//------------------------------// // Interference // Story: The Ponyteers // by RainbowWarrior //------------------------------// It was a warm, spring evening in Ponyville. Princess Celestia was busy lowering the sun to make way for the dusk, as the sky turned from blue to marigold and pink. Crickets were chirping across town. Colts and fillies left their fun and games outdoors to come home for dinner. In the local Book and Branches Library inside a massive oak tree near the center of town, five ponies were waiting below on its first floor. When the ponies walked inside, they saw open books strewn across the floorspace, all helter-skelter. Hung up on the walls were notes and patterns written and drawn by the scholarly lavender unicorn everywhere. The kitchen would have been a mess and the garbage would be overflowing if Spike wasn't there to maintain the place. Twilight's friends grew concerned. "Um....Twilight?" asked Fluttershy "I don't mean to intrude, but did you have send Spike to get us over here?" "Yeah!" Rainbow Dash added. She flew up a couple of feet and hovered to holler at Twilight above. "You haven't left your house in two weeks! I demand to know what's going on!" "Easy there, Sugar cube." said Applejack, calmly. "I'm pretty sure she has a good reason to call us over here." "Just be patient, Rainbow." spoke Rarity with a rich debonair inflection. "She's probably freshening up and making herself look presentable. It's just ....eeeuuugh....improper to remain unhygienic in front of her friends." "I'm up here" said a feminine voice. When it stepped down the staircase below, it was indeed Twilight Sparkle. But her mane was tangled like a rat's nest. Her coat was disheveled. She had heavy bags under her eyes, and she smelled like one of Applejack's pigs. Rarity fainted upon the sight. "Ewwwwwww! Twilight! You reek! What is going on with you?" asked Rainbow Dash covering up her snout after getting a whiff of the unicorn's body odor. "Why the next great step in magic is going on, Rainbow!" "What do y'all mean?" responded Applejack. "Remember when we saved the Crystal Empire from King Sombra? Princess Celestia said it was now time for me to enter the next level of my studies!" "You're getting a promotion! This calls for a party!" yelled Pinkie Pie. She reached her cerulean Party Cannon out of hammer space, pulled the fuse, and shot several hundred bits of multi-colored confetti and streamers everywhere. They landed on the loads of open books and charts that lined the floor and walls of the library; partially covering the text written on them. They even covered the collapsed Rarity. "Not yet, Pinkie. I have more to say." Twilight replied with much less enthusiasm. "Oh, Okie-Dokie!" Pinkie hit a switch on the back of her cannon and all the confetti and streamers got magically sucked back into the cannon as if it were a giant vacuum. Every bit of paper got sucked in, leaving no trace of the party supplies anywhere wedged between the books or floorboards; and exhuming Rarity in the process. Even Twilight was shocked at the cannon's power as Pinkie put it away. "Right." Said Rarity, coming around from fainting, unaware she was briefly interred under Pinkie's confetti. "So all of this is research?" "Correct. This is the next level of my studies, and I've been spending the last month working on a breakthrough. It....uhhh... just got really intense for the last fortnight." "Oh." Rainbow said softly. "So then why did you call us over?" We don't know magic like you!" "Because, this is a research upon the natural elements." "Twilight, don't you know?" asked the silly pink pony. "Were the Elements of Harmony! We saved Equestria twice with them! I have laughter, you have magic, Dashie has loyalt-" She was silienced by an purple hoof in her mouth. Twilight told her "Not those Elements, Pinkie. I'm talking about the natural elements! You know, water, earth, fire, wind? And I need all of you to help me summon them." "Summon them?" asked Fluttershy. "You mean like making them?" "Not just make them. Manipulate them. I intend to summon the physical manifestations of the five elements to be used for practical purposes and magics!" Applejack asked "Wait, Five?" Ah thought you only mentioned four!" "Yes, well there is a fifth element that I have yet to figure out. That element is meant to unite the other four into a great power and source of magic. Princess Celestia gave me full authorization to enact the summoning, so I can attempt to create the Elements and its power amalgamation." Twilight gestured to a room behind her. "Now I need you five and the Elements of Harmony to come in here." The 6 mares walked into the other room where which was just like the messy and book-covered front room, but with one notable exception: In the center was a bare floor with chalk marks. It was in the shape of a pentagram inscribed inside a