//------------------------------// // Chapter IV: Time For Answers // Story: Host Of Souls // by SapphireWings999 //------------------------------// The sun had just set below the horizon with the moon taking its place in the sky by the time me and Savannah had arrived at the Carousel Boutique where Rarity was. Walking up to the front door, I knocked lightly upon it before hearing that familiar Mid-Atlantic voice call out from inside. "Who is it?" "It's Dayvid 'n Savannah," I answered back. "Oh of course. Please do come in." Opening the door, me and Savannah entered to see Rarity wearing her traditional red rimmed glasses, hard at work by her sewing machine. The various objects scattered around her led me to believe that she was in a state of what I liked to call "organized chaos" for some important upcoming project. "Umm... Rare?" At the sound of my voice, she halted her project in order to turn to me and reply. "Yes darling? What can I do fo- Aaaaaaaah!!!!" she reacted at the sight of me. "Please don't freak out," I begged. Rarity just stood there, staring at me for several seconds, hardly believing what she was seeing. Finally she spoke up. "Mother of Celestia, David! What in the wide wide world of Equestria happened to you?" "Well long story short," Savannah started, "our friends have been mysteriously losing their souls and David has had to absorb them into himself for them to survive. Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie have already been affected." "But, after Ah absorbed Pinkie's soul, Ah experienced really terrible pain 'n when it was done, Ah found maself with a pony head which is why Ah now look like an Alicorn version of BoJack Horseman," I finished, thinking of a Netflix original show that I had seen advertisements for everywhere online. "BoJack who?" Rarity questioned, a quizzical look on her face. "Uh... nothin. Anyways, Twi is hard at work tryin ta find a solution ta tha problem. From what we've gathered, whatever this thing is, we believe that it's targetin tha bearers o' tha Elements Of Harmony 'n we also believe that yer next on tha list." "Oh my! That sounds absolutely dreadful." "Tell me about it," Savannah replied. "All that matters now is that we're here ta prevent anythin bad from happenin to ya," I stated. "Well it is rather late, in fact I had just sent Spike away a short while ago. The little dear was helping me out soo much earlier that he worked himself into exhaustion before I sent him home to rest. However, I guess you two can spend the night here, just so that you'll be close by if I need help," Rarity answered before turning towards the stairs. "Sweetie Belle?" "Coming Rarity," we heard the little filly's voice call back, before hearing her tiny hoofsteps descending the stairs. Before long, Sweetie Belle was downstairs among us, but upon seeing me, she immediately panicked. "Aaaaaaaah!!!!" she screamed as she swiftly ran to hide behind her big sister. "R-R-Rarity, wha-what is th-th-that?!?" "Sweetie. Sweetie. Calm down," I replied quickly, trying to soothe her. "It's me, Dayvid. Remember? We first met in tha Everfree Forest when you 'n yer friends were attacked by Timber Wolves." Sweetie Belle's wide-eyed panic and terror immediately gave way to wide-eyed puzzlement and confusion. She paused for several seconds and squinted her eyes at me briefly before replying. "D-David?" "Yes. It's me, Sweetie," I smiled back. "What happened to you?" "That's a long story," Rarity answered. "All you need to know is that David and Savannah are going to be spending the night here." "You mean like a sleepover?" the marshmallow white filly beamed. "Yeah," Savannah replied with a smile. "Exactly like a sleepover." "Anyways, I'm really busy with trying to finish up an important order right now so if you could be a dear and show them to the guest rooms while I wrap up this project, it would be very much appreciated," Rarity finished. "Sure thing, Rarity," Sweetie Belle answered before turning to the two of us. "Right this way you two." And so Sweetie Belle led us up the stairs and down a short hallway to where the guest rooms were. "Will you be needing one guest room or two?" she questioned. "One should be fine, Sweetie," Savannah replied, pleasantly. I immediately cleared my throat rather loudly in protest. "What?" Savannah asked me. "Savannah, can Ah talk ta ya privately fer a second?" "Umm... sure?" "Sweetie, if ya don't mind, we need ta have a little 'grown up' talk." "About what?" Sweetie puzzled, naively. "Ya'll understand when yer older." "O.K.," she answered, walking away disappointedly. Once she was out of earshot, Savannah was the