Paper Pony

by Drag Orion

Chapter 2 Part 1 - To the First Element

“Carefully… Slowly…” Twilight Sparkle coached herself as she levitated a fruit bat through the air. The winged mammal was in a stuffed daze after it had greedily gorged itself on a bright red, delicious apple that had been enlarged several times its original size thanks to Zecora’s growth potion. Unable to resist such a treat, the bat bit down on the fruit and sucked out all its fluids till it bore a closer resemblance to a giant prune than an apple. With the bat safely sedated, Twilight was able to lift the bat into a cage set up in the Apple Family barn with complete ease and do the same with plenty of others that were also lured into their trap.

Working together with Spike, Applejack, Big Mac, Apple Bloom, and Pinkie Pie, they were able to tempt and trick all the fruit bats in this manner and finally round them up in the farm’s barn. As Applejack placed the last apple juice-filled bat into the cage that had been set up, her older brother closed the door to it and locked it. As the group gazed upon all their hard work, they beamed with pride at their accomplishment.

“Well, we might not have gotten the Elements of Harmony,” commented Applejack. “But at least our bat problem is finally solved.”

“Yeah,” sighed Twilight as she took a seat in a pile of hay, eager to finally get a little rest after all that had happened between entering the Everfree forest to reach the Castle of Sun and Moon and then making their way back out, on top of everything else that happened prior. “At least this whole dangerous ordeal of ours wasn’t completely pointless.”

“I’m sorry, Twilight,” Applejack apologized. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“I know and you have no reason to apologize to me,” Twilight assured her. “It was my fault for thinking that Nightmare Moon would have been careless enough to let the only objects capable of stopping her remain in one location and unguarded from anyone seeking to stop her.”

“You can’t blame yourself,” Spike encouraged Twilight. “Nopony else would have even figured out where the Elements were originally hidden in the first place. And, sure, we’re back to square one with stopping Nightmare Moon, but look at all the friends you’ve made who want to help you, yours truly included, of course. On top of that, we got to kick the butts of Nightmare Moon’s henchponies and prove to her that we won’t be so easy to defeat. I’d say that’s still a big win for us.”

“Too bad she still got the last laugh,” retorted Twilight. “Nightmare Moon’s hidden the Elements all around Equestria and guarded them with creatures stronger than any of the ones we faced and they weren’t so easy for us to beat either. We only got through that with some careful planning, teamwork, and a great deal of lust. Whatever minions of Nightmare Moon has waiting for us next, I can’t guarantee that I’ll be able to figure out a means to overcome them and if we aren’t strong enough to face them, then all the luck in the world won’t save us either. And all of that’s only after we determine where in all of Equestria the Elements are hidden.”

“That certainly does sound like finding a needle in a haystack on top of wrestling a berserking bull to the ground,” stated Applejack with some cowpoke slang. “But we’ll figure out something.”

“It’s too bad that Zecora couldn’t help us out again,” Spike said as he recalled their quick reunion with their black and white-striped friend on their way back to the orchard. “It was exactly what we got last time.”

“I reckon that means our future’s still on course,” hypothesized Applejack. “And that’s a good thing… I think.”

“I’m sure it was, but what about the fortune Zecora gave me?” questioned Pinkie Pie. “To beware of fall? We just had the Summer Sun Celebration, we’re still a long ways away from Autumn.”

“I don’t think that was the kind of fall she meant,” commented Applejack. “Anyway, we still haven’t heard back from Princess Celestia yet. Maybe she’ll be able to find us a lead to go on.”

“That’s all we can hope for, right now,” replied Twilight as Spike climbed into a pile of hay beside her. “But I doubt Nightmare Moon would be careless enough to just leave that sort of info lying around where the princess can find it.”

“Well, while we don’t lack direction,” yawned Spike as he stretched and curled up in his pile of hay. “We might as well take the time to get some sleep. One good thing about this perpetual night…” Spike’s words trailed out as he unleashed another yawn. “It’s nice and dark everywhere, so it’s always the perfect time to get some shut eye and, after all we’ve been through, this baby dragon needs his naptime. Just wake me when the sun comes up.”

Chuckling as he closed his eyes, Spike slowly started to drift off to sleep. As he did, the sky outside started to get brighter, bit by bit. Conversely, the blackness overhead faded into a gentle blue and the stars dotting the sky vanished while dozens of big, fluffy clouds took their place. Finally, in the distance, the sun itself started to appear over the horizon and bring natural light back to Equestria.

