Cyclonestorm

by Sweetlilkitten

Cyclonestorm Premiere

The morning singing birds wakes me up slowly. Exiting my bed I eventually reach my glass and try to fix my hairs. I end up just letting them in my usual haircut, long straight hair until my front hooves.
Oh. I didn’t presented myself. I’m Esperanza. Yes, my hairs are naturally orange. They float a bit like that just naturally too. They are the same as my mother, the Princess Obsidianna Querer. I otherwise have everything of my other mother, Princess Glowstone. Her body, her great wings, her strengths and her weaknesses.

At their time, after Princess Greenpeace and Princess Goldenheart have ruled our lands prosperously, my mothers helped making our kingdom great and powerful. When they married it was a good thing anyone was proud and happy about in our lands. And I am inspiring for doing the same. If I found someone yet.
This day isn’t a specially interesting day. No true events planned, no issues happening, just usual business.

So I go out and look at my subjects. Most of them either cheer me with a wave or smile to me. I usually can’t find someone sad. I really have hope in how my subjects are able to always take care of each other when someone is in trouble.
There is the usual commercial boutique just there, here the place with cute little trees where people and often kids plays around mindlessly in peace...

“Hello, Princess Esperanza!” Mister Downguard the blacksmith waves at me with his forging hammer.

“Hi Downguard!” I reply to them.

“Hey Princess!” The mayor of the city smiles at me.

“Hello Seira!” I wave at her.

“Good morning your highness.” The chief of the Guardians, Valentia, bows for me.

“Good morning my dear.” I smile to her.

Walking around I find a young filly crying, laying on the ground.

“What’s wrong my sugarcube??” I ask the cute face before her eyes have sparkles of my mane reflecting in them.

“These bullies stolen my biscuits!” She reply, calming her sobs.

I concentrate myself and can, using my magic, create an icecream. I levitates it to her tiny hooves when she suddenly look like the happiest pony ever.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!” The filly says.

I walk again for a bit and find the ponies the cutie pie have gestured at me.

“Hey.” I try to grab their attention. “Why are you all so dumb?”

They eventually stop laughing in their jerk style.

“But she’s a fool.” One retort.

In a second with my magic I overload his fur in static energy to make them look like a pufferfish.

“Next time I’ll tell your parents.” I say.

“Yes, your majesty.” He replies when I smirk at him after my usual royal stare.

---

Bit later in the morning I fly until the top of the observatory there is on our highest point of our city.

“Princess Esperanza. We were waiting for you.” Valentia slightly bows again.

“What’s the matter, general?” I ask them as they all watch my movements.

“The databiotics have shown a dangerous rise of the storms, your majesty.” She looks worried, waiting for me to act in reply of the situation.

“We need to get a ceremony soon then?” I ask.

“We aren’t going to have time to.” She retorts.

Me and some of the guards urge to the embed Unity Crystal that is laying in a precious pedestal made of gems, and we get in line. The torches slightly illuminating each of our movements as their gentle crackling noises get to our ears. The guards and Valentia bows in front of the pedestal, and I stare at the great purple cube that is the Unity Crystal. I mumble something in a forgotten language and my horn shines as the usual magic humming sound fill the quiet calm cave ambiance there is in these undergrounds.

A second after I feel my face and my body becoming bright white, light and powerful aura exits me as my magic absorb the Crystal’s energy. My hairs becomes even more colorful as a rainbow, and the cube dissolve into me, as I integrate it’s powers in me.

“We have to act fast. The shield effects will cease soon.” I warn my guards, once the energy of the cube cease to make be too bright.

“We will do our best your highness.” Valentia nod with her head in agreement.

When I head outside with some of the guards they have just the right reflex to invoke a shield to protect myself from the heavy hailstorm happening right now.

“Alright everypony! We have to embark on the ships right now, this is an major Cyclonestorm, we can’t afford to stay here!” I try to shout to the most people that can hear, most of the citizens screaming and running around.

Suddenly a pile of rubble or something collapses, I don’t see it much, I just have time to seize it with my magic before it reaches the ponies under it, soon enough my guards will help levitate it somewhere to not hurt anypony.

After a chaotic start we can come to embark the ships, but many are still on the ground. We have a dozen of ships, but 3 already got damaged and are now un-launchable.

“Your majesty, if we don’t order the commanders to leave right now, we will have no single ship getting out of here in one piece!” Valentia adverts me.

“But we can’t leave somepony behind!?!” I retort, in panic.

But when I turn around, a pillar collapses on a group of ponies in the distance which were standing there. A few others get hurt by the rain of the ice balls. I can’t let them here can I? No! I will never do that!

I fly in direction of a group of ponies and levitates them to the ship. This is using a lot of my energy, but I have to. I have to save them. They are my people. As soon as I started my guards join me, even if they have difficulties moving even one or two with their magic they still can help. After a time, about 2 ships are full. I aim towards a group of ponies that are under a great arch, trying to climb onboard, when suddenly an ice ball strikes my back and makes me fall on the ground.

“Esperanza!!!” Valentia screams in fear of me getting hurt. She rarely pronounce my name that loudly unless she is really stressed for me.

I can manage to buildup a shield all over the little area of the aerial ship docks, but that uses a lot of me.

“Come on ponies! Get in the third ship!” I beg them to make it to the ship in time.

“My princess you are in great danger here!” Valentia flies to the airs and tries to retain a big ice block to fall on the shield and dislodge it.

“The shield won’t hold long! Hurry!!” I trembles in my efforts.

It is way harder to evacuate a city when in pure disaster like this than we could think of. And then I was out.

“Your highness, attention!!” Valentia worries.

The next instant an ice piece knocks me down.

---

“Your majesty, are you alright?” I hear a voice, coming from Valentia I think. I can barely wake up and she hugs me. Her wings always movement with her emotions and they are all unfolded right now. “Good, you are waking up.”

“Mhh. What happened...?” I mumble, feeling a bit hurt.

“The energy of the Unity Crystal could heal your injuries already, so you should only feel a bit hurt. We can’t say the same about everypony here.” She gesture at the injured ones.
I shake my head trying to regain consciousness fully.

