//------------------------------//
// Chapter 7 
// Story: My Little Lantern: Friendship is Colorful 
// by enigmaMystere 
//------------------------------//

	Ponyville Library

Pinkie and Twilight were sitting next to each other, scrutinizing the tome on the desk. 

Pinkie rubbed the sides of her head with her forehooves, upset. "This is taking too long! Who knows what Fluttershy is up to, now?"

Twilight glanced over at the pink earth pony, narrowing her eyes. "Pinkie, we've only been at this for three minutes." She flipped the page, revealing part of the short section on the indigo tribe.

"WAIT!" Pinkie grabbed the heavy book and pulled it to her face, recognizing the symbol by the title. "I've seen that before! It was on the necklace thingy Fluttershy was wearing!" She looked at both sides of the page, confusion beginning to show on her face. "...I know this is why 'Shy's been acting strangely." She tossed the book up in the air, groaning in frustration. "But I just don't see how!"

Twilight caught it, floating it closer. "It says the indigo rings force the wielders to feel compassion." She thought for a moment. "...Pinkie, you remember hearing about that one nurse from Trottingham a couple months ago?"

"You mean Bleeding Heart? Of course! She couldn't stand to see elderly ponies in pain, so she-" Pinkie stopped mid-sentence, catching on. "...so if ponies feel nothing but compassion, they...?"

"Precisely." She frowned, gently putting a hoof on Pinkie's shoulder. "Don’t worry, we’ll figure out a way to help her. As long as we have this book, the answers will be found.”

Pinkie looked at the book, a sudden thought making her curious. “Twilight, where did you get that book, anyways?”

Before Twilight could answer, a bright flash of yellow appeared, blinding them momentarily. After the light died down, they looked over and saw Celestia, wearing a grim expression that caused a chill down to their very souls. 

The princess noticed this, so she tried to calm herself down. “My faithful student, have you seen a book with a green symbol on the front? I’ve looked everywhere in my personal library, not to mention the Canterlot library, but-” She blinked, seeing the book they were poring over floating in front of her face. “Oh, there it is.” Her horn glowed, her face growing stern again. “Now to have a little chat with the Guardians.” Another flash of light, and she was gone, as well as the book.

The two ponies sat there, dumbfounded. Twilight turned to Pinkie, apologetic. “Well, I’m out of ideas.”

Pinkie looked at the floor, starting to get upset. “...no.” She leapt to her hooves, making Twilight flinch in surprise. “There has to be a way. Book or no book, we have to help Fluttershy!” She walked over to the window, watching as the yellow pegasus cleared the clouds away. “...we have to believe that...all will be well...”





Oa

Rainbow Dash and Kyle stopped in front of a large, yellow building. She looked towards the top, barely able to see it. This place is huge! I don’t even think the Royal Palace is this large!

“Well, RD-” Rainbow snapped her head towards her strange guide as he said the nickname, narrowing her eyes at him. “...sorry. Anyways, we’re here.” He handed her the power ring he was holding and turned away, waving over his shoulder at her. “Good luck.” With that, he flew off.

As soon as she couldn't see him, the ring on her hoof began to glow. She stared at it, confused.

Replacement located.

With that, it flew off. Rainbow watched it leave, scratching her hoof with her head. "Well, that was strange..." She shrugged and turned back to the citadel, ready to face these "Guardians".

Rainbow landed in a hallway, walking up to the large doors ahead. She noticed a four-armed alien at a strange type of station. It was emerald green, so it was most likely a construct. Of course, she stumbled for a few seconds to remember that word.

“Rainbow Dash of...Equestria.”

Rainbow faced the alien she noticed earlier. “That’s me.” She held her hoof out, putting on as pleasant a smile as she could. “And your name is?”

He stared at her hoof as if she had a buzzer on it. “I don’t shake hands.” She quickly dispersed the construct-prank, slightly disappointed. “My name is Salaak. And I’m sorry to say that you will have to wait. The Guardians are currently in a meeting.” He turned to his monitors, mumbling angrily to himself. “A meeting that was completely unscheduled...”

“I just...they said...what!?” Rainbow flared her wings out, getting in his face. “They called me here, and now they’re going to make me wait!? I don’t think so!” She rushed past him, slamming through the doors. “You wanted-” She stopped, staring in awe at the sight before her.

