Turmoil Rising

by JFT

Chapter 21: The Chase Begins

She’s done it. She didn’t want it to come down to this, but there it was. Giving up her power so that the Elements of Harmony could remain united on the dangerous quest that was set before them wasn’t something she thought needed to be done.

As the crowds outside on the streets of Canterlot continued to cheer the return of the Two Sisters, they in the meantime retreated back to the entrance to the throne room, along with the rest of the Council and the other two participants. Now that the public business had been done and warnings have been given out, it was time to prepare to go forth.

“I understand this couldn’t have been easy for you, Twilight,” Celestia said as she walked down the hallway beside her.

“Not so much for me, Princess Celestia, but more for you and Princess Luna,” she explained. “You didn’t have to do this after all that you’ve done to make sure Equestria remained prosperous and safe. Not to mention your play-”

“Twilight,” the Mare of the Sun interrupted her, “I already told you, saving the world takes precedence over a theater play. The best I can do right now is to just make sure that the staff and actors in Manehatten stick to the regular schedule.”

“Yes, but what about Luna? She finally gets to enjoy some relaxing time after-“

“Twilight Sparkle, you need not speak in my place,” Mare of the Night interrupted her this time. “As much as I enjoy peace and quiet of Seaward Shoals, after what we’ve just heard from Starswirl, I don’t think I’ll have the luxury of peace of mind with the knowledge he had given us. If this Turmoil is somehow responsible for giving you and Discord nightmares, how many other ponies have been afflicted by him during my absence?”

“Am I to take that means you’ll be busy for a long time?” the Princess of Friendship asked.

“Compare to what you and your friends are about to do, it will be nothing,” she answered.

The rest of the group was already gathered, awaiting the princesses.

“Alright, here’s the plan,” Twilight addressed them. “The last train for the Crystal Empire departs in less than two hours, which gives us plenty of time to get ready. Everypony should go home and get the necessary gear.”

“Emm, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash voiced a concern, “that might be a bit difficult for some of us.”

“I still have to make a few calls to some of my waiting clients that my boutique will be closed,” Rarity added.

“I have to find somepony to look after the animal sanctuary,” Fluttershy leaned in.

“And I-“ Pinkie Pie was about to say something, but Twilight intervened.

“Okay, I get the point; I’ll shorten the travel time,” she said before quickly turning to the dragon. “Spike, go back to the room and start preparing for when I get back. I’ll return in just a moment.”

And as her right hand ran off, in a flash, everybody, including the zebra and the old sage disappeared.

“Wait!” Luna screamed, but by then it was already too late. “I wasn’t expecting she would take him as well.”

“You seem to have a lot on your mind.” Her elder sibling looked at her.

The younger steed did the same. “And you don’t?”

“Of course I do,” Celestia sighed. “To think he’s been hiding this the whole time…”

“And there are so many questions that need to be asked,” Mare of the Night finished off her sentence.

Twilight teleported over and over again, delivering each member of the council to their respective homes to give them a chance to prepare for the journey. Lastly, she stopped at her old castle where she dropped off both Zecora and Starswirl, as she had to show something to the old sage. She led him into the council room to where the Cutie Map was, to show him the set display.

“See? Just as I told you.” She pointed on the active map, revealing a dark cloud looming over the location of the Everfree Forest. “Since the Tree and the Elements were destroyed by Sombra it remained dormant, and then according to Starlight it turned on a few days ago when we faced Queen Chrysalis again.”

The sage stroke his beard. “Unusual indeed… If the source that created and operated the map is gone, then who could be operating it now?”

“I hope that’s one more thing you could figure out while we’re away, Starswirl. I’ll return and pick you both up when we’re about to depart,” the princess of friendship said, as she teleported away.

This truly was a mystery, however considering the recent revelation, the old sage began to wonder whether or not Turmoil’s re-emergence had something to do with it. But the question was how. Surely the darkness doesn’t have the power to take the place of light in its absence… could it? His attention soon wandered across the map and realized he wasn’t alone in the room, as he spotted the shaman sitting by the side of the table, noticing how intently she’s focusing on the noticeable specific area.

“Miss Zecora, right?” he finally addressed her. “Shouldn’t you be preparing yourself for the journey north?”

His attention was finally grabbed. “It’s not as though I’ve lost my way, but I’ve no garments to keep the cold at bay.”

The wizard smiled, his horn lighting up, conjuring an old brown winter coat. “You may have this. It isn’t much, but at the least, it will ward off the elements.”

