Filly Fantasy VI - The Return of Magic

by The Wyld Stallynz

Wherein There's Gold In Them Thar Hills

“So let me get this straight,” Apple Bloom said as she paced back and forth in the recovery room. The room was filled with ponies, most from the town but also included the recently arrived Returners. “We’ve been trying to convince you all that cutie marks exist, go out to learn more about them, get some ourselves, come back, but then find out that y’all knew all along?”

“That sounds about right,” Nurse Redheart said with a shrug.

With a groan, Apple Bloom flopped onto her stomach. Matching groans came from Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, still laying in their beds.

A unicorn mare stepped forward, her coat a light pink and her mane a deep purple, who laid a hoof over Apple Bloom’s back. “Kid, let me tell you why we had to keep our cutie marks a secret.” Her horn lit up and the paint covering her flank peeled away, revealing a starburst with two green curly wisps drifting from it. “And why we were hoping Scootaloo and the rest of you would never get one.”

Apple Bloom looked up into the mare’s eyes, blinking in confusion. “Okay. Why, Miss Starlight Glimmer?”

Starlight smiled, levitated Apple Bloom back into her bed, and took a deep breath. “You see, after the War of the Magi, the espers took off, leaving any ponies who could use magic behind. Since there was nopony else to blame for the war, anypony with a cutie mark took the blame instead.” She sighed and looked away. “Those ponies were hunted down and killed without mercy.”

A gasp escaped Fluttershy, whose eyes began to well up with tears.

“Some of them managed to escape, however,” Starlight continued. “They made their way to this island, where there isn’t much civilization. Those ponies became our ancestors. Over time our magic began to weaken and fewer and fewer ponies with cutie marks were born. We’ve done our best to hide our marks in hopes that someday they would never come back.” Looking up, she roamed her gaze over the three fillies. “But it looks like that’s not going to happen.”

“We’re sorry,” Sweetie Belle said, sniffling. “We had no idea.”

Rarity stepped up next to Sweetie Belle and laid a hoof over her shoulder. “In their defense, Starlight, something like this was bound to happen, given the circumstances.” She swept a hoof over the gathered Returners then twisted to show off her flank. “They aren’t the only ones to have gotten marks.”

Starlight’s mouth hung open as she and the rest of the townsponies beheld the older ponies cutie marks. “How… Nopony has ever gotten a mark this late in life.”

“The espers have returned, dear. In fact, that’s why we came back here. We’re tracking a group of them that laid waste to the Empire’s capital. We have to find them before they cause anymore harm.”

Shaking her head, Starlight levitated over a cushion and sat down. “So, they’re back then. I guess that would explain the lights we saw in the west the other day. My goodness, is the War of the Magi going to repeat itself?”

“No, not at all!” Twilight Sparkle spoke up. “We’re not here to fight. We just want to talk to them and get them to understand that the fighting’s over.”

Rarity sat down in front of Starlight, meeting her eye to eye. “Please, Starlight, if you know where they are then you must tell us. If we’re successful, there will be no more wars and no need for you to hide anymore.”

Starlight rolled her eyes and waved Rarity off. “Jeez, spare me the dramatics. I was going to tell you anyways. I’m just… letting this all sink in.” Standing up, Starlight headed for the door. “C’mon, let’s give the fillies some more time to rest and get the rest of you on your way.”

“Hey, wait!” Scootaloo shouted after her. “You’re not just gonna leave us here while you all go find the espers, are ya?”

“I think you three have had enough excitement to last a while,” Starlight called back.

Scootaloo opened her mouth, but a white hoof closed it shut before any sound could escape. “She’s right,” Rarity said. “You three did well, but now’s the time to rest. With any luck, we’ll be back soon with everything right as rain.”

“Don’t worry everypony,” Fluttershy said as she stepped up to the beds. “I’ll stay with you and help.” She fluffed her wings, sparkles of white magic drifting out from them. “With Twilight along, I don’t think I would be much help. I’m not really the adventuring type, anyway.”

Rarity smiled and gave Fluttershy a brief hug. Pulling away, she said, “Thanks dear, but don’t be selling yourself so short, you hear?” Turning away, Rarity bent down and kissed Sweetie Belle on the forehead. “You be good now.”

