Harmony Theory

by Sharaloth

Chapter 5: Everstorm

The Elements of Harmony are a magic made up of many parts. The most immediately apparent part is the physical one, the forms the Elements take. This form is highly variable, and most certainly personalized to the pony that wields it.

When my friends and I first found the Elements, they appeared as stone spheres more than a foot in diameter. Nightmare Moon shattered these forms. I was left in despair until I heard my friends coming to my aid. Their arrival provided the spark of understanding for me to see the Elements as more than simply enchanted objects. I began to realize the full extent of the Magic of Harmony, the many layers of magic and connection that composed the Elements. As I did so the Elements reconstituted themselves around my friends, responding to our friendship and my new-found understanding. They took new forms, the necklaces and crown that are well-known today. Each newly formed Element had a reference to the cutie mark of the pony who bore it in their central gems, something that I did not question at the time.

It was this malleability of form, and the ease with which they rebuilt themselves and customized their appearance, that made me decide that the first order of business in my studies of the Elements of Harmony was to investigate their physical properties. As we shall see in this section, what I discovered fundamentally altered my view of magic, the Elements, and, sadly, reality itself.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 5: Everstorm

Calumn ducked his head against the wind and rain that lashed at him. The torrents of stinging raindrops made it impossible to see more than a meter or two ahead of him at any time, and even trying to look beyond his feet earned him a painful lashing of water in his eyes. It almost made him wish he was in his true form, his carapace wouldn't feel the bite of the weather like his sodden coat did. As it was, he was forced to endure.

He spotted a neon sign through the rain, proudly declaring that Stormrider's was open for business. He made for that, thankful that he didn't have to go too much farther to reach his destination. Crossing through the Verge on hoof was slow going, especially since he'd had to take routes around the mountains that would avoid the military patrols. It had taken the better part of five days just to get this far. Now he was inside the Everfree forest, with the Everstorm a scant few kilometers away, and if he wanted to go any further he needed to hire a guide. Every report he'd read about crossing into the sunlands said that the best place to do that was right here, at Stormrider's Bar.

The transition from intense storm outside to calm bar room inside was a shock to the system. The walls of Stormrider's were as solid as they could possibly be to survive the storms that often broke off from the Everstorm and ravaged the Everfree Verge. Because of that they dulled the sound of the rain and screaming wind to a hushed growl that could be felt over the music playing inside, but only barely.

The interior of the bar was lit by a few shaded bulbs that hung from the ceiling, and the flickering neon sign that hung in the only window. The walls were adorned with hundreds of wooden plaques that bore names etched into them. Some of the plaques appeared to be centuries old. Other than that there were signs for various brands of alcohol, a portrait of Stormrider, the bar's original owner, and a pinup calendar of the Republic's raciest mares decked out in socks and saddles.

Calumn's arrival was barely noted by the patrons, a motley assortment of ponies and other races gathered in little groups or on their own, each with their heads down over a drink. He didn't see any of the usual things he'd been expecting from his experience infiltrating tough places before. There was no gambling, no games at all that he could see. Conversations were kept hushed and close, and were so few that the music easily drowned them all out. No one seemed to be posturing, displaying wealth or weapons or scars. It was unnerving.

Calumn made his way over to the bar and took a seat. The bartender, a dark brown pegasus stallion with a dirty pink mane and a Talent Glyph that said his abilities were focused on cooking, gave Calumn a steady look. "Just a beer," Calumn said. "Whatever you've got on tap."

The pegasus moved with practiced ease to draw Calumn his drink. When he set it down in front of the disguised Changeling he held it close, not letting Calumn pick it up. "Two full moons," he said.

"Two?" Calumn choked out.

"Two," the bartender repeated, unfazed.

"Nobody charges two full moons for a beer," Calumn said. This was obviously a test of some kind, determining how much of a mark he was. Well, he could deal with that, he'd just show that he could play the game. "Look, I'll give you one. That's enough for this and two more after."

"Two for this one. Two for the next," the bartender said.

"Seriously? What's this stuff made out of? Ambrosia?"

"Barley," the bartender said.

This wasn't going Calumn's way. "That's fucking robbery!"

"Nope," said a new voice. Calumn turned to look at the earth pony stallion sitting a few places down from him. He'd had his head down on the bar, but Calumn saw that his eye was open and focused on the conversation with a delighted glint.

"You wanna say something?" Calumn asked, wondering if this was part of the test.

"Yup!" the stallion said, pulling his head up from the bar. There was a napkin stuck to the side of his face, but he didn't even seem to notice as he bounced from stool to stool to get closer, closing the distance between the two of them until he was sitting right next to Calumn. He was a green that was dark enough to be mistaken for black in the poor lighting of the bar, his mane and tail a brighter shade of green with a pair of yellow stripes running through them. His Glyph was an Abstract of a strange maze that curved in on itself, but seemed to only have one path. He grinned at Calumn, lemon yellow eyes glinting as he leaned in to give the Changeling a conspiratorial whisper. "It's not robbery," he said.

"Really," Calumn said, leaning back from the green pony. "That what is it?"

The green pony's eyes darted around the room quickly before he leaned further, practically lying on Calumn. "Extortion."

"Extortion?"

"Yup!" the green pony said as the bartender rolled his eyes.

"That's enough, Blaze," the bartender said.

"Okay," Blaze said, returning upright and dropping his head onto the bar.

Calumn slowly pulled himself up, looking at the strange pony. "Don't mind him," the bartender said. "He's more than a little drunk right now."

"Huh," Calumn said, then shook his head and looked at the bartender. "Two full moons. Are you extorting me?"

"Do you know how much it costs to import real beer this far into the Verge? Right next to the Everstorm? Two full moons a pint, minus a modest profit margin. Now, are you gonna pay for it, or do you want to look at my books first?"

Calumn snorted and fished two full moons from his sodden pack. The bartender scooped the coins away and slid the beer to Calumn. "I'm looking for passage through the Everstorm," he said.

"No shit," the bartender deadpanned. "Really?"

Well, if Calumn was going to be forced to play the naive newcomer, he might as well play it to the hilt. "Yeah," he said. "I know this is where the guides hang out on this side. Can you point me to a good one?"

"A good one, huh? You don't want the best?"

"At two full moons a beer I'm not sure I can afford the best," Calumn said.

The bartender snickered at that. "Fair enough. I could point you in the right direction, I guess, but I'm not entirely sure it's worth my time."

"More extortion?"

"Nothing's free in the Verge," the bartender said.

"No government, no cops, no armies, no laws. Some would consider that free."

"And you gotta pay for every single damn day of it," the bartender said. "Why do you want to go to the sunlands?"

"My business," Calumn warned.

"And who can get you there is mine," the bartender replied. "So make it worth my time, or enjoy your beer."

Calumn fished five more full moons out of his pack and carefully laid them in front of the pegasus. "Good enough?"

The bartender shrugged. "Eh? It'll do. You want to start over there, with the mutt in the hood. He'll get you through the Everstorm, safe and sound. If, that is, you can convince him to do it. He's kind of particular about his clients. Name's Silas."

Calumn nodded. "Thanks." He tapped the green pony on the shoulder, and was rewarded with a yellow eye shining up at him. "Hey," he said, sliding the beer over to him. "On me, okay buddy?"

Calumn didn't wait to see the reaction, instead sliding from the stool and trotting over to the guide the bartender had pointed out. He was a Diamond Dog, his paws wrapped around a steel mug made for a dog's claws. He was wearing the kind of hooded coat that was in fashion back in the Republics, and it was unadorned, which was odd for a Diamond Dog. He watched Calumn approach with bloodshot eyes, nose twitching as he took in Calumn's scent. This wouldn't be a problem for the Changeling, the disguise his kind created was a physical transformation, not an illusion. He'd spent so long in this form that his true scent would be undetectable even to a keen Dog nose.

