"You okay, Leo?" Rainbow glanced over at me. "You've been kinda jumpy for the last few blocks." I furtively looked around, catching another grouping of Unown hiding under somepony's eaves. I flinched back into Rainbow's side. "Yeah, like that." She sighed.
<<Where to start?>> I gave a slightly manic giggle. <<We are surrounded by creatures that bend reality to their whim!>> Fluttershy glanced at us, but quickly rejoined everyone else at ogling the crystal structures.
"Uh-huh." I scowled at Rainbow's disbelieving look. "We've dealt with their kind before, we can kick their ass."
I flicked one of my flaps onto her back. <<No, not these ones. They're... a hive mind. Individually, Fluttershy could take one on. But a group? Five would be difficult, ten would be a problem.>> I gulped. <<Thirty can fake life; make illusionary copies of Legendaries!>>
Rainbow frowned. "How's that a bad thing? So they can make an illusion of windigos, big deal. We-"
<<Not legends, Rainbow!>> I hissed at her. <<Legendaries! Summons so powerful that there are only a pawful of each species in the world! The weakest of which would give Celestia a run for her money! And these Unown can create copies that never eat, never sleep, and never tire!>> Rainbow joined me in fearfully looking around. <<The only saving grace about them is that they should be incredibly passive. So long as no one gives them anything that sounds like a wish or a command, we'll be okay.>> I looked over the rest of the mares. <<So I don't like our odds.>>
"Do you know what I should look out for?"
<<They look like circles with squiggles. The circles are their eyes. They have twenty eight distinct forms.>> I slowed my walk, eyes locked onto another group. <<Look down the alleyway to the right. You see the window above the stack of barrels?>>
"Yeah..."
<<Look just under the sill.>>
"I don't...?" She flinched. "The bucking wall blinked at me!" She hoarsely whispered at me.
<<That's some of them.>> I forced myself to face forward.
Rainbow kept looking around. "How many have you seen so far?"
<<Individually?>>
"Yeah."
<<I lost track at fifty.>> I squeaked out.
"We're so screwed."
<<The good news is, is that I don't think they're on Sombra's side.>> I knew I sounded hysterical, but I didn't really care. <<But I also don't think that they're on our side, either!>> Rainbow gulped and flinched away from another Unown sighting.
"Y'all okay, Sugarcube?" Applejack asked Rainbow. "Yer jumpier than a cat in a rockin' chair factory."
"You don't want to know."
"But-!"
"Trust me on this one." Rainbow hooked a leg around Applejack's neck to force her to look Rainbow in the eyes. "You don't want to know. Leo!" She smacked me with her tail. "Don't tell her. You shouldn't have told me, but you did." She refocused on the farmmare. "And now I'm telling you; you don't want to know. If it becomes relevant, I'll tell you, but it's not right now, so I won't." Applejack shivered.
"Rainbow," Shining began in a low tone, "if you know something that can help us keep Sombra out..."
"If what Leo told me is correct, they might help us, they might not. Just..." Rainbow floundered for a moment. "Just don't go giving orders or making wishes when there's nopony around."
"What did Leo tell you, Rainbow?" Twilight lowly asked.
I dropped an icicle in between my mare and Twilight. <<Hey! Lay off her!>>
Rainbow tapped her hoof and fidgeted her wings. "Do you remember Discord, Twilight?"
Everypony flinched, and Fluttershy gasped. Twilight took a deep breath. "Yeah...?"
"According to Leo, these things gain power the more of them there are in a group. Enough to be as strong as him." Rainbow locked eyes with the studious mare. "Maybe even stronger. And Leo recognized them."
Shining shivered. "How have these things not taken over the world?"
"Because they are very weak when alone?" Rainbow looked to me for confirmation.
I nodded and spoke up through Fluttershy. <<And I've only seen them here. Sombrero might have found some way of tapping into their power, but I don't think he can do it right now.>>
"What makes you think that?"
I pointed over my shoulder. <<He's still out there, isn't he? But these things... Twilight, they scare me. They have the powers of a god, and the restraint of Pinkie.>>
"Hey!" Pinkie frowned. "I have amazing restraint!"
Rarity lightly poked the party pony. "I would like to remind you of the MMM."
"Oh..." Pinkie went back to frowning. "I have terrible restraint!"
Rainbow waved a wing at Pinkie. "And Leo's seen enough of them for them to be a major problem if we go poking at them. And I agree with Leo, unless things go pear shaped, we avoid them."
Twilight shared a look with her brother. "If you're sure..."
"I'm sure." Rainbow confidently nodded.
<<If they start moving, I'll let you know.>> I poked her side. <<Because then we'll have a problem.>>
"Yeah, we'll keep an eye on them." With Rainbow's assurances, the group continued towards the palace.
Even with Rainbow and I keeping an eye out for more Unown, we made good time. Rarity quickly returned to gushing over the crystal beauty around us, but I paid her no mind, even when we reached the palace.
<<Hey, Rainbow?>> I faintly asked, looking up at the bottom of the palace. <<You mind if I stay out here for now?>>
"Eh?" Rainbow looked over her shoulder at me, before glancing up as well. Her face paled before returning to face forward. "Yeah, sure. See you soon." She squeaked out.
"You okay, Dashie?" I heard Pinkie chirp before the doors closed behind them. I hadn't looked away from the alphabets of Unown staring down at me the entire time.