My Brave Pony: Starfleet Magic Season XI

by DakariKingMykan

Episode 14: Dreaming of You

EPISODE FOURTEEN

Lady Phantasma addressed the principal again, “My patience are wearing thin, Zadovia. What excuses have you for me this time?”

Zadovia bowered, “Not excuses, Mistress, but a new plot that may very well regather energy for our cause and bring us closer to seeking the Golden Sword of Arien.”

“Go on…”

The plan was all on Emcee…

She was hard at work creating a new formula in her laboratory. She poured liquid into beakers, added powders and other ingredients, heated them up on a Bunsen burner.

“Yes…!” she cackled “It’s going to work.”

There was a loud knock at her door.

“Come in! Come in! Whoever you are…!”

Mash and Magi walked in.

“Hey, Em…” called Mash “What’s taking so long? Zadovia’s waiting.”

“You’re just in time.” hissed Emcee as she held up her flask. “This new formula will create a monster with a great ability.”

“Like I’ve heard that one before.” muttered Magi.

Emcee growled, and pointed at her chalkboard of equations and theories. “It is well known fact that dreams can often have an effect on the emotional stability of the subject, and thus will guarantee us vast amounts of dream energy to continue our quest to find the golden sword.

Bored with Emcee’s lecture, Mash demanded, “Will you just show us?”

Frustrated and outraged by her colleagues’ disrespect, Emcee still maintained her rage and poured the formula onto the floor, and thus four monsters rose up from the goop.

They were all completely black in color, and had hardly any features; not even eyes, or mouths, but they did wear evil masks with grey and white stripes and designs.

Emcee snickered at her creatures, “Wonderful.”

Magi and Mash weren’t as impressed.

“These are your monsters?” asked Magi. “They really don’t look like much.”

The monsters seemed offended, but not nearly as Emcee. “You just watch…” then she signaled to her creations. “…Show them your thing.”

The monsters agreed, and demonstrated the power that Emcee had given them.

Mash and Magi were deeply surprised.

“Not bad.” remarked Mash.

Magi smirked wickedly, “This ought to be interesting.”

Emcee snickered, “That’s only part of what they can do. My new formula has an extra effect. It doesn’t work on us, but Starfleet is in for the fight of their dreams now.”

Starla was seeing Doctor Penny, having her examination. She was officially one month pregnant, and while her stomach was still not showing, naturally, she still had to be prepared to stick a schedule that the doctor was preparing for her.

“You stick to the schedule, just like you did with Shining Light.”

“Don’t worry, I will.” Starla said in a rather low tone.

Penny blinked once. “Is everything okay?”

Starla sighed, “Oh, it’s just the usual.”

Penny understood, and she didn’t have to warn Starla.

“…I know, I know.” she cut in “I’ll behave.”

She then was dismissed, and she took three lollipops-- one for herself, one for Lightning, and one for Shining Light.

The family left the hospital, with Shining Light in his stroller, happily waving his lollipop still in its wrap.

“So?” Lightning asked.

“What?”

“…Are you feeling okay?”

His wife rolled her eyes, “How many times are you going to ask me that?”

He gave her a small look, and before either of them said another thing, they saw a big crowd up ahead, and they already could see who it was.

Princess Candace and Shining Armor were visiting New Ponyville doing their annual charity donations, and Cadance was handing out fancy little flower baskets to all the nice children, whom were delighted as always when she visited.

“There you are.” she said sweetly.

One little colt handed her a flower made of a paper. “I made this for you, Princess.”

“Oh, how sweet...” Cadance cooed “Thank you, very much.” And she leaned over and pecked him on his cheek, making him blush.

As soon as all the baskets were done, and the children had cleared away; Lightning and family came up to the royal family.

“Hey, look whose here.” said Shining Armor as he came by carrying Flurry Heart on his shoulders.

Flurry gasped with glee. “Shining Light…!”

“Hey!!” cheered Shinning.

Shining Armor let his daughter down, and she ran over to the little toddler. Then she stopped, and acted bashful and Shining Light, being a sweet little boy he way, offered her his unopened lollipop, which made her blush and giggle.

“Thank you…” she cooed, and she pecked him on the cheek.

“Awww, that’s so sweet.” cooed Cadance.