“The sun’s up!” announced Pinkie Pie loudly, making Spike jump up in fright and, fortunately, land right back into his hay pile. “Wakey wakey, pies and cakey!”

“Ugh, already?” grumbled the Spike, rubbing his weary eyes after getting all of ten seconds of rest. “Isn’t the sun supposed to have been taken hostage by Nightmare Moon? Did it escape and, if so, why now of all times?”

“That is strange,” noted Twilight as she got up to look outside. Using some magic, she shaped it into a compass and a pocket watch, checking what both indicated before turning back to inform the others. “The sun is coming up right on schedule.”

“So much for eternal night,” huffed Applejack. “We had all of one day without sunlight. One dagburn day!”

“Uh, shouldn’t we be happy that the sun is back?” asked Applebloom as she looked as her sister grumpily snorted.

“I know and I am,” replied Applejack. “But that means we just went through all the trouble of wrangling all these varmints because of the perpetual darkness and now, five minutes later, we can let them go.”

“Nope,” Big Mac shook his head as he checked out the cage full of bats. With full bellies and the sun out, none of them looked in to be in any condition to take flight.

“Well, I reckon, we don’t know for certain if day and night truly are back to normal,” figured Applejack. “So, for now, Big Mac, Applebloom, let them get some shut eye and, when it gets dark, you can turn them loose.”

“What about you, sis?” wondered her little sister. “Are you really going off with Twilight on an adventure?”

“I sure am, sugarcube,” nodded Applejack. “As much as I hate having to be away from Sweet Apple Acres for more than a spell, the fate of Equestria is in the balance and I’ve got a role to play in saving it. Of course, I’ll stop by to help out here every chance I get to be back here, but, while I’m away, I have every confidence that the two of you and granny will be able to take care of things.”

“You can count on us,” smiled Applebloom, motivated by her sister’s words. “We’ll keep Sweet Apple Acres in tip top shape so you can focus fully on wherever you need to be going and doing whatever you need to do.”

“Yup,” nodded Big Mac, agreeing with his sister.

“Now we just need to know where to go and what to do,” stated Pinkie. “Then we can get this party train rolling again.”

“I just wish Celestia would respond to the letter we sent her,” sighed Twilight as she gazed at the sun in the distance, most of its roundness over the trees now. “Just so we can know whether or not she has any advice for what we should do next. And, hopefully, she also can tell us why Nightmare Moon’s eternal night has already come to an end. I mean, for all we know, the princess might have managed to defeat her on her own already and restored peace to Equestria, meaning everything we’ve been doing has just been a colossal waste of time and all my efforts at the start of this whole mess just got in the way of her saving the day sooner. And, if that’s the case, why won’t she just send a letter already telling me that?”

“Twilight,” yawned Spike, facing away from the barn entrance as he tried to get some sleep. “I’ve probably known the princess about as long as you and I think we both know that she’d never think nor say anything like that. Till we hear from her, we should just try and get some rest and recover our strength for when we do know what we need to do.”

“Spike’s right, Twi,” Applejack added. “If nothing else, you’ve definitely made Princess Celestia proud. I sure know I am mighty proud to have you for a friend.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie chimed in. “And thanks to you I get to be part of this super fun saving Equestria party.”

“You know this isn’t exactly the fun kind of party,” commented Twilight.

“Oh, I know,” she giggled with her usual bubbly demeanor. “But, when we do save Equestria, then I can throw a party for all of us to celebrate and it’s going to be the best party ever!”

“I know I can’t wait for a Pinkie Pie party like that,” exclaimed Applebloom. “So, I hope you all save Equestria real quick so we can get to the celebration.”

“We’ll do our best to save Equestria as quickly as possible,” chuckled Twilight, feeling better thanks to everyone’s reassurances. “And, thanks everypony. All this not knowing what we need to do next was stressing me out, but now, I feel a whole lot better. And, I think Spike’s got the right idea. We’ve got some down time, so we should use it to rest and prepare for when we do know what to do.”

“Taking naps during my downtime is my specialty, after all,” stated Spike in a bragging tone. “Now, till we get word from the princess, I’m going to make like those fruit bats and sleep till the sun goes down.” He let out a yawn, so very close to falling asleep. “And maybe till the sun comes up again… Hurk!” Spike’s cheeks bulged as his eyes bugged out. Quickly, he sat up, alarming the others at the face he was making.

