Ponies Protecting Ponies: The Return of Chaos

by Venates

Chapter Four: For Old Times' Sake

"Are you sure about this?" Lyra asked Hooves. The other ponies in Town Hall weren't paying them any mind. "About Dinky being your niece?"

"I can feel it in my bones, Miss Heartstrings," said Hooves. He looked back to Dinky, who returned a wide-eyed gaze. "I feel... I feel alive. As though every waking moment these past few years was a bad dream I couldn't wake from."

Before Lyra could reply, a large grandfather clock made of gumdrops appeared in the room. A few ponies yelled.

"Of course, I could still be dreaming."

"Time is running out, Heartstrings." The words echoed in Lyra's head. "Twilight and her friends are almost here. So what's it going to be?"

Lyra's gaze turned from the clock and out into the room. Ponies of various shapes and sizes were holding one another close. The newly engaged in the back, the growing baker family... Dinky was holding fast onto Hooves' hind leg.

"...No," said Lyra at last with a shake of her head. "There may be no room in Celestia's Equestria for me, but there certainly isn't room in yours for any of them."

"Really?" asked the voice. "You think Celestia taking away free will makes a better world for them?"

"You showed me Rainbow Dash thinking a tiny cloud was her hometown," Lyra replied. She tilted her head. "If you ask me, either one of you would just play head games with me. Who's to say it wouldn't be better for them?"

"Suit yourself," said the voice as the clock rolled up into nothingness. "Looks like you and your friend there got a lot more boring anyway." The words echoed and faded from Lyra's mind.

"Come along, Heartstrings," said Hooves. He gently removed Dinky from his leg and gave her a nuzzle before racing for the front door.

"Doc?" Lyra took one look at the confused filly before following Hooves. "Where are you going?"

"I have an idea," Hooves said to her as he ripped the door open. "And I may need your help."

"I don't know if you've noticed, Doc," said Lyra as she followed him outside, "But I've never exactly been a big fan of your ideas."

"Miss Heartstrings." Hooves turned and placed a hoof on Lyra's shoulder. He looked deep into her eyes. "Lyra. I have no way to prove it to you, but I'm thinking more clearly now than I have in quite some time. I'm really going to need you to trust me."

Lyra looked back into the stallion's eyes. Something within them was sharper. More focused.

She saw purpose.

Beyond the open Town Hall doors, the world grew increasingly more chaotic; the roads were soap, buildings were cardboard, and buffalo in tutus tapped across the fields.

Lyra smirked. "What exactly have I got to lose?"

---

"Now, mind you, gravitational effect should still be in place, assuming Discord didn't alter any of the structures at a more molecular level."

"'Should?'"

Hooves stood at the edge of Town Hall's upside-down patio. A normal pony would see the sky below and think they would fall forever.

Doctor Hooves was not a normal pony.

"Right." The stallion took several paces back and nodded his head to an unheard beat. Lyra watched him, her head tilted. "Three!" Hooves shouted, breaking into a full gallop toward the patio's edge.

"What happened to one and two?!" screamed Lyra.

Hooves launched himself from the structure and into open air. Lyra didn't want to watch, but she also couldn't look away. Before her eyes, the stallion rotated in the air and landed soundly on a sideways chunk of earth. He did the same thing onto a building still attached to the ground.

"Move quickly, Lyra!" he called as he made his way down shingles and onto terra firma. "Every centimeter the masses move away from one another exponentially decreases the strength of the pull!"

"If a crazy pony is the only one who understands the world, does that make me the crazy one?" Lyra took a few paces back, her eyes locked onto the patio's edge. "Yes. I am the crazy one." She broke into a sprint, mimicking Hooves' trajectory. "THIS IS CERTIFIABLY INSAAAAA–"

Lyra flew through the air, her legs flailing. She never stopped screaming, even as her body adjusted to the random shift in momentum. Her landing was lighter than expected.

"One more!" Hooves called.

Lyra took a deep breath and repeated the process. When she landed again, her legs shook beneath her.

"Fantastic!" said Hooves with a pat on her back. "Though I do take some offence to your comments. They tried to have me committed, you know."

"After a stunt like that, would you blame them?" Lyra wheezed.

Hooves chuckled. "No, I suppose not. Come along, now! We need to get to the library!"

"The... what?" Lyra looked up to see Hooves already in full gallop. She groaned and hobbled into a sprint of her own. "Why the library?" asked Lyra once caught up. She could see the giant oak in the distance, somehow untouched by the world around them. "Is it safe? Does its magic mean Discord can't touch it?"

"No idea," Hooves admitted. "Beside the point. What we really need is–"

They both skidded to a halt as a gigantic boulder came crashing through one of the tree's windows.