“Bye, Sis,” Sweetie Belle said, giving an encouraging smile.

With that, Rarity left the room, followed by the rest of the Returners, missing the conspiratory smirks the Cutie Mark Crusaders gave to each other.

.o.O.o.

The Returners spent the night at Starlight Glimmer’s home, lodging them into some spare rooms. Early morning came and with it breakfast and plans for finding the espers. As Starlight served her guests, she explained, “Like I said yesterday, we saw some odd lights coming from the west. There are some mountains in that area. Legends say that some powerful magic still emanates from there, so that would be as good a place as any for espers to want to visit.”

“Thank you for all the help,” Rarity said. “We really appreciate it.”

Starlight gave a curt nod. “If you can make it so cutie marks go away forever, that’ll be thanks enough.”

“Well, we can’t make any promises, but we really want to make all the fighting stop,” Twilight said as she levitated her plate and utensils to the sink and began washing them. “Once things settle down, maybe we can find a way to get rid of them?”

Stepping into her Mare Do Well costume, Rarity shrugged. “Don’t know. Perhaps that’s something you and your father can look into once this whole war business is over.”

“Yeah, between you and your dad,” Spike said through mouthfuls of eggs, “I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“Oh, Sweetie Belle and her friends are going to be so disappointed to hear that.”

“They’ll get over it,” Starlight scoffed. She put the dishes away and headed for the door. “Come on, I’ll see you out of the village.”

Starlight led them to the village entrance where a few villagers were waiting. They offered their goodbyes and encouragement on their quest. Once the pleasantries finished, the Returners waved their goodbyes to Starlight and the villagers, and began the trek back across the peninsula.

It wasn’t until they were out of sight when one of the villagers stopped short and said, “Oh, maybe we should have told them about that other pony that showed up a little while ago? It sounded like she was heading towards the same mountains.”

Shrugging, Starlight turned, heading back to her home. “Eh, I doubt it’ll be an issue. If that pegasus is smart, she’ll have found a way back to the other continents by now.”

.o.O.o.

Rainbow Dash once again took the skies to scout for monsters and any paths the land based ponies could take. Only a few creatures stepped out of the bushes and trees to challenge them, and they were quick to flee the moment fire, ice, and pointed needles started flying their way. By nightfall, the mountains came into view. Rarity suggested they stay a night in her tent and tackle the espers by light of day. After a full day of traveling, the party quickly agreed.

The night passed without incident. After a quick breakfast, the group set out for the mountains and any sign of the espers. Rainbow Dash flew ahead, keeping low to the ground in case any flying magical creature spotted her and decided she wasn’t welcome. A smile split her face after only a few minutes of searching and she flipped around, cruising back to the others. Her smile remained as she touched down in front of them and swept her hoof towards the mountains.

“Guys, we’re in luck,” she said. “Just a little further, there’s a path that leads right up into the hills. I think that’s our best way to get you guys up there.”

Rubbing her chin, Rarity pondered for a few seconds. “A path, you say? What would creatures that can fly need that for?”

“Um, I might have an answer,” Twilight said, clearing her throat. “Some of the records my father and I went over suggested that ponies and espers lived in harmony between the time after the war and before the espers left for their new home. It’s possible that this mountain may have been the home for both espers and ponies at that time. Maybe even the ponies in Themaresa are their descendants.”

“Hmm, you may be right. Alright then, Rainbow, lead the way.”

“You got it!” Rainbow Dash saluted and hopped into the air, heading towards the looming mountains.

Less than an hour later, the group pushed aside low hanging tree branches and bushes to reveal a stone walkway carved into the mountainside. Vines and boulders littered the path, but a little bit of magic and sword cutting cleared away any obstacles. The walkway curved into the hillside and then back outside again only a few steps later. It was as they came back into the light that Rainbow Dash caught a flash of bright yellow out of the corner of her eye. However, when she twisted her head, nothing but green vegetation and grey rocks greeted her vision.

“What is it?” Twilight asked from behind.

Shaking her head, Rainbow Dash turned back to the path and resumed her walk forward. “Nothing. Just thought I saw something. Probably just a monster.”