circle. Twilight had already walked in carrying an ornate box via telekinesis. She opened the box to reveal a tiara and 5 necklaces, each having a differently-colored jewel embedded in them: The Elements of Harmony. Twilight told her friends to each wear their element and stand in one point of the star shape. Twilight herself stood in the center. "So what are these elements supposed to look like, Twilight?" asked Rarity as she put on her Element of Generosity. "Well, most magic is incorporeal. They need some physical medium to harness its power. Remember the Crystal Heart that amplified the Crystal Ponies' mirth and celebration? It's like that. So, it should be in the form of gemstones." "Twilight, are you sure that this is safe?" squeaked out Fluttershy, with a nervous look upon her face. "Don't worry. You'll be perfectly safe. I swear this spell won't harm you." assured Twilight. Fluttershy smiled a little as she put on her Element resembling a pink butterfly. For extra assurance, Twilight stood in the center facing Fluttershy. Going clockwise around the center stood Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and finally Pinkie Pie. Twilight lit up her horn. Then the amethyst star-shaped gem within her golden tiara started glowing the same color. The other elements followed suit with their own colors. Then Twilight mentally got a feel for the complex arcane web and leylines that governed the embodiments of magic. She started to levitate and give off a purple aura. So did her friends: Applejack gave off an olive green glow. Rainbow Dash's aura was a deep crimson. Pinkie's was a bright white. Rarity glowed a colbalt blue. Fluttershy's aura was that of a golden yellow. Twilight could feel the natural energies of the elements start to flow down the leylines and coalescence into a physical form. BZZT Twilight's aura started to flicker and fade. BZZT BZZT BZZZZZT ZAP ZAP ZAP "SOMETHING'S WRONG!" Twilight yelled. "Twi? What's going on?" Applejack responded. "I DON'T KNOW! SOMETHING'S INTERFERING WITH MY SPELL! IT'S NOT ME!" "Stop the incantation or something!" "I can't! I'm stuck channeling! I can't turn my magic off!" "WHAT?!" "Some magical interference from the outside is preventing me from shutting my magic down!" Twilight's suddenly eyes glowed a deep purple and her horn sputtered and sparked until its glow exploded into a massive conical vortex of power. She saw a vision of the five flashing colors around her. She could have also seen something else: several figures of some unknown animal that stood on two legs. The figures were being sucked towards her. Her horn felt as if it were on fire from the strain as the figures neared her. The color flashes and the figures fused with each other as Twilight blacked out, stopping the spell. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Earth, 10 minutes ago. Location: Hope Island. "Wheeler's got the ball". Said a 17-year-old white boy with flaming red hair. He was dribbling a basketball in front of a 16-year-old black boy with short curly hair. The black boy was trying to steal the basketball away from the white boy, Wheeler. He stepped left as his younger opponent mirrored him, but then he quickly steps back and runs towards the hoop the black boy was guarding. "Wheeler fakes and goes right with a clear shot of the basket. he shoots....." He planted his feet and pushed the ball into the air. His friend tried to jump up and block but missed as the ball soared over the court and towards the hoop. It caught the rim, and revolved around it twice before gravity took the ball inside the net. "AND HE SCORES! MADISON SQUARE GARDEN GOES WILD!" Wheeler exclaimed as sweat poured from his forehead. "Ahhhhhhhh! Ahhhhhhhh!" said the red-head as he mocked mass cheering of a stadium. The black boy behind just rolled his eyes. "Are you always going to do that after you win?" asked Wheeler's opponent. "Kwame, until you beat me at one-on-one; Always." said Wheeler. "But, ya did better than da last round. Work on your aim, and you just might get to 10 points." he added with a smile. He picked up the basketball and threw it to a blond girl who was watching him from the sidelines with an older Asian girl and a younger Indian kid. "Me and Kwame are gonna take a breath-a. Linka, Gi, Ma-Ti, the court's all yo's." He stated in his native Brooklyn tongue. As the boys walked away from the court, Wheeler looked back at the two girls on the court. He saw Gi trying to slam the ball onto the ground. She slammed it too hard, as the bouncing ball smacked her in the face upon the bounce-up. Wheeler just shook his head. Then a ghostly figure of a woman's head appeared before the five teenagers. She had dark skin, long and black wavy hair, high cheek bones and blue eyes. The five weren't surprised. "Planeteers. I need to speak with you." "We are on our our way, Gaia" spoke Kwame. All five teens grabbed