//------------------------------//
// The Cutie Re-Mark part 2 
// Story: The Little Pony Legend: A Kingdom of Friendship 
// by MaggiesHeartLove 
//------------------------------//


The Cutie Re-Mark part 2


The Castle, Twilight's magical friendship castle was gone completely! And worse, it looked as if nothing had changed from the timeline. Everything looked just as it did in Cloudsdale, only the team were out of place once more. 
"Uh, Twilight? Where's your castle?" Flash asked, his voice shaking with worry. They were in the exact same place the castle once stood, but all they found was the map glowing an eerie red and a few broken chairs surrounding it, no doubt the Mane Six's thrones, only without their cutie marks and appeared to have been abandoned for years.
Mako placed his hands on the surface of the map, horrified by the display of the once beautiful land of Equestria. "The map! It pulled us back... but whatever Starlight did in the past, changed things here!"
"But why?" Bolin asked, "And how did we get here? Where's here?"
"More like when." Twilight said, levitating the scroll from her satchel, unfolding it. "Starlight altered Star Swirl's spell, then somehow used it on the map to travel into the past and change something! Once she did, the map pulled us back to the present!"
Bolin held his hands up, "Okay, back up a moment! If we're in the present, or the past, or not to distant past, a--a--and if Starlight changed the past, making the Rainboom never happen, then that means all the things the Mane Six went through to get their cutie marks never happened, which means Twilight never became Celestia's student and should't even be an alicorn! But she still is!" the earthbender felt woozy as he rubbed his forehead. "Ow! Brain pain."
"It must have been that cover up Twilight mentioned earlier." Mako said, "Somehow it's keeping us from changing along with the timeline."
"I've read about this." Twilight said, pondering as her memory worked in over time. "What Starlight did was trap us between two separate timelines, the one where we came from and this one. That's why we don't change along with it. This is the alternate timeline which would technically be present in our timeline."
"That would explain a lot. Look!" Flash pointed to the magical map, "The map doesn't even make sense anymore! The Crystal Empire takes up half of Equestria!"
"It looks a lot like from when the Fire Nation wagged war on the world." said Mako, analyzing the new design of the map. "Plus there's the whole missing castle thing…"
"Right!" Twilight agreed, pondering in thought. "This is too big to handle on our own."
"You think?" Spike replied sarcastically. 
"We need to find our friends and get help!"
"Only, if this is a different timeline, and the Rainboom never happened, what do you think happened to the others?" Asami asked.
"I don't know. But we have to at least try and find the others. Hopefully, they'll be willing to help."


(~)


The group headed towards the small town of Ponyville, only it looked nothing like it did before. Not only was it back to its original design before the Great Change, but the atmosphere had completely shifted. There wasn't a single pony around, no laughter, no joy, not even color. Everything was tinted with a faint red color. The houses of the ponies were shattered, torn, broken and pieces wood were nailed on the windows. The only sound they could hear where the sound of crows, flapping around them, taking what little food they could find on the ground. Even the plant life looked in just as bad shape as the town itself.
Spike noticed a pony looking out from her window and happily waved her a friendly hello. To his surprise, the pony hid herself away by closing the curtains. This was peculiar for Spike, since he knew nearly every pony in town and they had come to love him. This timeline did not suite him well at all.
"I'm gettin' a bad feeling about this…" said the little dragon as he stepped closer to his friends.
"I've never seen Ponyville like this." Bolin said sadly before stopping in front of the bridge and the lake that once sprung beautiful clear waters was now practically dried up. This was truly heartbreaking for him. He couldn't imagine who could possibly live like this? Could people of the Earth Kingdom be in this bad shape as well?
"I know, Bolin, but this is Ponyville!" Twilght said, trying her best to sound as optimistic as she possibly could. "How bad could things be?"
"You might want to rephrase that, Twi." Asami said, pointing towards a familiar building, which only instead of a cupcake it had a bread on the roof, no longer did it look colorful, sweet and playful, but dull and broken down. 
"Is that Sugarcube Corner?" Mako asked, not fully believing that this old out of business bread shop was once the store where his friend Pinkie Pie would bake the yummiest of sweets for her friends. The memory of her smile was fresh in his mind and seeing the place like this was heartbreaking.
Asami squatted down and picked up what appeared to be a toddler's pacifier. "The Cakes. What could have happened to them?"
It was then when Spike gasped in shock and ran ahead towards a familiar store that looked a lot like a carrousel, only it appeared just as abandoned as the rest of Ponyville. The doors were closed up by wood and the plants that once grew around it were all dead.
Spike knocked on the door, but when nopony answered he started banging hard, peeking into the holes of the wood but found the entire place was empty. Manikins stood unattended and pieces of fabric were shrouded with cobwebs and spiders scrawling all around.
"Rarity? Rarity?!" the dragon called out, but there was no reply.
"I don't think she's here, Spike!" Twilight said sadly, "I'm not sure anything we know is the same!" the princess hung her head in sadness, mirroring the distress that came from all of her friends. The once beautiful home they had come to adore, and all who lived here, were gone. It was as if a piece of their very history was taken away. But the princess refused to give up. She still had an idea. 
"But I know one place that could never change!"


(~)