The zebra picked it up; one could judge the coat was about as ancient as him, but she was in no position to be picky. “I’m grateful for your generosity, but I dare not brave the cold’s present ferocity.”

“Your kind does not take the cold well?” he inquired.

“In a land where the grass is tall, and the wind and sands swallow all, the blazing sun prevents any kind of snowfall,” she explained as she began shoving the coat into her saddlebag.

“I see,” Starswirl mused. “I’ve never been to the homeland of the zebras before. Which reminds me, I didn’t get a chance to listen to you explaining, what kind of magic is it that you used to reveal Turmoil’s location?”

She closed the top of her bag as she finally put away the garment. “You cannot command this magic, it was plucked from a different stem. You can pursue your studies or try conjuring until you’re coughing up phlegm, but the power only comes to those that are worthy to them.”

“Them? Are you referring to some sort of sentient magic? One that has a mind of its own? Curious.” But the wizard wasn’t done yet. “Does that mean you once revealed darkness like this before?”

The zebra stopped, not responding for some time. “No. It was done by another... But please, Old Sage, this conversation I’d rather smother. It’s sore to me, and quite a bother...”

Starswirl finally relented with his inquiries. “I understand, miss Zecora. The feeling’s mutual.”

The zebra glanced at the old unicorn after he said that, as he returned to trying to decipher the mystery of the map. After revealing one of Equestria’s darkest secrets, was there something else he still didn’t want to share?

They had to work fast. Even though Twilight returned with more than enough time to spare, Spike knew her thought process all too well. By the time she popped back to the castle, he was already waiting with parchment and a quill in his hand. The standard procedure followed: make a checklist of all the things to take on the journey, gather up all the necessary equipment, make a checklist to double-check everything was present, and lastly, triple-check the checklist just in case.

“…okay. That should be all, Twilight. On both our ends,” Spike sighed in relief after he checked out the last item for the third time.

“Okay, how much time do we have left before the train departs, Spike?” she inquired.

Spike checked the watch. “Ten minutes…”

“Perfect! Just enough time to gather up everypony else.” She picked up both of their backpacks and went out onto the balcony of her room. “First stop, Rainbow Dash.”

The little dragon ran to her side and in a flash, they disappeared.

FLASH!

The two teleported inside the cloudy building belonging to the wonderbolt.

“Rainbow Dash, we’re here! You all set to go?!” Twilight called out.

There was no reply.

“Rainbow Dash!” Spike yelled.

There was still no response. The two ran up the stairs and that’s when they heard a loud snoring sound coming from her bedroom. The blue pegasus lay in her bed, her mouth open with a drool, letting out a neighing noise every now and then, while one of her legs twitched.

“RAINBOW DASH!” the alicorn screamed.

She shot up from her bed almost instantly from fright, even though the look on her face showed a sign of grogginess.

“Rainbow Dash, you were supposed to get ready to go on a journey, not to bed,” the dragon quipped.

She yawned. “Sorry. I was done so quickly I figured, I might just as well have a little shut-eye while I wait. But I’m all set and ready to go.”

The Princess of Friendship noticed a pair of saddlebags sitting by the side of the bed. “Isn’t this kinda lightweight?”

“Lightweight?! I got all of the necessities stored in there!” she complained.

“What about your tent and winter gear?” Spike inquired.

An awkward silence followed, one that lasted a considerable time before the rainbow-maned pony spoke in a hesitant tone. “Wha… why would I need those?”

The two siblings looked at each other, then the elder one spoke. “You’re kidding, right?”

All she could do was give an awkward smile in response.

The alicorn frowned. “Rainbow Dash, we’re going to the Crystal Empire. We can’t discount the probability that we might end up going somewhere further north.”

“You know, where it’s cold and snowy?” the dragon added.

The blue Pegasus instantly straightened out, and shivered, as if a chill just went down her spine.

The alicorn and the dragon glanced at one another, then asked a question. “You don’t wanna go there, do you?”

“Am I not being obvious enough?!” she yelled.

“Rainbow Dash, why are you acting this way?” Twilight wondered.

“Twi, don't you get it? I still can’t fly!” she explained, climbing out of bed. “Ever since what happened in the Everfree Forest a few days ago, just thinking about going anywhere near snow and ice, gives me the chills! And to make matters worse, ever since then, I was time and again put in a position where I got “chilled” unintentionally, which only kept reminding me of that event!” She dropped to the floor, coiling her hooves around the Princess’, and made big puppy eyes, while her lower lip wobbled. “Please, promise me that we won’t go further north!”

Twilight looked at Spike, and he only crossed his arms and shook his head in disproval.

