was gone, the world had nothing keeping it from breaking down. You all saw the effect that had on the world before Flash chose to give himself up to repair everything."
Twilight let this sink in, "Wait...are you saying the Phantom Magic manifested because there was nopony keeping the world from breaking down?"
"Exactly," Faust nodded again, "When Flash basically rebooted the universe, the Phantom Magic was sealed in areas of the earth. But now, it's starting to break free. One of the areas it's being released from happened to be the exact area Lightning and his friends were bathing. It was pure luck that they were exposed to the Phantom Magic, which is now flowing through their systems and granting them immunity to other spells cast using it."
"Please tell us you know how to undo it," Rainbow begged.
"The effects aren't permanent," Faust replied, "But it'll take several days to wear off. And if somepony is constantly subjected to it, they'll eventually lose their abilities permanently. However, there should be a way to create a potion you can use to act as a cure for the Phantom Magic, but you'll need to examine it to do that."
"So we need some of the Phantom Magic?" Lightning asked, "No problem. We can go back to the village and get some from the hot spring."
"I'm afraid it's not that simple," Faust responded, The Phantom Magic there was in very little quantity and the four of you absorbed it all. The ponies in this...Overthrow group, have been subjected to a much greater amount of the Phantom Magic. You were made sick by the amount you absorbed until your body adjusted to it. Those ponies were the ones that survived the process. And it wasn't without a cost."
"So what do we do?" Grand asked, only to see Faust frown.
"That's up to you to figure out. I'm afraid I cannot help with this situation. The Phantom Magic is outside of my realm of control. But I know you'll figure it out. Good luck." With that, she closed Flash's eyes before the pegasus staggered around.
"Whoa..." he moaned in his own voice, "That was weird."
"Great," Springer sighed, "So we know what we're up against, but not how to beat it."
"She said there's a chance we can make an antidote to the Phantom Magic," Twilight replied, "But I can't do that here. We need to get back to Ponyville."
"What about Canterlot?" Fluttershy asked, "Iron's there."
"And Rarity," Lightning added before spinning around, "I'm going to go get her."
He was about to grab the door, only for Twilight to yell, "Lightning, stop!" He glanced back at this, "I need you in Ponyville. With my magic out of action, I can't use the Rune Gate. Your magic is the strongest, so it should be able to activate the Rune Gate easier. And I'll need you to enchant something with magic so I can properly study it once I'm back in Ponyville."
Lightning frowned, "Script helped make the Rune Gate. Can't he do it?"
Script placed a hoof on his shoulder. "She's right. The stronger magic will give a better result." He then stepped back, "I'll go and get Rarity."
"We'll go and get Rarity," Wild added, Gorgenia nodding, "We're the only ones that can fight them, so we'll have to be on the front lines until Twilight can find a way to undo what happened to everypony."
Lightning growled, only to nod, "Okay. Just be careful." The three nodded and ran out of the office while Lightning turned to Twilight. "Alright. What do you need me to do?"
Canterlot...
Rarity and Sassy had gone out to lunch. The pair smiled as they sat in the Tasty Treat and enjoyed the exotic meal Saffron and Coriander had created. "Exquisite," Rarity sighed as Coriander smiled at her. "Dining here is always the highlight of coming to Canterlot."
"Indeed," Sassy nodded. "I try coming at least once a week. With so many spices and ingredients, the same dish can become something entirely new each time." They both wiped their mouths and paid their tab, then headed out to reopen the store. But as they did this, they noticed ponies running through the streets.
"What's going on?" Rarity asked, then spotted Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis. "Fancy!" The unicorn stopped, turning to her as she and Sassy ran up to him. "What's wrong? Why is everypony running about?"
"Something's going on at the castle." he replied, "Several ponies outside heard explosions and cries." Rarity's eyes widened as he continued, "It's possible something big is going down so everypony is getting as far away from the castle so they're not caught in the crossfire."
"But what's happening?" Sassy asked, only for the sound of marching to fill the air.
