“It’s over, Opaline,” Flurry said as she led the others into the room, her horn lit up.
“You! I drained your magic!” Opaline exclaimed. “You shouldn’t even be able to move normally now! You should be slowly dying!”
“I was, but your son was kind enough to lend me his magic and return the rest that he had to their rightful owners,” Flurry said.
Fireforge nodded. He wasn’t able to use magic right now but his physical strength had already returned. He looked at Sunny, still chained up alongside Misty. He wanted to run over and free them, his crush and his foster sister. Of course, he’d never had much of a sibling time with Misty, but maybe that could change soon once their mother was defeated.
“He was the rightful owner!” Opaline snarled. “Once I gave it to him!”
She then rounded on her son. “How could you fall for these pathetic pony lies!?”
“Because they’re not lies,” Fireforge said. “They’re the truth. My time with Sunny, however brief it was… was better than any time I ever spent with you. Because it was true friendship. Not sure I could call it love but I started falling for her I can say for sure. You only ever cared about power and the belief that alicorns were superior! But the others like Celestia and Luna didn’t agree. Did they?”
Opaline seethed. “They were fools! Thinking lesser ponies were their equals while also rejecting me!”
“They rejected you because you were a cruel egotistical tyrant!” Fireforge snapped.
“Son,” General Bloodheart said coming forward. “I know that it is hard and cruel what we do. But it’s necessary! Celestia was too soft, she should have never allowed Luna to return. She allowed the royal guard to become weak and rely on civilians instead! We should be the ones protecting Equestria!”
“You allow ponies like him to run wild and torture innocents!” Zipp said pointing at Dirty Fighter. “How is that protecting Equestria!?”
“Sacrifices are needed to pave the way!” Bloodheart dismissed. “When this is done, Equestria will have no more magic except by those who prove themselves trustworthy. Any villains that come will be taken down instantly by those gifted few that will possess more power then ever.”
“That is wrong!” Pipp said.
“I agree!” Hitch said.
“Come back to us, son!” Bloodheart pleaded with Fireforge.
“You don’t have the right to call him that!” Opaline said. “He is an alicorn and I am his only true parent!”
“You were never my parent!” Fireforge said. “Either of you! You made me train so long I would collapse after hours in exhaustion!”
“To make you strong so you could be as powerful as you could be!” Opaline said. “A true alicorn worthy of my legacy!”
“I don’t care about your legacy anymore… Mother,” he spat out the word as though it were poison. “I’m going to help end it and make a better future.”
He turned to Sunny as he said the next two (or three, if one split the second one) words. “For everypony!”
“Capture him!” Opaline said. “I’ll make sure to return him exactly the way he was before this time!”
She spread her wings and Flurry did the same. Both alicorn mothers flew into the air as their children and allies watched. Likewise, all the others turned to their main enemies. Hitch glared at Dirty Fighter, Zipp at Right Light, and Izzy General Bloodheart. Pipp wasn’t sure who to help right now. Her sister, her coltfriend, or her friend? And who to attack? The stallion who’d tried to force himself on her? The traitor to Zephyr Heights who’d broken her sister’s heart? Or the old unicorn that had caused this whole mess in the first place by releasing Opaline all those centuries ago? Also, she glanced at Misty and Sunny who were still trapped.
She took a second to make up her decision then shouted at Izzy.
“Izz! I’ll deal with the old unicorn this time!” she said. “You free Sunny and Misty!”
Izzy had wanted to finally beat her archenemy today. But looking at her friends, they definitely were a greater priority.
“You got it, Pipp!” she said before running off.
“Oh no you don’t little unicorn!” Bloodheart said charging up his magic.
“Yah!” Pipp flew at him and tackled him to the ground before he could unleash his spell.
All around them, the other foes began to charge or attack each other. Flurry heart shot a beam of borrowed magic at Opaline who blocked it with her shield. Hitch and Dirty Fighter engaged each other in hoof-to-hoof combat, Zipp and Right Light flew at each other, Zipp being the faster one of the two. She got in close and landed the first blow. Still, he had armor on while hers had been stripped of her after she was captured, so he had better defense. It shrugged off most of her strike’s damage, but he had difficulty preventing himself from falling to the floor. Still, he managed, just barely. General Bloodheart managed to overpower Pipp and get on top of her, but Fireforge Destiny grabbed him from behind.
“Sorry, General. But this has to end,” Fireforge said as he used his forelegs to try and choke the veteran unicorn.
