Chapter 83 - The Greatest Showmare
I fought hard not to slip into unconsciousness.
“You won’t be needing this,” I heard Cozy say through my daze. I felt her magic lift the crown off my head, taking with it my emergency spells. She then threw me and the unconscious form of Penumbra into a cage against the wall of the chamber.
I groaned and tried to sit up as the door slammed shut. A heavy lock surrounded by a red glow levitated onto the door latch and closed with a loud click. Cozy had decent control of her unicorn magic. How long had she been preparing for this day? I looked up to see the mare’s smirking face. “Cozy, why are you doing this?”
She laughed. “For the same reason that I do everything, my dear prince – for the power.”
“But the school… your friends…?”
“Oh, don’t start trying to guilt-trip me. They were all just stepping-stones towards my true goal. Friendship is a fancy way of saying you have power over others. And here we have a school dedicated to cultivating and spreading that power, run by, surprise, the Princess of Friendship who also happens to be the Alicorn of Magic.” She patted the bell around her neck. “With just one added factor, I had everything I needed for my ambition of ruling Equestria.” She pointed the bell up at her face and the bell absorbed the magic from her in one, elongated ring. The diminutive pegasus gave me the same humorless smile when she looked up again. That proved to me this was not a case of possession like with Nightmare Moon.
“By stealing all magic?”
Cozy smiled nastily. “Who says it will be all?” As I tried to respond to that, she held up a hoof. “No, I’m not explaining it. Figure it out for yourself, clever prince. I’m not monologuing for your benefit; I have better things to do.”
And just like that, she flew off, leaving me in the dark. Why couldn’t she have been a cliché villain who loved to explain every detail of their insidious plans? Where did she get that bell? How did she make that magic-sucking sphere?
I had to think. The cage was familiar to me – standard unicorn containment model. If I was full of magic I could blast one of the bars apart as I had to the Storm King’s cage but, of course, almost all my reserves had already been sucked out by the bell. I looked around for a ley line to recharge my unicorn magic. Only when I squinted did I find one. It was so insubstantial that I had missed it on my first scan of the room. I linked to the ley line and could feel only a slight trickle of mana flow into me. Doubtless, the sphere drained my magic almost as fast as I could gather it. The bars were probably too strong for me to buck even in my Celestial form but as I didn’t have enough power to make the change, I couldn’t put that idea to the test.
“You must help them.”
I looked up to see a rather glittery Twilight Sparkle standing outside the cage. “Twilight? When did…” This mare looked dead on her hooves and her facial expression was doing a poor job of hiding the pain. I also remembered what Gallus told me about his friends’ previous trip under the school. “You’re the Avatar of Harmony.”
“I am, Prince Mark Wells.”
“Is there anything that you can do to get Starlight, Gallus, and his friends out of that magic bubble?”
The avatar smiled sadly. “Rescuing the students is beyond my present power, but I can give you what you need to free them.” The apparition began to fade away, the wisps flowing toward the sphere in the center of the chamber. “It is their friendship that will save Equestria.” And it was gone.
I pondered what the avatar had meant and looked down at the ground so I could concentrate. That’s when I noticed something unusual. Squinting, I could see pulsing ribbons of magic flowing through the floor towards the circle in the middle of the chamber. That was new—I had not seen that earlier.
I carefully reached out a foreleg between the bars of the cage, trying to feel what I was seeing. When my hoof touched the ground, my head shot up and wings spread wide. Magic flowed into me. A lot of magic. Before, I could never feel where magic pooled throughout my body, just how it flowed out my horn and wings as I used it. Now I felt every part of me soak up the energy and I changed into Marklestia without willing it. My body almost felt swollen as I put my forehooves on the top and bottom of the nearest bar. I closed my eyes and released all my stored electrical energy into the bar… nothing. I reset my hooves onto a second bar and kept my eyes open this time. I could only make a small blue spark.
I blinked. What happened? I still felt bloated with… well… magic, power, and strength. Could it be?
My eyes settled on the lock holding the door closed. Repositioning myself, I gave the latch my strongest double-buck.
The lock flew off who knows where while the warped door smashed open with a bang. I was starting to get the picture now. I dragged Penny out of the cage and placed her further up the corridor… or should I fly her to the surface and out of danger? I didn’t need a second to imagine her reaction to my putting her safety above that of all of Equestria. Still, I needed reinforcements. I spread my wings and felt exactly zero flight magic go through my feathers.
Wonderful. Nothing but temporary use of earth pony magic that I didn’t know how to use.
Cozy Glow flew into the room, becoming an alicorn again with a blast from the bell around her neck. She quickly spotted the busted cage and me nearby. OK, decision made. On second thought, there was one trick I knew instinctively how to work with earth pony magic. I ran forward and willed a ramp of crystal to lift me to Cozy’s position. She gasped as I galloped closer, then her horn lit and I felt a powerful force shove me towards the sphere at the center of the room. As I toppled into space, I imagined my lone hoof on the ramp being glued there. With a painful yank, I held on. Pulling with my other limbs, I had all four hooves on the crystal again, only to see the cage flying at me at high speed, giving me no time to do anything but flinch.