their vests and jackets and wore them over their shirts. The T-shirts they wore all bore the same figure: A colored ellipse, with grid lines that curved to fit its surface, much like Earth's coordinate meridians and parallels. The Planeteers rushed into a spacious room. It had bamboo floors and walls made from a light, purple crystal. At the back at one of the walls stood the same woman that spoke to them just moments ago. She wore nothing but lavender robes. "We got another mission Gaia? Because we really kicked Looten Plunder's ass three days ago in those diamond mines." Wheeler boasted with confidence. "No polluters or takeovers this time, Wheeler. This is good news." Gaia replied. She continued:"First I would like to say thank you. To all of you. You and Captain Planet's work over the past couple of years has saved countless lives, prevented extinctions, and getting our environment back on its natural course. And it is paying off." "Because of your acts of slowing pollution and corruption, I have been getting stronger. Ever since Hoggish Greedly awoke me from my 200 year slumber, I was rather weakened by the increased deforestation, radiation, smog, toxins, and other pollutants being output by mankind. But since I recruited the five of you, I have been getting my power back." "So does this mean that you no longer need us?" asked Gi, concerned about her duty to the Earth. "No, humanity still has a lot to learn about nature. I'm just telling you that I can soon do things like forest regeneration and water detoxification to better our world. But I called you here to experiment teleportation. "Teleportation?" asked the small Ma-Ti. "It means that I can instantly take you to any location on the planet. That way you can arrive at places that need your help faster." "And you want us to be your Guinea Pigs?" asked Wheeler, stepping forward. "Did you even test it out yet?" "Yes, Wheeler, I have. And be careful where you step." "Huh?" the American asked. Suddenly a small purple, crackling light appeared at his foot. It fired tiny purple lightning bots before it faded and revealed a lime-green frog. "Боже мой*!" whispered Linka. "Zaht is incredible!" Wheeler crouched down and held his mouth open in disbelief to see that it had red eyes like those in Ma-Ti's jungle home of the Amazon. Then the frog leaped at his face and dived into his mouth! "MMMMMMMPH!" he screamed and spit the frog out his mouth and into Ma-Ti's hand. The other 4 Planeteers and Gaia just laughed at the sight. "Not! Freakin'! Funny!" Wheeler chided. "Put it back." Ma-Ti set the frog down on the floor as Gaia recast the spell. A purple light appeared at the frog's feet as it slowly enveloped the creature. Then in a flash of light and electricity, it was gone. "Okay." said Gaia. "Where would you all like to go?" "Coney Island!" Wheeler interjected before any of his friends could speak. "I'm gonna need a Nathan's chili dog to get da taste of tree frog outta my mouth!" To his surprise, none of them objected. "What? No that's a stupid place to go, Wheeler? Pick a more enriching or less pollutive location, Wheeler?" "No." spoke Kwame. "You have been humiliated enough today. Plus you always told us how great Coney Island and New York are. I would like to see this island." "Me too!" added Linka. A flat part of the crystal wall lit up and displayed an amusement park. There was a boardwalk with arcades, a Ferris Wheel, a roller coaster, and numerous food stands scattered along the fairgrounds. Hundreds of people were walking all around enjoying the place. In the distance was a massive city with many tall buildings. "Is this the place?" asked Gaia. "Exactly." Wheeler confirmed. "Alright then. Contact me with Ma-Ti's ring in half an hour. That's when I'll teleport you back here, okay? "Sounds good. Start the spell, please." And just like with the frog, a deep purple light glowed at the Planeteers' feet. The glow became an aura as it surrounded each of them. Gaia could feel the leylines of Earth work with her magic. But suddenly, the Planeteers' aura changed. As it faded and flashed, the hues of the auras flashed from Gaia's purple to their respective colors on the rings they wore: Kwame's Green, Wheeler's Red, Linka's White, Gi's Blue, and Ma-Ti's Yellow. Gaia could feel great stress as it felt like something was interfering with her magic. It was like someone was pulling her heroes away from her grasp. "NO! I'm losing control!" Now the teens' bodily features had been reduced to basic human figures as the multicolored auras grew in intensity. She saw the auras get brighter and brighter until they seemed to explode, Gaia shielding her eyes. When she reopened them, her heroes were gone. She tried sending out a message to them: "Planeteers, are you there? Did you make it?" Nothing responded. Gaia's fear grew. "Planateers! Come in!". She heard no voices. "I lost them."