Apple Bloom turned away from the door with a smile and stepped off the front porch. "An' that's the last one. Nice job, Crusaders!"
I smiled as I stood off to the side, now empty saddlebags draped around my barrel.
"Wow, who knew there were so many sick ponies in town?" Sweetie Belle said.
"Yeah, but we got to them all!" Scootaloo said.
Apple Bloom trotted over. "Yeah, once Candy suggested we not make 'em so dang big they can't fit through the mail slot, we got through the rest real fast."
To be honest, I had made that suggestion mostly to spare us exposure to other ponies' germs. "You really did do a good job on them, girls."
"Yep, we gotta be like the best get-well-card makers in Ponyville," said Scootaloo.
The three fillies exchanged glances, then looked at their flanks.
"Um, sorry, but I didn't see any cutie marks appear," I said.
They then looked at my flank.
"And I'm pretty sure this is not my special talent, either."
"Oh, well," said Sweetie Belle with a sigh. "Cross another thing off the list."
"Y'know, I was thinkin'," said Apple Bloom.
That was never a good sign.
"We got all them things we tried that never got us cutie marks, but there's nothin' sayin' that one of 'em can't be what Candy is good at."
"Hey, yeah, you're right," Scootaloo said. "We should have her try all of them!"
I sighed and face-hoofed. "Girls, really, you don't need to worry about me."
"I'm kinda with Candy on this one," said Sweetie Belle. "Besides, she's been getting better at fashion stuff. Rarity has her doing alterations now."
Scootaloo tilted her head. "Can you get a cutie mark in that?"
"I don't see why not," said Apple Bloom. "But what do ya think it'd look like?"
"Scissors cutting cloth, maybe?" Sweetie suggested.
While I didn't obsess over cutie marks like they did, I did sometimes wonder how I would attain one. Would it be in fashion or something else? Maybe one for alterations wouldn't be particularly flashy, but I had yet to hear anypony complain about what they got.
Apple Bloom smiled. "Hey, mebbe that's somethin' we can try ta get a cutie mark in: figgerin' out what other ponies' cutie marks could look like!"
That was a little too meta for me, but at least it was something relatively safe.
Scootaloo glanced at my flank again. "I'm kinda surprised Candy doesn't have one after the other day."
I blinked. "Er, huh?"
She smiled. "When you beat up that changeling that was impersonating Sweetie Belle!"
"Wait, what? How did you know about ..." I trailed off and looked at Sweetie Belle.
"It wasn't me!" Sweetie cried. "I kept it quiet like you wanted me to."
"Wow, Candy, didya really beat up that changelin'?" Apple Bloom said. "Applejack didn't tell me nothin' 'bout that!"
I frowned. "I'm not particularly proud of it."
"But that musta been some nice magic. Or did ya use yer bare hooves?"
"I heard she actually picked up the changeling with magic," said Scootaloo.
"Wow! That's neat!" said Apple Bloom. "Even Sweetie Belle took longer ta get ta where she could pick up stuff that big."
Sweetie Belle sighed. "Not helping."
I turned to Scootaloo. "Who told you all this?"
Scootaloo grinned. "I heard it from Rainbow Dash."
"Rainbow Dash? She's back in town?"
"Yeah, she and Pinkie Pie got back last night. I talked to her this morning before I came over to the clubhouse."
Sweetie Belle glanced at me and said in a soft voice, "Sorry about this."
"Not your fault," I said. I turned back to Scootaloo. "Do you know where she is now?"
"When I saw her, she was heading for Twilight's castle," said Scootaloo.
"Thanks." I turned towards the others. "Girls, if we're done, I got some other stuff I need to do."
As I approached the castle, I dropped from a gallop to a trot when I saw Twilight heading down the front walk, Rainbow Dash hovering to one side and Pinkie Pie bouncing along the other. I took a deep breath that did nothing to calm me as I drew close.
"--still can't believe that you fought a changeling queen, Candy beat up her minion, and I wasn't there to see it!" Rainbow's voice drifted to me as I marched up to them.
"Not really a full Queen," said Twilight. "Kevin called her a Queenling. She still needs to Ascend."
Rainbow waved a hoof. "Whatever you call it, it's still a big bug and you squashed it."
"I wish I could say I had, but ..." Twilight turned her gaze towards me. "Oh, hello, Candy, I was just coming to get you."
I halted with a sharp clop of hooves. Before I could speak, Rainbow flew up to me, smiling. "Candy! What you did was so awesome, you gotta tell me all the details!"