With a loud clang, the bars hit me. Fortunately, the far side of the ramp took some of the impact. My shoulder was on fire, but to my surprise, it didn’t feel broken or dislocated. I looked forward, seeing Cozy Glow’s mocking smile as she circled the cage back around. “Hah! You could never—”
No, I didn’t want to go through that again. Glancing to my right, I willed an enormous column of crystal to shoot up below the cage and crush it to the roof of the cavern. What I got was a thin column of crystal that shattered, only slowing it down. Quickly, I created a second spire and that stopped the cage which whirled in place. The spinning stopped as I willed the column to be thicker.
That’s when all the training sessions with Crimson galvanized me into action. I lifted a much thicker wall of clear crystal in front of me barely in time to stop whatever blast came from my opponent. As she charged her horn again, I tried to impale her with sharp spikes from above and below. Cozy let out a scream and teleported three feet to the right.
What? She could teleport!? Any unicorn could make an unfocused magic blast, but this… How could a pegasus know how to… the bell around her neck! That just made my life that much harder. I had to even the odds.
I willed a hole in the wall and charged towards the front of the ramp, generating another spike from above and below. I was starting to build a plan.
Cozy obliterated the top spire with a blast from her horn before teleporting three feet to the right just before the bottom spike reached her. The faux alicorn then threw up a shield around herself.
I glued my back hooves on the front face of the ramp and made a spire of crystal to shoot me across the room horizontally. At the same time, I willed a dozen spikes from both above and below the mare’s position. Perhaps because I was closer, the crystal floor and ceiling responded faster.
Her shield only held for a second before it shattered. I reached out my forelegs…
… wrapping them around the mare right after she teleported in front of me. I had enough unicorn magic to cast a temporal static spell to keep her from teleporting away while I pulled my forelegs as close as I could. That would help protect them from the impact when we hit the wall.
We didn’t. Instead, we rocketed up a side passage I had inadvertently aimed for. A sharp burning sensation along my back and one thigh let me know Cozy had recovered. The pain also made me lose my concentration and the two of us were in freefall.
I twisted to shift Cozy in my grip, wrapping my rear legs around her. I reached a foreleg under her chin and wrenched backward, hard. Penny and our pegasus instructors taught Twilight and me how to fight in the air, including while falling. I got in the right mindset after only a week of bloody noses and twisted joints. My co-ruler needed two months of getting pummeled to learn enough technique and focus to defend herself in the air. Twilight was no longer afraid to use her superior strength to its full effect, to the extent that I could no longer safely spar with her.
Cozy’s scream shifted an octave up when we hit the wall and spiraled across the ground. Her chin slipped away from my grasp but I clung with my other legs. Everything hurt on my back by the time we tumbled to a stop with her pinned on top of me. I used my free leg to lock her head to the side, keeping her horn pointed away. I drew in the power flowing into me from the crystal floor to regain my strength.
The next moment I heard a familiar sound and she was gone. I felt a kick in my stomach. Looking up, the pint-sized pegasus mare soared into the air, changing back into alicorn form with a second blast from the bell around her neck. Cozy had a dozen bloody scrapes on her body but mine no doubt looked the same. I scrambled onto my hooves as she zapped me with her bell. Again, I felt famished as the magic drained away, only for it to refill almost instantly when Cozy’s beam stopped. I demonstrated this by tearing a crystal off the wall and bucking it towards her head. She dodged easily and looked directly above me. She sent a blast of magic into the wall which exploded with a hundred pieces of crystal falling everywhere, doubtless attempting to bury me.
Boy, was that dumb.
I placed a hoof on the wall and willed a shelf of crystal to protect me and redirect the pieces at Cozy Glow. She responded with a powerful pulse of magic that caused all of the loose crystal shards to turn to water. After they pooled on the ground, another pulse changed them back, trapping me to my knees. Crap. She’d figured out at least one transformation magic spell. Worse, my mobility was limited. I was stuck next to the wall and under a low shelf until I could get my legs free, which would take a couple of seconds I didn’t have. Through the shelf, I could see the glow of the alicorn’s horn; she had decided not to gloat and give me those seconds. A single shot from her horn burned through the crystal and struck me on the head, dazing me. All I could do was lean out of the way while looking up, trying to force the crystal to refill the hole.
A rainbow-colored streak caught Cozy Glow right in the face, followed by a light blue bolt from a galloping Rarity. I pulled the crystal shelf back into the wall as I willed the floor to push my legs to the surface, even though my dizziness left me on my knees. I saw Applejack break a large crystal off the far wall and buck it toward Cozy Glow. The Captain of the Wonderbolts, Spitfire, dropped Trixie next to me and chased after the running fight. It took me a second to realize my doppelganger must have taken that form so Cozy didn’t see two of me and come to the obvious conclusion.
