//------------------------------// // 6- Portal salvage // Story: Something worth fighting for // by Mr Andrews Pupil //------------------------------// "I think we have greatly underestimated the power of frozen water" twilight sighed as she wrung a towel out over a wooden pail. "It seemed like a good idea at first" Her purple assistant grumbled as he began hauling the almost overflowing bucket towards the door. "I figured that some blocks of ice could help keep things cool around here" Twilight questioned why she herself agreed to it. The blocks of ice had worked perfectly, for about 3 minutes. The water logged lower book cases that had been submerged could attest to everything after. "It proably didn't help that they were the size of carriges spike" "Look on the bright side, nopony reads anything from the bottom shelf anyway's" Spike said trying to cheer twilight up. Twilight gave spike the "unamused" look. "I do" "Oh" Spike said with crimson appearing in his cheeks. They had removed almost all of the water from the flooded library. Apart from cooling their feet off the water had been a complete disaster for the books. Spike was about to ask how to dry them all when a sudden knock silenced him. "I got it" Twilight said as she trotted across the water logged floor to the door. Despite the fact that it was dark out the light from inside the library told Twilight that it was royal guards that stood solemly before her. Both had a look of despondency on their muzzles. They tried to maintain the stature of pride and stoicness. But Twilight saw something was wrong almost at once. "Miss Sparkle" one of them said flatly. "Yes, what's wrong" Twilight replied trying not to let her cheery demeanour faulter. "You're wanted at the castle at once" the other added. "What's going on?" ... "It's princess luna" Twilights mind began to imagine worst case scenario. Deathly ill. Foalnapped. ... Dead. "She's missing" "She's what?" "Missing" a guard said stepping forward. "You must come quickly" Twilight decided that time was of the essence. She turned inside and called to spike who was standing across the room with a blowdryer to a book. "I have to go to canterlot, it's an emergency" Spike was about to start spewing questions but he silenced himself that time. The air in the library suddenly took on an air of uncertanty. "Ok, i'll watch over till you get back" he said waving towards the door. "Please hurry Miss. We may not have much time." Twilight nodded and turned out the door into the still hot, sticky night. She got onto a carriage not that diffrent from the one that had brought her to Ponyville in the first place. The guards attached themselves and wasted no time in turning and seting off into the muggy air. The trip to canterlot took almost half and hour. During that twilight had gone through almost every spell she had in her head in case it was needed. Despite her preparation, Twilight still felt terrible. She had that icky sensation radiating throughout her body. It was the type of feeling you would get after being told you had to get a root canal. You want to believe everythings okay, but you know it's not. As the carriage appeared through the top of the clouds the lights of the castle greeted them. Twilight immedieatly noticed the amount of guards had been doubled since thelast time she had been there. Not only were there guards standing guard at practically every potted plant. There were also guards checking every nook and cranny there was. They were searching for something obviously. *No* Twilight thought. *Somepony* The view was inerrupted by one of the chateaus massive turrets as they banked around it for the final approach to the moonlit courtyard. Twilight was already over the side seconds after it touched down. She was then approached by a group of guards. However one of them had a familliar face. "Twily!!!" Shining armour shouted as soon as he made eye contact. He was then nearly suffocated by Twilights hug, although he didn't mind the slightest. The embrace lasted a few more seconds until the reality of the situation crept back into their minds. "Im so glad you're here!!!" Twilight exclaimed. "Same for you" "What's going on?" "Heck if i know" "What do you mean?" Twilight asked cocking her head. "I was told to put the castle on lockdown a few hours ago. I never got a reason why..." "Wheres celestia?" "In lunas bedroom. Come with me" Shining turned and headed out of the courtyard and into the castle halls. The castle halls were still stuffy from the day's heat wave and just as dark. The sibling's broke into a rapid trot to close the distance faster. "Where's Princess Cadance?" Twilight asked. "Sleeping, she was up for most of the night comforting Celestia, not that it did much Shining spoke gloomily. The duo soon reached the hall to Lunas bedchambers. There were at least 10 guards at the door, but once they saw Shining and twilight they were allowed in. They came in to a sorrowful sight. Guards stood and sat random places with tears staining their cheeks and making *tap* sounds as a drop occasionally hit a leg guard. The room was cast in an amber glow from candles that had been hastily lit. Twilight and Shining approached the now empty bed and stopped at it's foot. "I don't get it, what's going on?" Twilight said with concern growing higher each second. "Might as well ask The princess" Shining spoke pointing a hoof towards the open balcony doors. There, silhouetted by the moon, was what twilight hoped would be the answer to her questions. They approached and once they were close, Twilight cleared her throat. Celestia turned to reveal an expression that could only be described as "dead". But upon seeing her pupil and most trusted guard some life sparked inside the sun goddess once more. "Twilight" "Princess.....what's going on?" Celestia decided not to sugar coat it. She replied almost instantly. "She's missing" Twilight half -thanked the heavens that Luna wasn't dead half - became more concerned. "Where is she?" "And that my student is the million bit question" She said walking by them into the bedroom. Once inside she nodded at the squad of woebegone guards. They immediately cleared the room leaving only the two unicorn's and herself. She approached lunas bed and rested a hoof on it. seconds later her hind lags have out and she let herself hang off the edge. "I truly do