Her Candidates

by Nyte-Blade


Crystal Clear - Part 1

~Previously~

After Mina finally awakens from her sleep, she seems to have recovered, but lacks any memory of what she was like when she was taken into the Star Mist. As for Trisha, she gathers the six mares and they carry on the discussion of the day's events, which is continued in the Royal Dining Room. It is then, that Princess Celestia gave a critical clue, as well as the location of the rest of the journalism crew. With the new information, the group returns to Ponyville for preparations, then set out for the Crystal Empire.

Upon leaving on the train though, Rainbow Dash and Eva catch sight of a Wanted poster for Lightning Dust...


"I'll be right back. I gotta check on something!" Rainbow said, climbing out of the train window.

"We don't have time for that!" Jeremy chided.

"I'll make it quick like always!" Rainbow jumped out and flew to the train station to meet with the Wonderbolt who was putting up the wanted flyer. As she climbed out, Jeremy was unintentionally kicked in the face with her back hoof.

"Agh...! I autta rip out her spine for that!" Jeremy complained, rubbing his chin. "Last time I sit next to her on this damned thing..."

As for Rainbow, she quickly met with the Wonderbolt in question and stopped the stallion in his tracks.

"Whoa, Rainbow Dash? You kinda scared me popping up out of nowhere like that." The Wonderbolt said, who turned out to be Fire Streak.

"What's with the wanted posters? Did she attack the academy!?" Rainbow asked, getting straight to the point.

"You guessed it. Lightning Dust didn't destroy anything there, but she did injure a couple of our comrades. I think that's grounds to bring her in. She's gone too far already." Fire Streak answered briefly.

"Ugh! I can't BELIEVE THIS!" Rainbow stomped a hoof down.

"I hear she attacked Canterlot too, so getting these wanted posters approved took no time since the Royal Guard wants her captured as well." Fire Streak elaborated. "You must've seen her judging from your reaction."

"Yeah! she attacked the humans we're with!" Rainbow answered.

"Humans? Wait, those creatures we saved a few days ago? Why is she after them?" Fire Streak asked, surprised to know that Lightning Dust is targeting humans.

"All I know is that she and the Shadowbolts seem to be targeting them and that this is all related to Nightmare Moon... something about them being her candidates or something.." Rainbow answered.

"Candidates, huh? Hmm... sounds a little far fetched. I thought Princess Luna was Nightmare Moon." Fire Streak said, sounding unsure.

"Yeah, but she was sealed away, so there's no way she could be Nightmare Moon right now!" Rainbow defended.

"Well, I have to thank you for the information! I'll be sure to relay the info to Spitfire and let her know you're okay."

"She's fine, right? Lightning Dust wants revenge on her and me after all." Rainbow asked.

"Of course she's fine! She'd never let a rookie like Lightning Dust beat her in a fight." Fire Streak answered with confidence.

"*Phew*! Thank Celestia! Alright, I'll catch ya later!" Rainbow bidded the Wonderbolt Farewell before flying back to the train and getting back into her seat, kicking Jeremy in the process again, this time in the arm.

"AAAAAAARGH! You have to watch it! I'm a human! We're more squishy than you ponies!" Jeremy griped, rubbing his arm.

"Oh quit being such a baby! You're a man, take it like one!" Rainbow chided.

"You're asking for it..." Jeremy cracked his knuckles.

"Calm down, Jeremy!" Eva said, in which he responded with a grunt.

"Well, what did that Wonderbolt say?" Rarity asked.

"He said that the academy didn't get destroyed or anything, but Lightning Dust actually injured two Wonderbolts."

"My word, she's worse than I thought!" Rarity was appalled.

"All to get back at Spitfire, right?" Twilight asked, in the seat across from Rainbow and Jeremy's.

"Yeah, and me. But If it's a fight she wants, then she's got it!" Rainbow said, making a punching gesture.

"Aww, if I knew you'd be fighting, I would've brought my bell!" Pinkie chimed in.

"Uhh... a bell?" Rainbow asked.

"Yeah! DING DING DING! Like that! I'd be all like, 'FIGHTING IN THE BLUE CORNER, Weighing in at-" Pinkie was interrupted.

"It's not a boxing match!" Rainbow said, cutting off Pinkie's rambling..

