Previously on Dual Elements:
“Twilight, I still don’t believe Sunset is from the past,” Spike said stubbornly.
…
Tell you what; if Sunset shows any sign of being a fraud, we’ll head straight to my parents’ house.
…
Suddenly, Twilight frowned. “About those ponies back there—”
“The thieves?” Sunset rudely interrupted.
“Well, yes—”
“They deserved it.”
…
Twilight groaned. “Just make sure your warning shots don’t accidently maim anypony,” she said. “Or better yet, make sure your warning shots don’t even touch anypony. No more feather searing or mane singeing.”
“Fine,” Sunset said as she rolled her eyes dramatically. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”
…
“What if the pony doesn’t want to come along?”
Sunset came to a halt. “What are you talking about? Who would turn down an offer like that? We’re going to be defea—defending Equestria.”
“Not all ponies are as interested as I am when it comes to, well, what we’re doing,” Twilight replied.
…
“Twilight could be onto something,” Sunset mused. “It’s a bit of a long shot, but maybe the artifacts are powered by the traits they’re named after.”
…
“Sorry, dearie, but that pretty much describes everypony in town,” the elderly earth pony mare told Sunset. “I’m afraid I can’t help you there.”
…
“I’m Rainbow Dash! Fastest flier in Equestria! And everypony knows that I’d never leave new friends hanging!” At that moment, a bright red glow shone from Sunset’s saddlebag.
“Impossible!” Sunset exclaimed.
…
“My destiny is to defeat The Queen and make Equestria the place it once was. I’m not sure what part you play in achieving that goal, but the map is clearly saying that you are important to this cause.” She looked at Rainbow Dash in the eye. “Are you ready to join us on this mission?”
“No,” Rainbow Dash said flatly. Then she took off for the skies, leaving an ethereal rainbow trail in her wake.
Sunset’s jaw dropped as the blue pegasus dashed away. “She… but… how… why?” Sunset stammered as her brain failed to process Rainbow Dash’s blunt rejection. “Why would she say no?”
Twilight tried to offer some words of comfort. “Maybe she—”
“Shut up!” Sunset screamed as she released a fiery blast from her horn. Bits of cobblestone and dirt flew through the air as a shallow crater was ripped in the ground.
Though the blast was not fired in their direction, Twilight and Spike wisely stepped back as Sunset started stomping the ground angrily with her front hooves. Jets of flame streamed from every movement, but these weren’t powerful enough to do more than blacken the stones under her hooves. After the stones around her had been covered with a fine layer of soot, the firebending unicorn absorbed the morning rays of sunlight and channeled it into her body. With a final scream, she threw her head back, pouring all of her energy into the large column of flame that flew from her entire body and flew into the sky.
With her outburst complete, Sunset stopped to catch her breath. She turned her head to see Twilight and Spike watching her, their eyes wide with fear. “What?” she asked them grumpily, even though she could easily guess what they were thinking.
“That was…” Twilight couldn’t even get the words out of her mouth. Even Spike didn’t have anything to say as he took a step back and grabbed Twilight’s hind leg.
Now that her anger had died into mere embers, Sunset felt ashamed of her actions. It had been years since she had thrown a tantrum like that, and the last time she had done so the damages had been much worse. Her shouting and firebending had attracted the attention of ponies who lived along the street and those that had strolling nearby. The ponies were looking at Sunset with a mixture of confusion and fear, but mostly the latter.
Suddenly, Sunset was feeling an emotion she hadn’t experienced in a long time. It was almost funny, actually. She had faced a corrupted alicorn who had tried to kill her, and she had only felt angry and determined. But here, surrounded by harmless ponies who feared her, Sunset’s body began to shake as an unfamiliar feeling clamped over her body like cold, wet blanket. She looked down at her hooves, and then looked around for some way of escape. However, she was no longer in her home in Canterlot. Her home was long gone. There was no room for her to hide in. There was no Celestia for her to turn to.
In a small flash of light, Sunset was gone.
(line break)
Twilight looked around wearily at the crowd of spectators. Sunset’s outburst had scared more than a few of them. The firebender’s disappearance caused the community to let out a collective sigh of relief, but Twilight and Spike could see that this peace wouldn’t last long.
“Who was that pony?”
“She’s mad!”
“She nearly burned down the town!”
“Where did she go?”
“She wants us to die in a fire!”
“Everypony, run!”
“Don’t run!” Twilight shouted. However, her calming order did nothing to settle the crowd of ponies who began running away in panic. Twilight cast a spell to amplify her voice and tried again. “ATTENTION EVERYPONY! DON’T MOVE!”
The blaring proclamation made all of the fleeing ponies halt in their tracks.
Twilight continued speaking, using her spell but not yelling. “There is no reason for alarm! Everything is under control!”
That eloquent speech did not sit well with the crowd. “She nearly killed us!” one mare screeched.
“No!” Twilight shouted. “She was just, um—” Twilight racked her brain for a way to describe Sunset’s outburst in the least damaging way possible.
“Is she with you?”
“You’re both crazy firebending unicorns!”
“Somepony call the guard!”
“No!” Twilight protested. “We’re not crazy firebenders! Well, I’m not. She’s a bender, but she’s not crazy! Kinda.”
“We’ve an arsonist on our hooves!”
“She’s not an arsonist!” Twilight shouted.
“She nearly burned down the town!”
“Technically, she only nearly burned down this street. The amount of fire needed to burn down the entire town in a short amount of time—”
“Listen to her! She’s an arsonist too!”
“No, she’s not!” Spike shouted. “There is no arsonist!”
“The dragon can talk?”
“Then how do you explain the fires?”
“She was, um,” Twilight began. The crowd waited impatiently, snorting and stomping. Twilight noticed some pitchforks being passed around. “She was… practicing her firebending with a performance!” she exclaimed. “Yeah! That’s why the flames were so big but didn’t come close to any buildings or ponies! It’s nothing to worry about. I’m terribly sorry for scaring you and you have my sincerest apologies!”
The mob—for that what it was at that point—looked around with a mixture of confusion and hesitance.
Spike cleared his throat. “And might I mention, this is Lady Twilight Sparkle.” He took a checkbook out of… somewhere. “If we can get your names and addresses I can have a collection of bits delivered to your homes within ten to fifteen business days.”
“How do we know you’re not running a scam?” one stallion asked. “How do you know she’s really a noble?”
Spike raised an eyebrow. “I’m a dragon. How many dragons do you see running around with con artists instead of nobles.”
“Sounds good to me,” said another pony.
“Me too!”
“I could do with some pocket change!”
“Alright, ponies! Line up in a neat and orderly fashion,” Spike announced.
“You don’t know how much this means to me, Spike,” said Twilight as the last pony in line finally left.
“I’m pretty sure I do,” Spike said as he rotated his wrist. “Hopefully Night Light and Twilight Velvet don’t mind the bills.”
“My parents will be fine. At least those ponies are gone now,” said Twilight as she wiped sweat from her brow. “Can you believe how many I caught trying to sneak into the line?”
“Well, we have about fifty names on this list, and the crowd was about half that size when Sunset was here. So I’m going to say… not enough.”
Twilight grinned sheepishly. “I tried my best. I’m not a pegasus you know.”
“Speak of pegasuses, don’t we have a pegasus to find?”
“Pegasi,” Twilight corrected him. “And yes, we have a pegasus and a unicorn to find.”
