//------------------------------// // The Earth Pony Master(Part 2) // Story: The Last Alicorn(Book One: Purpose) // by Deathsia //------------------------------// THE EARTH PONY MASTER PART TWO "Sapphire, what happened out there? I saw you go all magical supernova and then it went 'poof!' as if somepony flicked a switch!" Snowbreeze exclaimed worriedly. "You got me. That's never happened before." Sapphire remarked aloud in a confused tone as she lay on the couch inside Liberty Belle's house. It was then that Liberty walked past the couch, gave one look at the Alicorn, and sighed before he walked into another room. "Some Great-Grandfather you got there." Snowbreeze remarked bitterly as she watched the stallion seemingly brush her condition off. Sapphire rolled her eyes at this remark. "I sprained my legs, Snowbreeze. I didn't break them." She remarked aloud at her friend with a mildly annoyed tone. "She's lucky nothing worse happened!" Liberty's voice shouted from the other room and moments later he walked back in carrying a small bucket of steaming hot water on his back. The stallion then walked next to Snowbreeze, reached behind himself with his mouth, and placed the bucket on the floor. "Put your hooves in this. Looks like only your lower ankles were sprained by the looks of it." He remarked before he walked over to his usual chair and sat down. "Alicorns…" he added as he shook his head. "You sound like you know a lot about Alicorns. How?" Snowbreeze asked suspiciously as she looked over at the stallion. Our family had this ludicrous notion that the next Alicorn to be born would be within our family." Liberty explained calmly. "If that's true, then why didn't my parents know more about me? About what I am, what my power is for?" Sapphire asked curiously. "Because it stopped with me. I never placed much stock in myths and legends." He said simply as he lifted up a teacup on the end table next to him and took a sip of the beverage. "Alicorns, mystical elements of harmony, all a load of horseapples, I thought. I wasn't about to teach my son to believe in some mythical creature and some trinkets." "Yeah, well, I'm real." Sapphire replied though her voice carried an air of annoyance to it due to her Great-Grandfather talking about Alicorns in such a fashion. This earned a soft chuckle from the stallion much to the two mare's confusion. "You sure are." He remarked aloud with a smirk his voice dripping with sarcasm before he sipped his tea once more. "Oh, so you think these wings and horn are nothing more than fashion accessories?" Sapphire remarked aloud sarcastically as she gestured to her wings and horn. "You aren't the first pony to claim to be the legendary Alicorn and you certainly won't be the last." He said simply. "Oh, so what do you call what I did in Manehatten? A fancy parlor trick?!" Sapphire snapped irritably. "I didn't say that. You're merely a very talented unicorn." He remarked aloud casually. "But I am an Alicorn! I'm no more than a myth than you are!" Sapphire exclaimed hotly as she withdrew her hooves from the hot water since they no longer hurt. "Wow, I never thought I'd be quoting Rarity." She added aloud thoughtfully. "Besides, you haven't shown us any proof your Sapphire's Great-Grandfather! You've only told us stories!" Snowbreeze interjected suspiciously. "Being a little overprotective of her, don't you think?" Liberty remarked aloud with a curious glance at the Pegasus before he stood up, walked over to his mantel, picked up a photograph encased in a wooden and glass frame before he sat it down. "This should be proof enough and if it's not, I've got your grandfather's and Steel's birth certificates in my filing cabinet." He said before he sat back down on the chair which allowed the two mares to look at the photo. The picture looked like a family photo of an aged stallion, a younger looking stallion, a mare, and a young colt. "My mom has a photograph just like this on the wall." Sapphire remarked aloud before she looked at Snowbreeze. "Here's the proof, you happy now?" Sapphire said with an annoyed look at the Pegasus. Snowbreeze couldn't argue this any further since just as Sapphire said, she had seen this same photograph on the wall in her friend's home. "Fine." She replied bitterly as she crossed her forelegs in front of her with an annoyed expression. "And I wasn't being overprotective!" She snapped a few moments later with a mild blush. Liberty smirked at the Pegasus for a few moments longer before a serious expression washed over his face. "Now, onto the other matter. There's no more need to put on the act, Sapphire. I'm not sure how you found out about the little folk tale that has been passed throughout our family but the Alicorn is nothing more than myth. Your father knows this, your grandfather knows this, and I sure as buck know this." He said calmly. Sapphire then stood off the couch and extended her wings to their full length. "Then what do you call these?!" She exclaimed