Calumn sat down across the small table from Silas. "I'm looking for passage," he said.

The Dog snorted. "I know you are looking for passage, little pony," he rasped. His Lunar was good, but he had enough of a Solar accent to tell Calumn on what side of the Storm he was raised. "No one comes here unless they are looking for passage, or already know how to do it themselves. So I know you are looking for passage. I wonder, though, why you want to cross the Everstorm. It is a dangerous thing to do, there must be great motivation to try something like that."

"The pony at the bar said you could get me through safe and sound."

Silas barked out a laugh. "Safe? Yes. I can do safe. Sound? Sound of body, maybe. Sound of mind? I am less sure of that. The Storm is not all rain and lightning. It is magic. It is fury and power. To pass the Storm you must let the storm touch you, and sometimes it likes to cut at little ponies where no one will see the wound, and where it will never heal."

"I bet it cuts Dogs just as well as it cuts ponies," Calumn said.

Silas let out another laugh. "Yes. Silas has many scars! Scars that make Silas afraid of the Storm. Afraid and respectful, as you should be too. I can take you across it, but it will not be cheap, and you must be sure that crossing is what you want. No, not want, need to do. The Storm will scare you, little pony."

"I think I can handle it," Calumn said.

"You are big, yes. Big for a pony, but still much smaller than the Storm. It will try to kill you, little pony, and it is bigger than all the armies of the world. Maybe you have never known real fear before, but in the Storm fear will find you. Unless you have the will to push through, when that fear comes you will do as all ponies do and try to run from it. Then you will be out in the Storm, without Silas to guide you through, and you will die. I will not go after you. For no amount of money or promises will I follow a panicked pony into the fury of the Everstorm."

"Fine," Calumn said. He had faced fear before, and a greater and more unstoppable fear than this Dog had likely ever known. The Everstorm wasn't going to frighten him, not for all of its rage. "I'm not just buying one way, I want passage back through, for me and one other. How much."

Silas considered Calumn, his tongue licking once at his black nose as he thought. "Two hundred," he said finally.

"No," Calumn refused. "I'm buying passage, not an apartment. Seventy five."

"This is the Everstorm, pony," Silas grinned, showing off his sharp canine teeth. "Passage is life. Two ways? And for another as well? What is it? Are you going for a lover? Some girl-pony who has your heart or balls in her mouth and will bite if you don't come bring her to the glorious southern Republics?"

"Something like that," Calumn said evenly.

"Well, then, you pay for it. Yes. One seventy five."

Calumn stopped himself from wincing. This was going to cost him all of his seed money. "One hundred."

Silas 'tsked' at him. "No, pony. You bid too low. Even the most desperate guide doesn't agree to wait on a passenger for less than a hundred. For waiting and taking another back? One sixty."

"One forty."

"One fifty-five."

"One fifty. Half now, half when I'm returning."

Silas gave him a long look before grinning again. "Okay. Silas can agree to that."

Calumn was about to reach into his bag to pull out half the payment when the green pony from the bar flopped into another seat at the table. "Robbery," he said, giving the both of them a cheerful grin.

Silas growled. "Quiet, drunken pony. I was finishing a deal."

"Yeah, but it was gonna be robbery," Blaze said.

Calumn heaved a sigh. "I thought it was extortion?"

Blaze laughed. "Oh, yeah. Not this time. This time it's robbery."

Silas growled again, but his eyes were flickering between the two ponies, and he had begun to compulsively lick his nose. "Don't listen to the drunken pony. He is often putting his nose in things that do not concern him."

"That's true," Blaze mused. "But this guy bought me a drink! An extortion-priced drink! That's kindness you just gotta repay!"

Calumn frowned. "Why is it robbery this time?"

"It isn't," Silas rasped.

"'Cause he's going to rob you," Blaze said happily.

"Seriously?" Calumn asked.

"Shut up, pony," Silas whined, shrinking back on himself.

"Yeah, he was going to take you a little ways into the storm, then lead you into one of the traps, promise to let you out if you give him the rest of the payment first, then take the money and leave you to die. That's a kind of robbery."

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

"How do you know that?" Calumn asked, ignoring the Diamond Dog for now.

"Well, first of all, one fifty? For taking you through, waiting, then taking you back with another passenger? Yeah, nobody here would agree to that."

"Really."

"Yup. If we're not moving passengers we're not making money. None of us would give up the chance to make money like that, not unless the payoff was super-duper-ultra amazingly good. And guaranteed. Can't forget that if you're a spy you could always get caught, and then we'd be waiting for Luna knows how long and you'd never come back. That would really mess us up. So no waiting."

"Well, crap," Calumn said. "I was hoping to have my return trip all ready to go."

Blaze shrugged. "What can you do? It's the economy."

"Yes, fine! No waiting. We can still have a deal, yes?" Silas asked.

Calumn ignored him. "So why do you think he was going to kill me."

"Oh, he wasn't going to kill you, he was just going to leave you to die," Blaze explained. "It's not exactly the same thing, since you still have a chance at surviving that way."

"Okay. But how do you know that's what he was going to do?"

"Well, he's done it before. I mean, I've rescued ponies he's stranded like that three times now. It's kind of embarrassing, really. I mean, you'd think if you're planning a trip to an enemy nation you'd at least research the prices beforehand, right? But, nope! They just go on thinking a hundred full moons is all it takes to get smuggled across the most dangerous border in Equestria."

Calumn turned to Silas. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm going to agree to this deal."

Silas snarled at Blaze. "You have cost Silas, drunkard pony. I will not forget," with that he got up from the table and stormed out into the rain.

"Who's been rubbing him the wrong way?" Blaze asked, seeming genuinely surprised at the Dog's actions.

"Who indeed," Calumn said. "I take it that you're a guide?"

"Yeah! How'd you know?"

"If you're rescuing people trapped in the Everstorm you've got to be able to navigate it."

"Hmm, I never thought of it that way, I guess I do!" Blaze grinned.

Calumn blinked at the pony. "How much would you charge?"

"For the whole deal?" Blaze asked, looking perplexed. "'Cause there's this thing about waiting that we just don't do. I might have mentioned it."

"No, just for taking me to the other side. I can negotiate my way back across when I need it."

"Well, one pony one way. That's two hundred right there."

"Seriously?"

Blaze put a hoof to his chin and made humming noises as he thought about it for nearly half a minute before nodding solidly. "Yes. Seriously."

"Tell me, please. Are you cheap?" Calumn asked.

"Well, I can get falling down drunk from about five beers, I shop at thrift stores, I prefer pizza and a walk in the park to dinner and a movie, and ever since I was kicked out of the trailer park my self-respect has never recovered. So, um, yeah, I guess I'm pretty cheap," Blaze paused for a moment before adding: "Should I feel bad for that?"

"As a guide," Calumn said, putting a hoof to his head. "Are your rates cheap for a guide!"

"Oh!" Blaze said, his eyes lighting up. "Yeah! In that case I am totally not cheap. Nope. Expensive as hell. But I can guarantee you one thing."

"What's that?"

"That when I charge you two hundred for a crossing it's not robbery," he grinned again, eyes shining. "It's extortion."

Calumn couldn't help but laugh at that, and stuck out his hoof. "Strongheart," he said. "And I think we have a deal. Half now, half on the other side."

The green stallion took the offered hoof. "Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze, and that's fine with me. When did you want to head out?"

"As soon as we can."

"Then get something to eat. You're going to need the energy, and as soon as you're done, we'll get going."

"Shouldn't we wait for daylight? Or a break in the storm at least?"

Blaze laughed. "Oh, nope. We're heading into the Everstorm, Strongheart. A few kilometers to the border and then day, night, clear skies or gray, none of that will matter."