She sighed. “Sorry, Rainbow Dash, but that’s something I just can’t promise.”

She used her magic to pull the winter coat out of her closet, and at the sight of it, a loud cry of refusal followed from the house’s resident, as she desperately clung to the edge of her bed, refusing to let go as she was being pulled away. “Please don’t make me do this!”

“Rainbow Dash, this isn’t time for an intervention!” Twilight argued as she pulled her. “The train’s about to leave and we only have… Spike, how much time do we have left?”

The dragon pulled out a watch and grimaced upon looking at it. “Six minutes!”

The alicorn followed suit, and instantly her horn flashed, causing them all to disappear.

FLASH!

They appeared inside Fluttershy’s house and Twilight soon let go of Rainbow Dash, causing her to roll on the floor.

“Sorry we’re late, Fluttershy! We’re all set to go now!” the purple mare announced.

There was no response, but rather a quick tapping sound. A little white bunny stood in the doorway with an angry expression and crossed arms, his right foot stomping the floor.

“Oh, hello Angel, where’s Fluttershy?” she asked him.

The bunny hopped over to a book and opened it on a page showing a train, pointing at it.

“Wait… she already went on the train?”

“Great…” the wonderbolt finally picked herself up. “So, we came here for nothing.”

The alicorn glared at her. “Only because you had to make an issue of your situation.”

Hers was met by an equal one from the rainbow-maned pony. “Listen you-“

“STOP IT!” Spike screamed, silencing both mares before the thing could further escalate, then pointed to his watch. “We got five minutes and counting.”

The ponies looked at each other, and without delay the purple one’s magic activated, causing them to all disappear. Angel sighed, facepalming.

All gone. Twilight teleported herself, Rainbow Dash, and Spike to all locations of her other friends, but the result was the same in all cases: the Cakes informed them that Pinkie Pie already left, so was the case with Applejack, as members of her family told them, Rarity’s boutique was closed, and neither Starswirl nor Zecora were present in her old castle. When it became apparent that nobody else was left to accompany them, the alicorn used her magic one last time to teleport to the only place that was left to go at this point.

FLASH!

The trio appeared on the platform of Ponyville’s train station, and in haste, her spell misfired a bit, causing the blue pegasus and the dragon to land on top of her along with the luggage.

Spike pulled out the watch again. “Two minutes…”

And then she saw everybody gathered on the platform, including Celestia and Luna, waiting for the latecomers to turn up.

“Twilight, are you alright?” Fluttershy asked.

“Y’all took your fancy time,” the country pony said.

“Yeah, we thought we’d have to leave you behind.“ The pink one jumped to the front.

“Sorry Applejack, but somepony needed to have “an episode” at the least appropriate moment,” she directed her tone of annoyance as one of her companions.

“Hey!” Rainbow Dash glared. “You’re the one who decided to show up like ten minutes before we needed to leave.”

“I needed to triple-check that we had everything to go on the journey. It’s not my fault you wasted all those precious minutes that everypony already left!”

“Ten minutes? Twilight darling, we’ve all been here almost twenty minutes beforehand,” Rarity interjected. “As far we’re all concerned, we’re with Rainbow Dash on that one.”

Everybody present nodded. Twilight’s face turned red from shame, realizing that in her determination not to leave a thing out she ended up being the last one to arrive.

“Final call!” the conductor announced. “Train departing for Crystal Empire!”

“C’mon! We need to get going!” Applejack yelled and quickly entered the train, the rest followed suit.

The younger alicorn stayed behind for a moment, facing her mentor. “Princess Celestia, I’m so sorry it’s come to this. I was hoping there would be more time to say goodbye…”

“Never you mind, Twilight,” she sighed. “I think there’s somepony else that would need an apology instead.”

“Yeah… I know.”

“Good luck on your quest, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna addressed her.

The whistle blew. The Princess of Friendship nodded at them, then turned, but just before she stepped on the train, she gave one final look to the old wizard.

“Good luck with your research, Starswirl.”

He shook his head. “You should save it for yourself, Twilight. I believe you and your friends will need it far more than I will.”

She stepped onto the train and the doors closed. With a loud toot, it departed, leaving Ponyville.

The Sisters and the old sage were left standing on the platform, but not for long, as the old unicorn’s horn began to glow and they all disappeared with a flash.

Reappearing on the castle’s balcony outside the throne room, the trio looked down on the tracks, watching the train disappear into the distance.

“And so they leave to save Equestria once again,” reminisced Celestia.

