//------------------------------// // Seven Elements // Story: Chaotic Neutral // by C-Puff //------------------------------// Chapter 28 The plan was simple, at least in theory. How simple pulling it off would be, however, was another matter. Although Blue Jay had not followed them, Twilight doubted he would let them get close enough for a second shot. Even if it failed the first time, and even if he fully believed he had already won, Blue Jay did not strike Twilight as the kind of pony who would just ignore them walking up to try and destroy his plans again. The first thing to do was to either distract him long enough to power up the Elements, or keep him occupied so he could not stop them even if he tried. At this point, the plan almost wrote itself. Twilight and the others needed to charge the Elements, and Discord did not. It was agreed that he would keep Blue Jay away from them until they were ready. Next, Discord would add whatever power he could to their blast. However, this would leave Blue Jay free to launch a counter-attack at them. So, the lynchpin of the entire plan was how fast Discord would be able to get away from Blue Jay and use his powers. Applejack was at first concerned, remembering how long it had taken him to gather his magic simply to unlock a door. There would be no time to sit and gather energy with Blue Jay's attention fully on him. Discord, on the other hand, seemed completely convinced he would preform better than they were giving him credit for, and actually seemed insulted that they would think otherwise. And once he decided that their lack of faith was insulting, no amount of reasoning or concern from Twilight could convince him that his magic would be anything less than spectacular. Twilight had spent enough time with Discord by now to know when she had hit a stone wall with him. So she had little choice but to put her faith in his ability and do the best she could on her own end. If Discord did not have enough magic to help them, or even if he did and it made no difference, another decision was going to have to be made. Twilight said nothing about this to the others though. In truth, she was not that eager to even think about it. But if it came to it, she at least had to consider turning the Elements on Blue Jay and target him instead. Whether it would actually help, she did not know. But if they had no other options, she was not sure what else they could do. Twilight had no idea what hitting a normal pony with the Elements of Harmony would actually do. The only time they had ever even come close to something like that was when they used them on Nightmare Moon. And as Fluttershy pointed out, the Elements focused in on the darkness inside Nightmare Moon, and left the true Princess Luna at the core unharmed. It had stripped some of her magic away and had weakened her, but it had not taken very long before Princess Luna's emotional and mental wounds healed, and she was once again the imposing, tall alicorn she had been centuries ago. But Blue Jay, skilled with magic or not, was still just a normal pony. Would the Elements hurt him? Would they turn him to stone like they had with Discord? Would they even have any effect on him at all? Twilight did not know. All she could do was accept the possibility that, if worst came to worst, they would need to attack him directly. In the very worst case scenario, the Elements might seriously hurt him. Actually the worst case scenario would be if the Elements had no effect on him either, but Twilight would not even think about that. They were stretched for time, and any failures at this point would mean failing the entire mission. Twilight simply refused to accept this as an option. The disappointed faces of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The slow decline of the wild as magical creatures faded away and disappeared. The literal fall of the Pegasi as they lose the ability to fly. The metaphorical fall of the unicorns as their magic stopped working in the ways modern ponies needed them to. The slow death of the earth ponies as they lose their touch with the ground beneath them, unable to grow anything, unable to nurture what has grown already, unable to understand nature's quiet guidance. The not-as-slow death of creatures so magically charged they were more spirit than animal. Twilight's mind refused to process it. They would succeed. Even if it was not in the way they would like, they would succeed. She promised herself that. The group of ponies secured their Elements, gathered their nerves, and headed back to the town's center. They left their saddlebags in the ruined house for now. There was nothing inside them that would be helpful for what they were about to do. Twilight and Discord lead the way. Twilight, so she could get into her position as fast as possible, and Discord so he could veer off and keep Blue Jay's attention before any of the others were targeted. Fluttershy walked beside him. She looked a little pale, but Twilight figured she was just nervous about facing Blue Jay again. Fluttershy was not a pony who dealt with conflict well. As for Discord, Twilight could not tell if he was looking confident, or strangely grim. His pace was almost urgent, and there was a sharp edge to his