“Is everypony alright? Does everypony could get in the ships?” I fear.

“I.. Think so?” Seira says, looking around.

“Mommy!!” Suddenly a filly starts crying. “Where are you?!?”

Otherponies soon will be concerned for somepony.

“Please my people, don’t be scared.. I’m sure we will find a solution to return to our motherland.” I try to reassure them.

The filly crying for her mommy is approached by a friend or someone they know and they hug.

Suddenly the thunder strikes and everypony fears it. I even do a step back and glance through the windows, the clouds getting towards us, even if we are still faster than the storm.

“Please have faith in the Crystal of Unity, it is the only thing that can save us and it needs your trust to do so.” I try to remind them our traditions, as my heart slightly brights through me in the form of the cube. “Now, who need heal?”

As soon as I ask a crowd of ponies, bleeding or red or the like of being hurt raises a hoof.

After getting care of every citizen I can heal and wandering enough in the 3 ships of ours that could getaway, I can finally return to rest. But when I can only start to close my eyes, a foal pull my hoof a little.

“Princess..” He tries to get my attention. I open my eyes and glance around, when I see Valentia walking towards me, her face surely tells she will ask the foal to let me sleep in peace. But I do a gesture to her saying it’s okay, and I look at the foal in front of me. “My daddy couldn’t make it to the ship..” He continues in cries. “I’m here all by myself and I don’t know anyone and I’m so scared!!” He fall in sobs, making rain of his tears.

I can only share a bit of his tears when I think about it and I hug him.

“It’s okay little one, I’m here. What happened? Don’t you have anyone you know here?” I ask him.

“We moved in recently to the city with daddy and I never knew my mommy.. I have no family!” He cries.

“Hey, darling.” I wipe his tears away with a tissue. “You have a family. Our nation is. All our power we find it in our kind. Those that their spirits and wills of good looks like us. Those that are our brothers and sisters of our country. And if you want, for this travel, I can be your family. Would that chase your sadness away a little bit?”

He nods cutely. I hug him and I snuggle him to sleep.

Finally in calm I close my own eyes.

---

“Your highness. We need your decision.” Valentia wakes me up.

“Where is the foal?” I ask, worrying for him as it was the last thing I thought.

“Oh. He found friends to stay with when he woke up a bit earlier. You are an angel.” She says when she thinks about what I do for everypony. “We have in sight a shore. We were waiting for your orders.”

“Lets hope it is desert and we find shelter in there.” I say. “Aim to that island.”

“Yes your majesty!” She salute.

“What the princess wants from us now?” Somepony mumbles in the crowd. “Are we doomed yet?” Someone else asks. “I hope she have a solution!” Somepony worries.

I stand on a little stool and close my eyes, nodding in hope for them to hold their fears a few hours more.

“My dear people. The Unity motherland have to stay strong and tied up. We have unified our forces to survive through decades, a great number of threats, and even through losses, we could reborn and find our way out of the darkness.”

“But what if we can’t?” Someone says. “What if some already are on these lands?” Someone else adds. “What if they don’t accept us on their lands!?!??” Another panics.

“My friends!” I beg them to stay bounded together. “There is no reason for that. We will walk in peace and only offer our best help and advancements if we are allowed to stay on their steps.” I smile to them in reason. “We are in troubles and I don’t see how anyone wouldn’t want to help us or why somepony would see us as a threat.”

One or two pony have their belly growls. Soon the whole crowd will complain with little whines or cries.

“Your majesty, everypony is hungry!” Valentia says to me. “Where will we find food?”

“Did we brought food?” I ask.

“Barely any, the guards would have barely enough for a day.” She replies.

“Oh no! What are we gonna do?” I stress out.

---

“Why are we hovering in middle of the sea... Can’t we go back to grab a little sandwich...” A precious looking earth mare, yellow or cream coated with diamond blue mane and a simple but still classy dress or shirt that let appear her sewing cutie mark, complains a bit without much hope for a reply.

“Well, duh, go there and get struck by lightning, or rolled over by a rock.” A teen mare licorn in the background says while they wave with their plaster to them.

“I don’t understand. Can’t licorns spawn food easily?” A young pegasi teen mare, green coated and purple maned, asks without clues.

“Our magic doesn’t work like that.” A cyan coated and magenta maned grown-up mare licorn in the crowd near them replies. “Nothing is created, nothing is deleted. Everything can only be moved to or from somewhere.”

“Your magic is pathetic, then.” The precious mare replies.

“Because you have any kind of magic.” The green pegasi smirks.

The precious mare let out a shocked gasp while her face leave out her dissatisfaction. I try to wave my hoof to them to stop their arguings.

“Are you saying that earth ponies have no magic?!?” She asks, offended.

“Well, duh. Plant an appletree right now then!?!” The bold pegasi replies.

“Boo! No way I’m ever going to make my hooves so nasty, in like, dirt!” She does a face.

“See? I knew it.” She cross her front hooves while flying a bit over the ground.

I can’t stand that anymore. My ponies are hurting eachothers feelings! What can I do?

“Your majesty, we reached the shores. Do we land on the sand and lower the anchor to park the airships?” Valentia reach for me.

“Yes!” I say in panic. I unfold my wings and fly ontop of the crowd that stops their arguments. “My people! We finally arrived! We will find food in the island and everything is going to be fine!!” I grin, quite stressed.

---

The precious earth pony, the bold pegasi, and the wise licorn, walks on the shore, a bit in the plains, and finally find a dwarf appletree that holds a handful of the fruit.

“Finally!” She says mouthfull after tasting the fruit. “I usually like refined meals but I have to admit this is wonderful!”

“Huh, see?” The cyan licorn smiles.

They all savor the fruits while smiling with their eyes only being a curved line to the sky in happiness.

But then, a door opens. The formless mass of bushes and trees nearby reveals to be a house. And a strange, unknown sentient walks out.

“Yes daddy, I’ll be home soo-” The feminine looking being that have slender head and globally looks thinner than the ponies stops by when she see what happened to the garden, and the three foreigners in it.