Spike rolled his eyes. “Twilight, she nearly killed us!”
“Spike, I just had to convince an angry mob that she wasn’t doing that! Do I have to convince you as well?” Twilight sighed in exasperation. “She only aimed for the pavement and sky. She didn’t come close to hitting anypony.”
“Twilight, didn’t you say that we would head straight to your parent’s house if she showed any signs of being a phony?”
“I don’t think throwing a temper tantrum in public classifies as proof for being a spy for a noble,” Twilight told Spike gently. “If anything, it shows that she lacks the ability to spy without blowing her cover. I think she’s safe.”
“Safe? Safe!” Spike echoed incredulously. “Are you kidding me? She’s the exact opposite of safe! Mentally unstable! Dangerous! Psychopathic!”
Twilight placed a hoof over his mouth before he could continue. “Shh!” Twilight hushed him. “We don’t want anypony to hear that!”
Spike pushed the hoof away from his moth. “But it’s true, isn’t it?”
Twilight sighed. “I don’t know, Spike,” she admitted. “I really don’t know.” She plopped her rear on the dusty cobblestone road and sighed.
“Twilight, why don’t we just go home and forget about this?” Spike suggested. “You made a silly bet with your parents, so what? They’ll accept you back. And by you, I mean us.”
“But what about this?” Twilight asked. “The spell. Sunset. Our adventure. Was this all for nothing?”
Spike looked thoughtfully as he recollected their journey so far. “Let’s see. You cast the spell, Sunset popped up, we traveled with her, and Sunset literally exploded, all over the course of a couple of days.” He shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so. I mean, we haven’t really done anything.”
“But we could do something!” Twilight exclaimed. “We could bring Equestria back to its golden age! This could be the greatest event in Equestrian history since the day the Princesses appeared! Just imagine how much better off Equestria will be!”
Spike raised an eyebrow. “I’m pretty sure you could find less drastic measures to help Equestria,” he stated.
“Well, yes, but…”
“But…?”
“But… this the best way I found to do it.”
Spike facepalmed. “Twilight, that doesn’t even make sense! Why couldn’t you invent a spell to help pegasi control the weather? Or find a better way of organizing books? Why did you have to try to bring back a pony you never even met to take over Equestria?”
“I-I had to…”
“But why?”
“You know how the other scholars treated me!”
Spike jumped back. The fire in Twilight’s eyes sent a shiver through his scales.
“They wouldn’t take me seriously, claiming I had manipulated my way into reaching their level. All I wanted was a little respect, a word of acknowledgement, anything! Every time I made a discovery and tried to present it to my fellow scholars, they ripped me off and claimed my work as their own. When I tried to publish my own work, no one would do it for an ‘unknown fresh graduate’. I was a nobody, all on my own.”
“I thought you liked being away from other ponies,” said Spike. “Wasn’t that why you always stayed home researching?”
“I don’t like socializing with ponies,” Twilight corrected the dragon. “But it would be nice not be treated like a bratty cheat every time I try to put my education into practice! Ponies only recognize me for my nobility status. Just because I’m a young mare from a noble family doesn’t mean I’m not capable of performing magical feats beyond their abilities. They knew it, but they decided to ignore my talent to stick to their status quo.” Tears were running down Twilight’s cheeks now.
“Twilight,” said Spike softly.
“And that’s why I want, no, I need to do this,” said Twilight. Her eyes narrowed in burning determination. “Bringing Equestria back to its golden age will have such an influential positive impact that no pony will ever be able to dismiss me as vain, manipulative, prissy noblemare!”
Spike looked at Twilight in awe. It wasn’t often that Twilight poured out her emotions. Spike could tell that she was more serious about this than she had been with any of her other projects. It wouldn’t be easy convincing her to give up now. Spike sighed. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
“It’s what I need.”
Spike nodded. “In that case, count me in!”
Twilight blinked, her moist eyes glistened with hope. “Really?”
“Positive.”
Twilight tilted her head. “Isn’t this the time where you usually tell me I’m crazy and try to convince me to slow down.”
“Not this time, Twilight,” said Spike. “I’m your assistant, so if you’re going to attempt a crazy treason plot, there’s no way I’m going to abandon you.”
“Thanks, Spike,” said Twilight softly as she pulled the baby dragon into a hug.
After a couple of seconds, Spike pushed the overly-sentimental Twilight away. “Alright, first we need to find Sunset,” he said. “Where should we look first?”
Twilight looked up and down the unfamiliar street. “I don’t know Spike, she could have gone anywhere.”
“Can’t you use your horn to find her?”
“You mean my magic?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah!”
“Spike, the only spell I know of that can track a pony requires runes and a personal object of the pony in question,” she informed him. “We don’t have either.”
“But don’t you have a spell for detecting powerful spells?” Spike countered. “Sunset’s teleportation is the strongest spell you’ll find for miles in a place like this!”
Twilight blinked as she considered the idea. “You’re right Spike, that could work,” she said as a grin spread across her face. Her horn lit up as she focused on finding Sunset’s magic. As Spike predicted, Sunset’s teleportation spell was easy to detect due to the lack of powerful spell-wielding unicorns in the area. “It worked, Spike! I found her!” Twilight exclaimed.
Spike shrugged. “Just doing my job,” he said smugly.
“Now all we need to do is get her back on track to using the map. And then we’ll have to find Rainbow Dash.”
“I’ve got a better idea,” said Spike. “Since Sunset and I don’t exactly see eye to eye, how about I go looking for Rainbow Dash while you go find Sunset.”
“I don’t know Spike,” said Twilight with a small shake of her head. “Will you be able to find Rainbow Dash that quickly?”
“I can try!”
“Are you sure you don’t want to come with me to get Sunset first so we can all search together?”
Spike vigorously shook his head. “I’d rather not test how fireproof my scales are.”
Twilight rolled her eyes and gave him a knowing smile. “In that case, meet with Sunset and I in the town square if you can’t find her in an hour.”
“Sounds good!” Spike said as he hopped away.
“And stay out of trouble!”
“Okay!”
“And don’t talk to strangers!”
“Alright, alright! Sheesh, Twilight! I’m not a baby!”
A quick teleportation brought Twilight outside of the town limits. She eyed Sunset wearily as the flame-colored unicorn lay on her belly. Twilight’s stomach knotted, filling her body with the force of nervous tension. This feeling only worsened as she eyed the charred grass beneath her hooves. Twilight steeled up her nerves as she cautiously approached the unicorn in the center of the ring of destruction.
Twilight settled down next to Sunset, wincing as the charred vegetation poked into her stomach. “Well, I don’t want to get on your bad side,” Twilight said with a forced smile.
Sunset didn’t respond, and continued to stare straight ahead.
Twilight craned her head, trying to find the object that had captivated Sunset’s attention. Failing to find anything except the horizon, she cleared her throat and attempt to communicate with Sunset once more. “So… what are you looking at?”
It was several moment before Sunset replied. “Canterlot,” she said wistfully.
Twilight flinched. “That’s where the Queen lives, and it’s not exactly a nice place,” she said uneasily. “Plus, I don’t think any enchantment would allow you to see it from this distance. Maybe a magically enhanced telescope or pair of binoculars, but even that’s a little farfetched. You see, the light—”
“Shut up.”
Twilight clamped a hoof over her mouth. “Sorry,” she squeaked.
Sunset gave no response.
The two laid in silence.