The sign of the table still hung down from the entrance of the farm…along with the giant factory that had consumed practically the entire farmhouse!
The group dropped there jaws at the sight. Sweet Apple Acres was a wholesome, sincere and hard working place that relied on good old fashioned hard work and sweat to get the job done. And now it was a smoke spewing factory!
Metal pillars stood tall from the back of the barn, releasing smoke that covered nearly the entire farm in a gloomy haze. They never imagined Applejack's farm would turn out like this.
"Okay, if it turns out this place is run by the Flim Flam brothers I'm knocking some heads!" Mako exclaimed in furry. There was no way he was going to let a couple of con artists get away with stealing his best friend's farm. Applejack worked too hard and for too long to allow that to happen.
The group made their way into the farm, towards one of the windows, which was covered in dark dust, no doubt from the pollution coming from the factory. The group wiped the dust off and peeked inside. 
It would appear Mako wouldn't be knocking some heads after all, because it wasn't the Flim Flam brothers in charge of this disaster to the environment…it was the Apple Family themselves!
Machines grinding, squeaking, hissing and rumbling as apples were squished into machines and shoved into tin cans via assembly line. Working inside were Big Mac and his sister Applejack, looking as they did before the Great Change, only now they wore brown colored, full body suites and hair nets on their manes and tails. Big Mac wore a mask over his mouth while looking at a clipboard in his hoof while his sister, who also wore a mask, walked outside to roll a barrel outside. She lowered her mask once she did, not that there was much fresh air to take in anyway, and did her work all while wearing a stoic look on her face.
"Applejack?" Bolin rushed on over and lifted the pony up, embracing her in one of his great big bear hugs. But it wasn't the reunion he was expecting for the pony kicked him in the stomach, forcing him to release her and she landed onto the ground. The poor human was literally out of breath. "Good…to see you…too…" he said before falling over from the impact.
"What in the hey are ya?!" the country pony asked, surprised to see such a strange creature before getting into a defensive position. "If you're here to hurt my family, you've got another thing commin'!"
"Applejack, wait!" Mako called out, stopping her from attacking his brother.
"There's more of ya? Alright, if it's a fight you want--"
"We're not here to fight you!" Twilight said, raising her hoof as a sign of peace. Asami helped Bolin back to his feet and he rubbed his stomach, still feeling the pain from the kick. "We came because we knew you'd still be here."
"Of course I am. This is my home." Applejack said, getting back to work by rolling the barrel towards a wagon filled with them.
"So, do you know where Pinkie or Rarity or Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash are?" Twilight asked hopefully.
The country pony shook her head, "No. Who in tarnation is Pinkie Bow and Flutterdash? Or any of you for that matter? And, why do ya'll look so weird?" she asked, examining their appearances, which somewhat classed with the appearance off her world. The two ponies had their eyes slightly smaller compared to Applejack, and their features looked more detailed and three dimensional than flat like herself.
"You… don't know who we are?" The princess lowered her ears in sadness. Her best friend didn't recognize her or any of the group. 
"Nope." Applejack replied as she rolled over yet another barrel, "Honestly, the only name I recognize is Rarity, but she left for Manehattan years ago."
"Probably to become a world-famous fashion designer, I bet!" Spike said. 
"Not that I know of. Last I heard she went to help with the cause like everypony else." Applejack closed the lid on the wagon once all the barrels were perfectly placed. 
"The cause?" Mako asked curiously. 
"The war against King Sombra and the Crystal Empire?"
"What?!" the group exclaimed, not able to fully grasp what they had just heard. 
There was a war going on? Against the Crystal Empire? The most beautiful and love filled place in all of Equestria? And Sombra was back? How was this possible? How could stopping a Rainboom from happening cause all of this?
Applejack arched an eyebrow at their reactions, "You don't really work for Sombra, do ya?"
"No, we don't." Flash replied, "Look, we know this is hard to believe, quite frankly I still don't believe it, but you and those other ponies we mentioned are our friends!"
"Did you bump your head on a crate of cider or somethin'?" 
"We're telling you the truth!" Twilight said with determination, "And if you come with us, we'll prove it."
"Sorry, but I've got a lot of work to do. Hope you find what you're lookin' for, though." Applejack turned around and prepared to head back into the barn, only to be stopped when Asami stepped forward in front of her.
"AJ, I'm sorry we had to do this." 
"Wha? Hey!"


(~)


The country pony struggled in Mako and Bolin's grip, the two boys needing to sustain her in order to take her back to the map, since he refused to come with them before.
"Put me down right now!"
The two complied and safely landed the pony down in front of the magical map. For a moment, she could hardly keep herself from looking away. Never in her life had she seen such an amazing and magical object in all of her life. This was all the proof she needed. These creatures were telling the truth.
"Well, I'll admit I've lived in these parts my whole life and I've never seen this before."
"There's also supposed to be a castle that goes with it." Spike said while sitting on one of the broken thrones. 
"I still don't see what this has to do with all of us bein' friends." said Applejack.
Twilight began explaining the situation to her, "Another pony named Starlight Glimmer used this map to travel through time and change things in the past! For some reason the map's here but everything else is different!"
"Different how?"
"Well for one thing, where we come from there's no war with King Sombra." 
Applejack looked down in sadness as she looked down at the map. The idea of there existing a world without Sombra was indeed an attractive one. Too bad it wasn't the reality.
"Maybe you could tell us how the war started, then we can figure out when everything changed." Mako suggested.
"That's easy enough." Applejack sighed before she began telling them the dreadful tale of Equestria's war. "When the Crystal Empire returned, it brought King Sombra back with it, and it didn't take long for him to force every one of his subjects to fight for him against Equestria."
Applejack placed her hoof over the map, and suddenly it reacted to her touch, creating what appeared to be some kind of magical glowing screen where the others could see King Sombra himself ruling over the Crystal Empire. He looked just as terrifying as the images depicted him. His blood red eyes that matched the very tip of his curved unicorn horn, his mane was like pitch black flames and his coat was as gray as coal. His silver crown rested perfectly around his head, his long blood red cap bellowed against the cold wind, the once beautiful Crystal Empire was now nothing but a distant memory.
Dark crystals shrouded the land, covering the palace itself in its darkness, and every crystal pony was forced to slavery or to battle. Sombra had created magical helmets that, once placed upon a pony's head, their minds, bodies and souls now belonged to him. They no longer had any free will of their own. They were his to control.
The sight was truly devastating for the group to watch. Applejack realized this map reacted to her memories and what she knew of the war. She and the others watched in dismay as the scene unfolded before their very eyes.
They witnessed Sombra and his army marching over a snowy plane, on the opposite side was the sun princess herself, Celestia, and her mother Queen Leilani, who apparently had come out of hiding to aid her daughter, but there was no sign of Princess Luna anywhere. 
Upon Celestia's command, a brigade of pegasus ponies soared across the skies, many of them included the Wonder Bolts, all wearing helmets and battle suites. A familiar pony with blue feathers soared alongside Spitfire and Soarin, they knew who she was due to the rainbow colored tail, only she appeared to only have one wing, the second being a metallic artificial one.
The Crystal Army charged forward as Celestia's guards and air force charged on as well, ready to fight for their homeland. Asami's hands reached her mouth in horror when the opposing armies collided, battling against one another in a brutal display. Some were even to the death. All the while King Sombra laughed at the display like the black hearted monster he was.
The poor heiress could barely look away, neither of them could. Mako's eyes shimmered almost as if tears would shed. These images reminded him so much of when his parents died. The merciless display was too much for him to bear, and yet he couldn't look away. Twilight had seen many terrible displays of cruelty, one being when her best friend was poisoned before her eyes. But no matter what, any act of cruelty still tore her heart in two every time she witnessed it.
One of the pegasus ponies kicked and punched each crystal pony that came at her. She was indeed powerful. One of the crystal ponies jumped at her but she bucked him off, removing her helmet in the process, revealing her shortened rainbow colored mane, styled into a spiky punk-like bang, her left ear was nearly torn off and a scar ran across her left eye. One of her wings wasn't even her real one, it was completely made out of metal which she used for flight. Rainbow Dash had become a warrior with battles scars so shocking they placed Twilight's own scar to shame.
As she fought, two crystal soldiers rolled an enormous boulder from a cliff, which would land on the pegasus pony. Thankfully, two more ponies came to her rescue. Maud and Pinkie Pie, both breaking the rock at supper fast speed with nothing but their hooves. The two landed safely beside Rainbow Dash, both sporting similar punk-like hairstyles, and Maud was actually showing more emotion. Granted, it was more anger and determination but still. Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, only mirrored her sister's expressions. She wasn't smiling nor did she appear her innocent happy-go-lucky self. The scars of war certainly have changed her.
The two alicorns were a part of the fight as well, but even with their magic it still wasn't enough. Applejack could see how hard it was for these new folks to witness such a display.
"Even with Princess Celestia and her mother, Queen Leilani leadin' the charge, it still takes every last pony in Equestria doin' their part, workin' day and night, to keep up the fight." she explained as more images appeared before them.
Images of ponies working a hard as they could to help the royals win the battle. Flutteshy was still working with animals, but mainly with sheep to sell their wool for clothing, which Rarity, working as one of the many seamstresses, to create the battle cloths and supplies for the poor ponies who lost so much during the war. Even ponies were forced to leave their homes for either safety or to join in the army to fight for their land. 
Finally, the image disappeared and the group was entirely horrified. Their hearts pounding hard against their chests, feeling as though they would break. This was what had become of their pony friends? Was this a future without their friendship? 
"What did we just watch?" Bolin asked, still too stunned to move. Asami weeped in his shoulder as he comforted her.
"I'm sorry ya'll had to see that." said Applejack, lowering her head in regret. "I didn't mean for it to happen."
Twilight was finally able to tear her gaze away from the map, even for a moment. Mako had to cover his face as several tears rolled down from his eyes. 
"I just don't believe it!" Twilight exclaimed, closing her eyes shut, "We stopped King Sombra! You and me and all of our friends!"
"But we aren't friends. At least not here."
"...Right." the princess felt her eyes water. Who knew changing one thing from the past would cause all of this.
"Look. I hope all this helped, but I really need to get back to cannin' those apples." the country pony began walking away but briefly stopped, expecting one of them to stop her. But they never did. 
"Thank you." Mako was the only one who spoke up, still shielding his eyes, "We're going to set things right."
"I hope you do." she said before leaving these poor souls to think of a way to put everything back the way it was supposed to be.
Mako placed his hands on the map, letting the tears fall down and land on the map itself. He didn't even bother to hide it. Why should he? After what they had all just witnessed it was only natural in this case. He could image that happening to his world…but here? In Equestria? This whole display was like watching a child loose his innocence. He had spent so many years only now finally regaining some hope and happiness and even childhood joy back, the kind he missed out on, and now these poor ponies were suffering just as he did. So many lives lost, and all because of Starlight's meddling.
"The only good thing about Korra not being here…is she didn't get to see that…nightmare!" said the firebender, weeping as the tears rolled down from his eyes. 
Twilight Sparkle shed tears as well, feeling the sting from her past experience as she witnessed all of her friends suffering, and hugged her friend. They all joined in the embrace, releasing their feelings then and there. They had to let it out or else they wouldn't be able to fix this mess. For this one moment, they allowed themselves to be vulnerable. 
Once they had a chance to release it all, slowly they dispersed, wiping the tears from their eyes and getting back to business. Spike wiped away his tears and sniffed, "So… how are we gonna set things right?"
"I don't know!" Twilight exclaimed, more so in worry than sadness, before burying her face in her hooves. "The only thing we know for sure is that Starlight stopped the Rainboom!"
"And that the map's still here." Bolin mentioned, making Twilight gasp. 
"Bolin, that's it! The map is connected to the Tree of Harmony! It must sense that something isn't right! That's why it's still here!" 
Mako's eyes widened in realization too, "And the Tree of Harmony is also connected to the Elements of Harmony, which are connected to--"
"Korra!" the group exclaimed in unison.
"But, how are we going to get to her?" Asami asked, "The portal still hasn't opened yet."
"With this!" Twilight levitated the prophesy book from her satchel, "We used the book to travel to your world before the Great Change. Maybe if I use Starlight's version of the spell with the map and the book it can take us to Korra!"
"You think she might help us stop all of this?" Flash asked.
"It's what we got so far." Twilight's horn started to glow brighter as she levitated the book over the map and, using the scroll, she cast the spell, making the map create the rings like before that opened the vortex. The sky opened up and, just as Twilight hoped, the portal opened and the group got sucked into it once more.
Once the vortex vanished the mad did as well, slowly fading from sight, awaiting to be needed once more.