---

“Should we establish a surviving camp?” Valentia asks. “And are you sure letting everyponies on their own is a good idea?”

“Those that will be courageous enough will surely give us quite information about the nearbies if they ever come back. In the current situation, I’m afraid it is better to let our people do have enough space instead of keeping them in their hooves all the time.” I say, while I seek for food in the grass of the great plains of here.

Suddenly, a great and scared scream makes some birds fly away in the background, showing us a direction of where something might be important to see.

I, with few of my guards while the rest of my ponies stays on the beach, walk towards the place. Arriving by, I see three of my recognizable ponies, mouth full of apples, and a family of... Deer-ponies? Deers?

“Who are you!!” The father asks, a rake in hooves, aside of a mother holding a shovel, a young teen-aged doe and a younger fawn standing between them, kind of in a position saying they are their relatives and protected. “And what are you doing on my lawn?!”

“Please!” The licorn joins her hooves and beg the landowners. “We are desperate to find shelter, we don’t mean any troubles!”

I fly with Valentia aside of me until the middle of them, hoping to calm the issue gently and stay as nice as possible.

“Oh, dad! Look! An alicorn!” The young doe is impressed.

“Hello deer people, I am Esperanza, daughter of Obsidianna and Glowstone, and here is Valentia, my first general, dedicated guardian, and dearest friend. I leaded my citizens on this island because we had to flee our place and we are seeking for a refuge to house in all of them.”

I prepare my magic reflexes to act properly if something goes wrong.

“Daddy! We never seen beings that big and strong! Look at their swords and helmets! Shouldn’t we be scared of them?” The younger one deer says.

“You already in trouble for having ate my apples! There was enough on this little tree to feed an entire street! Where did you stole it?” He is impressed.

I glance at the three ponies that had eaten the apples. They hide themselves in their hooves in fear I do something to them, but I wasn’t even thinking of that, and of course I wouldn’t want them to fear me, they are my ponies. They just feel conscious to have eat the apples. I looked at their belly, still growling in hunger, and those of my guards. The deers seems so small and thin, yet they can produce so much surplus amount of food. I am myself impressed and the highest experienced of my ponies don’t own an entire apple farm as endless until the horizon as this one seems to be.

I grab my magic forces and send an order letter to the guards behind the bushes or faraway further, and they grab it. They open it and rearrange few squads as the letter says, to prepare something. While I don’t want to hurt the original people of this island, we can’t let ourselves be subordinates or downgraded by these tiny, fragile deers. That may sound selfish or mean, but I just act as my ancestors always had. This is what made us big and strong after all.

The objective is that one group found defenses tactics and another work on a camp to stay a lighthouse for my people, while they still being able to be free of will, and another group will find everything we need to make new cultures and plant our own food. The risk is big if settling on claimed lands, but once seen how productive ponies we are all together, there is no chances of us being misjudged otherwise than being useful. That will play in our favor. I also can spell an in-mind message for Valentia to get ready for my signals to launch the operation.

“Guards, get everypony safe. I will stay with Valentia to seek for common agreements.”

---

A young filly pony walks in front of a storestand, and gesture at a grey and green colored deer.

“Hello! Could I have an ice cream?” She asks in the cutest way possible.

“Yes. It will be 31 coins.” He replies.

“31?!!???!?” The filly have wide eyes, not understanding such an high price. “But I only have 1 coin..”

“Then you cannot have ice cream.” He states, closing his eyes that becomes two haughty lines curved to the ground.

The filly cries a bit, and walks away.

“Did you found yourself a recomfort, sis?” A teen stallion asks to the sad filly.

“No.. Everything in this place is. So. Expensive.” She whines a bit.

“Let’s try again, I’m sure we will find something we are able to afford.” He reassure her.

The brother levitates the sister on his back to carry her, as she is too sad to move. They walk a bit until they found a place that sales cupcakes. The licorn goes straight and place a pretty looking goldcoin he have.

“I want cupcakes.” He affirms.

The deer have great eyes for an instant. Before they place on the stand a big, multiple layer cardboard full of cupcakes.

“Here! Cupcakes!” They say, before they grab the golden coin and sprints away. “I’m rich!!!!”

“Um...” The brother looks at the sister. “Oh..kay?”

She grabs a cupcakes from the boxes and shrugs, just being happy they can eat something.

---

We are now inside the house of the farmers. I show them a shield of ours, it have a golden triangle on it, showing the emblem of our unity.

“You’re telling us you are. Ponies? And that you are coming from a faraway place that have been destroyed by a storm?” The father tries to understand.

“Yes.” I sigh, thinking of all the ponies I had left behind. “That is why we need to talk to this places’ leaders.”

“Well.” The father looks at his wife. “We can show you our king’s place then.”

---

In a circle shaped palace, with lots of rich patterns and pretty stuff, a great deer stands, in front of a crowd.

“There is some creatures that have been sacking our gardens!” Somedeer says. “We need to expel these beings from our lands!” Somedeer else says. “They are wild and brutal, we should put them in cages, and mock them!” Somedeer complains.

“Calm down, calm down. I heard what is happening by now yet. Now I want someone to talk to and find who ever is the leader of all this mess.” He says, annoyed.

At that moment, I open the door, and walk in, aside of Valentia and some of my strongest pony guards, we walk until reaching the front of the crowd in face of the king of the place.

“I am Princess Esperanza Querer, and I come in peace.” I bow. When I get my head up again, I see everydeers are pouty, and the king raise an eyebrow. “We came from a far, faraway place because we had to fled an immense and tremendous Cyclonestorm, I am sorry to have caused these disturbance in your kingdom by coming here. I will only ask a little last will if ever to be executed, I want every single ponies of mine to rest in peace with me.” I close my eyes and wish the best for all of us.

“Wait. Ponies?” The king is amazed. “But you are all so tall!”

He wanders around us to observe and watch us, ponies.

“Are you sure you aren’t horses? We are as tall as one meter and a half but. Your regular pony must make up to two!” He kneel in front of me. “And you must be 4 meters height, with your pretty eyes and floating mane...”

