//------------------------------// // Rise // Story: Legends Never Die: Friendship is Magic // by bookhorse125 //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle felt the world grow still around her. Her mind could barely process what had just happened. She could hear her friends around her, could hear their shouts of disbelief and panic and denial, but she couldn’t say anything herself. Not a moment before, Sunny Starscoud had been standing in front of her, the look in her eyes determined as she gave herself up to protect everyone else. There was something so familiar about her that it unnerved Twilight, but some instinct made her want to protect Sunny, to keep her safe. And letting her get dragged, suddenly and without warning, into a shadow wolf that was bent on destroying Equestria was not keeping her safe. The shadow wolf lifted its slender snout and unleashed a chilling high-pitched howl that sent shivers down Twilight’s spine and through her wings. The howl brought her back to reality. Twilight shook her head, clearing away the fog, and angrily lit her horn, erratic pink light dancing up and down her horn as she took a step forward and glared at the wolf. “Let her go,” she snarled at the wolf, “or else!” The wolf said nothing. It turned and began to walk away. Twilight unleashed an unearthly roar and lashed out at it, channeling so much power into her magic that she was pushed backwards from the force of the blast. The wolf barely stumbled. It turned its head to look at her, its expression unreadable, but Twilight could detect a hint of annoyance in its voice when it said, Do not test us, Twilight Sparkle. We know how to defeat you. Do not press us. “Give her BACK!” Rainbow Dash launched herself at the wolf, trying to punch its snout in, but whenever she made contact with it, her hoof only passed right through as if it were made of air. One of the wolf’s ears twitched. Another, smaller shadow wolf leaped off of one of the roofs of one of the houses in Ponyville and pounced on top of Rainbow Dash, pinning her to the ground. “Rainbow!” Applejack pulled her lasso out and raced toward her friend. She threw it around the neck of the wolf on top of Rainbow Dash. She tightened the rope and tugged with all her might, but the wolf didn’t budge. Another wolf suddenly came up behind Applejack and easily swatted her to the side with its paw. Her lasso snapped, and she was left holding a useless piece of rope in her mouth. Fluttershy leaped into the air and soared over to help Applejack to her hooves, while Rarity used her magic to levitate Pinkie Pie into the air. Pinkie Pie, who was suddenly holding a bazooka, flew toward the wolf holding down Rainbow Dash and unleashed a blast of confetti, streamers, and cupcakes at it, but Rarity carried her safely out of harm’s way when another wolf tried to grab her. But there were hundreds of wolves, and two of them forged a shadowy rope between them and tripped Rarity so that she lost concentration. Her magic winked out, and Pinkie Pie suddenly plummeted to the ground, crying out in surprise. “No!” Twilight screamed, running forward, but three wolves stood in her path, blocking her way. Twilight took a few steps back and turned to look at the largest wolf, the leader, who was standing a little ways off to the side, watching everything with an air of mild amusement. “You said that you would let us go,” she said, her voice close to tears. All of her friends were at the mercy of the shadow wolves, and she knew that they could easily disappear just as suddenly as Sunny had. Twilight didn’t know what to do, but she knew that she had to protect her friends, if nothing else. “You said that if you got Sunny, you would let us go!” True, the wolf admitted. But you and your friends have been… very annoying. Probably best to deal with you now. Twilight’s eyes widened. The wolf flicked its tail ever so slightly. Get them. “NO!” Twilight screamed. Suddenly, the wolf stopped. One of its ears twitched. It took a few steps back, shaking its head as if a bug had flown into its ear. Its back arched, and it made a face like it was about to sneeze. And then a glowing golden light burst out of the wolf and soared up towards the sun. Sunny Starscout felt the wind on her face, ripping through her mane, as she shot up into the sky, and she let a small smile spread across her face. She hadn’t flown like this in so long, and it felt like pure freedom - exhilarating, intoxicating freedom. She felt the warm sun on her face, and her eyes opened. The wide-open sky greeted her like an old friend - a friend she had long missed. The sun was glowing brilliantly amongst fluffy white clouds, and Sunny could have stayed in that moment forever. But instead she gently tipped back and free-fell back towards the ground. As she fell, her golden horn blazed to life with rainbow light, and a wave of magic flickered into existence before her as she neared the shadow wolf that had imprisoned Sprout. The wolf was looking up at her with its white eyes as it tried one last time to enslave her as it had to all of her friends. But she was stronger than it was. It fed on anger, on hatred, on guilt and shame. It was a shadow, born from the depths of the darkest night, and all it would ever know was darkness. But Sunny was born from the last beams of light that fought their way over the horizon as the sun set, of the first rays of light that shone into the sky at dawn. She was born into a world of darkness, but she was the light that shone even in the darkest of times. She knew friendship, and hope, and faith. And she knew things that were worth fighting