(~)


Once again, the group fell from the vortex and landed on solid ground. Very hard solid ground. "Would a soft landing be too much to ask?!" Asami exclaimed in annoyance, already done with so many harsh landings. 
Twilight Sparkle and Flash Sentry were able to morph into their anthro forms and landed on the ground. "I worked!" Twilight cheered and hugged her boyfriend in victory. "Now we just have to find Korra and--"
"Um, Twi…" Mako, who was standing on the ledge looking down, turned his head, looking at her with worry. The others approached him, finding they were on top of a building overlooking Republic City…
Which had been taken over by Amon and the Equalists! 
The skies were filled with equalist airships, posters of Amon and his symbol were everywhere, and people walked calmly around the streets, no doubt they were non-benders. Some were even happy running around without any benders around. But despite that, the place looked bleak. The skies were cloudy, there was barely any sunlight, the streets were filled with so much traffic it would take a miracle to get to ones destination, and equalist chi-blockers surrounded every corner, keeping an eye out for any bender in sight. While some folks looked happy, their atmosphere said differently.
It was as if they were all trapped inside a problem-free bubble, completely unaware of the reality of the cruel new world they lived in. As bad as this was, it wasn't nearly as bad as it was in Equestria.
"What happened to Republic City?!" Bolin asked in distraught, seeing his once vivid city in such a state.
Flash looked down at the strange people with the masks. "Who are those guys?" he asked.
"Equalists." Twilight replied, her eyes narrowing angrily at the sight of them. "They're Amon's henchmen."
"Amon? That masked guy who tried to eliminate benders? I thought you defeated him."
"Apparently, this timeline didn't get the memo." Mako stated, "Starlight's meddling not only changed Equestria…it changed our world too!"
The team heard sirens sounding off and looked up to see one of the airships looming over their heads. The door of the ship opened and a zip line came shooting down, anchoring itself onto the building, while the group shielded themselves. Several chi-blockers began lowering down and twirled their bolas and electric sticks at the group.
The team huddled together and, with Twilight's magic, were teleported out of there and safely onto the street. But that didn't do them much good with so many other chi-blockers already surrounding the streets like watchful guard dogs.
"Stop right there!" One said, taking a step forward, "Those cloths are not proper regulation!" he said, gesturing to the colorful clothing of the heroes. They looked around, realizing they probably should have noticed that everybody was wearing gray colored clothing. "Whatever you are, come quietly or face the consequences."
"What consequences?" Flash asked.
"That will be for Amon to decide. Come along quietly and no one gets hurt."
The group slightly flinched when each chi-blocker stuck their sticks at them, ready to electrocute when ready. "It's been a long time since we fought these guys." Mako said, taking a stance, while the others followed his example. 
However, none of them got the chance to fight when a smoke bomb suddenly landed at their feet, unleashing a familiar green gas the shielded the chi-blockers from view. The group remained together when they heard the sound of punching and kicking and bodies falling down. Among the smoke they saw the silhouette of a human female wearing a mask, but only her eyes were visible. Twilight gasped for she recognized those eyes anywhere. So did Mako.
She only nodded her head to the side, gesturing them to follow her. The group complied and she led them to an alleyway where rested a vehicle, an old satomobile. The girl jumped in and the others got inside as well. Flash hoisted Spike up and the car drove off with the speed of lightning. The group tumbled from left to right with every turn this speedy lady made. The sound of sirens was heard and from the review mirror she spotted the equalist police right behind them.
"They're gaining on us!" Bolin exclaimed in fear, but he was not aware of the plan this woman had.
Pulling a lever from the side of the wheel, oil was spilled from the back of the car, which caused the police vehicles to slip and slide across the road before crashing into a fire hydrant. The woman picked up a speaker and poke through it.
"South to home base! Do you read me?" she said into the speaker, which released static before a voice was heard.
"Home base to south! Read you loud and clear! Where are you?"
"On my way. Tell the boys."
"On it!"
The woman hung up and took yet another turn, which was so fast the others didn't even get a chance to analyze the situation at hand. She took yet another turn to a long way alley with a dead end. The woman accelerated her speed and the alley suddenly lowered down lie a ramp and a cave was at the other side. The care drove in quickly before two men in masks would rise up the stone wall and make the ramp disappear with their earthbending.
The car slowed down and the woman exited, while the others remained paralyzed. Their hairs were on end and their nails were practically hammered down on the vehicle. The woman clapped her hands once in order to wake them up.
"And I thought Asami was the crazy driver!" Spike said, blinking in surprise once he and the others managed to get out of the vehicle. 
Their mysterious savior removed her mask, revealing herself to be a tan skinned woman with short brown hair and brightly colored eyes that shimmered in the light. Unlike before, she had no wings, no streaks and no cutie mark on her cheek. Immediately, Twilight smiled and hugged the woman round her neck. 
"Korra! We found you!"
Mako rushed on over as well, hugging the woman he loved along with Twilight, happy to see a familiar face. The others quickly joined in as well, but the woman only looked at them in confusion before wiggling her way out of their weird love fest. 
"Okay, just because I saved your life, doesn't mean you can get all mushy on me!"
"You have no idea how happy I am to see you!" Twilight said, tears of joy nearly seconds away from falling out. 
But Korra looked at her in confusion. "Do I know you?"
Those words, somehow, they felt like a stab in the chest. When she and Korra first met there was a connection and now…she didn't seem to feel anything whatsoever. 
Mako stepped in, in hopes of triggering something. "Korra, don't you recognize her?"
"No. And, how do you know my name?"
"Wait, you don't know me either? I'm Mako!" he said, gesturing to himself, but Korra only arched an eyebrow. "The Fire Ferrets? You were part of our team."
"What are you talking about? I was never part of any pro-bending team." Korra said, placing a hand on her hip, "My teacher said it was a distraction."
"Teacher? You mean Tenzin?" Mako yelped when he was suddenly slammed against the wall by Korra's brute force.
"Don't you ever say that name again!" she said threateningly, "Unless you want to be Naga's midday snack!" 
Korra expected this stranger to whimper, shake or beg for mercy, but he didn't. In fact, he didn't look phased at all. 
"You don't mean that." he said, rather confidently.
"Excuse me?"
"You wouldn't hurt anybody like that." Mako said, not feeling the least bit intimidated by this version of the woman he loved. "I can see it in your eyes, you're no killer. That hasn't changed." For a moment he could see the softness and uncertainty in her eyes. 
Korra arched an eyebrow. Who did this guy think he was, saying her knew her better than she knew herself? She wanted so badly to punch him, but something inside of her was preventing it. His amber eyes seemed to be a source of light in the dark tunnel they were in. She was even half tempted to place her lips onto his, but she quickly shook away any of those ridiculous ideas away. 
She released him and simply turned towards the others. "Look, I don't know who you are or…what you are." she said, looking up and down at Twilight and Flash, and even Spike, who waved at her while flashing her a smile. "But if you're looking for a way to escape Amon and his hoard of copycats, you've come to the right place."
Korra snapped her fingers and the two men huddled up to her side, saluting at her in respect and she and her followers walked further down the tunnel. Korra took a lantern from a nearby hook, just waiting for her, and led the others further down. Twilight tried to get a better look at this new Korra. She looked so distant, even when she was helping people. She was just as fierce as her old Korra, but there was something missing, something blocking her.
"So, what exactly happened?" Bolin asked, "And where are Ten--" he quickly stopped when Korra shot him a death glare, "I mean…that airbender guy with the pointy beard and his family?"