I feel my cheeks warming. Generally it means I’m blushing. I hear Valentia’s quiet little equine-like jealous pouting noise.

There is no guard much here. In fact, given the constitution of these deers, I could smash my hooves on him right now and he would explode in pieces. But I come in peace. In fact, I’m ready to protect them to death if they accept my ponies here.

“So you have magic. I guess that, because some of you have a big pointy horn and I’m almost sure it isn’t just to decorate your foreheads.” He asks.

“Yeah, well. You guessed right. But let me tell you-” I start but I can’t finish my sentence.

“And what magic do you do?” He asks.

“Nothing that is important now.” I avoid the basic subject he is trying to talk about.

“We need a place to live and we are hungry.” Valentia stands with me firmly. “If you can’t share food with us, we will have to take it on our own.”

“Yes, yes. Everything you want. But talk me about your story. Tell me all your life.” He asks.

“Well. I think it is not a bad idea. It would be better to note everything we know since we couldn’t bring our books with us.” I say before I suddenly panic a bit like always. “Oh wait! The books!” I dramatize when I think about all the knowledge we left out in our city.

The deer king claps his hooves twice and a line of writers instantly comes close to us, ready to write.

“So. My mothers the princesses Obsidianna and Glowstone, they are married by the way, had to flee their own lands many times cause of evil invasions. During a series of natural disasters I’ve lost contact with them and me and my closest friends, Seira, Downguard and few others citizen we could find a place to settle and live. But then, just this morning, the great Cyclonestorm we were afraid of had strike us and we could manage to flee again. I only could save a bunch of my ponies but. Not all of them... Which. Is why I feel so guilty about it...” I explain, and at the end I get sad.

“Don’t feel guilty for that. You couldn’t know.” Valentia snuggles with me for a bit, trying to comfort me.

“That is a great past. We can only face that you are strong and mighty ponies that happen to need help. We will offer that help, we have to.” The king replies.

“Oh also. I didn’t presented myself. I am Ethan, king of Deerlands, we are a peaceful and kind nation of deers and some few other creatures that lives freely all over our island.”

I didn’t described you Ethan. He is a deep blue deer with a majestic green mane and great woods on his head. His eyes are green, and shaped as precious as they could be.

“So, you are okay to accept ponies on your lands?” Valentia asks.

“Yes. You will use a lot of resources of us, but, I guess, we will find a way for you to be useful for us too.” He says.

“We will do everything in our powers to reward your kindness for eternity, your highness.” I bow in respect of his kind decision.

“Now, let’s party!” He bounces until his throne and raise his hooves as everyone in the place shout happily and do the same.

---

A licorn, a pegasi, an earth pony, with a teen doe and a smaller shaped licorn that still looks somehow not filly but not as big as other ponies, are speaking together.

“So. My name is Flowercorn!” The doe presents herself. “And this is my friend Aurora Sunshine, she’s a pony from Equestria.”

“Equestria? That place must be magnificent! I never heard of it! Does it have great, tall and beautiful buildings?” The precious earth pony smiles.

“Does it have great and mighty dangerous creatures?” The bold pegasi asks.

“Does it have wise and kind wizards that help people with there magic?” The licorn asks.

The happy small licorn, that is green coated and purple-pink maned, can’t contain her joy.

“Yes! It have all of that! Plus it have a lot more space than here for you great ponies to leave! There is also griffons, seaponies, dragons, yaks, and changelings!” She explains.

“Oh really? That seems so diverse! I wanna take care of all the creature of Equestria!” The kind and shy licorn says. “But are they kind? How are they?”

“Well, yaks are tough, dragon are strong, griffons are grumpy, changelings are wise and seaponies are joyful.” She explains. “But you. Who are you?”

“Oh sorry. I’m Twinklesprite, but you can call me Twinkie. I like precious things and I’m always happy!” She smiles. “Here is Suncream, she likes cool stuff but she’s also honest and proud pegasi, and here is Strawberry Jam, she’s studious and really like every possible creatures, even if she always afraid of everything.” She grins.

They all hug together.

“I’m so happy we have found eachother! We will become friends and nothing will stop us!” Says the doe.

“Wait!” Says Strawberry. “What do you eat, deers and little ponies of Equestria?”

“Um. Grass? Or oat if enough money for it. Different fruits and stuff. Why?” Flowercorn asks.

“Phew. It means that you don’t need meat to eat. So you aren’t like, lingotas.” She calms down for a second.

“Oh my, by every precious stone! The lingotas!” Twinklesprite gasps.

---

“The what?” Asks Aurora. “What is the... Lingotas?”

“A lingotas is a sentient great feline mix with wings and horns like cattles, or woods like deers for female lingotas, they all have wings and magic like both licorns and pegasus, they are evil and extremely dangerous!!” Twinklesprite stress out.

“Calm down, they aren’t that dangerous, just a bit mean.” retort Suncream, crossing her front hooves while flying.

“You don’t wanna know the worse.” Strawberry covers her face with her hooves.

“What is it?” Fears Aurora. “What is the worst about them?”

“They. Eat. Ponies!!” Mumbles Strawberry before she hides her face in her hooves again.

“No. That must be a legend?” Says Aurora to Flowercorn, not trusting the ponies. “R...ight?” She mumbles.

“A legend that we must remind our princess before the lingotas devour the deers of this island faster than fire consumes an entire rack of dry straw and hay in a wooden barn!” Twinklesprite stress out again.

---

I am sat aside of Ethan, we are arranging few stuff we need to agree on.

“Okay so.” Ethan says. “We are obviously way less stronger than you. So you could work in mines and wood collecting for us?”

“Yes. That looks like a fair trade since you know better how to build prettier and stronger houses to resist storms. We will grab the resources for you to use them cleverly.” I reply.

“In terms of economy, we should cancel any passive or current transactions, to redistribute the money to those that had a high place before. We are totally out of your league and the companies of my kingdom would be destroyed by suddenly you mighty beings with gold and diamonds all around.” He says.

“Companies? What are they?” I ask, clueless.