“Or it could be an esper,” Rarity said. “Keep alert. No sense taking chances.”

They continued on, following the path as it rose higher and higher up the mountain. The feeling in the air around them seemed to change, as though a light pressure were being placed on the ponies and dragon from all around them. Twilight and Rarity commented that their horns throbbed, but not painfully. Higher they went, the landscape below them becoming stretched out further for miles.

Spike raised a claw to shield his eyes as he peered out over a ledge. He yelped and pointed towards the east. “Hey! I think I can see Themaresa from here!”

“That’s nice, Spike,” Rarity commented absently, pulling down her mask and rubbing a hoof against her horn. “Oh, this itch in my horn is going to drive me crazy. I wish I had—”

A shock of white darted from out behind an outcropping of rocks on the path several hoof lengths below, only to disappear under an overhang before Rarity could get a fix on it. Rarity huffed and pulled her mask back on. “I’m getting the feeling we're being followed. If it’s the espers, I wish they’d just appear and get this over with.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Rainbow Dash said. “Want me to check it out?”

“No, let’s continue on. Whoever it is will make their move soon, and we’ll be ready for them.”

So saying, Rarity led the way, the path taking them back into the mountain itself. The cave inside contained little other than small spots of grass and masses of rock, with streams of light spilling in from openings at the top. It was enough for the Returners to see by so they pressed on, deeper and deeper. Rounding a bend, they came across a set of stairs carved out of the rock leading up. One by one, the group filed their way up, their senses tingling with all the ambient magical energy growing heavier around them. The stairs ended within a large open space, big enough to fit half the population of Themaresa within it. The ground had been smooth down in front of a raised podium of rock, giving the room the look and feel of an auditorium.

What caught everyone’s eye however, were three golden statues placed on top of the podium.

“Whoa,” Rainbow Dash breathed out, her tongue smacking against her lips.

Rarity stepped up to the podium as though in a trance, her masked face never leaving the statues. “Gorgeous.”

With a flap of wings, Rainbow Dash landed on the podium, inspecting the closest of the golden figures. Up close, it was even more beautiful. Vaguely shaped in the form of a pony rearing up, and with no sign of wear and corrosion, Rainbow Dash’s quick calculations determined that a single one of these relics would set her up for life. Her hoof reached out—

—a telekinetic slap swatted it away, eliciting a yelp of surprise.

“Rainbow, don’t touch them!” came Twilight Sparkle’s voice as she ran up the podium to stand next to the pegasus. “These are priceless artifacts, and should remain undisturbed.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, the pull of treasure still welling up within her, but stepped back and gave Twilight a cross look. “What do you know about these, anyway?”

“From these.” Twilight levitated the Empire’s documents from her saddlebag and hovered them before her. “Somewhere in here it described three statues—ah ha! Here we go.” She separated one of the sheets from the others and displayed it with a proud grin. “Father and I managed to decipher a little bit about there being a special place where espers built a monument for three powerful beings. This must be it!”

Spike climbed up the podium with the others and patted Twilight on the back. “That’s my girl.”

Twilight blushed. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, that’s great and all,” Rainbow Dash said with a hint of annoyance, “but can’t we just take one? There will still be two left!”

Crossing his arms, Spike tsked and shook his head. “Dash, if the espers are here, and they see us take one, you can kiss any peace with them goodbye.” His eyes drifted to one of the statues and he stroked his chin. “But, ya know, maybe if we built a copy…”

Twilight bopped him on the head with the rolled up document. “Stop it.”

“Fine.”

“Oh! This looks interesting,” Rarity said, who herself occupied a space on the now crowded podium. She knelt down and lifted her mask, peering closely at the back of the furthest statue whose shape Rarity could only guess was a large dragon. She pointed at a spot and said, “There are some markings here. Think you can make them out, Twilight?”

Twilight trotted over and took in the area Rarity had indicated. Her muzzle scrunched up in thought before she went back to her saddlebag. More papers levitated out before her, gaze darting between the statue’s writing and the writing on the documents. A few minutes passed, with Twilight moving from statue to statue and making the occasional thoughtful sound.