"Why?" I said coldly. "You already shot off your own mouth about it."
Rainbow Dash recoiled, pupils shrinking. "What the hay??"
"You told Scootaloo about it."
Rainbow shrugged. "Well, yeah, what's the big deal?"
"Maybe I don't want everypony knowing what I did!"
She stared. "Are you kidding me?"
Twilight sighed. "Rainbow, when I filled you in on what happened last night, I didn't mean for you to go telling everypony about it."
"Twilight, why did you even tell her that detail?" I said, struggling not to yell at her.
"I mentioned it only because I was impressed with your magical ability."
I frowned. "I don't think using it for violence is very impressive."
Twilight stepped up to me. "I didn't mean that at all. I meant your raw magical strength is quite good. It means you can assist in helping your friend manifest."
Pinkie Pie bounced. "Oo, does that mean we get to see what Cherry looks like?"
"I gotta admit, I'm kinda curious myself," said Rainbow.
"Only if Candy is willing," said Twilight. "I didn't expect to have an audience."
Rainbow looked at me and rubbed her mane with her hoof. "Um, yeah, maybe I'm not wanted."
I sighed. "I'm sorry I got upset with you."
"Well, it's okay, I just don't know why. I mean, who wouldn't be proud of beating up one of them?"
"Rainbow," Twilight said with a sigh.
"Come on, they're just changelings!"
I had no idea what upset me about this. I should be feeling the same way. What had the changelings ever done for me -- or for anypony in Equestria -- except cause trouble? Yet I could have said the exact same thing about the drug dealers back home, and as much as I may have wanted to, I never acted violent towards them. It wasn't just the threat of retribution that held me back. At least that's what I wanted to believe.
"And it's not like Candy killed it," said Rainbow. "Not with as tough as they are. It's just chilling out in a jail cell."
"I'd rather not talk about that now," said Twilight in a subdued voice. "Let's head inside so we can help Cherry manifest and hopefully get some more answers."
Was Twilight upset over something concerning Wuntusix? The day before, she had expressed some concern that I had talked to it without telling her ahead of time, but she had seemed happy that I got some information out of it. Had something happened in the interim?
Rainbow drifted over to me. "I'm sorry I upset you. I just assumed you'd want your Crusader friends to know. I won't tell anypony else." She paused. "But I do think you need to chill out a little."
She might ultimately be right, but I could not see it then. She at least helped me clarify what upset me. When Michelle's death had prompted me to run away from everything, I had feared that the longer I remained on the streets, the more inured to violence I would become. I never wanted that to happen here.
"Thanks for the advice," I murmured.
Twilight smiled as she trotted towards the center of her lab. "You see, Candy, a unicorn's horn is not just bone. It contains special fibers that help conduct magic. Newborn unicorn foals have a tremendous number of them, but they're wired haphazardly, which is why they're prone to wild surges of magic until the body sort of 'prunes' them back. Later, the unicorn can start to access them again and, by constantly using magic, expand them. Sort of like exercising a muscle to make it stronger."
Rainbow Dash yawned. Pinkie Pie smiled and looked utterly fascinated. I lay someplace in between. "So that wand the doctor used in the hospital was doing something with those fibers?" I asked.
"Exactly," said Twilight. "And yours were perfectly normal. You simply hadn't learned how to access them yet. Once you did, they started growing stronger, which means you can conduct more magic through them. Some spells are still out of your reach because your horn can't conduct that much magic yet. When I temporarily had four alicorns' worth of magic inside me during Tirek's reign, I could use all that magic, but it was ... not very comfortable. It was a bit over the limit of what my horn could conduct. Of course, magical ability is not just about the fibers themselves, or raw power for that matter. It's also how your skills interact with--"
Rainbow started snoring.
"So, what does this have to do with helping Cherry?" I asked.
Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow before turning back to me. "If you'll step over here, I'll demonstrate."
I hesitated before trotting over to her. "Um, okay. What do I do?"
"Lower your head just a bit, please," said Twilight. "And hold still."
I did so. She touched the tip of her horn to the base of mine. My horn tingled faintly and suddenly lighted. Off to the side, a book levitated a short distance off a shelf.
"What I'm doing is lifting that book, but using your horn to conduct that magic."
"Woo-hoo, it's tag-team magic!" Pinkie suddenly cried.
Rainbow's eyes fluttered open. "Huh? What? Which team am I on? What are we playing?"