angrily. "Your wings are most likely a birth defect. Either that or you had them surgically implanted. It was possible back in my day and I'm sure the art has been perfected by now." The stallion said though his voice bore the same annoyance his expression showed to the two mares. "A b-b-birth defect?! She can fly and walk on clouds, you leadhoof!" Snowbreeze snapped angrily. "I never said she couldn't. After all, if she couldn't then I'd be asking for my money back from the surgeon who performed the operation to fix or implant those wings. As for the walking on clouds, it's nothing a 'walk on clouds' spell which can be found in just about any standard unicorn magic book couldn't fix." He replied calmly though it was more than obvious he was growing more annoyed the longer this went on. Both mares gave cries of frustration upon hearing this. "SHE IS AN ALICORN!!!" "I AM AN ALICORN!!!" Both mare's exclaimed simultaneously into the stallion's face to which his expression became angry. "This joke has gone on long enough! I've dealt with enough wanna-be Alicorns in my time to give me my fill and I won't tolerate my own kin trying to pull the wool over my eyes just like all those others!" He exclaimed angrily at the two. "The others?" Sapphire asked with a confused look. "I'm surprised you managed to tune out my earlier remark or you might have figured that one out already. Yes, there were many others who claimed to be Alicorns. They thought it was a quick ticket to fame and fortune. In my youth, I was foolish enough to believe them only to later find out they were not what they claimed to be. You are no different from them, trying to get me to train you through the same ludicrous claim." He explained with a bitter frown as he spoke. "So that's why you said that Alicorns are nothing but trouble!" Sapphire exclaimed, the statement finally making sense to her. "But i'm not like those fakers! I'm the real deal! Your Ancestor Rarity sent me here because she she said you could teach me to control my earth pony magic!  " She added as she looked at him. The stallion's expression went from pissed off to suddenly on the verge of laughing much to both mare's confusion. "Hold it!" He exclaimed barely stopping himself from snickering as he gestured with both hooves as if to stop them from speaking. "You're telling me that, Rarity, our ancestor, came to you and told you to come to me in order to train you?" He asked, still barely able to stop himself from laughing. The two mares looked at each other in confusion before they looked back at the stallion. "Yes, she did. She even told me that I'm not even the first Alicorn." Sapphire replied failing to see how this was so funny to the stallion. Liberty could hold in his laughter no longer as he fell off his chair laughing so hard one might think he'd die from it. "I've heard some tall tales, hahahaha! But this! Bwahaha! This one takes the cake! bwahahahahaha!!!" He exclaimed before he managed to stop laughing while he stood up, walked over to the bookshelf, and leaned against it as he struggled to prevent himself from laughing even more. "What's so funny about this?! Its the truth!" Snowbreeze exclaimed as she glared at the stallion. "Wow, kid! I figured you did your homework on our family but to dig up a bedtime story as a last ditch attempt to scare me into training you? You almost make me want to train you just because of how much effort you're putting into this act now." He said as he walked up to the Alicorn and stopped a foot away. "Scare you? What in equestria are you talking about?" Sapphire asked looking just as annoyed as Snowbreeze was by now. "Okay, enough's, enough! You want my final answer? It's two words!" He exclaimed as he took a deep breath in order to shout the obvious answer. However, a mere second before he was going to exclaim this, a sudden knock on the door halted him in his tracks. "Ugh, hold on." He said irritably as he walked past the two mares and towards his front door. "I swear, if it's those Luna's witnesses again… Been trying to get me to join them for the last twenty years." He added aloud with a sigh. "Did you say, the last twenty years?" Sapphire asked curiously as she looked over to Snowbreeze who seemed to be thinking the exact same thing she was. She then ran up to Liberty and stopped him from opening the door. "Did they happen to start showing up shortly after I was born?" Sapphire asked curiously as Snowbreeze walked up next to her. "How the buck should I know? I only heard you were born thanks to my son sending me a less than happy letter about you being born with a horn and wings." He replied as another knock come from the front door. "Wait… I thought you said you heard rumors?" Snowbreeze inquired curiously. "May as well have been a rumor! My son is prone to making up tall tales even as an adult he hasn't stopped trying to tell me of his 'great exploits' that never happened." Liberty remarked bitterly as another knocking rang