My wife knelt to give me a quick kiss and her cocky smile. “Trixie still can time the perfect dramatic entrance. Go, Dowser. Go save Equestria while Trixie and her undercard, the Elements of Harmony, keep this stage-crasher busy.”
I said, “Cozy can use her magic like an experienced alicorn. Don’t know how. She absorbs the magic of others with her bell and uses it to power herself. Be careful.” I insisted on a bit longer kiss before Crimson Boulder clopped me on the shoulder and Trixie galloped off.
“Are you okay, Your Highness?”
I found myself hauled onto my hooves by my earth pony bodyguard. I wobbled unsteadily for a moment trying to regain my bearings as I took in the scene before me. Trixie had arrived in the company of her squad of Royal Guards, disguised changeling and otherwise, obviously brought here by Crimson who knew where I was headed. They had turned up just in time to save my ass but that did not mean that we were out of trouble. All of the ponies were being affected by the magic drain and the changelings…
“Crimson – the changeling Guards have got to retreat! This close to the sphere, they’re going to lose their magic very quickly and die!”
The big earth pony frowned and shook his head. “Not going to happen, Mark. They have their duty and if that means risking their lives, then that’s exactly what they’ll do. Best thing we can do to help them is putting a stop to this thing that’s draining all the magic.”
Good idea but I was paralyzed by concern for my wife. Rather than just let the Royal Guards do all the fighting, Trixie was harassing Cozy to great effect with her stage magic which didn’t require mana to power it. I saw a smoke bomb hide the path of an earth pony guard followed by an egg exploding in midair, sending out streamers that fouled one of Cozy’s wings.
“Mark. Mark! We can’t just stand here.”
I tore my eyes away from the battle. “You’re right. Come on.” I led Crimson to the rune-inscribed circle and desperately looked for some way to disable it.
Crimson said, “I can feel it draining my magic reserves.”
“Follow my lead and pull more from the ground where it is flowing into the sphere.”
“That’s what I have been doing – wait! That’s an earth pony ability. How are you—”
“Not the time! I only have access to earth pony magic right now. Maybe if we remove the artifacts…” I reached for the nearest – a helmet of some kind, but the sphere of energy surrounding it zapped me hard and I flinched back, nursing a painful hoof. I tried my horn out of desperation but it fizzled, of course.
“Let me try with my shield,” Crimson said. He hurled it at the artifact but it just bounced off the sphere without having any effect. After deftly catching it, he tried pushing the shield through the globe of energy surrounding the helmet, anchoring himself to the floor with his magic. For his efforts, not only did he not penetrate the sphere but the force protecting the artifact conducted up the shield and zapped him hard. Crimson dropped the shield and blinked in shock while I smelled burnt hair.
I scowled. “The artifacts are too well protected. Without knowing the key or some other magical way of dealing with them, we’re stuck.” I looked up at the larger globe that held Starlight Glimmer and the six students. I saw Gallus looking desperately back. I knew that he was counting on me, his foster parent, to get him and his friends out of this, and damned if I was going to let him down. With some trepidation, I reached toward the larger sphere. As soon as my hoof passed over the outermost ring of the glowing circle on the floor, a bright blue clawed hand comprised entirely of magic reached out from the bubble, grabbing my hoof. I pulled with newfound earth pony strength and broke away. The ghostly arm swiftly retreated into the sphere.
I heard a roar of pain behind that could have only come from Cozy Glow but had to ignore it. I had to concentrate.
The sphere above us was almost as wide as the enchanting circle. What would happen when it reached the same size? I blinked. Wrong question.
Crimson yelped as I willed a crystal column to carry the two of us to the height of the center of the sphere. I still wasn’t quite close enough to reach the globe, even if I stretched out. I’d only need a moment.
I leaned and jumped off the column getting a hoof into the sphere. I back-winged like my life depended on it but they were ineffectual and my hoof kept sinking inexorably into the magic prison.
“Oh, no you don’t!” bellowed Crimson as he grabbed me around the hind legs and hauled me back.
I looked at him, an idea forming in my head. “Did you feel it tugging you in?” I asked.
“No, but I saw it doing that to you.”
“So, touching me while I was in contact with the sphere didn’t affect you. You anchored yourself to the floor?”
“Correct.” He frowned. “Are you thinking of doing something stupid?”
“Yep,” I replied with a grim smile. “We’re going to put earth pony strength to the test. I’ll try to haul the captives out while you stop me from being pulled in.”
“It took a lot of power to pull you back. How are you going to pull them out?”
“I’ll just have to draw on your magic, I suppose.”
He stared at me for a moment then shook his head. “Later. Let’s do this. Get up onto my withers.”
I did as he instructed. He reached up with one foreleg and put a fetlock over my rear hoof. It wouldn’t do much to physically hold me down but I could feel his magic virtually gluing me into place in a technique used in battle to securely hold onto weapons and shields. Crimson leaned forward and I stretched out, getting one hoof about six inches into the sphere. Once again, I could feel it trying to pull me in but this time I did not budge. Gallus’ eyes widened and he stretched out his foreleg, wrapping his talons around my hoof. I then heaved back. There was huge resistance but I drew on my new earth pony talent. I felt Crimson’s body jolt in surprise as he sensed the tremendous flow of mana through him and into me as I pulled the young griffon free.