"And why did you get that haircut?" Asami asked, gesturing to her friend's new bob cut hairstyle. "You said you'd never cut your hair."
"I never told you anything because I've never seen you before." Korra spatted at the heiress. 
"But you have!" Asami insisted, "We met at Tarlokk's gala, you were wearing that sparkly blue dress Rarity made you and Rainbow Dash tried to bite me and you didn't like me because I was dating the guy you liked and…" Korra blinked, looking unamused by the heiress's description of their so called past, "Okay, so we didn't exactly have the best first impression, but we still became friends afterwards!"
"I think that mascara is clouding your vision because you obviously have me confused for somebody else." Korra said, continuing on her way with the lantern in hand.
The others should have known this Korra wouldn't know who they were. If that was the case, why did the map bring them here for if Korra wouldn't remember them? Korra stopped and ordered one of the men to open the wall, signaling him with her hand. The group entered and at the other side was what appeared to be an abandoned green house, placed underground with artificial light, and plants being grown by several of the refugees. They all looked so broken and hungry. Their cloths were ragged and torn and their faces were covered in sooth and mud. 
This was just as sad as seeing all of those ponies forcing to leave their homes because of the war.
"Are they--?" Flash began to ask.
"Yes." Korra said, handing the lantern to one of the two men and removed her gloves, "Ever since Amon took over, he's been eliminating benders left and right. Those lucky enough were able to escape, barely with their lives."
One of the men looked up at the group, a pale skinned one with raven hair that fell flat on his face, striking green eyes and a black mustache that made him look like a catfish. He has burn marks all around his upper torso, as well as bandages to cover them up. His left eye was bruised and he looked up at them all with such sadness. The man was being attended to by a waterbender healer. He looked so familiar but they couldn't quite place their finger on it. 
"We found this poor fellow a couple weeks ago." Korra explained, her eyes giving off a sense of compassion for the man. "He was chased by the Equalists and wounded pretty badly. He wandered the sewers for days until we found him."
"How did this happen?" Twilight asked, "How did Amon and his Equalists take over the city?"
"Where have you all been?" Korra asked, arching an eyebrow. 
"Actually, it's when." Spike said.
Twilight tried once again to try and get through to Korra. "Look, I know this is hard for you to believe, but you and I are friends, and all of this isn't what was supposed to happen. And I can prove it!" she pulled the prophesy book from her satchel and handed it to Korra. The woman started down at the book, mesmerized by its otherworldly beauty. She had never seen a book like this before.
She hesitantly opened the pages and her eyes widened in awe. The pages seemed to move all on their own, wowing not only the girl but also several of the refugees nearby. Once the pages stopped Korra could see images. One of them depicted a young girl with familiar wolf tails and wearing some familiar clothing.
"Is that…me?" she couldn't believe her eyes. It was her! She flipped the pages to see more depictions of herself, one where she was surrounded by several gemstones and six strange yet beautiful looking animals along with a large kite-like creature with tentacles and blue markings on its chest. The book also contained words written in the form of rhymes. She read the first verse out loud.
"When the time is right. Underneath the same light. A bond will ignite. At very first sight." she read. The words somehow sounded…familiar to her.
"That was the spell that brought me and my friends to your world. Just as the words say, when we first saw each other we felt a bond. And that bond was what helped us face off Amon and save the city. Korra, please. Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't remember something, I know you do!"
Korra dared herself to look into the younger girl's eyes. For a moment she thought she could feel something. Her eyes, so wide and full of emotion and…hope. That was something she rarely had anymore. But before she could feel anymore she slammed the book shut and shoved it roughly at Twilight, nearly pushing her back.
"You really expect me to believe you and I are some kind of magical bonded soul sisters because a dusty old book said so?"
"Yes! That's exactly what we are!"
"Look kid, I don't have time for all your fairytale crud. In case you haven't noticed, there are people down here that need protection and I can't risk wasting anymore time."
"So, you're gonna face Amon?" Spike asked hopefully.
"What are you crazy? None of us can fight him now! He has the entire city wrapped around his finger and every single bender on the run. He's already expanding his army across the rest of the nations. The best thing we can do is find as many benders left so we can escape this place without being caught. Fighting is not an option anymore." 
Twilight shook her head in disbelief as Korra began walking away, no doubt to do the work she had down here. "What happened to you?!" she shouted back, "The Korra I knew would never run away when things got difficult! You know Amon won't rest until he finds you and everyone here! Stopping him is the only way to save them and you know that!"
"You don't know anything about me!" Korra snapped, not turning her back to face the girl, but her fists still clenched tightly.
"Then why are you trying to shut me out? What are you not telling me, Avatar?!"
"Don't call me that!!" Korra shouted angrily, finally spinning around to face the anthro alicorn, who remained unfazed by her response. 
"Then tell me what happened? Where is Tenzin? Or Lin? Why don't you know who Mako and Bolin are? Why are you so afraid to face Amon now?"
Korra closed her eyes shut, trying her best to fight the tears that threatened to roll down from her eyes. "Nobody's called me Avatar in a long time." she confessed, "How did you know who I was?"
"Because I know you. Please, tell us."
Finally, she complied with a deep sigh. "Fine. I was raised in the south pole for most of my life, training to be the Avatar. I mastered three of the elements but one. Airbending. I was supposed to learn from Tenzin but he couldn't because Republic City needed him. I snuck off to the city so I could learn and be a stronger Avatar, but I remained on the Island to train."
"Didn't you ever go out to have fun?" Bolin asked.
"No. I couldn't afford to waste time on stuff like that. I barely left the island unless it was necessary. I trained and trained, day in and day out but I could never get the hang of airbending. I had gathered all the information I could find on Amon, but I was stumped. I couldn't figure out how he could take away people's bending, or why he hatted benders in general. I wanted to face him but Tenzin continuously forbade me. One day, I stubbornly didn't listen. I snuck off to try and find some leads about the man, but in my inexperience…I was captured. I overpowered the Equalists for a period of time, but I was no match for Amon." She could still hear the echoing sound of her screaming as her powers were being stripped away. "He took my powers away before I ever had a chance to really use them. I was a failure before I even tried."
"You lost your bending?" Mako asked, his voice nearly cracking as the memories of that event replayed in his mind. The fear in her eyes was too heartbreaking for him, even now.
"Yes. Without my powers I was useless. Eventually, Amon's army grew in numbers, taking down every last bender they could find out in broad daylight. Tenzin and his family were only a few of his many victims. I fought them as best as I could, but they maneuvered every attack I had at my disposal. He eliminated them right before my eyes." 
Twilight covered her mouth, gasping in horror. Tenzin and his family…were gone?! They thought Equestria was worse than this, but they were wrong. This was just as bad.
"The police force was apprehended and Lin Beifong was stripped of her bending as well. Last I heard she ran off before getting caught, but where she is now I have no idea."
"What about the United Forces?" Asami asked, "Didn't they help?"
"Of course. But Amon was always one step ahead. He had Hiroshi Sato construct all kinds of Equalist weapons. He got each and every one of the ships by surprise. His technology is unlike anything I had ever seen. Since then, I escaped down here, found some benders and a few non-benders who didn't agree with Amon's set of rules and before long we created this place. Every day I go up there to try and find more benders to bring here before Amon finds them. Without my bending I take what I use to get by."