"Get down!" Lyra hissed. She shoved Hooves into a bush and followed him into it.

"Lyra, what are you–"

"Shh!"

Lyra pulled back one of the bush's branches to see that the boulder was surrounded by familiar, yet unfamiliar-looking ponies.

"Is that... Twilight and her friends?" asked Hooves.

"I... think so?" said Lyra. She squinted. "Something's off about them though."

Hooves rubbed his chin and leaned forward for a better look. "Indeed."

They watched as Discord greeted and mocked the ponies. Twilight yelled at him a bit before barking orders at her friends.

"They're wearing the crystals!" said Hooves in a soft tone. "If only we still had the device."

"Don't start," said Lyra, giving Hooves a sidelong glance. "You know darn well we couldn't have just recreated that thing in the lab."

Hooves shook his head. "I know, you're right, but– Wait, there's somepony missing."

"Rainbow Dash," said Lyra, taking another peek. "She's sitting on a cloud on the outskirts of town. Discord made her think it was Cloudsdale or something."

"Really?" said Hooves, inquisitive. "Was she grey like the others?"

Lyra shrugged. "She was too far away to get a really good–"

A blinding flash interrupted Lyra. She and Hooves squinted against it to see six figures rising into the air before Discord.

"Fascinating," said Hooves as he raised a hoof over his eyes. He glanced over at Lyra at gave her horn a prod.

"Hey!" said Lyra defensively. She rubbed her horn. "What gives?"

"You're not even touching them this time," said Hooves, his attention back on the spectacle before them. "Fascinating."

"You say that one more time and I'm going to–"

As suddenly as it started, the light show ended, and all six figures dropped back onto the ground. It wasn't long before they were all bickering.

"I don't think we're going to be able to get any help from Twilight or her friends," said Lyra dejectedly.

"Oh, we're not here for them," said Hooves. He jabbed a hoof outside the bush. "We're here for him."

Lyra followed Hooves' gaze just in time to see a baby dragon trip over a pony's tail.

"That thing?!" Lyra asked.

---

Lyra and Hooves slipped into the back of the library without detection.

"What do we need the dragon for?" Lyra asked.

"I've seen the drake before," Hooves explained. He carefully stepped over some rubble. "His magic is directly linked to Princess Celestia. With any luck, we can use him to communicate with our friends still in Canterlot!" Hooves rubbed his chin. "Assuming they are still in Canterlot, of course. At the very least, we can get the princess's attention."

Lyra sighed and shuffled a discarded book away. "What are we even supposed to say to her?" she asked. "Even after letting her know Discord is here in Ponyville, your device is still broken."

"Yes... And even fixed I'm not sure it would work," admitted Hooves.

Lyra spun around. "Wait, what? Why not?"

Hooves kicked a piece of door frame aside and sighed. "The lack of color in the coats and manes of Twilight and her friends show a deep magical suppression, the likes of which I've never seen before." Hooves picked up one of the library's books, and several pages fell loose. He watched the wind take them. "Even with the device, the very essence of their being needs to be surface-level in order for the crystals to resonate properly."

"Well, can't we find a way to, I don't know..." Lyra rubbed her temple. "Reach in and pull it up? Or something?"

Hooves shook his head. "It's less physical and more mental, really. We'd have to reach deep into each pony's emotions through something personal and resounding, like–" Hooves smiled. "Like a good memory." He grabbed Lyra by the cheeks and spun her. "Memory! That's it!"

"What?" Lyra slurred through pressed lips. She loosed herself from Hooves' hold and shook her head. "What are you talking about?"

Hooves dug through a desk and pulled out a quill and parchment. "If memories can restore my own sense of the world, surely it can get through to Twilight and her friends! We're going to need Celestia's help for that!"

"Doc, no offense," said Lyra over hurried scribbles, "But your memories make you worse. Every time somepony mentions your brother, you get extra sulky, or–"

Hooves waved Lyra's sentence away. "It's different now," he said, underlining a few key words. "Dinky being here shows me that he's not completely gone. No one is. The good memories never left. I only let them remind me of the bad ones."

Before Lyra could answer, a scratchy voice called out to them.

"Uh, this really isn't a good time," said Spike the dragon. He motioned at the mess around them. "The library's, uh... closed."

Hooves raced over and held a newly penned scroll in front of Spike. "Don't worry, I'm a doctor," he said. "Now open wide and say 'ah'."

Spike raised an eyebrow but did as told. Hooves then gave him a sharp jab in the belly. Spike coughed emerald flames, incinerating Hooves' scroll.

