Enter the Spider... or Whatever I Am's Web

by Autum Breeze

Chapter 26

Chapter 26

___________________________________________________________

I turn to speak to Zecora, when a Fold opens right in front of me and I wobble like a loony for several moments on one foot to stop myself from falling through.

I’m pulled back by Will and Hay Lin and we all turn to the Fold as Halinor steps out.

She looks to the Pillars and nods. “It has been quite a time, Star Swirl.”

He blinks for a moment, before said grey stallion speaks in awe. “Lady Halinor? You are still alive? I… I don’t understand. Surely you would have to be over a thousand years old by now… unless, that isn’t how long we’ve been gone?” He looks towards us, questioningly.

She shakes her head. “It has indeed been over a thousand years in your world, Star Swirl. For me? Merely several decades. The how of the matter can be discussed later. For the moment,” she looks towards us, “the Guardians must return to Kandrakar at once. Much has been unveiled that is of great importance to them.”

“But, we literally only just defeated Queen Chrysalis,” Taranee exclaims. “Shouldn’t we stay to help this world get back on its feet, at least a little?”

“Not to mention, the Changeling Queen isn’t the only problem likely going on in this world,” Will nods, glancing to me and I return the gesture. “Mel’s told us about the struggles her Equestria faced. Some of them are likely still an issue in this one.”

“Wait. Her Equestria?” Meadowbrook asks, looking confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“My theory on multiversal existences is correct?” Star Swirl gets a smile on his face very much akin to a certain purple princess. “I knew the Guardians came from another dimension and their powers from the realm of Kandrakar, but there are really other versions of our world out there.”

Halinor nods. “Indeed. In fact, once things are finished here, the Guardians must go aid another.”

“Speaking of whom,” Flash Magnus points a hoof towards me. “How come there’s six of them now? All legends of The Guardians of the Infinite Dimensions, vague as they are, always stated five members. And how come their sixth member looks so vastly different from the others?”

Halinor sighs. “Questions for another time, I’m afraid. Much needs to be discussed with The Guardians. They shall inform you as much as they wish upon their return.”

We all glance at each other, feeling we’re not going to be getting the choice in this and all head through the Fold.

___________________________________________________________

Halinor leads us into the council chamber, where The Oracle steps forward, looking at each of us Guardians in turn.

“Well done, Guardians. The Changeling Queen’s defeat is a good thing.” His expression goes slightly grim. “Had she been left alone, after Miranda’s betrayal, I fear she’d have tried to find a way out of her world to get revenge on Miranda and, should she have succeeded, turned her attention to the other dimensions. By stopping her, you have prevented the need for the Veil’s return.”

“Um, about that,” Irma looks towards me, then back. “How come Mel’s back to normal, if not slightly stronger? And how come our powers bugged out again while we were fighting Queen Bug Pony? I thought Mel’s Heart of Shadow fixed that for now?”

The Oracle frowns in thought. “While we are not completely sure as to how Mel’s power has grown exactly, we can answer about your powers.”

Nuba steps forward. “Though you all tried your best to keep her spirits up, Mel has being feeling empty since her battle with Miranda that left her hospital bound.”

The others all look to me and I can’t meet their eyes, rubbing my right arm.

“Though she tried to fight it, her feeling of hopelessness grew stronger and stronger with each passing day,” The Oracle says. “Then, tonight, she felt totally useless. Despite speaking with her friend Alchemy, it became too much.”

I can feel the others still looking at me and nod. “I just… all I was for you is a way to use your powers and get info you needed. I couldn’t do anything else.”

“Mel, we never thought that way about you,” Cornelia says, a hand on her chest.

“It’s how I felt, though!” I look to them, trying to ignore the tears that had started to try forming. “I’d gone from simply being the weakest of us to nothing but a battery and living library. I knew none of you felt that way, saw me that way, but I couldn’t see myself as anything else.”

“And, in the moment of utter hopelessness, her connection to your all became blocked,” Nuba says firmly.

“Then… how come our powers came back?” Irma asks, before pointing at me. “And how come we were able to transform with only Mel declaring us to unite? Isn’t that something she and Will have to do together now or have I missed something?”

The Oracle lightly laughs. “Somewhat the latter, actually. When young Mel went back to her Equestria, she found herself at the location of Ponhendge just as that Equestria’s Pony of Shadows was being unleashed.”

“Seriously?” Hay Lin asks in disbelief. “Two different world’s Ponies of Shadows were freed on the same day?”

I blink, before my eyes widen. “No! There were three!”

The others look to me, confused and worried.

The Oracle nods. “And, like the other two, Mel took care of the matter.”

“Um, exactly how?” Irma asks incredulously. “Mel couldn’t transform on her own, so how in the world was she able to fight three versions of the same bad guy and win?”

“And with enough time to get to us and save us from the Changeling Queen?” Taranee adds.

The Oracle smiles at me. “It is because of her power over Shadow. Mel absorbed The Pony of Shadows’ power into herself, purifying it and freeing the host within.”

“Wait. Host?!” the girls’ eyes widen in horror.