eyes. There was also a seriousness to his face. He had the same expression when he, Twilight and Applejack were trying to find Fluttershy and the rest of the group in Falabel, as well as when Twilight and the others had faced against him, just before they turned him back to stone. Thinking about stone brought up the questions of what would happen if you used the Elements on a normal pony again. “Can I ask you a question?” Twilight said, turning to Discord. Discord's expression broke as he turned to face her. “Well, I was trying to form a proper 'game face' over here, but if you must.” Twilight suppressed the urge to roll her eyes, realising he had noticed her watching him. Instead, she focused him with a steady look, hoping she came across serious enough to at least get a half-serious answer from him in return. “When we used the Elements of Harmony on you and turned you back to stone, what exactly was it like?” “Rude, for one thing,” Discord stuck his nose in the air. “That's not what I mean,” Twilight shook her head. “Did it hurt?” Fluttershy leaned forward to listen in on the conversation. Discord looked down at Twilight from the corner of his eye, but said nothing. Twilight did not budge. She stared back at him, waiting for an answer. Her expression was patient, and had a strange concern to it. Discord was not entirely sure how to interpret that, or if it was even there. It was possible he just imagined it. But the fact that he could not tell for sure was enough to make him feel uneasy. He turned to her properly. Twilight was still waiting. He wondered if he did not answer if she would just keep waiting forever until he eventually caved. That did not sound like much fun to him, so instead he grinned widely at her. “If you're thinking of apologising for that, I'd be happy to hear it,” he put his claw to his chest, “A late apology is better than no apology at all, so they say. But then, I wouldn't know about that,” His grin widened at her so she could see every sharp tooth, “I've never gotten any apologies before. Not even from Old Princess Cellie! But do go on! I'd really like to know how it feels to get one!” This time Twilight really did roll her eyes. “You didn't really give us a choice at the time, you know. You'd warped all my friends into acting like horrible ponies and you'd turned the whole of Ponyville into your personal playground as you threw the biggest tantrum in the entire world.” “I do not throw tantrums!” Discord said loudly, pulling back from her until his neck resembled a question mark. “You throw tantrums all the time!” Pinkie Pie giggled as she bounced forward. “You're worse than Pumpkin and Pound! But not as loud.” “And you still haven't answered my question,” Twilight interrupted, turning serious again. “Did the Elements hurt?” “I'm not entirely sure I should answer that!” Discord huffed, crossing his arms. “Why exactly do you want to know? For future reference, perhaps? Making sure you can trap me in marble with a clear conscience if you get annoyed with me enough? Well, I think I'd rather keep that kind of information to myself!” Twilight sighed at him, “I just want to know how it feels!” “It feels exactly how you'd think,” Discord stuck his forked tongue out at her. “It feels like getting blasted by the most powerful artifacts in Equestria before being trapped in stone and unable to eat any of those tiny finger sandwiches they serve at the Canterlot Palace garden parties which you will now have to attend for the next couple of thousand or so years against your will!” Twilight gave her head a shake in defeat. “Nevermind. Obviously you don't want to talk about it.” “Is it important, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked. “Not really. I was just thinking about something.” “Well whatever you're thinking, you should stop right now!” Discord said, waving a finger at her. “All you need to know is it's incredibly uncomfortable, and boring, and birds will try and make nests in your mouth and sometimes the gardener doesn't chase them away in time and then you're stuck with eggs in your mouth and it can take months for that taste to go away after they leave!” “Geez, calm down, Discord! I'm not going to turn you to stone again, alright?!” Twilight said over his rambling. “Promises, promises!” Discord sniffed, snapping from annoyed to a puppy-eyed stare. “And here I thought we'd gotten so close since we started this roadtrip! Has our time together meant so little to you?” “Really, Discord. I promise I'm not asking because I'm going to use the Elements on you. You have my word.” Twilight said, surprisingly gently. “Yeah yeah!” Pinkie bounced up and down again, grabbing Discord's tail and crushing it against her. “We promise we won't turn you into stone again! Not unless you become the biggest Poopy-head in all of Equestria! And even then we'll totally ask you to stop first! Cross my heart and hope to fly! Stick a cupcake in my eye!” “Well done,” Discord tried his best to peel her off of him but she would not let go. “But forgive me if I'm a little bit jumpy about the subject!” “You really didn't like it, did you?” Twilight said thoughtfully. “No!” Discord turned back to her. “It was the absolute worst thing that had ever happened to me in all my life! And