The inside of the building looked like a star system. Everything seemed so much clearer than it ever looked back in Equestria. There were multiple short, blue aliens floating in the air, looking down at her. Another of the strange biped aliens like Kyle stood off to the right and was now staring at Rainbow with confusion.

However, that wasn’t what made her freeze in her tracks. 

“P-Princess Celestia?”

Minutes earlier

Celestia flashed into the citadel, glaring at the Guardians of the Universe. "You all have much to answer for."

One of them held up his hand, beckoning the princess of Equestria to calm down. "We give you our word that everything we did was necessary."

She raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "Oh really? Need I remind you of what happened to Space Sector 666?"

One of the aliens on her left answered this, her scarred face empty of emotion. "That was an...unfortunate...event. One we have taken great measures to avoid."

"Explain to me, then," Celestia flew up, looking down at them with an icy stare, "why you went against your promise and made one of my subjects into one of your emerald soldiers?"

The Guardian who first talked to her floated up, meeting her eye level. "That will be explained in due time. As for now..." He motioned to the door with a wave of his hand. "...we are about to have a couple of guests."

Before she could ask what they meant, the door opened, revealing a Green Lantern. He walked forward, looking at the alicorn with a hint of stunned admiration. "Huh, I never thought I'd see a flying unicorn in person."

Celestia landed, looking at him closely. He had a green mask over his face, but it was undeniable what race he was. "A human, Guardians?" She turned, looking at them in great confusion. "Have you given up on hiding-"

The Guardian interrupted her, a flash of concern crossing his face. "I did say 'guests', did I not?" 

The door burst open, a blur of color flying inside. "You wanted-" She stopped, looking up at Celestia with wide eyes. "P-Princess Celestia?"

One of the Guardians cleared his throat, causing their attention to be brought to him. "Now that everyone is here, we can explain everything." The Guardian pointed at a section of the space-hologram. The picture zoomed in, showing a shadow in the shape of a star, slowly but surely moving towards the planet the ponies called home. 





Sweet Apple Acres

A small white unicorn was curled up in a small building, tears flowing from her green eyes. Nearby, her friends, an orange pegasus and a yellow earth pony, were watching, thinking about how they can cheer her up.

"Sweetie, Ah know you're upset, but Rarity could be wrong. You'll never know 'til you try, right?" The yellow filly gently placed a hoof on her friend's back, trying to reassure her.

Sweetie nodded softly, forcing a small smile onto her face. "...thanks, Apple Bloom..."

"Yeah, even if she isn't, it's not like it's the end of the world!" The orange pegasus chimed in. "I mean, there are plenty of ponies out there."

Sweetie slowly stopped crying, though she still refused to uncurl herself. "...nopony can replace him, Scootaloo."

"Oh, come now." Apple Bloom carefully picked up a picture frame, the photo inside showing a purple dragon with green eyes dancing with Sweetie. The photo was taken about a month ago, as they were both dressed for the wedding. "Ain't that a bit of an exaggeration?"

“No, it’s not. I...” Sweetie closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her cheek to join its cousins on the floor. “...I love him.” 

"Are you sure?" Scootaloo sat down next to her unicorn friend, Apple Bloom sitting on the other side of her. "You said you started to like him at the wedding, right?"

"I loved him before then!" Sweetie Belle looked up at her friends, hurt that they didn't believe she was being honest. "I think I loved him since I started staying with Rarity. He came over so often, and he spent time with me when he wasn't helping big sis." She drew little circles on the floor with her hoof, sniffling softly. "I just...didn't realize how much I cared for him until the wedding. And now I don't know if I can tell him." She gently took the photo back from Apple Bloom, hugging it to her chest. "I don't want to lose him...my true love." She blushed, realizing what she just said. 

Scootaloo and Apple Bloom stared at each other, unsure how to respond to this. 

Even if they knew what to say, they wouldn’t get the chance. A bright light appeared in the window, startling all of them. Sweetie sat up, staring at the glowing pink rock floating in front of her. 

Sweetie Belle of Equestria.

A feeling of curiosity and confusion flowed through her as she stared at it. "...y-yes?"