"And you do it all on your own?" Twilight asked.
"I work better alone." Korra said bluntly, only to be surprised when Twilight suddenly scoffed at her reply. 
"I'm sorry, but I know that's not true. I mean, sure you can handle plenty, but with something as big as this it's impossible for just one person, no matter how strong they are."
"What am I supposed to do? Drag innocent people in with me so they can meet the same fate as Tenzin and his family? I don't think so!" 
"But you're in charge of caring for all these people!"
"I never said I was in charge here. I'm just the delivery girl."
"Then who is?" Mako asked.
"That would be me." a voice called out and a tall man walked up, standing beside Korra. The others could not believe their own eyes for they never would have believed they would see this man again.
"Tarlokk?!"
Spike fainted from the shock. There he was, the bloodbender who captured Korra and helped her and Mako in figuring out who Amon truly was behind the mask. Only he no longer wore his hair as long as he did before. In fact, his hair was now cut and now sported a five o'clock shadow. His clothing was not as expensive as they once were, no doubt humbling himself while his stay here. 
"You're in charge of this place?!" Twilight exclaimed in disbelief.
"I'm lost, who's Tarlokk again?" Flash asked.
"He's Amon's brother!" Spike stated, waking up from unconsciousness and pointed a claw at the man, right before fainting once again.
"What? What are you talking about?" Tarlokk asked, "My brother left home years ago, and how did you know my name?"
Mako asked first, "Weren't you with the Council of the city with Master Tenzin?"
"Yes I was. I was one of the few who managed to escape, but not without paying the price. Amon took my bending away and kept me prisoner until I managed to escape and found refuge here. With Korra's assistance I do everything in my power to keep these people from facing the same fate as I did. Who may I ask are you?"
"Just some weirdoes I saved from the Equalists." Korra replied, "Though, I'm beginning to question that choice."
Asami shook her head, finally fed up with everything. "Okay, I've had just about enough of this! Twilight, you still have the scroll. Just cast the spell to send us a few minutes back before Starlight knows we're there!"
"What is all this about a spell?" Tarlokk asked, sounding very intrigued with the concept.
"I'm telling you, they're not right in the head." Korra said. "They keep saying that book of theirs is magic."
"Hello!" Twilight exclaimed, "I'm a purple girl with wings on my back, how is that not magical?!"
Tarlokk's eyes drifted to the book in Twilight's hand, admiring the way the book's golden ringed covered shimmered in the dim lights, along with the sparkly crystal heart at the center. Twilight felt his gaze on the book and she could distinguish that look in his eyes. She wasn't the only one, Mako noticed it too. It was a gaze he would see often in folks who had more on their mind than their actions led them to believe. Something wasn't right here. 
"Is that so?" he gave a short laugh, "Even with your strange appearance I find it a tad hard to believe. How do I know this isn't a very poor choice in disguising yourself from Amon?" Twilight's eyes lowered in suspicion as she held the book close to her body. "If what you are saying is true, show me. Why not open that so called magical book of yours."
Before he could make any sudden moves, Mako stepped forward, shielding the princess from the older man. "Funny how you're suddenly so interested in the book." he said.
"If I am to protect these people from that mad man I need to be wary of what comes down here. That includes you."
Mako stood his ground, protectively shielding the princess away from him. Flash Sentry did the same, his pony eras lowering back close to his head. Twilight kept the book close while Korra noticed the concern in her eyes. She didn't know how, or why, but this book obviously held some importance to her. She also didn't fully understand why Tarlokk was suddenly so fascinated with this object. 
"Where exactly did you say you found them, Korra?" Tarlokk asked, looking as composed as he did in the old timeline, while maintaining his stern face on their visitors. 
"I already told you, I found them being harassed by the Equalists."
"I see. What exactly were you children running from?"
"Korra just told you." Mako replied, "Why, don't believe her?"
"I do. I'm just not entirely certain of I believe you. What is in that book?"
"Nothing that concerns you."
The atmosphere grew silent. Seconds past and Tarlokk flung forward, grabbing Mako's arm as quick as lightning before giving the young man time to react. The older man twisted his arm and pressed it against his back, making Mako cry out in agonizing pain.
"What are you doing?!" Korra was horrified by the display before her. She had been brutal violence from the Equalists before, she couldn't bare to see it again.
"Whatever secrets they have could be the key to stopping Amon once and for all!" Tarlokk twisted Mako's arm once more, making him feel more pain. Before he could cause anymore, the older man received a sucker punch to the face by Twilight Sparkle, forcing him to release the firebender. Mako rubbed his arm, still feeling the terrible sting from this man's cold, merciless hands. Twilight did a jump kick right in Tarlokk's gut, sending him sliding across the ground. The refugees huddled together, away from the fight. Their experiences with Amon left them frightened to even defend themselves. They never knew a non-bender could bring them so much fear.
Tarlokk wiped his brow and aimed a punch at the princess, who managed to maneuver his repetitive attempts by nimbly moving back and forth, almost as if Tarlokk was hitting air instead of an opponent. 
Korra's eyes shimmered as she witnessed the strange girl move. She recognized these movements. But, how was it possible for her to know them?
Tarlokk was already out of breath and Twilight sent the final punch, and the man fell to the ground, groaning in pain. The anthro alicorn panted and brushed a few stray hairs away from her face, her shoulders and chest lowering and rising softly with each breath she took. She didn't even break a sweat.
"Where did you learn to move like that?" Korra asked, still astonished by the display. "The only other person who knows those moves was Tenzin."
"Well, you taught them to me." Twilight replied. Korra no longer had any doubts that this girl was telling the truth. There could be no other possible way for her to have known those movements.
Tarlokk stood upwards, despite his beatings he was not done interrogating these strangers. Korra stepped forward, shielding Twilight from him. "Tarlokk, that's enough! They're not here to hurt us!"
"No…but I am." a familiar voice called out to her, sending shivers down her spine. It couldn't be. How could it be possible? 
Only, it was…
From the shadows emerged the masked man himself, along with his hoard of Equalists followers, as well as holding one man by the collar, his eyes exhausted and week, no doubt he had just had his bending taken away. The refugees gasped in terror as they held their families close before meeting their fate. 
"No! It's impossible!" Tarlokk gasped, "How did you find us?!"
"You didn't think I wouldn't eventually find your secret hideaway…little brother?"
Korra and the rest of the refugees gasped. "What?!"
"Haven't told them, Tarlokk? Such a shame when so many people look up to you, only to find you're nothing but a lier."
"You're no better, you hypocrite!" Tarlokk snapped back, clenching his fists and teeth in anger.
"How did you find us?!" Korra demanded to know.
"Why don't you ask one of your followers?" underneath his mask, Amon smirked when one of the refugees suddenly punch and kicked several of his own aside before walking towards his leader. Despite his physical condition, he managed to walk on over, despite limping a bit and smiled at his true leader.
"Well done, Lieutenant."
Korra's mouth hung open in horror at seeing the man they had rescued and continuously nurtured back to health was actually in cahoots with their enemy?!
"You're with him? Why?!"
"I never betray our leader." the man responded with no hint of remorse whatsoever.  
"After looking the part, the Lieutenant infiltrated your base and reported to me. And now, Avatar, you will be the first to witness your kind perish off the face of the earth."
Korra stepped forward, pulling out a pair of katana swords from her back and took a fighting stance. "You leave these people out of this! This is between you and me! It's time we end this."