Izzy got to Sunny and Misty and shot a beam of magic at one chain which broke. She quickly followed up by doing the same to the other one. Sunny and Misty let out breathes of relief as they were freed. They then looked at the various battles going on around them.
“We have to help them! Magic or not!” Sunny said.
As she said those words, her flank glowed faintly despite its cutie mark being gone. The light tried to spread up her back but flickered and died. She charged, as did the two unicorns. Sunny and Misty headed to help Hitch as Dirty Fighter landed a hard punch to his cheek that caused him to groan and stagger. Izzy, meanwhile, joined Pipp and Fireforge in taking on General Bloodheart. The general managed to used his magic to escape from his son’s choke hold. He then threw Fireforge against the palace wall and turned to attack Pipp with a beam, but Izzy got him first with her own beam, knocking him down.
Bloodheart grunted as he looked up at her. Izzy charged up her beam, her magic glowing brightly.
“Time to end this once and for all!” she said with determination. “It’s jinxie to take the life of a fellow unicorn! But I gotta do what I gotta do!”
Regret filled her heart, but her words were true. This had to end. She was about to unleash her fatal attack to do so, but something rammed into her from behind and canceled her magic out. She and the thing that had impacted her skidded across the floor. Izzy looked and saw it was Zipp that had collided with her.
“Ah!” the elder Pegasus exclaimed as she looked at Right Light who’d thrown her to the ground.
“You might have speed, but I got the strength, Princess,” Right said with a taunting grin.
Bloodheart seized on the chance to cast a spell that placed a bubble around the two mares, trapping them inside. Izzy got off and tried to break through but the beam’s only effect was to bounce back at her.
“Ow! Guess it’s jinxie to send magic out in here,” Izzy said.
“Don’t give up, Izzy!” Zipp said. “We’ve come too far to give up now!”
She rammed against the barrier. Which she was surprised to see cracked a bit.
“What?” General Bloodheart exclaimed.
Izzy sent out a sustained beam on the barrier. It reflected but missed her thankfully. Between that and Zipp’s strikes, the barrier broke. They each turned their gaze back to their enemies. Zipp flew back up at Right Light and Izzy send another beam at General Bloodheart who was now defending against Pipp and Fireforge’s attacks. He barely managed to get a shield up while fending off the Pegasus. She was easy to counter as she didn’t have much experience in hoof-to-hoof fighting, Fireforge was another matter. He managed to penetrate his wicked father’s defenses and land a strike.
On the other side of the room, Sunny and Misty managed to get Dirty Fighter’s front hooves off the ground. Misty then took the opportunity to kick him between the legs. A loud pained cry escaped him.
“That’s for what you did do to Posey!” Misty said angrily.
Hitch seized the chance to press his hoofs to the ground and tie Dirty up in a cluster of vines. He struggled feebly, unable to call upon his new powers without touching the ground. That was one down.
Izzy was relieved as Fireforge landed another hit on Bloodheart. At this rate she wouldn’t have to take his life. Pipp also managed to get a blow in, and Izzy shot a non-fatal blast that hit Bloodheart in the leg. He lost his footing and collapsed in pain. Two down, one to-
Zipp moved in a circle around Right Light who spun around in confusion, getting dizzy. Zipp noticed this and landed an uppercut to her foe’s unprotected chin. He fell out of the sky and hit the floor with a thud, his armor ringing.
That left only one other battle going on. They’d been so focused on their opponents they hadn’t seen the two alicorns above. Opaline and Flurry Heart filled the room with light from their magic as they flew. Blue-purple from Opaline and orange from Flurry’s borrowed magic that Fireforge had lent her. They circled in midair sending beams and defending against each other several times, then finally, both of them charged and unleashed a beam at the same time. They collided, but Opaline’s attack quickly pushed Flurry’s back. However, the white-pink alicorn managed to get out of the way and then get close to Opaline. She drew the evil alicorn’s magic out, and Opaline cried out in pain as her power began to get drained. Through her pain though, she snarled and charged up another beam of incredible power that she sent out at Flurry. It hit her in the chest. Sunny’s mother fell just as Right Light had, a severe burn on the area of impact. She hit the middle of the room.
“Mom!” Sunny screamed with tears in her eyes.
Opaline grinned in triumph as she watched her foes gather around the wounded alicorn. Flurry managed to look up at her daughter as Sunny took her in her hooves.