"Is it really that bad?" Calumn asked.

Blaze's smile turned wan and sad. "My friend, you have no idea."

***

Rainbow Dash had never seen anything like it. The wall of cloud was strung like a curtain through the forest, stretching from the ground up into the sky. It swirled and eddied like a thousand tornadoes fighting to occupy the same space from different angles. Flashes of light illuminated parts of the immense storm, bolts of green, red, blue, gold, magenta and white flaring against each other in staccato bursts of lightning with no thunder. Star and Astrid had talked to her about the Everstorm, and their story about how it was made was pretty clear on how powerful this thing was. Neither of them had managed to convey how alive the storm felt. It was like it was looking at her, waiting with a fang-toothed grin for her to step right into its jaws.

"This thing is wrong," Dash said. "The wind's gotta be fifty miles an hour for the cloudbank to move like that, but we're ten feet away and all we're getting is a light breeze. This is... this is Discord wrong," Dash shivered.

Star Fall gave Dash a puzzled frown, but went back to her spell-sheet. Astrid stepped up next to the blue pegasus. "This is nothing. Once we get inside, that's when you'll see the real shit. Remember the rules?"

"Yeah, stick close to Star," Dash replied. They'd been constantly drilling that into her since the trio had left the cabin and made their way to the Everfree forest. Dash's wings were strong enough to carry her now, though she wasn't up to attempting any aerobatics yet. Her injured legs were holding up well, and though she was still tiring a lot faster than she liked her stamina had improved enough that she could walk for a few hours without taking any breaks. It had still been slow going to reach the Everstorm, but now that they were here she realized that she had needed all the healing she could get to tackle this monster.

"Don't get more than five feet away from her, no matter what you see or hear," Astrid warned. "The Everstorm likes to trick you, to separate groups and make ponies walk off of cliffs or into a vortex. It can make you see things that aren't there, hear people you know calling for you. You can't trust any of your senses. Distance, size, everything you take for granted in navigating the world are skewed. Fall's magic holds most of that at bay, but you can still hear things, and sometimes see things."

Dash swallowed hard. "I gotcha. No running off." She stared at the menacing wall of storm. "How many times have you gone through?"

"This'll be ten," Astrid replied.

"And ponies do this all the time, right?"

"Yeah. Some ponies do. And a lot of them never make it out the other side," Astrid looked down at Rainbow Dash. "You're shaking a bit there, Dash. Don't tell me that you, the 'awesomest' pony in Equestria is afraid?"

It was obviously a ploy to provoke her ego into steeling her resolve, and let it never be said that Rainbow Dash's ego wasn't up for a challenge. Dash stilled her shivers and narrowed her eyes. "Me? Frightened? Ha! It's just a big storm, and there's no storm in the world in any time that can get the better of Rainbow Dash!"

"That's the spirit," Astrid smiled. "How are we doin' Fall?"

"Done," Star Fall said, stepping up to the two of them. She had several rolled up spellsheets sticking out of her saddlebags, in easy reach. She looked worriedly at the storm. "We're going to have to make good time. I calculated how long we have with the spells available, and unless we pick up our usual pace by twenty percent we won't have enough to completely exit the Everstorm."

"We can't do this at a run, Fall," Astrid said. "That'll get us killed real quick."

"I know," Star Fall said. "What it means is that I've had to re-plan the route. We're going to have to skim close to the center."

"How close?"

"I want to cut through the eye," Star Fall said.

Astrid stared hard at the white pegasus. Dash looked between them, from the worried and sheepish look of Star Fall to the fearful and nigh-furious glare of Astrid. "What's so bad about that?" she asked.

"The Everstorm has an eye, like a hurricane," Star Fall explained. "It's not large, and it doesn't move, but it's a calm spot."

"Calm my furry tail!" Astrid snapped. "That's where it's the worst. Those who go through the eye come out mad!"

"Mad?" Dash asked.

"Not always!" Star Fall said. "And not necessarily. It's the concentration of magic in the Everstorm's eye that causes the problems. It's denser than anywhere else on the planet, a thousand times what it was even pre-Schism. I've got a dampening spell ready, it should protect us for long enough to cross."

"A dampening spell? Fighting super-concentrated magic with more magic? How likely is that to work?" Astrid screeched.

"It will work!" Star Fall insisted. "The dampening spell is designed to negate magic. I know it won't do that in there, but I've calibrated it to be strong enough that while we'll still get a lot of magic leakage, it won't be enough to make us sick. Look, this is the only way! If we don't cut through the eye we will run out of protection before we reach the other side."

Astrid just shook her head. "This is nuts, Fall. We can't do this."

"We have to," Star Fall reiterated.

"Hey, guys," Dash said, catching both of their attentions. "If Star says this is the only way, I'm kinda going to believe her. I mean, who's the egghead here, her or us?"

Astrid sighed. "You're right. Fine. But this plan freaks me out."

"What?" Dash said, nudging the Griffin. "Is big, bad Astrid afraid of a little storm?"

"This Storm? Yes." Astrid said. "Damn right I'm afraid."

"We can't waste any more time," Star Fall said, drawing out one of the spellsheets and laying it on the ground. She put her hoof just above the paper and the designs on it suddenly flared to crimson life. The active spellsheet lifted into the air, hovering in front of Star Fall, magical sigils crawling across its surface in a disturbing spider-walk of ink and light.

"Whoa, freaky," Dash said, watching with wide eyes.

"Stay close," Star Fall warned, then walked to the storm. Dash and Astrid didn't need to be told twice.

***

Calumn couldn't believe how hard the wind hit him the moment he crossed the cloud barrier. He lurched to the side, hooves scrabbling for traction on the ground. Only the rope that connected him to Blaze kept him from being thrown. Blaze kept up a steady pace, forcing Calumn to follow in a blind, stumbling rush. Lightning flashed through the clouds, but all it illuminated were more clouds, making it impossible to even see as far as the end of the rope that tied him to Blaze.

The wind shrieked in his ears, the sound almost forming words at the edge of his perception. He saw shapes in the clouds, enormous faces, gaping maws. A huge dragon's claw swung towards him, and he tried to recoil, only to be pulled along by Blaze's implacable step.

Suddenly the wind and the clouds receded and he was able to see Blaze ahead of him. Blaze stopped and looked back, giving Calumn a lopsided smile. "There we go," he said.

"What? Are we through?" Calumn gasped. He had no idea how long they'd been walking, but his legs shook as if he'd run a marathon.

"Through? Nope. Not even close. We've just convinced the Storm we won't be scared off by a little shoving and screaming," Blaze said. "Now comes the hard part."

"That was the easy part?"

"Well, yeah. If it was just a little bad weather, the Everstorm wouldn't be much of a barrier between the sunlands and the nightlands, now would it? We'd all just wear ponchos and cross whenever we liked."

"What... what happens now?" Calumn asked.

Blaze shrugged. "No idea! That's the fun of it, it's a new adventure every time you cross!"

"How do you know how to cross it, then?"

"The Storm has habits," Blaze explained. "You never know what's going to be where, but if you know the signs you can tell when you're coming up on it. Every now and then the Storm does something new, and then it's a bit of trial-and-error until someone gets it right and survives long enough to share the news."

"If it all moves around, then there are no landmarks, right? How do you even navigate in this?"

"Oh, that's my Special Talent. I find paths. I may take a twisty-turny route, but I'm always on the right path to where I want to go. Most of us guides have something to help us, and a big secret of the business is to find the eye and then use it to orient yourself."

"The eye? That's a bad place to be, right? I heard that somewhere."

