//------------------------------//
// Part 19: Eye of the Storm 
// Story: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic The Movie: What If? 
// by SuperPinkBrony12 
//------------------------------//

The tornado roared and whirled! Its strong winds either sucking in or blowing away any who got close to it. Even for those outside of its reach found themselves buffeted by the winds that seemed to extend outward for miles!

The Storm King cared not one bit for what was unfolding. He just stood there, admiring the destruction, chaos, and carnage that was being unleashed.

As the storm raged onward without end, Twilight looked across to Tempest as the hornless unicorn appeared on the balcony. Neither spoke a word as they looked at each other, yet both seemed to be filled with an unshakable sense of dread.

Despite this, Tempest rushed out to where the Storm King stood and shouted above the roar of the winds! "Yes! Yes, you have proved yourself to be without equal! All the magic in Equestria is yours, now!" She then bowed to him and made her demand. "Now please! You must fulfill your end of the bargain! Restore my horn!"

The Storm King was silent for a moment, looking down at his faithful second in command. Then a smirk spread across his face as he lifted her chin up with a paw, and said to her in a slow, ominous tone. "Ah yes. The time has come for you to get what you deserve."

Tempest smiled, convinced that all her time serving the Storm King was about to finally pay off! So it was a great surprise to her when, instead of restoring her horn, the Storm King turned the full fury of his staff on her and blasted her clean across the balcony! The hornless unicorn struggled to her hooves, every breath was a challenge. She couldn't understand why he had just attacked her. "But... but... why?" She muttered in a feeble, vulnerable tone of voice. Fighting back the tears, she said to him. "You promised!"

The evil stayr cackled with fiendish glee as he approached Tempest, brandishing his staff towards her. "And you actually believed I cared about you. Your first mistake, soon to be your last," He cruely taunted. "Get with the program, Tempest! I used you! And you played your part to perfection! Now, you're of no use to me. I'm strong enough to do my own dirty work! Besides," He stroked a paw across her face and up to the stub on her forehead. "You really think there's a cure for what you are? That I could do what even your best doctors couldn't? Name's Storm King, not miracle worker."

Tempest growled and grit her teeth. "You lied to me! All my years of service, working my way into your good books, and this is how you repay me?!"

"Why not?" The Storm King replied with indifference as he lifted Tempest into the air with ease. "Besides, even if I could fix you, which I can't, why would I want to help you now? What's the first thing you'd if I gave you a new horn? As soon as I turned my back, you'd just blast me and take all the power for yourself. After all, that's what I'd do if I were in your pathetic situation."

"No!" Tempest pleaded! "I wouldn't betray! I wouldn't!"

But the Storm King cruely and coldly remarked with a snort and a humph. "It doesn't really matter to me. You're a useless pawn now, and must be discarded!" He dropped her back onto the balcony and pointed his staff directly at her. "Say goodbye, Tempest! I'd say it was nice knowing you," In a quiet, menacing tone of voice he added. "But I don't wanna lie."

Hearing those words stirred something deep inside Tempest. With a fury and a force she had never known, she kicked the Storm King hard with her back hooves, momentarily forcing him to his knees! "You can't get rid of me that easily! I won't fall without a fight!"

The evil stayr taunted. "Go ahead, waste your last moments. You're no match for me and you know it! After all, you're just a pony."

"I may be a pony, but you're wrong if you think that makes me weak!" Tempest roared in defiance as she rushed towards the Storm King! "One way or another, I will take you down, no matter what it takes!"

Alas, the Storm King quickly shut down the attempt assault, grabbing Tempest by the neck and pulling her close as lightning flashed and thunder clapped all around him. "I'm growing tired of this. It's time to put you out of my misery!" He then hurled her as far as he could across the balcony, towards the edge of the tornado that was still roaring and howling behind him!

"NO!" Tempest shut her eyes, waiting for the end to come as she felt the pull of the winds began to lift her into the air!