“Or at the very least, prevent the situation from escalating further,” Starswirl corrected her. “But I too must go and play my part in this as well.” He turned to depart. “I just need to grab a few texts from my study here before I leave.”

“Starswirl, wait!” the Mare of the Night stopped him.

“Yes, Luna?”

“I know this is all of a sudden and maybe there could be a better time to talk about this, but I… I mean, both me and Celestia have questions that only you know.”

“And that would be?” he asked.

She took in a deep breath. “What was father like?”

A considerable time passed in silence, before the old wizard, who still had his back turned to them, finally gave an answer. “He was… a paragon of virtue. A stallion of spirit like no other. The closest thing I had as a student back then… maybe even… a friend…” he paused again, seeming as if he’s having difficulty expressing himself. “Luna, Celestia, I’m sorry… but even after more than a thousand years it’s still a sore subject for me to talk about.”

He walked away, leaving the two sisters alone outside.

The train rocked as it ascended the steep slope, and went past Canterlot, Cloudsdale, and eventually into the Galloping Gorge. It would still take several hours before they finally reached the Crystal Empire, yet the sun was already slowly drifting towards the horizon as the day was coming to an end. Within the rocking cart, the group made themselves comfy, but not all of them were.

Twilight sighed and walked over to Rainbow Dash’s seat; the mare had a moody expression on her face, sitting by the window. “Rainbow Dash?”

“What?” the blue pegasus acknowledged her in a stern tone.

“I’m… I’m sorry for earlier.”

The rainbow-maned pony glanced at her, then closed her eyes and sighed. “Yeah… I’m sorry too.”

And the purple alicorn pulled her into a hug.

“So, what’s the plan, Twilight?” Spike interrupted the moment, after which the mare released her friend from an embrace.

“Okay, everypony, the plan is as follows,” she ordered the rest of the council to gather around her. “I’ve sent a message beforehand to Cadence. I’ve not yet explained all that’s happened, but she will be expecting us when we arrive. The library in the Crystal Empire has some of the oldest known text, dating as far back as the founding of Equestria…”

“That’s assuming if Sombra hasn’t burned them to a crisp.”

A muffled voice spoke, coming from Fluttershy’s direction. The yellow pegasus had a fanny pack hanging around her neck. She opened it and the small draconequus lay inside.

“Come on, Discord. There’s no need to be so negative,” she tried to uplift his spirit.

“If you say so,” he sighed and closed the fanny pack.

“Yes, well... as I was saying,” the Princess resumed. “The books and text should give us some indication if somepony in the past spotted a purple shooting star or something along those lines and maybe we could get some directions on where to find it. Is all clear?”

“Yep. Uhuh. Totally. Crystal. Definitely. Absolutely,” all the members of the group responded, except for one.

The zebra sat by the window all alone, looking outside, as if her thoughts have been completely isolated from the world around her.

“Zecora?” Twilight tried to get her attention.

“YO! ZECORA!” Rainbow Dash yelled.

The shout finally got her attention and she turned towards them.

“Zecora, did you just hear what Twilight said?” the fashionista asked.

“Yes, clear and fine,” she answered. “There is no need to whine.”

And with those words, she returned her gaze to the window. The Princess and her friends found it odd that she was the one with the lack of words. Regardless they chose to leave it at that.

The sun was slowly beginning to sink past the visible horizon of the Frozen North by the time the train finally reached the train station. As they stepped on the platform, much like the train, it was empty since nobody else came this way at such a late hour. What awaited them however was a group of crystal guards.

“Princess Twilight,” one of them spoke, “Princess Cadence asked us to escort you to the castle with haste.”

Twilight looked back at the group. “I guess Cadence took my message very seriously.” She then turned her head back at the escort. “Lead the way.”

The crystal guards led the group from the station all the way to the empire proper. On the very residential limits, several more guards have been posted, and it seemed that it was spread all around the empire. Cadence was taking this very seriously, she was making sure no undesirables would enter the city at any time. Little did they know that they were already on the inside, stalking from the shadows of the now setting sun.

A pair of green and teal eyes skulked about, examining the goings-on at the city limits. She didn’t like what was happening. Why was there such a sudden increase in security at the border? She was about to move forth when a sound of new arrivals grabbed her attention because their voices sounded eerily familiar to her. Her eyes opened wide. She knew them! But how can they be here?! Last time she saw them was in… She dashed away from cover to cover to avoid the guard’s gaze. He needed to be warned.

The large doors of the castle opened wide as the guests entered. The further they got in, the more guards the group encountered.

“Yish, I think that may be going a bit overboard,” Applejack commented.