Starla and Lightning agreed, they had such a sweet little boy, and they looked greatly forward to their second child.

With plenty of time on hand, in view of things, the parents decided to head to playground so the children could have some fun in the kiddy area, and the parents could get hotdogs from a vendor.

Starla had to order a low-fat one because her new diet. She still didn’t seem too happy.

“Is everything okay?” asked Shining Armor.

Starla sighed irritably and snapped. “I’m just fine!!” She immediately realized what she had just done, and she turned to see the other three staring at her with shocked expression.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to yell.”

Part of it was to blame on the mood swings, but Lightning knew what was really troubling her.

Cadance then said to the men, “Why don’t you guys go play with the kids. I’ll talk with her-- woman-to-woman.”

The men agreed, and left the ladies to sit on a bench.

“So…” Cadance said.

“So what…?”

Cadance gave her a look, “Come on, now… what’s bothering you, but I think I already know.”

Starla sighed, and she came clean.

It had been a while since she had battled, or done anything to aid in a battle. Now that she was fully off of it, she really felt lost in the doldrums. She couldn’t even send her remote droid to do any battling for her, because it didn’t possess a bracelet to enable it to go into Dream-Mode, thus rendering it totally useless.

True, she had her stargazing and mapping, her lectures and conferences, as well as her mothering Shining Light…

“I just miss being part of the action, and driving the evil away. I’m feeling… I don’t know… useless.” She paused and sighed, “And I still have many months left of this until the baby comes.”

Cadance shook her head, “You’re not useless; you’re just bored because you’re missing all the action. I know the feeling.”

She paused, and cringed a little softly. Remembering when she was pregnant with her first child, and how that ended up in disaster…

“Oh, Cadance, I--” Starla said before she was interrupted by Cadance saying. “It’s okay. It just gets me now and then.”

She went on to explain how she had to avoid many of her own duties, and often keep in bed, which was harsh and annoying. “…Even still, I was able to attend meetings telepathically, and I was still able to do some paperwork.

…So even though I wasn’t as active, I was still doing a lot. You don’t have to feel useless.

Do you get what I’m saying?”

Starla gave a goofy look, “…Do you?”

Cadance raised her eyebrow. “The point is… Try not to let it get to you. Use this time to get some rest, kick back, and chill.”

Starla wasn’t sure if she could as easily. “…That’s my problem; I’m strictly an action-woman.”

Meanwhile, the kids were sitting in the kiddy-swings as their dads playfully pushed them.

Lightning had told Shining Armor pretty much the same things. “I don’t know how to help her. There’s just no way for her to help out in battle, and it’s really getting to her.”

Shining Armor felt sorry for Starla. “All I can tell you is; even though you think you’re not doing enough, you really are doing more than you think.”

To Lightning those words sounded very familiar, and he remembered too well. “Twilight…?”

Shining nodded softly, and with a hint of sadness.

Lightning then had a little memory of his own; to when his father taught him the ways of peace. “Remember Lightning, just because you’re small, and you can’t do everything, that doesn’t make you useless or unworthy. That is a sign of true peace.”

Lightning began to sink into despair, missing his parents dearly.

The two men were snapped out of their moment of grieving when the kids asked for more pushes on the swings, which they obliged.

As the mothers watched from the bench, Starla was still contemplating about her situation.

She remembered to way back when she was really little, and her mother, told her, “Just remember, Starla…Sometimes you may not feel like you’re much, but there’s so much more you can be if you want it.”

How she missed her mother, yet her words stuck with her, even if she forgot it once in a while.

Suddenly, all the children in the park began to scream and panic and the alarms sounded as well.

Starla looked up, “A dream field!”

It was on the move, heading straight towards the playground.

“Daddy…!!” Flurry and Shining Light wailed.

The fathers saw the field, and there was just no time to get everyone evacuated. They, along with all the other patrons, were all trapped inside the field as it covered the park completely.

All the children were instantly scared of the darkness and the eeriness, and they began to cry.

Emcee stood atop the jungle gym. “Crying, frightened children,” she laughed “…Oh, how I love that sound.”

Lightning and the Crystal Royals were the only ones that could stand up to her and whatever she would throw their way.

Starla, already realizing it would be up to her to at least watch other the children and the patrons, but not actually battle, and took Shining Light and Flurry Heart in her arms.