first to speak up. "What's wrong?" she whispered. "Ah don' think it's a good idea fer us ta sleep together." "Why not?" "Cuz it wouldn' jus be tha two of us," I stated, pointing to my head. "Tha whole experience would jus be really awkward with them." What're you talking about? Pinkie asked. Are you talking about us? Fluttershy questioned. "Uh nothing you guys need ta be worried about," I answered quickly with a nervous chuckle before returning my attention to Savannah. "Ya know what Ah mean?" "Yes. I understand," she replied, somewhat sadly, turning her face downwards and away. "I just wish that we could get this issue fixed fast so that we could be together again." I reached out a hand to gently tilt her chin up to face me as I looked her square in the eyes. "Hey. Ah'm not goin anywhere," I stated, softly. The two of us then embraced, holding each other close for as long as we felt we needed to. It wasn't long before I got a reaction from the mares in my head. Awww, AJ, Flutters, and Pinkie remarked at our display of affection. I couldn't help but smile at their delight. Finally, we parted as I turned back towards a bored looking Sweetie Belle minding her own business at the opposite end of the hall. "We'll take two rooms, Sweetie Belle." She perked up upon hearing my voice directed at her. "O.K.," she answered back, quickly dashing over towards us. "There are two rooms right across from each other where you guys are standing. You should find everything perfectly fine in there. Be sure to let me or Rarity know if you need anything." "Thanks, Sweetie," Savannah replied as we turned to enter our rooms. "Goodnight." "Goodnight you two," Sweetie Belle stated with a smile as she turned to walk away. "And goodnight to you too, honey," Savannah directed at me. "Goodnight, muffin," I answered back. And with that the two of us went to our separate rooms. It wasn't long before the others started speaking up in my head. So why weren't ya sharin a room with Savannah? Applejack spoke up. I mean, she is yer wife ya know. "Honestly AJ, that's not really tha type o' discussion Ah'd want ta get inta right now, especially not with a certain somepony around." That "certain somepony" that I was referring to was Pinkie. Applejack I already figured had a good understanding of sex from when she thought me and Fluttershy had slept together my first night in Equestria and Flutters seemed to have equal knowledge on the subject from that same episode, but Pinkie Pie I wasn't entirely sure about. Her naivete and childlike nature led me to believe that she was completely oblivious to the concept of sex, not to mention the fact that Fluttershy is a full year older than her, ergo more mature than her. I had no idea what the proper etiquette was for discussing the topic in Equestria and I really didn't want to attempt something like that right now. Thankfully, Pinkie Pie chimed in to change the subject. So what was with you calling Savannah "muffin" just a short while ago? "It was jus a little nickname Ah used ta call her by back when we were datin. It had been a while since Ah had last called her that, but then it jus sorta came back ta me after we stopped by Sugarcube Corner this mornin fer breakfast." I personally think it's a cute nickname for her, Fluttershy piped up. "Thanks, Flutters," I smiled. You're welcome, she replied. It wasn't long after she spoke that I heard her yawn in my head. Immediately, I had a flashback to when I first came to Equestria and Fluttershy spent the night in my room because she was scared. I thought about the following morning when I had woken her up and she yawned soo adorably that I thought my heart was going to explode... twice. I smiled at that memory before finally speaking up. "Ah think it's time that all of us got some rest." Ah agree, AJ answered. Good idea, Pinkie stated. Definitely, Flutters agreed groggily. I then went over to the small bed in the center of the room, starting to take my clothes off beginning with my shirt before I paused. "Wait a minute. I can't sleep without clothes on." Why not, Sugarcube? "Cuz Ah don' have fur like you guys ta cover up the more... uh... sensitive regions. Ah honestly don' think ya'd want ta see all this... skin. Jus trust me on this." But I already saw you when you were wearing nothing but your shorts your first night here, Fluttershy answered. I realized that she was right. There really wasn't that much of a difference between now and then. And so, I undressed down to my boxer shorts and settled into bed which was a little difficult seeing as it was built for a pony instead of a much taller human. Finally, I just gave into