They turned to see a bunch of oddly dressed ponies marching down the street, carrying weapons and looking ready for a fight. "That doesn't look good," Rarity whispered before seeing the ponies stopped and turned to them, their weapons raising ready to attack. "We have to run."
"Now, now, my dear." A voice made her stop as the group of soldiers stepped aside to let somepony through: Mould Breaker. "Please don't run away. You might hurt my troops' feelings. We actually came to invite you to the castle."
Rarity shrunk back at that, now seeing the smile on the unicorn's face.
Back at the castle, Lightning was using his magic to power up the Rune Gate. Starlight and Grand were next to him, Starlight explaining what he needed to do to get the Rune Gate working. "I'm starting to think the Rune Gate security was a mistake," the unicorn sighed as Lightning kept pumping magic into the stone.
Grand shook his head, "Having it so a select few can only activate the gate is the best way to keep dangerous ponies from using it. It just so happens the only ponies able to use it are those that got blasted by the Phantom Magic." As he said that, the portal activated and created the pillar of light. Lightning stepped back, hoping he had done it right.
A second later, Twilight stepped through, Flash, Spike, Pinkie, Springer and Mirage following suit. "Great work," Twilight smiled at him, "Now we just need you to enchant something and we can start studying this Phantom Magic." At that moment, Trixie arrived carrying a gemstone.
"I got the crystal you needed," she announced before tripping over. "Whoa!" She yelped, falling over as Lightning caught it, "Sorry. Not used to carrying things without magic."
Lightning stared at the gem, taking a deep breath, "Let's get this done." He started channeling his magic into the crystal, making sure to be extra careful. Use too much magic at once and he could break the crystal. Slow and steady, no matter how fast he wanted to do this.
Rarity stared at Breaker, the mare slowly asking, "What have you done? What did you do to the ponies in the castle?" She knew Twilight was meant to be away from the castle, but some of her other friends were up there. "Iron...Cold. If you've hurt them-"
"They're fine," Breaker replied, "Whether they stay that way is up to them. I hope they will join my army and follow my lead, but if they stubbornly refuse to see things my way, I'll have no choice but to dispose of them."
Fancy stepped up in front of Rarity. "Why are you doing this? If you're attempting to take the throne from Twilight, I'll have you locked up for treason!"
"Treason?!" Breaker laughed, "History won't see this as treason. It'll see this as a liberation. Now, step aside. Miss Rarity has an appointment at the castle." Fancy just glared at him, making Breaker sigh. "Very well." His horn glowed before unleashing a beam of light, which struck Fancy before an aura surrounded him.
"Fancy!" Fleur screamed as Fancy was lifted into the air before Breaker threw him across the street, slamming him into the side of a building while the soldiers ran up to him.
And as Fancy fell, Fleur and Sassy were grabbed and pushed away. This caused Rarity to be surrounded, the mare screaming as she tried to use some of the attack magic she had seen Lightning use. But before she could, she was sprayed by some white mist.
"What are you doing?" She coughed at the mist as the soldiers grabbed her by the hooves. "Unhoof me!" She struggled, only to feel herself pulled away. "Hey! Stop it!"
But as they began to make their way, a wall of gems suddenly exploded out of the ground and blocked their exit. "I don't think you heard the lady." They all turned to see Script, Wild and Gorgenia, "She said, unhoof her."
"Script!!" Rarity gasped.
Breaker smiled at the sight, "Ah. So you're the ones my troops were talking about. The ones immune to our Phantom Magic." The three stood tall at this, "But...I was told there were four of you. Where is your gracious leader?"
"He wanted to be here," Wild smirked. "But Princess Twilight's got him working on something else. Something that'll help her take you and the rest of your little army of traitors down."
Breaker just laughed at this, "That's rich coming from you." They all glared at him at this, "Oh yes, I know all about you. How you helped Lightning Blitz attempt to overthrow Celestia and make himself the new ruler. Tell me, where do you get off, trying to protect Equestria after threatening to destroy it? You four shouldn't even be walking around. More proof that Equestria needs better leadership."