“Spike, are you okay?” asked Twilight before she realized what this meant. “Wait, did we get a response from the princess?”

“Why now? Did she have to send it when I was this close to falling asleep?” he mumbled through sealed lips before he finally let out a fiery belch. Then, out of the smoke of his green flames, a scroll materialized, sealed with Celestia’s mark.

“Sorry about that, Spike,” Twilight apologized in the princess’s stead. “But, you can take your nap now.”

“After waiting all this time for it to arrive,” he said before taking a deep breath. “I wanna hear what it says too.” Bringing his hand to his eye, he gave it a rub and did this best to shrug off his weariness for a bit longer.

“Okay, everypony, listen up,” announced Twilight. “Here’s what it says.”

To my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle and all her friends,

First, let me say, I am very proud of you Twilight. Not just for all you are doing for the sake of Equestria, but that, for your own sake, you have made such strides in making friends. That they are all willing to do all they can to help you in your quest, I look forward to the day that I will be able to meet them and thank them for all they are doing.

As for the issue of the missing Elements of Harmony, I won’t deny that I did have a suspicion that Nightmare Moon might decide to pull such an underhanded trick and hide them, but, the blame that she was even able to do that at all rests solely with me. I knew the power of the Elements was no longer something I could use and decided to face off against her with solely my own strength. Truly, with all I have errored, she could not have asked for better accomplice to her return.

But, for all the mistakes that I have made, I will continue to do all that I can to assist you in your journey. Already, I have done a little detective work and have managed to learn the location of one of the Elements of Harmony. The first one is located in the far off area of Saddle Arabia. She has hidden it within the ancient tomb of the pharaoh, King Trotandcanter. I’m sure that I don’t need to tell you that that tomb has been lost for ages and finding it will be your greatest challenge yet. Even so, I have faith in all of you that you will continue to overcome the odds and do the impossible. Meanwhile, I’ll do all I can to discern where all the other Elements are hidden and continue to keep you up to date whenever I have the chance.

Lastly, as I’m sure you’re probably all aware of this by now that the sun has risen and put an end to Nightmare Moon’s night. As you already know, from the previous part of my letter, Nightmare Moon is far from defeated. She merely does not possess the magical power necessary to maintain her eternal night for very long, not while she is stretching her magical abilities so thin as it is.

Despite accepting her limitations at the moment, she is still dead set on her ultimate goal. How she plans to achieve it, I haven’t the faintest idea, but, before she can, she must be stopped. Twilight, only you and your friends are able to do this. You must recover the Elements of Harmony and stop Nightmare Moon before her dream becomes our nightmare.

Eternally grateful,

Princess Celestia

“Oh my goodness,” gasped Applebloom as Twilight finished reading the letter. “You get to go all the way to Saddle Arabia?”

“It sure looks that way,” nodded Applejack.

“Just one question,” Applebloom continued. “Where is Saddle Arabia?”

“They didn’t cover that place in geography class?” questioned Twilight. “When I was your age I had already memorized every major city in Equestria and those of its sister nations like this one.”

“I get the feeling that you might be in the vast minority that respect,” commented Applejack as she scratched her head. “I can’t say that I know exactly where Saddle Arabia is either, off the top of my head. Care to enlighten us, Twi?”

“It’s far,” she started out with. “Very, very far to the east. We’ll even have to go over a mountain and cross a desert to even reach the nearest town there. If we’re going to leave for it, we’ll need transportation.”

“Well, the fastest means we’ve got to go to and from anywhere in town,” Applejack informed her. “That’d be by train. At the very least, it should serve as our starting point.”

“Then we’ll head back into town, get prepared, and then head to the station,” Twilight instructed the group before turning to Spike who was already fast asleep, curled up on his pile of hay. “But, first, let’s just rest a while. I’m sure Spike isn’t the only one who could use some.”

“Normally, I’m the last person you’d see sawing logs after the rooster’s cock-a-doodle-doo,” commented Applejack as she found a spot on the pile to rest her eyes on. “But, in this case, I’ll make an exception. I just hope hay isn’t too uncomfortable for you, Twi.” Twilight didn’t respond. “Twilight?” Turning to look, Applejack and the others saw Twilight was out cold now too and snoring loudly alongside Spike.

“I guess getting that letter from the princess was enough to calm her down so she could relax,” chuckled Applebloom.