I remind you, that's a lot of life to consider!” “Alright,” Twilight nodded, more to herself than anything else. “I guess.... that does kind of answer my question, in a way.” “You'd think you ponies would ask how I felt about things before turning me into a lawn ornament,” Discord grumbled, kicking at a loose cobblestone. “It was insufferable!” “Yeah,” Twilight nodded, turning back to him. “I guess it would be.” Her expression changed as a thought came to her. She looked Discord over for a moment. “Probably even more so for somepony like you.” Discord growled something, giving her dirty looks. “I still think it was the right thing to do, and that it was your own fault,” Twilight said, turning back to the front, “but if it did hurt at any time, I'm sorry, Discord.” Discord made a choked noise, paw and claw flying to grip his chest as he threw himself flat on his back. Fluttershy gave a small gasp and ran closer to see if he was alright. Discord, however, sat up again instantly, pointing a frantic finger at Twilight and looking at the others. “Did everypony hear that?! You all heard that, right?! You'll remember she said that, right?!” “Shut up, Discord,” Rainbow Dash pulled a face at him as she flew past. “Don't scare me,” Fluttershy mumbled with a frown, giving him a light tap in the side with a hoof as he bounced up again. Discord ignored her. He bounded forward and without warning, scooped up Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity who happened to be too close by, in a group hug. “Look at how well we're getting along! You see what a good team we can make when everypony agrees that I'm rather incredible and just misunderstood? Now let's go and put this Blue Berry in his place and show the rest of Equestria they should say sorry for the numerous assassination attempts on me over the centuries with the power of our friendship!” He then proceeded to burst into song, much to everypony's horror, “For united we stand~ Divided we fall~” “Discord, if you don't put me down I am going to kick you right in the kidney!” Twilight threatened, struggling. “And I don't need my magic to know all the soft spots I can jab this horn with either!” “Heads up, guys!” Rainbow Dash interrupted, swooping closer and pointing. The group went silent, turning as one to follow Rainbow's hoof. A short way ahead was a stone house whose roof had completely caved in on one side. The other side had managed to stay in place, largely thanks to a thick chimney built of what looked like granite. On top of this sat the silent figure of Cloud Bastion. He was staring at the town's center, his ears flat against his head. In the cold light, they could just make out the heartbroken expression on his face. Something must have given them away, because a moment after Rainbow Dash pointed at him, Cloud Bastion spun around. Seeing them, his face turned to a hard glare. He got to his hooves, turning to better stare them down. They glared back, frozen in place. Twilight felt Discord's arms around her tense. The seconds dragged on and neither party moved. Then, without a word, Cloud Bastion spread his wings and took off from his perch. He hovered for a moment, keeping his glare on them, before he turned around and with a silent flap, flew off into the night, away from them, the courtyard, the bubble, and the town. The group watched him go until he was completely out of sight. Twilight breathed a silent sigh of relief. “Where's he going?” Rainbow gave a snort. Discord shrugged, putting the three ponies down. “Dunno, Dash,” Applejack said as they fell into step again, “but don't look like there's anythin' more for him here, it seems.” Rainbow watched the spot where he had disappeared for a moment longer. She then flew to rejoin the others. The glow from the bubble lit up the streets ahead of them. The group soon found themselves huddled in an alley leading to the town center. They hunkered down behind a long-ago destroyed wagon. Past the alley, Blue Jay's bubble sat throbbing and pulsing just as it had when they first arrived. Blue Jay was lying beside it, watching the area around him. He had a hollow frown on his face, but did not seem aware they were there. He did not look like he was going to leave his spot any time soon. The group pulled back out of sight. Twilight turned to Discord with a serious expression. He grinned in reply before getting to all fours to slink off. “Be careful, dude,” Rainbow Dash muttered at him. Discord made a motion to wave her off. Fluttershy watched him, rubbing one of her forelegs with the other. He turned to her and his smile brightened before he reached out and gave her a pat on the head. “Be careful...” She repeated. “Better you follow your own advice instead, my dear,” he said. He leaned forward and pressed his forehead to hers gently. “Do me a favour, won't you? Keep in mind what I said earlier.” Fluttershy was not sure what he meant. He had said a lot of things earlier that she felt were somehow important. Which part he meant exactly she did not know. Before she could ask, he pulled back and slithered away down a street. “Well, that was new,” Rainbow commented, staring at Fluttershy. Fluttershy, however, had other things on her mind to worry about than what Rainbow Dash thought of an