the realization that my legs would be hanging over the edge slightly and just placed my glasses on the nearby nightstand before closing my eyes. "Goodnight, girls." Goodnight, the trio silently replied as we all drifted off to sleep. * * * * * * * * The next morning, I was woken up by rapid knocking on my door and a small voice, that I quickly recognized as Sweetie Belle, calling to me frantically. "David! David! You've gotta come quick! Something's wrong with Rarity!" Snapped awake instantaneously, I leaped from my bed, put on my glasses, slipped on my clothes, and dashed over to the door, flinging it open to see Sweetie Belle standing there with an unsettled look on her face. "Where is she?" I questioned. "In her bedroom down the hall." "O.K. Ah'll go in there ta check on her. You jus get Savannah 'n tell her ta come there also. K?" I replied, attempting to put her at ease. "O.K.," she answered, before turning to the door across from me. Swiftly, I made my way to the opposite end of the hall, listening closely for Rarity's voice in any of the rooms. Finally, I heard her familiar accent calling out from one of the rooms. "Hello? Can anypony explain to me what in the name of Celestia is going on?" Entering the room, I saw Rarity's body collapsed in front of her mirror, a robe wrapped around it. I could only assume that she had just recently gotten out of the shower before the incident had happened. But finally, hovering right above her bed, I noticed a small glowing orb of the purest white, clear as crystal. "Oh David. Thank goodness you're here. I have no idea what happened. I was just going through my morning routine like I normally do when I felt this dreadful pain and then found myself outside of my body." "Don' worry, Rare. Ah'm here now 'n we'll figure out how ta solve this dilemma." It wasn't long before I was joined by Savannah and Sweetie Belle, the former was quick to notice Rarity's soul sphere. "Look. It's Rarity's spirit," she stated. "Huh. I hadn't noticed that when I was here," Sweetie replied sheepishly. "Rare, do ya think ya can make it over ta my hand?" I asked, holding my right hand out in front of me. "I believe so, but why?" "Jus trust me. It's fer yer own good." "Alright darling. If you say so." And so, her astral ball levitated over to my hand before settling on it. I let out a cry of pain as it burned my hand while phasing into it and travelling up my arm. Sweetie Belle was quick to voice concern. "Are you O.K., David? What's happening?" "Ah'm fine. Ah'm jus absorbing her soul inta ma body," I explained. "It's tha only way that she'll survive until we can figure out what's goin on." This seemed to be enough for Sweetie Belle as Rarity's spirit made its way to my head, flooding my mind with her memories from when she first discovered her special talent to when she met Twilight to her time in Canterlot with Fancy Pants and the other high class ponies to when Spike gave her his Fire Ruby to first meeting me in the Everfree Forest. It wasn't long before I heard her voice in my head. What was that? she asked quizzically. What am I even looking at right now? Am... am I standing upright? Wait a minute. This couldn't possibly mean that... I then turned to look at myself in the mirror. Upon seeing my reflection, Rarity immediately panicked. Sweet Celestia and Luna! I'm... I'm in a... a MALE BODY!!!! Somepony please tell me this is all just a bad dream. "Ah wish Ah could, Rare, but this is reality unfortunately," I answered back. No no no this can't be real! Of all the things that could possibly happen to me, this is The! Worst! Possible! Thing! Oh come on, Rarity, Pinkie tried to reassure, it can't really be that bad. But you don't understand. What other pony in Ponyville has such an extensive knowledge of fashion? Well yer tha only one Ah can think of, Applejack replied, though Fluttershy does have some freaky knowledge of sewin, but what does that hafta do with tha price of cider at tha Ponyville fair? I'm just saying that there's no way I can function and create high fashion in this strange awkward body with long flimsy limbs, she stated, before realizing what she said. No offense, David. "None taken," I answered, "but, Rarity, this isn't goin ta be a permanent thing. Twilight is already hard at work tryin ta find a solution. She's probably already figured it out by this point." "Which is why we should head on over to her place to find out," Savannah finished, picking up on what I was talking about. Alright then, she agreed. Lead the way. As we turned to leave, I paused in front of Sweetie Belle. "Are ya sure ya'll be fine by yerself?" I questioned. "Definitely. I