"You guys have boxing in this world?! Are you kidding me!?" Trisha turned around in surprise and asked in a demanding tone.

"Well duh! Well, that's more of a new thing in Manehattan though, but it's getting plenty of steam already!" Rainbow answered with enthusiasm. "I guess you guys have that in your world too, huh?"

"Yeah, we do! It's nothing new, but it's always exciting to watch them fight!" Trisha explained, making punching gestures.

"You're still pretty gung-ho about that, huh?" Mina asked.

"I told you I don't go around fighting people anymore! That's not my thing!" Trisha desperately denied.

"You're gonna have to when we encounter the Shadowbolts. We're armed now, so we have to be ready to fight." Mina said.

"Mina's right, Trish. And we're about to meet the others too, so after that, it'll be a fight to get home." Jeremy said, folding his arms.

"I'd like to call this whole thing 'Spring Break: Hard Mode.'" Kitsu quipped.

"...Really?" Jeremy palmed his face, sighing in disbelief.

"Yeah, dude! I'm not saying I'm happy about it or anything!" Kitsu defended his joke.

"He's just trying to lighten things up like usual! Besides, you're the one that wants us to fight!" Mia pointed out, pouting.

"Because we can't leave the fighting to these ponies! It kinda pisses me off to be protected by creatures only little girls would like!" Jeremy said strongly.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean!?" Rainbow angrily asked.

"Jeremy's got a point, but I don't entirely agree. It doesn't make me mad to have protection in the least unlike our boss, but if we can reduce their burden, even a little, then I'll step up and fight." Mina agreed.

"And I just told ya'll that ya'll ain't no burden!" Applejack said.

"You sure? You took some serious damage." Kitsu asked out of worry.

"Yeah, MENTAL damage. Nothing serious. And I'm fine!" Mina replied, scowling at Kitsu.

"Alright, alright. But hey, we'll finally get to see the others finally!" Kitsu said, smiling.

"Yeah. About damn time too." Jeremy said, before yawning. "Yo, Twilight. How long till we get there?"

"I'd say in another few hours. You can take a nap if you want." Twilight answered, adding a suggestion.

"Hmph. Don't mind if I do." Jeremy said, pulling his flatcap downward a bit to cover his eyes and eventually fall asleep.

"I'm tired too... it's been a long day hasn't it..." Trisha said before leaning her head against the window and dozing off.

Eventually, the whole group fell asleep in their seats, as the train made it's way to the Crystal Empire.


Meanwhile, during Jeremy and the crew's troubles and eventual encounter with the monster and enemies, the rest of their friends were offered a gift from Princess Cadence; a gift she believes they'll need. Once Avu and Chris opened the treasure chest, they discover something unexpected...

"So... care explaining what these are, Princess?" Avu asked, glancing at the various crystals in the treasure box.

The Crystals were already crafted into the form of various bracelets, necklaces, and even earrings, each with it's beauty amplified by the light in the room shining on them, giving off various bright colors. The crystal accessories each had a simple design, but they were very clear, nearly see-through trinkets that each had a slight weight to them, making one wonder just how these crystals were made.

"Those... they're called Equine Crystals..." Cadence said, hoping to explain as carefully as possible.

"Crystals? I hate to break it to you, but where we're from, they don't have much value, no matter how well-polished and exquisite they look. Surely you don't expect us to sell these and make some money to get home with." Megan said, looking inside the chest.

Alice of course, takes out a few necklaces and hangs them around her neck, one by one. "Hehe, they're kinda pretty actually!" Alice looked at the crystal necklaces as they're reflected in the light, giving them more of an elegant shine and beauty. "Ruby, do you want to try them on?"

"Sure, but..." Ruby nodded to Alice, then turned to the alicorn behind her, "Miss Mi Amore Cadenza? Why are you giving us jewelry?"

"Because you'll need it to survive. And please, call me Cadence." The princess answered, then letting Ruby call her by her nickname.

"Okay! So... Miss Cadence... Is it dangerous outside?" Ruby asked.

"Well... yes, and no. I mean, it's safe here in the empire, I promise. And even if something were to happen, those crystals will protect you, and so will I." Cadence said reassuringly.