“Considering who we have to deal with, I think that it may not be enough,” Twilight answered. “We can’t really be sure what’s the extent of damage that Grogar can cause now that he’s taken Discord’s chaos magic. We’ll be lucky if he’s not here, but I can’t say the same for other places.”

“AUNT TWILY!!!” a high-pitched squeal sounded.

Everybody got alerted to it and then saw something approaching at a high speed. A small ball of pink fluff flew in their direction, it had a purple curly mane with streaks of blue in it. It was the youngest of the alicorns, a royal born to the Crystal Empire, the child of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, Twilight’s older brother. Even though her story was yet to be told, everybody knew her name.

“Flurry Heart!” the Princess exclaimed before promptly having the filly crash into her face, causing her to fall on her back.

“Mama said you would visit, aunt Twily,” the little princess said as she crawled off her face, sitting on her neck.

Twilight was still surprised how much the little filly had grown over the course of three years, she still recalled her being just a little baby with uncontrollable destructive power. Now she was four years old, her legs were no longer as stubby, and her mane considerably longer. And like any child, she was hyperactive.

“Hello, Flurry. How’s my favorite little niece?” She picked her up so she could get back on her feet.

The purple alicorn began making noises at her as she rubbed her nose against hers, and the little pink filly squealed. It took some time before the Princess of Friendship finally realized she was being watched by others. She blushed in embarrassment, only to have the rest of the gang join her side to greet the filly.

“’Pike! Miss Bash! Appleyak! Flutty! Miss Swirrly! Pink Puffy!” Flurry Heart called out their names in a way she memorized them best.

There was a popping sound as the fanny pack around Fluttershy’s neck opened and Discord poked his head outside. “Ugh, you mind keeping it down out there.”

Suddenly, a yellow aura enveloped him and dragged him out, landing in the embrace of the youngest alicorn. “Mister Slinky!”

“Wait…” the draconequus struggled to speak and he got crushed. “Too strong…!”

“We’re all glad to see you too, Flurry Heart. Where are Shining Armor and Cadence?” Twilight inquired.

The little filly stopped squeezing the former Lord of Chaos, giving him a moment of reprieve. “Daddy went with Blondie to visit the kitties.”

“I’m sorry, he went what now?” Applejack asked, not understanding a word.

“She means that Shining Armor and his mentor for diplomacy went to visit Abyssinia on a mission,” another voice answered.

From one of the side doors, the Crystal Princess finally made an appearance. Twilight put her niece to the side as she was still holding Discord, trotted off to her and they embraced.

“I’m so glad to see you,” she said to her former babysitter.

“So am I, Twilight.”

Then she parted from her after she noticed her daughter playing with a weird serpent-like thing, recognizing what it was. “Twilight, is Discord’s condition related to what you mentioned?”

“Part of it, yes,” she confirmed.

The older alicorn traipsed over to her child. “Flurry Heart, it’s time for you to go to bed.”

“No,” the filly protested, “I wanna play with aunt Twily and friends.”

“It’s getting late, deary. You can still play with her tomorrow.”

But the child would have none of it. She pouted.

“If you go to bed now, I’ll tell you a story,” she tried buttering her up.

Without delay, she looked at her mother. “Okay!”

She let go of the draconequus and trotted off to her room, while he gasped for air.

With her child’s prying eyes and ears gone, the Princess of Love’s voice rang in a serious tone now, but not before noticing that another new member had joined the company, as she spotted the zebra standing in the back of the group. “If you’ve brought Zecora along, then something serious must’ve happened. Now don’t skimp on details. All of you, explain to me in detail.”

A shadowy figure sneaked past the guards and into an alley, then quickly entering one of the condemned buildings and slamming the door shut.

“Grog-!” she tried to yell, only to have dark light envelop her in a bubble and lifting her off the ground, before being carried into the living room.

In the darkness, a pair of antlers were glowing in an ominous light, but the owner recognized the intruder. “Oh… it’s just you, Queen of Changelings.” He let go of her, letting her fall to the ground, as he resumed flipping the pages of a book. “If you’re going to make such ruckus you should expect to be met with hostility when we’re supposed to keep a low profile.”

“Grogar, we got a problem!” she yelled as she got back on her feet. “Those ponies… they’re alive and well... AND HERE!”

The old ram stopped flipping the pages for a moment. “Are they now? Curious…”

“How can you be so calm about it?!” Queen Chrysalis raged. “You assured me that they were going to starve at a bottom of the mountain, yet here they are, not looking worse for wear!”