out. "Hold your reigns, I'm coming!" he exclaimed aloud irritably. "Liberty, I know this may sound crazy but I don't think these ponies are Luna's witnesses." Sapphire remarked aloud uneasily. "Oh? You think it's those dark horn fellows do you? Even if they still existed, they'd be a sad shadow of what the nightmares my mother gave me when she told me of the tale about their fight with those supposed elements of harmony." Liberty replied casually. "For somepony who doesn't believe in the elements of harmony, the dark horn, or Alicorns, you sure as heck seem to know a lot about them." Sapphire remarked curiously. "When your mother forces you to study and memorize that load of horseapples nightly, it tends to stick with you." The stallion remarked bitterly only to let out an agitated growl as the knocking seemed to become more urgent now. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to usher away some pests." he added as he gently moved Sapphire to the side and opened the door. "Hello, good sir! We are from Luna's witnesses and wish to speak with-" The unicorn stallion began to say casually until he caught a glimpse of Snowbreeze. "M-May we come in?" He asked as he walked up to the doorway but rather than maintain eye-contact with Liberty, seemed to be trying to get a look about the room though the stallion barred his way. "No you can not, I've been telling you ponies this for the last twenty years and I'll say it again, I'm not interested!" He exclaimed as he attempted to slam the door in the unicorn's face only for him to halt it with his magic and continue to look about the room for some strange reason. "Do you have clouds stuffed in those ears?! I said I'm not interested!" He exclaimed as he attempted to push the unicorn back. The unicorn seemed to be ignoring him now as he edged his head into the room and got a clear view of Sapphire before Liberty managed to shove him out and slammed the door. "Never seen them so determined to recruit me before." He remarked aloud before he sighed. "Sapphire… I hate to say the obvious but-" "I know, he didn't let Liberty shove him out until after he saw me." Sapphire said uneasily as she cut off her friend as the two began to walk towards the kitchen. "Wait, where are you two going?" Liberty asked curiously as he followed the two. "Do you have a back door?" Sapphire asked urgently as the two quickly picked up their saddlepacks. "Well yes but… oh come off it! You can't possibly think those buffoons were dark horn scouts could you?" He asked skeptically. Sapphire and Snowbreeze exchanged worried glances with one another before they looked back at the earth pony. "That's exactly what we think." Snowbreeze said uneasily. "Its best we get out of here before you're caught in the crossfire." Sapphire added as the two walked towards what could be none other than the back door to the stallion's house. "You can't be serious! Do you genuinely believe you are the legendary Alicorn and this cult that has been dead for over five thousand years suddenly came back just to hunt you?!" Liberty exclaimed in disbelief of what he was seeing. "It hasn't been dead at all." Snowbreeze remarked as she turned to look at the stallion. "In fact, if we're to believe what that Horus fellow said almost a year ago, they've been in control of every major city in Equestria for the last five thousand years." "I'm the first Alicorn to survive its first night and live as long as I have. Every other Alicorn that has been born before me has been killed as an infant." Sapphire added as she reached for the doorknob only for Liberty Belle to jump in front of her and stop her from opening the door. "Saying for about two minutes that I believe this load of horseapples, you really think they're going to barge into my house? I'm the most skilled earth pony that Equestria has ever seen in the last three hundred years! They'd be crazy to even try to pull a stunt like that!" He boasted proudly with a smirk. Sapphire and Snowbreeze looked at each other uneasily once more before they look back at the stallion. "Liberty, they tried to incinerate an entire city just to get rid of me when they knew I was too weak to escape. I think that more than qualifies as 'Crazy enough to try and pull a stunt like this'." Sapphire said in a dead serious tone. "Wait, an entire city?! That level of unicorn magic has been lost for over-" "Let me guess, five thousand years?" Snowbreeze remarked with a knowing look as she cut the stallion off. "Its not possible…" Liberty said aloud in a stunned tone as he looked at Sapphire completely differently now. "She can't be… They can't be…" He continued as he fell to his rump, his stunned expression never leaving his facial features as he seemingly couldn't finish what he was saying. "Can't be what? Real?" Sapphire remarked with an annoyed expression towards her Great-Grandfather. Suddenly, an explosion erupted from the front of the stallion's home, causing all three ponies to snap their