"That's all in the past," Gorgenia replied.
"But it happened. You tried to conquer this kingdom, just like me. The only difference is, I'm attempting to take it over for the right reasons. Your friend just tried because he wanted to rule for ruling's sake...and I think it's finally time you all suffered the consequences."
"Enough of this," Wild barked back, "Who cares what he thinks? We promised we'd bring Rarity back home safe, and that's what we're gonna do!" He charged at this, his puppets flying around with him. The other soldiers looked ready to fight, but Breaker held up a hoof.
"This fight's mine," he stated before the relic on his chest glowed. He then charged as well as his horn glowed before being surrounded by a white light. Wild threw one of his puppets at Breaker, hoping their constant yelling would distract him, only for Breaker's body to vanish in a blur.
"What?!" He yelled, only for another blur to appear in front of him.
Breaker appeared out of it and dealt a powerful punch to his chest, knocking Wild back before his friends caught him in their magic. "Are you alright?" Gorgenia asked as Wild let out a groan.
"He's strong."
"And fast," Script added before staring at the device on Breaker's chest, "What is that thing?"
"A little something I pulled out of the Canterlot Vault," Breaker chuckled, "Something that'll give me the strength to defeat anypony who tries to stand in my way."
Lightning was still charging up the crystal while the others could do nothing except watch. Eventually, the gem became fully charged, making him stop and stagger a bit, Grand quickly catching him before he fell. "Careful. Give yourself a minute to rest before trying anything."
Twilight took the crystal and held it in her hooves, the magic inside it pulsing. "Wow," she whispered, "I can feel the Phantom Magic inside of it. It really is like nothing I've ever seen."
"You think you can figure out how to reverse what it did to us?" Flash asked, Twilight continuing to roll the crystal in her hooves.
"I'll need some time to properly examine it. But if Faust said there's a way, then I'll find it." She turned to Trixie and Starlight, both nodding in agreement before running off. At the same time, Lightning pushed himself off of Grand and headed for the door.
"I'm going to Canterlot."
"Just be careful," Flash added as the unicorn disappeared through the door. The sight made Flash grumble, "Augh! I hate just sitting around here while others are fighting to protect our home."
"We don't have much of a choice," Grand responded, "If these were common criminals, we could still fight without our powers. But against well trained ponies with unknown magic, we'd just be a hindrance. All we can do is hope Lightning and the others can hold out until Twilight finds a way to counter what they did to us."
"I know...I know."
"Gaaah!" Script screamed as he was blasted back, his body skidding across the ground.
As this happened, Rarity was still being held by some soldiers, only for Wild's puppets to slam into them. "Raaaaah!" Wild leapt and kicked one away from Rarity, the soldier dropping his spear. The others then turned to attack him, but his puppets flew down and were stabbed instead. And as this happened, Wild quickly grabbed the spears and the one on the ground before transferring the spirits of his little buddies inside. Now armed with actual weapons, they flew around while Wild fired his horn and blasted them away from Rarity.
"Come on!" He told her, Rarity nodding as they rushed off. While this was happening, Gorgenia tried to grab Breaker in some crystals she summoned out of the ground. One section managed to snag his hoof, locking him in place. And as he pulled on it, Script took out several pieces of paper he had marked with explosive runes. He threw them next, Breaker's horn sparking as he created a shield around him. The paper bombs blew and shook the shield, but the dome held as he broke through the crystals. He then charged at Script and Gorgenia, Script running up to try and punch him.
On Script's hooves were runes that generated electrical shocks, basically giving him a taser punch. He swung at Breaker, but the unicorn dodged before dealing a kick to Script's stomach. Gorgenia then charged and tried to stab him with a crystal dagger, but Breaker blurred away and appeared behind her to unleash a blast of magic.