"Yay! But if you were protecting me, wouldn't your pretty mane be messed up? I wouldn't want to be responsible for you getting hurt..." Ruby said happily, her voice turning solemn.

"It's fine! I'm the ruler of this Empire. It's My and Shining Armor's duty to protect it." Cadence reassured her.

"Okay, that's well and dandy, but If I may pose a simple question, how will these little trinkets protect us? Explain yourself." Megan scowled at the princess.

"Well, since you so kindly asked," Cadence started with a bit of sarcasm, "These crystals are powered by bonds. Friendship."

"Friendship, huh... what, are you saying Friendship is magic?" Megan asked.

"Maybe you don't believe in friendship, perhaps?" Cadence asked.

"Oh, I believe in friendship alright. You just have to be on my level to be my friend, that's all. If you're not on my level, if you can't keep up with my superior intellect, if you can't prove your worth to me, then I don't want to be friends. The people in this room have all proven their worth to me in some way, shape, or form." Megan answered in a matter-of-factly tone.

"Aww, you really love us!" Avu teased. "Want a hug?"

"You're not THAT worthy." Megan scowled at Avu.

"Hahahaha, juuuuust kidding. I don't swing that way anyway." Avu said.

"Neither do I, obviously." Megan said.

"Ahem..." Mr. Martin cleared his throat, signaling the two to be quiet. "So, Princess... umm... let's see... about these crystals. How will they protect us?"

"Well, they protect you by granting those who possess them the magic of speed and defense. Not much is known about these crystals except that they were the secret weapon used by my people during the Sombra Rebellion a thousand years ago..." Cadence explained.

"Sombra Rebellion...?" Chris asked.

"I recall you speaking of this... evil tyrant that once ruled your kingdom with an iron fist... Am I correct?" Megan guessed, but wanted to be sure.

"Yes, you're right... Shining Armor and I learned of the rebellion when we spoke to some survivors of the rebellion. They thought that they could fight against Sombra's army during his time in power." Cadence explained. "The Equine crystals, during the time of finding out their powers, we only discovered that they're used for speed and defense and that they're also very limited."

"I'm gonna guess these 'limits' on the crystals is why the rebellion failed, right?" Avu asked, putting a bracelet and whirling it around his finger.

"Precisely. In fact, it made his rule worse, and he turned everypony into a slave to mine and craft more of these crystals for use, simply because their power is eerily similar to that of the Crystal Heart here, yet very much different. These weapons piqued Sombra's interest, and he wanted them for himself to find out their power."

"And how did that go?" Alice asked.

"Not well. He never discovered anything beyond the speed and defense that those crystals grant. However, he figured out that if used strategically, he may even be able to overthrow Celestia and Luna by initiating a campaign to take Equestria and expand his rule. However, as I said, these crystals are limited..." Cadence trailed off for a moment, took a deep breath, then carried on. "A crystal breaks each time when it's used for speed and defense, so these crystals are meant for survival purposes only, not fighting."

"Umm... what does friendship have to do with getting away from monsters?" Ruby asked.

"Well... you have friends, right? Like the humans here with you now? Or your big brother that's coming here to see you?" Cadance asked.

"Yeah... yeah I do! All of my friends are here!" Ruby said as she looked at everyone, thinking of the others as well.

"That's where their power shines through! It resonates with your will to live for your and protect the friends you love and care about!" Cadence said encouragingly.

"Call me crazy, but you make friendship sound AWWWWWESOOOOOOME." Alice said, expressing her astonishment.

"Wow... that sounds really cool! That means friendship really IS magic!" Ruby eyes gazed at Cadence in amazement.

"That's right! Friendship is magic!" Cadence answered firmly.

"Hey, will you all be my friends too?" Ruby asked.

"Of course you can be our friends." Cadence answered in a very caring tone, lowering her head so Ruby could give her a hug.

"You really like that kid, huh? I'll admit, she's pretty adorable. Reminds me of Twily when she was little." Shining Armor said, thinking of his sister.

"Of course... It also makes me think we should have children someday." Cadence said looked at Shining Armor, causing him to blush.

"Oh, errm... give the word, and well... yeah..." Shining Armor said, his smile shining through.

"You two are married?" Mr. Martin asked.

"Of course we are!" Cadence and Shining Armor said in unison.

