Equestria World, Book 1: Surviving Canterlot High

by Gear Works

Ch. 36 - There's a Time to Think...

We returned to our school with Gilda in tow, making our way to Miss Luna’s office. Lyra and Sweetie Drops already decided to head home. When we arrived at Miss Luna’s office, Fluttershy and Tree Hugger already left for the day. Gilda sat down at one of the seats in front of the desk, while Mrs. Harshwhinny explained to Miss Luna about Gilda’s problems that lead her to drop out back then and decided to help break in to the school weeks ago. Luna was not pleased with what has happened, but knowing what Sunset has gone through before, she can understand Gilda’s reasoning for her actions.

“Look, I can understand why you did all this,” Luna said. “But if you just come to one of us to explain the problems that you were having, none of this would have taken place.”

“I know,” Gilda replied. “But I didn’t know what to do, being felt like an outcast at this school.”

“That still doesn’t excuse you for what you did, Gilda,” Rainbow Dash responded. “Plus, we have been friends since the 7th grade. You could at least come to me to talk. We always watch each others back, remember?”

“I know, I know. You don’t have to remind me. I just…panicked when it all happened.”

“Well now you can get back on track after all that’s happened,” explained Mrs. Harshwhinny. “I think it’s possible to get you in the same classes during the spring semester that you decided to drop out of. This way, you can pick up where you left off.”

“I noticed that you gotten C’s and D’s during your fall semester in your classes. That would still count as a passing grade for now,” explained Miss Luna. “But if you want to make sure your freshman year comes out good, you need to do a better job in your classes and build those grades up.”

Gilda sighed to Luna’s explanation.

“Look at it this way. At least you have us to help tutor you if you need it,” said Dash. “Twilight’s the smartest friend we know. I’m sure she can get you back on track.”

“So…I’m guessing you would want a confession of my involvement with the students of Crystal Prep if I plan to come back to school with this…program you have that can help me?” Gilda said.

“Well, that would be a good place to start. Maybe it would get Principal Cinch off my back.”

We all looked at the doorway and saw a gray man with a goatee, dressed in a tacky shirt and pants and wearing a bucket hat.

“Mr. Discord. I’m glad you could make it here,” replied Luna. “I hope you weren’t busy with anything?”

“Oh please. I was just having a nice glass of iced tea and watching the downtown scenery when you called me,” Discord replied. “And Miss Dash, I’m sorry for not getting a replacement coach sooner than I had planned. I know you have been trying hard to earn that scholarship next year. I hope you didn’t…freak out at what happened.”

Rainbow Dash let out a sheepish laugh while scratching the back of her head.

“You know Dash. She knows how to freak out when she wants to,” Applejack said while slapping her hand on Rainbow Dash’s back.

Mr. Discord let out a chuckle. He then turned his attention to me. “And this must be the spotlight student that everyone’s talking about.”

“Yes he is,” Luna replied. “Jack, this is Mr. Discord, former principal and current board director.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said as I shook his hand.

“The honors all mine, Jack,” he replied. “And I’m glad you were able to find the one who helped in trashing a part of this school,” as he was staring at Gilda. He looked back up and said, “But for now, I need to discuss some…matters with Miss Luna in private.”

“Agreed. Will you excuse us for a moment,” Luna said to us. “Mrs. Harshwhinny, would you be so kind to explain to Gilda about our support program.” She nodded and guided Gilda out of the room. The rest of us decided to do the same until Luna stopped us. “Jack, can you stay here as well?”

I looked at Luna, then back to the others and asked Sunset, “Why don’t you see if you can talk to Gilda as well and learn more about how the Talons operate. I’ll catch up with you later.” She nodded and they left the room. I closed the door and walked back up and took a seat in front of Luna’s desk. Mr. Discord sat down in the other seat next to me.

“So, is he the one with the…gift?” Mr. Discord asked Luna.

“He is, Discord. And so far, he’s been doing well, but we think he still has a good ways to go before Friday.”

“I’m guess he’s part of your group?” I asked.

“More like the one who started the group,” Luna replied.