“Mommy, Daddy!” cried Flurry who didn’t like to be away from her folks when she was scared.

“It’s okay, honey. Everything will be just fine.” her mother assured her.

Starla then huddled everyone away from the playground, while Lightning and the royals transformed.

“Starfleet Magic…!”

“Go-Go, Ninja…!”

“Mask of Saber…!”

The quickly engaged their Dream-Modes.

The three fighters stood, glaring at Emcee, who flicked her lab coat as if she were motioning them to come and get her.

“Let’s get her!” shouted Lightning.

His comrades nodded, and they leapt forth with him to attack, but Emcee leapt up high.

Lightning began to shoot his pulses, and Cadance threw her shurikens, which Emcee blocked with her strong coat, and then she threw two explosive vials at them, which they dodged causing the vials to hit the ground and explode.

The explosion frightened many of the children in the crowd; their mothers did their best to calm them.

Saber then lunged for Emcee, whirling his chain and ready to strike her. “I’ll get you!”

“I don’t think so!” snapped Emcee, and with a snap of her fingers, one of her masked monsters appeared before her.

“What the…!” groaned Saber.

The monster’s mask began to glow, and then right before his eyes the monster took on the shape of Twilight Sparkle.

Saber could not believe his eyes. “Twilight…?”

He actually stood frozen where he was, and dropped his chain.

Lightning Cadance and Starla could hardly believe their eyes either.

“That isn’t, Twilight.” said Lightning “It’s just an illusion.”

Saber couldn’t seem to move an inch, nor did he even make a sound.

Two more monsters then appeared before Lightning and Cadance. The fighters stood ready to battle, when the monsters changed shape, resembling other familiar figures.

“Dad…?” Lightning cried softly.

Cadance made no sound, but whom she saw was none other than her son, Amando.

“It can’t be!” she said in thought “But my son is dead; he died from stillbirth!”

Lightning knew his father was really dead, but just seeing what even looked like his father there before his eyes just brought on so many feelings at once.

He and Cadance were suddenly frozen on the spot just like Saber was.

Emcee laughed. “It works. Yet another breakthrough for the dreams of science!”

“Hey!!” Starla called over to her friends. “Snap out of it! They’re not really there, you’re just dreaming!”

Emcee then began to move towards her and the crowd. “It’s no use, they can’t hear you.

Everyone dreams of something dear; something so precious that just seeing before your eyes can leave you speechless, stuck, unable to believe it.”

Starla was about to call to her friends again, when the fourth monster appeared, and transformed into what appeared to be Starla’s mother.

“Ah!” she yelped “Mom…?”

Seeing her mother’s face, and the way she gave a loving smile-- Starla also began to fall under the trance.

“N-N-N… No!” she groaned as she felt herself slipping away. “It’s… just a… dream!”

“General Starla!” cried a mother, but Starla was slowly slipping deeper into her trance.

“Mommy?” peeped Shining Light.

Emcee snickered, “Perfect. No more distractions. Now the real fun begins.”

She laughed as she raised her arms way up, thus activating a new ability of the stronger dream field…

It could unleash extra dream syphons, thus making it easier for Emcee to look at people’s dreams, as well as sap power.

All the mothers and their children, even Flurry and Shining were hit with the syphons, and Emcee viewed all their dreams.

“You’ve got to be kidding?!” she growled when she ceased the syphons. “Happy dreams, peaceful dreams; even loving, beautiful dreams-- it’s all so wonderful, but not a sign of the sword!”

The children were all cried and cried in fear after the syphons left them, while the four fighters were still stuck in their trances.

Seeing the faces of their loved ones sealed the deal the monster they took their first glimpse, and trapped them in shock and grief.
They also found themselves wandering in dreams of their own.

Shining Armor was pushing Twilight on a swing and having a wonderful time…

Cadance was rocking her baby boy in a chair and singing to him…

Starla saw her mother, and dreamed of watching her train, and how she was such an inspiration and a hero to her…

And Lightning… there he was, back on Planet Harmonius, with not only his father, but his mother, his friends, and his old childhood. He was even five years old again, and everything was all peaceful and fun, and nothing to worry about.

“This isn’t real; it can’t be!” he said to himself, and yet he couldn’t seem to snap out of it.