So engrossed were they in their findings, they all missed an orange head peek out from the passage they had come from.

At last, Twilight gave a firm nod and cleared her throat. “Okay, I think I have a good idea on what’s written here. The gist of it is that long ago, before the War of the Magi, there were two goddesses that ruled the world. It says something about them controlling the sun and moon, but I can’t make sense of it. Anyway, a third god appeared and fought them. He used dark magic to turn ponies into espers to wage his war. There’s not much here on the war, but the two goddesses found a way to use the magicite from dead espers to give more power to their pony warriors and fight back.”

“Gracious, I’m glad I didn’t live back then,” Rarity said. “It must have been terrible.”

“Yeah, and it gets worse,” Twilight replied. Swallowing against a dry mouth, she continued, “Things weren’t going well for the goddesses, so they gathered as much magic as they could and managed to turn the god into stone. But, sadly, this also turned the goddesses into stone. It goes on to say that in order for the goddesses to make their spell work, they had to pull in magic from the planet itself. Like, just about all of it.”

A silence fell over the group at Twilight’s last words. Rainbow Dash, her head cocked to the side, said, “Wait, wait, wait, wait. They took the planet’s magic?”

Twilight shrugged helplessly. “I guess so. If I translated everything right, that is.”

“So, wait,” Spike said, brows furrowed in thought. “That… kinda makes sense.” Feeling everypony’s gaze on him, Spike quickly explained. “I mean, that kinda explains why unicorns have so little magic, right? Just simple things like lifting stuff. Maybe the reason why is because these goddesses or whatever sealed it all away.”

“That’s kinda sick,” Rainbow Dash commented, looking ill.

“And it might not even be just unicorns that were weakened. Maybe pegasi and earth ponies were affected too and it’s just not as easy to tell.”

More silence followed, the group taking time to let this sink in. Hesitantly, Twilight said, “Um, there’s a little more, if you guys want to hear it.”

Rarity gestured for her to continue. “Might as well, darling. Let’s hear it all.”

“Right, so, once the three beings turned to stone, the espers gained their own will. They decided they would never let their powers be used for war again and made their own world to live in. They took the statues with them, behind the sealed gate. Before they left, they made the figures here in honor of the gods. Looks like they’ve been sitting here ever since.”

“Huh,” was all Spike had to say.

“No kidding,” Rainbow Dash said, shaking her head. “Even with all the tall tales I had to chase down for a lousy gil, I’ve never heard anything like this. I mean, controlling the moon and the sun? C’mon.”

Rarity hummed in agreement. “If it’s all true, it does put it in stark relief just how much was lost from then till now.”

“Seriously, I’m glad magic’s been gone. I mean, look at how far we’ve come with technology since then. I like how things are and magic will probably screw it all up.” Rainbow Dash turned to Twilight, frowning at the troubled look the unicorn wore. “What? I didn’t mean anything bad about you, Twi! Just magic in general.”

Twilight sighed and began putting her documents back. “Don’t worry, I know what you mean, Dash. And you’re right. Blueblood should have never tried to bring back magic in the first place. But, well, if he hadn’t, that means I never would have met any of you.”

“Oh, right,” Rainbow Dash replied and began swirling her hoof on the ground.

A loud clop from Rarity caught their attention. “Now none of that, you hear? Things are the way they are and worrying about what could have been isn’t going to help any. We need to focus on the now, and the now says we need to find those espers and get this whole mess cleared up.”

“Right on!” Spike said, pumping a fist into the air.

Finishing her packing, Twilight turned to her fellow unicorn and nodded. “You’re right. Sorry my thoughts aren’t very positive lately.”

“I’m sure you’ll feel better once we’re done,” Rarity said. “Now, let’s get a move on, shall we? Those espers aren’t going to find themselves.”

Giving one last, forlorn look at the statues, Rainbow Dash nodded. She turned and hopped up into the air.

A figure rocketed down from above and slugged Rainbow Dash in the face, sending the pegasus crashing to the rocky floor. Faster than Rarity or Twilight could react, the pony shaped being darted between them and snapped out its wings. The two were sent flying off the podium by the strength behind the wings, landing in a heap. Spike twisted to face the new enemy but received a kick to the stomach for his efforts. Doubled over, Spike was helpless as the pony picked him up and tossed him to fall next to his friends.