"Bad place to be, but it's the only stable landmark in the entire Storm. Guides never go in, but you can see it from a ways away. Why do you think this is the only place in the whole wide Everstorm where you can get passage through? The eye makes it possible. We'll be heading towards it now, then we'll swing around it and head out the other side of the Storm."

"Sounds good," Calumn said, getting his breath back. "Nice of the Everstorm to give us a breather like this."

"Oh, it's not," Blaze said, grinning. "I've just been distracting you so you don't look around too much. By the way, whatever you do? Don't turn around."

Calumn wisely accepted that advice and began to follow Blaze into the depths of the Storm. They walked in silence for a while, then the quality of their hoofsteps changed, dirt giving way to a more solid crunching sound. Calumn looked down, and at first he thought he was stepping on fallen branches. Then he noticed the particular shapes and colors of what he had mistaken for twigs and branches. Bones. He was walking on a field of bones.

"Is this real?" he asked.

Blaze looked at him. "How important is it for you to know?"

Calumn considered that before shaking his head. "Not really."

"Then this is the fakeiest fake that has ever been faked."

"Good to know," Calumn said.

It was a while later, he had no idea how long, but they were still walking on bones, that he spotted the shapes moving in the swirling mists. He dismissed them at first, remembering the warnings about not trusting what he saw. When the became more distinct he found he was having a real hard time sticking to that advice. They were skulls. Pony, Griffin, Dog, he even thought he spotted a Changeling skull, empty eye sockets staring back at him.

"Get down!" Blaze shouted, and Calumn wasted no time in dropping to the bone-strewn ground. He looked up as Blaze bucked a floating unicorn skull that had to have been right behind Calumn's head. The skull shattered into a flurry of ashes that scattered in the wind.

"Okay, so those things are real," Calumn said, climbing to his hooves.

"Sorta," Blaze said, giving a wary eye to the many skulls that were floating around them, half hidden by the Storm's mist. "They're not all real. Some of them are, and they'll bite you pretty bad if you don't watch out for them. They're not usually a big problem. What you've really got to watch out for is..."

"Help!" The cry was faint, but close.

Blaze shuddered. "Yeah, that."

"Help me!" the plea came again.

Calumn felt a chill settle into his heart. He knew that voice. "Mom?"

"Please! Please help me!"

What was Strongheart's mother doing here? Had she heard about his 'desertion' and then run off to try to find him on the other side of the Everstorm? It would be just like her, unable to live without her son, not thinking through the consequences. She had come after him, and now she was trapped in the Storm. Calumn twisted about, trying to identify the source of the cries. "Mom!" he shouted. "Mom I'm here! Where are you!"

"No, come on Strongheart, remember where you are!" Blaze said, putting a hoof on Calumn's shoulder.

"My mom's out there!" he said, breathing hard and shrugging the hoof away. "We've got to go get her!"

"Calumn! Calumn I'm here, I need help!" His mother cried out. He knew where she was now. He could almost make her out, faint in the mists. He bounded towards her, brought up short by the rope tying him to Blaze. He turned on the earth pony, snarling, but his anger died when he saw the expression on the green pony's face. He was afraid, and desperately saying something over and over.

"Illusion! It's in your head, Strongheart! It's only in your head!" Blaze said, his words reaching Calumn in a rush.

"Strongheart," Calumn said, forcing himself to calm. The cries had called him Calumn. While Strongheart's mother knew, in a distant and locked away part of her mind, that he was a Changeling, she would never call him by his true name. "I believed it," he said. "I knew it had to be an illusion, but I still believed it."

Blaze let out a heavy breath. "Yeah. The Storm gets into your head. Makes you think all sorts of things."

"You... you heard something too."

Blaze nodded. "We all have things we care about. People we'd do anything to save. Some of the things you see in the Storm, you won't just believe them, you'll want to believe them. You did real well being able to shake it off that quickly your first time. There's a trick to that, makes it easier to shrug off. Not something for a pony who just wants to make the trip twice, though."

"It's alright," Calumn said. "I'm familiar with illusions, and with wanting to believe. I won't let it get me again."

"Don't make too many promises," Blaze said. "Come on, the sooner we get out of the bonefields, the quicker we get to the crazy stuff."

They walked for another interminable length of time, kicking a few of the disembodied skulls that got to close, ignoring any cries. The illusory sounds weren't always cries for help. Calumn heard the roar of a dragon, the screams of an infant, the buzzing of a Changeling in major distress, a great groaning noise that made it feel as if the earth were coming apart, and most disturbingly the sound of hoofsteps following them. He was beginning to think frightening sounds were all that they'd encounter when Blaze stopped so suddenly Calumn ran into the back of him.

"Oh, this ain't good," Blaze quipped, staring up. Calumn followed his gaze and quailed. An enormous beast stood before them, like some gargantuan prehistoric bear rearing over a hundred meters into the air. It sported two impossibly large teeth that hung from its upper jaw, each the height of a two story building, and while the rest of its teeth were nowhere near the same size, they were all wickedly sharp. Its claws were longer than a bus, and attached to that immense body they were probably strong enough to rip a mountain to shreds. It looked almost translucent, its deep purple fur sparkled and glinted as if it were a window to a cosmos of stars. This was a creature out of folklore and fairytale. An Ursa Major.

Someone had crucified it.

"Luna's dark majesty," Calumn breathed. "Tell me this is another illusion."

"Sorry," Blaze said. "Wish I could. I really, really do."

Calumn stared up at the ancient magical bear as it hung from impaled paws, nailed into an immense stone X so that its hind legs dangled ten meters from the ground. Its empty, sightless eyes stared down at them, mouth open in a roar that had long ago died in its throat.

"I take it this is a bad sign?" Calumn asked when he could pull his attention away from the murdered behemoth.

"Maybe," Blaze said. "I hope not. I've only encountered this thing twice before, though, and both times. Well, okay, it wasn't good. But, hey! Maybe this time we'll get lucky and it won't oh crap there it goes."

Vines had sprouted from the earth where the legs of the cross stood, winding their way with supernatural speed up the stone edifice.

"What is that?" Calumn asked quietly as he watched the vines begin to twine around the dead beast's body. He even saw shoots of the vine diving into the wounds where the beast was nailed to the cross and he could swear he saw it continuing to grow under the Ursa's skin.

"It's a warning sign," Blaze said. "Telling us that we're not alone in the Storm, and that someone is being a naughty little scamp and using magic to brute-force their way through, instead of sucking it up and dealing with it like a nice little mortal."

"What?"

"Come on, a strong enough unicorn with a Barrier or Magic Talent can probably waltz through most of what the Everstorm throws at them. It sucks, and is totally unfair to us hornless ones, but there you have it. So the Storm responds by bringing out the big guns. Hey, it evens it out a bit, but, you know, everyone else who's crossing the Storm at the same time gets hit with the anti-magic stick too. Which sometimes involves enormous zombie bears."

"Oh great, and we're standing around talking about it while it's coming to life."

"Well, I find exposition is really great in these situations, I mean it prevents us from having to use precious oxygen explaining things while the big zombie bear is on our asses, which is a good thing. Also, there's the bladder-related purposes."

"Bladder related purposes?"

"Yeah, have you ever tried to pee yourself while running at a full gallop? Mess-y, let me tell you. I always find it's best to let go before going on a fear-fuelled mad dash, and exposition provides a great distraction."

"Wait, you?"

"Yup! Done now, lets go!" Blaze took off, and Calumn had no choice but to follow. Behind them came the sound of stone shattering and something impossibly large hitting the ground, creating a minor earthquake that nearly made them lose their footing.

Calumn looked behind them, and only held on to his water by the severest effort of will. "Damn it! Give me a chance next time too, will you!"

Blaze laughed as they ran into the deep mists. "Will do buddy, will do!"