I released Gallus as soon as he was clear of the circle and he fluttered to the floor. “Whew! Thanks! I thought I was going to be stuck there forever. Can you get the others out too?”
“That’s the idea,” I replied, putting words into action.
In quick order, all six of the teenagers were extracted. Getting Starlight out was harder. She floated in the center of the sphere and furthest from the edge. She swam back and forth in the ether to build up some momentum, swinging further and further from the center. Looking into her eyes, I could see her exhaustion, possibly feeling drained from all the time she had been in there. Even reaching for me seemed to be a huge effort but, at last, our hooves touched. My magic bonded it to mine and I hauled her back like the others. Rather than have one of the students fly her to the ground, I shrunk the column until Crimson, Starlight, and myself were once again at floor level. The students with flight hovered to accompany us on the way down, concern etched in their faces. A check with Ocellus confirmed my hunch. Being in the eye of the storm, as it were, they still had a full store of their magic, for now.
Starlight lay weakly on the floor. Spending so long trapped in the sphere without food or water had physically exhausted her. She panted for several long moments before tilting her head to look up at me and Crimson.
“Thank you. Now what?”
What indeed? If none of us could touch the artifacts, how could we disable the mana-draining sphere at the center? Trying to scuff out the runes on the floor only resulted in severe shocks to whoever tried it. Then I recalled something that the Tree avatar had said to me – ‘Their friendship will save Equestria’. Not mine. Not Starlight’s. The students. Six students. I knew something else that came in sixes.
I put an arm around Gallus’ shoulder and looked him in the eyes intently. “Son, how close are you to your friends? Would you do anything for them?” I looked up to see that the others were listening closely to me. “And would they do the same for you?”
Gallus looked over to his friends and they started smiling and nodding. This was painfully familiar. I had seen the exact same expressions on the six Elements at the start of every ‘Pinkie Pie’s Annual Ponyville versus Canterlot Totally Unofficial Hoofball Tournament.’ Even with Penny, Crimson, Steady, and Raven helping Trixie and myself; we got trounced every year. My son looked back to me and confidently replied, “Yes.”
I matched his smile. “Then it’s your turn to save Equestria.”
“But how, Dad?”
“You recall the story of how the Element Bearers came to their power? It should be the same for you six. Reach into your hearts for that bond and the Magic of Friendship can overcome any problem.”
The young griffon faced his friends and they all started to look hopeful.
A resounding crash brought the bright mood to an end and made everyone jump. The running fight had reached the far end of our chamber. From the wreckage of the crystal ramp I had made earlier, ‘Applejack’ climbed out then collapsed. A second later, green fire engulfed her, leaving an unmoving changeling.
“Ha! You’re all fakes!” crowed Cozy Glow, now hovering into view. She was still in alicorn form, but more than a bit smaller.
I turned back to the students. “Figure it out, but the key is the friendship you share.” I looked at Crimson. “Let’s go!”
Our gallop to assist in the battle came to a stop when waves of magic tried to push us back. The gale-strength winds and rippling ground under our hooves also forced us to retreat. Using our earth pony ability to attach to the floor, Crimson and I only skidded a few feet. Glancing further back, the students tumbled hooves over horn towards the back of the cavern. I couldn’t help them right now. Slowly, Crimson and I labored forward, one hoof at a time.
Ahead of us, the ‘Elements’ and Trixie were resisting as best they could. The pony Royal Guards that had accompanied my wife must have already been knocked out of action. Suddenly, Rarity’s shield flickered and winked out. The changeling reverted to its original form and tumbled away in the barrage of magic. Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, and Fluttershy collapsed seconds later. Spitfire plummeted from the air, changing forms as she fell.
The tidal wave of force pushing against us cut off, causing me to plant my muzzle into the crystal, hard! A grunt to my right let me know the same had happened to Crimson.
I heard Cozy screech, “Ha! Just as I thought, you were all fa… AHHHH!” The last was in response to getting hit by confetti from the one-and-only Pinkie Pie’s party cannon.
As I struggled to my hooves, a large silver ring landed over the alicorn’s head. My wife yanked on the connected string of scarves and Cozy fought for her balance in the air. When she came out of her dive, Trixie threw something upwards. Flashes of light erupted on Cozy’s face and neck, accompanied by loud bangs. The mare flared her wings and climbed to escape, one hoof rubbing her shut eyes. “GAH!”
Cozy lifted my wife along with her, as Trixie had grabbed hold of the scarves. My wife climbed hoof over hoof, three body lengths away… two… one.
With a snap of her wings, our opponent hovered in place. Cozy pointed her horn straight down to blast my wife. Trixie couldn’t hold on and I saw the pain and shock on her muzzle. She turned to face the upcoming crystal floor while throwing a smoke bomb, doubtless to obscure her landing spot.