"Gaaah!" She was slammed into the ground, Breaker smirking at the sight before shifting his head to the left. A spear flew past him as he turned to fire at Wild, who leapt away as a beam flew past him. As this happened, four spears zipped over at Breaker, but the pony's magic surrounded his body, deflecting the weapons as Script fired a rune beam that was going to make Breaker ten times heavier...only for Breaker to duck beneath it before doing a back flip.
As this was happening, Rarity watched from within an alleyway. She saw her boyfriend's closest friends fighting to protect her, knowing how much she meant to Lightning. She couldn't help but smile at how much they cared about him. Breaker now stood in the middle of a three-pony triangle, the three glaring at him and looking tired while he hadn't even broken a sweat.
"You think a fancy trinket will help you win?" Script asked while charging up his magic. "Lightning made that mistake and cost him dearly."
"Now it's our turn to smash it like Flash did," Wild added as he also charged up his magic. Gorgenia just nodded, charging up her own as the three glared him down. Three beams, one red, one blue and one green, slammed into Mould Breaker and caused a large explosion that completely engulfed him. The explosion rocketed straight up, forming a mushroom cloud that could be seen from any spot in the city. The force of the explosion sent the three skidding back a few feet as smoke consumed the spot.
"We did it!" Gorgenia cheered.
"WE WON!" Wild exclaimed, Script smiling while Rarity sighed in relief.
But their relief was short-lived as the smoke began to fade away and reveal the pony standing within the fire. "Impossible," Script gasped. Breaker just stood there, not looking singed or had any indication he had used a spell to protect himself. The unicorn just cackled at this as the gem on his chest plate started glowing.
The energy began to flow around the metal of the relic, then down into one of his back legs. Spiraling around the limb, it eventually encased the leg before he leapt up and spun around to perform a swing kick. And when he did this, the light extended off his leg and spiraled out in a whipping motion. And before the three could react, they were struck by the light whip and found themselves getting burned by the heat of the magic. They all screamed as explosions erupted around them, consuming them all.
And when the smoke from the attacks faded, the three stood limply for a moment before they all collapsed. "NO!" Rarity screamed, rushing out of her hiding place. But before she could get to them, more of Breaker's soldiers appeared and grabbed her. "Let me go! Script! Wild! Gorgenia! Get up!"
The light from the attack faded from Breaker, the unicorn turning to the three as he made his way toward Script. As he did this, he drew a knife from his leg holster.
"No!" Rarity cried as she tried to squirm and summon her magic, but nothing worked.
Breaker stood over Script and raised his dagger high, "Goodbye, and good riddance."
"Lightning Force!" Breaker spun around and saw a beam of lightning coming for him, the unicorn raising a barrier that the beam slammed into. This pushed him slightly back, away from the three while he dropped his knife.
Everypony turned to the source of the beam, spotting a certain yellow unicorn. "Lightning!" Rarity exclaimed as her boyfriend ran up to them.
"You having fun without inviting me, eh?"
Breaker lowered his barrier at this as Lightning marched past his friends and stood protectively above them, "So, the traitor arrives. Looks like I won't need your love as bait after all." He shined a huge grin at this, "Once I've dealt with you, nopony will be able to stop me."
"Got that wrong," Lightning replied, "Twilight's working on a way to counter your Phantom Magic. Once she has it, the Royal Knights and anypony else you tried to take down will be coming for you."
"Then I guess I'll need to deal with you before finishing them."
"You can try," Lightning took two of his daggers out of his cape. "Come at me!" He charged as he slashed his blade at Breaker, only for the unicorn to put up a shield.
"You really think you can defeat me?" Breaker laughed as he put down the shield and quickly threw a punch, the gem on his chest glowing, his hoof doing the same.
It slammed into Lightning, pushing him back for a bit as his own neck-ware glowed along with his horn. "Gatling Spark!" Electric bullets shot out of his horn at this, but Breaker's body once again turned to a blur as he dodged every attack. "No way!"