“Yep,” agreed Big Mac as he turned to his orange-haired sister. “And you best get some sleep too, AJ. You’ve got a long journey ahead of you and this trip to Saddle Arabia is just the first stop and who knows where else you’ll be going afterwards.”

“It’s sure quite an ordeal for a simple farm pony to be a part of,” she chuckled, pushing her hat over her face as she settled down for a snooze.

“It’s huge for anypony to be a part of,” replied Big Mac to AJ who had already started to drift off to sleep. “Come on, Applebloom. Let’s leave them be so they can get some well-deserved shuteye.”

“What about you, Pinkie Pie?” asked the littlest pony there as she and her much larger brother started to leave the barn. “Aren’t you going to sleep too?”

“Are you kidding?” she replied full of delight. “There’s no better way to sleep than with a slumber party. Yippee!” Bounding onto an unoccupied pile of hay, the pink pony belly flopped onto it and instantly fell asleep with the others. Apple Bloom and Big Mac just started at Pinkie Pie for a moment before deciding to simply be amused by her antics rather than dumbfounded. Quietly taking their leave, the duo went off to tend to their chores.

A few hours later, all rested, refreshed, and ready to get going, Twilight, Spike, Applejack, and Pinkie brushed the hay off their bodies and stretched away any lingering traces of sleep. Once they were all more awake than asleep, they headed out of the barn. “Everyone have enough time to rest?” Twilight asked the group.

“I could always go for more sleep,” replied Spike as he climbed onto Twilight’s back. “But, yeah, I’m fine.”

“I’m well rested too,” answered Applejack as she carefully opened the door to the barn, but looked back to see the fruit bats were still sound asleep. But we better let the bats snooze till nightfall. We’ve already seen how ornery they get when their sleep schedule is disturbed.”

“Me three!” cheered Pinkie Pie, causing the others to shush her loudness and get her to speak more quietly. “So, let’s keep this party going.”

“Then it’s time to head into town and gather supplies for our trip,” stated Twilight. “Considering how far we’ll have to go, packing food is a must and we’ll need water too and anything else that could help us climb a mountain and cross a desert.”

“Climb a… cross a…” repeated a shocked Spike. “Uh, where are we going?” The others looked at him with a raised eyebrow that he had to ask. Blushingly, Spike continued. “I, uh, kinda dozed off halfway through Celestia’s letter.”

“We’re going to Saddle Arabia to find the lost tomb of Pharaoh Trotandcanter,” explained Twilight.

“Oh, is that all,” he replied upon hearing of their destination. “Think I might need that extra sleep after all.”

“Well, if it’s food we need,” stated Applejack as she gazed at all her many apple trees, the bright redness of the fruit much easier to see and marvel at in full daylight. “Then we don’t have to look any further than Sweet Apple Acres for the best apples in Equestria. “I’ll buck us a bushell while we’re still here.”

“She was seen headed this way,” exclaimed a very boastful voice that was coming from not too far away. “Now, tell me where she is at once.”

“Sounds like the farms got another visitor,” commented Applejack. “A very loud one this time.”

“That voice,” recalled Twilight, rubbing her temple as she felt a bit of a headache coming on. “Don’t tell me it’s her.”

“Okay, I won’t,” replied Spike, both knowing what little good that did them. “But, do you think she’s here for round two?”

“Only one way to find out,” sighed Twilight, figuring it was better to handle this quickly so they could move on.

“Who is it?” questioned Applejack. “Another one of Nightmare Moon’s henchponies?”

“Worse,” answered Twilight as they soon came upon a blue mare who was attempting to shake down information from Big Mac and Applebloom. “It’s the Great and Powerful Trixie.”

“That showboating entertainer?” replied Applejack. “What’s she got to do with all this?”

“Nothing really,” admitted Spike. “She’s more of a subplot at best and a tedious sidequest at worst.”

“Ooh, the B plot of the story,” stated Pinkie Pie, breaking the fourth wall.

“Don’t run away from me!” demanded Trixie, tugging on Big Mac’s tail to hold him back, but her efforts didn’t even serve to slow him down at he trotted at a normal pace while dragging her along. “I demand that you tell me where Twilight Sparkle is, this instant!”

“Nope,” he refused and kept moving along.

“Well, why not?!?” she shouted with growing frustration.

“Nope,” he answered her again, his brief, one-word answers annoying her just as much as the gruffness in his tone showed he was equally fed up with her.

“Is that all you can say?!?” she questioned him next.