"There!" said Hooves, dusting his foreleg. "With any luck, we should be getting a response back from the princess in–"

"You two."

"Er..."

The two ponies and Spike turned to see Discord looming over them. Spike yelped and ran upstairs.

"I don't know what you're both planning, but I know it isn't good," said Discord as he raised a curled claw.

Lyra instinctively latched onto Hooves, and in an instant, their surroundings changed. Lyra looked behind herself to see Discord throwing books about in the library.

"We gotta move, Hooves!"

Lyra and Hooves bolted back toward Town Hall.

"I will find you, Heartstrings," said a voice in Lyra's head.

"We've got to get back inside!" shouted Lyra over the wind in her ears.

"We can't jump from here!" answered Hooves. "There's far too much earth beneath us for us to properly break gravitational pull, and–"

"Hide in one of the houses then?" Lyra offered.

Hooves shook his head. "Not enough magical warding!"

They came to a stop underneath Town Hall floating above them, much higher than before. Lyra looked at it with hope leaving her eyes. "Well... I definitely can't teleport that far."

While Lyra was looking up, Hooves was looking down.

"Lyra, PPP headquarters is exactly sixty meters beneath us."

"What's that got to do with– Hooves, I can't see anything!"

Two giant eyes grew onto the building next to them. "Hello, ponies!" came Discord's voice.

Hooves latched onto Lyra. "I trust you! I've done this before! Just do it!"

A giant claw and paw closed in on them, but only caught thin air.

---

"What do we do now?!" yelled Amethyst, the aura around her horn flickering with strain. She and the others continued their struggle to keep Luna from breaking free.

"I... I don't know!" Celestia shouted back, her own horn dimming as well. "I need time to think!"

"We don't have time!" said Bon Bon from atop one of Luna's wings. "We already have one monster out there doing who-knows-what! We don't need a second!"

"Oh, I'm a monster, am I?!" snarled Luna from beneath the dog pile.

Celestia moved to speak, but she stopped at the sight of a scroll forming before her eyes.

"Is that one of Twilight's letters?" asked Derpy, grunting from between Luna's wings.

"No," replied Celestia. "It's from Doctor Hooves! He and Lyra are in Ponyville!"

"They're okay!" Carrot Top cheered, grappling the wing opposite from Bon Bon.

Celestia let out a small grunt of pain as her horn wavered in intensity. "Not quite," she said. "Discord is in Ponyville as well. It seems he's somehow blocked something within Twilight and her friends that Hooves needs to use his device."

The others were struggling too hard against Luna's attempts to break free to let out more than small noises of concern and despair.

"What else is there?" asked Bon Bon, shifting the weight of her hooves. "Hooves wouldn't send a letter just to say hello."

Amethyst looked at the ceiling. "Well..."

"No, she's right," said Celestia as her eyes rolled down the letter. "It seems Doctor Hooves thinks that memories can save Twilight from Discord's torment. He also needs us to bring what's left of the device as soon as we can."

"No offense to Hooves," began Amethyst. She snarled and her magic grew bright again. "But we can't go anywhere while we're trying to keep Luna restrained!"

"Would Hooves' solution work for us?" asked Carrot.

Celestia gave the smallest shake of her head. "No," she answered. "As I said before, Luna's memories of me have been corrupted. Every good deed she sees as a veil covering an ulterior motive."

"I wonder where she got that idea," muttered Amethyst. Celestia gave her a sidelong glance.

"What about your memories?"

Celestia looked to the lone pegasus in the room.

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked Derpy.

"Luna's memories have been corrupted, right?" asked Derpy. "Well, if you really do love her, surely there's a way you can show her? Show her things from your own perspective?"

"My sister has only ever lusted for power!" shouted Luna with a muffled voice. "She'll say whatever lie she can to maintain the throne!"

Celestia did not speak for several moments. When she did, it was a whisper. "The archives."

"The what?"

Celestia dropped her magic and turned to the door. "I need to get to–!"

A handful of screams stopped Celestia in her tracks. She turned, horrified at her lapse in judgment. She dropped her magic back onto Luna just as she got to her hooves. Luna fell back down to her knees, and the others dropped with her. A spasm from her wing sent Bon Bon flying for a second time.

"I'm getting too irritated for this," said Bon Bon as she gave her back a good crack.

"Miss Doo, restrain Luna's other wing!" ordered Celestia. Derpy slid down Luna's massive wing until her weight settled at the end. Celestia then turned to Bon Bon. "I need you to do a very important task in my stead."

Bon Bon gave her neck a good pop. "Of course, Princess," she answered.