“Well. Some individuals works in a small gathered corps to work around a few project of marketizing and building a coherent trademark and stuff.” The deer says all proud of his kingdom.

I just had my mind blowing by “individuals” already.

“I’m sorry. What?” I ask. “What all of that means?”

“What you don’t understand? It’s simple, in fact.” He replies.

“Okay. Let’s begin with a little start. How does your citizen get food?” I ask.

“Well, they either produce it for themselves or pay for it.” He replies.

“Yes, but that is for precious food right? Not for basic nutritive goods?” I ask. “What if someone doesn’t have the money to buy food?”

“Ummm.” He thinks about it. “They..... don’t?”

“What?!? Really!??” I ask again, hoping I did hear it wrong. “You mean there is no free food banks or anything?”

“Oh well. I’m not sure. Maybe somedeers have done it in some places but I don’t remind seeing any.” He explains.

“Seriously?! There is no subsidized food farms for anyone to eat. Hmm. Interesting. And for healthcare?? Do you have public hospitals?”

“Hospitals? I don’t know what that is. We have few clinics for people to buy their care.” He replies.

“What!?” I’m amazed, not in the good way. “Buy the cares?” I do a face. Is that real? Your citizens have to pay for their sickness? But what if they have issues? What if they are ill and need more care?”

“Hmpf.” The few riches watching our conversation was annoyed by what I was saying, apparently, and made these such sounds.

“Because the poors deserves any kind of gift just for their wretched lamentable existence.” Some kind of countess or duchess or whatever they are, say in some seats the riches are sat.

“What!?!!?!?” I shout, turning my head to look at them, not knowing who could say that as they all get offended.

“Huh..” Ethan grabs a hoof of mine. “Don’t worry, she’s Miss Clearcoat the duchess of Hoofdocks, she’s just a bit grumpy... You know how aristocrats are...” He have a sweat drop on his forehead, showing there is something I don’t understand much yet that he is afraid I ask publicly and question his nation.

“I don’t understand what is it. Whats wrong with wishing everyone the best?” I say as he beg me in his eyes to not step on that field.

“Well, you are a princess.. Aren’t you used to coexist with other aristocracy and families?” He asks.

“No. My “Princess” title is an informal word to say I am the leader of my ponies. I can’t disobey laws and cause my citizens harm without facing the consequences we have all agreed on with votes and debates. My guards, some of the most precious, or the less popular pony of my nation, have the same rights, obligations, and duties. Isn’t that the most basic important thing that makes a nation, well.. A nation?” I ask.

“Oh you mean the state? Yes, there is some laws and all, but mostly the people does their things and when they have enough money they can hope to benefit from justice or such.” He heads down, a bit sad or guilty about it. “We tried everything else. There is no other possible way.” He says when he looks up at me again.

“But there is!” I try to assure him. “There is always an infinite amount of paths a nation can comply to it’s subjects, but if it doesn’t share and spread kindness and care for everyone, what is it? Is it even only a state? Or just a bunch of riches claiming taxes because they are greedy.” I speak to the crowd made of ponies and deers, all concerned by this I feel they are behind me on that one.

“How dare you!” A pink and rich-looking dressed deer jumps on the stage were we are. “Your highness, we need these dirty hooves “ponies” to buzz off the floor right now!” She gesture at me meaningfully while looking at Ethan, waiting for him to act as she said.

“Huh- why wouldn’t we take a very brand new cup of tea and calm down altogether ah? What do you think of that?” He have sweats. I smile at him and he smiles at me two, as we think we are done with it.

“Guards!” The rich nobledoe shout.

A few tin or copper armored deers movement to me and my guards that surround my ponies in our protective way, and I glance at Valentia giving her the signal. She spawns a horn with the magic I gave her and blow in it, a short sound. The next instant a squad of my pegasi guards break through the windows of the hall of the palace to land behind the deer knights which makes them now all surrounded, with guards in front of my ponies and guards behind of me and Valentia, all our guards’ iron swords drawn, as I draw my own diamond sword, with both my front hooves, since I stand on my backhooves and stabilize myself with my wings a little. Valentia stands by my side with a great ruby spear or battleaxe just like some of my hooves guards have as my winged guards have swords, her spear is one I have specifically forged for her with help of Downguard when she joined the Army.

No one is attacking yet, but the tension is high. Our pony guards stand fierce and they are almost all taller than the tallest deer, Ethan himself. Every sbire of the nobledeer that threats us and our ponies is now surrounded by two of our Hipplote champion ponies.

“Oh dear, by all gods of deers, please don’t do that!” Ethan begs me and the nobledeers to not fight in his palace.

Ethan jumps in middle of me and the unarmed softie duchess that is barely protected with two simple deer guards that only my bare hooves would crush with the lightest pressure on their thin bones. I land back on my three hooves while my front left one holds my sword, as still ready to fight if needed I keep signs with my movements and gestures telling she shouldn’t mess with me.

“My dear.” Valentia reaches for me, because however she is in the loyal allegiance of mine and is dedicated to protect me, she isn’t willing to fight them for no reason.

I ignore her and glance at Ethan then I keep eye contact with the nobledoe.

“Are you the king of this place or what?” I grumble to him. “Tell her to submit to your orders!”

“This is unacceptable!” The nobledeer add a layer to the danger she seems to like.

“Please, Miss Clearcoat. Tell your personal guard to not cause a disastrous tragedy.” He begs her.

“You, are in serious troubles, King Ethan.” She threats him for that scene.

She climbs on a seat or something, lifted by deers that looks like they are slaved and she commands them forward, slowly leaving the room with her knights following her. The door opens, then slams.

“Withdraw.” Valentia orders, suddenly all our winged soldiers sheathes their swords in their scabbard, and the licorns and earth ponies place their spear in their back. “Rest.” She orders them; making the winged to fold their wings, and everypony to relax a bit.

“You seems... So powerful.” Ethan compliments us, seeing the discipline of our army.

“I hope so. We are a proud, fierce nation of fighting ponies, our flag have to be protected. Yet, with the help you will give us by now, you are our own power.” I bow.