“Will you quit shouting already?” he replied in a stern tone. “If they haven’t found us yet, they certainly will if you keep making so much noise.”

The changeling queen felt like she was about to burst because clearly her companion didn’t care about the seriousness of the situation.

He resumed flipping the pages of the book. “If the residents of the empire already knew we were here, this place would’ve likely been turned upside-down. Which means they don’t suspect anything yet. One thing is true though, from this point on we must proceed with extreme caution. Until the rug rat returns with what we require we must remain inconspicuous. But most importantly, now that the enemy we thought was defeated returned, we must keep a watchful eye on them. Perhaps some of their actions, even words could reveal how they managed to evade the fate I’ve given them.”

“How are we supposed to do that?” she asked.

The book slammed shut and Grogar gave the Queen of Changeling a really annoyed look. “Am I really going to have to explain that to a creature that’s well aware of her own nature? Do what you’ve been doing this whole time and let me work in peace!”

He dropped the book to the ground and opened the next one, flipping through its pages. The Pillar of Hatred scowled. If she could, she would lash back against him for daring to raise his tone against her, but she was well aware that, as he was, the old ram’s power was above her own… and she contributed to that. Without any other option, she turned back to the door and walked off, her body glowing in a quick flash of green just as she closed them behind.

After they told Princess Cadence what’s happened in the heart of Equestria, it didn’t take long before they went into action. The paragon of love gave them access to the royal library and all the old books and texts that were stored there. The mares and the dragon immediately went to work on the research. But as diligently as they worked deep into the night, their sweat bore them no fruit, and tiredness began to take its toll.

“Ugh, this is so frustrating!” Rainbow Dash complained, tossing one of the books to the side. “I think we’ve checked about every written thing in this place that would have any relevancy on what we seek, and we still got nada!”

Applejack yawned. “We can’t give up just yet, Dash. There’s got to be something. Right, guys?”

The responses were mixed; Twilight agreed, but Rarity and Fluttershy, as well as Discord, were not in particularly high spirits. Meanwhile, both Pinkie Pie and Spike lay with their faces on books. Only one of them who was still awake made no reply, as she propped her head, staring at the open book.

“She’s been reading that book for a long time now.” The wonderbolt walked to her side to check out what she was reading. ”'Crystal Empire: Early design of plumbing'… Zecora, how’s this relevant?”

She made no response and kept staring at the text.

“Zecora?” she asked again and this time, those that were still awake had their attention grabbed.

But the shaman didn’t respond. The blue pegasus then bumped the leg she was using to prop up her head and she slipped, bashing her head against the table. The sound and the vibration woke up the party planner and the dragon.

“Zecora, you’ve been zoning out a lot lately, ever since Starswirl told us about Turmoil,” Rainbow Dash said.

Twilight had to agree. She didn’t recall ever seeing the shaman being so absent-minded as she’s been now. Something must be keeping her attention occupied.

“Is there something wrong?” she asked.

The zebra felt surrounded now and everybody seemed to be staring at her, and she sighed in defeat. “There is one thought in mind which creates disquiet, but I’ve been hesitant to share it on the chance it might cause a riot.”

“Whatever do you mean, Zecora?” Rarity asked.

“Remember our encounter in the Jagged Ridge not long ago, where nopony else would search high or low?” She reached into one of her saddlebags and pulled out a small bottle containing black liquid.

“Isn’t that the bottle you said it helped you find us?” Spike said.

“It is true, I made this brew,” she proceeded to explain, “when the Everfree Forest was made wild anew by the draconequus’ tangly crew. However, this one was crafted from a tree’s dangerous fruit... And upon tasting it, a vision granted me a bond to its root.”

“Fruit of the tree… bond to the root? Wait, you mean you saw through something that was connected to Turmoil’s Tree that Starswirl mentioned?” Twilight inquired.

“Hold on! Are you telling me that you were able to see what the enemy sees?” Discord wondered.

The Zebra nodded.

“That’s awesome, Zecora!” the wonderbolt cheered. “You should’ve told us that sooner!”

“I agree,” the fashionista joined in. “Then we wouldn’t have to waste hours upon hours rummaging through dusty old books.”

The shaman shook her head. “I’m sorry, dear friends, but I could not. The old sage’s words much terror brought. If this Turmoil’s horror is greater than none, how could the fruit give me some of the same to look upon? I’ve yet to experience the side-effects of my creation, but if it can see me as well... It fills me with consternation.”

“Zecora, have you not been feeling well lately?” Fluttershy asked. “As if something’s off, like memory gaps, or something?”