affectionate Discord. She turned to Twilight with silent worry. Twilight's frown did not even flicker as she stared back. She turned to the others. “Alright. Now, we wait until Discord's got Blue Jay's attention. Then we step out and get ready to attack.” “Right on!” Rainbow Dash grinned at this, wings held high in anticipation. “I hope this works,” Rarity said, turning to stare at the glowing bubble. “Of course it will, silly!” Pinkie said in a loud whisper, almost vibrating in place. “Now let's go punch this magic rock in the face with our rainbow!” “I heard that!” Applejack agreed. They turned back to the courtyard, twitching with nerves and scratching their hooves against the street. Only Fluttershy remained quiet, gaze fixed on Blue Jay. Discord slunk through the alleyways, making sure to put a good amount of distance between himself and the group of ponies. He travelled in a wide circle, always keeping to the edge of the courtyard. He kept himself low, suppressing the urge to climb up the buildings for a vantage point. Night or not, the glowing bubble would almost certainly give him away. He found the spot he was looking for, and stepped out into the open, smiling toothily at the lone unicorn. Blue Jay turned to him almost immediately and sprung to his hooves. He snorted and straightened once he got a better view of who it was. “Oh. It's the Shadow,” He said with a flat tone of voice. “Finally escaped from the other ponies, I take it.” “Actually, we never got a chance to finish our conversation,” Discord said with a polite smile. “I was just in the neighbourhood and I thought I'd come by and see if we could continue from where we left off,” He frowned to himself, tapping his chin. “Now let me see... We were discussing how you could still use magic... and then we talked about your auditory hallucinations... Oh dear. Where exactly were we when we last spoke?” Blue Jay clicked his tongue, sounding impatient. He scanned the streets and alleys behind Discord, looking for any other figures hidden in the dark. “I have nothing more to say to you. If you've managed to get away from those other ponies, I suggest you count your losses and leave this town before they recapture you. And in case the insane thought ever crossed your mind, there's no use planning to use me as a shield against them.” “Not at all, Blue Gill,” Discord waved the issue away, his pleasant smile staying where it was. “Like I said, I just felt the need to ask you a question or two I didn't get around to before.” Blue Jay seemed uninterested. He turned his back to Discord and lay down again, facing the opposite direction, exactly where the other ponies were waiting in the shadows. Discord started walking closer, gesturing with his paw and claw as he spoke. “For instance, this nickname thing you seem to be quite fond of. Now don't get me wrong, I rather like it, myself. It makes me sound like some supernatural banshee wandering the forests. Or maybe an avenging ghost who punishes evildoers! And occasionally door-to-door salesponies.” He gagged. “I never fully realised the level of malice ponies can show each other until I had one of those knock on our door while I was having a bath. And just to try and sell Fluttershy an encyclopedia! Of course, if it were up to me I'd have bought one just so I could go through a list of things to turn him into out of spite but Fluttershy-” “I wouldn't press my luck, Shadow Spirit,” Blue Jay snapped his gaze back to him, eyes narrowing. Discord stopped in place, putting his paw and claw to his chest. “Me? Why, whatever do you mean?” “I mean, you'd better keep your distance,” Blue Jay stood up again, turning to face him as his horn started to glow. “Now, my dear Blue Grass, have you forgotten? You're the pony with the upperhoof here! There you stand with your horn sparking and ready and, alas, here I am without a scrap of magic left to my name!” He put his paw to his forehead dramatically. “So you've come to see if you can steal some of it back?” Blue Jay scoffed, not lowering his horn. “It won't do you any good, you know. Even if you somehow managed to get to the Stone, there's no way you'd be able to use it!” “No, I'm sure only a clever little pony like you would know the spell for that, wouldn't you?” Discord's smile widened, his stare turning icy. Blue Jay gave a humourless laugh, shaking his head. Discord cocked an eyebrow at this. “Something funny? Oh, do tell!” He broke into a smile again. “I love a good joke! Especially at the expense of others! Of course, I'm not so fond of the ones directed at me, but that's no reason to keep it to yourself!” Blue Jay sneered at him. “What's funny is you seem so convinced it's a spell or anything I've done that would stop you! What's funny is you've come all this way to try and reclaim some of your magic when you would have been better off staying with the ponies who had you by a leash earlier!” “Not really a good joke,” Discord looked disappointed. “Not much wit to it. And the irony is vague at best,” He frowned for a moment. “Or rather nonexistent, really.” Blue Jay's grin darkened as his horn throbbed. “Maybe you'd like to come over here and see for yourself what I mean? If I wasn't sure you'd turn and dig your claws into me, I'd welcome