“Big Mac can say plenty more than that,” Applebloom answered for him. “But my big brother doesn’t like saying more than he needs to, especially to someone coming onto our farm just to cause a frackas and I feel the same way.”

“I don’t mean to cause a frackas… whatever that is,” Trixie replied. “But I must find Twilight Sparkle who is standing in the way of me fulfilling my destiny of defeating Nightmare Moon. Now, I know she made her way over here in search of those Element thingies, so tell me where she is and they are. It is for the good of Equestria after all.”

“Anyone else feel like Equestria is better off with the Elements not in her position?” asked Applejack.

“Does that question even need asking?” Spike answered back, staring dully at Trixie’s continued failures to pry any info from Big Mac and Applebloom.

“She’s far too inexperienced to handle their power,” stated Twilight from a more analytical point of view.

“If today was Opposite Day,” Pinkie Pie answered last. “But, that’s not for another forty-seven days, so no way, at least for forty-six more days.”

“Well, it’s not like the Elements are even here,” commented Spike. “We could just, you know, ignore her.”

“But we can’t just leave her to bother my brother and lil sis,” replied Applejack. “She’s way more of a pest than the fruit bats ever were.”

“I don’t doubt that,” nodded Twilight as she was struck with inspiration. “But maybe we can use that.”

“Don’t you understand?” cried Trixie. “If you do not tell the Great and Powerful Trixie what she needs to know then Nightmare Moon will make good on her promise of an eternal night.”

“But the eternal night’s already ended,” Applebloom pointed out. “Or have you not noticed the sun in the sky for the last few hours?”

“See!” declared Trixie, her voice full of triumph. “Already the Great and Powerful Trixie’s efforts are working. If Trixie just keeps doing… whatever great and powerful thing she’s been doing then Equestria will have nothing to worry about.”

“It wasn’t because of anyone’s efforts that the night came to an end,” explained Twilight as she and the others approached Trixie. “Nightmare Moon merely didn’t have the power to maintain it for very long. However, that doesn’t mean she won’t find a way to make it a reality or that she can be easily defeated.”

“Twilight Sparkle!” declared Trixie as she saw her rival approach her. “After all this time we come face-to-face once more.”

“It hasn’t even been a full day since the last time we met,” Spike pointed out.

“And that is much too long for the Great and Powerful Trixie to bear the humiliation of our duel. Now we shall have our rematch and the winner will get the Elements of Harmony.”

“I hate to break it to ya,” Applejack told Trixie. “But, fighting us is pointless. It won’t accomplish anything since we don-”

Twilight was quick to put a hoof to Applejack’s mouth to keep her from saying anything unnecessary. “We don’t stand a chance against the Great and Powerful Trixie,” Twilight lied. “Just by looking at you, I can tell that you’ve grown much, much stronger than I could ever hope to be.”

“Well,” she bragged as she pulled a book out of the satchel on her side. “I did stop by the library in town again to do a little reading on magic. I’ve only skimmed through the first chapter, but surely that was more than enough to close that tiny gap in our abilities.”

“Tiny gap?” scoffed Spike. “It was more like a ravine separating the two of you.”

“Now, Spike, Trixie is clearly more powerful than all of us put together,” fibbed Twilight. “In fact, with the Elements we’ve stashed away in the barn, for safekeeping, she could easily take on Nightmare Moon, right now. Oopsies. Did I let that slip out?”

“So, they’re in the barn,” Trixe stated as she turned to the structure a short walk away. “Step aside so that Trixie might finally get what’s coming to her.”

“Whatever you say,” giggled Pinkie, well aware of what Twilight was setting Trixie up for. Fortunately, the boastful, blue pony didn’t pay her snickers any mind as she made her way over to the large, red structure in the distance.

“Well, you probably don’t need that book anymore,” Twilight called to Trixie before she got too far away. “Since you’ll be so much greater and more powerful with the Elements. Plus, I doubt you’ll have space for both with what limited inventory space you probably have.”

“Hmm… You do have a point,” she considered as she looked at the book. “And I’ve probably already absorbed all the knowledge I need from this piece of literature.” With a careless smirk on her face, Trixie tossed the book aside.