Celestia raised a hoof and knocked a gemstone loose from her brooch. "Miss Star, I'm going to let go, but only for a brief moment. Can you maintain her?"

"I..." Amethyst swallowed. "I'll try."

Celestia nodded. Her horn dimmed, then lit again as she aimed it at the crystal. There were some startled shrieks in the room, but Celestia's magic was back on top of Luna as soon as it left.

"Take the gem," Celestia ordered Bon Bon. As she did so, Celestia continued, "You will need it to access the archives. They are in the deepest part of the castle. Look for a vial marked C-000-001. Go!"

Bon Bon bolted without any further hesitation. Luna struggled as Celestia and the others redoubled their efforts.

"And please, Miss Bon," Celestia said to herself, "Please do not pry where eyes are not meant to."

---

Bon Bon galloped through an eerily empty castle. She had only visited a few times, but most of the stairwells were designed to be found with ease. Rich tapestries and polished floors soon gave way to torchlight and hard stone as she dove deeper into the castle.

"The archives can't be far," Bon Bon whispered to herself.

"No, you're getting pretty close."

Bon Bon skidded to a halt and looked around. "Who's there?" she called.

"Over this way," said a voice through an open door. "I'd be happy to show you the way, but, well..."

"But what?" Bon Bon trotted over to the door and stepped inside. It was a single room, bisected by heavy iron bars. Inside, a scrawny body laid sprawled across a floor littered with loose hay.

"Not exactly how I pictured a reunion," said the stallion.

"Havoc," Bon Bon hissed.

Havoc twirled his hoof through the air in vain mockery of a bow. "The one and only," he stated.

"And I'm grateful for it," snarled Bon Bon. She took a few heavy steps closer. "Let me guess: you're going to ask me to help you escape, and in return you help me find the archives?"

Havoc sighed and tapped his padlocked horn. "Well, it's not like I have any other options. Even without this restraint, my horn is still on the mend. Your pegasus friend saw to that."

"Good for her," said Bon Bon, her nostrils flaring.

"Mm." Havoc rolled a hoof through the hay. "How is that daughter of hers, by the way?"

Bon Bon didn't immediately answer. "I don't have time for this." She turned to leave.

"About forty more paces the way you were going, then a left, and then the second door on the right," Havoc said with haste. "It will be labeled. You can't get in without alicorn magic, of course."

"I imagine that's why Celestia gave me this," said Bon Bon as she withdrew a glowing gem.

Havoc blinked in the light and rolled onto his stomach. The pathetic pony grew a wicked grin as both of his differently-colored eyes latched onto the gemstone. "Oh, now that makes things interesting," he said.

"What do you care?" asked Bon Bon. A voice in the back of her head was screaming at her to get moving again, but another one had a curiosity not yet sated.

"Are you not at all wondering why I know where the archives are?" Havoc asked with a raised eyebrow. He caressed an iron bar as he spoke. "I used to work down here, you know. Far away from where any damage to the castle could possibly destroy the princess's special memories. Of course, back then you didn't need alicorn magic to use them. Celestia was far more trusting then." He laughed. "Then I happened."

"Fascinating," muttered Bon Bon. She snorted and turned back to the door.

"C-587-433," said Havoc simply.

Bon Bon turned around again. "Excuse me?"

"You're curious, aren't you?" asked Havoc, showing every tooth in his mouth. "C-587-433. That vial will have your answers."

Bon Bon blinked.

"I haven't forgotten," said Havoc with a tap on his skull. "I have excellent memory."

Bon Bon gave him one last glare before departing. She wasn't sure whether or not she imagined his laughter on the way out.

---

Despite her reservations, Bon Bon followed Havoc's directions to the letter and found the archives exactly where he said they would be. She placed Celestia's magic-infused gemstone into a circular slot acting as a lock, and the heavy archive door opened. Bon Bon withdrew the gemstone and tucked it back into her mane. Beyond the door stood several lines and stories of racks filled with glass vials, each containing a strange purple liquid. Noting a numeric plate on one of the nearest shelves, Bon Bon raced down the aisles until the numbering looked familiar.

"If I'm reading this right," Bon Bon said under her breath, "C-000-001 should be right–" She looked straight up. At the very top of the rack sat a vial labeled with several round digits. "Of course," she sighed. A quick look around showed her a nearby ladder. She eased it onto the rack and began her climb.

"Couldn't just write things down like the rest of us, huh?" asked Bon Bon. Her ascent was slow and steady. "Even a collection of datasticks would have been better than this!"

A small voice reminded her that the journal she kept, by agency standards, should have been burned ages ago, but she brushed the thought aside.

Halfway up, another number caught her attention, though she knew it had no right doing so. She stared at it for a moment before shaking her head.