Twilight sighed. She lowered the book and raised her head. "Anyway, that's the general principle. The problem I had in helping Cherry manifest at will was how to channel the magic properly. Now it appears that your horn has matured enough that we can use it for that purpose."
"Won't that mess with my own magic?" I asked.
"Not if you both don't try to use your horn at the same time."
I frowned. "Twilight, I'm not sure I can trust her enough to give her free reign with my horn."
"You won't have to," said Twilight. "Because it won't be under her control. She'll have to ask for your permission to manifest. Only when you agree will the spell activate and conduct its magic through your horn."
"Uhhh, maybe I don't understand all this egghead magic stuff," said Rainbow. "But you sure that avatar can't do something with this?"
"Yeah, you wouldn't want somepony suddenly appearing when Candy's trying to take a shower or use the little filly's room," said Pinkie.
"That's not what I meant, Pinkie."
"Well, it's what I'd be worried about."
"I have to admit, I'm a little nervous, too," I said. "How can you be sure he can't mess with it?"
"The avatar is limited in what it can do," said Twilight. "He may see himself of king of his little domain, but that's as far as his rule extends."
"Unless he uses Candy's horn to break out," muttered Rainbow.
"He can't," Twilight said firmly. "Even if he managed to interface with this spell, he can't simply take control of her horn. All he could do is ask permission, and Candy is free to ignore him." She narrowed her eyes. "And I plan to show him exactly how skilled a magic-user I am."
Rainbow grinned. "It is gonna involve kicking his flank?"
Pinkie smiled. "Are you gonna rip him a new one?"
"In a magical sense, yes," said Twilight.
"I'm in!" said Rainbow.
"Okey-dokey!" said Pinkie.
The whole idea did not sit with me very well. Yet if I refused, and Michelle remained stubborn, and the avatar remained intractable, this would drag on and on. "All right, let's do it."
I held absolutely still, Twilight's head lowered, her eyes closed in concentration. Magic flowed in bright swirls around her horn and into the pendant, which filled the chamber with brilliant golden light. Rainbow shielded her eyes with a hoof, and Pinkie wore sunglasses with heart-shaped lenses.
The glow finally faded as Twilight lifted her head, frowning. "Something's not right. The spell is in place, and I've imparted the necessary energy. Are you still not getting anything, Candy?"
I paused, listened, and shook my head. "Nothing."
"This is really odd. It shouldn't take this much energy."
Rainbow lowered her hoof. "Unless they're trying to trick you again, like they did before."
"But there's no reason to do so now," said Twilight. "We're agreeing to their request."
I glanced down at the pendant and frowned. I lifted it with a hoof and shouted, "This better not be a trick by either one of you! I'm getting tired of ... er ... wait ..."
"What is it?" Twilight said.
I tilted my head. "I thought I heard ..."
A little more energy, please.
The words sounded like a very soft voice right next to my ears. "I-I hear her! It's just really faint. She says she needs a little more energy."
Twilight looked dubious. "Why doesn't she have enough now to ..." She trailed off and sighed. "Never mind. It'll be easier to have her manifest and get the answers we want then."
She poured more magic into the pendant, and it glowed brightly once more. Finally, I heard Michelle's voice again, stronger this time: I thank thee. May I manifest?
I swallowed hard. "Sh-she's good now. She ... she wants to manifest."
Twilight closed her eyes. She held her still-glowing horn to my pendant. "Go ahead and let her, Candy."
"But don't you need to--"
"I'm good as well. Just let her manifest."
I took a deep breath. "Cherry, you can manifest."
My horn blazed, and I nearly flinched at the rush of power through it.
Clouds of light and shadow materialized out of thin air before me, an undifferentiated blob that slowly stretched and whirled. It drew itself into a tight, noiseless vortex, flickering points of light defining the edges of a human form. My throat tightened as it coalesced into the familiar, robed figure I had come to know as my friend.
"Whoa ..." Rainbow breathed as she stared.
Pinkie lowered her glasses. "Ooo, she's tall! Are all of you back in your world that tall, Candy?"
My throat was too tight to speak. She appeared to stand with her feet on the floor, but I could still see through her.
"I can answer that question," Michelle said in her usual soft voice which made me pine for seeing her again in the flesh. "Thou art correct, most people of my world haveth this height."
Rainbow tilted her head. "Uhhh, why are you talking all weird like Luna used to?"