“I’m sure that Celestia or Luna have even brought this up,” Discord said to me, “but I’m Star Swirl’s younger brother. And by younger, I mean over a decade younger. Don’t even ask why my parents waited longer to have a second child.”

“Yet, it’s Coach Tirek who’s in charge, right?” I asked.

“He’s a good friend of mine. And he has better resources than I do, so it was best that he lead the team instead of me,” he said.

“I’m sure you heard about the Crystal Prep scandal,” said Luna, to which I nodded. “Well, it was after that took place that Star Swirl went missing.”

“That could explain why you didn’t want to take the new director’s job at the time, right?” I asked Discord.

“Indeed. When Celestia told me about receiving my brother’s journal, I had to find out what happened to him. I went to his home to find it completely empty, as if he just moved out. Then I went to see Tirek about what happened so he could look into it further. He found out that he…retired from his job, which I find it hard to believe. So we decided to start working together and looking for allies who we could trust. Tirek believed that taking the director’s role might help find our answers better, because he thought that Crystal Prep could have had a part in all of this before. I thought it was a silly idea to go on, but I went and took the spot and handed the principal’s title to Celestia.”

“And now you think there could be a connection to all this.” I said.

“That’s right,” he replied. “In fact, that’s the reason I’m here. Well, one reason.”

Luna said, “Ever since you came here, Jack, we have slowly started to believe that Crystal Prep have been working on students to make sure that they have these…gifts that you have. And after yesterday’s encounter, we can believe that they have. But how is another issue.”

“But that’s not the only problem,” Discord said. “Principal Cinch called me yesterday asking that she let her suspended players play again at the championship game, thinking they served their punishment. I declined her offer, saying that it was an ongoing investigation, and that if these crimes were true, she would be forced to surrender the championship title if her school won this coming Friday. She was furious at what I told her and just hung up. I doubt she’s the same lady that came to me for help back then.”

“And you could be right about that,” I said.

“How come?” Luna asked me.

“Indigo talked to me in private after you were on the phone with us. She’s been sensing something…strange about Cinch. Almost like what I was sensing with Sunset when we first crossed paths. But this felt like bad karma to her. Something must have happened to her after losing her husband back then that made her change to the way she is now. If I can get some kind of reading on her, I might have an idea what she’s talking about.”

“Well, getting a confession from that girl you found might not help our case anyway,” Discord said. “With the attitude she’s displaying, it would be like adding fuel to a fire. Unless…”

I looked at him with a worried look on my face. “Unless?” He gave me a sinister glare at me, and that made me really worried. “Why do I have a feeling that the only other option is one I won’t like to hear?”

Luna spoke up. “Jack, I heard from Professor River Song that you had a hand in creating a special law to help the Manehattan Knights in resolving issues based on common sense.”

I placed my hand on my forehead and said, “When did you heard about this? Last night?”

“Actually, it was the last Christmas break when she visited us, like she always does,” Luna said. “When you decided to have her as your adviser, she told me and my sister about what you have done with the group, including the Order of the Manehattan Knights law. I never really thought about it when you came here, not even knowing that Coco was also a knight. Since you now have a group in place, we remembered about the law you put in place and wonder if it could be of any use. We just didn’t feel like bring it up until now.”

“You felt like we could solve this problem without the law, right?” I said.

“That was the plan,” Discord answered. “But we could be running out of time…and options at this point.”

“I’m guessing that River Song wasn’t the only one you were talking to last night, right?” Before I could answer, Luna raised her hand and continued. “You don’t have to give any names to me. I can only guess that Coco would be one of them.”

“If you think I would use the law’s challenge amendment with Coco’s support, it’s not going to happen,” I said. “I’m not one who would use the law for my own advantage, and Coco knows it. And I don’t want to take any chances in destroying the Manehattan Knights just for something like this. It’s too much of a risk that I want to take with all that’s going on between this school and Crystal Prep.”

“I can understand what you mean, Jack. And we can’t bring up anything about Crystal Prep creating gifted students in their school, since it’s more of a private matter that we’re dealing with,” Luna explained. “But with what’s coming up this Friday, we need to deliver a blow to them that could open a way to finding out what they are hiding.”

“And you’re hoping that if they were a second placed team, then it would raise concern about the experiments going on with the students, right?” I asked.