Valentia follows my bowing, and everypony will soon follow, showing respect to the king of Deerlands. The scene get static a bit. But then the doors open as everyone gets a bit talking with each other. Someponies and somedeers talks together also. But a voice grabs my attention.

“Princess Esperanza! The lingotas!” My dear earth pony Twinklesprite runs all along the crowd to reach me.

“What? Did you seen any?” I ask, afraid for my ponies.

“No, not yet.” My cute, wise licorn Strawberry Jam rectify her friend’s fearful words.

“But we had theorized that since we moved out of their range, they will try to find food again and reach us once more!” Suncream tells me, my proud pegasi that is only a teen is yet already quite strong.

“You three are right.” I say. “We have to let royal conversations hanging for now.” I gesture at Ethan and the deers. “We have to protect them, we are responsible if they attack deers and we have to defend them at all costs.”

“Understood.” Valentia replies.

“For now, I’d like to rest, we had a very long day. Do you have rooms for us?” I look at Ethan.

“Oh yes! Of course!” He replies.

---

The precious earth pony, the wise licorn, the bold pegasi, the agile deer and the curious littlepony are sat in a circle around a firepit, that burns and warms their hooves as the night reign.

“It’s really kind of you to let us stay here since we ate our apples without your permission.” Twinklesprite thanks her.

“It’s nothing. You can’t sleep in the woods all alone with nothing. What would I be if I’d done that.” Flowercorn replies.

“And thanks for the other apples, too.” Suncream thanks her.

“This place is wonderful. I just feel home already.” Strawberry Jam says while few animals such as bunnies and mouses hugs her.

“Home? I’m sorry but.. I’m not sure if you will be able to stay too long.” Flowercorn says.

“Why? Are we bothering you?” Strawberry asks shyly.

“Nooo. Of course not. But it’s my father that decides, obviously we were enough mouths to feed already.” She says playfully.

“Oh right. Yes. We will rely on other food sources you know? You are just our starting point on this adventure okay?” Suncream reassure her a bit harshly with her usual playful manners.

“How ever this will end for us, you have to know you are one true friend in this world.” Twinklesprite says.

“Oh really? Are we all friends?” Aurora asks, feeling a bit left out by the others.

“Of course darling!” The cute licorn smiles to her.

Strawberry hugs her kindly, then they all give a hand to one another.

“Friends for life!” They say before sliding down, looking at the star, slowly closing their eyes.

---

It is now early in the morning, the sun shyly bright in the sky and some clouds makes today a mildly luminous and windy day.

Aurora Sunshine stands in front of militia deers that forbids her to access the docks.

“Um. Can I pass? I have to get back to Equestria through a boat that will depart soon.”

“You shall not pass.” One of the guard replies. “This area is restricted to ponies.”

“R- restricted?” Aurora is surprised. “But I have a shuttle to take. If I don’t, I’m stuck here!”

“There is no ships authorized this morning yet.” One guard reply.

Aurora looks down, and sadly walks back in direction to the city, that is in center of the island.

---

King Ethan was standing close to the palace door, trying to solve issues. I was waking up yet and getting hungry.

“What? Why no goods arrived yet. What do you mean no products departed? We are supposedly a trading nation! Make the stuff moves or something!!!” He shout to some docks delegates or merchandise managers.

“Good morning, your majesty. Is there a problem?” I ask Ethan. “What’s wrong?”

“It looks like Hoofdocks works on it’s own will now. We can’t even board our own national ships anymore apparently.” He explains.

“I’m a bit hungry. Is there any food you have around here for breakfast?” I ask.

“No, unfortunately. They were supposed to come 3 hours ago to deliver everything, but it looks like we are going to starve until someone solve whatever is going on there.”

“I’m going to visit them.” I say, as Valentia comes by my side.

“Little they know the Princess is even more on defensive when she’s hungry...” She says to Ethan while we start walking to the docks.

After a walk I find Aurora, Twinklesprite, Suncream, Flowercorn and Strawberry, sat on the side of the path to the docks, all around Aurora that is crying, the hooves in her face.

“My little hearts, what happened? What’s wrong?” I ask them.

“Guards wouldn’t let her pass to the bay to board to her ship.” Suncream says, flying up to my height.

“That is not going to happen in my presence.” I say.

“Princess Esperanza, please don’t attack them. They are just silly, they are nothing that matters!” Ethan tries to calms me.

“We wouldn’t like to attack them, but we seek for responses. You agree she shouldn’t stay stuck here because they decided?” Valentia says.

“Of course. She’s coming as Equestria’s scouter to learn more about us, if something happens to her we might would get really bad relations with them!” Ethan says.

“Thats why we are going to make her able to pass.” I say.

Arriving close to the docks, we can see it is closed. There is layers of some thin metal fences with gates that deerguards keep.

“We will ask kindly only once.” I say, loud enough for everyone to understand. A crowd of ponies and some deers that surely have friended my ponies or some Equestrian ponies, that stands in front of a crowd of deers and a line of guards.

“Backwards! Or we will use force!” A guard says.

“Open the gates!” the crowd replies.

A guard throws a bottle of gas in the outside crowd, making everyone of them run in fear of the deers. The little spray that gets to someponies and ally deers gets them coughing and irritated, enough for them to fall on the ground and try to regain breath desperately. Its somewhat of a stunt grenade I never seen before. I see a mother catching their child in their arms as they have been hurt by a rock the mean deer crowd have threw, that hit right on his face to make him a red cheek.

When I seen that, I decided it was enough. I grab a tiny bit of my magic and the next instant, the gate explodes in pieces. I could retain the broken sharp parts from landing on somedeer behind the gate, but it looks like I was too much of a dirty hooves pony, like the rich said. My bad.
The crowd of ponies, littleponies, and few deers, goes right through the others and reach the most rich domains where Clearcoat is certainly in right now.

---

Once King Ethan and me have reclaimed the place, we rest for a time. We didn’t found Clearcoat but we will care about her later.

“This is a good breakfast we all deserve.” I smiles.

“What do you think we should do now?” Ethan asks me. “The ships are sabotaged and we will need to work on them to bring Aurora back to Equestria.”