Izzy clenched her teeth at the sight of the wound. “This is bad.”
“Sunny, I managed to… get your magic… and Misty’s back,” Flurry said as her horn lit up. Not in orange, but yellow, her normal color. “Defeat her.”
Two different shades of orange, one cyan, and several others escaped from Flurry. The two orange lights returned to Sunny and Fireforge, while the cyan went to Misty. The others flew out of the room to return to their rightful owners.
“You may have taken back some of the magic but I will easily reacquire it!” Opaline said. “Once I have all of your magic it be enough to finally drain the Unity Crystals!”
“Get them Queen Opaline!” Dirty Fighter shouted as he struggled in Hitch’s plant trap.
The Mane 6 and Fireforge Destiny (perhaps that made them the Mane 7 now) looked up at their foe, rolling their eyes at the other one that was trapped. It was time to end this. Sunny narrowed her eyes as she glared up at Opaline, her alicorn powers activating with her magic returned.
Sunny, Fireforge, Zipp, and Pipp all flapped their wings and got to Opaline’s level. That left Hitch, Izzy, and Misty on the ground. The two unicorns lit up their horns while Hitch did the same with his hooves.
“Seven against one, Mom!” Fireforge said. “You can’t win!”
“Surrender now!” Sunny said.
They had to hurry if they wanted to get Flurry medical attention in time.
“Never!” Opaline said as she suddenly caused rope-like objects to appear around them. They trapped their wings and hooves together, causing the fliers to fall. On the ground, the earth-bound ponies also had their hooves wrapped together and taken off of those hooves. The four fliers fell with a soft plop.
“Quick, use your horns to get out of it!” Fireforge ordered as he lit his up.
Sunny, Izzy, and Misty did the same. Unfortunately, Fireforge was the first to be hit with Opaline’s drain spell.
“Sorry Fireforge,” she said with a frown that made it look like she wasn’t that sorry at all. “But you’re in need of a time out.”
“I’m too old for that!” Fireforge shouted.
The brief argument was all the three horned ponies needed to free themselves.
“Leave him alone, Opaline!” Sunny said as she shot a beam at her archnemesis.
Opaline barely managed to put up a shield in time. Her teeth clenched in fear for a moment, then she sniggered. “Should have shot me before you said anything, Sunny!”
Sunny didn’t respond, anger was filling her as she recalled her mother being shot down. They had to hurry or she might…no! Sunny couldn’t let that happen! She’d already lost one parent. Now after years of believing her mother had died somewhere else after disappearing, she’d finally gotten her back and learned to her marvel that she was actually Flurry Heart, Twilight Sparkle’s niece. She had to save her! There was so much they had missed out in Sunny’s fillyhood. Memories they could still share together!
Sunny charged with a shout. She tackled Opaline, who was caught off guard by the furious sound. The evil alicorn was on her back but quickly recovered and threw the good one off. She lit up her horn to drain Sunny’s magic as well, but Misty used her own magic to grab ahold of Opaline’s mane and pull on it.
“Ow!” Opaline exclaimed.
“Get her, Sunny!” Misty shouted.
Sunny gritted her teeth and seized on the opportunity to begin punching the evil queen in the face. Normally she was all about getting along with everypony, but this was one exception. Opaline’s pained grunts filled the room as Izzy used her magic to free the others one by one. By the time they were all freed however, Opaline surrounded herself in a shield that negated Misty’s aura and blocked Sunny’s next hoof punch.
“How dare you strike a queen!” Opaline said as she rubbed her face which now had several bruises and even a bleeding nose.
She shot at Sunny who put up a shield of her own. But it was pushed back despite Sunny trying to hold her ground.
“Come on! We can do this!” Pipp said confidently.
“Yeah!” Izzy agreed.
“We need to try and do what we can to save Flurry now!” Hitch said as he ran over to the critically wounded alicorn.
“You’re right!” Zipp said.
There was a clatter nearby and Jazz Hooves as well as Rock Riff appeared.
“We’ll get her to the infirmary!” Rocky said as he flew over and struggled to lift the ancient alicorn up.
Jazz followed and looked back. “Good luck everypony!”
They smiled at her before turning their attention back to Sunny who now doing her best to fight Opaline.
“Alright let’s try this again!” Zipp said spreading her wings and flying toward their enemy.