can just hang out with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo no problem," the young filly replied before changing to a more serious tone. "Just... please take care of my sister." "Ya have ma word," I answered, kneeling down to her level to look her square in the eyes. "Thanks, David," she smiled as she leaped up to hug me, which I accepted, gently patting her on the back in the process. After the hug, me and Savannah left in search of Twilight, hoping to find answers to this bizarre conundrum. However, nothing could prepare us for the shocking truth and cause behind it. * * * * * * * * A short while later, the two of us were walking through town heading towards Twilight's castle. On our way there, several ponies stopped and stared at me in shock before turning and whispering amongst themselves. It was kind of unsettling for me. I obviously knew that they were commenting on the fact that I now had a pony face, if they could even recognize me at all. It then got me thinking how many ponies actually knew it was me and how many others thought I was somepony else. But my thoughts were soon interrupted when I saw Twilight in a full fledged gallop towards me and Savannah. She quickly spotted us as she drew nearer. "David. Savannah," Twilight called out, gasping for breath as she came to a halt in front of us, her mane and tail in a frizzy mess with bags under her eyes. "Twi?" I asked, taking in the sight of her. "Did ya stay up all last night tryin ta find out what our problem was?" "Yeah," she stated wearily. "Why?" "Uh. No reason." "Anyways, I think I might have found out what might be causing this strange occurrence to happen." "What is it?" Savannah questioned. "I was reading one of the books that Princess Celestia had sent me and it recounted the story of an old enemy that she and her sister once faced, one whom I'm sure you are very much familiar with." "Crystal?" I puzzled. "What's she got ta do with this?" "The book told of how she had attempted to learn dark magic after she was corrupted. One of the spells she was learning was a spell that could extract a pony's soul from their body and transfer it to her. Each soul houses a portion of Equestrian magic that is very powerful. She had hoped that the more souls she absorbed the greater her magic would become to the point where she'd be able to alter Equestria however she wanted to, conform it to her own twisted vision and design. "My friends told me that when you defeated her, you drained her power. My only guess is that you absorbed the same dark magic that she used to have and it's making a resurgence." "But that don't make any sense. How could Ah have dark magic inside me 'n not know about it? Ah went nearly 9 months in ma world without anythin weird happenin." Twilight seemed to ponder this for a brief period before an idea came to her mind and she spoke up. "But your world doesn't have magic does it? So maybe this dark magic inside of you manifested in some other form like a disease." At first, I was skeptical of Twilight's claim before remembering something: my cancer. The more I thought about it, everything seemed to fall into place. I was diagnosed with it shortly after returning from Equestria, when I returned to Equestria, I felt like the cancer had vanished entirely, and this whole situation didn't even start until after I had already come back. Just to be sure, I decided to confer with Twilight. "Durin tha time between when Ah was last here 'n right now, Ah was diagnosed with cancer. Does that count?" Twilight looked at me with a quizzical stare. "What's... 'cancer'?" I never thought that I would have to explain cancer to one of these ponies. Just thinking about it and how it had taken my grandmother less than two years ago made me cringe, but there was no avoiding telling her now so I figured that I could only tell her based off of my personal experience with the disease. "Cancer is something that you ponies should be thankful doesn't exist anywhere in Equestria," I started. "It's a terrible disease that as of right now has no cure. It's a disease that slowly eats away at you over time. It constantly takes and takes and takes and takes until you're nothing but a hollow shell of your former self. It stays with you til the day you die, however soon that may come," I sighed before finishing. "It's cancer that took my own grandma back home." It was then that I saw a sight that I would never forget: Twilight had a look of complete shock and horror on her face, even more so than when Tirek destroyed the library. A revelation like this I could only imagine must've been absolutely horrifying