"I don't even remember if it was 433 or 443," Bon Bon said to herself.

The statement didn't get her to keep climbing the ladder. She continued to stare at the vial. Almost against her will, she slowly stuck out a hoof and brought it closer to her. The liquid inside sloshed against the glass; it looked as though the magic-imbued gemstone was attracting it.

Bon Bon withdrew the crystal and stared at it in turn.

You need alicorn magic to use them.

Bon Bon hesitated, then dropped the crystal into the glass vial. The liquid swirled and shifted to a pale white. She drew the glass closer to her eyes.

"I must be completely out of my mind," said Bon Bon. Hesitating once more, she slowly drew the vial to her lips and swallowed.

---

Princess Celestia sighed as she gave yet another document her signature. Paperwork was always droll, but it really started to pile up more recently. Her servant trembled under the weight of all the forms.

"You are welcome to set them aside, Pen," said Celestia to her obscured assistant. "You may be here for a while."

"I'm fine!" Pen lied with a wide grin. "Don't you worry about me!"

Celestia smiled.

The throne room doors burst open as a unicorn stallion raced inside. Two guards rushed in after him, but stopped at the sight of Celestia's outstretched hoof. The stallion did not slow until he was only a yard from the first step up to Celestia.

"Was another archive dropped?" asked Celestia of the stallion. "I'm far too busy to make more duplicates today. If you like, we can schedule another session–"

"You witch," the stallion snarled.

Celestia's eyes narrowed. "That tone is rather... unbecoming of you, Chronicler."

"The only thing unbecoming here is that lone chair in a room meant for two!"

Celestia sat herself up taller but did not break eye contact with the stallion. One of his irises was green and the other scarlet, but both stared daggers.

"Pen, you may take your leave," said Celestia to her assistant. "The guards will escort you."

"Yes, majesty," said Pen as she hurried off with a back full of paper. "See? Good thing I didn't drop them after all!"

The stallion scoffed as the doors closed behind him. He was now alone with Celestia. "Quite the obedience you instill in your subjects, majesty."

Celestia leaned forward and studied the stallion. "You've broken our agreement," she stated.

"My sister is dead!" the stallion shot back, his nostrils flaring. "You may think my work is too important for 'distraction,' but I still deserve the truth!"

Celestia sighed and spoke with a somber voice. "What happened to your sister is regrettable, and while I admit that I may seem cold and heartless, you'll find that protocol–"

"Means acting like it never happened?" finished the stallion, venom on his tongue.

Celestia rose from her seat. Her tone was losing its empathy. "Every PPP agent knows what it takes to protect the good of Equestria! Your sister knew that–"

"My sister knew that you're a betrayer!" shouted the stallion. Veins popped in his neck. His voice lowered. "That's what she found in that wretched forest. Truth."

"Chronicler–"

"Memories don't have to come from a pony, Celestia," said the stallion. He paced as he spoke. "Powerful ones can latch onto locations and objects. And that's what she found in the stones of that castle before the loathsome creatures of Everfree found her. Did you really think I was the only pony in Equestria with memory magic?"

Celestia's eyes narrowed further, but she said nothing.

"And you know what's strange?" asked the stallion without a hint of humor. "The only pony to hear her final words doesn't even remember them. Are you in the business of erasing minds now, Celestia? Is that how you intend to keep Lyra Heartstrings from snooping around? From learning about how you betrayed Luna? From learning about the Spirit in all of your nightmares?"

Celestia's eyebrows lowered. "I do what I do to keep Equestria safe."

"No," whispered the stallion, barely over a hiss. "You do what you do to keep yourself safe. And I will no longer be accomplice to this selfish madness. The ponies of Equestria deserve better. Better than you."

Celestia closed her eyes as her face adopted a pained look. The room stood silent for several seconds.

"I am sorry."

The room erupted in a brilliant golden light.

When it cleared, Celestia sat at her throne, reading an official-looking scroll. A stallion with two eyes of different hues shook his head and picked himself up off the floor.

"Are you well, Chronicler?" asked Celestia from over her scroll.

"Yes, I..." The stallion rubbed his temple. "I think I just lost my train of thought is all."

Celestia hummed. "Well, if it comes back to you, please don't hesitate to find me. Your work is too valuable to be ignored. If there is nothing else, however, I do have some important work to return to."

"Of course, Princess," replied the stallion with a bow.

A slip of paper fell from the stallion's collar. He blinked twice before picking it up and unfolding it with his magic.

"What's that?" asked Celestia with a degree more curiosity than usual.