“I can work on a cannon project to build, it’s a heavy device made for defense against danger.” I explain my ideas.

“Oh. Would it be like a turret that you place on something that can turn to aim somewhere and all?” He have stars in his eyes.

“Um. Yes. Actually it’s quite annoying to move it but once guarding a spot, it is surely quite strong.” Valentia replies.

“It’s perfect! I have to show you my most recent invention!” He says.

He tap his hoof on a button that turn on the lights. Then we can see a sort of metal box with two long chains each side of it. It is rectangular and a lot of little wheels are aside of it, each side.

“I called it. The Chassis!” He grins.

“That is beautiful!” Valentia smiles.

“Oh! Can we work Valentia and me with our best ponies to work out a first model of that moving turret?” I ask.

“Of course. If you are willing to use your knowledge to help our nation, I can’t refuse anything. I’ll bring you more food and drinks, I’ll be back!” He says.

After some time of work, assembling pieces of metal following our little saved plans of our own machinery, we can manage to make an effective weapon.

“Someone drives the chassis, and someone aim the turret. That seems nice, right?” I glance at Valentia.

“Yes. That is one of our best piece of work.” She replies.

Once our engineer gears off of us, we wipe our dust and dirtiness in towels, and we sit on some pillows there is in a little comfy corner of the warehouse we worked in. We snuggle a bit together.

“I’m so glad we have survived all of that already.” She have her emotional look on me. “It is so hard to think that we maybe won’t see our home ever...” She have tears.

“Shhhh.” I pat her head. “What is important now, is that we can build a new home, together. We are together, and nothing can destroy that.” I comfort her.

“Hey. How is it going?” She wipes her tears off, and switch subject fast.

“How am I going? Well.. I’m feeling fine-” I ramble a bit.

“Nooo.” She smiles. “How is it going with Ethan.”

“W-what?!?” I stutter. “W-what with Ethan?” I ask clueless.

“Hm.” She smirks. “Because you think I didn’t noticed how you are with him.”

“I-I don’t know what are you talking about.” I shake my head a bit.

She giggles.

“You say that, now... I heard you, you were like, ‘Good morning, your majesty’ all smiling and a hoof in your mane.” She smiles.

“Had a tuft bothering me!” I make up an reason.

“That excuse is silly! Your mane floats! It can’t be kinked!” She replies giggling.

“No, it can, I just brush my hairs sometimes, and didn’t found a brush nice enough so it was tied this morning.” I continue.

“Okay. So that’s why I seen you and him giggle before leaving eachother to sleep yesterday.” She reveals.

“What?!?” Now I can’t deny it. “You spied on us?”

“No, but you were laughing so loud I couldn’t retain myself to watch through the corridors, I just had to open my door a little and I would see you two having a great time with each other.”

“Ethan is really impressive. He sees the world in a totally different way any other deers I could think of.” I say.

“Okay. First of, that is completely cliché, and second, that is maybe one of the only deers you know of here. How can you know?” Valentia asks.

“Well okay, but you can agree with me that he doesn’t act like the other cheeky rich deers.” I say.

“True.” She replies.

The king of deers comes by.

“Oh! I seen you have finished. Did you tried it yet?” Ethan asks.
“Um. No. We were thinking of it being kind of a last resort secret weapon thing if we ever have to use it. I don’t think anyone is trained to pilot that machine yet.” I say.

“Maybe make a unarmed clone of it in wood or simple material and use it for a base of training.” He guess.

“Yeah, that is a good idea, I will ask if anyone would like to try to-” Valentia say.

But before she can finish her phrase, an explosion occurs. The ground trembles and we looks at each other.

“What was that?” I ask.

Valentia flies through a hole lacking in the roof of the old warehouse and glance outside.

“Esperanza!” She comes-in in panic. “The Lingotas, they are here!”

“No way...” I hope it’s not true. “How did they knew we are here that fast?”

“I don’t know, but when I say they are here, I mean they are. All. Here.” She tries to worry Ethan too. “They came with their whole entirety! It’s the Armageddon!!”

“Reassemble the centuries!” I tell her. “We need to evacuate as most people as possible.”

“To where? Our airships are obvious flying over the sea!” I tell her.

“Can’t we travel over the clouds? The sky is covered, that would make us cloaked!” She proposes.

“We don’t know how to travel that high.” I reply.

Ethan grabs our attention.

“We could use the stars! It’s easy, we will always know the direction we are going if we focus on the same stars every nights.” He says.

“Okay.” I tell him. “Reunite everyone possible, me and Valentia will hold the frontline as much as we can.”

“Wait.” Valentia flies close to me. “You still have the crystal?” She asks. I nod yes. “Then you we could use if for the armored wagon we made.”

“You want me to use it to fire on lingotas ships?” I ask.

“No. That would be a waste of it’s energy. We can use it to shield the wagon from taking damage.” She explains her idea.

“Okay.” I accepts. “That seems a great idea, we will get inside the wagon when we will be on our last resort.”

---

Strawberry the licorn, Suncream the pegasi, Twinklesprite the pony, Flowercorn the deer and Aurora the littlepony licorn, were degusting cupcakes and breads or brioches, and talking and laughing with each other. Until the glasses breaks.

“What is happening?!?” Asks Twinkie in fear.

“Where are you, friends??!?” Strawberry shout in panic.

“Don’t worry! I will clear that dust out!” Suncream announce.

In a fast whoosh she clears off the dust from inside the building. It seems like something made a building near the one they were, completely explode in pieces, which resulted in the break of the glasses and few land of rubbles on them.

“Ouch!!!! It hurts!!” Aurora says.

“What's wrong sweethearts?” The kind Strawberry hop close to the group and look for their state.

“My leg hurt!!!!!” Aurora cries loudly.

Strawberry sees that she have, apparently, a broken leg. It’s her rear-right leg, and she don’t look like she can move much with it in that state.

“Help!!” Strawberry shouts. “Someone have a medkit?!??!?” She scream desperately.

But soon the bombing continues. The injured number climbs off the roof, and some are even killed on impact.

Valentia come to them, and tries to help them.