“Canterlot was beautiful in my days,” Sunset said suddenly. Twilight looked at her in surprise. The orange unicorn was staring straight ahead, a smile curling the edge of her lips. “Ponies across Equestria traveled to see the Princess and the glorious city they ruled. Celestia was the kindest and wisest ruler the world had ever known, and Luna was famed for her strong sense of justice and her noble actions. Well, at least until she dabbled in something she shouldn’t have and turned into an evil, corrupted version of herself.” Sunset sighed and let her gaze drop to the ashy remains before her. “I need to stop her, but I can’t.”
“Why not?” Twilight asked. “You have everything you need in your bag; you said so yourself!”
“What good is having everything you need, if you don’t know what to do with what you have?” Sunset asked. “I poked the map so many times I feared I would tear a hole in it. It’s not giving me the next location, so I’m stuck.”
“Maybe it just needed some time to recharge?”
Sunset snorted. “You’re as stumped as I am.”
“You’re… right,” Twilight admitted. “Maybe Rainbow Dash needs to agree to join us before we can move on?” she suggested. “It’s a bit of a wildcard, but we need to look at all of the possibilities.
“I considered that Rainbow’s acceptance was needed, but that doesn’t make sense,” Sunset replied. “First, the map shouldn’t even be able to know things like that. I scanned it myself. There’s no animation spells on it. By all rules of magical theory, it’s not capable of any senses or rational thought. Second, you didn’t need to pledge your commitment before the map let us move on to Rainbow Dash.”
“But didn’t you agree to let us join you before we could find Rainbow Dash?” Twilight pressed.
“That’s not enough evidence of a pattern,” Sunset replied. “Besides, even if we did need that pegasus to agree to join us, I doubt she would. She was very firm in her refusal.”
“There might be a way to convince her.”
Sunset snorted. “Yeah? And how do you propose I do that? Set up a stake-out around her house and coerce her into joining?” Sunset shook her head. “It’s over.”
Twilight frowned, but not because of the continuous irony. “You do realize that this is my mission as well as yours, right?”
“Did you get sent by an immortal alicorn on a quest through time to an equally immortal evil alicorn?”
“Technically, nopony can confirm if alicorns are immortal or merely have an enhanced longevity like that of earth ponies except on a greater magnitude. You see, due to a lack of—”
“Just answer the question.”
“Well… not exactly,” Twilight admitted. “But—”
“But nothing. It’s my mission, and I failed. End of story.”
“So now what?” Twilight rose to her hooves. “Do you expect to just walk away like none of this ever happened? Do you want me to sit around and mope like you’re doing? I’m terribly sorry, but I don’t give up that easily.”
Sunset didn’t respond.
Twilight gritted her teeth. “You need the help of Spike and me just as much as we need yours. If you want to give up, go ahead. Just had over that saddlebag and we’ll go our separate ways.”
“And if I refuse?”
“If you refuse, that means you haven’t completely given up.”
“Would you fight me for it?”
Twilight hesitated. “No,” she replied after a few moments. “Fighting you would probably not go to well. The most logical approach would be to convince you to relinquish it. If that fails, I would have no choice but to steal it from you.”
Sunset’s stony expression wavered as the corners of her mouth lifted. Her sides began to tremble as her face twisted into a strange grimace.
“Are you okay?” Twilight asked with concern.
Sunset fell to her side and burst out laughing. “You… fight me… steal…” She gasped between breaths.
Twilight frowned. “I don’t see what so funny.”
“That’s… what’s… so funny!”
Twilight stared at Sunset blankly as orange unicorn continued to laugh hysterically. “You have a very strange sense of humor,” she commented. She planted her hooves in the ground and continued in a firm tone, “Now, are you with us or not?”
Sunset’s face became sober. “Cut with heroic act, it doesn’t suit you,” she stated flatly.
Twilight visibly wilted.
Sunset jumped to her hooves. “Come on, let’s not waste any more time here.” A grin split across Twilight’s face, but Sunset held a hoof up. “Two things first. One, this is my mission.” She shot Twilight a withering glare. “Don’t you ever forget that. Second, this conversation never happened. One word about this to anypony and I will bake you like well-done toast. Got it?”
“Technically, toast isn’t baked—”
“Got it?”
Twilight gulped and nodded slowly. “Understood,” she squeaked.
“Good.” Sunset smiled. “Now let’s go find us a pegasus!”
“I think you’re forgetting somepony,” Twilight reminded her. “Or somedragon, in this case.”
Sunset groaned.
“You found her!”
“Only thanks to your idea,” said Twilight gratefully.
“It was nothing,” said Spike as he waved a claw in the air. “I’m just pleased to be of service.”
“Don’t we have a pegasus to find?” Sunset cut in.
Spike chuckled nervously as the firebender looked down at him. “Well, I already started looking around while Twilight was finding you.”
“And the fruits of your hard work are very delicious,” said Sunset drily.
“At least he tried,” Twilight argued.
“I checked the market, the main roads, and everywhere in the central part of town,” said Spike. “Who knew it could be so hard to find a brightly colored Pegasus in such a small place?”
“We don’t have a good chance of finding her unless she’d grounded or putting on a show,” Sunset declared. “We need to split up to cover more ground. We’ll cover the three corners of this town to find out if she’s hiding. And if she isn’t, we’ll notice her.”
“But don’t most towns have four corners?” Twilight asked.
“Uh, girls—”
“I’m being figurative,” Sunset retorted with a roll of her eyes.
“You know, you could—”
“But even if we split up there’s no way we could search the town thoroughly. If she’s actively hiding from us then we stand no chance of finding her since she knows this place much better than we do.”
Spike facepalmed. “For The Queen’s sake, you’re—”
“Can you think of a better idea?”
“Why do I even bother…?” Spike grumbled.
“Maybe we could ask around?” Twilight suggested.
“That would still take forever,” Sunset pointed out.
Twilight groaned. “This is so frustrating.”
Spike facepalmed again. “You two are unicorns!” he shouted as he waved his stubby arms in the air. “Just use one of your spells to track her down!”
“Excellent idea!”
“Terrible idea.”
Both unicorns turned to each other.
“What’s wrong with using a spell to track Rainbow Dash down?” Twilight asked. “That’s how I found you.”
“Unless you know a spell that detects pegasus ponies you’re out of luck,” Sunset replied. “Unicorns are easy to trace due to the powerful magic they can build and release in short periods of time. pegasi magic isn’t nearly as easy to detect. And then there’s the fact that you’re looking for a specific pegasus that you haven’t magically scanned.” She snorted. “Good luck with that.”
“Twilight doesn’t need luck!” Spike declared. “She knows more spells than you can shake a stick at. She could use her magic to find any pegasus in the Fire Empire with her eyes closed. Isn’t that right, Twilight?”
Twilight sighed. “Actually, Spike, Sunset’s right,” she said. “Unicorns like Sunset and I have magic that’s very easy to detect. Pegasi magic is subtler. And even though pegasi magic is easier to detect than earth pony magic, I don’t know a spell that would allow me to find a pegasus purely based on their magical output.”
“Seriously?”
“Spells aren’t as easy as firing up your horn and doing whatever you want, little lizard,” Sunset grumbled. “There are limitations.”
“Sunset, Spike’s not a lizard.” Twilight shot Sunset a hard glare. “He’s a dragon, and a very useful one at that.”