"It was obvious from how they looked at each other, teach." Avu said, sounding a little cocky.

"Step off." Mason chided.

"Hahahaha! Nah, man. I won't step off." Avu replied with his unwavering cocky attitude.

"Awwwwwwww, how cuuuuuuuuuuute!" Alice said, beaming with happiness.

"More like atrocious... It's a natural thing, but I don't wish to have an abominable image in my mind!" Megan thought, palming his face and giving a deep sigh.

"Well, you guys haven't eaten much, right? Feel free to explore the town and buy some food, okay? I think It'll be okay to let the citizens see you around. They should accept you guys as refugees for the time being." Shining Armor offered.

"Is that why you didn't let us leave before?"

"Yeah... I wanted to try and ease you guys in before they actually see you, so the ponies won't get alarmed." Shining Armor said. "Anyway, like I said, it's safe to explore the town now."

"Really?" Ruby looked up at the two ponies.

"Yes, really! I can show you around, if you'd like!" Cadence offered to Ruby.

"Yay! I wanna see the town!" Ruby jumped, becoming more excited.

"Well, might as well, right? I am starving!" Alice said, then added, "Well, I don't wanna get fat, but I think it'd be okay to pig out a little, just for today!"

"Okay, well, try not to make these nice ponies spend too much, okay? They're going out of their way to help us, so it'd be bad if we burdened them." Mr. Martin chimed in.

"We know, you primate. But I'm not feeling very keen on ingesting hay though..." Megan replied to Mr. Martin.

"Just offering some friendly teacher's advice, Megan." Mr. Martin said, as he walked with the others out of the medical room and into town.

"I really AM gonna have to get used to this...? oh my god, why is this happening...?!" Chris thought, heaving a deep sigh.

"Chris, you coming?" Mason asked.

"Aww, man... I really do, huh...?" Chris griped as he finally decided to follow Mason.


As for Trisha, Twilight, and the others, they've finally arrived at the Crystal Empire the next day, waking up just in time to hop off the train. Beyond the train station was a field of large crystals on a shiny ground and a large crystal tower which reached far into the sky. The morning breeze only served to make the place feel more like a perfect spring vacation spot.

"Well, this is it! The Crystal Empire!" Twilight said, as they seen the brightly lit empire.

"Finally... FINALLY! I can finally see Ruby! HA! HAHAHAHA!!" Jeremy, ecstatic now that he's arrived, began running to the empire at full speed.

"Why's that boy in such a darn hurry!?" Applejack asked, surprised to see Jeremy dashing so quick.

"Ruby's here, remember? We're all excited about seeing her and the rest of our friends, so why not!" Kitsu explained to Applejack before chasing after Jeremy.

"Hey, wait up! I wanna see if Avu and my brother are okay!" Eva gave chase.

"I'm going too!" Trisha also ran to the empire.

Mia and Mina were left behind with the ponies at the station, for they decided to not rush.

"Hahaha... Running's not really my thing... hehe." Mia said, sheepishly. "Maybe I should loose a little weight?"

"Well, if we got technical, you probably will by the time we get home. All we've eaten are healthy foods." Mina added, then looked at Twilight. "We're just excited to finally reunite, that's all. It'll be kinda cool to meet the whole family."

"Family, huh?" Twilight closed her eyes, pondering the thought, eventually smiling.

"Yeah. Well, that's the way I see it. The crew I'm with is like a second family to me." Mina explained.

"I'm curious to see if this family of yers is as close as the Apple family!" Applejack said.

"I dunno about all of that... blood's thicker than water, you know." Mina said, giving a small giggle.

"In the meantime, let's catch up with them! It'll be great to see my B.B.B.F.F. and Princess Cadence again!" Twilight said, running off as well.

"I wanna see this kid that big guy wouldn't shut up about." Rainbow said, flying off after the humans.

"I think it'll be a good idea to throw a party for them too!" Pinkie added.

"I highly doubt such a wondrous reunion would be livened up by one of your abrupt parties." Rarity said.

"You never know..." Fluttershy said.

"See! Fluttershy knows her stuff! To the empire!" Pinkie pointed forward with a hoof.

With the group finally heading to the town of the Crystal Empire, Jeremy is the first to arrive since he got a head start of everyone.