“That’s what we’re hoping,” Luna answered. “And if using the law won’t help, then what will?”

I started to think about that. Then I remember something that was brought up yesterday.

When I was studying the football team this year, all the guys acted like they had this gift. But they started to act more like everyone else, expect for Long Shot. All the others guys that I thought had it had to make hits or take hits, expect for Long Shot when he started to become the new QB.

“What if there was a way to remove Long Shot’s gift? Maybe with a…heavy hit on the field,” I said.

“But we know that he can sense them coming and dodge it. How can we apply this hit on him?” Luna asked.

“You’re looking at him,” I said. “If the girls can’t detect me coming to them, then it goes the same for him.”

“But you never played on defense. And you have yet to learn the remaining arts to execute the tenth art,” Luna explained to me.

“I do now. I don’t know how it happened, but it happened when I needed it the most. That must be the only way it would truly work.”

“Miss Luna, this might be the only other option we have at the moment,” Discord said. “Perhaps Coach Iron Will would be willing to look into this if you explain it to him. Let him decide if it’s worth trying.”

“I guess it’s worth looking into,” Luna said. “I’ll talk to him tomorrow about it. You just see if that confession helps us out before Friday’s game. I don’t want things to be harder than they are now after what’s happen.”

“I will.” Discord got up off his seat and said, “It was nice meeting you, Jack.”

“Same here,” I said as I got up and shook his hand again. “I just hope we can get through all this. I would like to take a break after the big game and relax before we have to make our next move.”

“Can’t argue with you there,” Discord said. “I like to have a clear head before basketball season starts.”

---

I was in the principal’s office Monday afternoon, helping Celestia getting some files organized and filed away. She learned from her sister about Crystal Prep’s insider and our plans for Friday’s championship game.

“So you think a well placed hit on their QB would make him lose his gift?” Celestia asked me.

“That’s the plan,” I said.

“What does Indigo have to say about it?” she asked.

“I talked to her last night about the idea,” I said. “She thinks it could be risky for both of us, but it’s our best bet. Based on what Sugarcoat explained to us Saturday, our guess is that it doesn’t stay stable in boys than it does in girls. It’s possible that whatever is put into the male students doesn’t hold up to the male DNA structure, if that’s how they are giving them this gift.”

“If they are doing the same experiments like what the Dark Star Organization did during the Great War, then it’s possible that they could be using genetics, which I don’t think any of us could understand in detail,” Celestia explained.

“I think the only ones that come close to understanding that are Twilight Sparkle and Moon Dancer,” I said. “They think it could be tied to the X/Y chromosome part, but they need time to look into it better. The only thing we know is that guys can’t maintain this gift. And if you take the fact that the girl to boy ratio that carry this gift naturally would be, I don’t know, 20 to 1, maybe 50 to 1, then you can guess that if the Dark Star Organization were taking it from those who have it only have female genetics to go on. Master Blades was able to escape while his master sacrificed his own life in the process. I can only guess that they needed these gifted people alive to learn what they carry. How they process it is another story.”

“Well, once football season is over, we can put our focus on that,” said Celestia. “But I’m worried about having you play defense for the first time.”

“I was thinking the same thing. But Coach Iron Will said that Thunderlane has some experience in the defensive line and might put him in a defense play with me, once he gets something worked out. I’ll know more tomorrow when I see him.”

It was then that her office phone started to ring. Celestia went to answer it and heard Mr. Discord was on the other line. The conversation was the usual, but it soon started to change when I could hear the worried tone in Celestia’s voice. When she was done talking to him, she hung up and gave me a worried look on her face.

“We might have a problem,” she said.

“Why do I have a feeling that Gilda’s confession didn’t help us out,” I said.

“Kinda,” she replied. “Mr. Discord talked to Principal Cinch about this new evidence, and she has concerns about this and wants to wait for the investigation to be complete before handing out any more punishments, which could take weeks before it’s complete.”

“Excuse my language, but it sounds like nothing but BS coming from her,” I said.

“Agreed. We’ll need to talk to the others tomorrow about this and start weighting our options. For now, you’ll have to deal with this while Brick Wall is on the team,” she replied. “You might want to have Indigo know about this, if she know by now.”