Now alone on the podium, the pony heaved for breath, smiling down at her efforts. She disregarded the disabled Returners and turned her attention to the golden statues left unguarded, a reverent grin splitting her muzzle. “Now this is the mother load. These will definitely set me up for a long time.”

Struggling to her hooves, Rainbow Dash rubbed her sore cheek before regarding the new arrival. “Daring Do,” she spat. “How the hay did you get here?”

Daring Do tore her gaze from the statues long enough to smirk at her rival. “A little bit of good luck and a lot of patience. I was pretty banged up after Chozo, but some rest at Jidhoof and a little bartering got me a ship out here. Now I’m going to claim what’s mine and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!”

“How do you figure?” Rarity said, having picked herself up. She pulled her mask down and readied herself. “There are four of us and one of you.”

“Heh, don’t think I don’t know that.” Without warning, she pulled out a small blue ball and chucked it at Rarity. The masked vigilante deftly hopped out of the way, but the ball ricocheted off the floor and right into Rarity’s side. Rarity let out of whoosh of air and fell back. The ball wasn’t finished as it rebounded off of her and headed straight for Twilight, who squawked in surprise and dove out of the way. Again the ball bounced off the floor and then the nearby wall, picking up speed.

Not fast enough as Rainbow Dash blasted into the air, slicing at the ball as it passed her. She landed, Thunder Blade in her mouth, watching in satisfaction as two diced pieces fell to the ground with a plop.

“Heh, nice going, Rainbow Crash,” Daring Do commented. She raised up on her hind legs, holding up two more balls in each hoof. “But I’ve got plenty more super balls to handle you twerps!” Without waiting for the others to regain their balance, Daring Do threw the super balls towards Twilight and Rarity.

“Not this time,” Rarity muttered, her horn lighting up. She waited for just the right moment—

—Opalescence launched herself out from behind Rarity’s cape with a yowl and swatted the super ball out of the air and onto the ground. She immediately pounced upon it and began patting it back and forth between her paws.

“... Well, I guess that works too. Very good, Opal.”

Meanwhile, Twilight was not having as much luck. The super ball bounced faster than she could track and each pass it made left a stinging welt on her body. Spike tried to bat it away with his spear, but his swings were a second too slow. A pained shout from Twilight due to another direct hit finally drove him over the edge. He took a quick breath and blew a lash of wind out that surrounded Twilight and himself in a swirling tornado. The next time the super ball passed, the whirlwind plucked it out of the air and flung it with more force than a cannon. It splattered against the far wall, leaving a sizable crater from the impact.

“Darn it!” Daring Do cried, reaching for more of the bouncing weapons. “Do you guys know how expensive these things are?” The sound of hooves approaching perked up her ears. Looking up, she found Rainbow Dash standing only a few paces away, her sword at the ready.

“Give it up, Daring,” Rainbow Dash said. “You’re way out of your league, so piss off before I lose my patience.”

Sneering at her rival, Daring Do abandoned her balls and instead cracked out her whip. “Oh, you think you’re hot stuff now because you’ve got new friends? Well, I’ve got friends of my own!”

“Seriously? Where?”

“Here!” Daring Do lept from the podium and landed next to the room entrance. Her whip lashed out, snagging something behind the rock wall, and pulled. High pitched screams preluded to three fillies being dragged out and tossed to the ground. Daring Do stood above them, pulling tight on her whip to keep the fillies bound.

“Oh my gosh, Sweetie Belle!” Rarity cried, rushing towards them. She stopped short when Daring Do yanked her whip, eliciting more pained screams from the trio.

“Stay back if you don’t want them hurt,” Daring Do said. “Now, this is how it’s going to go down. I get those statues, you get the fillies. Fair trade, don’t you think?”

“If you think for one second I’ll let you get away with this—” Rarity began, but the appearance of a super ball at the tip of Daring Do’s wing clamped her up.

“You’ve got ten seconds to get me those statues or I start tossing these around.”