“Hey! That’s a First Edition!” cried Spike, seeing more of her disregard for library etiquette. Desperately, the purple dragon leapt off Twilight’s back to grab the leatherbound piece of literature before it got dirtied on the ground. He managed to catch the book in his claws, but found himself not dropping to the ground. Looking up at the book, it was surrounded by Twilight’s aura as she caught it with her magic as well and levitated both it and her friend back over to her. “Remind me to not just revoke her library card the next chance I get, but also to shred it and eat it too.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Twilight replied, helping Spike onto her back and then did a quick skim through the book. “Oh, yes, Trixie picked out a good one. I should be able to improve my magical ability with this and I’ll have the whole train ride over to Saddle Arabia to study it cover to cover. I was planning on looking for something like this before we went to the station so, thanks to Trixie, this saves us a bit of time.”

“That’s good to hear,” commented Applejack as she bucked at a nearby apple tree, causing a couple dozen apples to fall to the ground. She then proceeded to gather them up and put away into her satchel. “Let me just gather up some apples and then we can skedaddle before Trixie finds out what’s really in the barn.”

“Oh, this is gonna be good,” snickered Applebloom, watching Trixie from a distance and saw that she had nearly reached the barn. Big Mac nodded with a “Yup” as he eagerly awaited her comeuppance.

“We should probably get going,” suggested Applejack. “Before Trixie discovers what’s really in the barn and chases after us like a jackrabbit with its tail on fire.”

“Oh, but I wanna see,” complained Pinkie, certain it was going to be hilarious to watch Trixie’s reaction.

“Looks like she’s already there,” giggled Applebloom as she and Big Mac continued to gaze into the distance, eager to see too.

“Yup,” Big Mac chuckled, a calm smile on his face.

“Okay, Elements!” declared Trixie loudly and theatrically as she reached the barn and opened it with magic. “Show me what you’ve got!”

Looking inside the barn, Trixie had no idea what the Elements even looked like, but she was certain that they’d be obvious at a glance. However, all she saw was piles of hay, some farm equipment and a cluster of bats in a large, opened cage that were agitated that someone brought in the sunlight along with some over-the-top bellowing and disturbed their rest. They fled from their opened cage, right out through the barn doors and right at Trixie who turned and fled. Running through the orchard, the bats continued to chase after her, the sunlight, currently, a secondary bother to them compared to the boastful Pony who had disturbed them.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is not amused!” she shouted out as her wizarding hat was snatched away by one of the bats and she was now the one chasing after them. “And you have not heard the last of the Great and Powerful Trixie either, Twilight Sparkle! I’ll be back!”

“Hopefully not too soon,” commented Spike as his group went to take their leave. “Though I won’t deny that if nothing else, she’s certainly entertaining in her own way.”

“Let’s just hope that if and when she does show up again,” added Twilight. “It won’t be at a more inopportune moment. With all the dangers we’re likely to face going forward, the last thing we need is her interference on top of all that.”

“If need be,” offered Applejack, pulling out a length of rope as she continued to speak. “I can hogtie her the next time she shows herself.”

“Oh, I wanna see that!” Pinkie exclaimed, giggling at the thought. “Now I can’t wait for the next time she shows up out of the blue.”

“See you all later,” Applebloom waved to her big sister and all her friends. “I can’t wait to hear all about your adventures when you get home. Bet it’ll be super exciting.”

“Yup,” nodded Big Mac in agreement and joined his youngest sister in waving goodbye to Twilight’s party.

“I doubt you’ll have anything to worry about there, sugarcube,” Applejack called back. “If there was this much danger just going to find out there weren’t any Elements to be found, I can only imagine what’ll be in store for us at a place where one actually is.”

“Is that really something to be so happy about?” questioned Twilight as they made their way out of Sweet Apple Acres and were on the road back to Ponyville.

“From a safety perspective, probably not,” answered Spike. “But we’re a party of four now so that means we’ve all got three friends to watch our flank for us. And, who knows, maybe we’ll find more friends to help us along the way.”

“The bigger the party the better,” cheered Pinkie, excited to add more friends to the group.

Returning to Ponyville and walking through the streets, Twilight was quickly greeted by a number of the residents there while many more cheered and applauded her name in the distance. “I could get used to being a hero if we’re going to get this kind of a warm welcome whenever we come into town,” smiled Spike as he waved to his adoring public.

“We’re glad that you have made it back to us safe and sounds,” Mayor Mare told Twilight as she made her way through her adoring public to reach the pony herself. “All of Ponyville and Equestria, for that matter, are truly in your debt for dispatching Nightmare Moon. I must confess that even I had my doubts, but you persevered and you won, putting an end to the night and returning out sunshine to us and in practically no time at all.”