“Knowing her, her hands would be tied in solving this.”

---

We all met Tuesday in the gym during free study to explain the new set of problems that we are now facing. And the reactions were mixed.

“If you want my opinion, I think it’s nothing but BS to me,” said Rainbow Dash.

“That’s what I said,” I replied.

“But not only will Jack have to deal with Brick Wall this Friday, but you’ll have to deal with Lightning Dust when basketball season starts,” Sunset said as she was looking at Dash.

“LD is the least of my worries when that happens. I’m more worried about the other girls that have that ‘gift’ with them. And that includes Indigo Zap,” Dash explained.

“Look, I know that they have what Jack has,” Moon Dancer explained. “But I’m sure they are willing to work with us. They might have to play their own part like usual, but with the fact that we now know one difference between what that have and what Jack has might give us a better idea how it works. We just need to find a way to work around it if we can find a way.”

“We can worry about that when the time comes,” said Spitfire. “At least there’s one good piece of news to look at. Coach Fleetfoot told me last night that Brick Wall just had his ‘A’ patch striped from him, thanks to Long Shot.”

“Um, I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” said Fluttershy. “I mean, didn’t you see how mean he was Saturday at the park? Wouldn’t that make him…meaner?”

“I hate to say this, but Fluttershy’s right,” said Rarity. “I’m sure that Long Shot can keep him in check, but once on the field, that might be a different story.”

“I have to agree,” said Cadence. “We saw what he did to Shining Armor the last time we faced them. What if he decided to do that to Jack Friday?”

“Not going to happen,” I said. “I’ll be able to sense him when he comes for me. And since Shining Armor is back as the QB, just coming towards me and only me will draw flags for the team. And they can’t afford to lose when that happens.”

“Iron Will agrees with you,” he said, crossing his arms. “It’s become more of a challenge for Crystal Prep this season than it was last season.”

“What about having Jack play on defense? Do you think it will work?” asked Shining Armor.

“Hey! Iron Will has done it before. Iron Will can do it again. Thunderlane, you and Jack will be working on some new defensive plays this week.”

“No problem, coach. I can help Jack with the basics before we can learn them,” Thunderlane replied.

“I’m just worried about Jack,” Sunset said. “Having to make a well-placed hit on Crystal Prep’s QB? What if he gets hurt in the process?”

Applejack nodded. “I’m with Sunset on this. I know Jack can be tough to handle anything, but we can’t afford his gift to be shown to everyone on the field. That would make him vulnerable on defense. Is that the only option we have to level the playing field in Friday’s game?”

Everyone in the group started to mumble about the question before Twilight spoke up. “There is another idea that could work. One that I wish we knew about in the first place.” She got out a piece of paper from her notebook, got up from the bleachers and walked on the gym floor to face us. I looked at Coco and had a feeling that Twilight just found out what we didn’t want her to find in the first place.

“I found something online called the ‘Order of the Manehattan Knights’ law. It says that all official ‘Knights’ that have been created from the high ranking counsel are allowed to help resolve any issues that take place between two or more party members, as long as one of party members requests for their aid. All ‘Knights’ must rely on common sense while working with the laws of our nation to make sure that any issues can be resolve peacefully without the need of taking their complaints to court.

“Now this part really caught my attention. If one of the arguing party members is in disagreement with the ‘Knights’ decision and accuses them of taking sides, based on their rank, they can issue their own challenge to the party member as an act of pride and honor in upholding the decision that was made. The ‘Knight’ must explain what their challenge is and must be approved by a second ‘Knight’ before going forward with the challenge. If the second ‘Knight’ does not approve of this challenge, the challenge can be changed or another ‘Knight’ can be called upon to help resolve the issue. Otherwise, the decision must be voided and handled by the court legal system.

“Now, if I read this correctly, it was signed by the President and members of the Government, along with the six founders of the Manehattan Knights, two of them being Jack Diamond and Coco Pommel.” Twilight looked at me, then looked at Coco when she called out our names. “Now can one of you please explain to me why you didn’t bring this up in the first place?”