Cozy laughed and pointed her bell downwards, “No more magic for you, Princess.”
I could just see hints of my wife’s wing feathers through the clearing smoke. I yelled, “Hey! Pick on—”
My protest fell on deaf ears as the familiar green bolt shot out, striking the ground and bouncing back to hit Cozy Glow. It then reversed course, pulling itself back to the bell. Cozy’s wide-open mouth betrayed her confusion. The double blast of magic had pushed the smoke away, revealing only my wife’s wings. It was as if the bell absorbed all the rest of her.
After a second, Cozy gasped and looked down at the bell, fumbling at it. Before she could turn it upwards, Trixie jumped from the nearest rock face, catching the suspended scarves and yanking savagely. The lightweight pegasus lost her grip on the bell and hurtled downwards.
As Crimson and I galloped closer, I could see Pinkie Pie approaching from the other side. If Trixie could just keep Cozy from using the bell for a few more seconds…
The two wrestled on the floor of the cavern, my wife wrapping her legs around the struggling mare. Cozy was only focusing on the bell. After a twist of a foreleg to get it free, the pegasus pointed the bell up at her head. I saw it glow green just as Trixie threw a choke-hold under Cozy’s chin.
One green flash later, I saw a slightly larger version of my wife with wide-open eyes and a very happy grin.
“No!” yelled Cozy Glow.
My wife’s blue magic field threw the pegasus away. Cozy continued to stretch her front hooves toward the bell, now held in one of Trixie’s forehooves. “NO!” Cozy shouted.
I heard a single tapping sound followed by crumbling. Turning my head, I saw Pinkie Pie with a tiny hammer next to a collapsing column of stone. The magic-proof cage fell to the floor, bouncing and rolling before coming to a stop, the twisted door open and facing us. Trixie’s magic threw Cozy inside and Pinkie slapped the cage, making it tumble forward to land on the broken door. Now it was a functional prison again.
Cozy grabbed two of the bars and yelled, “NOOOOOO!”
As interesting as this development was, we still had a job to do. I shouted, “Let’s go!” and ran back towards the students and the sphere.
Behind me, I heard the pegasus mare’s anguished scream, “NOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
As the four of us galloped back to the rune-filled circle, it disappeared, swallowed up by a dark blue whirlpool. The sphere containing the magic of Equestria floated slowly downwards to whatever realm the portal connected to.
The six friends came together for a group hug and a glow began to surround them. Then they separated and each took on a separate aura in different colors. They moved until each stood in front of a relic and, as one, they reached for them. I slowed to a halt and held my breath in anticipation. I watched as the students’ auras pushed aside the protective shields and they grabbed the artifacts. They wrenched them out of the matrices which flickered and died. The huge ball of magic stopped its descent, shuddered, and exploded. I felt a huge rush of mana pour through me and, judging by the reactions of everyone else, through them as well. The magic of Equestria was returning to where it belonged.
I galloped up to Gallus and embraced him, exclaiming, “You did it! I’m so proud of you and your friends!”
“Thanks, Dad, but could you lay off the mushy stuff in front of… you know?”
I pulled back and grinned at him. “That’s the second time you’ve called me ‘Dad’.”
Gallus blushed and looked away, scratching the back of his head with his talons. “Well, you called me ‘son’ first.”
“Yes, I did, and I meant it. I’m as happy to call you my son as much as Gemini. I want you to know that, while I’m not a griffon, I will try to be the best father for you that I can be.”
“Dad, do me a favor?”
“And what would that be?”
“Don’t try to be a griffon. You’re fine as a pony.”
I chuckled. “You got it, son.”
I headed over to my wife as Penumbra unsteadily joined me. “It’s about time you stopped lying down on the job,” I told her.
Penny gave me a sour look. “I wasn’t just knocked out; that was a stun spell. It took until now to shake it off. Unlike me, you don’t look like you’ve been in a fight.”
I opened my mouth to contradict her when I stopped to look down at myself and my vest. She was right.
I turned back to my batpony friend. “Must have been the Magic of Harmony’s work when all that magic flowed through us.”
“Oh, yes, of course. Most convincing. Do try again.”
I smirked. If Penny was this snarky, that meant she felt better.
“Good thing Trixie stepped up to the plate then,” I said. I stopped just short of my wife and looked her over. She had lost her cape and crown and was looking somewhat disheveled, but otherwise appeared to be fine. She was staring rather mournfully at a wrecked pair of prosthetic wings that she dropped onto the floor next to her. “How do you feel, love?” I asked softly.
“Trixie is tired but fine. During the struggle with that infernal mare, Trixie got a boost of power and easily subdued her. However, Trixie has lost her favorite set of wings.”
“Oh?” I raised a hoof and pointed. “Then what are those?”
She turned around to see where I was indicating, then she flared a larger set of perfect wings in shock. “WHA?! I… I have… real wings?”
I embraced my wife and kissed her. “You’ve earned them, dear.”
“But… how?”