"It is archaic Equestrian. It is what Starswirl's avatar knoweth, thus he teacheth me the same." Michelle turned around. "Princess, thou needest not impart any further energy into--"
"GOTCHA!" Twilight cried, jerking her head away from the pendant.
My horn blazed again, and I staggered back.
A second glowing form now coalesced next to the image of Michelle. My heart thumped as it took on a more decidedly quadrupedal shape. Light flickered along its materializing form, until there stood a gray unicorn stallion with a long beard, his coat a bit shaggy, a pointed hat perched atop his head, and a robe swaddling his barrel and hindquarters.
The image of Starswirl the Bearded gave Twilight a cross look. "That was uncalled for, Princess."
His voice was not nearly as deep and nowhere near as intimidating as it had been in the potion-induced vision of the castle. I suddenly felt like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz uncovering the wizard's grand deception.
Twilight blinked and stared, her mouth dropping open. Thankfully, it took her only a few seconds to quell any possible fanfilly urge, and she met the avatar with a stern gaze of her own. "What's uncalled for is you refusing to talk to us. You forced me to take this action."
"Thou realizest I can simply demanifest and return to the pendant?"
"I know perfectly well you can," said Twilight. "But if you have any of the real Starswirl's personality, you'll accept when you've been bested and pay your worthy opponent the respect she is due."
The avatar narrowed his eyes. "Thou seemeth to know much about Starswirl."
Rainbow Dash laughed. "Oh, Celestia, does she ever! She's got you beat here, pal. Don't even try to fool her."
"Even if thou dost, it mattereth not!" the image of Starswirl said. "The pendant is still rightfully my domain."
I stepped forward. "Maybe it is your domain, but it sure as hay is intruding on mine. Like it has been ever since my mother gave it to me."
Twilight stepped over to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder. "I know you're upset, Candy, but please, let me handle this."
"Thou hast nothing to 'handle' here," the avatar said.
"Starswirl, I beg of thee," said Michelle. "See this from their perspective."
The avatar turned to her. "I shan't divulge the mechanisms of the pendant to this alicorn regardless of her saddlebag of tricks!"
"Frankly, I don't care about that right now," said Twilight, which made my heart flutter until she added, "I can figure it out myself without your help."
"So thou claimest," the avatar murmured.
"What I care about now is defeating Sevfivtoo."
Rainbow Dash flew up. "Really, Twi, do we need this two-bit bearded ghost for that? We can hunt down Sevfivtoo and go all rainbow power on her flank!"
"We need to find her first," Twilight said. "Or find a way to lure her in. She knows we'd be a match for her until she's Ascended and has had time to build up her power."
"And we're not using the pendant as bait!" I cried.
Michelle turned to me. "What if thou hast no choice? Sevfivtoo will remaineth elusive until she can striketh on her own terms."
I glanced at Twilight.
She nodded to me. "Go ahead and tell her what Wuntusix said, Candy."
Michelle's eyes widened slightly, and the avatar's gaze darted to the side and narrowed. I took a deep breath. "Cherry, listen to me. It's possible that what Sevfivtoo wants is not the pendant itself but ... but you."
Michelle's lips parted for a moment, and she averted her gaze. When she looked at me again, I saw not the fear or worry I expected, but something more akin to resignation.
My mouth dropped open. "Wait ... did ... did you know this already?"
"I have suspected as such," said Michelle in a flat voice.
"And you didn't think to say anything? Are you insane?!"
"I'm with Candy on this one," said Rainbow. "You're crazy for keeping this from us."
"What difference doth it make?" said Michelle. "The end result is the same. Sevfivtoo wanteth the pendant."
"But that means you made your suggestion about baiting Sevfivtoo with the pendant when you knew it was you she wanted!" I cried. "What's the matter with you? You have a death wish or something?!"
Michelle gave me a level look. "In a way, I already am dead, Candy."
I stomped a hoof. "That's not what I mean! And that's not what you were saying when we first talked. You said you felt like you were still alive in some way."
"I'm getting confused!" Pinkie said. "Is she alive or dead?"
The avatar frowned at Twilight. "There is no confusion, as this is not a matter which should ever be explored. This pendant should never hath been created!"
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Um, excuse me, oh loud and bearded one. That's kinda not the point because, well, it's right there!"
"All right, that's enough," Twilight said. She leveled her gaze at Starswirl and Michelle. "I want a straight answer from you two right now. Where did all that extra energy I imparted into the pendant go?"
"The spell for my manifestation needeth it," said Michelle.