“If he was a useful dragon he’d fly us around so we wouldn’t have to use public transportation.”
Twilight gritted her teeth to prevent an angry retort from leaping out of her mouth. After a few moments, she sighed and said, “Can we please argue after we find Rainbow Dash? If we keep bickering we’re never going to find her.”
“Fine,” Sunset drawled. “But we still need a good way to find her.”
“I have an idea!” Spike declared.
“If it’s anything like your last one, I don’t want to hear it.”
“Sunset!”
The orange unicorn sighed. “Fine, fire away.” She rolled her as she prepared for the young dragon’s useless suggestion.
“Why don’t we just go to her house?”
Sunset blinked. So did Twilight.
“I mean, if she’s trying to hide from you, and we can’t see her in the sky, maybe she just went home?”
Twilight nodded slowly. “It’s worth a shot.”
“I guess,” Sunset said slowly. “Or better yet, we could just go to her job’s office. She did say that she had to go to work in the morning, so her boss probably knows where she is now.”
“But we don’t even know where she works,” Spike pointed out. “At least we’ve been to her house before.”
“Spike’s got a point,” said Twilight. “We might as well check on her house first instead of wandering around town trying to find where she works.”
“If it’s such a great idea, then why didn’t he do that while he was looking for Rainbow Dash himself.”
“It’s a cloud house,” Spike deadpanned.
Sunset sniffed. “Whatever. We’re still going to check out her job first.”
“But Spike’s suggestion—”
Sunset held up a hoof. “Remind me who’s leading this group again?” Sunset asked as she narrowed her eyes.
Twilight and Spike sighed. “You are,” they replied reluctantly in unison.
“Precisely. Which means we’re going to do things my way.”
“See. We found it. Easy as pie.” Sunset stood proudly in front of a sign that said, East Steel Town Weather Factory. Standing tall next to the sign was a building that appeared to have had better days. Its walls were covered in flaking, dull grey paint. The windows were smudged to the point that only vague shape could be seen inside.
“I really don’t think pie takes two hours,” Twilight remarked as she flopped onto the lawn in front of the building in a very un-ladylike fashion.
“Actually, that’s how long it takes me to make pies from scratch,” Spike commented.
Sunset rolled her eyes. “Well, we’re here now, so let’s get a move on. On our hooves!”
“I don’t even have hooves,” Spike grumbled. Regardless of his biological differences, he followed Sunset and Twilight into the building.
The room they entered was fairly small, but respectable. Light came from six lamps mounted on the walls of the room. The carpet was decorated with intricate flaming spirals that still looked magnificent despite the obvious wear. Five armchairs lay lined up next to the door. There was a reception desk across the room. To the left of the door were the public facilities, and to the right was a staircase.
“May I help you?” the receptionist asked them in a bored drawl. She was a greenish-brown earth pony mare with a white and grey mane that stuck up on her head in a messy point. A pair of black horn-rimmed spectacles lay on the bridge of her nose. She wore a dark red jack on her barrel and a serious frown on her face.
“We’re looking for a mare named Rainbow Dash,” Sunset replied.
“May I help you?” the receptionist repeated.
“I said, we’re looking for a mare named Rainbow Dash,” Sunset repeated.
“That does not answer my question,” the earth pony mare replied flatly.
“Of course it does!” Sunset exclaimed.
“No, it does not.”
“Yes, it does!”
“No, it does not.” Before Sunset could interject the receptionist added, “Do I have to call security?”
“There’s no need for that,” said Twilight hastily as she jumped between the two mares. “Sunset, let me handle this,” she whispered to the other unicorn.
Sunset huffed but took a step back.
Now Twilight addressed the receptionist. “We would appreciate it if you would help us locate a pegasus mare by the name of Rainbow Dash, who we have reason to believe is employed in your service.”
“The East Steel City Weather Factory’s Code of Conduct prevents me from disclosing that information to you.”
“You could have just told us that earlier!” Sunset exploded.
“Calm down, Sunset!” Twilight said sharply. The other mare glared. Twilight flinched but continued, “Just let me take care of this, all right?”
Sunset grunted and nodded. She took a step back and took a seat next to Spike.
“Don’t worry,” Spike consoled her. “This happens to me a lot.”
“My name is Lady Twilight Sparkle from the House of Star,” Twilight introduced herself to the receptionist. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to persuade you to change your mind about the policy?”
“Rules and regulations exist to be followed,” the other mare replied flatly. “I do not compromise with nobles.” She spat out the word like it left a biter taste in her mouth.
Twilight did not bite to the insult, and instead levitated out a small stack of bits from her bag. The earth pony turned up her muzzle and sniffed. Twilight doubled the amount, but the other mare only sniffed again. Then Twilight levitated one of the coins back into her bag.
“Deal,” the receptionist said as she pulled open a drawer and carefully placed the remaining bits into it with a series of metallic clinks. Then she took out a quill and a stack of papers and began writing.
Twilight waited for a moment.
The receptionist continued writing.
Twilight turned to Sunset and Spike, who only shrugged in response.
The receptionist dipped her quill in an inkwell, and continued writing.
Twilight cleared her throat. “Well?”
“Well, what?” The receptionist asked without looking up.
“Where’s Rainbow Dash?”
“The East Steel City Weather Factory’s Code of Conduct prevents me from disclosing that information to you.”
“But what about our agreement?” Twilight asked.
“What agreement?”
“I paid you a bribe!”
“I do not accept bribes,” the receptionist denied.
“She just gave you two stacks of bits you stupid granny!” Sunset glared at the elderly receptionist. “What did you think that was, a tip? You took a bribe and now you have to pay up!”
“What’s this about bribes?” a gruff voice asked.
Twilight, Spike, and Sunset whirled around to see a pegasus stallion resting at the bottom of the steps. He wore light grey armor and his helmet was adorned with sapphire blue plumage, the signature armor of a Local Guard.
“This noble pony expects me to take a bribe,” the receptionist replied, still without looking up. “Typical.”
“B-but you took it!” Twilight protested. “You put the coins in that drawer!”
“Everypony in this town knows that Cloudy Fog doesn’t take bribes,” said the pegasus guard. “You three will have to come with me.”
As the stallion approached Sunset lit her horn as she prepared to a fire a spell. Twilight cut in front of her. “Legal procedures declare that any defense a suspect claims must be investigated immediately to prevent potential tampering with the evidence!”
The guard hesitated. “I don’t remember reading—”
“Section 6, article 3, paragraph 4,” Twilight said promptly. “Don’t you have to memorize the entire section on arrests in order to pass your guard evaluations? I could have you cited for failing to know or follow the correct legal procedure!”
The guard was dumbfounded, and hesitated. Twilight held his eyes with an even gaze. The guard sighed and turned to the receptionist. “Cloudy, I’ll need to take a look inside that drawer.”
Cloudy harrumphed, but stepped off of her seat and stood next to the desk.
A twinge of suspicion tickled Sunset’s gut. “Get ready to run,” she whispered to her companions.
The guard pulled the drawer out and surveyed its contents. He found several inkwells in the back of the drawer and many blank sheets of paper in the front. He sifted through the sheets of paper and moved aside the sturdy wells as he searched the drawer. “There’s no bribe money in here!”
Before the guard could take a step forward, Sunset fired a magical blast at the desk. It light up in a bright flash, leaving the receptionist and guard stunned against the wall. “Run!” Sunset yelled. Twilight threw Spike on her back and dashed through the door with Sunset on her heels.