“Probably the same way I got my horn – lots of magic combined with a devotion to the cause of Harmony. Tell me, love, do you feel an affinity for the ground? Can you feel the magic flowing there?”
She looked at me then down, furrowing her brow in concentration. “No. Right after that magic boost, Trixie imagined… but no, not now.”
I nodded. “Well then, congratulations. You are officially Equestria’s newest pegacorn.”
“Trixie just wanted to save you and protect Equestria.”
“Exactly,” I replied. “That’s what we do, darling.”
She giggled. “Then this was truly Trixie’s greatest performance… yet.”
“Five stars from me, dear,” I said, giving her another kiss which she returned enthusiastically.
When we parted, she stood up and then frowned. “Are you taller or has Trixie shrunk?”
Before I answered, I sought and found the connection with the earth magic that I had utilized earlier. I gave her a chagrined look. “I got a visit from the Tree of Harmony. I think I’m an alicorn now.”
My wife laughed. “Trixie knew you would not settle for being just a pegacorn.”
I rolled my eyes. “I was happy being a pegasus with a hobby of being a pegacorn mare occasionally.”
My wife wrapped a wing around me and I enviously realized that she was already handling them better than I did when I first arrived in Equestria. “You don’t fool Trixie – you have always worked for Harmony whether you knew it or not. You can’t help yourself.”
What could I say to that? My wife had me pegged, so might as well roll with it. “That’s why I chose you as my wife.”
She smirked. “The Great and Wise Trixie made sure that you knew who your best choice would be.”
“Indeed she did. Anyway, my Great and Gorgeous Wife, I think we need to get back to business.” I looked around to see Penny impatiently tapping her hoof.
“Oh, the mutual admiration club has adjourned? Goody. What do you want done with Cozy Glow?”
“Put her in the Canterlot dungeon immediately,” Trixie commanded. “We will interrogate her later when normalcy has been re-established.”
“And put a silence spell on her cell,” I added. “One of her greatest talents is her power of persuasion. She had everypony fooled.”
Crimson said, “I thought it was to save the guards from hearing her screaming ‘no’ over and over.” Sure enough, the mare hadn’t stopped, now accompanied by hooves banging the cage incessantly.
Starlight Glimmer joined us now looking a lot better. “What about that bell? She used it to trap me. It’s too dangerous to have lying around.”
I frowned. “Good point. It needs to be put somewhere that is not only very secure but also well-hidden so no one else can find it and try to abuse its power.”
“Perhaps have Twilight deal with it?” she suggested.
I shook my head. “Twilight will want to research it and might accidentally cause more problems. I’ve seen how she and Crispberry do science and frankly, it terrifies me. I saw the “Ultra Cautious Twilight Sparkle” when she ran experiments on me. When she convinces Trixie and me that the careful researcher is back, then we’ll reconsider.”
Starlight said, “And how would she do that?”
My wife’s eyes went wide and her body shivered. Nothing wrong with her ability to connect the dots. She took a step backward.
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, dear. You are going to allow Twilight to run experiments on Equestria’s newest pegacorn.”
“Trixie has not agreed to this! Can she not foalsit Flurry Heart instead? Without her magic-inhibiting clip?”
“If I can survive her upgraded Dungeon of Terror, you probably will.” I turned back to Starlight. “You think you can keep the bell hidden?”
Starlight’s ears folded back and she gasped. “You trust me with such a powerful object?”
I nodded. “I know who you are now and trust your devotion to the goals of Friendship and Harmony. Besides, you’re sneaky enough to conceal it somewhere that it won’t easily be found.”
“Thank you, Prince Mark Wells. I won’t let you down.” She lifted the bell in her magic and teleported away.
“Are you absolutely sure of that decision, Dowser?” Trixie asked.
“I am. Starlight has become a good friend and I miss her as my advisor. She has always been informally respectful of me but she used my full title just now. It shows her loyalty and commitment and I trust her implicitly.”
Trixie smirked at me. “So – thinking of adding another mare to your herd then?”
I sputtered and glared at her. “Do you always have that on your mind? No! She’s a friend, not a potential mate!”
“Trixie would find that easier to believe if your bodyguard had not asked her permission to obtain your services as a stud.”
I blushed hard. “At least she hasn’t asked to join the herd!” Trixie just looked at me with a raised eyebrow. “She’s a lesbian and has a marefriend!” I blurted out.
“Have you ever met this marefriend?”
I opened my mouth to reply and stopped. No, I had not – I had just heard about her from Penny. “Oh, come on! You’re just trolling me now!” I protested.
Trixie’s smirk grew wider but she did not reply. To my side, I heard Penny chuckling.
Mares! I firmly turned my attention back to more important matters. “We have to contact Twilight and the hives to let them know that the crisis has been resolved. While they may have felt the return of magic, they won’t know that it’s safe to stand down from emergency measures as yet.”
“Trixie agrees. She also thinks that we will have more ammunition for when we reconvene the Queens’ Council. Perhaps next time they will be more inclined to cooperate and not be so reluctant to make treaty agreements with Equestria and add their strengths to ours.”