“But we haven’t done anything yet,” Twilight confessed and tried to explain to the Ponies gathered around them. “Our efforts to find the Elements have only just begun. The only reason for the return of the day is due to Nightmare Moon’s lack of power to create her eternal night. We don’t know how long that will remain true, but we will do all we can to put a stop to her before that can happen. We got all this info from Princess Celestia herself who is thankfully still okay, but is only able to pass on what she learns to help us move forward. Right now, we have our next destination set, so till we can complete our journey, can we trust in all of you to continue to have faith in us?”

“Of course,” agreed Mayor Mare, speaking for the whole of the town. “And whatever you might need, all of Ponyville is open to you.”

“Thanks mighty kind of y’all,” Applejack told the town. “We very much appreciate it and will do our best not to disappoint.”

“And get ready for the biggest saved Equestria party ever!” announced Pinkie, getting everyone around them just as ecstatic as Applebloom had been to hear this. “Once we’ve saved Equestria, of course.”

“And if you are considering making statues of us in our honor,” commented Spike, drooling at the thought. “Might I suggest using emeralds for mine. They are my favorite, after all.”

“Let’s just try to stay focused on saving Equestria before discussing what happens after,” suggested Twilight as they waved their goodbyes to everyone and went on their way. And if they made a statue of you out of emeralds, wouldn’t you just eat it?”

“What better way to fulfill my dream of eating my weight in emeralds,” thought Spike as he imagined it. “Of course, if they decide to scale it up some, I wouldn’t complain about that.”

As the group of four went throughout the town, they did what they could to help spread what new info they could about the return of the Sun, Princess Celestia’s current condition and that of Nightmare Moon. All the while they did this, they gathered food, water, and anything else they believed would help them on their journey. Once they all felt prepared, they headed for the station to get tickets for the train.

“How can I help you folks today?” asked the stallion tending to the ticket booth.

“We need four tickets for the next train to Saddle Arabia,” Twilight told him as she took out what bits she still had on hoof. “How much will that be?”

“Four to Saddle Arabia,” he replied, checking out the list of prices. “That’ll be five bits each.”

“Here you go,” replied Twilight as she counted out the twenty bits they needed and sighed that they just had enough after all their spending. The group then watched as the officer plucked four tickets from a wheel of them and offered the tiny slips of paper to Twilight.

“And here you go,” he said, tipping his hat to her. Hope you don’t mind me being nosey, but any particular reason you are going all the way over there, especially with all the craziness going on as of late?”

“We can’t go into much detail, but the short version is that if we don’t go there, then there’s going to be a lot more craziness to come.”

“Can’t say I understand, but I’ll wish you all the best,” he waved bye to Twilight and the others. “You’ll be boarding on train number three which will be departing in about ten minutes.”

“Ten minutes,” whistled Applejack after hearing that. “If we were even a bit later we might’ve missed it.”

“Oh, excuse me,” a female donkey said as she approached Twilight and her friends. She had a brown coat and a mane of darker brown, curly hair. She had light blue eyes and with matching earrings in her long ears. “Could you spare me a moment of your time?”

“Hey, Matilda,” greeted Pinkie Pie. “How are you doing?”

“I’m doing fine, Pinkie,” she replied with a look that did look happy, though there was a touch of worry there too. “Well, sort of, anyway, which is why I was hoping you all could do me a favor, if you all weren’t too busy.”

“We are a mite busy,” Applejack acknowledged. “But we’ll at least hear you out and see if we can help.”

“I don’t normally make it a habit of eavesdropping,” she started out saying. “And I apologize for doing it, but I needed to find someone who was going to Saddle Arabia. You see, my fiance, Cranky, he took off for that very same place last week and I haven’t gotten so much as a letter from him since he left and, with everything going on now, I’m just really worried for him. So, if you happen to find him while you’re out there, could you please tell him to come home, if not for my sake then at least for his own.”

“Okay dokey lokey,” replied Pinkie Pie as she accepted her request as easily as that. “You have my certified Pinkie Pie promise that you can count on us! We’ll find that Cranky Doodle Donkey if it’s the last thing we do!”

“Hopefully it won’t come to that,” Spike remarked to Pinkie’s needlessly ominous words.

“Anything you can tell us as to why he went all the way out there?” questioned Applejack.