Nopony made a move. The seconds ticed down, Daring Do tensing as she mentally counted. “Time’s up. Too bad about the kids.” She flipped her wing, sending the super ball straight up into the air. It struck the ceiling and came back down, right for Apple Bloom’s head.

A teal glow surrounded Daring Do’s head. Before she could react, she was yanked forward with telekinetic force. The super ball collided with her nogin.

At the same moment, Apple Bloom struggled free from the whip just enough to kick out at her assailant, landing a blow to Daring Do’s hind leg.

Scootaloo quickly chanted, sending an arc of electricity through the whip and into Daring Do herself.

The combined trio of attacks overwhelmed the pegasus. Daring Do could only manage a drawn out moan of pain before toppling over. The super ball, lodged within her pith helmet, came loose and slowly rolled away.

“Got her!” Sweetie Belle cheered, her horn shining teal. Licking her lips, she concentrated on the whip around them, managing to loosen it up enough for the fillies to wiggle free.

No sooner had they stood up than they were gathered up in a crushing hug. “Sweetie Belle, thank goodness you’re alright!”

“Rar… ity,” Sweetie Belle gasped out. “Can’t… breathe…”

“I don’t care! I’m never letting you go, ever again.”

“At least let us go, then!” Scootaloo said as she struggled in the caped mercenary’s grasp.

It took some cajoling from the others, but eventually Rarity let go, allowing the fillies to catch their breath. That gave the older ponies the opening they needed.

“Okay, I shouldn’t be surprised by now that you three followed us,” Rainbow Dash said, giving them a half-lidded stare. “But the least you could have done was to show up sooner so we didn’t have to play the stand-off game with Daring Dinkus over there.”

Rarity sighed, shaking her head. “You girls are going to give poor Fluttershy a heart attack the way you keep slipping away.”

“We’ll make it up to her, I promise,” Apple Bloom said, laying heavy on the puppy dog eyes. “But how could you leave us behind when you keep going on these cool adventures?”

“Let’s not get into a debate on that here. Since there’s no point in sending you back, you’ll just have to come with us.” Rarity lowered her head, looming over Apple Bloom. “And once we do get back, there will be consequences.”

Despite the mask, or perhaps because of it, Apple Bloom shrank away. “O-okay…”

“What a pain,” Rainbow Dash grumbled, turning away to face Daring Do. Or at least, where Daring Do had once laid. “Great, she got away.”

“Forget her,” Rarity said, heading towards a set of stairs carved into the cavern that led upwards. “I’m not in the mood to track her down. With how injured she looked, I doubt she’ll be bothering us any time soon.”

Giving one last look around, Rainbow Dash nodded. “Yeah, I’m not either. She’s always been good at slinking away. About all she’s good for…”

Forming a protective circle around the younger ponies, the Returners all marched out of the cavern room. The three golden figures were left behind, lying undisturbed once again.

.o.O.o.

Once the ponies were back outside, they came across a long overpass stretching across a deep valley. More alert than ever, the group trotted across it, the winds whipping at their manes and tails. Nothing impeded their progress, allowing them to reach the other end without incident. The natural bridge ended at the mouth of a large, gaping cave entrance, far larger than was necessary for a pony to enter through. Twilight took the lead, lighting her horn as she stepped into the blackness beyond.

They walked slowly, staying within the light Twilight provided. The air lay thick around them, as though the ponies were walking through a humid day but without the heat. Even though nothing could be seen beyond Twilight’s light, the feeling of being watched was inescapable.

“Hello-o?” Twilight called out. She cringed at how her voice caught. She swallowed and tried again. “Hello? I’m Twilight Sparkle, daughter of Maduin. Please, we mean you no harm. We just want to talk to you.”

Rustling could be heard, but nopony could pinpoint where it came from.

“Please, just hear us out.”

A blinding flash from above washed over the Returners, forcing them to cover their eyes. Once the spots floating in their vision cleared, the large cavern they found themselves in was now completely illuminated.

They also discovered that they weren’t alone.

Creatures of every size and description surrounded them. No matter where they looked, every esper appeared stranger than the last. A red head floated above them, providing the light for the whole cavern. It grinned down at them, its jaws as wide as its whole body and filled with sharp, white teeth.