“I’m not feeling blue, that is true,” she answered.

The Princess of Friendship approached the zebra, coming into close proximity of her. “Zecora, I know I’m asking a lot, but as we speak, the enemy may have a head start on us and the longer we wait, the bigger the chance that they’ll retrieve one of Trumoil’s pieces before us. Please try to use the potion again to try and discern what you can see. And if not, then give it to us at least so one of us can try.”

“‘Princess, are you insane?!” the Zebra raised her voice. “You’re asking me to have its effects pollute your brain? The Council I won’t compromise, for if even one of you falls it will mean collective demise.” She stopped herself, trying to calm down. “No… if risks must be waged, the player who’s the lesser threat must be staged.”

She reached into her saddlebag, picked up a piece of chalk, and started to draw circles on the library’s floor.

“What’s that for?” Pinkie Pie asked.

She put the chalk away. “To keep the threat in a single plane, should any dark force in my body remain.”

The shaman picked up the small bottle and walked to the central circle where she sat down, pulling out the cork. She gazed into the black liquid and she hesitated for a moment; she freshly recalled the unpleasant feeling she experienced last time and she had no desire to go through it again, but she didn’t see any other option. She took several breaths to clear her mind, and then took a quick sit. And the horrible aftertaste hit her as quickly as it faded, and then the rest followed: the feeling of regurgitation and finally blackness began to bubble up in front of her eyes. The last thing she heard and saw were muffled up voices of her companions and as they rushed to her before darkness took all her senses.

A snowy landscape opened before her. The sky was covered by dark clouds and snow fell ever so lightly. She heard the sound of heavy footsteps, yet as she moved it was clear they weren’t hers. She suddenly came to a halt, her sight turning downwards into the snow.

“Here,” she heard her own messed-up voice speak. “This is where it lies. Now dig.”

She heard the footsteps again as they approached closer, and then from her position, she saw a pair of dark three-fingered arms reaching into the snow before her, and began to shove it away. She couldn’t quite make out the form of the creature that began to shovel the snow away with its bare hands, even as it dug deeper; apart from the arms, the rest of the body was covered in a brown cloak. A clanging sound followed and the creature stopped digging. It stood up, climbing out of the hole it had dug out, and opened its dark, rough, glistening palm. It held up a piece of pointy curved rock that had clearly belonged to a larger piece. Its tip was crimson red and as it approached the base from which it was broken off, it began to transition into grey color.

“This is it,” her voice said. “That is all that remains of the umbrum king.”

“What the heck is an umbrum?” a voice suddenly came from the bipedal figure.

“The ponies would refer to them as ponies of shadows,” she explained. “But they are far more than that. They are creatures spawned of terror, their powers so great that they can make anyone’s darkest fear become manifest. And that power is overshadowed ONLY by the one who gave birth to them.”

“That’s it? Did we trek across a barren frozen wasteland for this? What use is this piece of red-greying rock to us?” the creature complained.

“You misunderstand, Scourgelord,” she spoke. “He will serve our means. You see, this is not just a way to track down what we seek, but also a necessary tribute.”

“Oh, for the love of… Will you stop calling me that! I’m the-!” the creature’s voice went silent upon noticing the horn began to radiate a glow.

“There it is!” she responded. “He calls out… for her.”

“Her? Her who?” the creature questioned.

But its question was not answered. Suddenly, a black tendril stretched out from under her gaze and touched the glowing piece of rock. Suddenly something changed; she started hearing a voice.

FEAR.

A gentle feminine whisper was traveling in the air, from a specific location. Her gaze looked about until it became pronounced.

“There she is… I can hear her voice calling,” she spoke.

“What?” The creature raised its hand to where its head was under the hood, turning around slowly in every direction, trying to listen. “I don’t hear anything.”

She sighed. “Of course you don’t, you’re nothing but a rock with consciousness.” Her gaze flew in the direction where the whisper was most discernable, before turning back to the creature, beckoning it. ”Come, Scourgelord. It’s time we meet the mother.”

Her sight turned in the direction of the gentle whisper, and then her vision began to fade into blackness, yet even as it did, the feminine voice persisted to echo, speaking a single word.

FEAR.

“Zecora!” a voice called out to her.

She opened her eyes and gasped for air, only to find the group looming over her as she lay on the ground.

“Zecora, what’s happened?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, your eyes just went black and then you went completely still for a few minutes,” Rainbow Dash added.

The shaman managed to get into a sitting position. “My friends, history’s full of repetitions and boasts; the potion allowed me to see through the eyes of one of Shadow’s hosts.”