Considering the amount of time it had taken for us to fully integrate changelings into the Equestrian military over which we had complete authority, I was less optimistic about that goal. Nevertheless, we had to try. This time we were lucky but next time we would need to be better prepared. If experience has taught us anything, a new threat always loomed just when we thought we had everything under control.
# # # # # # # # #
Oh dear! It seems that we still haven't managed to find the time to explain how Cozy Glow ended up with that bell. Darn it. Looks like you're all going to have to wait until the next chapter. Oh well, maybe you can debate on how stage magic can possibly trump such powerful real magic. Then again, didn't Twilight Sparkle do something similar to Trixie in the show when she had the Alicorn Amulet? 
Art by Foxenawolf.
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Trixie has come a long way since throwing Mark out a window to see if he could fly
Easy, you had to make Trixie into a pegacorn somehow :p
Hey nice chapter but you already know what I'm gonna say so I won't say it.
Needs more chryssi and mark interaction.
Nice chapter. Was a little annoyed that it was a bit spoiled by the pic coming out early, but I was nevertheless satisfied with how everything turned out. Like Mark becoming full blown alicorn.
10172362
Don't think Mark has forgotten that. Now it's his turn!
10172387
Patience. All in good time.
10172397
Yeah, I was annoyed by that.
10172406
I see. I shall wait then
10172403
Oh Luna YES! Have Twilight conduct a flight test, and at one point Mark needs to throw Trixie of a balcony because she’s too nervous to jump. She lands on a safety net of course, but PLEASE LET THAT HAPPEN IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER!!!
10172416
Nah, it's Trixie. She'll do it on her own and make a show out of it
YAY!
Now that Mark is a full-fledged alicorn, I'm hoping Mark-lestia will no longer be necessary, but... knowing you, I'm not holding my breath
Well, let's hope that at last Mark give Cozy a fair trial and don't send her to Tartarus like Celestia did
Stage magic plays on the perceptions of those who see it. Cozy, being a pegasus, is not accustomed to using unicorn (or alicorn) magic. Trixie is an accomplished illusionist, capable of bending audiences to her will. Cozy, to Trixie, is an 'easy mark'.
Am I right or wrong?
Trixie can be smart and this version has had practice at it by why only a pegacorn?
Real mages can be surprisingly uncreative. a flashbang in the right place can have a vastly disproportionate effect.
10172554
Incremental achievement? Who knows what was up with that spell Twilight used, perhaps this one-tribe-at-a-time pattern is how it's supposed to go.
While I am impressed that Trixie was able to upgrade her form to a Pegacorn form and for Mark to become the first male Alicorn in who knows how long.
I'm kinda miffed that Pinkie Pie didn't get the Bell to save the day. I wanted to see a Party Pony with COSMIC, FANTASMICAL POWERS!!!!
https://youtu.be/KscyeHzZ93Q
Well, that was a Lot more exiting than the show, but then, they had more variations to play with.
Andnot only Pinkie, but Suprise arrived as well.
I beg to differ, as going back "many" chapters ago, as didn't he meet her when Penny and (that other stallion that's his friend and Trixie called a butler) took him to that dance club in Cloudsdell. The mare that's a body builder?
10172387
Pffft~
10172554
I'm going with 10172647 on this one, turning a normie pone into a naga pone (Or I'E. a spiritual embodiment of an element, be it of a "moral", "natural" or a "metaphysical" nature.) can lead to a number of things if done instantly, including an enlarged ego. AND think back to when Twilight became an alicorn and her possessiveness to become ruler.
Now obviously, Mark is the new Lord of storms(or aka thunder/lighting), and his first wife Trixie is now the-to-be Mistress of illusion.
10173109
Nope – that was a different mare.
10173139
Pretty much the whole story has been about incremental improvement. Twilight got lucky due to her affinity for magic, but it did affect her getting so much at once.
10173143
Huh... Well then, I look forward to see who this mare is.
10172492
Remember that, unlike the show, this Cozy Glow is an adult and will be tried as such.
10173156
Right, and thus why she is the Mistress of magic. And while she is"refer'ed" to as the princess of friendship, she only holds one aspect of it and thus a reason why-in-my-mind, that she will upon her friends deaths (if they die) give those who become the embodiment's to the elements of harmony a title of counselor. As they depending on the time line, such as the young six as of now, deserve as such.
.......... Was that confusion?
I think that was confusion, and I'm the one who just put tho's thought's to word.....
#theworld!
I’ll be interested to see how Mark’s magical mane and tail manifest.
10173159
And in the show she could be a filly that was sent to hell without trial, and who knows if her parents were even told anything.
"Mr and Ms (insert name here) parents of Cozy Glow? We have a message from the Princess, your daughter Cozy Glow was sent to Tartarus by royal decree. Trial, Therapy, Help, Reformation, Too much punishment for a filly? What are you talking? The Princesses ordered it and that is enough"
10173139
I don't think it's just mistress of Illusion for Trixi, I think it's Ruler of the Stage.