and I could only picture AJ, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rarity having similar reactions in my head. I could've sworn that I even heard Flutters gasp and silently weep at my description of it as Twilight just stood there in stunned silence for almost a minute before speaking. "Oh my Celestia! David, I'm soo sorry." "It's O.K. Ya weren't aware of it." "But, anyways," she continued, clearing her throat and trying to regain her composure, "yes. I believe that your... cancer... could've been a manifestation of the dark magic and now it's targeting the Element bearers because of your connection to us." "Well that explains why you guys are having your souls extracted from your bodies," Savannah stated, "but how does this connect with David getting a pony face?" "Honestly," Twilight answered, slightly embarrassed, "I don't know. I couldn't find anything in any of my books that would explain it." Savannah then looked up before pointing at the sky. "David! Twilight! Look!" she shouted, desperately. Turning our heads up to where she was pointing, we both saw something small falling from the sky off in the distance. After squinting to get a better look, I suddenly realized it was Rainbow Dash. With little time to react, I shot out towards the falling mare like a bullet from a shotgun, flying at full speed to try to catch her. Even though I was getting closer to her with great speed, it was quite obvious that I wasn't going to be fast enough to catch her before her body hit the ground, possibly shattering her bones. Under a lot of pressure, I tried something that I had never done before: I attempted to use my magic to stop Rainbow's descent from a distance. Focusing all my energy and experiencing tremendous stress, I concentrated the magic from my hands and horn on her plummeting body and, much to my relief, managed to stop her mere feet from colliding with the ground. I exhaled slowly and calmly as I gently lowered Rainbow's body onto the soft grass. I soon heard Savannah and Twilight running up to join me. "David are you O.K.?" Savannah questioned out of concern. "Yeah. Ah'm fine," I replied. "'N so is Rainbow's body." "That was some pretty quick reflexes and thinking," Twilight remarked, an impressed smile on her face. "Tell me about it," the three of us heard a familiar voice call out. "Rainbow?" I puzzled. "Is that you?" "Where are you Rainbow?" Savannah asked as the three of us started looking around for the voice's origin. "I'm up here," Rainbow answered. At the sound of her voice, the three of us looked upwards. Although hard to see at first against the blue sky, we soon noticed a small cyan ball of light as it softly descended into our presence, the appearance of which was almost like a drop of the sky itself. It wasn't long before the soul orb landed amongst us that Rainbow spoke again. "Whoa! David? What up with the pony face?" "It's a long story honestly," I stated, "but what Ah can tell ya is that tha same thing that happened ta you has already happened ta Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, 'n Pinkie 'n, jus like with them, Ah need ta house yer soul in ma mind in order fer it ta survive til we can get this mess fixed." "O.K. Whataya need me to do?" "Jus come ta ma hand," I replied, holding out my right hand. With no hesitation, Rainbow's astral sphere levitated over to my outstretched hand before settling on it as the familiar burning sensation set in with the orb phasing into my hand. Shortly after travelling up to my head, I was again flooded with flashbacks, but only briefly for, just as the memory of filly Rainbow Dash racing the bullies hit, I was struck with another stabbing, burning feeling like when I absorbed Pinkie Pie's soul, although, instead of my head, this time it was my entire spine as the five mares in my head voiced their shared anguish with me. I collapsed onto the grass, screaming and writhing in pain as Twilight and Savannah watched me in horror. Finally, after a minute, when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, the pain ceased entirely as I gasped for breath after having been put through such torment. Savannah then helped me to my feet before voicing her worry. "Are you O.K., David?" "Yeah," I answered between breaths. "Yeah Ah think... Ah'm better now." "Uh David?" Twilight started, looking behind me in shock. "You've got a... a..." "A what?" I asked, turning to see what she was looking at. Immediately, I was shocked at what I saw for, at the base of my spine, there was now a long, furry pony tail waving back at me. "Aaaaaaaah!!!" I screamed out as I leapt backwards, falling over in the