***

"This is really, really bizarre," Rainbow Dash said, looking up at the ground. They were walking on what felt like glass, turned upside down and at an angle to the world and high up in the air. "And this if for real? Not some crazy illusion?"

"Nope," Astrid said. "This part's legit."

"Huh," Dash said, then shrugged. She'd seen worse. When Discord had twisted the hedge maze it'd taken on weirder shapes than this.

"We're nearly at the eye," Star Fall said. "We should transition back to standard alignment before then, but watch out, it'll come up suddenly."

A few steps farther and they were indeed on solid ground once more, and Dash could make out a thinning in the clouds ahead. "I think I see it," she said.

Astrid squinted. "If you do, your eyes are better than mine. All I see are more clouds."

As they got closer, it became more apparant to Dash that the clouds were really thinning ahead, revealing a night sky, and something else. "Is that a city?"

Star Fall looked at Dash. "You really can see that well, can't you? Yes, the eye of the Everstorm is over a city. They say it's been perfectly preserved by the magic at the eye, that nothing has changed in over eight hundred years."

"It looks ruined," Dash said, squinting to catch more details as the clouds began to give way.

"It was between the two armies that fought here," Star Fall said, finally able to see through the clouds herself. "The city got hit hard, and then even harder when Nightmare Umbra's power was sealed. It's supposed to have been frozen in time after that, untouched by the elements, unaltered by the hooves of any pony. Some legends say that the Shadowed Alicorn makes her lair in that city, forever in the midst of her power, unable to retake it."

Eventually they stood on the edge of the eye, the clouds drifting around them, the city laid out in front of them. It took up most of the eye, tall buildings, meandering streets. It looked like Fillydelphia or Manehattan to Dash. A young metropolis, but cut down before it could become truly great.

Star Fall pulled out another spellsheet, charging it and bringing it up in front of them. Dash went cold as the spell took hold. It made her feel weak and heavy, every bone and joint reminding her that she'd done a major faceplant a week ago. Fatigue crashed down on her and all she wanted to do was crawl onto a cloud and get some sleep. Star Fall herself swayed drunkenly before Astrid steadied her. "I'm okay," she said. "Dampening spell's just making me feel it is all."

"Well, let's get this done," Astrid sighed, and they stepped fully into the eye.

Immediately Dash felt better. She felt better than better. She felt great! She felt like she could do a dozen Sonic Rainbooms in a row! Hay, why stop at a dozen? She felt so good she could do a hundred! Put on an airshow for the whole planet! Go down in the history books! Make the Wonderbolts for sure! Why, if she went fast enough around the planet she could maybe start spinning it backwards and reverse time that way! Yeah! That totally made sense!

"Guys," she said. "I'm feelin' kinda weird right now."

Astrid was clutching at her head. "Is that thing working, Fall?" she groaned.

Star Fall was shaking. "Yes. Yes it's working. We're not going insane from magic overload. We're just feeling like crap. That's good."

"This was a great plan, Fall," Astrid groused. "If I upchuck I'm aiming for you."

"Let's just get moving," Star Fall said, and began trotting forward, both of her companions sticking to her sides.

Dash wasn't feeling bad, and as long as she didn't give in to the impulse to try circumnavigating the globe in ten seconds flat she was fine. So while the other two stumbled along she took in the sights of this ruined city.

Buildings were smashed everywhere, scorch marks from spell blasts or explosives evident on every piece of broken masonry or charred wood. She could still make out some of the signs for shops or streets. They weren't quite Equestrian, but they were close enough that it definitely wasn't Solar. They went down one of the main avenues of the city, directed by Star's magic. The buildings looked more intact towards the center of the city, and Dash could make out a large structure with a clock tower that had to be city hall. They cut down another street before they could get closer.

"We're getting close to the center," Star Fall said, sweat dripping from her coat. "We're not going straight through, but cutting it kinda close. Don't stop for anything, okay?"

Astrid didn't reply, too focused about putting one foot in front of the other, and Dash just nodded. They plodded on, Dash looking as much as she dared for another glimpse of that town hall. She wanted to know what the name of this place was. They crossed another major avenue, and she looked towards the center of town. Then she stumbled and nearly fell. It wasn't the city hall, but she knew where this was now.

There, in an open circle that the street split around, was a clearing, like a small park. In the park was a pedestal with a statue, obviously a memorial of some kind. Behind the statue was a tree. Not an ordinary tree, but a tree that had been carved into a building, still alive. A tree she knew very well. The Golden Oak Library.

This was Ponyville.

"Star," she said, bringing the other pony up short. "We have to take a closer look at that," she pointed at the house tree.

"Dash, we can't spare any time to sightsee."

"No, Star, you don't understand. This is Ponyville! This city, it's my home! And that's where my friend Twilight Sparkle lived! Right there!"

Star Fall looked at the library, her eyes going wide. There was blood in her irises. "That's her memorial, that's her statue," she breathed.

Dash took a longer look at the statue, and he found it was true. The statue was a perfect replica of Twilight in stone. She was looking up, a pile of books under one hoof, smiling in that absentminded way she did when she was lost in her thoughts. The Element of Magic rested on her head, gleaming in the starlight.

"Fall! I don't care how bad your nerd-crush on this dead unicorn is, we can't stop!" Astrid said, tears actually falling from her eyes at the pain she was in.

Star Fall had to visibly force herself to look away from the statue. "No we can't. Dash, I'm sorry, we have to go, please!"

Dash nodded, reluctantly. "I can come back," she said. "We can figure out a way to come back."

"Maybe, sure," Star Fall said, and started walking again.

They walked in silence the rest of the way out of the eye. Dash couldn't help but glance back every few steps. Hoping to catch another glimpse of that tree, and of home.

***

"I think we lost him," Calumn gasped out as he and Blaze stood panting.

"Don't be so sure," Blaze said, grinning. "Those giant zombie bears are sneaky bastards. There could be one behind every shrub or bush we pass!"

Calumn snickered, holding a stitch in his side. "When that chasm opened up in front of us I thought we were screwed."

Blaze grinned. "Yeah, you were all like 'it's impossible, we're going to die!'"

"Then you shout 'gravity's for suckers' and just run across!" Calumn shook with wheezing laughter. "How did you know it was an illusion anyway?"

Blaze shrugged. "Didn't. But when you've got a rampaging magic-fuelled undead Ursa on one side and the opportunity to imitate a lawn dart on the other, well, I'd go for lawn darts every time."

Calumn spent the next minute catching his breath before looking around. "So, how lost are we now?"

"Not very," Blaze said. "You didn't notice, but we skimmed the eye during our run there. I think it's why the Ursa's not on our asses anymore. It won't get too close to that place."

"So we're on our way out?"

Blaze nodded. "Yup. Not too much farther now."

"Well, the sooner the better, right? And please don't tell me it gets worse from here."

"After that chase? I don't want to know what worse would be like."

Calumn nodded in agreement. The quality of the storm had changed. They had left the field of bones far behind, and were now walking through the skeletal remains of trees. The forest had died long ago, when the Everstorm had cut off the sunlight, but the magic of the Storm had kept the trees from falling and rotting. Now they stretched out bare branches that glowed with strange lights and dripped with a silvery liquid that evaporated before it could touch the ground. Calumn didn't need to be told not to let any of that liquid touch him.

They plodded through the trees, exhausted from their escape, but wary of the constant dangers of the Everstorm. Blaze kept taking turns, sometimes seeming to double back on himself. Calumn followed closely, and not just because they were tied together. The Everstorm had already proven that it could get into his head, make him see things that weren't there and think things he didn't want to. He knew when to let the experts have full control, and Blaze was definitely the expert here.