Before I could say anything, Coco spoke up. “Let me handle this, Jack.” She got up and off the bleachers to explain. “This law is something we don’t take lightly. The decisions that are made by this law have to be handle with care. We know there are those who think they have more power out there than others, and this law was designed to help level the playing field between those who have power and those who don’t. The last thing we want for people to think of is that we, as knights, have more power than any other. Our plan was to rely on common sense, something that has been lacking in this world as of late.”

“Then why create a law like this?” asked Twilight.

“So that we can do what is right for all to see, a chance to bring others together and work out our differences without conflict,” I answered.

“Then why don’t we take what we have here and use it towards Crystal Prep,” asked Twilight.

“Twilight, I have to be rude, but maybe it would help us if we had a better explanation about this group,” said Applejack. “I mean we know how it was created, but we don’t have a clue as to how it operates. What is it about this ranking system that this group has?”

Before Coco could say anything, I raised my to her and said, “Let me explain this.” I took a deep breath before I spoke. “It wasn’t until after the Thanksgiving weekend when we started talking about it. It was Night Glider who felt like we should do something better to help out those that needed our help. It was something she noticed when she was a part of Scar’s gang back then. Since Double Diamond has connections with some good politicians, they were able to draft a law and make our group something more than what it was. When we came back from winter break, we started to add members to our group. We had over 20 members who wanted to become a knight, but after going thought the one-month trial session, we had 12 members become first star knights.”

“What happen to the others that didn’t make it?” asked Rainbow Dash.

Coco explained. “Some were given a second chance later on after seeing how we played a role in the city. Others didn’t bother trying out again, due to various reasons. We explained to those who didn’t pass the trial period the reason they we’re not fit to become a knight, and they agreed on our decision.”

I continued. “Anyway, we have this 5-star ranking system. One-star rank is a sign that you are a knight and the basic role is to help others out where it’s needed. Once you reach two-star rank, you have the power to help resolve issues, as the law states. But you can’t issues challenges or take part in regular meetings unless you are a three-star rank. Once you reach a four-star rank, that’s when you become part of the council and adviser to other knights. Professor River Song is the only one of that rank at the time. Then there’s the five-star rank, which is just all six founders at the moment. That’s when you take care of the serious stuff, like making the tough choices, including if someone is ready to go to the next rank. Only the captain and second-in-command can be a five-star rank. Right now, that’s me and Coco, respectively.”

“So, you’re the captain, and Coco’s the commander?” Rarity asked me, in which I nodded. “That’s a lot of responsibility to take on, isn’t it Jack?”

“It is. And using this law to take on Crystal Prep means a huge risk on my end,” I said.

“How can it be a huge risk when you have that kind of power?” Twilight asked. “You can finally put Crystal Prep in its place. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“It could mean the end of the Manehattan Knights,” answered Coco. “The role of the knights is to make sure others don’t abuse their power that they carry. And you’re asking us to do that.”

“But do you see what Principal Cinch is doing at Crystal Prep? It’s why you can level the playing field and take away any power they have,” explained Twilight.

“See? This is why you don’t even think about the downside to every decision that you make, Twilight. If this goes south, Jack’s life will be a complete disgrace in front of everyone,” explained Coco.

Twilight knew where this was going. “Oh no. We are not having this discussion again.”

“Yes we are,” replied Coco. “For once can you think about everyone else instead of what you want done?”

Twilight started to get furious before Sunset stepped in. “Coco’s right, Twilight.”

“Oh don’t you even dare try to-”

“WILL YOU JUST LISTEN FOR ONCE?” Sunset yelled at Twilight, cutting her off. “Go back to homecoming week. Remember when you accused me of destroying the gym and taking Angel away, asking the team to forfeit the game? We learned that it was Crystal Prep who did all that and tried to place the blame on me. What if Jack wasn’t around to clear my name? And what if someone else found out the truth after the game. How would that look on you when you screwed up because you placed the blame on me because of my past actions? Have you ever thought about that?”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond, but then closed it and thought it over.

“Sure, you might have your friends still at your side, but that’s just a small group compared to the big group that’s out there. Will you still be able to hold the title that you have now? Will you have a future worth perusing afterwards?”