"I couldn't agree more." with a wave of his hand, his entire army of Equalists charged at the Avatar, wielding their bolas and kai sticks directly at her. But despite not having any bending anymore, Korra was still a capable fighting. She cut through the bolas with her swords which then collided with the electric sticks the Equalists aimed at her. With her hands upwards, she kicked their guts with all of her might, spinning, slicing and dicing their attacks. She ran forward and leaped up, placing her foot on one of the Equalists's face before leaping upwards and tossing a few smoke bombs their way. 
She quickly turned to the crowd of frightened refugees, "Go! I'll hold them off!" she cried out before the fog completely submerged her and she carried on the fight. 
Twilight turned to her friends, "Asami, Flash, get the other refugees to safety!"
The two nodded and did as they were asked while Twilight, Mako and Bolin ran into the fog with Spike close behind. While Korra continuously fought the army of Equalists single handedly, she was completely unaware of the one coming up from behind her. She heard a loud battle cry and spun around to see that Twilight had successfully kicked the Equalist aside, saving the former Avatar.
"What are you doing?!"
"Helping you!" Twilight responded.
"Well don't! Get out of here like everyone else!" Korra said authoritatively before slicing away one of the incoming electric sticks and kicked the Equalist holding it away.
"You can't fight all of them by yourself!" Twilight stated, right before grabbing an incoming Equalist by the collar and spinning around before tossing him. 
"Well I can't drag innocent people down with me! I've lost a lot of people already for not doing anything, I can't let it happen again!" 
Twilight's eyes shimmered in realization as Korra ran off and continuously fought off against the Equalists. The fog slowly dispersed and she witnessed Bolin, Mako and even Spike fighting as well. She didn't understand how they could be risking their own lives to help her. This wasn't their fight so why were they still here?
Asami and Flash led the refugees to safety, only to be stopped by the Equalists blocking their only exit. Asami and Flash exchanged knowing smirks and lunged forward at the army. Even without their bending, the two were perfectly capable of handling themselves in a fight. Asami maneuvered the Equalists attacks before grabbing hold of their electric sticks and shock them one by one. Flash flew left and right, taking one Equalist upwards before tossing him aside and lowering down, sending punches from above to each one. They didn't call him 'Flash" for nothing.
The refugees were astonished to see these two fighting for their lives to help them. Somehow, this triggered something inside some of the younger teenage refugees. As good as they were, even Asami and Flash weren't enough to stop them…until one earthbender sent a rock flying at five of them in total. The others were amazed by the courage displayed by one of them, then Flash had an idea.
"You guys have been living in fear for too long!" he said, speaking out loudly. "Korra has done everything in her power to protect you all, now it's your turn to return the favor!"
For a moment, the refugees were hesitant but, in a way, he was right. Korra had done so much for them, she risked her life every single day for them. The least they could do was leaner to defend themselves. Korra wasn't afraid to let her life down the line, why not them?
This motivation ignited the fire that had been dimming for quite some time, and the benders rallied together in an effort to fight off the Equalists. They were really in for it now.
Meanwhile, Amon was now face to face with his little brother, who was more than ready to finish this. "So, this is what it has come to, hasn't?" Tarlokk asked, even though he received no answer from his brother. "Guess father will get his wish after all."
He said…right before lunging forward, with a knife in hand. But the knife didn't hit its target as he had expected. The last thing he saw was the masked face of his brother slowly being consumed by darkness.
Korra panted, already growing exhausted by the countless attacks by the Equalists. And each time, the strangers came to her aid. "Why are you still here?!" she asked Twilight, already fed up with these people's stubbornness. 
"I'm not leaving you alone like this!"
"You'd really risk your life for mine?"
"Yes. Yes I would." she said, her eyes firmly set on the Avatar, who looked at her in surprise,  "We all would. Because you did the same for us."
Korra was stunned by this girl's courage…unfortunately, the Equalists used this to their advantage. Two of them electrocuted the two girls from behind and they both fell to the ground. The two groaned as they tried to find the strength to get back up just as the Equalists gained up on them. However, they got a taste of their own medicine when lightning came shooting from behind. Korra's vision slowly adjusted and she saw the handsome firebender helping her and the princess back to their feet.
"Why are you people doing this?" Korra asked, "Why can't you run to safety like the others?"
Mako, somehow, amongst all of the insanity, managed a smile and tilted his head to his left, signaling her to look. Korra's eyes widened when she saw the refugees all fighting the Equalists together.
"What? How? Why?" she then felt her face burn when Mako lifted up her chin for her to look at him. His amber eyes shinned like dazzling flames in the sunlight.
"You saved these people, now they're returning the favor."
"I didn't ask them to."
"You didn't have to. That's just what friends do." Korra looked at him curiously as he continued, "We're all here for you. And just so you know, I'll follow you into battle no matter how crazy things get. I got your back. And I always will."
Korra could hear her heart pounding against her chest. She had never felt this sensation before, and from a complete stranger, who clearly cared a great deal about her. And yet, she felt as if she had seen him before. She tried to shake the idea out of her head and took a step back. 
"I appreciate the help, but if you think some sweet words are enough to get me to swoon, you're cra--Hmp!" 
Korra's eyes widened when the firebender placed his lips upon hers. It was so unexpected, her first instinct was to push him back. But before long she was swiped away by the softness of his lips and the amount of love he carried in this one kiss. Her cheeks flustered as she placed her hands on his shoulders, deepening the kiss, which in return made Mako blush.
It was like a reverse version of their first kiss. And it was just as magical as the first time.
Twilight smiled with her hands clapped to her chest…and punching an equalist coming from behind without even flinching or taking her eyes off of the scene. She then spotted the prophesy book down on the floor, the heart symbol on the cover glowing brightly. She remembered their real mission and quickly grabbed the book at the very moment Korra and Mako ended their kiss.
Korra gasped when Mako was suddenly pulled away from her and tossed to the ground by the masked man himself. Asami, Flash, Bolin and Spike ceased their fighting and witnessed Amon holding the young firebender up in the air, gripping his neck to tightly he could hardly breath.
"And here I thought I had taken everything from you." Amon said, taunting at the former Avatar, "But simply taking his bending isn't enough." he said before pulling out his brother's knife from his back, ready to kill the boy right in front of the exhausted woman before her eyes.
"No!" instinctively, Korra threw a punch directly at Amon, even though the attempt was futile. Only, it wasn't.
Korra had closed her eyes when she threw the punch, only to realize once she opened them that Amon had been blasted across the room, releasing Mako and dropping the knife in the process. Korra looked down at her hands, unable to believe what she had just done.
"But…but how?"
"Twilight!" Spike called out to her, "The spell!"
The princess turned to the Avatar, who nodded her head in reassurance. "Go. I'll be okay. I promise."
The alicorn nodded her head and used her magic to activate the book, which caused the time spell to activate and open the same vortex from before. Korra rushed over and helped Mako stand up before the powerful winds sucked in Team Avatar along with it. Mako kissed Korra once more before being lifted up and sucked into the vortex before it disappeared in a blinding light.
Once they were gone, Korra looked at her hands, amazed to see that she had finally accomplished what had taken her so long to do.
Airbend.
She clenched her fist, smirking at the masked man and other equalists around her. But she also saw all of the refugees rallying behind her, ready to fight alongside her. Only this time, she allowed it.