But the end never came. Instead, Twilight rushed forward and grabbed hold of Tempest by the front hooves. With all the strength still left inside of her, she pulled the hornless unicorn back onto the castle balcony. "I won't let this be your end, Tempest. Not even you deserve this!"

"Forget about me, princess," Tempest protested. "It's my fault we're in this mess to begin with. I know what fate awaits traitors like me."

"But don't you see, Tempest?" The princess pointed out. "You're the Storm King's enemy now. And the enemy of my enemy is my friend! Together we'll take him down, and maybe that'll help reduce your punishment."

Tempest was surprised by the statement. "You'd consider me a friend even after all I've done?"

The young alicorn nodded, then argued. "We can discuss this after we defeat the Storm King! We are stronger together than we ever could be on our own!"

The Storm King, meanwhile, clapped his paws together as he approached the two ponies. "Bravo, princess. Such a touching speech. But I'm afraid you're still no match for me," He pointed his staff at the ponies. "Those who attack together are destroyed together! Say your prayers!"





While all of this was unfolding on the castle balcony above, down below those who had just been about to reach the castle doors were now forced to seek shelter from the raging tornado summoned by the Storm King!

"How can this be?!" Spike lamented as he, Capper, and the ponies all huddled close to the ground. It was a struggle for them just to avoid being blown away. "We've come so close, only to fail."

"But Twilight needs us now more than ever!" Rainbow Dash hollered above the winds! "We've got to some way to get to her! We've just got to!"

Pinkie Pie, meanwhile, was squinting off into the distance. She thought she saw something familiar, but it took a while for her blue eyes to confirm what it was. An excited squeal escaped her lips when the realization struck her! "My EZ Bake Cannon!"

"How does that help us?" Applejack questioned.

Pinkie proudly proclaimed! "If we can get to it and climb inside, we can launch ourselves up to Twilight and help her!"

"Are you crazy?!" Rarity hollered in protest! "There is no way I'm climbing into that cannon and letting myself be blasted through the air! We'll never make it!"

"No we won't!" Pinkie protested right back. "It'll work, it has to work! Twilight's counting on us, and we are not going to let her down!"

Fluttershy, however, saw fit to ask. "But if we all get inside the cannon, who's going to fire it?"

Capper cleared his throat, telling the ponies. "You let me handle that. You all need to get up to your friend."

Spike immediately declared as he rushed ahead! "Enough talk! We have to save Twilight! We have to! I'm not leaving her again when I have the chance to do something about it!"

"Spikey-wikey, wait!" Rarity tried to call out to the little dragon. But it was no use, he was already fighting the drag of the winds as he came nearer and nearer to the oversized cannon.

Capper quickly ushered the ponies along, ultimately grabbing hold of a bright, shiny button that was clearly intended to fire the cannon (and whatever was inside its barrel). "Ready?!" He asked as he watched the ponies all climb inside with Spike.

"Ready!" Pinkie Pie giggled with excitement as she hurridly slapped on a large blue helmet! "Fire 'er off, Capper!"

The jacket wearing cat obeyed without hesitation. He pointed the cannon towards the balcony as best he could, then pressed the button. The cannon fired its load with a bang loud enough to be heard even above the raging storm in all its fury! "Good luck, ponies!" He called out to them! He'd done all he could getting them to this point, the rest was up to them.





All the Storm King knew was that suddenly, from behind him came the sound of franatic (and in at least one case excited) screams! Before he had a chance to react, something (or rather someone) hit him from behind! The impact knocked the staff right out of his paws, sending it tumbling across the balcony and back into the castle, lodging itself in a window all the way on the other side. All the while, the storm continued to rage on without end.

Twilight barely had a moment to process her shock and surprise, before her friends all swarmed around her. "You... came back!" She managed to force out.

Pinkie Pie hugged Twilight tightly. "Of course we did, Twilight. That's what friends are for. We couldn't let you take on that nasty Storm King all by yourself. No sirooni!"

"We're just glad you're still okay," Fluttershy pointed out. "You had us so worried. And Spike worried even more."