“Was that really necessary?” Spike asked as they ran.
“If I was caught and identified I would soon find myself without a head,” Sunset replied. “What do you think?”
“That blast could’ve severely hurt a pony!” Twilight exclaimed. “What happened to controlling yourself?”
Sunset rolled her eyes, even though she knew Twilight was not in a position to see her face. “I didn’t really explode the desk. That blast was harmlessly loud and bright, but very good at startling ponies.”
Twilight could swear that she saw the desk actually explode, but she decided against arguing with Sunset.
“Were going to need more than startling spells!” Spike exclaimed. “We need to get out of here?”
“Not without the pegasus,” said Sunset firmly.
“But how are we going to find her?” Twilight asked.
“We’ll try going to her place,” Sunset decided.
“That was my idea!”
Sunset ignored the dragon’s complaint. “Twilight, how good are you at teleportation?”
“I would say I’m pretty good. Why?”
“Rainbow Dash’s house, now!”
A collection of sparkles flowed into Sunset’s glowing horn as she absorbed the sun’s rays. With a soft pop she disappeared in a flash of light.
Twilight skidded to a stop, nearly throwing Spike off her back. “She did a long range teleportation spell,” she said in awe. “While running. In seconds.”
“Focus, Twilight!” Spike urged her. “We need to get out of here!”
“Right.” Twilight closed her eyes and focused on her magic.
Spike looked in the direction they had come and spotted a thoroughly aggravated guard flying their way. “Twilight, hurry it up,” he urged her.
“I’m… trying…”
Spike’s pupil shrunk as the guard continued streaking towards them. “He’s getting close.”
“Trying… to… focus!”
Spike began gnawing on his nails as the guard drew closer. Just as the guard made it close enough for Spike to count his eyelashes, he and Twilight vanished in a small pop.
Twilight’s teleportation spell took them to the ground right underneath Rainbow Dash’s house. “Made it,” said Twilight in relief.
“That was too close,” Spike sighed. He looked up. “And we missed the front door.”
Twilight giggled. “Relax, I’ve got this.” The two disappeared and then reappeared in front of the front door.”
“Took you long enough.”
Twilight and Spike jumped in surprise and whirled around.
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“You caught us by surprise,” Twilight said weakly. “And your teleportation was so fast. It took me forever to get the ground below in open shot. You need to show me how to do that.”
“Maybe some other time,” said Sunset dismissively. Though if you did three short teleportation hops like I did you might have taken less time. “So, do we blast the door open or what?”
“Diplomacy is the best policy,” said Twilight.
Sunset snorted, but knocked on the door regardless. There was no answer.
“Looks like she’s not home,” said Spike in disappointment.
Sunset frowned. Spike and Twilight watched as her horn lit up and she spent several moments in deep concentration. “Yup, it appears so,” she finally said with a sigh as she dropped the spell. “Too bad, it appears that we brought over all these noodles as an apology for nothing. Looks like we’ll have to eat it all ourselves, Twilight and Spike.”
“What noodles?” Spike asked.
Sunset rolled her eyes. “Play along,” she whispered.
Spike’s mouth formed an O of realization. “Yes, it’s too bad. We should probably get going, we can’t just wait here all day.”
“And to think we had brought some cider too,” Twilight chimed in. “I guess we should drink it before it gets too warm.”
“Cider!” exclaimed an excited voice from inside. The door flung open to reveal a messy-maned pegasus who sweating and breathing heavily. “Where?”
“Nowhere,” Sunset said smugly.
Rainbow’s face turned blank with confusion, but here eyes narrowed as she realized the trick. “Why you—”
“Look, I know we tricked you to bring you out here,” said Twilight quickly. “But we came to apologize.”
The pegasus looked at them in surprise. “How did you know I was fired?” she asked. “Cloudy doesn’t let anything slip!”
“You were fired?” Spike echoed. “Just over messing up one night?”
“Wait, you didn’t know?” Dash asked in confusion. She facehoofed. “Great, way to go, Dash.”
“They didn’t really fire you for something that minor, right?” Twilight asked.
Rainbow Dash snorted. “That, and the multiple ‘accidents’ that happened around me while I was on shift. It’s not like it’s my fault, ponies just tend to keep their eyes on me and my awesomeness whenever I’m around. It’s not like I try to distract them.”
Sunset looked up and down at the mare’s brightly colored mane and tail. “Uh-huh, you seem perfectly inconspicuous in all of your loud and colorful awesomeness,” she said drily.
“Finally, somepony who gets it!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
Sunset mentally facehoofed.
Twilight cleared her throat. “Well then, we are also sorry for making you lose your job.”
Rainbow Dash waved a hoof dismissively. “It wasn’t your fault,” she said. “But if you didn’t know I was fired, what did you come to apologize for?”
“I didn’t come to apologize,” said Sunset.
Twilight gave Sunset a hard look before turning back to Rainbow Dash. “On of all of our behalf, I apologize for inconveniencing you and—”
“Haven’t I told you already to stop with the fancy noble talk and just say what’s on your mind?” Rainbow Dash interrupted.
“Oh, right.” Twilight cleared her throat and tried again. “I’m sorry for all the trouble we’ve caused you, and I’m sorry if you felt a little overwhelmed by all we told you this morning. That much information is a lot to take in all at once.”
“I wasn’t overwhelmed,” said Rainbow Dash defensively.
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “You weren’t overwhelmed?”
“I just said that I wasn’t.”
“And you believed me?”
“You didn’t seem to be lying, so yeah. I’ve heard weirder stories that turned out to be true.”
“You weren’t scared?”
“As if! I’m fearless!”
“You weren’t angry?”
“Why the hay would I be angry?”
“Well how do you explain why you went flying off like that?” Sunset asked suspiciously. “We gave you an opportunity to help save Equestria, and you rejected our offer and flew away like your tail was on fire! Explain that!”
“I was late for work.”
For a brief moment, there was an awkward silence.
Sunset felt a small flush rise to her cheeks. “Oh,” was all she said.
“But why didn’t you want to come along?” Spike asked.
Rainbow Dash sighed. “Come on inside,” she said as she threw open the front door. “This might take a while.” Rainbow Dash led the three to a small couch that, unsurprisingly, was made out of clouds. After the three had seated, Rainbow Dash sat down on the fluffy floor and took a deep breath.
“You see,” Rainbow Dash began. “I moved to this town only last summer. My dad worked his flank off saving up so much money so I could get started here, and I need to earn enough to repay him so I can chase after my dream.”
“What dream?” Twilight interrupted. She blushed and stuck a hoof over her mouth.
Dash smiled and pointed to a poster on the otherwise bare wall, depicting three pegasi in blue and uniforms. “My dream is to become a Wonderbolt!” she announced. “They’re the fastest and most famous fliers in Equestria!”
“Never heard of them,” said Sunset with a shake of her head.
“It makes sense that you wouldn’t. The Wonderbolts were only formed two years after The Queen united Equestria under her rule,” said Twilight. “They’re a household name now. Almost every pony know in Equestria knows about them.”
“Exactly!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “All I need to is save enough money to pay back my dad and enter a Wonderbolt training camp. Then I’ll be Rainbow Dash, fastest flier in Equestria and captain of the Wonderbolts! Every colt and filly will know my name for years to come!”
“Captain?” Sunset echoed. “Is this a sports team or a military division?”