“That thing was possessing another creature’s body?!” Cornelia looks a mix between disgusted and utterly horrified.

The Oracle nods. “Due to her Shadow power coming not from darkness, but balance and in harmony with the Heart of Kandrakar, Mel was able to pull in the power from each Pony of Shadows and purify it within herself, adding their power to her own in the process.”

“Wait, wait, wait! That reminds me,” I wave my hands, everyone looking to me. “Who was the one who threw me through a Fold into the world with that second Pony of Shadows? His voice was familiar, but I can’t place it. And, the world his Fold sent me to, everypony was Anthro and Peni Parker was there for some reason!”

The others are now looking very confused.

“Penny… Parker?” Irma asks sceptically. “What kind of name for a pony is that?”

“And, if you know her by name, why would seeing that version of Equestria’s version of her be so odd?” Taranee adds.

I shake my head. “No! Peni isn’t a pony! She’s a… wait. Do you guys not have Marvel Comics on your Earth?”

“Well, of course we do,” Irma folds her arms. “What’s that got to do with it?”

I blink. “Oh, right. Spiderverse only came out recently and your Earth is still in the early 2000s era.”

“Huh?” they all ask.

Whoops. Didn’t mean to say that out loud.

I clear my throat, before continuing. “Well, in the world I originally came from before Miranda got me stuck in her body, a movie came out regarding the black Spiderman and… what’s with those looks?”

The confusion only seems to have increased.

“Do… you mean the Venom suit?” Irma asks, cocking her head to the side.

I shake my head. “No, I mean the… wait. Have you guys not even gotten the Miles Morales Spiderman comics yet?”

Shaking head are the only answer.

I scratch my head. “Wow. I mean, I don’t know when they came out exactly myself, but, if you guys don’t have them in your world yet, that must mean they don’t come out til after 2006.”

The Oracle clears his throat and we all blush, realizing how far off topic we’d veered.

Laughing nervously, I clear my own throat and go on.

“Well, in my world, a movie based on that version of Spiderman has several other spider characters enter his world due to a villain’s scheme going wrong.”

“And… I’m guessing this Penny Parker is one of them?” Irma asks, to which I nod. “What, did she get bitten in her universe instead of Peter Parker.”

I scratch my neck a little nervously. “Actually, she’s Peter Parker’s half Japanese daughter from the year 3145 and shares a psychic link with a spider in a robot Peter made for her.”

Blank stares are the only reply.

“Well, anyway,” I look to The Oracle, frowning. “Why was Peni Parker in that other Equestria I was thrown through that Fold into?”

The Oracle closes his eyes, before frowning. “You needn’t worry about that for now. Your focus should be on the other Equestrias you know. If this Peni Parker is a hero from a comic book, like you’ve suggested, I don’t see her being a threat. I doubt she’s even aware of the Infinite Dimensions.”

“Uh, so, we’re just told a fictional character from a comic book somehow is real in a different version of Equestria and you’re telling us we should just ignore it?” Irma asks incredulously.

I feel a slight nudge in my side and turn to my right to see a small ghost version of Discord floating next to me, giving me a cheeking smile and a “Get it? Get it?” expression, before winking and disappearing.

I’m just going to pretend I didn’t see that. Trying to figure out why Discord does what he does is almost as pointless are trying to understand the impossibility that is Pinkie Pie.

The Oracle sighs. “For now, your duties as Guardians comes first. And, getting back to the matter of Mel’s powers, by absorbing The Pony of Shadows’ power, her own somewhat replenished. This, plus a little added amount of our own life energy, is why she was able to regain her strength and now can transform you of her own choice, just like Will.”

I blink, before my eyes widen, Hay Lin speaking before I can open my mouth.

She gasps. “Does that mean Will can’t transform us now? Has Mel somehow been made our leader instead?”

“Because, if that is the case, I won’t have it!” I follow, pointing at The Oracle. “You can choose who’s leader, so return leadership to Will right now!”

The Oracle holds up a hand, his expression calm. “There is no cause for alarm, Guardians. Will Vandom is still your leader. However, as is the case with recent maters, a new, unexpected development has happened.”

“With her power restored slightly by absorbing three Ponies of Shadows and the slight boost we gave her so she could defeat the third one in particular, something we were unaware of has been revealed regarding Mel and Will’s shared leadership.”

“With more power, it seems Mel is also able to transform you now, without herself and Will needing to both do it at the same time,” Nuba chimes in.

“Okay,” Will frowns, before glancing at me. “Let’s test that.”

She depowers us, then activates our powers again, herself being the only one to speak.

To our surprise, it works.

“So, either Mel or Will can change us now?” Hay Lin gasps, her eyes lighting up.

The Oracle nods. “We merely did not know this til recent events due to so much of her Shadow Heart’s power being diverted to open the links to your Aurameres.”

“That is so. COOL!” Irma cheers, the five of them gathering around me, herself hugging me around the neck from behind.

Taranee suddenly pulls away, frowning. “Wait. If there was a Pony of Shadows in both Mel’s Equestria, the one she was sent to and the Changeling one, doesn’t that mean the others would have one too?”