you to try and use the Stone without the other Elements with you. It worked so well last time.” Discord rolled his eyes at this, “Yes yes. You're very mysterious and threatening. I'm very impressed. But since you're offering...” He started walking closer again. Blue Jay's smile melted as he took a step backwards, his horn burning brighter. “You made a mistake coming here without the other Elements, Shadow Spirit! There's nothing you can do without them!” “Oh my,” Discord's smile perked as he sped up. “Now we're finally getting somewhere with those questions of mine. Tell me more.” Blue Jay grit his teeth. “I've avoided using magic on you, but if you don't turn around and leave I'll have no choice! Hurting me wouldn't do you any good, anyway! No matter what you do, even if you kill me, there's nothing you can do on your own!” “No need to get so flustered about it,” Discord said, leaning forward before dropping to all fours, never missing a step as he continued to smile. “After all, you were the one who offered I come over there and try something, right?” A trail of sweat ran down Blue Jay's face. “There's nothing you can do!” He repeated. Discord said nothing, his march picking up speed. The white claws on his paw uncurled themselves as his shoulders rose, turning his casual trot into a stalk. With an angry cry, Blue Jay shot a crackle of cyan lightening towards him. It cut through the cobblestones, bursting with a loud crack where Discord had been standing. Discord pounced aside and skidded to a halt. He turned to grin at Blue Jay again, tail swishing in the air. “Now that's hardly fair! How am I suppose to fight you with no magic?” Blue Jay shot another bolt of magic at him, once again missing by inches. Discord side-jumped the blast, landed gecko like against a wall, and then sprung forward again. “And here I am with an injured wing, too! Whatever is a poor wretched thing like me to do?!” Blue Jay charged at him, horn crackling with energy as he let loose with a hail of shots. Discord ducked the first one before launching himself upwards, stretching open both wings and gliding over the unicorn before landing heavily behind him. His smile glinted as he turned to Blue Jay who skidded to turn himself around. “I suppose I'll have to fall back on some of my more... crude weapons.” Discord doubled back, raising talons and claws as he launched himself at Blue Jay head-on. The stallion looked glued to the spot for a moment before his magic flashed and he teleported a few feet away. Discord hardly seemed to notice as he landed and immediately coiled to throw himself to where Blue Jay had reappeared. Blue Jay screamed at him, bolts of magic shooting wildly at the oncoming threat. Discord slid to a stop before changing direction and streaking to Blue Jay's left. The unicorn spun to follow his movement, slicing more gashes into the cobblestones as he did so. Discord coiled himself in spirals and hoops as he dodged the ongoing assault. Sometimes he turned as if getting ready to try and pounce again before he was forced to jump out of the way of an oncoming blast. He jumped on top of a half destroyed market stall which exploded into arm-long splinters just as he leapt off it again. He grabbed hold of the nearest building's gutter and hoisted himself up onto the roof. He turned to stare down at Blue Jay with a smug expression. Blue Jay's face turned a dark shade of purple as he charged the building. There was another flash as he teleported onto the roof as well, where he let loose with a fresh barrage of blasts. Discord twisted around the building's chimney, which was soon lost in a cloud of dust and broken bricks. Blue Jay ran to follow him, sliding on the ruined slate but never so badly as to fall. Discord jumped to the next house over, turning to make sure he was still being followed. Blue Jay's ears burned as he focused all his attention on the other building, another shot from his horn blowing apart half its roof. Discord dodged the attack, but remained where he was, peering into the newly created hole with curiosity. Blue Jay jumped at him, but barely cleared the gap. He grabbed hold of the other roof's edge and scrambled over several loose tiles to stop himself from falling. He glared pure poison at Discord, rage-fueled sparks shooting from his horn. “Careful now,” Discord said as he watched him with bemusement. “A fall like that won't go so well unless you were a pegasus.” Blue Jay snarled and sent a few more shots at him, but the effort in clinging to the roof ruined any chances of getting a good aim at the draconequus. There was a sudden light from the courtyard, tearing Blue Jay's attention away. His blood ran cold as he saw the group of ponies from earlier once again standing in position a few feet away from his Stone. They were glowing with a pink tinted light as they almost floated off the ground. A thin rainbow had started to snake out from the Elements of Harmony around their necks, joining them together. “No!” Blue Jay thrashed, scratching frantically at the loose slate to pull himself up. “Stop! You'll kill it again! Stop!” Twilight could barely hear the stallions screams. She focused herself inwards, feeling the comfortable warmth inside her. She felt her friends around her. She of course knew where they were standing, but as the energy gathered itself inside her, she did not merely know where they were. She could feel them. Their gathered feelings grew to a smoldering warmth which started to climb up from Twilight's chest, travelling to the tiara on her head. As she was ready to unleash the gathered power, something inside her seemed to shift, just slightly. Her concentration flickered. The strange feeling suddenly bucked, and it almost felt like an empty hole opened up inside her. The gathered pool of magic faltered, just for a moment, but it was enough for her to feel the change in energy. It was as if it was trying to drain away. To be swallowed up by something she could not properly focus on. 