Pipp quickly followed. Zipp managed to blindside Opaline who was focused on Sunny. Opaline grunted again as she was hit on the side. Turning her attention to Zipp, she blocked the next strike and hit the elder Pegasus before the younger grabbed Opaline’s tale and yanked on it with her mouth.
“Ah! Dirty Fighter is supposed to be the one that cheats in battle!” Opaline cursed.
She lit up her tale in flame. Pipp screamed as her lips and mouth were burned. Opaline, however, missed Sunny fire a beam at her, hitting her wing and causing her to fall down yet again. Opaline shook as she lifted her head, only to receive more beams fired from Izzy and Misty. The heroes smiled.
“We’re winning!” Hitch exclaimed.
Their cutie marks were all glowing as they fought together.
Then it was time for the final touch. Hitch pressed his hooves to the ground. Vines sprouted and wrapped around Opaline, tying her up just like Dirty Fighter.
“We did it!” Hitch said.
Opaline snarled then lit up in fire once again.
“Really, you think a few vines can stop a fire alicorn?” she mocked. “This is quite enough!”
She conjured six balls of fire into the air. They all went after a member of the Mane 6 who tried to run or block it with their magic. But they were all soon hit and knocked down except…
“Sunny!” Fireforge Destiny yelled as he put himself in front of her as she flew low trying to get away from her fireball pursuer.
Screams sounded from each pony who were left painfully burned on the ground but still alive. Opaline had made sure not to bring the flames up to a fatal level like she had with Flurry. She needed these ponies specifically since they were the ones to return the magic to Equestria in the first place, all except Misty that was. Their magic was much stronger than the other ponies.
Now Sunny stood alone against Opaline who landed behind her as she looked from Fireforge to all her friends.
“It’s over, Sunny!” Opaline said.
Just as Sunny wheeled around, Opaline cast her draining spell in a wide area affect around the whole throne room. All the cutie marks left the Mane 6’s flanks once again, even Opaline’s allies were not spared.
“Hey!” Dirty Fighter exclaimed as his dagger cutie mark was extracted.
“You failed to defeat my enemies!” Opaline stated. “Now you face the consequences! I’ll be keeping your power as well!”
Dirty gritted his teeth and struggled feebly, even as Hitch’s trap vanished as his magic was also absorbed. Dirty fell to the ground, feeling weak. All the Mane 6 were too hurt to move, and Sunny collapsed as well.
Opaline laughed, the evil sound filling the throneroom as her horn and wings glowed brighter than ever as she possessed all their magic. Flurry Heart’s had escaped but she still had two alicorns absorbed. Now she could do it.
She levitated the Unity Crystals over.
“At last, all the magic shall be mine!” she declared.
She cast the draining spell on the crystals, which put up resistance like before. But now she was strong enough, she could feel it. The magic was pouring into her. All the magic, for the ponies outside could feel it as well. Those that had magic across Equestria felt it leave them.
At that moment, the door opened, and Queen Haven, Alphabittle, Posey, and many others entered the throne room. Their mouths fell open as they saw Opaline draining the crystals.
“It’s over, little ponies!” the evil alicorn said.
Sunny felt the urge to cry, but then something clicked in her and she pushed herself up.
“No! It’s not!” she said.
Her words drew the attention of her enemy, and her hooves and flank glowed.
“What?” Opaline exclaimed.
Sunny was too focused to notice. “You may have taken our cutie marks, but you can never take away our friendships, or our love!”
She looked at Fireforge Destiny who gazed up at her in spite of the pain of his burns. The others did as well. Pipp and Hitch were close to each other, they extended their hooves and wrapped them around each other. Rufus, Sprout, and Thunder all walked up to Izzy, Misty, and Zipp as well. Alphabittle and Queen Haven took each other’s hoof as well. Posey, Windy, Dahlia and others stepped forward as well. Their hooves, wings, horns, and flank all glowed for each pony kind.
Outside, the sky had grown dark as Opaline drained the crystals, but a ray of sunlight shined through. The crystals likewise grew brighter, as did Opaline.
“Ah more power!” she said in delight. “Yes, make it more powerful for me!”
“We stand together!” Sunny said. “Through love and friendship!”
Then a song sounded from all the ponies.
“We just need a little hope,
We just need a little unity,
Friendship and Love
To find the magic
That’s inside of every pony.
Sometimes it feels a little hopeless.
But things aren’t always what they seem.
Can you feel it the magic?
Can you feel it the energy!