"A... reminder," answered the stallion. Beads of sweat dripped from his brow. "Our next session is to make memory number C-587-433, correct?"

"If memory serves," said Celestia. She tilted her head at the stallion. "Are you sure you're feeling well?" she asked again.

"Just a small fever, I think," said the stallion as he stuffed the note back into his collar. He turned to leave at a quick pace.

"Chronicler?"

The stallion turned to the sound of his title. "Yes?"

"I must remind you of our agreement."

"'Under no circumstance should the memories of Princess Celestia be viewed by any unauthorized pony,'" the stallion recited. "I... I haven't forgotten."

The stallion gave one last bow before leaving the throne room. Celestia watched him leave with unease.

---

Bon Bon groaned and rubbed her head. Something dripped uncomfortably onto her chest, and she flicked her foreleg in reflex. She was lying on her back, a few broken glass shards littered around her.

"Did that just–" She shook her head. Visions of Havoc threatening Celestia in her throne room swam through her mind. She shook her head again. "The vial!"

Bon Bon looked up to see a few vials missing from the archive rack, but C-000-001 still stood on the highest shelf.

The walls rumbled.

"I've wasted too much time!" Bon Bon rocketed up the ladder and carefully removed C-000-001 from its resting place. Her descent was quick yet cautious, and as soon as she was on level ground again, Bon Bon bolted out the door.

"Have a good trip?" asked a voice as she passed a lonesome dungeon cell.

The rest of the castle a blur behind her, Bon Bon threw her weight into the door for the room that, she hoped, still held her agents and princesses.

Everyone was still inside, but now Celestia had her four legs pinning down Luna's.

"You must fight it, sister!"

"The only thing to be fought here is you!"

Derpy spun an eye onto the open door. "Did you find it?" she asked.

"As quick as I could," Bon Bon lied. She stepped briskly toward the princesses.

"Place the gem into the vial!" ordered Celestia.

"I... I lost it!" Bon Bon lied again.

Celestia moaned in pain as she stretched her neck and shot a magic bolt into the vial in Bon Bon's hooves. Luna clasped her wings together, throwing Celestia and the other ponies aside. She stood on four hooves at long last, her height now almost equal to Celestia's.

"Enough of this!" Luna roared, her eyes narrow and fierce. "I refuse to be a captive any longer! I will–!"

Luna's voice was blocked by a vial shoved straight into her gullet. Derpy solidified her attack by wrapping around Luna's head, her stomach resting on the base of the vial. Luna thrashed to try and dislodge her while Derpy stretched and rotated her wings for balance.

"Shh... Shh..." Derpy's coos were barely audible over Luna's muffled roars of fury. The pegasus stroked Luna's throat with one of her hind legs. "Shh... Shh..."

Without warning, Luna's eyes shot open and glowed a bright white light. She stood statuesque. Derpy gently fluttered to the ground and gave a sigh of relief.

"Nice work, Doo," muttered Bon Bon in awe.

"How..." Amethyst turned to Derpy. "How did you do that?"

"You should have seen Dinky when she was teething," Derpy answered without a hint of humor.

The ponies gathered around Luna's still form and stared with bated breath.

"What do we do now, Princess?" asked Carrot Top.

"We wait," said Celestia simply. "And if this doesn't work–"

A strong gust knocked everyone back away from Luna again. They rocked back to the far wall as Luna stumbled from her own weight.

"No!" Luna cried. "No more!" Amethyst stood up and lit her horn, but Celestia put out a leg to stop her. "I will not... be controlled... any longer!"

Heat and cold both burst throughout the room. The door splintered, and the window shattered. When the ponies inside could finally catch a breath, they looked toward the center of it all.

"Sister!"

Celestia leaped to Luna, her wings wide. The others stepped carefully around on either side, their wits about them.

Two alicorn princesses stood hugging in the middle of the room: Celestia, and one more unfamiliar. She looked like Luna, if the younger of the two's mane erupted into an ethereal form, and stood a fair few inches taller.

"It is good to see you've fully returned, my sister," said Celestia.

"And it is good to know that you never truly left," said Luna.

---

Lyra groaned as though she would only ever have the chance to groan one last time and really wanted to make the most of it. When her lungs ached from the effort (and a few other things), she sat up slowly and rubbed her head.

"Are you alright, Doc?" Lyra called into the darkness. "I'm alive, but man..." She flexed her back. "I forgot just how tall headquarters is."

"Yes," came Hooves' voice, strained. "Quite-tall. Quite-tall-indeed."

"Doc?" Lyra lit her horn and looked around. Headquarters was ominous without any power keeping the lights on. "Where are you?"

"Other-side-other-SIDE!"