attention to the sound of hooves rushing inside the house. "Fan out and find the Alicorn!" a voice exclaimed which was followed by hooves rushing about the home. "This can't be happening! I must be dreaming!" Liberty exclaimed aloud horsley upon hearing these words. A sudden snow white hoof sailing a crossed his face snapped him out of his stupor however. "Snap out of it, Mr. Earth Pony Master! If they're inside this house, then that means they have the place surrounded. That means we aren't getting out of her alive unless we fight!" Snowbreeze exclaimed in a whisper to the stallion. "If what you say is true than not even my skill will make much difference due to the sheer numbers they have." He said as he stood uneasily to all four hooves and walked over to the wall. "What are you doing?! They'll be showing up back here any second!" Sapphire exclaimed softly until the stallion's hoof suddenly pressed into a hidden panel in the wall which caused it to slide open. "Sometimes, there are better alternatives to fighting." He said wisely as he ushered the two into the secret passage and followed shortly after and closed the wall up behind him. ------------------------------------------------------------------- The faint sounds of hooves frantically searching for Sapphire could be heard above as the three ponies walked along a dark yet dimly lit passage which looked as if it was covered in dark red gemstones.. "What is this?" Snowbreeze asked curiously and though the answer was obvious she still couldn't help but ask. "Its a secret passage that was built into this house when it was first built. You won't find it on any schematic of the place since it was built by our earth pont ancestors themselves. I wasn't kidding when I said that our family had this crazy notion that the next Alicorn would be born in our family." He explained softly. "So our ancestors built this as a way to escape in case the dark horn attacked?" Sapphire asked curiously. "Yes, though I never maintained it myself despite my parents forcing me to study every single part of it as a foal in order to keep it clean and safe to pass through." He explained once more. "So, do you finally believe that I'm an Alicorn?" Sapphire asked in a mildly annoyed tone as the three continued along the path. "I believe that a group of unicorns attacked my house and claimed to be looking for an Alicorn." He replied, obviously avoiding the question. Upon hearing this, the two mares let out cries of frustration. "You're either in denial or a whole new kind of stupid." Snowbreeze remarked irritably with a scowl. "For once, I'm going to agree with you." Sapphire added with an annoyed scowl herself as the three continued along the passage. Upon hearing this, Liberty suddenly stopped and looked at the two. His expression serious yet annoyed. "Okay, look, I have no idea what's going on right now and until today, I had lived a nice peaceful life of retirement. Am I going to believe that those unicorns who attacked my house are part of some cult that supposedly existed but was wiped out by the supposed elements of harmony? Buck no! Do I believe that they meant business, yes! No doubt some crazy wanna-be cult that took the myths and legends too seriously." He said before he turned around and continued walking. "You know what, Snowbreeze? I'm going to go with him being a whole new kind of stupid." Sapphire remarked aloud, the scowl once again upon her face as they followed Liberty. "You said it." Snowbreeze replied before she sighed aloud. Once again the stallion turned to face them but this time his expression was rather ticked off. "You really think you're the legendary Alicorn?! Then prove it! Do some of that 'Alicorn Magic' you Alicorn's boast that is more powerful than any unicorn's!" he snapped angrily at the mare. Sapphire folded her ears back as she bit her lower lip, knowing what she was about to say wouldn't help her case at all. "I can't." She said softly to which Liberty scoffed and rolled his eyes at her. "That's why we came to you in the first place! Rarity said that I need to master my earth pony, Pegasus, and unicorn magic if I want to be able to master my Alicorn magic!" She followed up quickly though the stallion looked no more convinced than he had before. Without another word, Liberty turned around and continued leading the two through the passage for some time until Snowbreeze spoke. "Seriously, everything you've seen today doesn't strike you as the least bit suspicious? Like there's something more going on than meets the eye? I mean, come on! Even if you honestly can't believe everything we've told you, this must still look really suspicious that your house gets invaded the moment after they see Sapphire!" She exclaimed contentiously. "I will admit that it does look sketchy. I will also admit that for a brief time before you slapped some sense into me that I thought my parent's stories were true. But now that I can think clearly again, I realize that it