In the blink of an eye, Breaker was suddenly in front of him, his horn unleashing a beam of light. It slammed into Lightning and before he could react, it lifted him up before smashing him into the ground. Rarity gasped at this while Lightning cried out in pain. "You really thought you could defeat me?!" Breaker laughed as he threw Lightning away, the unicorn spinning before crashing into the ground.
Lightning grunted as he quickly scrambled up, his horn exploding with lightning as he formed a pointed blade that he swung around. "STATIC SPEAR!" The blade exploded off his horn and shot for Breaker, who simply just stood there.
The gem glowed again and one of his front legs was consumed by it, the unicorn thrusting it forward and punching the electric spear. The attacks collided and pushed against one another, but Lightning's attack was quickly overwhelmed as Breaker smacked the electric spear upward. Lightning gasped at this as the light then struck a cloud above them and exploded. At the same time, Breaker punched the air again and unleashed a cord of light that flew straight for the defender. The cord then curled up into a wheel that slammed into Lightning, grinding against him as he screamed in pain. "AAAAAHHHHHH!" He screeched before the light wheel exploded, knocking him flying.
He crashed into the center of his friends as the cloud his lightning struck turned dark and the water making it up started pouring down on them. And as the rain soaked the four, Breaker laughed as Rarity screamed, "LIGHTNING!"
"You four might have some Phantom Magic within you, but the amount is nothing compared to what I wield. Even the four of you combined wouldn't be enough to defeat me." He looked over at where his knife fell and picked it up as Lightning tried to pick himself up. "Now, time to end this."
Rarity saw this and then stared straight at boyfriend, "Lightning, you have to go!" Lightning shifted his gaze to her, "Take the others and leave!"
Lightning groaned as he pushed himself up. "I...I won't abandon you."
"Please!" Rarity was crying now, "If he kills you, there's no telling what he'll do to me! But if you get away, he'll still need me as a hostage. Get out of here! You said Twilight's working on a way to defeat him. Save me when you have it!" Breaker was getting closer. "RUN!"
Lightning heard this and took a deep breath. His horn flared at this, grabbing his friends in his magic. Seeing this, Breaker yelled, "Oh, no you don't!" He then threw the dagger, only for light to consume the four. They disappeared just as the dagger got to them, the blade then hitting the ground with a clang.
Breaker let out a hiss, only to sigh, "Whatever. He'll be back." He turned to Rarity, "We have what he cares for most." Rarity squirmed again at this, only for Breaker to walk up and place a hoof under her chin. "You should have let me finish him off. Next time, I won't make it quick. It'll be slow and painful. I promise." Rarity just glared back at him, "Good...bring her to the castle. We have much to do."
Back at the Castle of Friendship...
Twilight, Starlight, Trixie and even Sunburst were now working on a way to undo the effects of the Phantom Magic. Twilight was using a special microscope to study the crystal Lightning had enchanted, nodding as she began to write notes with her mouth, "I think I'm starting to understand how this Phantom Magic is made," the princess replied, "And I think Faust was right. There might be a way to not only reverse the effects of the magic on us, but also make us immune to getting our magic sealed like before."
"Great," Trixie nodded. "How?"
"A potion," Twilight replied, "We'll probably need Zecora's help, but I think we can make a brew that'll counteract the Phantom Magic."
"Maybe," Sunburst nodded, "But even if you restore your magic, do you think you'll stand a chance against these ponies? Even if they can't seal your magic, they're still supercharged with this Phantom Magic. Will Flash and the others be able to stand up to them?"
Twilight shook her head at this. "We don't have the time to test it. If we are to win this, I think we need to fight fire with fire," she took a deep breath at this, "I'm going to create a weapon using Phantom Magic. A Celestic Gear level device that will give us the advantage we need."
"Make it for me." They all turned to see what looked like a wet and beaten Lightning Blitz standing at the doorway. The unicorn was leaning against the door frame, looking ready to drop at any moment. But his glare was hard and serious, which Twilight knew could only mean one thing. "They've got Rarity."