process. With a fearful look on my face, I attempted to back away from this alien appendage, but there's no escaping your own tail. "What the... what the hell is going on with me!?!" I panicked. "It's getting even worse!!! I'm... I'm turning into a dumb animal!!!" "David," Savannah spoke up, "I promise you, you're not turning into a dumb animal." Yeah, Davey, Pinkie chimed in. You're one of the most intelligent humans I know. Actually you're one of the only humans I know. He don't mean that kinda dumb, Pinkie, AJ stated, before pausing briefly to correct herself. Well O.K. he kinda does, but dumb can also refer ta somepony who lacks tha 'bility ta speak or somepony who lacks sentience. Oh darling there's absolutely no reason for you to get your tail all in a twist over something like this, Rarity spoke up, before realizing her poor choice of words. Umm... no offense. I agree with Rarity, Fluttershy chimed in. You need to remain calm through this just like you've been telling me and her and everypony else that this has happened to. "Yer right," I finally replied. "But still, how're we supposed ta find out what's happening ta me?" After a short while of thinking, Twilight was finally struck with an idea. "Zecora! She knows even more about mysterious illnesses than I do. You two go see Zecora. I'll head back to the castle. I need Spike to transcribe an urgent letter to Princess Celestia about our current situation." "Good idea, Twi," I answered. Savannah, however, was quick to object. "No. Twilight, if the same thing that happened to the others happens to you at the castle, David will never be able to make it there from the Everfree Forest in time much less know it's even happened in time. It's best if you stay close by him while he goes to Zecora's to be on the safe side. I can have Spike take a letter for the princess." "Are ya sure bout this, Savannah?" "Yes, David. I'll be fine," she reassured. "Alright then. I guess it's decided," Twilight stated. "Let's get going to Zecora's." And so we parted ways, Savannah on her mission and me and Twilight on ours, all of us unaware of just how complicated things were about to become. * * * * * * * * A long walk later, me and Twi were at Zecora's hut. We both explained to her what we knew so far before she started examining me closely, checking my teeth, eyes, and tail. After a brief while, she headed over to one of her cabinets full of elixirs and potions. "I have never experienced a case like yours. Whatever's causing this transformation is an unnatural force," she spoke, pulling out a flask of green liquid and bringing it to me. "Here is a brew I made earlier this week. Drink it and it may provide the answers you seek." Popping the cork off of the top, I took a whiff of the elixir. The odor was very fruity, but also smelt of several spices. "Welp, bottoms up," I stated, before shooting it back. The potion tasted of wild berries with an added kick from the spices. Those that I could make out were oregano, garlic, rosemary, and cayenne which added some heat to the bizarre concoction. There was also a very strong earthy tone to it that I couldn't quite nail down. After finishing it, I looked at Twilight and Zecora not sure what to expect. "Well Ah don' feel any different than Ah-" "Aaaaaaaah!!!" Twilight blurted out at the sight of me. "What is it? What's wrong?" "The pupils of your eyes have changed to slits," Zecora started, a look of shock on her face also, "like those of a snake from the deepest of pits." "What? How can-" Before I could finish speaking, I lost control of myself. My eyes suddenly stared forward in a wide gaze as an evil smile crept across my face. Twilight was quick to voice concern. "David?" she asked, uneasily. "What's happening?" No sooner had the words escaped her lips than I spoke, but not in my voice. The voice that came from my mouth was one with a raspy quality to it, the voice of one I never thought I'd hear again. "David? No this isn't David. This voice belongs to his old enemy who he thought he had defeated." "Crystal!" Twilight spoke with venom. "I don't answer to my slave name. It's not even my real name. Only a name that your Princess Celestia gave to me when I first came here. My real name is long forgotten nor do I wish to remember it. When David absorbed my dark magic, he also absorbed my dark nature, my venom, my cruelty and slowly it's been eating away at him, corrupting him. What's been happening to your pathetic friends is only a side effect of that. He has a connection to all six of you and it is that connection that has doomed you all. "As for his slow transformation, there was another unexpected