He was still hearing things, which wasn't good. He kept hearing the hoofsteps behind them, following, and the intermittent cries for help just out of sight. During the escape from the Ursa he'd even seen things. Strongheart's mother, Director Straff, even some of his hive-mates that he hadn't thought about in years. It was getting to the point where he couldn't trust anything he wasn't actually touching.

Which was why he ignored the voices when he first heard them. There were three of them, distinct and not from someone he had ever heard before. They were having some kind of an argument. Calumn shook his head. "Well, at least they aren't crying for help," he muttered.

Blaze stopped and looked at him, frowning. "Wait, you're hearing that too?"

Calumn nodded. "Yes. I'm hearing three people arguing about something."

"People you know?"

"No. No one I recognize."

Blaze turned towards the sound. "We should go check it out."

Calumn frowned at him. "I thought you said we should ignore this stuff."

"Yeah, but I'm hearing what you are, and it's no one I know either. That's not what the Storm usually does. These are probably other travellers, like us. They might not know that there's a unicorn pushing their way through. They could be in danger!"

Calumn paused, then nodded. The Storm was bad enough on its own. He wouldn't want to let others walk into the claws of that Ursa if he could have prevented it. "Let's go warn them."

They walked closer, careful of traps or tricks, and the voices became more distinct. They were speaking Solar, which Calumn was fully fluent in, and he listened carefully as they approached.

"...Can't just ignore that! It was Ponyville!" One voice said. This voice was female, but rough with an almost adolescent edge to it. He'd heard tones like that before, and mentally began constructing an image of the voice's owner as a tomboyish mare.

"I'm not ignoring it, Dash, I just don't think there's any way to go back soon. It nearly killed us to go through, and the magic was corroding the dampening spell faster than I had anticipated. We'd need to do a lot of study before we could even think of going back in there," said a second voice, and Calumn mentally assigned the name 'Dash' to the first voice. This one was also female, and refined, educated, but not accented like the Kingdom's nobility would be. A commoner who managed to get into a good school, then.

"Look, I get that you're worried, but we can just get stronger stuff, right? Bigger dampening spells, or whatever?" Dash said.

"I don't know if there are any stronger dampening spells," the second voice said. The talk of dampening spells made Calumn think that this might be the unicorn Blaze was talking about, which meant that she'd need a talking to about endangering others. "Professor Shine might know, but she doesn't like me crossing the Everstorm anyway, there's no way she'd allow an expedition into the eye."

Calumn recognized that name. Professor Twinkle Shine was the strongest Magic Talent in the Solar Kingdom, and the RIA had devoted a lot of time and effort to discovering as much about her as possible. She was the personal advisor to the Royalty, a lecturer at the capitol's university, head of a dozen research efforts and on the cutting edge of magical knowledge and practice. The fact that this mare talked so casually about her indicated a close relationship.

"I just, argh!" Dash snarled. "It was so close, Star! Just a few hundred feet away! You say all the records are missing, but I bet they still exist in there. We can find out the truth about what happened! We can figure out why I'm here! Don't you want to know what really happened eight hundred years ago?"

"Of course I do!" the second voice, Star, replied. "Of course I want to know, but that place is dangerous! We could have died there. We would have if we'd spent any longer than we did. We can't go back until we know how to make it safe. That will take time, and I can't even guess how long."

"She's right, Dash," a third voice said, and Calumn's steps faltered. That voice, strong, clear, with the pitch and piercing tone that only one species had, belonged to a Griffin. This was more serious than he'd imagined. If they were travelling with a Griffin and personally acquainted with Twinkle Shine, they were connected directly to the Crown.

They crested a small hill, and he got his first look at the owners of those voices. A pair of Pegasi and a Griffin. The lack of a unicorn confused him for a moment, even though there was an obviously magical sheet of paper floating in front of them, but that confusion was shoved aside when he focused on the blue pegasus. Rainbow mane, cloud and lightning bolt Glyph. This was his target.

The mares stopped arguing when they saw the two stallions. "Who are these guys?" Dash asked. The Griffin stepped protectively in front of the white pegasus, wings flaring slightly.

Blaze grinned and started trotting down the hill, brought up short as Calumn refused to move with him. "Hey, people!" Blaze said in very good Solar. "We're just passing through the Storm, just like you, and, well, there's a bit of a problem."

"Yeah, what kind?" the Griffin asked, eyeing the green pony imperiously.

"Some unicorn's trying to magic their way through the Storm, it's gotten the place all angry and violent," Blaze said.

"We'll keep an eye out," the Griffin said.

"Hey, guys, what's the problem?" Dash asked, confused by the Griffin's standoffishness.

"The problem is I don't like strange ponies coming up to me in the middle of the Everstorm," the Griffin growled.

"Okay, well, I'm Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze, and this is Strongheart. See, now we're not strangers, we're acquaintances!" Blaze said.

Calumn considered his options. He could try to infiltrate this group, to go with them, but his orders were for Dash specifically. If he managed to get her now, then his mission would be done and he could return to Strongheart's mother before she learned of his 'desertion'. On the other hoof, it was risky. He had a lot of stored energy, but he'd need to control everyone here, which would be draining, and if he wasn't careful it risked sending the Griffin into a rage.

"I'm Rainbow Dash," Dash said.

"Dash, don't give him our names," the Griffin warned. "We don't know anything about these ponies."

His orders were to secure the information first, his safety second and Dash third. That would point to infiltration over acquisition, but the Director had also said to be bold, that they didn't have a lot of time, and that meant acting now. He couldn't afford to be indecisive, the suspicion from the Griffin was shrinking his opportunities to infiltrate, and Blaze was probably only making her more aggressive.

"Not a problem," Blaze said cheerfully. "You can be just familiar faces then. Like people I see at the mall when I shop for cardboard boxes to build forts out of. That's a kind of acquaintance, except you don't know their name, you just nod to them in total silence as you pass by. Unless you're having a good day, then you smile and they smile back. Or punch you in the mouth."

Calumn made his decision and leapt on the confusion Blaze's inane comment caused, his eyes flaring green as he directed his magic into the minds of all the ponies and the Griffin. It sank in, hooking into their psyches and calming emotions, opening them to whatever suggestion he wished to implant. Except for the white pegasus, Star, who shook her head and shattered his mental link with an exertion of will that made his eyes go wide.

"What are you?" Star asked in confusion, staring at Calumn. "Changeling!" she cried.

The Griffin snapped out of his control, eyes narrowing and wings flaring wide as she shrieked a battle cry to the storm-swirled skies. Calumn dropped his mind-magic, focusing on the Griffin. He had to take her out before she reached him or he was dead. A ghost-image of his crooked horn appeared as he charged as much power as he dared into it, ready to unleash a burst of power that would burn a hole through her body.

Blaze turned, leaping at him. "No! Don't!" he cried out, but too late.

A bolt of magenta lightning dropped from the sky, grounding into Calumn's charged horn. His Strongheart disguise fell away as the power backwashed into him, burning through his limbs, setting his lungs on fire and disintegrating the rope that bound him to Blaze. He couldn't scream, but he wanted to. He dropped to the ground, staring out at what was happening but unable to move in the slightest. He wasn't dead, but every last ounce of power had been stripped from him, torn out by the magic of the Everstorm. He wouldn't last more than a day like this.

More blasts of lightning in every color started to fall around them. The Griffin screeched in anger, but backed off, joining the two Pegasi as they hurried off into the Storm, chased by lightning and thunder. He watched them go, hoping that they would make it out of the Everstorm.

A mouth clamped down on one of his legs and began to drag him. He couldn't turn his head to see, but he knew that Blaze was pulling him out of the lightning blasts. It was a foolish thing to do. He should have just gone and saved himself. Now he was putting himself in danger for someone who had lied to him, used him. He tried to tell Blaze to leave him and go, but all he got out was a strangled cough.