“A bit of both actually,” Twilight replied. “The Wonderbolts are stunt ponies by occupation. They usually perform at air shows for public or private events, and sometimes perform for charities. But in times of international crisis they are used as reserve troops in The Queen’s army.”
“The Queen’s army!” Sunset yelped in alarm as she jumped to her hooves. Her horn immediately lit up as she prepared to cast a spell, but Rainbow Dash struck first. The pegasus flew forward and gave a sharp poke to Sunset’s horn, which caused Sunset to lose control of her spell and take a step back in as she bit her bottom lip in pain.
Spike jumped to safety behind the couch. “Well, that escalated quickly,” he commented.
“I’m not joining the Wonderbolts to be a fat royal’s lapdog,” growled Rainbow Dash. “I don’t like the old fart any more than you do, but I can’t just give up everything in my life to help you! Besides, even if you take down The Queen, another snot-nosed ruler would take her place. I’d prefer to be ruled by a bratty royal I do know, than a bratty noble I don’t know.”
“Celestia is not bratty!” Sunset hissed as she took an aggressive step forward.
“Clam down you two!” Twilight shouted as she jumped in between them. She turned to Sunset. “Sunset, Rainbow Dash isn’t our enemy; she just sees things from a different perceptive. You can’t force her to change her mind.” Now Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow Dash, we’re sorry for troubling you. We will respect your decision.”
“She wants to let a tyrant rule over the throne!”
Twilight turned back to Sunset. Her face was in an uncharacteristically stern frown. “Sunset. Drop it,” she said lowly.
Sunset gritted her teeth. This featherbrained pegasus needs to know that Nightmare Moon needs to go! She almost voiced this, but something in Twilight’s eyes made her pause. The stern frown shone with disapproval, but there was something in her eyes that sent a different message, one that Sunset was very familiar with.
Trust me.
“Fine,” Sunset sighed. “We’re not going to kill you for not wanting stop the evil tyrant Queen.”
“And we would be happy to do anything in our power to make it up to you,” Twilight added, noting Rainbow Dash’s still narrowed eyes.
“We would?” Sunset asked.
“Yes, we would.”
Rainbow Dash’s face softened, and she flicked her hoof dismissively. “I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times. You don’t have to make up for anything,” she said. Her stomach rumbled loudly.
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “You forgot to eat?” she asked.
“Kind of,” Dash replied with a sheepish smile.
“Then we’ll treat you to lunch,” said Twilight decisively.
“You don’t have to—” Another growl interrupted Rainbow Dash’s protest. “On second that, I think I’ll take you up on your offer.”
“Ramen’s huh?” said Rainbow Dash as she slurped up a mouthful of noodles. “You must like this place a lot.”
“Actually, it’s the only restaurant we trust not to cheat us,” said Sunset.
“Seriously?” Spike asked with a raised eyebrow. “That’s the best thing you can say?”
“What?” Sunset asked as she shrugged. “It’s the truth.”
Rainbow Dash laughed. “You remind me of myself,” she said. “Except, you know, not quite as cool.”
“Nice pun,” said Sunset drily.
Rainbow Dash looked at her in confusion, and then laughed. “Ha! I didn’t even notice!” She took another slurp of steaming noodles. “So, where are you from? Originally, I mean. Before the whole… fiasco.”
“A little someplace that I wish I burned to the ground,” Sunset replied.
Rainbow Dash looked up from her food to gape at her, as did Twilight and Spike.
Sunset forced a small laugh. “It’s a saying from my time,” she said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “Don’t take it too literally.”
“So you’re from Fire Nation then?” Rainbow Dash guessed.
Sunset nodded.
“Manehattan?” Twilight asked curiously.
Reluctantly, Sunset nodded. Her ears twitched.
“So,” Dash asked. “Which part—”
“Shut up.”
“Sunset,” Twilight groaned.
“Shut up. I’m serious.”
Rainbow Dash was going to argue, but then she noticed the tense look on Sunset’s face. The orange unicorn was carefully surveying the area, as if she was expecting an attack at any second. Rainbow Dash scanned the area the as well. Through a window she could see a batpony dressed in midnight blue armor walking towards the shop.
“Uh, guys,” Rainbow Dash whispered as she pointed out the guard to the others. “You wouldn’t have happened to commit treason in the past couple of days, have you?”
“You do remember my mission, right?” Sunset said sarcastically through clenched teeth.
“Maybe you shouldn’t have blown up the office,” said Twilight nervously.
Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened. “Wait, she did what?”
“Do you think this is a good time to run?” Spike asked.
Before any pony—or dragon for that mater—could make a move, the door to the noodle shop was thrown open. The batpony in Royal Guard attire stepped into the building. His slit-pupil eyes scanned the crowd of shocked ponies, until his gaze fell on the one he was looking for. He marched to the table where Twilight, Spike, Sunset, and Rainbow Dash were sitting.
“Are you Lady Twilight Sparkle of the House of Star?”
Twilight’s eyes widened in surprise. She nodded; afraid her voice would fail her if she tried to speak.
“You have been summoned to meet with the Queen in Canterlot,” the guard announced. “An escort is waiting for you in the village square.”
“I—uh… am a little, um, busy,” Twilight stammered pitifully.
The guard’s eyes narrowed. “This is not a request.” A glimmer of light caught his eye. He turned his attention from Twilight to see an array of sparkles seeping into Sunset’s lit horn. “What—”
Sunset didn’t let him finish. A fiery blast erupted from her horn, engulfing the batpony and sending him flying away. His body shattered the shop’s door and fell into the street in a tumbling roll. The stallion did not rise.
“What did you do?” Twilight shouted.
“He’s a monster!” Sunset screeched, her eyes were wide with alarm. “Can’t you feel it? He has the corrupt magic of Nightmare Moon flowing through him! He’s not a pony!”
“He’s a Royal Guard and you killed him!” Twilight was nearly hysterical. “We’re going to be hunted down and thrown in the dungeon for this, or worse!”
“Calm down, Twi,” called Rainbow Dash as she took a careful look at the guard’s charred body. In their argument the two unicorns hadn’t noticed her fly to the guard’s side. “He’s still alive, batonies are durable like that. They don’t go down without a fight.”
“That’s no pony!” Sunset inisisted. “That’s some twisted, nightmarish abomination!”
“Can we argue about this later?” Spike asked as he pointed a claw at the growing crowd. “We need to get out of here!”
“And we’ve got company!” Rainbow Dash announced, spying three batponies flying towards them.
“I’ll take care of these creatures,” said Sunset. “You should get running.”
“But what about you?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah, we can’t leave you here alone,” Spike added.
“I’m with Spike. You think I’m going to fly away and let you get wrecked on three on one fight?” Rainbow Dash shook her head. “Not happening. I told you that I don’t leave my friends hanging.”
“But if you help us you could get in trouble!” Twilight reminded her. “This is the Royal Guard we’re talking about. This isn’t a game!”
“You think I’m playing?” Dash shot back. “Royal Guards or not, there’s no way I’m going to leave you in trouble.”
“If you want to be useful get Twilight and Spike out of town,” said Sunset.
“But that’ll leave you alone,” Spike pointed out.
“Yeah! You expect to meet up with us after facing three armored Royal Guards?” Rainbow Dash asked skeptically.
“I can trace Twilight’s magic and teleport away if I need to,” Sunset growled. “Don’t argue with me. Just get those two out of here.”