“Oh, well.” sighed Emcee “I did get lots of energy, and I can still eliminate you pests so you won’t interfere with our plans any longer.”

She marched straight over to Lightning, “And what better way than to start with you, Commander.”

She reached into her coat and pulled out a vial of deadly poison, which she planned to use to destroy Lightning for good, and he still couldn’t pull himself from his fix.

That is… until he could hear a faint voice calling to him.

“…Daddy!”

“Huh?

Shining Light, even at a mere age of two couldn’t bear to see his father in trouble, so he called to him.

“Daddy…!!”

“Daddy…!!”

Lightning could feel his senses starting to come back. “…Shining Light?”

Starla, being right near her son, could hear him more clearly, and she began to come to her senses as well.

Finally, her son and Flurry Heart began to shake her legs, which helped her even more, and she managed to snap out of her trance and move again.

“What the…?” she was then careful not to look at the monster standing before her and falling under the trance again.

She also looked up ahead and saw Lightning was about to get hit by Emcee.

“Lightning!”

Despite her orders not to fight, this was a full-scale emergency, and more than an exception.

She didn’t bother to don her super armor, but she did reach for her dream-band

“Engage Dream-Mode!”

Once she was glowing, she shut her eyes and gave the monster before her a swift and strong kick to its chest, sending the creature sailing hard into Emcee and the monster by Lightning.

With the monster knocked down and no longer in his sight, Lightning was set free. “Galloping Galaxies…!”

“You crazy creations…!!” growled Emcee as she struggled with the monsters on her. “Get off me!”

Lightning then quickly rushed over to the other two monsters, and punched them down, thus freeing Cadance and Saber.

“Hey… what happened?” groaned Saber.

Cadance shrugged and shook her head.

“Good, you’re back to normal.” said Lightning.

The other two finally realized what he meant-- how they were dreaming that they saw their loved ones and felt that they couldn’t move.

Lightning looked at Starla and smiled lovingly in thanks at her.

She nodded back at him.

The monsters all stood at Emcee’s sides.

“What was easily done once can be done again.” she sneered, and she signaled to her monsters, “Shock them again.”

The monster began to morph their faces.

“Not this time.” said Lightning. His comrades had the same idea he did, and all three of them shut their eyes tightly.

Starla then motioned for all the civilians and the children “Everyone, huddle around me.”

The civilians did as they were told, and once they were all huddled together, Starla shut her eyes tightly, and began to concentrate her magic producing a powerful barrier dome over everyone.

“Everyone do as I say and keep your eyes shut tight.”

Flurry Heart and Shining Light held hands softly trying to be brave, and shut their eyes along with everyone else.

“If we don’t see your monsters’ faces, they can’t shock us again.” said Saber.

Emcee growled. “Clever…! But something you don’t know: My monsters don’t just stun you, they can fight as well!

Get them!!”

The monsters rushed forth swiftly, like ninjas rushing into action, but much to their and Emcee’s surprise, the fighters leapt up and out of the way.

“What?!” snapped Emcee.

“Something you don’t know…” Lightning called down to her “We can fight even with our eyes shut. We can tell where you are, or what you’ll do!”

One of the monsters leapt up at Lightning to attack him, but zipped out of the way, and feeling the monster’s presence, he flew back and kicked the creature, sending it slamming down to the ground.

The noise from the battle made all the civilians nervous, but as Starla had instructed, “Everybody stay! Keep your eyes shut tight.” and the people and the children obeyed.

Cadance, being a skilled ninja, stood idly as two monsters tried to rush her from either side, and at the last second, she zipped out of the way, causing the monsters to strike each other.

The got up and tried to attack her again-- punching and kicking from many angles, but she skillfully could sense their every attack, and dodge or block them with ease.

Then then swiftly removed her ninja scarf, and because it was made of strong material, she was able to use it to lasso the legs of one of the monsters, and then whirl it round and around, smashing it into the other monster without once opening her eyes.

Emcee, growing more frustrated with her creations and their bungling, grabbed two vials out from her coat, and she eyed at Lightning and Cadance.

Without talking, she tossed the vials thinking it was a clear shot, but she was wrong.

Saber could still hear the sound of her clothes scraping, as well as the motion of the breath.

“STRIDENT SHOCKWAVE” he shot the vials causing them to explode, the force of which sent Emcee sailing backwards hard.