'No, no!' She squeezed her eyes shut so tightly it physically hurt. 'Not now! Not yet! One more shot! Please! Just be strong for one more shot! She used every learned and studied technique she knew, forcing the power back from where it was being pulled to, scraping it together again. The power inside her swelled, and just before she lost her grip on it completely, she opened her eyes. The rainbow blasted out from the group, barreling towards the bubble. It slammed itself straight through the shield, enveloping the spinning Stone. The group pushed with everything they had, everything they thought could grant the blast the extra inch it needed to overpower the Stone. Memories of their time together, thoughts of what they had shared. What they had gone through. What they wanted to do together in the future. Laughing together, standing by each other, sharing with each other, never doubting what they felt, listening gently to each others' problems, focusing on how special each pony was to them. Putting themselves in danger for each other out of loyalty. Laughing at successful pranks pulled at each other's expense. Speaking bluntly when somepony needed to hear a hard truth. Giving each other advice that they needed even if they did not like it. Putting their friends' wellbeing above their own to selfishly protect who they cared about most. Fluttershy's knees started to buckle. The blast still poured out of them, but she could feel it reaching its end. She was panting with exertion. She could not tell if any of this was even scuffing the surface of the dark, spinning stone. Her head was starting to pound. She did not think she would be able to stay on her hooves for much longer. She squinted her eyes open, risking a glance at the scene in front of them. The Elements of Harmony's rainbow bore into the Stone like a drill. The Stone was was fixed in place, vibrating as if in anger as it resisted. White light poured off of it, making it look like a star that had fallen to earth. The ground cracked and burst underneath it. A pony shaped shadow, almost black against the light, was racing towards the Stone. Despite limping badly, it hurtled forward as if its life depended on it. The Stone refused to budge. It shook and trembled but refused to move even a fraction from where it hung. The obsidian-like material it was made from darkened to something deeper than black. A curling steam rolled off it, growing into a pulsating cloud. Fluttershy's attention was pulled away as something streaked through the air just behind the ball of light. Discord arced through the air, paw and claw stretched out in front of him with his wings pinned to his sides for speed. He physically shattered through what remained of the bubble's shield as he dove for the Stone. He threw his arms around it and ripped it loose from where it hung, clutching it to his chest before curling himself around it completely. The Elements of Harmony's rainbow turned white. It felt as if the whole world exploded. A rain of sparks poured over the town. A column of intense, white light tore upwards through the clouds, reaching endlessly into the sky. The star-like ball shrunk in on itself before it shot out like a tidal wave in all directions. The black, triangular, stone froze in place before long, golden-yellow cracks streaked across its surface. It split in half, and then burst into a powdery dust. The light faded. Fluttershy lowered her hooves from her face. Her ears rang and there were blueish spots in her vision. Something cold slid off her neck before thudding heavily to the ground. The Element of Kindness weakly flickered pink for a moment before it dulled, fading to an empty grey. The courtyard was silent. The only sound was a distant rumble of what could have been thunder. Dirt continued to fall all around her. Fluttershy's legs carried her forward. She could not get them to wave away the clouds of dust and smoke that surrounded her as they seemed to be working of their own free will. “Fluttershy?” It sounded like Twilight, but she could not get her mind to focus on the voice. The clouding dust smelled faintly of gunpowder. She came to a stop, reaching the center of the courtyard. A large black halo was burned into the ground. Inside it the cobblestones had melted together into something sleek and glassy. At the very center, an obsidian coloured dust was slowly blowing away in the wind. A trickle of sparks floated down to the ground for a moment. But they also soon faded and disappeared. And then there was nothing.