“But—”
Twilight’s protest was cut off by Rainbow Dash grabbing with unicorn in her front hooves. “Hop on dragon buddy,” said Rainbow Dash.
“I’m not going to run like a scaredy dragon!”
“Yes, you are,” Sunset said as she levitated him onto Rainbow Dash’s back.
“Good luck!” Rainbow Dash said as she dashed away with her unwilling passengers.
Sunset nodded and turned to face the incoming threats. Two of the batponies tried to continue chasing Rainbow Dash, but a large column of flame interrupted their flight. They barreled rolled out of the way. One swooped down to Sunset, and the other continued its original course.
Two out of three isn’t so bad, Sunset thought as she anchored her hooves onto the cobblestones underneath her. Twilight and Rainbow Dash should be able to take out one of these creatures.
The two batponies circled around Sunset as they searched for an opening. Sunset waited patiently, knowing that her normal strategy of razing everything to the ground wasn’t a good idea when there were spectators. Since these idiots won’t move I’ve got to keep my destruction to a minimum. These freaks don’t have the same limitation, so I’ve got to take them out as quickly as possible.
The batponies swooped down from different angles with speeds that would make most pegasi proud. Sunset breathed steadily and waited. At the last possible moment, she cast a quick teleportation spell. She arrived a few feet from where she previously stood, ready to deliver a follow up attack. Unfortunately for her, the batponies managed to avoid crashing into each other. One swooped back into the sky, and the other landed on the ground in a roll.
The one that landed on the ground stood no chance. By the time he was back on his hooves, Sunset had released a blast of flame from her horn. The attack sent the batpony into the wall of a brick house, and he didn’t get up.
The final guard, which Sunset had been surprised to identify as a mare, came around for a second pass. Sunset could tell by her opponent’s movements that this guard was faster and more agile than her companion was, but she seemed less bulky. Sunset stood still and waited for the guard to pass. As she expected, the batpony reached for her horn in attempt to cripple her. However, Sunset reared her head back as she performed a back flip. Flame leapt from her head and all four hooves, sending the batpony crashing into the wall of another building.
Assuming that the guard was unconscious, Sunset prepared a teleportation spell and honed in on Twilight’s signal.
Twilight and Spike were surprised that Rainbow Dash wasn’t lying when she said she was the fastest pegasus in Equestria. Even while burdened down with Twilight in her hooves and Spike on her back, she was able to outpace and out manuver the batpony guard. She ducked in and out of streets; sometimes even making almost ninety degree turns. Unfortunately, she was slowly losing altitude, and couldn’t risk losing speed to climb up.
“We’re almost out of town!” she announced to her passengers.
Spike glanced behind them. “I don’t see anypony behind us,” he announced. Then he noticed two shadows running along the sides of the buildings. He looked up and saw two batpony guards bearing down on them. “But there are two right above us!”
Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth. They were only flying a few feet from the ground now, and escaping town wouldn’t help if the guards followed them. “We’re going in for a landing!” She tried to make the landing as gentle as possible, but there wasn’t an easy way to come to a stop while she was flying for her life. The two ponies and dragon tumbled to the ground in a heap.
Rainbow Dash was the first one to her hooves. She stood over her friends protectively as the two guards landed on either side of the street.
“Move aside pegasus,” said one of the guards, a mare. “We are for Lady Twilight Sparkle.”
“You’re going to have to get through me,” said Dash firmly. “No one get’s to my friends that easily.”
“You don’t understand pegasus,” said the guard’s partner gruffly. “The Queen specifically—”
“I don’t care what The Queen says,” said Rainbow Dash firmly. “No pony touches my friends!”
“Dash, you can’t fight both of them,” said Twilight as she climbed to her hooves. “Maybe I should—”
Rainbow Dash shook her head. “I didn’t come this far to give up now,” she declared. “Besides, those guards aren’t going to be able to take me down as easily as they think. I know more than a few tricks about fighting.”
The guardsmare snorted. “We can hear your ‘secret’ plans clearly, pegasus,” she said. “Stay out of our way and let us collect—”
With a pop and flash, Sunset appeared in front of Twilight. She immediately dropped to into a fighting stance when she saw the guards. “There’s more of these freaks?” she exclaimed.
“I’ve had enough of this,” the batpony stallion bellowed. He galloped to the group in thunderous charged.
A teal aura surrounded the guard’s body. He slowly came to a stop just a few feet from the group. “Nice try, but it’s not happening,” said Sunset with a smirk.
A sharp pound drew Sunset’s attention. She turned to see Rainbow Dash engaging in furious hoof-to-hoof combat with the other guard as they hovered barely over the street. I didn’t even hear the guard move, she thought as a twinge of fear rippled through her body.
Sunset kept a tight telekinetic grip on her guard, but he was proving to be more difficult to hold than she had expected. He seemed to have a moderate degree of magical resistance, and every muscle in his body was straining against the force of Sunset’s magic. Sunset was suddenly hit with a burst of inspiration. “Rainbow Dash! Duck!” She changed the focus of her telekinesis from total immobilization to directed movement. The guard has already been trying to fly towards her, so it was easy to use his pent up energy to fling him at his partner. The two batponies sailed down the street.
“Great shot!” cheered Rainbow Dash.
“That was easy,” said Sunset confidently. “And you were so worried, Twilight.”
A magenta forcefield was Twilight’s response. Sunset turned back to the batponies, who were standing with their mouths open. Dust and pebbles were blown away from them, but Sunset couldn’t feel or hear anything from the inside of the bubble.
“Batponies can release powerful sonic vibrations from their mouths,” said Twilight through gritted teeth.
“And they’re more durable than pegasi or unicorns,” said Spike. “It’ll take more than one hit to take them out.”
“But I took out four batponies with one hit apiece!” Sunset exclaimed.
“It looks like two of them are back for a rematch,” called Rainbow Dash as she pointed a hoof at a pair of guards whose some-covered bodies stood out from the clear sky.
“We need to get out of here!” yelled Spike.
“We can’t blindly teleport and Rainbow Dash can’t carry all of us,” said Sunset.
“Looks like we’ve no choice but fight our way out,” said Rainbow Dash grimly.
“Dragonfire…”
“What?” Sunset asked.
“Dragonfire,” Twilight repeated slowly. “Their armor… doesn’t… resist… dragon fire.”
“But I can barely light a torch,” said Spike. “And they’re all the way over there!”
Twilight’s shield suddenly flickered. Now all four batponies were using their sonic screeches. Windows up and down the street were being shattered, and the ponies and dragon behind the barrier could hear soft whistling noises.
“Spike, get ready to make the biggest blast of flame you can,” Sunset ordered. “Rainbow Dash, once I say go, get Twilight and Spike off the street.”
Rainbow Dash crossed her forelegs. “I get that you’re big on the heroic, ‘I’ll catch up with you later!’ But seriously, no.”
“We don’t have time for this!” shouted Sunset. “Spike, I need as much fire from you as you can get.”
For a moment Spike hesitated. He glanced at Twilight, who had hers eyes tightly shut as she focused on the weakening magical barrier. He nodded and took a big gulp of air. He breathed an impressive stream of dragon fire, which due to Sunset’s imperfect planning, shattered Twilight’s shield.
“Go!” Sunset yelled.