"Surely thou understandest at least that much," muttered the avatar.
"Wrong," Twilight declared. "Stop treating me like I'm a first year magic student. I was willing to buy that at first, but while you've maintained your manifestations, I've been analyzing the magic flow. You're using a fraction of what I gave you." She turned fully to Michelle. "And that also means that you didn't need all of that energy you had me impart into the pendant to appear to Candy in the White Tail Woods. What were you planning to do with that energy? What are you planning?"
I stared at Twilight, eyes wide, my heart pounding. "Cherry, what does she mean? What's going on?"
The avatar's gaze became cloudy as he looked at Michelle. Michelle bowed her head, a lock of hair falling over one eye. She brushed it aside as her gaze flickered towards me, as if she had trouble meeting my eyes. "It mattereth not if thy friends can stoppeth Sevfivtoo."
Rainbow threw up her fore-hooves. "This is getting us nowhere! Let's just find that bug ourselves and squash it!"
"I want my question answered first," Twilight said. She turned to the avatar. "When we visited your realm, you said something about defeating Sevfivtoo before 'extreme measures' were needed. What did you mean by that?"
"I do not recall saying that," the avatar muttered.
"You liar!" I snapped. "I remember that, too!"
"Well, what about it?" Twilight said. "Is that what the energy you hoarded is all about?"
The avatar said nothing for a long moment, and his eyes shimmered, his expression softening a touch. He slid his gaze over to Michelle.
My heart fluttered. I gave Michelle a stricken look, not even daring to breathe. Yet again, my friend had presented me with another unthinkable idea, and I trembled with the fear that I might be right.
Michelle refused to respond. Damn her. Damn her. She was going to make me say it. "You intend to s-sacrifice yourself, don't you?"
Pinkie gasped, her mouth falling open.
"Wait, what?!" Rainbow cried. She turned to Michelle. "Are you out of your mind?!"
"But how can you even do that?" Pinkie squeaked. She reached into her mane and slammed the pith helmet onto her head. "You're going to turn the pendant into a bomb?!"
My heart thundered so hard I could hear it trying to beat its way out of my chest.
"No, they can't," said Twilight.
"And what dost thou know about what can or cannot be done with the pendant?" the avatar scoffed.
Twilight clenched her teeth and marched up to the visage of Starswirl. "I've had it with your condescending attitude!" She flared her wings. "You think these are clip-on? Rainbow is right, I do know a great deal about Starswirl, and you are no Starswirl, no matter how much you look like him. You have none of his patience, none of his understanding, and certainly none of his kindness!"
The avatar frowned, but his face appeared robbed of its former anger. He cast a listless gaze at Twilight as he said in a lower voice, "Perhaps, Princess, if thou wouldst remove thy blinders and cease to place thy hero on a pedestal, thou mayest realize that even the greatest of ponies have their lowest point. Perhaps Starswirl hath reached his when he createth me."
Twilight recoiled as if slapped. The avatar vanished in a flash of light.
Pinkie gave Twilight a sad look. "Starswirly isn't coming back, is he?"
"We don't need him!" Rainbow said. "He's never gonna give us any answers."
I marched up to Michelle. "But you are! Tell me right now! Was I right? Are you intending some stupid self-sacrifice?"
Michelle lowered her head and remained silent, and for a heart-stopping moment I thought she was going to simply disappear rather than answer my question.
I heard soft hoof-beats. I turned my head and blinked when I saw Pinkie Pie approach. She cast a sad gaze at Michelle. "A-are you really going to do that, Cherry?"
Michelle opened her mouth, her lower lip quivering, but closed it without saying a word.
"Because I think Candy would really miss you."
My eyes teared up. I swallowed hard and looked away.
"M-Maybe if I throw you a 'Welcome to Equestria' party like I did for Candy, would that convince you to stay?"
I heard a quavering sigh. I wiped my eyes and lifted my gaze to Michelle's face. She took a deep breath and raised her head, looking at nopony in particular. "I th-thank thee, Miss Pinkamena Pie." Her lips twitched into a small smile. "I shall consider it."
"I don't understand this, Cherry," said Twilight. "How could you possibly use the pendant to defeat Sevfivtoo? I was right in what I said before. The thaumic matrix of the pendant is far too stable to be used as a magical explosive, nor can its function be modified without powerful external magic. I just don't see how you could possibly use the energy I gave you in a destructive manner."
Michelle turned her head. "Perhaps thou art correct, and it was a foolish notion."