The explosion sent bits of rocks huddling towards the civilians, but Starla’s barrier kept everyone safe.

All four of the monsters were huddled together.

“Let’s finish these creeps!” Lightning hollered.

“I’m with you.” agreed Saber.

Cadance snapped her fingers twice, signalling she was ready too.

Lightning powered up…

Saber grabbed his sword, and powered it up…

Cadance brought her hands together, and began to charge up her Ninja Finisher Wave, which she then fired.

“SHOCKING SABER STRIKE” Saber slashed his sword, unleashing the electrical currents flowing through its blade.

“UNIFORCE” Lightning unleashed his own power…

…The four monsters were destroyed in four explosions, and once the four nightmare bubbles were heard popping, everyone felt it was safe to open their eyes again to see the dream field dissolving, and Emcee seething with outrage.

“You’ll pay for this!” she vowed as she quickly retreated-- vanishing out of sight.

With the villains gone, and the darkness of the dream field vanished, the civilians cheered for joy. Even though they all had their dreams looked at and their energies drained, no one was really hurt, and they all remained grateful to Starfleet for driving the evil away.

Starla reached down and hugged her little son.

Cadance and Shining Armor, untransformed, came over to embrace Flurry Heart.

The moment was suddenly broken when Lightning stood before Starla and cleared his throat. He then looked upon his wife with a rather disappointed expression.

He spoke softly but firmly. “You battled when you were told not.”

Starla didn’t feel the least bit nervous and answered, “Yes… Yes, I did.”

Lightning then smiled, “Well done. You helped save us all.”

Starla smiled back at him and held up Shining. “You should thank him; he called to you, and he shook my leg.”

Lightning took their son from her, and smiled at him proudly, and his son beamed back at him too. “You’re a chip off me, that’s for sure.”

Shining only hugged his father, “Daddy.”

The crowd just awed at the loving sight.

Back at the school, Emcee was horrible enraged as she smashed glasses, and kicked over chairs and desks in her laboratory.

Magi and Mash backed away to give her space to vent.

“I can’t believe those rotten pests made a mockery of my experiment… again!!”

She let out a roar, and shoved a whole bunch of things off her desk in outrage.

“I won’t let my dreams by sullied like this forever. I will gather my resources! I will correct my mistakes!! I WILL GET MY REVENGE!!”

Zadovia was peeking into the lab through the door, which was slightly open. She was very disappointed, not just by Emcee’s blunder, but all three of the teachers with their constant failure to locate the sword of Arien.

As she walked down the dark hallways of her schools, she thought very seriously, “If things don’t start to improve soon, I hate to think what Lady Phatasma will do… to all of us.”


Meanwhile, even with the evil gone, some of the family decided to leave the playground, especially Lightning and the Crystal Family-- the kids needed their naps.

Starla didn’t seem to feel or look too grumpy anymore.

“Feeling better?” asked Cadance.

“A little.” replied Starla. “It felt good to at least help out, but I know I have to take easier. Still, it just felt great.”

Everyone was pleased to see her getting a sense of spark back, but then they all shifted into serious expression.

“Still… that was some battle.” said Shining Armor. “I mean… I actually saw Twilight.”

The others all felt the same, and while they already accepted the fact what they saw were just illusions; seeing the faces of their loved ones, and being frozen at the sight… so many memories and thoughts came to them.

“The Nightmares are getting stronger.” Lightning deduced “If they can play with our minds and our hearts the way they did today--”

He paused, and everyone felt the same as he did.

“We have to train stronger so as not to get bought in like that again.” said Cadance.

Lightning agreed, “We also have to come up with better ways to protect the civilians too.”

Everyone knew that wouldn’t be easy, seeing as only those with dream bands could actually do anything against the nightmares.

They would find a way; they had to!

(Promo)

In our next episode: It’s off to a cooking festival in New Cloudsdale, where Apple Spice has a chance to meet and impress an idol of his, but his confidence is way shot. The School of Nightmare’s head chef decides to strike out on his own and make his own recipes for Dream Eating.

Can Starfleet overcoming these culinary nightmares? And can Apple Spice overcome his own doubt?

Don’t miss the next exciting episode of Starfleet Magic!

(Next Episode: “Lunch is Severed”)