Sunset had a tricky task before her. Dragon fire wasn’t as easy to bend as normal fire due to its unyielding magical nature. Sunset had forgotten that without a barrier it would be near impossible to simply manipulate the fire to knock out the four guards, especially since they were using their sonic screeches. Fortunately for her, they had decided to stop their attack once the shield dropped. As they took a moment to catch their breath, Sunset passed the green flame through their ranks. Two of them fell while the other two flew. Sunset immediately focused her attention on the two airborne ones. Both were male, and one of them was more soot covered than the other.
“So the males are bulky and they have fire resistant fur,” Sunset mused. “Well, let’s see if they can chew on this!” Since the two were flying side by side, she sent the dragon fire in their direction and destabilized the flow of energy she had used to control it, causing the flames to violently explode. With two strokes of luck, both ponies fell from the sky and no nearby houses burst into flame.
“Easy as pie,” she said cockily.
That was when a sharp stab of pain shot from her horn. She winced and pulled back as she fought the tears that were building in her eyes.
“You’re a clever little pony, but you’ve got more arrogance in you than a filly half your age.” Sunset could recognize the voice as the guardsmare she had defeated earlier. “The queen will definitely—”
A hiss and quickly following boom cut off the mare. Sunset blinked away the water in her eyes. The batpony was lying a few feet away, unconscious. Sunset turned her head in the direction opposite of the mare’s body and saw Twilight aiming a brightly glowing horn in her direction. Instinctively she ducked, and not a moment too soon. A magenta beam shot over head.
“What are you shooting at me for?” Sunset asked angrily.
“Look behind you hothead!” Rainbow called out from above. Sunset glanced up and saw the pegasus carrying the dragon on her back as she pointed to something behind Sunset.
Sunset turned around to see another batpony guard unconscious just a few feet behind her. She muttered a curse under her breath. Why can’t I ever hear these things coming? They’re wearing clunky armor for Celestia’s sake! They shouldn’t be able to sneak up on me!
Twilight frowned. “Sunset, we need to get moving!” she called out, snapping Sunset from her thoughts. “They won’t stay down for long.”
“I don’t think we can outrun them,” said Rainbow Dash. “And I can’t carry all of you. Plus, you won’t be able to run away from the Royal Guard when they’re out for your blood. These guys are prime endurance fliers.”
“We won’t need to run or fly,” said Sunset. “Twilight, do you know how to link spells?”
“Sharing the casting of a spell with another unicorn? Of course!”
“Do you know how to link a long range teleportation spell?”
“Sunset, I know how to link all the spells I know,” said Twilight. “It’s not that hard.”
Sunset rolled her eyes as she walked up to Twilight. As the two unicorns touched horns, their magic became connected. The magic linked their minds as one, along them to share thoughts as quickly as they passed through the ponies’ minds.
We need to get to Winnieton, thought Sunset.
I’m not sure we’ll be able to make it that far, Twilight responded. I’ve exhausted a lot of my magic, and so have you.
Sunset would have mentally smirked if she could. But I’ve got the sun to recharge me, she reminded Twilight.
But I don’t.
Just contribute what you can. Something is better than nothing.
Alright.
One of the fallen guard let out a groan.
Rainbow Dash looked at Spike. “Think I should hoofbump his face?” she asked.
Spike glanced over at Twilight and Sunset. Their horns were glowing with blinding light and a small ball was being formed at their tips. “Nah, we should just stay close to those two and we’ll be fine.” Rainbow Dash nodded and landed as close to the two unicorns as possible.
The guard groaned again as he stumbled to his hooves. His body snapped to attention as he saw the three ponies and dragon. “Stop in the name of The Queeeeouch!” His order died in a painful yelp as a bright flash of light blinded him. The image of the four escaping would be forever burned in his mind, and his eyes.
Sombra was not a hot tempered pony. In fact, most ponies said his heart was as cold as ice. He did his job effectively, but not with the unrelenting vigor found in most of the younger officers. He took his victory in stride. He took his mistakes with gritted teeth. He took subordination with a withering look. There was very little that could break his cool demeanor.
He had taken two dozen batpony guards with him to search Manehattan, Winniton, and the surrounding area for Lady Twilight Sparkle. Only a few hours after sending out his forces did he receive word that one of them had signaled for help.
Occasional incompetence was inevitable. His patience was barely chipped.
When Sombra arrived, he found six of his guard incapacitated. One of them had injuries so severe that he needed to be airlifted directly to Manehattan for treatment.
Resistance was unexpected, but his patience could handle a small crack.
Twilight Sparkle had escaped.
That was a small hole in his wall of patience.
Nopony knew where she was.
…Bye-bye, wall.
“What do you mean, they disappeared?” Sombra snarled at the private. The unicorn stood so close to his subordinate that his deformed horn grazed the guard’s forehead. “Did you fail at enchamant bypass training? Nopony simply disappears!”
“They didn’t use an enchantment!” The batpony protested, trying, and failing, to remain clam as Sombra gave him a glare hot enough to melt sand into glass. “I even tried to sense their magic, but I could find any trace of it! They must have managed a long-range teleportation.”
“Are you certain of this?”
The guard nodded.
Sombra looked the guard in the eye. Despite the batpony’s evident fear, Sombra could tell that he was speaking with assurance. With a half nod, he moved onto to his next question. “You mentioned she had companions, who were they?”
“One of them was her pet dragon,” the guard replied shakily. “Another was a local pegasus name Rainbow Dash. Blue coat, and a distinct rainbow mane. Apparently, she had been fired from her job just this morning. The final one was an orange unicorn with a red and yellow mane. The local ponies say she arrived in town with Lady Twilight Sparkle.”
“Do you have a name for her?”
The guard shook his head. “No, but the locals described her as being aggressive. A local guard and a civilian were injured when the orange unicorn attacked them to prevent Lady Sparkle from being arrested for attempted bribery.”
Sombra finally took a step back from the guard—who sighed in relief—as he mused over the situation. “Pops up out of nowhere when Lady Sparkle is being attacked legally, and defends her physical when a guard attempts to detain her. Tell me, private,” the guard’s eyes widened in fear, “what do you make of this?”
The batpony was silent for a few moments. “Judging from the information I have so far, I would assume that Lady Twilight Sparkle hired her as a bodyguard.”
Sombra gave him a slow nod. “Congratulations, you passed your basic competency exam,” he replied.
The guard sighed in relief.
“However…” Sombra continued, a malicious grin sliding over his features. “I’m putting the blame of their escape in the hooves of you and everypony else present during this failuer. Make sure you inform the others of their failures.”
“Y-y-yes, s-sir.”
“Now, get out of my sight.” The private wasted no time following that order. He moved so fast he practically flew through the doorway, and ended up nearly breaking a wing in the process.
Sombra looked around at the now empty noodle shop he had temporarily used as an interrogation room. The lack of a door irked him, but it had been the nearest empty building he could find. And he certainly did not have the time to expel civilians from occupied buildings. “Those weaklings will have to be reassigned to training camp,” he growled. “No one bodyguard should be able to take out three pairs of the Royal Guard. Another year or two non-compensated training should whip those foals into shape.”
Sombra slowly walked to one of the empty wooden tables. Snarling, he smashed its center with a hoof, breaking the table in half. “Those ignorant, foalish, incompetent idiots!” He screamed in rage as he summoned a beam of dark magic from his horn and blasted the broken table, and a part of the wooden floor, into smoky rubble.
“The Queen will not be happy when she hears about this.”