side effect. Because his ancestry includes the weakling genes of ponies, a pony he's been turning into slowly as he absorbs your souls. Soon after he's fully turned, his corruption will be complete. He'll be trapped in that form and remain evil for as long as he lives, never able to return back to his world, never able to have a life with the one he loves. Not to mention you and your little bitches for friends will be trapped in his mind forever, tormented by his evil nature." "You're wrong. I've already arranged for word to be sent to Princess Celestia about this. True she and Luna are attending to business in the Crystal Empire with Cadence, but once she finds out what's going on, she'll be able to purge you from David and return things to normal," she replied with a confident smile on her face. "Actually it's you who are mistaken. Can't send a letter to the princess if there's no way for it to be delivered." "What do you mean?" Twilight puzzled. "Spike can just send my message with his fire breath." "Not if there's a little bit of... magical interference." Twilight looked at me with shock. "That's right. Can't have Spike or any of you sorry excuses for life interfering with my plans for revenge. I arranged for this to happen as another little side effect for David. That letter isn't going anywhere and by the time that pathetic whore Celestia finds out, it'll be too late." "You'll never get away with- OWWW!" Twilight's protest was interrupted by severe pain from her before she started hacking constantly. That same raspy voice just kept talking. "Let me guess. You were going to say that I won't get away with this? Well for your information, I already have. David's body will serve as my new vessel and there's no way you or him or anyone else of your pitiful race can prevent it." As those last words of Crystal's escaped my lips, Twilight broke out in a seizure while I returned to my normal mind. Immediately, I held Twi's body still to prevent her from injuring herself for an entire minute before she went limp and a glowing violet orb, like pure amethyst, exited her mouth. Without hesitation, I captured the soul sphere in my hands before it phased into one of them, travelling up my arm to my head. My mind was immediately flooded with flashbacks from filly Twilight being chosen as Celestia's personal protege to defeating Nightmare Moon with her new friends to her ascension as Alicorn Princess to her journey into the parallel world of Equestria Girls to my last night in Equestria when we sat and talked for a while. With the onslaught of flashbacks done, I looked over at Zecora unsure of what to say. Thankfully, she was quick to speak up. "The potion you drank allowed us to see the root cause of your malady," she explained. "If what Crystal said is to be believed, you must make your way to Celestia with great speed. Only she can purge this darkness inside so Crystal's control over you will be denied, but you must be careful and not hesitate to act or you'll encounter a terrible fate. As a pony in Equestria you will remain and by this terrible darkness your soul will be claimed. Also your friends will be trapped in your mind permanently til the end of your time." "Ah've gotta get back ta Savannah 'n tell her how important this situation is," I shouted out as I ran for the door. "Thanks fer yer help Zecora." And with those final words, I ran back to Ponyville as fast as my legs could carry me, knowing there wasn't a moment to lose. * * * * * * * * Not long after I got out of the Everfree Forest, I flew the rest of the way to Twilight's castle where Savannah was. Because of this, I was able to arrive much sooner than I ever would've on foot. After a short while of perusing the castle looking for Savannah, I finally found her in the main throne room with Spike, who was looking absolutely exhausted. Both of them were quick to notice me. "Hey Dav- aaah!" Savannah started upon seeing me. "What happened to your eyes?" Spike asked. "Your pupils are slitted." "Well Ah went ta-... wait a minute. Why were ya only commenting on ma eyes?" "What do you mean?" "Ah'm jus sayin that you don't seem at all shocked bout tha fact that Ah have a pony face 'n tail." "Well Twilight had already told me about your pony face last night when she came home. She was up all night trying to find out what was going on with you, but I was too tired from helping Rarity so I went straight to bed after Twilight told me what happened to you. So anyways, what happened to your eyes?" "Oh right. Well, Ah went ta visit Zecora with Twilight ta find out what was happenin ta me," I explained, "n let's jus say it ain't