(~)


The group traveled back through the vortex, this time stopped again in Cloudsdale. Twilight levitated the rest of the group, breaking them from falling.
"Glad that's over." Asami said.
"Not quite." Mako stated, "If we don't stop Starlight from altering the past that could very well be our future."
"But why did the book send us there anyway?" Bolin asked, "I mean, it couldn't be just to show us how bad the future turned out."
"I'm not entirely sure." said Twilight, pondering in thought.
"So, what now?" Flash asked, "We're back when we started."
"Don't worry, sweetie. All we have to do now is find Starlight and—" Twilight never got to finish her sentence, on account of her body, and the bodies of her friends, were now trapped within a large crystal prison, which prevented them from moving any form of their body, aside from their eyes. The crystal landed on a cloud and slowly started to sink down due to the weight.
"Well, finding her will be easy!" Starlight said, levitating her body upwards, "But stopping her's gonna be harder than you think." 
With the group trapped within the crystal prison, Starlight took this opportunity to gloat about her scheme, while levitating herself around the crystal, which slowly sank deeper and deeper into the cloud. 
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I created that spell to send myself back in time, so even when you cast it, I still get sent back here. It wasn't difficult to change Star Swirl's spell. He'd already done the hard part. But figuring out I could use the map to go to any time or place, and pull you along with me?" she gave a short laugh, gloating at her brilliance, "I even impressed myself with that. I knew you'd try to stop me. You're so predictable. Why else would I leave the scroll behind? Touching it triggered the map to whisk you here, and watch me erase the one thing that links you with your friends and that loud-mouth Avatar!" 
Her magic stopped, and she allowed herself to land on the crystal, her weight causing it to sink deeper and deeper as she ranted. "My village was a sanctuary of equality, where nopony's cutie mark allowed them to feel superior! It was a special place, and you and your friends took it away!" 
Starlight rolled her eyes once the crystal prison now dangled from beneath the cloud and levitated herself once more to continue her rant. "Now it's my turn to take something special from you! Without the rainboom, you and your friends will never form your special cutie mark bonds and Korra will never know any of you ever existed! Cutie marks for cutie marks! Sounds like a fair trade to me!"
With a simple tap, the crystal fell from the clouds, with Team Avatar trapped inside and Starlight watched with glee as it plummeted to the ground. Things were going all according to her plan.
As the crystal fell, Twilight's horn glowed as strongly as she could master it to, finally releasing them all from the prison. Twilight and Flash sighed in relief as they flapped in mid air until…
"Twiliiiiiiight!"
"Oops!" the two flying ponies swooped down to save their wingless friends. Flash caught Spike while Twilight levitated the three humans.
"Okay, that unicorn needs a check up from the neck up!" Bolin said, already fed up with Starlight's schemes.
"I agree!" said Flash, "But at least now we know exactly what we have to do!"