With crystal buildings, houses, and ponies everywhere, and the ground being shiny and almost as sleek as ice, he stopped, but not without nearly slipping, In the middle of town.

"I doubt she'd be in there..." Jeremy thought, ignoring the tower ahead of him, straightening himself up.

Instead, he looked around at various ponies walking about in town, looking at him. But he paid them and their crystal bodies no mind.

"Is that another human?"
"What is he doing?"
"He looks desperate..."

Despite the gossip among them, the only thing on Jeremy's mind was Ruby. Just turning around and scanning the area, looking at his surroundings, he couldn't find his little cousin. He knew his scan of the area was brief, but he wasted no time regardless.

"RUUUUUUUUUUUUBYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Jeremy shouted, calling out for the little girl.

After a moment, Ruby's head popped out of the window of the crystal tower ahead of him. "Big bro!!! I'm up here!!!!" She responded to his call as loud as she could, easily getting his attention. Upon looking up and seeing her, his eyes grew wide, his expression of joy aided by the biggest smile he's had ever had since coming to Equestria. With that, he had begun to run full speed ahead, but...

"What the hell!?" Jeremy put the breaks on his running upon seeing a bright light, only to end up slipping and sliding past it. "Ugh... the heck!?" Jeremy noticed a pink winged unicorn with her head turned around.

"Are you okay?" The winged unicorn asked.

"You tell me who you are first!" Jeremy stood on his feet, steadily raising his voice to the winged unicorn.

"Big Bro, don't be mean to Miss Cadence! She's been a huge help!" Ruby walked towards Jeremy from the other side of Cadence.

"Ruby!?" Jeremy, asked, growing teary eyed. He wasted no time giving a big hug. "*hic*... I was worried sick! I... I thought... I thought...!"

"I'm fine, big bro... I'm fine..." Ruby gently reassured Jeremy, hugging him back, the tears flowing down her cheeks and onto his shirt.

"Awww... What a cuuute scene!" Jeremy heard a voice behind him, turned around and scowled at Avu for a split second, but smiled. "Glad to see you're okay, boss." Avu said to Jeremy.

"Avu!?" Jeremy saw Avu walking out of the castle along with Mr. Martin, Alice, Megan, and Mason. "Alice! Megz! Mason! Martin too!? You guys really ARE alive!!!"

"JEREMYYYYYYY!" Alice ran to Jeremy, tackling him to the ground, holding him tightly.

"AGH! Get off me! HEY!" Jeremy felt his back hit the ground.

"You're my best friend, so stay and let me hold you till I know you're alive, got it?!" Alice shouted into Jeremy's chest, as she held onto him as closely as possible.

"Me too!" Ruby shouted.

"Egh... this is too much." Jeremy groaned, remembering that Ruby's hugging him as well.

"AVU! You're alive!" Eva ran up to Avu, immediately hugging him.

"Heya, I know you love me and all, but don't tackle me too hard." Avu said, smirking.

"I-I- Don't!!" Eva became flustered, but didn't let go.

"See girls, this is how you properly tackle someone. But alas, the only girls our boss has are his friend who has a boyfriend, and his little cousin."

"You're making it hard for him to breathe, you two." Mr. Martin told Ruby and Alice know while scratching the back of his head.

"THEN GET THEM OFF OF ME, YOU LAZY ASS!" Jeremy lifted his head and chided his teacher.

"Nah, I think you deserve this one." Mr. Martin looked away, replying to Jeremy's scolding. "Pffft..."

Ruby and Alice eventually release Jeremy from their heartwarming embrace, allowing him to sigh in relief. Mason then picks him up by the shirt and stands him on his feet.

"Dammit, Mason, I can get up myself!" Jeremy scolded Mason.

"For old time's sake." Mason gave a rather quick reply, his lips forming a slight smile.

"Yeah, when we played basketball and you beat me senseless at it." Jeremy said, looking away and palming his face.

"If only you had some skill." Mason quipped.

After Alice got on her feet, her eyes widened at the sight of Trisha and gave her a big hug too. "Trishy!!! You're alive too!"

"Ack... that's enough... Alice... too tight...!" Trisha tapped on Alice's shoulder.