"Hey! You're still kicking," Blaze said, his voice muffled by the leg he had in his mouth. "You Changelings must be pretty tough."

More magical lightning fell around them, blasting the glowing trees and throwing up dirt. Blaze threw himself over Calumn, shielding him from the debris. The Changeling found himself hacking up a choked, coughing laughter at the sheer absurdity of it. He was even feeling a trickle of emotion from the green pony. Not enough to save him, and not love, but friendship and caring all the same. He'd only met this pony hours before, and already he felt strongly enough to risk himself to save Calumn.

"Is that a laugh?" Blaze asked. "Whew! I thought I was just stating the obvious, but if I'm making jokes I don't even know I'm making, then everything's gotta be lookin' up!"

A booted foot slammed into Blaze, throwing him off Calumn. The Changeling managed to turn his head to see what had happened, and saw Blaze lying on his side, with Silas stalking towards him. The Diamond Dog looked a little worse for wear, blood matted the fur on one side of his face and his coat was ripped, showing hastily bandaged slashes across his arms and torso. He wore heavy boots studded with metal that sounded like hooves on the ground as he walked.

"Drunkard pony thought he could steal from Silas and get away with it," the Dog snarled. "Drunkard pony sees that he is wrong, yes?"

"I know we call it poaching, but it's technically not theft to take another guide's client," Blaze said, trying to get up.

Silas kicked him in the side, knocking Blaze back to the ground. "I don't care about your stupid word games!" he snapped, kicking the downed pony again. "You cost Silas, and you will pay for that."

"Coin or credit?" Blaze asked, and Silas kicked him again, then pulled out a long, wickedly sharp knife. "Well, okay, but I gotta warn you all I carry is Republican Express," Blaze wheezed, coughing up a mouthful of blood. Lightning still flashed through the air, but it had moved off, punctuating their banter with bursts of thunder.

"Drunkard pony thinks he is funny," Silas rasped. He looked over at Calumn's still form. "Maybe drunkard pony did Silas a favor. The Changeling would have made Silas take him through the Storm and not paid at all."

"Hey, yeah! I bet it makes up for the whole 'stole your client' thing," Blaze offered, giving the Dog a bloody grin.

Silas shook his head, smiling back in a way that was absolutely not friendly. "Insults are insults, pony. I have my pride to consider. But instead of making it slow, I am going to just slit your throat. It will be quick. Yes."

"That's really nice of you," Blaze said. "But have you considered, maybe, not slitting my throat? How about just robbing us and leaving us for dead? That always works out!"

"You were already making a bad name for me, drunkard pony. I can't lose more clients because of the stories you tell. Now lie still, pony," Silas kicked Blaze several more times, until his attempts to get away grew weak. "It will feel cold and then it won't feel at all," he knelt on Blaze's struggling form, bringing the knife up.

Calumn threw himself at the Diamond Dog. He was weak, too weak to fight, and every motion was agony, but he just couldn't let Blaze die. It was with a shock that he realized he was feeling friendship too. Somehow, in only a few hours, Blaze had become his friend, a friend he was willing to sacrifice himself to protect. It filled him with the strength to push away the pain and the weakness, to stand up and do something. It was like magic.

He hit Silas and the two rolled onto the ground, entangled. Calumn didn't have the strength to do much more, but he knew at least one way to protect Blaze. He took the power that Blaze's friendship had given him and charged it into his horn, then touched that horn to Silas's snout. The Dog's eyes went wide and Calumn gave him a fanged grin.

The bolt of blue lightning slammed into both of them, throwing Calumn through the air to crash on his side in the dirt. He couldn't hear, couldn't see, couldn't think for a long time. Then his senses started coming back to him, and he wondered at the fact that he was still alive. And he was moving. He blinked and saw Blaze's grinning, bloody face as the pony held the end of a rope in his teeth, the rest of it wrapped around Calumn.

Blaze set down the rope. "Well, look whose back among us!" he said. "That was super-duper cool what you did back there. I mean, wow! I was going to make a comment about 'hot dogs', but, honestly? I'm really not that hungry."

Calumn jerked as a wheezing laugh forced its way out of him. "Save...self," he managed to choke out.

"What?" Blaze said, turning his head and perking up an ear. "I can't hear that over the sound of how cool you are!"

"Save... yourself," Calumn said. "Leave me...here."

"Huh, that sounds like self-sacrifice talk to me," Blaze said. "I thought Changelings didn't do self-sacrifice. Or last-minute heroics. Or laugh at dumb jokes. Or, well, a lot of things that I'm seeing from you right now."

Calumn managed to shake his head. "Doesn't... matter. I'm... tapped out. Completely. No love. Won't make it."

Blaze frowned at that. "That's not good. We're right at the Everstorm border now. Just half an hour and then we'll be through. Can you make it that far?"

Calumn shook his head. "No... point. Won't live... few hours... at most."

"Aw, come on, I love you, man!" Blaze said, nuzzling Calumn.

"Not... same," Calumn said, though it had felt good. "Friendship... not same. Not yet. Gives me... time. But not enough."

Blaze stared at him, determination shining in his eyes. "But if you had love, you could make it?" Calumn nodded. "Can you still do that transformation thing?"

"Yes," Calumn said. "But I need ... model. Time to... copy... personality. Can't just do it to anyone."

"Don't worry about that," Blaze said, awkwardly picking Calumn up and setting him across his back. He tied the rope around himself, securing the Changeling tightly. "Just stay with me until we're clear of the Storm, alright? Can you do that?" Calumn could only nod, and Blaze started running.

Calumn lost all sense of time and place after that, falling into a half-conscious state where he was barely aware of them hitting the cloud-wall of the Everstorm. The battering winds, the shrieking sounds, the illusory beasts, all of it passed him by in a blur. He could hear his heartbeat, and Blaze's. His was growing weaker, slowing down. It wouldn't be long before it stopped altogether.

He hit the ground, and was barely aware of it. A hoof slapped at his face, drawing his focus outward once more. Blaze was shouting at him, holding up a picture, a photo. He focused on the green pony.

"Come on, Strongheart! You've got to keep it together! Now look at this picture! Use it as a model! Come on, buddy, I know you can do this!" Blaze was frantic, shaking Calumn and shoving the picture in his face. The Changeling just wanted to close his eyes and let death take him. He was so weak, so tired. But Blaze was insistent, so he looked at the picture. A pretty purple earth pony filly smiled at the camera, showing off her flank and the Talent Glyph that proclaimed her ability at making others laugh. With a grunt of effort and a burst of green fire he internalized the model and shifted form.

Blaze looked at him, then closed his eyes for a long moment, breathing heavily. Finally, he opened his yellow eyes again, and there were tears glistening in them. He smiled down at Calumn, not a manic grin, but a tender, warm smile. "Holly," he said, and love flowed into Calumn, making him gasp. "Hey, now. Take it easy," Blaze said, and lay down next to Calumn, curling up around his now smaller form. "You've got to rest, okay?"

"Blaze..." Calumn began, but Blaze silenced the Changeling with a hoof.

"Shhh. No talking, alright? Just rest. Get better. I'll be here. As long as it takes. I'll be here," he hugged Calumn close, nuzzling softly. Calumn relaxed into him, feeling the love begin its work within him. He didn't feel right with this, but it was saving his life, and he figured he could talk it out with Blaze later. For now he just closed his eyes, basking in the warm love, and slept.

Comments

[Pilate]

It was with a shock that he realized he was feeling friendship too. Somehow, in only a few hours, Blaze had become his friend, a friend he was willing to sacrifice himself to protect. It filled him with the strength to push away the pain and the weakness, to stand up and do something. It was like magic.

What you did there, I see it.

Awesome chapter! Great world-building and now I demand you provide more as soon as possible. Please?