Spike rushed up to the princess and pleaded with her. "Please don't leave us like that again, Twilight! You don't have to throw yourself away just to save us. We can always overcome anything as long as we work together and stick together!"

Twilight nodded as she shed a few happy tears. "I know that now more than ever. And I'm sorry for all I put you through because of me. I don't know what I did to deserve friends like you, but I'm glad I made them."

Rainbow Dash then spoke up and desperately shouted! "Yeah yeah, let's save the sappy friendship talk for after we beat the bad guy! This isn't over yet!" And she gestured a hoof to where the staff remained lodged in a window, its crystal vibrating and glowing brightly.

The alicorn quickly realized the gravity of the situation. It seemed that whoever possessed the staff would be the one who would control the outcome. She gave a firm nod. "Right! Let's get that staff and put an end to this nightmare!" She looked to her friends. "And this time we'll do it together, like we always have!"

"Alright, let's go!" Rainbow impatiently hollered, and the ponies and Spike all rushed back into the castle. The ferocity of the storm, coupled with the raging tornado, was enough to make the whole crystal castle shudder and shake violently! It felt like the whole place might collapse and cave in on itself at any moment! Time was of the escence.

But the group of friends weren't the only ones trying to make a play for the staff. The Storm King had long since recovered from his briefly stunned state. And he was not about to let the staff be taken him away from him so easily. "No!" He roared as he raced after the ponies and tried desperately to lunge at them! "That staff is mine! MINE! You hear me?! Only I have the right to weild its incredible power!"

Tempest, now desperate to make up for her past mistakes, did the only thing she could think to do in the current situation. She rushed at the Storm King and with every ounce of might she had, she tackled him to the ground! "No! This madness must end, now!"

"Get off of me!" The Storm King roared as he struggled for control! "This only proves my point, Tempest! From the moment I took you in, I knew you'd betray me someday!"

"And the only mistake I ever made was falling for your lies! I should've run away from you too!" The hornless unicorn snorted! "If it's the last thing I do, I'll put a stop to your evil ways!"

The Storm King quickly swatted Tempest aside and stood up. "When I get my staff back, Tempest, you will be my first victim!"

Tempest smirked. "Too bad for you that's never going to happen. All I had to do was stall for time." And as she spoke those words, she saw Twilight leap out and grab the staff, pulling it free from its resting place.

The Storm King's eyes widened in horror! He bolted and ran as fast as his legs would carry him! "No you don't!" He said firmly, and managed to grab hold of Twilight by her back hooves!

Then there was trouble! The intense winds and all the whirling debris inside the funnel caused the window where the staff had been resting to shatter! The inside of the castle was now exposed to the full fury of the winds!

Twilight quickly felt her friends grab hold of her as well, fighting with the Storm King to try to pull her free! "Let go, all of you! If you don't, we'll be all sucked into the storm!" She desperately pleaded!

"No! We're not letting go! We won't lose you again!" Pinkie Pie protested!

And the Storm King bellowed! "We're in this together, princess! One way or another, you will give me back my staff!"

The seconds ticked by slowly, and as they did the castle continued to shudder and shake. Then, without warning, the roof of the castle was peeled away! The winds lifted it off, and as they did so the entire castle interior now became not unlike a wind tunnel!

Thinking quickly, the alicorn princess did the only thing she could think to do in this situation. Using what strength she still had, she wiggled her way out of her friends' grasp. And in doing so, she allowed the storm to take her.

The Storm King, for his part, refused to let go. And so he too was pulled into the tornado, lifted up, up, and up, until there was no sign of him or the princess!

Only once Twilight and the Storm King had disappeared into the heavens above did the tornado finally die. It ended abruptly: It was there one moment and gone the next. The storm subsided. It finally seemed to be over.

But neither Twilight or the Storm King came back down. It seemed that wherever the tornado had taken them, it was to a place where they could not return.

Twilight's friends all stood there in sadness and disbelief. The Storm King had been defeated, but at a heavy cost. Their friend that they had fought so hard for was gone, possibly forever.