Lyra's heart skipped a beat as she whirled around. "Doc, are you–?" Her front hooves shot to her mouth as she took in the sight. One of Hooves' hind legs bent at an angle no pony ever walked with.

"Just-a-broken-femur!" Hooves said, not at all reassuring. "Just-a-femur-and-maybe-the-tibia. Or-the-fibula." He gave a hard grunt. "Who-can-really-tell-them-apart-anyway?" Hooves burst into uncomfortable giggles.

"You're going into shock," Lyra said, more to herself than to Hooves. She stood up slow and tried to shake off her aches and pains. "Let me get you a blanket." She took off as quick as she could.

"Not-cold, Missssss Heartstrings!" said Hooves, shivering. "Just-in– really-intense-pain!"

Lyra returned with a small wool blanket and a corked bottle. She set the bottle next to him and stretched the blanket over top.

"How many of these should I take?" asked Hooves as he fumbled with the bottle.

"The bottle says two, so with that–" Lyra motioned at Hooves' malformed leg. "I'd say about eight."

Hooves performed questionable math as he poured pills into his mouth.

Lyra disappeared and reappeared with gauze and a few splints. "Now, I only ever received basic field medication training, so this is only a temporary fix. Do you understand?"

Hooves nodded.

"I need you to say it."

"Say what?"

"That it's okay for me to perform on you."

"WHY?!" roared Hooves, his pupils shrinking.

"Because I need audible permission to avoid a lawsuit," Lyra answered simply.

"YES! YES!" Hooves banged a foreleg against the ground. "FOR THE LOVE OF CELESTIA, YOU MAY PERFORM ON MY LEG!"

"Okay," said Lyra as her horn lit up. The same yellow glow appeared around Hooves' broken leg. "I'm sorry, Doc."

"For what?!" Hooves asked, erratic.

"For not counting to three."

"What?"

The only thing louder than the crunching of bones was the shrieks of the stallion attached to them.

---

The ground rushed beneath them as the two pony princesses raced toward the town of Ponyville. They heard several cries for help among patchwork crop fields and ravenous bunny rabbits, but they did not stop.

Derpy flew in front of them, her two golden eyes swiveling wherever they could. Bon Bon and Carrot Top rode on Celestia's back, though neither looked pleased with their travelling partner. Amethyst rode with Luna, a scrap of a contraption between her legs.

"How fares your progress, gemcutter?" asked Luna.

"'Progress' is a generous term," answered Amethyst. She turned Hooves' screwdriver and some unknown part came loose. Amethyst caught it in her magic before it was lost in the slipstream behind them. She sighed and placed it with the other loose components. "I only ever watched Hooves work on this thing from a distance. Looking back, it feels foolish that the rest of us never tried to pick it up."

"You are too heavy with your blame," said Luna. "The day's proceedings could not have been predicted, even by an excelled prophet."

Amethyst shook her head. "I'm not so sure about that. The way that Havoc guy played us? Played us all? It's like he knew where every piece of rubble would fall after the explosion."

"Chaos often feels random and unpredictable," said Luna, "But in truth it still follows the same rules as everything else."

Amethyst snorted and gave the device another tweak. "Then how do you explain Discord?"

"Discord, whether or not you choose to believe," said Luna, "is an expert on rules. That is how he knows where exactly to break them."

Amethyst blinked and said nothing. She sealed one of the device's severed wires with her magic.

"Princess Luna, may I ask you something?" asked Amethyst.

She could only see the back of her head, but Amethyst thought she could see Luna smiling.

"You may," Luna answered.

"What did you see?" Amethyst asked. She waved the screwdriver in the air. "Back in the room, when your eyes were glowing. What helped you, you know... win?"

Luna did not respond at once.

"I saw myself," she answered. "Through my sister's eyes, eons ago. I saw her concern for me during Discord's attack. I saw her relief to have me when she was injured. I saw her desperation to never lose me."

Luna gave her wings a vigorous few flaps before continuing.

"I think more than anything, I saw a thousand years of pain, grief, and mourning." Amethyst turned herself slightly. Luna continued, "Despite what some may think, my sister is a deeply flawed pony. Just like all ponies. A thousand years do not sand every edge, Amethyst Star."

Amethyst turned back to Hooves' device and stared at it. Well, more so she stared through it.

"I have a question for you as well."

"Oh!" Amethyst turned back to Luna. "Okay... yeah. I suppose that's fair."

"Are you willing to love someone in spite of their flaws?" Luna asked. "Are you willing to love them because of them?"

"I..."

"We're nearing Ponyville!" called Derpy from ahead. "It looks a lot different, but we're definitely in the right place!"