“It… it did?” Twilight’s voice became concerned.

“Well, whaddya see?” Applejack inquired.

Zecora took a deep breath. “I’ve seen a frozen wasteland of the north. A dark, cloaked figure walking forth, with a kingly remnant of the umbrum, here. And the whispering voice of… the Mother of Fear.”

“Kingly?” questioned Rarity.

“Umbrum?” Pinkie Pie tilted her head in confusion.

“A Mother…?” Applejack wondered.

“Of Fear?” Fluttershy asked in a startling voice.

“A frozen wasteland?!”

That last tone of panic which belonged to Rainbow Dash, got everybody’s attention, having them looking at her in confusion, and she pretended as if nothing was wrong with what she said.

“Wait…” Twilight paced up and down, thinking, trying to decipher Zecora’s vision. “The frozen wasteland likely means the wastelands of the Frozen North. The kingly umbrum could only be referring to King Sombra. But the Mother of Fear and the dark, cloaked figure… I don’t know what that could be referring to.”

“But Twilight darling, Sombra’s been destroyed,” Rarity pointed out, and it didn’t take long for Pinkie Pie to make an addendum. “Yeah, twice even.”

“I know,” she agreed, “but Zecora said “kingly remnant”, as in what remains of him. It’s likely that when Sombra was destroyed by the Crystal Heart, what remained of his body was probably blown out into the wasteland.”

“But why in Equestria would they need Sombra for?” Applejack asked the logical question.

“I think there’s an obvious answer to that,” the Princess answered. “If they’re here looking for the missing piece of Turmoil, then one of the darkest creatures from Equestria’s history could help them track it down. And I have a feeling that this “Mother of Fear” may have something to do with it.”

“So then, what’s our next course of action, Captain Sparkle?” Discord said, sitting on the edge of the table.

“Now that we know where our opponent went, there’s only one thing to do…”

In the back of the group, the wonderbolt held her hoofs together as if in prayer, quietly murmuring. “Please don’t say it. Please don’t say it. Please don’t say it.”

Twilight finally announced. “Tomorrow morning we’re going into the Frozen North.”

A loud cry of panic came out of Rainbow Dash, echoing throughout the castle. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Comments

[nightshroud96]

Interesting in seeing RD really having a issue about the cold and such.
Flurry Heart was so cute as well.

I do feel like Spike would be showing signs of having issues about what happened to him in season 9 since Sombra is going to pop up there.
Unless Spike happens to be really good at bottling things up till now just like with Princess Luna was doing that led NMM to happen?

[GTthe4th]

Captain Sparkle

...You did not just do that. I refuse.

[JFT]

10912738
I don't think Spike would get much from raging about Sombra at this point. What was done was done and now he's gone.

[JFT]

10912762
If you're assuming it has any relation to Minecraft, let me reassure you, it's pure coincidence. =P

[nightshroud96]

10914252
No, I am pretty sure the "scars" wouldn't fade away like that especially with what happened.
Spike seriously shouldn't brush that off. In fact its something Discord AND the Mane 6 need to face consequences for(with how Discord screwed Spike over since he wasn't a Element bearer but also how the Mane 6 apparently made him go back to Ponyville when they were putting the Elements back up and also how its rubbed in that Spike is always in their shadows due to what happened).
Its deeply disappointing since the show ignored the consequences of what happened to Spike, like the writers had Spike brush off what happened to him despite he seriously should have issues about that. Basically saying its "too late" now with "what done is done" makes that issue even worse.
It also means Discord is getting away scott-free on what his plan specifically done to Spike since apparently Spike brushed all of this off.

And the fact most likely it looks like Sombra will be revived maybe, which would surely bring up said "scars" even more.
Its kind of a waste if Sombra's horn ends up just being used to find something but not actually bringing back Sombra.
Especially since the show focused on Sombra's horn when it got blown off but did not do anything with that in the actual show(in the comics it did used that but now said comic arc on that got retconned actually, so officially in the show that blown off piece of Sombra's horn lead to nowhere).
Really, Sombra was one of the few villains the Mane 6 never directly beaten(since it was Spike delivering the Crystal Heart that stopped him) which made one of Spike's few achievements meant something even more since Spike stopped a villain that the Mane 6 didn't beat at all before. But when Discord brought Sombra back and it ended up being the Mane 6 alone that stopped him while Spike had no hand in it(while Spike ends up being brainwashed like everyone else except the "chosen ones", the Mane 6), one of Spike's few achievements got fully negated. That was one of the huge damages Discord's plan had done.