Yeah, the power is glowing!”
Opaline continued to drain the magic and glow brighter, but suddenly the crystals repelled her.
“Ah what?” she cursed.
Don’t look now
“Things are getting better!
We got the strength to take on whatever!
Cause we got the magic
We got the magic in us!”
Opaline felt the energy inside her pulsating, it numbed her and she gasped. Then her body seemed to begin to disappear.
“What’s happening?” she asked in a panic.
“Yeah, we got the magic,
We got the magic in us!”
The song concluded as the crystals suddenly shined directly at Opaline. The magic she’d acquired over the past couple weeks escaped her and her body further vanished, until her metal hoofbraces clattered to the ground along with her crown. The magic returned to Sunny, her friends, and all the others as Opaline’s now corporeal form hung there, then began to get sucked into the crystals as they seemed to use her own draining spell against her.
“No!” she screamed. “This can’t be happening! Nooooo!"
She vanished into the crystals, seeming to dissipate into pure energy. The crystals hung there for a moment and then let out a shockwave over Sunny and everypony else that soon spread over all of Equestria. Sunny’s friends were healed of their wounds and let out breaths of relief. They got up and looked at the crystals happily.
“Looks like Opaline’s desire for power was her own undoing,” Zipp said with a smirk.
“You think she’s really gone?” Misty asked.
Fireforge Destiny stepped forward, looking at the crystals. He lit up his horn and surrounded the crystals with his aura, closing his eyes for a moment.
“I don’t sense even the tiniest speck of dark magic in there,” he said. “She’s definitely gone!”
Many ponies let out relieved sighs at this. But they were drawn to somepony trying to get away. Dirty Fighter made to run past the crowd, but somepony blocked him.
“You’re not getting away!” Posey Bloom cried with a look of pure rage. “Not after what you did to me!”
She, Windy and Dahlia restrained him. Posey then looked at Hitch.
“Can I just have five minutes with him?” she asked.
“I think that’s for Queen Haven to say,” Hitch said. “Since this is Zephyr Heights.”
“Zoom, I’ll trust you to make sure these mares don’t take their revenge too far,” Haven said. “Then I’ll have him and the other two tried for their crimes.”
“Yes, your majesty,” the female Pegasus captain said with a salute of her wing.
…
After Dirty Fighter as well as the still unconscious General Bloodheart and Right Light were dragged off, Sunny and her friends hugged each other. They had finally done it, they’d defeated Opaline. The group smiled as the others watched. But Misty noticed somepony else hadn’t joined them. She extended her hoof to him.
“Come on, brother,” she said to Fireforge Destiny. “You’re a part of our group now too!”
“Really?” he asked.
Sunny opened her eyes and nodded as her wings were wrapped around Izzy and Zipp.
“Yes,” she said.
Fireforge walked forward and hugged Misty on the edge of the group.
“You really want to call me brother?” he asked.
“Why not?” she said with a grin. “We were both Opaline’s children once upon a time and ended up betraying her after we saw the light.”
They continued the group hug for a few blissful seconds then released from it. They all then hugged their crushes or significant others warmly in most cases. Sunny and Fireforge embraced one another and then looked into each other’s eyes before kissing on the lips.
“I guess this new princess found her prince,” Sunny said.
“Right back at you, Princess Sunny,” Fireforge said. “I’m sure I’ll be a much better monarch with you by my side. If Equestria will have me. Even if not, I’m content to be with you.”
She smiled. Around her, Pipp and Hitch embraced and kissed passionately. Zipp and Thunder nuzzled, and Izzy and Rufus touched snouts. Sprout, meanwhile, had simply approached Misty with a nervous grin.
“Will you… go out with me, Misty?” he asked.
The shy unicorn blushed. “Uh, yeah, I think I’d like that.”
“Great!” Sprout said with more confidence.
Everything was happy, until Sunny remembered something.
“Mom!” she exclaimed.
They ran to the castle infirmary. They found Flurry Heart sitting up in bed, her wounds healed.
“Mom, you’re alright!” Sunny said in delight before hugging her mother. “I was afraid I was going to lose you!”
“So was I,” Flurry Heart said. “Granted, some part of me has been ready for the end a long time. But I guess now I’ll at least be able to stay long enough to see my grandfoals!”
Sunny blushed as her friends entered the room behind her. Opaline was defeated, her possessed soldiers had been freed, and those that followed her willingly would be brought to justice for their crimes.