was nothing more than a collection of coincidences that forced me to believe such a thing for the brief time I had." He said calmly despite the irritation in his voice still apparent. "Or maybe the lists of fakes that lined up, claiming to be what I am all those years ago caused you to believe that your parents stories were nothing more than fairy tales. I can imagine that after the fiftieth pony claiming to be the legendary Alicorn and turning out to be a fake would cause anypony who once believed so strongly in such a thing to stop believing in it." Sapphire mused aloud curiously. A long sigh could be heard from the stallion as the two continued on. "More accurately it was after the five hundredth one that I stopped believing in it. My youth, the prime of my life, wasted on a bunch of fakes. You're right, Sapphire. I once did truly believe as my parents had. That the next Alicorn would be born in our family or at the very least that I would be the one to train them. That fool's dream cost me more years than I care to count and it took my wife to make me realize that not a word of it was true. I was going to be a father, my reputation all but destroyed after trying to train so many fakes. I had to stop believing in myths and legends or risk my son growing up in shame of a father who was the laughingstock of the entire armed forces." He said aloud his tone no longer angry but rather saddened as he spoke. "Maybe you really are the legendary Alicorn, maybe you're not. My point is, I'm not about to risk what few remaining years of my life I have on a fool's dream." He finished solemnly. Suddenly a chorus of voices could be heard within the halls must to the horror of Sapphire, Snowbreeze, and Liberty. "We're trapped like rats down here! If they find us, we're dead!" Snowbreeze whispered fearfully. "They wouldn't dare use offensive magic down here, now if their smart anyways! Look at the walls, ceiling, and floor." Liberty remarked with a smirk which caused the two mares to look more closely now at the passage they hadn't been paying too much attention to until now. Snowbreeze was clueless as to what she was looking at but Sapphire was quick to pick up on what the dark red gems that lined the walls, floor, and ceiling really were. "Mirror Stone… Mirror Stone?!" Sapphire said calmly at first but the second time she spoke the gem's name was in more alarm as she realized what she was looking at. "What's Mirror Stone?" Snowbreeze asked curiously as the three continued their way through the passage at a much faster pace now. "Mirror Stone, also known as the 'unicorn's bane' was discovered during the one-hundred and fiftieth year in the three hundred year war and mined so excessively that by the time the war was over, it was believed to cease to exist since it was used for the construction of most earth pony armor during the war." Sapphire explained as the three made a right turn. "Ya see, Snowbreeze. These little red gems have properties that make them resistant and if refined into their purest form, even reflective of all kinds of unicorn magic. And you can bet your bits that every single gemstone that lines these walls was refined to its purest form." Liberty remarked aloud for the first time since the two had met the old stallion in a proud tone of his parents actions. A loud chorus of hooves growing louder by the second however caused the stallion's facial expression to become worried. "You sure no schematic exists of this place? They seem to know their way around this place quite well." Sapphire remarked worriedly. "They couldn't have possibly found a map of this labyrinth because none exist! It's been taught to each foal of our family since before I was born!" Liberty exclaimed as the three began sprinting down the halls now. As the three took a swift left turn, Snowbreeze chanced a look behind herself to see a large group of unicorn's at the far end of the passage. Upon seeing this, the snow white Pegasus nearly lept off the ground as she sped past the two. "They're right behind us!" Snowbreeze exclaimed in a panicked tone. "There they are!" A voice suddenly shouted from behind them. "Impossible!" Liberty exclaimed in disbelief as the three dashed down the passage and took a left only for the stallion to stop which caused Sapphire and Snowbreeze to stop as well. "What are you doing?! They'll be on top of us any second!" Sapphire exclaimed in a panicked tone. Without another word, Liberty reared his hind legs back and bucked the passage wall with all his might which caused the entire passage to begin to rumble loudly. "Head straight, take two lefts, and then one right! You'll find the exit at what would look like a dead-end!" Liberty shouted over the loud rumbling as pieces of the ceiling began to fall down in front of him. "Come on! You can still make it!" Sapphire shouted as more and more ruble began to fall down in front of them. "Somepony needs to stall them! If you really are the legendary Alicorn then