You have great loss in your heart.

Sweetie lowered her eyes, trying to keep herself from crying some more. The stone floated closer, eventually coming into contact with her chest. Her eyes widened in shock as it slid into her body, a bright light eminating from where it entered, flooding the whole room in pink.

Welcome to the Star Sapphires.

Her friends had stayed silent throughout this whole ordeal, but what they saw next chilled them to the bone. Sweetie Belle was encased in a bright, pink crystal. 

"SWEETIE BELLE!"

They rushed over, pounding on the structure surrounding their friend. However, try as they might, they couldn't even put a scratch in it. Just as they were about to give up hope, the crystal shattered, releasing their friend.

But she didn't look like their friend, anymore. She appeared to be taller, more mature. She wore what appeared to be a crown, and a shiny, pink suit on her body. There was also a glowing magenta mark in the shape of an eight-point star where the rock entered her body. 

That wasn't what shocked them, though. It was the expression on her face. One they'd only seen on Cheerilee and Big Mac that one Hearts and Hooves Day.

"I saw him." They took a step back, hearing the strange tone in her voice. "I saw Spike. In the crystal." She turned to face her friends, a small smile on her face. "I think it shows you what you love the most." She looked towards the town, perking her ears slightly. "I hear love. It is calling."

Without another word, she flew off, leaving her friends scared by her change.

Scootaloo had one other thought though. "Oh, come on! Even she can fly, now!?" 

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes, ignoring what the pegasus filly just said. "Come on, we should tell Rarity 'bout this!" With that, they raced out of their clubhouse, heading towards Ponyville.





Carousel Boutique

Rarity returned from her search, upset. She hadn't been able to find Sweetie, despite having searched everywhere in town. She caught a glimpse of her reflection. Though her mane was visibly messy, she couldn't bring herself to care about it.

A knock on the door caught her attention. She slowly trotted over to the door and opened it, putting on her best business-mare smile. "Hello, darling. How may I help you?"

The cream-colored earth pony walked in, smiling sheepishly. "I would like to buy a dress. I mean, if that's alright with you."

Rarity giggled softly, a warm feeling replacing her earlier distress. "I have to say, you have Fluttershy's voice down to a T! How do you do it?"

An unusual expression flickered across her face for a moment, but she smiled back. "Lots of practice."

"Please step over here, and I'll take your measurements." Her guest did so, standing as still as possible while Rarity worked. The unicorn glanced up at her, always wanting to hear what her customer's stories are. "May I ask what the dress is for?"

The earth pony blushed, turning her head away. "There's this pony I like. I'm planning on asking-"

"Who's the lucky stallion?" Rarity jot down a few numbers on a nearby pad.

"...it's kind of personal."

Rarity blinked, looking at her guest apologetically. "Sorry. I guess I was prying a little too much, there." She finished her work and carefully put everything away. "I'll have a fabulous dress ready for you next week."

She smiled at the unicorn and turned to leave.

"Oh, and I hope that cold you have goes away, soon, darling." Rarity started cleaning up her shop, giving her customer a small wave as she left. "It's not good to be sick for so long, Bon Bon. Goodness knows it makes your voice sound funny."

Almost as soon as she left, the door opened again, this time revealing a familiar purple dragon. He smiled at her, walking up with a single white rose. "Rarity, is there anything I can help you with?"

She turned to him, a small, sad smile on her face. "Hello, Spikey-Wikey! I'm sorry, there's nothing I need help with right now." She noticed the flower, her eyes going wide. "Is that for me?" She used her magic to take it, smiling softly at him. "You shouldn't have."

Spike raised a claw as if to object, but he rubbed it along the scales on his head, instead. "Anything for you, Rarity." He gave a sheepish smile, glancing around quickly. He tilted his head, confused. "Do you know where Sweetie Belle is?"

Rarity frowned, remembering what had happened earlier. "...I'm sorry, Spike. I don't know." She walked over to a window, looking out at the sky above the town. She blinked, watching as two streaks of light, one bright green and one hot pink, flew through the sky. "How pretty!"





Okay, the next chapter is finally up! 

As before, feel free to ask questions about the chapter.

Enigma out.~