"Oh, my bad!" Alice let Trisha go for a bit, scratching her head in embarrassment. "But it's great seeing you guys survived! Where were you guys!?"

"It's a long story..." Trisha said, sighing as she knew she'd have to explain how they ended up at the Wonderbolt Academy, as well as the current situation.

"Hey, my fanclub isn't complete without ME, now is it?" Kitsu chimed in, walking towards Alice, who gave him a hug too.

"Of course! we can't have a Kit-tan fanclub without the Kitz himself!" Alice said excitedly.

"Wait, did the student council ever approve of that club?" Mr. Martin asked.

"Who cares what that crazy betch says anyway! We gotta celebrate our reunion!" Alice exclaimed, happy as a lark.

"NOW You're talking! WHEEEEEEE!" A Bright pink pony ran up to Alice. "Whoa, you sure don't come off as a party girl though!"

"Oh, you mean my clothes?" Alice looked at her goth lolita clothes and black fingernails for a brief moment before continuing her reply. "Ah, I get that all the time, but I think one's totz justified!"

"Big Bro, can we really have a party?? PLEASE?!" Ruby looked at Jeremy with her bright eyes, making Jeremy wince a bit.

"Geh... and I wanted to go home too..." Jeremy thought to himself, looking bitter and touching the lip of his black flat cap. He then looked at his crew quickly to ask, "Wait, before I answer that, where's Chris? He's gotta be here."

"The cowardly prince hides behind the walls of the castle." Megan said, adjusting his glasses.

"Is that right...?" Jeremy asked, looking inside the palace. He took a step forward, then stopped. "I'm not gonna let Skittles stop me again... she's definitely watching..." Jeremy turned to the pink winged unicorn behind him and briefly asked, "You're the authority around here, right? Lemmie in there."

A white unicorn with a blue mane came out, dragging Chris by the collar with his magic. Once Chris was dropped to the ground, the unicorn made his remark. "Geez, you're just as rude as the human with the glasses."

"I didn't wanna come out here! He's gonna kill me!" Chris crawled back, shivering in fear.

"No one's killing anyone!" Jeremy yelled at the rich blonde haired boy, who shook in fear. "What's your deal? I finally meet ya and you're running like a mouse!"

"He's been like this ever since we got here because he thought you were dead, or injured." Mr. Martin explained, scratching the back of his head.

"B-b-b-but... it's my fault! WE'RE HERE BECAUSE OF ME! This whole vacation was supposed to be for you, man! I don't know how or why our plane got chopped in half, BUT I'M SORRY, MAN! I didn't mean to ruin your trip like this!!!!" Chris explained himself in such a rapid fire manner, that half of the things he said weren't even understood.

"Brother, why are you being so pathetic!?" Eva yelled at Chris, marching up to him like fiercely, but Jeremy puts his arm in the way, beckoning her to stop.

"NO! It's my fault we got attacked by a monster and our pilot got killed!! If I only hadn't pitched that stupid idea...!" Chris grabbed his head and shut his eyes. "Eh...?"

Jeremy palmed his face, looking at Chris, trembling in fear, as he backed to the wall. He heaved a deep sigh, then walked up to Chris, only to put a hand on his head, making him stop. "Yeah, you're right. Our vacation is ruined because a goddamn monster attacked us, and it sucks that someone actually died. But let's make one thing clear. You really autta stop shaking. I'm here right now, right? We're ALL HERE. The crew's back together. What more could you ask for?"

"Y-y-you mean... I... I won't be fired...?" Chris asked sheepishly,

"No, you're not gonna be fired. I'll admit, if I didn't have any of you guys here with me, I would've finally succumbed to that little bit of insanity in me a long time ago from being in this world. But with my crew that I worked hard to bring together in the first place, I think I can be a little more happy now. Besides, I fire people for slacking off, not for nearly getting me killed, dumbass."

"You guys actually get paid by this guy?" Rainbow asked.

"No, that's just his way of handling club business." Mina answered.

"Mmm... Yeah... you're right, man... err... boss..." Chris said to Jeremy, wiping away the tears forming in his eyes.

"Hey, that's my name for him! No stealing it!" Avu chimed in with a joke, making all the humans laugh.

"Now can we party? CAN WE?" Pinkie ran up to the humans, declaring a party.