not know Twilight" she said with a somber tone. "All i saw was a comet that looked like... that looked like the one that separated us the first time". Shining and Twilight flanked Celestia and offered what comfort they could, but like Princess Cadance, they were less than successful. "I'll send my stallions all over Equestria if i have to your majesty" Shining spoke encouragingly. "Shes not on the moon but she went into the sky......where could she B-B- BE!!!" Celestia cried out as she began to wail and bury her head in the now cold sheets of her sister's last location. Twilight and Shining armour looked at each other. This wasn't working. "Celestia please, we need to work together" Twilight said laying a hoof on Celestias shoulder. The Princess knew it too. But the amount of emotional pain she was in made even raising the moon for the first time almost unbearable. "Twilight" Celesia began trying not to burst into tears again. "I called you here for you to use that spell I taught you a few months ago. It's the one that can locate any anomilies in the area it is cast in. I would use it myself, but until I can calm down enough I fear I am in no shape to cast it ". "Of course!" Celestia smiled. The strength and support her prized pupil gave off when needed could move mountains. "Thank you" She spoke gently. "I have the utmost faith in you" "We need to look for clues. Do you mind if we look around?" "Of course not" "Alright then. Let's get too it." Twilight announced. "Actualy, i have to go check on Cadance. I'll be back in a few minutes ok?" Shining said motioning towards the door. "Sure thing" Twilight chirped skipping off towards the centre of the room. As shining left Twilight pulled the spell from her mental archive and as soon as she brought it forth, she noticed a diffrence in the air itself. She felt as if the air was "charged" with magical residue. The princess walked over to the same location. Sure enough, there was the unmistakable aura of a massive spell in the air. Both of them felt it. It gave each of them a tingling sensation in their horns, as if they had both cast a rather potent spell. "Can you feel it?" The Princess asked. "I think so....what does it mean?" "It is as I feared. Somepony has used a spell to send Luna away from here" "What kind of spell?" Celestia closed her eyes. She had managed to stifle her mental turmoil just enough to focus as she tilted her head forward. The tingling sensation in twilights horn increased briefly before ending abruptly. Twilight turned her head to celestia who's horn had stopped glowing and now had a puzzled look on her face. "What did you do?" "I added some of my own magic to amplify the reminants of the previous spell" Twilight was once agian reminded that she still had a lot to learn. "Which did?" "It allows me to decipher which exact spell it was" She responded going to a far corner and motioning for her student to follow. When they were at what Twilight thought was a safe distance,Shining armour had returned from Cadance and raised an eyebrow at the sight he saw. "Any particular reason you guys are in a corner" he asked from the doorway. "Im going to salvage the spell that was used here" Celestia replied. Shining obviously knew what was coming. He quickly trotted to where the other two were hugging the wall the entire way. Once there he nodded to The Princess who did the same thing as before only this time the ground began to shake. The three had to steady themselves slightly to keep upright as the ground seemed to be in tremors beneath them. "Will this work!?!?!?!?!" Twilight shouted over the racket. "Almost got it!!!!!!" Celestia responded sternly. A ball of purple began to form at the centre of the room. It was an exact replay of a few hours ago. The ball turned into a portal which deformed slightly and pulsed intermittently. Celestia opened her eyes once more as she tried to catch her breath. "That....whew......never gets....oh my.........easier" She looked down at an amazed twilight who had to nearly pinch herself (a feat quite difficult for a pony) before the three cautiously approached the portal. "It definently leads to another galaxy" Twilight noted out loud. Sure enough in the portal was the clear image of what appeared to be a spiraling group of stars just inside the portal. "What galaxy do you think it is?" Shining wondered aloud. "Lets see" Celestia said levitating a book containing all galaxies known to equestrian astronomy from one of lunas shelves. She opened it and began flipping pages. She was motionless until she stopped and compared the two. "I looks like" she started. The suspense increased ten-fold with those two words. Shining and his BBBFF looked at each other, the portal and Celestia with anxiousness dominating their faces. "It looks like....the Milky way galaxy" She whispered. "The what?" Both sibling's asked. Celestia did not her them though. She was trying to figure out where she heard the name before. She knew she did, but it was a very, very, VERY long time ago. Then she remembered. And part of ther wished she hadn't. "Please" She whimpered with tears threatening to return. "Not there, anywhere but there" Twilight leaned over to her brother and whispered in his ear. "I dont like this" "When did you start?" He asked back. They both jumped as the astronomy book Celestia was holding in her aura impacted the ground. They turned to see a shaking celestia staring at the vacant space where the book was moments before. "Princess?" Twilight asked approaching her slowly. "This is bad" Celestia blurted. "Why?" Shining asked joining the conversation. "Thats where- " she cut herself off. *No* she thought. *They can't know yet* "Where what?" Twilight reminded. "Never mind" Celestia insisted. "O- ok then". Twilight decided that being persistant would yield nothing. "So what now" she said trying to transition the subject as seamlessly as possible. "Iiiiiiiiiiiii knooooowww" a mockingly sing- song voice echoed through the room without warning. Everypony knew who it was. That sick feeling was back in twilights stomach again. "Well if it isn't the monster of the hour" Celestia growled through gritted teeth. "Flattery will get you no where" Discord said as he began to take shape in a cloud of smokea few feet beside the portal. "Neither will being submissive" "You know me well Tia" "..." "Unfortunately"