"You're lying to us again," I declared in a shaky voice. "You're not the kind to do things without thinking them through. What are you not telling us?"
Rainbow Dash folded her forelegs and frowned at Michelle. "Seriously, Cherry, doesn't your friendship to Candy mean anything to you?"
"It meaneth a great deal to me, Miss Dash," said Michelle in a solemn voice.
"You have a strange way of showing it!" I cried.
"Cherry, why does Sevfivtoo want you?" said Twilight.
Michelle remained silent.
I stepped closer to her and gazed up into her eyes. "P-Please let us help you. Like you helped me so many times."
Michelle closed her eyes. "Thou dost not understand. I cannot betray my promise to Starswirl."
"Why the hay not?!" Rainbow snapped. "He's just a grumpy old ghost! You don't owe him anything!"
"I owe him my continued existence."
"An existence you seem to hate now," I said, my eyes misting.
She turned to me, and a tiny hint of a smile played on her lips. "I cannot hate it, as it allowed me to save thy life."
I opened my mouth, but my throat was too tight to speak. What was I supposed to say to that? What was I supposed to feel? I had already run through a gamut of emotions, all except for grief, and now I felt like I had to prepare myself for that as well. Again.
Michelle uttered another deep sigh. "I have caused enough pain. I will return to the pendant and manifest again when emotions hath settled. I will see thee later, Candy. Please ... be well."
She faded and disappeared. I fell back on my haunches and lowered my head but refused to cry. I felt a foreleg wrap around me as Pinkie drew me into hug.
Twilight stepped up to me and lowered her head to reapply the privacy shield on the pendant. My voice cracked as I struggled to retain my composure. "Twilight, w-we can't let her do this! We can't let her k-kill herself just to take out Sevfivtoo!"
"For the moment, you have control over her manifestations," said Twilight. "You can keep her in the pendant. That gives us some time."
I trembled. All this time I wanted her out of the pendant, and now I had little choice but to keep her a prisoner. She had substituted one jailer for another.
"But if you do let her manifest, I'm not sure how far she can project herself."
"Then let's go get that stupid bug and end this!" Rainbow exclaimed.
Twilight raised her head and sighed. "I'd love to, but Sevfivtoo is gone."
"Gone?? What the hay does that mean?"
"It means I can't find her anywhere near Ponyville," said Twilight in a tired voice. "The wards aren't detecting her anymore. I even rotated the resonances in case she had found a way to camouflage herself. She's moved off somewhere, and she's out of our reach."
I took a deep breath. I told myself repeatedly that I was in control now; I could keep Michelle from doing something foolish. But why would she so willingly give me the keys to her kingdom unless she had some way around it?
Somehow, despite how much this had torn me up inside, I had a flash of inspiration. "T-Twilight, I just thought of something. What Cherry said about a promise to Starswirl. That had to do with the true purpose of the pendant, right? Because that's the one thing he refuses to talk about."
Twilight nodded. "Good thinking, Candy. That had crossed my mind as well, and it's a valuable clue. And I worked out another piece of the puzzle. I believe I know where Starswirl's lab was located."
My eyes widened. "You do? How did you manage that?"
She smiled. "The location Starswirl emulated in the pendant is not a random conjuration. While searching for the avatar to force it to manifest, I got to see all of it. I recognize it from some of my historical readings. It's a small valley just north of the badlands." Her smile faded slightly. "The only problem is, the location is at least several days travel for me, and I don't want to be away from Ponyville in case Sevfivtoo comes back."
"Betcha I could get there fast!" Rainbow declared.
"I know you can, but we need somepony there who knows unicorn magic. And I don't want any of us to be away from Ponyville in case that's exactly what Sevfivtoo is hoping for."
"What about the other Princesses?" Pinkie said.
"That's really our only choice right now," said Twilight. "I need to know what's at those ruins, if anything. I'll have Spike send a letter to Canterlot at once. Then I'll get back to work on figuring out Starswirl's research. I feel I'm really close now."
I could not just sit by and let events run their course. For now, I had some control, but I couldn't count on that lasting forever. The pendant was mine, regardless of what that damn avatar had to say about it, and Michelle was my friend. That made both my responsibility; I needed to stop running away from it before time ran out.
But I needed something more to go on. Only one being had ever given me any barest hint of information that actually proved valuable in the end, the very one who had catapulted me into this strange world in the first place.
From chaos, somehow, I had to find order.