It's not just about illusions, it's about ruling the show.
Maybe Mark is 'winds of change' then...
Incremental progression for everyone! It does raise a question of how Trixie will get the next level up event...
Curious also, since Discord didn't (yet?) do the dumb and catalyze Season 9, we wonder what he's been doing all this time.
Mark going half-Sombra was marvelously epic! You know, talking about the mares trying to get into their herd, is the tree trying to get in on the action with that little favor? And is there meaning behind how physically they were connected during the fight? He mentioned his ineptitude controlling his wings and horn, but here he was almost OP with his effectiveness in controlling the crystal... That can't be coincidence! Ten bits says the tree will ask him to stud for it!
The other universes will need to hear about all of this...
Keep going! ;)
woot woot a grate chapter.
I have watched the old Mission: Impossible tv show, so I know just how improvisers could pull off that kind of caper on the fly.
10173717
Okay, you figure out the mechanics of how that would even work, and I might consider taking you up on that bet.
Oddly, that makes me think of
I would suggest giving it the Excalibur treatment; in this case, take it to the edge of a large body of water and -magic assisted- throwing it in.
Seems like Trixie has a shipping problem.
A lot of good use of Root Hoof
Wait, wait, hol up. Is that Earth magic? As in Earth pony power?
Did Harmony just plug in the last wire of her "Build An Alien Alicorn" kit?!
Eeeyup. That's what it looks like.
The question is, is it soldered firmly in place, or will it fall off after the crisis is over and you move away from the outlet?
Welp, you did it now. That's gonna lock it down more solidly than a hurricane chain on the deck of a supercarrier. A new True Alicorn has appeared.
Finally.
And the anchor line of a large cruise liner. Colt, that thing is really stuck on there now!
Don't worry Trixie. Pegacorns don't shrink. It's just that alicorns happen to grow.
10173676
That would work to
10172416
And have foxenawolf illistrate that moment.
10175536
YES
I'm not the only one who has noticed that Cozy Glow is a "High Intelligence, low Wisdom" type character right?
Like becoming a mass murderer?
I mean, I'm pretty sure she's killed at least one pony before but still, does she even realize that she will commit genocide/xenocide against, at least, the changelings?
That makes sense
She does however appear to rely rather heavily on the unicorn side of it, if her fight against you is any indication
Is his name Mark Wells?
NEVER
Those would be her new set of favorite wings
I think we all saw that one coming
Aren't you forgetting something Mark, Equestria just got it's first male alicorn and... science, needs to be done
10174220
You realize the answer is gonna be "MAGIC" right?
10179365
No, magic is just the ingredient which will make the stud servicing functional in the end—I’m talking about the “m-e-c-h-a-n-i-c-s”—as in, which one ends up being the “stud” and which one ends up being the “mare” in that encounter
Either way, Mark’s really going to be feeling it the next morning
Love all of the developments
! Full Markicorn, Trixie pegacorn (and the inevitable flying lesson shenanigans
. Please let Mark get as much enjoyment from this as Trixie did at start
), Mark dad moment with Gallus. Absolutely eager to see what comes next
.
I will say there is one thing that I don't understand in this arc. How did Mark not see through Cozy? Based on past exploits and lessons. He immediately recognized Flim and Flam's massive business con, but didn't notice the obvious vibes from Cozy matching corporate shark ditching one boat they sunk and preparing to scuttle another? He changed the entire army manual that depended on assumptions and suffered under Storm King Ambassador's double cross but ignores his trusted changeling friend when she says something is fishy? He starts leaning toward believing new hire Cozy Glow over Starlight's innocence? It just feels slightly counterintuitive to what was established in his character so far
.
10195832
Cozy's special talent is magically-enhanced manipulation. It overcame his natural instincts. That's why he had her gagged so that others would not be susceptible to her.
10195832
You've got lots of valid points there, and I agree completely, but what if cozy mastered a sort of "you trust and believe me" perception field similar to the Doctor in doctor who? Hopefully it's explained next chapter, because I don't think mark would miss it and the author wouldn't either.
Fantastic chapter, I like how you upgraded mark here. Full on alicorn now through the power of harmony. Maybe he'll have a nice chat at the tree. I look forward to reading the next chapter tomorrow.
Pretty sure the fact that Tirek & Cozy Glow killed magical wings beings and 'Harmony' used it to upgrade its
pawns servantsheros.Mark becoming alicorn seen it coming a mile away, Trixie gaining wings unexpected but not unwelcome could be intresting
What is it with you and cages, man? :D
From my firmly-seated position, I'd recommend installing ambient magic readouts all over the place (most notably in command and guard posts), along with emergency procedures to automatically implement should the readout fall below a certain level. I wonder if it's possible to have changelling pods auto-deploy when the level becomes critical (or when, say, oxygen is removed from an area, or it's otherwise made unlivable). They have so much magitek at their disposal now, it'd be a crime not to make use of it. Come on, Mark! Use that Earth tech know-how!