good." "What could be soo bad about having slit pupils? I think they look cool." "Well, Spike, do ya remember that hag that Ah defeated tha last time Ah was here?" "Yeah." "Well when Ah defeated her, Ah absorbed her power inta me 'n, along with it, her evil nature." Savannah and Spike gasped in unison. "But how does that explain why you're turning into a pony?" Savannah questioned. "Because Ah have pony ancestry. As Ah've been absorbing tha souls of our friends, they've been slowly turning me inta one o' them. As if that wasn't bad enough, Ah'm also becomin more 'n more corrupt in tha process. Tha more of a pony Ah become, tha darker Ah turn. Once ma transformation is complete, ma soul will be claimed by tha darkness, Ah'll be stuck as a pony, our friends will be trapped in ma mind, 'n you 'n Ah will never be able ta be together. Ah'll be stuck here in Equestria fer tha rest o' ma days." "Well how are we going to stop this? I've tried to have Spike send this letter to Princess Celestia, but it keeps coming back." "I've tried sending it soo many times I've lost count," the baby dragon stated wearily. "That's magical interference caused by tha hag's spirit," I explained. "Both Celestia 'n Luna are attending ta business in tha Crystal Empire so who knows when they'd be back. Ah'm gonna have ta go straight to them so that Celestia can purge this darkness from me 'n return our friends to their bodies before it's too late." "But, David, without Twilight here, who's gonna run Ponyville?" The thought had never occurred to me that somepony else would need to run Ponyville in Twilight's absence, but now I realized that I had no idea how long this journey would take or what other obstacles Crystal's spirit might've thrown in my way. After brief pondering, I heard Twilight's voice speak up. Why doesn't Savannah take over for me? "Are ya sure bout that Twi?" Of course I'm sure. She's someone we both trust and she's a princess. Who else would be better suited for keeping things under control while we're gone? Ah agree with Twi, AJ stated. Same, Rainbow Dash agreed. Me too, Fluttershy replied. Definitely, Rarity answered. Me six, Pinkie piped up. With a slight chuckle, I turned to face Savannah. "Savannah, the girls 'n Ah were talking 'n we think it's in tha best interest fer Ponyville if you hold down tha fort til we get back." Savannah looked at me with stunned disbelief written all over her face. "Me?" she questioned, sounding unsure of herself. "Why me? I'm only 18 and I have no experience running a whole town." "Because Twi trusts you enough as a princess with running Ponyville in her absence 'n most importantly Ah trust you. Ever since we met, Ah've watched you become more confident 'n more 'take charge' over certain things. Would you have been able ta put out a successful debut album without yer confidence?" "Probably not," she admitted. "So if you were able ta do that as a teenager, Ah'm pretty sure you can handle a small town fer a short period while we're gone. You've jus gotta believe it fer yerself." Savannah hesitated for several seconds before answering. "Alright then. I'm confident I can do this now." "That's ma girl," I stated as I pulled her into a comforting hug and ran my fingers through her silky, golden hair. "'N don' worry. This whole mess will be over before ya know it 'n we'll be able ta start our life together. Ah promise." Savannah smiled at the thought of this before we pulled apart after half a minute. "I'll tell everypony about the situation that has arisen. You should start heading to the Crystal Empire as soon as possible." "I recommend taking the train," Spike spoke up. "That's a good idea, Spike," I started, "but how will Ah pay fer train fare?" "Hold on one sec." Spike then ran off to who even knows where while Savannah and I just waited for his return. "Whataya think he's doing?" Savannah puzzled. I only shrugged in response. It wasn't long after my shrug that we heard tiny dragon footsteps running towards us. Sure enough, Spike came rushing in with a blue gemstone the size of my hand. "You can just use this Sapphire to cover train fare," he stated. "Are ya sure bout this Spike?" I asked. "Ah don' wanna bother ya." "Nah it's no problem at all. I always keep plenty of gems around in case of emergencies. Go on. Take it." Reluctantly, I reached out to grab the gem before pocketing it. "Thanks, Spike." "Well then I guess we'd better go our separate ways," Savannah replied. And so we parted. Savannah to explain the situation to the townsponies and me to head for the train station. I could only hope that I'd make it to Princess Celestia before it was too late.