"FOOLS! It's way too early in the morning!!" Megan shouted.

"WHO CARES!!" Pinkie and Alice shouted, waving their arms.

"Oh bloody hell, I forgot about that... Do whatever you want. I got a feeling you'll do it anyway If I said no..." Jeremy palmed his face and reluctantly agreed.

"You're not seriously foolish enough-" Megan tried to chide Jeremy, only to be cut off.

"I was kinda foolish to get you into my crew because you called your science teacher a primate two years ago, but you don't see me complaining."

"Umm, I hate to cut the reunion short, but I think we should head into the Crystal Palace." Cadence spoke up.

"Whaddya mean?" Jeremy asked.

"Well, you've all been standing by the Crystal Heart the entire time, and everypony here has been staring at you guys, wondering if you'd knock it over or something!" Twilight explained, prompting the humans to look around.

Twilight was right...

Several of the Crystal ponies are still talking amongst themselves, and apparently have inched closer and closer to the Crystal Heart.

"They're not gonna break it, are they!?"
"What should we do?"
"The princess and her knight are there, but I think we need to protect it!"

All the Crystal Ponies gossiped amongst each other, worrying about the empire's artifact.

"What, you mean this thing?" Jeremy asked, pointing at the heart made of crystal, which floated at it's pedestal.

"Yes, that 'thing'! It's the Crystal Heart. I'm sorry, but we don't want you to touch that no matter what." Cadence requested with a stern tone.

"Apparently this artifact gives this place it's life... always shining brightly. When I first seen it, I admired how it looked. It's beauty, forever shining across this land. Outside the power lies a cold and desolate area filled with snow. If it wasn't for this heart, this whole place's temperature would be near freezing levels." Megan explained, looking at the Crystal Heart.

"Ho, ho! Megan you learned a lot while you were here, huh?" Jeremy asked.

"I prefer to be on the uptake, unlike you. It DOES make me happy knowing that my vast knowledge surpasses each and every one of you." Megan answered, forming a smile.

"You arrogant jerk... well, let's get away from this thing. Don't wanna touch it and upset the peeps here." Jeremy said, walking towards the entrance to the palace. His brief march to the palace suddenly stops, turning to Cadence to ask, "We can go in there, right?"

"It's not a problem as long as you go to your assigned rooms." Cadence said.

"Rooms?" Trisha asked.

"Yeah. Cadence set up a couple of rooms you and your friends." Shining Armor explained. "I'll have some guards lead the way."

"Alrighty then. As long as we can get home later today..." Jeremy smiled, his eyes expressing relief.

"..............." Upon hearing Jeremy's words, Ruby's lips curved sadly as she gripped her skirt. She looked up at Shining Armor and Cadence, whom share her expression.

Following Jeremy and the other humans into the palace, Cadence turns to her husband.

"We're gonna have to tell him, won't we...?" Cadence sheepishly asked, her eyes narrowing from uncertainty.

"Yeah, we will... and I have a feeling it might not end well..." Shining Armor replied.


Upon entering the Crystal Palace, two guards are summoned to lead the humans to their assigned rooms, while Twilight and her friends follow Cadence and Shining Armor to the throne room.

Once the ponies arrive, Twilight and Cadence suddenly smiled at each other.

"Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!" Twilight and Cadence performed a small dance, hopping on their hooves, crouching down and covering their eyes briefly, then clapped their forehooves together and then shook their backsides.

The throne room was similar to the one at the Canterlot Palace,

"Hahahaha, that's always amusing!" Shining Armor commented.

"You know you wanna do it too!"

"Come on, that'd be way too embarrassing! But it's good to see ya Twily." Shining said. "Getting straight to the point, I'm guessing you know that we were expecting you anyway, right?"

"That Nightmare Moon is trying to make a comeback by gaining a human body?" Twilight started off.

"Right. Princess Celestia already told us what happened at Canterlot." Cadence explained.

"Oh, I almost forgot, you're the captain of the Royal Guard, right? Was it you who approved the Wanted poster for Lightning Dust?" Rainbow asked.

"Yeah. She attacked Canterlot and the Wonderbolts, so Princess Celestia wants her brought to justice." Shining Armor elaborated. He then used his magic and showed them the letter Princess Celestia wrote.