There’s a long pause, before we all look to The Oracle, who nods.

“You are correct, Fire Guardian. There are likely other Ponies of Shadows in the other Equestrias you will be visiting.”

“And other Pillars, too!” I gasp, it clicking, before frowning. “Wait. Will we have to find all the artefacts in their worlds to do that too? Because how in the world are we supposed to find Star Swirl’s book in all of them? We don’t even know where Cheese Legs found that world’s version.”

The Oracle thinks for a moment. “I suppose, if you used the ones from either the world now liberated from the Changelings or the one you call yours, Shadow Guardian, it should work. Though, if it does not…”

We all sigh.

Yeah. No need to explain, there.

The Oracle shakes his head, before his expression firms. “Regardless, once you have settled all the issues in the Equestria you just freed, you shall need to head for the next one.”

“And now we’ll need to be ready for more than just whatever’s wrong with each world,” Irma sighs, rubbing the back of her neck. “A Guardian’s work is never done, is it?”

“For now,” Halinor says, holding up a hand, three Folds opening, “I think it best you all return to Earth and rest.”

“Oh, Will, Irma, Aunt Sue and your parents think you’re having another study sleepover. Will, you’ll have to spend the night at Irma’s place.”

Will nods, sighing. “Figured as much.”

I blink, before smacking my forehead and running my hand down my face. “And, despite feeling fully healed, I’ll have to keep using that crutch for a while.”

Taranee, Hay Lin and Corenlia groan loudly.

“What?” Caleb asks, confused.

“We’ve still got classes in a few hours,” Hay Lin whines. “And we’re so tired!”

Will, Irma and I chuckle nervously.

The Oracle thinks for a moments, before indicating us all to come together.

At once, I feel extremely exhausted and, judging by the looks or Will and Irma, so do they.

“Now, those who have the day ahead of them will have the energy to move on,” he nods, looking to the three of us. “And, those heading for bed, now have a reason too.”

If that’s meant to be a joke, if I weren’t suddenly so tired, I’d so deck him one.

Too tired to argue, though, we all say our goodbyes and I walk through my Fold.

I barely have the energy to change into my pajamas and, while I don’t like going to bed without bathing, fall asleep almost as soon as my head hits the pillow.

___________________________________________________________

From the street, a figure watch as a light flashed in Mel and Will’s room.

Their green eyes remained fixed to the window as the silhouette of someone moved around, before the small light within the room went dark.

Sighing, they turned and walked down the street, hands in their pockets.

Author's Note:

WE'RE BACK!

So, so, so, so, so-so sorry for this STUPIDLY long delay.

Due to certain issues with my computer, I haven't been able to do anymore writing since my last post until just today.

Technically, i got use of my computer back two days ago, but i then had to find the drive to write again properly and, despite having wanting to return to writing for so, so long, the full drive was alluding me until about 3 hours ago and, here we are.

Now, in what i had originally planned for this chapter way back before my computer kind goofed on me, i had more explanations and revelations planned out, but, with the time frame today for writing being what it was, i couldn't properly get the words out, so this is sadly the best i could do.

While last chapter I'd said my main next plans were to update my Maximum Ride, Haku, Peni Parker, Ranma, maybe Love Bug's Life and Dora stories, the long absence from writing and this chapter's plans lingering over my head all that time made it hard to focus.

now that i'm able to use my computer again an have got this out, however, i SHOULD be able to get back to them... which is really good since, during my time unable to use my computer, i've had a few good ideas for those fics. Love Bug's Life and Dora in particular i've some fun ideas planned that will help them move forward where i'd had a block before.

to not spoil but give some hints to intrigue, for Love Bug's Life, i'm using a suggestion from the comments in its last chapter. have fun guessing which.

As for Dora, she's now NOT going to be present for Dance Magic or the majorty of events leading up to it due to a certain mare being none too pleased with her right now. Look forward to what that means.

On the plus side, having had to wait so long has yielded some interesting advantages.

Due to Disney canceling all physical media here in Australia for the forseeable future, i've been taken advantage of a few things to make sure i have some spares of Disney DVDs in case my originals go and, by chance, i recently found not too bad condition 2 disc sets for the original Lion King, Tarzan and Lilo & Stitch.

With Disney no longer giving us new copies with less features, getting those on the offhand chance i'll need them is good.

i've also double of other Disney DVDs, including 101 Dalmatians 2 Disc edition, Robin Hood and even Dumbo (though the latter is just a special edition copy while my main use one is the 70th Anniversary one).

So, having to wait so long to update hasn't been too bad, i suppose.

Anywho, as it is after 8pm and i want to get a little fun DVD watching (not necessarily any i mentioned here) done before i have to hit the hay, as i've work tomorrow and, in the time between my last ability to update and now, my work shift time changed, so i've got to be up at least 2 hours earlier than i used to nowadays, so i'll stop rambling here.

Hope this chapter was at least somewhat worth the long wait and, til next time, stay safe, stay clean and goodnight everybody

Comments

[Dark Feather]

Glad to have you back