"Brace yourself, Amethyst Star," said Luna. "The descent is seldom easy!"

---

"C'mon, Hooves! You need to get up!"

"I'm... fine. You... get up."

Lyra groaned and stopped pushing at Hooves' side. He wasn't screaming anymore, thankfully, but the medication and energy spent were taking their toll. Lyra could feel her own strength waning as her horn struggled to keep headquarters illuminated.

"I wouldn't want to move either," said Lyra, eyeing Hooves' splinted leg, "But, as far as we know, Celestia and your device will be here any minute. We need you to fix it!"

"Calibrations," mumbled Hooves. "Percussive maintenance is the preferable option..."

"Percussive...?" Lyra shook her head. She rolled Hooves over top his blanket and drug him to the elevators. She clicked the button to go up, but nothing happened. "Ugh, of course," she moaned. She looked down at Hooves, then back up to the exit.

"Brace yourself, Hooves," said Lyra as her horn lit with what might it had left. "We're going back up, and we might not make it all the way."

"Maybe Amethyst can teleport us," Hooves mumbled. "She's better at it."

"I'm ignoring you, Hooves."

Hooves gave an unstable salute. "Roger that, Ly-Ly."

Lyra shook her head, concentrated, and squeezed her eyes shut. Both ponies vanished.

---

Celestia, Luna, and Derpy made touchdown not too far from Ponyville's library. Derpy's eyes spun everywhere.

"I don't see Lyra or Doctor!" she cried. The others dismounted from the princesses' backs.

"Maybe they're inside the library?" offered Carrot Top.

Celestia looked and her eyes shrunk. "Oh no..." Her wings burst her a few yards closer as she took in the damage to the tree's front door and window.

"Doctor? Miss Heartstrings?" Celestia called. She stepped into a messy, yet silent collection of books. "...Twilight?"

A groaning came from upstairs. Celestia squeezed herself up the stairwell as quick as she could.

"Twilight?"

"Spike," a miserable voice grumbled. "We got your *hic* messages..."

Celestia looked around at the cluttered bedroom floor. A few scrolls were open, but more laid sealed.

"They were meant to be used in a memory spell," Celestia said, more to herself than Spike. "A green unicorn was here to see you, yes?"

Spike groaned.

"Spike, please, think quickly!" urged Celestia.

"Yes, okay?!" Spike rolled over and clutched his stomach. "Her and a rude brown stallion. They made me send a letter and–" Spike held back a burp. "Are... are you... are you here to defeat Discord?"

Celestia turned back to the stairwell. "I'm certainly going to try," she said.

---

"Anything?" asked Bon Bon, her hoof in her ear.

<Ther—onto—balloo—Dash—eartstrin—>

"It's no use," said Carrot Top as she stopped fiddling with her own comm link. "Discord's magic must be messing with our transmissions."

"Ugh, great," said Bon Bon as she turned hers off. "I guess we'll just have to wait here until Doo gets back."

The two mares walked back to where the others were resting. They managed to find a secluded spot on the outskirts of town, far away enough from Discord's gaze but still close enough to leap in when the time was right.

"How's it coming, Star?" asked Bon Bon.

Amethyst threw her hooves into the air. "Will everypony quit asking me?!" she yelped. "I barely have any idea what I'm doing, and the constant questions are not helping!"

Bon Bon raised her two front hooves in defensive. "Sorry I asked," she said dryly. She set her hooves back down and walked over to Luna, who was lying on her stomach and watching Amethyst patiently.

Celestia walked back to the site from the library and the others watched her approach.

"They are not in the library," Celestia informed them. "I am not sure Miss Heartstrings received any of the scrolls to use for a memory spell."

Bon Bon pounded a stone into powder. "Well, what are we supposed to do now?!"

"Look!"

Four heads turned to follow Carrot Top's outstretched hoof. Not far in the distance walked three familiar figures.

"She found them!" said Carrot excitedly as the others stood up. "Derpy found them!"

"...Why are they moving so slow?" Amethyst asked.

Celestia spread her wings and took flight. The others watched as she landed next to the distant figures. They paused for a brief conversation before Celestia flew back, Hooves resting between her wings.

"He is injured," explained Celestia. Lyra and Derpy were not far behind her. She lowered Hooves to the ground as Derpy draped his blanket over him. He shuddered, but his eyes stayed closed.

Amethyst stepped forward to take a closer look. Her back hoof stroked the side of Hooves' device, causing part of its plating to spring off and shoot into a faraway bush. Discord's distant laugh echoed across the fields.

Amethyst swallowed and stared at Hooves' comatose body. "He's going to wake up... right?"