As for a little analysis: I figure we're leading up to getting another 5 elements of harmony, perhaps, as a way to either fix the storm or send Dash home, I'm hoping she gets home, anyway. That, or Dash gets all the ponies to calm themselves and start with the friendship stuff again (and then she goes home... right?). Meantime, I am loving the journey.

[coandco]

> Blaze shrugged. "Didn't. But when you've got a rampaging magic-fuelled undead Ursa on one side and the opportunity to imitate a lawn dart on the other, well, I'd go for lawn darts every time."

Love the phrasing here.

> Calumn considered his options. He could try to infiltrate this group, to go with them, but his orders were for Dash specifically.

Hmm. Given that this is the first time Calumn has had a name to put to the description of his quarry, shouldn't he be a bit less comfortable referring to her as such? Maybe something like: 'but his orders were for this "Dash" specifically.'

> Blaze set down the rope. "Well, look whose back among us!"

"Whose" should be "who's", since expanded the sentence would read "Well, look who is back among us!"

> "Holly," he said, and love flowed into Calumn, making him gasp.

...is it just me, or does this sound vaguely dirty? I suppose I should get my mind out of the gutter.

[musicluvr1974]

A stroke of genius, there... Make the guy who eats love like we eat food look like someone you love, then...!!

[AdobE]

> But, hey! Maybe this time we'll get lucky and it won't oh crap there it goes.

I died.

[Draco Dei]

I wonder if Holly is dead? I could see it either way.

[Csquared08]

All this glorious exposition. I love every second of it. This is absolutely fantastic.

[FloydienSlip]

The scene in the bar with Blaze gave off a very strong Catch-22 vibe, which is a very good thing. Onwards!

[Lurks-no-More]

The trip through the Everstorm gives me very strong "Roadside Picnic" / "Stalker" (as in the Strugatski SF novel) vibes. This is a really cool story so far!

[iloveportalz0r]

>a strong enough unicorn with a Barrier or Magic Talent
There are two spaces between "a" and "Barrier"

>Well, look whose back among us!
*who's

[Blank!]

So many feels...

25.media.tumblr.com/1c63b3ba7349f2a9f2572ed3120e209a/tumblr_mmzck33BLJ1qawv0yo1_500.gif

[djthomp]

I like this Blaze character as well. That whole running joke about robbery and extortion was hilarious.

Hmn, so massive, unmoving, magical hurricane that's powered by the essence of an 800 year old or more Alicorn plus the extracted magic of the entire planet? Dang.

A crucified Ursa Major. Holy shit. And it's about to rise up as a zombie.

The city in the Eye is totally going to be Ponyville, isn't it.

This was Ponyville.

Hah, knew it. Chances of crazy Twilight Umbra rising...

And now magic magenta lightning? I'm starting to think I'm not cleverly figuring it out and instead just reading what's obviously written.

I had a feeling we'd be seeing that Diamond Dog again.

[MariusIoannesP]

Quite an interesting cast of characters here.

[Sparx EmberFlame]

I like Blaze! He's odd but it's good odd, nothin' like bad odd bad odd is like...The everfree yeah that's bad odd, doesn't even taste good. Sorry, am I being odd?

[Dark_Night]

Its hard to tell if they are still in the storm or not... Ponyville at the center of the storm? Wow thats a bit of a twist in the story, curious to see where this goes... ONTO THE NEXT CHAPTER!

[Istilllikegamecubes]

Calumn made his decision and leapt on the confusion Blaze's inane comment caused,

Do you mean "insane?"
Also, great fanfic, so far!

[AppleTank]

3196828
inane is a word. Offtopic, random, non sequitor.

[Swan Song]

Dashstrid?

I ship it.

[BabySkittleMonster]

I can't help but get the feeling they're all reincarnations of the mane six. Blaze being laughter, Twinkle Shine being Twilight and so on... Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree (hah, awful pun with the whole diamond dog thing, I know) but it's what my cutie mark is telling me. Ok, I'll stop now. For real. Maybe.

[ferret]

Great story but

what happens now

Semi-appropriate, but still could have been better worded.

[Gildomar]

"Oh!" Blaze said, his eyes lighting up. "Yeah! In that case I am totally not cheap. Nope. Expensive as hell. But I can guarantee you one thing."

"What's that?"

"That when I charge you two hundred for a crossing it's not robbery," he grinned again, eyes shining. "It's extortion."

Oh, I like him; he's fun. Also, good feels with him at the end.

And why do I get the suspicion that the Storm is somehow tied to the Elements? And does your avatar look a bit like the Storm?

Side note: great characters and worldbuilding!
Liked and faved.

Too bad the season 4 finale makes this officially AU though.

[Gildomar]

Why, if she went fast enough around the planet she could maybe start spinning it backwards and reverse time that way! Yeah! That totally made sense!

You mean something like this?:

[ShadowLDrago]

2689610

Yep, normal Ursa Minors are bad, Ursa Majors are worse, crucified magically reanimated zombie Ursa Major? Way fing worse.

[Frantactic]

I feel obligated to comment that you've done a great job making the Everstorm crazy. Fantastic.

[iloveportalz0r]

>And this if for real?
*is

[Admiral Q Ponyform]

As soon as I heard about the city i knew it was Ponyville. Amazing that Golden Oaks survived all of that. Sound more and more like Nightmare Umbra is Twilight..

[Lord-Commander]

Holy shitsnacks. A crucified mother fucking Ursa Major? Sorry with language and all, but that is a horrific thing to imagine, and it also excites me.

So it comes out when someone is cheating with magic? Sounds like it's a slight reference to Trixie.

[Norad2]

Except for the white pegasus, Star, who shook her head and shattered his mental link with an exertion of will that made his eyes go wide.

"Your changeling mind tricks won't work on me, boy!"

[cheesinator]

Good job.
Can you please stop with the language though?

[Pretentious Narwhal]

"You have cost Silas, drunkard pony. I will not forget,"

Silas is inconsistent in talking about himself.

[Tokai]

So the Everstorm is exactly like a miniature Zone? Complete with absolute mindfuckery (Brain Scorcher/Psi Emissions), random anomalies that are never in the same place twice, dangerous monsters (Mutants), and a "safe" area that people rely on to navigate (Garbage)?

[Yutah123]

Why, if she went fast enough around the planet she could maybe start spinning it backwards and reverse time that way! Yeah! That totally made sense!

Rainbow Dash is Superman! Or is it Supermare?

Calumn threw himself at the Diamond Dog. He was weak, too weak to fight, and every motion was agony, but he just couldn't let Blaze die. It was with a shock that he realized he was feeling friendship too. Somehow, in only a few hours, Blaze had become his friend, a friend he was willing to sacrifice himself to protect. It filled him with the strength to push away the pain and the weakness, to stand up and do something. It was like magic.

I feel something about this changeling. Repent your extremist ways and serve both the princesses! That goes for Rainbow Dash's companions, too.

[FOXTrot2]

"Yeah, but I'm hearing what you are, and it's no one I know either. That's not what the Storm usually does. These are probably other travellers, like us. They might not know that there's a unicorn pushing their way through. They could be in danger!"

They might now - pffftHaHAHA! Oh man, when he finds out they not only KNOW you just know shits gonna go down!

Also, Zombie Ursas sound pretty cool.

Already this Changeling is making a name for himself.
Still, nice to have a little power scale now.

[FictionalNightmare]

I assume the other mane six’s graves are near the remains of their homes, but rainbow dash lived in a cloud house, so where’s her grave???

[Skittlebug]

As we shall see in this section, what I discovered fundamentally altered my view of magic, the Elements, and, sadly, reality itself.

Well, if Discord can alter reality, then his creation of them making Twilight question reality holds merit.