“I just…I…I don’t know.” Twilight felt defeated as she looked down towards the gym floor.

Moon Dancer decided to step in on the conversation. “Twilight. Remember when we became friends, and we decided to play chess together when we had nothing else to do at school?”

“Yea. We always wanted to understand how each strategy was played out and which one can overcome the other. Why?”

“Well, I have read this law as well, and while I understand what you are trying to do, but we have to treat Crystal Prep like a chess match. We know what we need to do, but we can’t rush into this, or we’re leaving our king open for the attack. We have to wait for the right time to go forward with this idea. Until then, we have to just take what we have and work with it.”

“So all we can do is sit back and wait? How will we know when to act?” asked Applejack.

She was right. There’s no telling when it will happen. I needed some time to think about what I needed to do about all this. So I got up and started to walk out of the gym. Twilight stopped me and asked with a concerned tone, “Where are you going?”

“To go clear my head.” I left the gym, walked to my locker to grab my jacket, and went outside to where the bleachers were, where everything started.

“We know why I called you all here,”

“SUNSET SHIMMER!”

It was here that I learn about Sunset from the others, before I learned the truth from her. From that point forward, it felt like a whirlwind to me. Everything happened so fast that I didn’t know what to expect. And just learning about my gift was just the start. I wasn’t sure if being the center of attention was good or bad.

“Still trying to think about what to do?”

I was surprised to see that Coach Spitfire was nearby.

“You surprised me, coach,” I said.

“I’m surprised that you didn’t sense me coming,” she replied.

“I guess doubt is clouding my powers. Another weakness to my gift.” Spitfire sat next to me. “How do you know what is the right thing to do when it needs to be done?”

“Good question, Jack. Too bad I don’t have the answer to that.”

“Its just that I’m not used to being the center of attention. It’s like a ton of weight has been placed on me.”

“I would figure that it would be easy after what you did for the Manehattan Knights.”

“It wasn’t,” I replied. “The main purpose of the knights was to just keep my gift a secret. They always helped me out when I needed it. This way, no one was able to learn about my gift that I possessed.”

“But now, you know more about your powers, became a key player on the football team, helped Sunset with her problems, got Twilight to understand what she’s been doing wrong with Sunset, and a whole lot more that I can guess on that list.” She patted my back and said, “You did a lot more and got through it all. And everyone looks up to you for what you have done.”

“But is it worth it? I mean, Crystal Prep is on my case, and the only ones from that school that’s on our side are the members of the Elite 5. And I’m not sure if the others are ready to fully trust them. I don’t even know if I should tell them about the connection between me and Indigo Zap.”

“Jack, I think that is what’s bothering you. You’re thinking too much. Let me give you a piece of advice that Coach Tirek gave to me. There’s a time to think, and a time to act. When I started to coach at Equestria University and got word on the Crystal Prep opening, just making the change would create problems with what’s going on. So I did some thinking and called up Fleetfoot to see if she can take the spot. She did, and so far, she has tried her best, but was getting nowhere. When the opening for Coach Goalkeeper opened up, I wasn’t sure if I should take it, but Tirek told me to do so. After getting up to date with you, I had to think about what all was going on. When you and your friends decided to come out in the open, I just decided to do the same without thinking about what would happen.”

“So what are you trying to tell me?” I asked her.

“What I’m trying to say is that there are times when you just need to let instinct take over and do what needs to be done. The more you think about it, the harder it can be to focus on what needs to be done. Everything happens for a reason. You just have to wait until it happens.”

“So it’s just a waiting game?”

“Not really. You do what you can do, and let the rest play out. You know what you need to do when the time comes. Maybe it’s best to focus on the ‘now’ and not on the ‘later’.” For some reason, I couldn’t figure out what I should be doing. And she could see it on my face. “I know that it can become a challenge to face, but once you start to understand what I mean, you will know what you need to be doing.” She started to get up and said, “Come on. It’s almost lunchtime. Let me help you out with getting some tacos before everyone else.”

“Really?”

“Yea. I can talk to Granny Smith in getting you some before they open up to the others. Maybe it can help get you mind off some things for now.”

So I decided to get up and walk with Coach Spitfire, saying, “That would be nice.”