for. Sunny screamed and unleashed a blast of magic at the wolf, sending up a cloud of dust and a shockwave that knocked all of the wolves down. When the dust cleared, Sunny and the wolf were facing each other off, palpable tension between them as they stared each other down. The wolf had lost some of its stoicness, its ears pushed back, its lips pulled back to reveal its sharp, gleaming teeth, which were bared in a snarl. Sunny, on the other hoof, was standing with a kind of regal tranquility and strength, radiating a kind of authority and power that made all the other wolves nervous. You cannot win, the wolf said, glaring at Sunny. She raised an eyebrow. “Funny,” she said lightly. “Because I noticed that is what every single villain says right before they’re about to be defeated.” A low, threatening growl rumbled in the wolf’s throat. You cannot fight us, it said. You may be strong enough to overpower one of us, but you cannot overpower all of us. We are the shadows that lurk in the places where the sunlight cannot reach. We have existed for time immemorial. We will always return, and you will never be able to stop us. Sunny’s horn blazed with light. “Let’s test that theory,” she said before unleashing a magical beam so intense and so bright that it scorched the sun and made the brightest crystal on Twilight’s castle look duller than sand. The wolf was completely enveloped in blistering golden light that was tearing away at its very being - it could feel itself slipping away, could feel its power draining, and, worst of all, knew that it was powerless to stop it. Then, just as suddenly as it had started, the magic fizzled out. The wolf stumbled and nearly fell, but caught itself. It glared at Sunny with such ferocity that it could have been shooting laser beams from its eyes. Pathetic pony, it hissed. You cannot destroy the shadows! The other wolves were gathering closely around them, forming a complete circle of shifting darkness and shadows. They were yipping and howling and crying out to their leader, and for the first time the wolves knew what fear felt like. But Sunny was not deterred. Breathing heavily, she stared right into the wolf’s eyes to show that she was not afraid, that she was strong. But really, she was looking past the wolf, to where she knew a pony was trapped. Give me my friend back. The wolf bared its teeth and growled at her, waves of fear rippling through the air, and Sunny fought to maintain control. She would not be afraid, would not be afraid. Her friends were counting on her. She would not let them down. Sunny’s horn glowed, and she let loose a heart-wrenching cry, shooting a concentrated beam of light at the shadow wolf, straight into its chest, and she pulled. The wolf howled and thrashed, its body decomposing and losing its form. Random tendrils of shadows launched out in every direction, landing on anything they could find in a desperate attempt to find another host, to maintain its powerful form, to not fall to this little pony and her magic tricks. The other wolves were growling and barking at Sunny, but they didn’t dare to step close to her. Golden magic swirled around her, and whenever one of the wolves got close, it would leap back, whimpering, as if it were burned. Sunny felt beads of sweat trickling down her forehead, could feel her magic waning, but she wouldn’t give up. She gritted her teeth and dug her hooves into the ground and tugged harder, not willing to let go. And then, finally, the largest shadow wolf of all was pulled away in formless shadows, which scattered into the air and disappeared from sight. All that was left was a single pony, standing where the wolf once had been, his eyes shut tight. Sprout gasped and opened his eyes, looking around wildly, trying to figure out where he was, when his eyes landed on Sunny. The two of them stood there in silence, simply looking at each other, and suddenly they were right in front of each other, even though neither of them could ever remember moving. “Sunny…” And then she was hugging him, and he was hugging her, and at that moment all of the feelings he had hidden and suppressed within himself for so long came pouring out in a torrential tidal wave, and tears were pouring down his face, and he was shaking, but he felt so light in that moment, like the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders, and he could finally breathe again after so many months of being suffocated. The wolves, who were unable to be in the presence of something so good and pure as love and friendship, and who were angry beyond words at Sunny for disposing of their indestructible leader, unleashed a cacophony of howls and barks and furious snarls as they began to move closer, their eyes narrowed, pulsing with evil power, intent on destruction. Sunny stepped in front of Sprout and spread her wings protectively, brilliant rainbow light dancing up and down her horn, but the wolves were beyond the point of caution or fear. They were wrapped up in the kind of anger that makes one feel invincible - or, at the very least, that the one thing they are about to do is worth the cost of their own lives. Dozens upon hundreds of wolves snarled at Sunny, and she knew that she couldn’t fight all of them. Not when she knew that there were ponies trapped inside - ponies that she had to help. Ponies that could be her friends. “Sprout?” “Yeah?” “I want you to get out of here. Stay back, no matter what happens.” Sunny planted her hooves firmly in the ground, her eyes narrowing. “This is gonna be dangerous.” She leaped into the air, pushing off from the ground just as the first wolves began to charge.