my life is meaningless next to the importance of your survival and training! Head for the earth pony Capital and find Firmhooves! He can teach you what you need to know about controlling your earth pony magic!" Liberty shouted back just before the ceiling completely collapsed in on itself much to Sapphire and Snowbreeze's horror. Soon after, an unsettling silence ensued as the rumbling subsided. "You think he's okay?" Snowbreeze asked uneasily. "Of course he is. Come on, we need to get moving!" Sapphire exclaimed urgently at which point the two darted down the path. --------------------------------------------------- Liberty looked at the collapsed passage and placed a hoof on the ruble. "Sapphire… I certainly hope you're telling the truth, lass." Liberty remarked aloud thoughtful just before a chorus of hooves stopped just behind him. With a cocky smirk, the earth pony turned to face them. "Afraid it's a dead-end, colts." He said as he leaned against the ruble and crossed his front hooves across his chest in a cocky manner. "You made this mess and you're going to clean it up." one of the unicorn's said threateningly as his horn glowed as if he was charging up a spell. "Ya sure that's a good idea, sonny? Look around us, nothing but Mirror Stone." He said, hs cocky expression and tone not fading in the least as he spoke. The unicorns then looked about themselves in a worried manner but the one unicorn didn't seem convinced. "You're bluffing!" He exclaimed as he jabbed a hoof against Liberty's chest. "If you think I'm bluffing, then by all means, blast this little blockade of mine away yourselves, I won't stop you." Liberty replied in the same cocky manner as he stepped to the side. "But I won't be held responsible if your blow off a leg or two when your spell comes flying back at ya." He added with a light chuckle. "Fine! I'll call your bluff!" The unicorn exclaimed as he charged magic into his horn. Liberty gave a panicked look at the stallion before he dove behind a few unicorns hoping they would be a sufficient equine meat shields for what was about to transpire. The unicorn's spell hit the Mirror Stone with a loud thundering boom followed by a dust cloud so thick it rendered most unicorns who were close to the ruble blind and the others unable to see into the large dust cloud. "Ha! Told ya he was bluffing!" The unicorn exclaimed triumphantly despite the fact he couldn't see still at the present time. The only response however was a faint chuckling from Liberty as he held firm behind the unicorns. "What are you laughing about?! I called your bluff!" The unicorn exclaimed irritably. "Clearly you never payed attention in school or you'd know that Mirror Stone when in its purest form, absorbs the magic first and then redirects the exact same spell with two times the power back at its caster!" Liberty shouted back. Sure enough a loud crackling sound made the unicorn snap his gaze back to the ruble and took note of the fact that as the dust cloud dissipated, a large cluster of mirror stone was glowing bright red as magic seemed to surge over the surface of the gem in small sliverers of magical energy. "Run! Flee for your lives!" The unicorn roared at the top of his lungs as he darted past his fellow troops, shoving most of them out of the way as he ran. The rest of the unicorns quickly followed suit as the bright red glowing gems seemed to be nearing the peak of their charge. Liberty was quick to run along with them and had barely cleared the corner when an explosion of magical energy surged through the hall, hitting the wall of the other. "Well done you fool! You've created a chain reaction!" Liberty exclaimed as he ran past them only for the unicorn to grab his leg with his magic which caused Liberty to fall flat and look back at him. "What are you saying?! We just evaded your little trick and you think you can escape alive?!" He exclaimed with a glare. "And now you have nothing left to stall us with!" He added as he yanked Liberty over to him so that he was face to face with the unicorn. "Face it, Dark Horn. The Alicorn has slipped through your hooves once again!" Liberty exclaimed as he snapped his hoof in the direction of the wall the blast had just hit which was now glowing just as bright red as the the gems of rumble had. "That's what you th-th….what the buck?!" The unicorn began to snap back only to gawk in horror as the wall ceiling and floor all around them were glowing bright red. "Wh-What is this place?!" He exclaimed in horror as he let go of the earth pony. "To put it quite simply: A unicorn deathtrap." He said with a smirk before he darted down the hall at breakneck speed using every ounce of his earth pony leg strength to propel him as fast as his legs could carry him. ----------------------------------------------------------------- By now, Sapphire and Snowbreeze had arrived at the dead-end Liberty had spoke of… "Is there some kind of secret switch?" Sapphire asked as she ran her hooves