(~)


With Twilight's spell to disguise the team as ponies from this timeline, the five friends set their plan into motion. Oh so carefully, they snuck their way from cloud to cloud, keeping a sharp eye for Starlight Glimmer. Mako and Bolin popped their heads from a cloud and Bolin used his new hooves to make a speaking out of the clouds and spoke into it.
"Papa bear to Mama bear, do you read me?" Bolin said to the cloud speaker.
"Who are you talking to? I'm right here!" Mako said to his brother.
"You know, you're the reason sneaking isn't fun anymore!" Bolin said bitterly and the two brothers sunk back into the cloud before zooming to another. The five friends met up on a single cloud, with Spike gazing into his binoculars.
"Okay, keep your eyes peeled." Twilight instructed. 
"Right!" Spike replied. 
"We have to stop Starlight as soon as Rainbow Dash and those bullies race by!"
Mako spotted something from down bellow and tried to get the princess's attention. "Um, Twilight?"
"So be ready."
"I know, but—"
"Because she could pop up anywhere!"
"Like over there?" Spike handed the princess the binoculars for her to see for herself. Warning signs went off in her head when she saw Starlight Glimmer speaking to the bullies and Fluttershy. This didn't look good. It was bad enough she was trying to alter history, now she was manipulating children too? They would not stand for this.
"Just remember how you'd feel if someone said those things to you." Starlight said to the two bullies, which actually made them look down in regret.
The rest of the team arrived just in time. "What's going on here?" Mako asked, his eyes narrowing at the unicorn, who smiled in triumph. 
"Oh, I was just reminding these two colts how hurtful teasing can be."
"Well, don't!" Mako immediately stopped himself once he caught what he had just said, "I mean... you were?"
"Of course!" Starlight said, while kindly petting young Fluttershy's head, "In a world where everypony is unique, some are bound to feel more special than others. But that isn't a license to be cruel, is it?"
The others had to admit, as wickedly cold and manipulative this unicorn was, she was very good at twisting things around. It was no wonder she was able to gain the trust and respect of her brainwashed pony companions so easily.
"No, of course not…"
"Oh, isn't it a shame we don't live in a world where everypony is equal?" Starlight wrapped her front hooves around the three ponies, making them smile. "No one would ever tease anyone there! Wouldn't that be nice?"
"Mm-hm." the children agreed.
"No, it wouldn't!" Twilight intervened, before realizing what she was saying, "I mean, it'd be nice not to be teased, of course, but that's not the same thing!"
"Come on, Fluttershy! Maybe I can help you get through the course this time." said the young colt.
"Well, I-I sure could use the practice…" Fluttershy smiled and happily galloped away with the two bullies, who would now be much kinder to her. But as nice as this was, it still intervened with the outcome of the situation. Twilight narrowed her eyes at the unicorn.
"I know you only convinced those bullies to not tease Fluttershy to stop the Rainboom!"
"Oh, that's not true! I convinced them not to be bullies because everypony should be equal!" Starlight replied using her charming tone of voice, right before reverting back to her sadistic nature, "Stopping the Rainboom is just a bonus."
The sound of swooshing caught Spike's attention and he pointed his claw to the filly Rainbow Dash, who was flying through the obstacle course. Without Fluttershy being teased, there was no way for her to even have a reason to perform the rainbow.
"This is bad!" Spike said to Twilight, "How is Rainbow suppose to make the Rainboom now?"
Asami's pony ears perked up when an idea came to her. Right before she shot a death glare at Starlight Glimmer. "This isn't over yet!" she stated right before flying off to catch up with filly Rainbow Dash, with the others in tow.
"If you say so!" Starlight shouted in reply, smiling in satisfaction. She knew there could be no possible way for them to stop her now. She was quite certain of that.
"So, what's the plan?" Flash asked the now ponyfied Sato heiress.
"I'm going to convince Rainbow Dash to race me." she replied.
"You think that'll work?"
"If I know Rainbow Dash she won't be able to resist a challenge. Especially from me." she accelerated and was able to keep up with the filly, smiling broadly at the child. 
"Hi!"
"Um… hi?" Rainbow said, surprised to see a full grown pegasus in Junior Speedsters Flight Camp. And why would she be interested in her anyway?
"You think you can stop for a minute?"
"Sure." the filly easily stopped in mid-flight, while Asami slammed head first into a cloud. She may be good at flying, but needed work on the landing. She shook the pieces of cloud off of her body and flew up to the filly. 
"So, I hear you're pretty fast!"
"Pretty fast? Please! I'm even faster than that!" 
So far so good, Asami thought. This was the same competitive pony she had challenged to race her on her father's racing track a few years back. It was the first time they started to become actual friends. 
"Well, if you say so." the heiress said rather smugly.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rainbow asked in annoyance. Who as she to doubt her speed?
"Well, if you really want to prove to me you're the fastest, who not race me?"
Rainbow arched an eyebrow, "Um, that wouldn't really be fair. I mean, you're a full-grown pony." 
"Oh, are you saying you can't handle it?" 
"Of course I can handle it!"
"Then prove it!" Asami took a head start to get the filly's competitive spirit going. And it worked.
"Oh, that's it!" with the speed of her wings, Rainbow Dash flew faster and faster, her and Asami were now neck in neck as they zoomed across the obstacle course. 
The others cheered on for Asami and Rainbow Dash. The clever Sato heiress had managed to get Rainbow Dash to race, which meant the rainbow was sure to happen.
But Starlight wasn't having it. She levitated herself upwards, ready to intervene, but Twilight Sparkle caught her in the act and lunged forward.
"Oh no you don't!" 
The princess tackled the pony in mid air, away from the two racers. This brought back memories for Asami. It was the day she was only starting to realize what true friendship was. Her life began to change after that once race against the rainbow pegasus. She was not about to let the bonds between the Mane Six be severed due to one unicorn's jealousy.
Starlight managed to push Twilight off of her with her legs but the princess was determined to stop her. The two lunged forward, attacking one another, kicking and punching one another for dominance. What they didn't realize was that in their fighting, they were heading straight towards Asami and Rainbow Dash. The two collided with the racers, Starling managing to get out of the madness by grabbing onto a cloud, and the filly Rainbow Dash landed on another cloud, her eyes rolling around and she groaned due to her dizziness. Asami landed on top of Twilight, the two groaning from the impact. The boys arrived to check on them. They were fine, but they had lost their chance to get the Rainboom back.
"Starlight levitated herself towards them, smiling in triumph. "Gee, and you were so close. A real shame."
The others were just about ready to, literally, knock some sense into the unicorn, before the time vortex opened up one more and sucked them all inside, leaving a satisfied Starlight behind.


(~)


Once more, the team crash landed onto the map, which was still in similar shape as before, only now it appeared to be glowing green instead of red. They had all reverted back to normal, and Asami wanted to literally pull her hair our. "Err! I was so close!"
"I was a good effort, Asami." Bolin said in assurance.
"This is gonna be harder than I thought!" Twilight said, shaking her body before levitating the scroll, "We'll have to try again!"
"Hey, Twilight?" Flash said, trying to get her attention. 
"I don't want to live in that awful future we saw!" she said.
"I don't think you'll have to!"
The entire group huddled together when spears were being pointed directly at their faces. To their amazement, it appeared to be a tribe of ponies, all wearing green colored pain on their bodies with strange markings and mud on their manes and tails, all glaring threateningly at the group while holding the spears. Among them were two very familiar ponies. A yellow pegasus with a light pink mane and another pink pony with curly hair.
"Pinkie? Fluttershy?"
The muddy and green painted Pinkie Pie pointed her spear at the group, near inches away from Flash's throat. "Silence, changeling!" she ordered.
They had never seen Pinkie Pie like this, it was almost as bad as with the post apocalyptic Pinkie Pie from the previous timeline.
Even more surprising, and disturbing, was that their sweet and darling Fluttershy was apparently the leader of this little brigade, holding her spear and giving the group the most terrifying death glare they had ever seen. But what was even more horrifying were the words that came out of her mouth.
"All servants of Queen Chrysalis found in these woods must be destroyed!"


To be continued...