Twilight read the letter, which contained orders to be on the lookout for Lightning Dust.

"Wow, this is more serious than I thought..." Twilight grimaced.

"Of course. The guards here are patrolling the Crystal Empire border, keeping an eye out for the Shadowbolts. I still don't get why Nightmare Moon would go out of her way to acquire a human form instead."

"Isn't it because she doesn't just want us to defeat her again?" Twilight asked.

"I know all of that, I can't wrap my head around why she'd want to go to the human world just to avoid being destroyed again. Why those humans in particular?" Shining Armor asked.

"In particular...?" Twilight asked.

"Right... well, I guess I should say it now... the humans you're with, and the ones we rescued... they're not the first ones we've seen."

"There are MORE humans!?" Twilight asked, shocked to hear.

"Yeah. I can point out at least two places where more humans were seen." Shining Armor said, before using his magic on a crystal spike on the floor, which lit up to display a holographic map of Equestria. "Right here, at the Frozen north, is where I spotted some humans taking refuge when I investigated the Frozen Enclave. They've even gone so far as to set up a series of barracks out there. And I've heard a rumor that there are some more humans hiding at the San Palomino Desert as well."

"Now hold on! How the heck can these humans build anything out there? Ain't nothin' out there to use!" Applejack pointed out.

"That's where it gets confusing... These humans, they have to have some kind of help from a unicorn who knows teleportation magic. We know Humans can't really use any magic after all."

"Umm... I thought Nightmare Moon brought the humans we know here..." Twilight said.

"That's the problem. What if Nightmare Moon DIDN'T bring them here? What if they were brought here by some other magic? By somepony else?" Shining Armor speculated.

"That can't be true! The six humans with us and the seven with you... they had to have been brought here by Nightmare Moon! They even said that they saw her mist on the plane! Are you saying they're lying to us?" Twilight asked, with a look of concern.

"No, I'm not saying that! I'm saying that Nightmare Moon may be aided by another pony. Somepony other than Lightning Dust. And whoever this pony is... well, we'll need to get the answer out of her when she's apprehended." Shining Armor said.


Meanwhile... far, far away, in the northern skies, Lightning Dust rests her body on top of the clouds, wearing a bitter expression, scowling every time Spitfire or Rainbow Dash comes to her mind.

"Ugh... I should've taken out the Wonderbolts first before attacking Spitfire... they can be troublesome when they're flying as one unit." Lightning Dust talked to herself, staring off into the darkened skies, wearing an expression as if she were angry with the stars themselves.

"Commander. We have a report." A Shadowbolt mare makes her appearance to Lightning Dust in the form of the dark mist, taking her pony form before making her statement.

"What is it, Number Five? Make it quick. I don't have all day. I'm a little irritated that I didn't get to rub Spitfire's face against the pavement..." Lightning Dust asked, peeved that the Shadowbolt is even reporting to her.

"I have located the candidates. They have arrived at the Crystal Empire." The Shadowbolt said, pointing the way with a hoof.

"Is that right? Anything else?" Lightning Dust asked, unconcerned.

"Amongst them, we have found more suitable candidates. If we go now, there is a eighty percent chance we can capture a human suitable to revive our mother indefinitely."

"Hmph... is Rainbow Dash with them?" Lightning Dust smiled before asking the question.

"Yes, she is." The Shadowbolt confirmed.

"Ah, well, that motivates me to do this a little then. Hehe... I was wondering when I'll be able to take her down this time..." Lightining Dust's express became maniacal.

"Thanks to your new powers, you have a sixty percent chance at defeating Rainbow Dash." The Shadowbolt said.

Lightning Dust's eyes narrowed dangerously, "Only sixty?! What about a hundred!? A thousand percent!? Come on, can't you shadows do anything right!?" She began to flail her forelegs about, going on a rant.

"Commander, she is the holder of the Element of Loyalty. If she were to use it, she would have a chance of defeating you. And remember, you can't allow yourself to be defeated under any circumstances. Your services are still needed to show the world a true everlasting night."

"Whatever... Then I'll just have to take her out... in Six point five seconds... a brand new record...! Hehehehehehe.... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!" Lightning Dust said, before going into a maniacal laughter and jumping off the cloud to fly to the crystal empire at full speed, laughing all the way...