“I don’t know why he just decided to go,” the lady donkey admitted. “Cranky, despite being, well, cranky, was always an adventurer at heart. He’s traveled all over Equestria and done so many amazing things that I can barely believe half the stories he’s told me. When he came to Ponyville to finally settle down, he said his days of questing were behind him, but suddenly he decided to take off for Saddle Arabia and nothing I said could convince him not to go. When I asked to accompany him instead, he was adamant against that too, saying it would be much too dangerous for me which has only added to my worry for his safety. In the end, all I could do was see him off and wait for him to return. Now, with the return of Nightmare Moon, I cannot help but feel like something terrible might happen to him, if it hasn’t already. He’s hardly the youthful donkey he used to be, after all.”

“He’s really, really bald,” Pinkie whispered to Twilight in a still very audible voice.

“We have plenty to do in Saddle Arabia ourselves,” Twilight told Matilda. “But if we happen to run into him we’ll try to do what we can to convince him to go back home to you.”

“Oh, you all are so wonderful,” Matilda thanked them all. “I don’t know how I could ever repay you.”

“We’re friends,” smiled Pinkie as she and the others began to board the train. “That’s what friends are for, after all. Also, happy birthday next month. I can’t wait for you to see the surprise I’ve got prepared for you.”

“I’ll look forward to that too,” she smiled and waved goodbye to them as they vanished onto the train and searched for a place to sit down.

“This car should do,” commented Applejack as they found a mostly empty one. “We’ve got pretty much the whole place to ourselves in here.” Grabbing a booth of seats, they sat down with Pinkie Pie and Applejack on one side and Spike and Twilight on the other. “Nothing left for us to do but enjoy the ride till we get there.” Opening her satchel, Applejack then pulled out a few apples and offered the fruit to the others. “Anyone care for a snack? I don’t know about the rest of y’all, but I’m hungrier than a hog right before chow time.”

“I got some goodies too,” offered Pinkie Pie, showing a bunch of cookies, muffins, and other confections she brought along for the trip.

“Thanks,” smiled Twilight as the group grabbed what they wanted to eat and worked to sate their hunger. “I bought some food for the trip too, but it might not be a good idea to eat it all before we even get off the train. I also brought a few books and puzzle books to go through to help us pass the time.”

“And I grabbed some of my favorite comics fir the trip too,” added Spike. “You can read them, if you want. Uh, just try not to fold the corners, please.”

Looking through everything Twilight and Spike brought on the train, Applejack settled on a word jumble while Pinkie Pie took one of Spike’s comics. Spike also took one of his comics too while Twilight was already chomping at the bit to read up more on magic from the book she procured Trixie, however, before she cracked it open to the first page, she took out some scroll paper and a quill.

“Hey, Spike, do you think you can send off a couple letters for me?”

“Sure,” he nodded. “Guess you want to send another letter off to Celestia so she knows we’re on our way to Saddle Arabia?”

“Of course,” she nodded. “But I was also hoping that you could also try to send one off to my brother as well.”

“But I’ve never met him before,” Spike reminded her. “Even if you tell me his name, I don’t exactly know what he looks like.”

“I thought about that,” she replied with a confident look on her face. “And figured that even if you haven’t met him that maybe a picture would work too.”

“I’ve never sent a letter with just a drawing of a face in mind,” admitted Spike. “So it’s at least worth a try.”

“Then let’s give it a go. I made this after the idea came to mind,” said Twilight as she showed him the picture. “Not too shabby if I say so myself.” As Spike eyed her drawing of her brother, Spike had to restrain his laughter, but even then, he couldn’t help but bust a gut. The sight of Twilight’s artistic vision of her sibling appeared absolutely absurd with an enormous muzzle against a far too small body disproportionate eyes, and a number of things he could barely tell what they were supposed to be.

“That’s your brother?” he snickered.

“Y-Yes?” she replied suddenly not so certain if she should admit that. “Why?”

“Either you’ve got all the looks in the family or he’s got all the artistic talent,” he told her.

“I’ll admit I’m no DaWhinny, but it isn’t that bad,” she tried to defend her drawing skills, but a couple more snickers from Applejack and Pinkie Pie as they peeked at the picture only confirmed her lack of them. Sighing, Twilight decided not to push the matter or her any further and cut to the chase. “Do you think that it is good enough for you to sent a letter to my brother?”

“No harm in trying at least,” said Spike as he took quill and parchment in hand and got ready to write. “Just tell me what to say.”

“Then let’s begin,” Twilight said as she paused to think for a moment and then started to dictate her letter while Spike wrote. “Dear Shining Armor. This is your sister and do I have a lot to tell you.”

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