against the gem covered wall. "Are you sure we didn't take a wrong turn and are like lost in this labyrinth forever?" Snowbreeze remarked aloud worriedly. "Of course not!" Sapphire snapped irritably at the Pegasus before she sighed aloud dismally. "Well if there's no secret switch then how the buck does he expect us to get out? Its not like we can just buck the wall down and not get buried alive!" Snowbreeze snapped back. Upon hearing this, Sapphire's eyes lit up. "That's it!" She exclaimed excitedly. Knowing Sapphire as she does, she knew that her Alicorn friend had just gotten one of her really bad and life threatening ideas. "Oh, no,no,no,no! I'm stopping this before it even begins, Sapphire! You are not going to buck down that wall!" Snowbreeze exclaimed as she darted in front of the Alicorn and stood in her way. However, as Snowbreeze looked at her friend, she began to take note of the fact that the passage was beginning to look very different from what it had when the two had ran through it a few moments ago. "Say uh, Sapphire? What does it mean when Mirror Stone glows bright red?" She asked worriedly. "Oh, that just means that it's absorbed a magical spell and is most likely preparing to redirect that spell back at its caster." Sapphire remarked nonchalantly. "Why?" She added curiously as she turned to look in the direction Snowbreeze was at which point it dawned on her. Both mares comically stood in place and watched the wall, ceiling and floor begin to glow bright red with the exception of the dead-end wall. The two then looked at one another's, ears folded back as they seemingly were thinking the same thing now. "I'm gonna buck the wall down now." Sapphire said in a tone which was roughly two octaves higher than her usual voice. "Go for it." Snowbreeze replied in a fast-paced tone just before she lept over Sapphire's head and landed behind her as the Alicorn turned about-face, reared her hind-legs up, and bucked the wall with all her might. Much to both mare's relief, the wall came down with a loud rumbling sound at which point both mares darted out and took in a breath of fresh air as the evening air whipped across their faces and manes and a large grassy plain laid before them. "Whew! Glad we got out of there!" Snowbreeze remarked in a relieved tone. "Not out of danger yet!" Sapphire exclaimed in a panicked tone as she tackled the Pegasus which caused the two to go rolling down the hill they were standing on just in time for a large magical blast to erupt above them. The two mares managed to stop rolling down the hill just in time to witness the beam of charged Mirror Stone magic to near the end of its blast and dissipate in a fashion that looked like a candle being blown out. For a time both mares looked up in awe of the near-death experience they had barely escaped which almost at once, both realized that they were intimately close to one another with Snowbreeze laying on top of Sapphire, muzzles barely a few inches from one another. The two looked at one another for a brief time before Sapphire let out an uncomfortable coughing sound. "Ahem, personal space, Snowbreeze." She said awkwardly at which point the Pegasus flapped her wings and lifted herself off the Alicorn. "Oh, eh-heh… Sorry. Caught up in the whole nearly being killed by a magical stone kinda thing." Snowbreeze remarked aloud sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her head with a crimson blush. "Clearly." Sapphire replied with a curious yet unconvinced look at the Pegasus. Another short awkward silence ensued between the two before the Pegasus spoke up. "So, uh… where we heading now? We obviously can't head back there with the Dark Horn most likely flooding the streets in search of us." Snowbreeze said in an attempt to avoid the obvious topic that was on both their minds at the moment "Liberty said to head for the earth pony capital." Sapphire replied though the mere mention of her great-grandfather was enough to make her give a worried look back up the hill. "I hope he made it out okay." She added softly. Sensing her friend's concern for her great-grandfather, the Pegasus walked over, extended a wing, and placed it on her shoulder in a comforting manner. "You kidding me? He probably took another exit or something. "For all his talk of not believing in myths and legends, when the chips were down, he put his life on the line for you and me." Sapphire remarked aloud. "Ya know, I think deep down, he did believe you were the legendary Alicorn all along." Snowbreeze remarked aloud which caused Sapphire to look at her curiously. "If he did, then why didn't he train me?" The Alicorn asked curiously. "He probably knew the Dark Horn would come after you and with him being your great-grandfather, this would be the first place they'd look when you fell off their radar. "I suppose you're right…" Sapphire remarked aloud, spread her wings, and took off for the skies along side of Snowbreeze. Next stop, the earth pony capital!