The Returners huddled together in a tight group, weapons and magic being prepared.

“Stop!”

Immediately, the espers winced and shrank away. There came the sound of powerful wings flapping overhead. Moments later a new esper touched down, its form radiating authority and power. A combination of bird and reptile, it towered over the Returners, gazing down at them with a head covered with a golden helmet. Its piercing eyes swept over the group, stopping on Twilight. “So, we meet again, little pony.”

Twilight gulped, her hooves trembling.

“I see you finally found out who you really are. Not even I expected that.”

“Twi,” Spike said in a hushed voice. “Who is this? How does he know you?”

Twilight shook her head and took a long, shuddering breath. “You… you’re the one that started all of this. The one that set me free…”

“Wait. You don’t mean that he’s the frozen esper?”

The esper spread its wings wide, displaying its full length for all to gaze upon. “As you can see, I have finally been released from my thousand year imprisonment. Imagine my disappointment that I wake up to find that ponies and espers are still at odds.” It snorted, tendrils of smoke leaking from its nostrils and arcs of lightning flowing over its body. “I am Valigarmanda. Though I go by another name, one that you ponies gave me that is easier to pronounce.

“Tritoch.”

Comments

[Dirty Bit]

Was nice to listen to the game's soundtrack during each part of the chapter. Nice to see Starlight's a part of this as well.

Not to mention incorporating Daring Do in the mountain fight in place of Steven Magnet. I completely forgot about her

[F14m3rz]

Ooh, pretty neat! I wonder what kind of differences will come since Tritoch's all thawed out and such.
If two of the goddesses rose the sun and the moon, does that mean they're Celestia and Luna from the opera, or is it a coincidence meant to befuddle the reader? And if the other statue (the one with dark magic) is represented by a dragon, and dragons seem to have a deeper significance in this story, does that mean it's the Kaiser, or is it simply representative (Perhaps Sombra, given his inclusion in the opera)?
What will the Dragon's Neck Coliseum be like and which of the two will be the overpowered fake (or original, the game wasn't too specific on that part)?
And a thing I've been curious about since it came about. You know how earlier, Pinkie's been trying to cheer Gilda up to no avail? If she sees futility, how will she react, somberly, or with a vengeance? And if she succeeds... That'd be mighty impressive in and of itself.
I can't wait for more... I must have them now!!!!... Or, um, whenever's a good time for you guys.

[The Wyld Stallynz]

6853158
Sombra is the esper leader, so he's been accounted for already. As for the identity of the statues, mums the word.

Lots of other good observations you've made, but, as Yogurt once said, "It will be revealed to you at the proper time."

6852971
Sometimes the show just gives us gifts in terms of characters that are perfect for our purposes.

6852763
Happy to have you aboard!

[F14m3rz]

6854280 Oh, right, sorry about that.

[Fury of the Tempest]

Eh... situation is more complicated than that honestly.

Still, seems I've caught up. Bummer.

[The Wyld Stallynz]

6861096
Which situation are you referring to, exactly?

Glad you are still enjoying our story!

[Fury of the Tempest]

6862408
Ponies and Esper's not getting along.

[Yoshifan30]

Apple Bloom looked up into the mare’s eyes, blinking in confusion. “Okay. Why, Miss Starlight Glimmer?”

Hey Starlight made it to the story and very clever to have her to hide her cutie mark just like in season 5 premiere including the town's folks

[Yoshifan30]

Well another discovery so apparently this town is full of ponies with cutie marks and Magic any hidden away from the society because they will be feared and be killed Starlight explain where the espers took Refuge so they're heading over to the mountains and they found the statues learning about the histories before they could have got going daring do interrupt their Adventures again ( again I felt like she should not be the villain although during those times of the earlier season does not that many villains so I guess you have to do what you got to ) she attacked a group and not only that she took a hostage three of them with that would be the Cutie Mark Crusaders and it looks like they were following them but good thing these girls think fast using their abilities to stop daring do with that they defeated her but she made her Escape but they still continue on so at the cave and it looks like they found the espers and it looks like the same esper that we saw in the beginning of the game Tritoch pretty earlier on to see him again hopefully they listen to what we are going to say