“My dears! We are evacuating to the airships! We need you there as fast as possible!” Valentia tries to motivates them.

“The airships? Why again? I don’t wanna!!” Twinklesprite complains.

“My sweet precious darling I know it was rough the first time but this time we will aim to Equestria, there is no reason we are in danger there. Okay?”

“Please Equestria be with us!” Pray Strawberry.

“Twinklesprite, you are the most resistant of us as an earth pony, can you carry Aurora during our walk to the ships? I will stand with Flowercorn at back, we are the most able to counterfight if we meet enemies.” She proposes.

“Good idea!” She replies while lifting on her back the littlepony Aurora.

While they start walking along with the group of citizens, Strawberry tries to make up a plaster for her leg, but that is complicated as she is only amateur healer.

“My leg!! It hurts so much!” She complains.

“Can’t you cast a pain reducing spell?” Strawberry asks.

“I can’t even concentrate on my magic, it’s so much painful!!” She complains.

“We might need our princess’ alicorn magic to at least decrease her pain! We can’t continue like that!” Strawberry complains too. “Every step we take destroys my efforts to plaster her leg!”

“Suncream... Call your princess for help please! I beg you!!” Aurora insists, whining.

“I’ll be back!” She flies in a whoosh.

“Oh no, why did I say that! I hope she will comeback!!” Aurora cries.

I see my guards starting to get shot. They fall on the ground, one by one, and I can’t do anything about it. I am on the roof, firing a piercing turret, thinking I’m useful, but I have not single clue. I’m really afraid and this is only the start of this desperate evacuation. But soon enough it looks like most of people if not every citizens have been evacuated, while the soldiers still hold the line with the enemy that fail at trying to disembark on the docks under our fires.

“Retreat!!” Valentia screams full lungs. Then she helps me reloading the shells in the turret I pilot. “Aurora is injured, I told their friend to go at the airships, they are safe on the path now. We could close the march with our secret weapon.” She proposes.

But then we here a regular metal rambling sound. It’s trucks and armored cars and vehicles. They are rushing within the lands to break into the evacuation path.

“Look! They are trying to encircle the evacuation! Quick! Drive the weapon and stay behind, I’ll try to hold them until we rejoin at the same point.” I say.

“As you wish, your majesty!” She replies.

I fly in direction of our enemies.

“Hey! May I help you drive while you shoot, Valentia?” Ethan asks.

“Amazing idea!” Valentia replies.

“Glad to help!” He replies.

---

Seeking for my sweet ponies, I can spot their significant color patterns from the sky and dive into them.

“Strawberry. You are the most wise of my ponies. I will give you some energy from the crystal, you will know how to use it.” I tell her.

“W-what?” She replies.

I pat her and some of the cube’s energy transfer to her. Her eyes becomes bright white and purple wings appears in their back.

“Aurora. You are trust-worthy as related to Equestria, and you are hurt, here, I will give you some of it too.” I pat Aurora.

When I do I also cast spells to reduce her pain and mildly help the healing process.

“Soldiers! Hold a line in north of the evacuation road and protect everyone at all costs!” I shout.

I come by the confrontation point of the evacuation and the enemies that each shot hitting the people disorder the evacuation they hold, so I land in middle of the battlefield.

“You! Shall! Not! Pass!” I scream while I strike with a magic saw the trees where the enemies are hidden.

The trees collapses and mostly blocks them from reaching our people. But suddenly a group of them walks out of the forest and charge on the closest people they found. With my magic I can grab a rock that throw most of them into the skies but some reach our people. Only little guards are around me and we are heavily overwhelmed.

“Princess!!” I hear some people screaming, hurt and on ground. “Help!!!!”

I draw my sword and charge myself now too, on the enemies that happen to be too close to our ponies. But suddenly one of these horrible, carnivorous monsters jumps on me, their wings unfolded and their claws deployed, I feel the harsh and powerful land of them all in my body, I feel the pain of it even if the energy of the Crystal of Unity absorb most of it, even if I am a princess, alicorn and proud pony defending my people, I’m hurt.

The next instants are way less clear than swordfights. I have to let my gears down, I can’t do anything, I feel like I’m locked on ground, and I feel, that’s it, that’s the end of Esperanza Querer, princess and last hope of our past nation and motherland, I feel blood getting out of both of us, this unknown lingotas biting and clawing repeatedly in my body and sensing the scent of blood, of meat, of the prey I am as a pony that is against these tigers-lions monstrosity while a brief look at nearbies and a lingotas use it’s magic to levitate a wood log to crush many people of us.

Seeing this I can only rage up more. I can’t know if it is me or the cube that done that, but I burst a wave of magic to hurt the evil creatures.

Some makeshift armored car approach us, but luckily we are coming by the end of the convoy. The secret weapon appears, even it’s engine sound is different from the enemies’ and seems warmer, friendlier, as it fires in an enemy vehicle that explodes, only it’s turret rip off of it as a metal made vehicle, but the smoke and the noise of it makes thinking no one inside is still living.

Valentia appears at a tophatch of the turret, with a rifle, she shoots down some screaming lingotas.

“Esperanza, we are pushing them away!” She smiles to me. “It’s working!”

“Miss Querer.” A dark shape appears coming out of the woods. “It’s a pleasure to meet you again.”

“Oh no!” Valentia says. “Is it? No, it can’t be!”

“Symfora!” I frown. “It was a bad idea to confront us, we are defeating you!”

“That is what you think..” He smiles devilish. “Do you know what I did to your mothers?”

“Attack!” I scream if ever a few guards of ours are alive yet.

“Esperanza! No!” Valentia screams.

It’s too late. Rage, anger, a burning feeling of revenge invade every single parts of my body, there is no actual clue of what he did to my parents but yet he is still my enemy, all hairs of my fur, my legs, my wings, my hooves, my horn, and my heart, as well as the energy of the cube are upset.

“Don’t you dare touch a single centimeter of fur of my little ponies!!” My voice duplicates in octaves, and my eyes become white, my wings shines with a purple powder and I fly into my enemy.

I feel all the energy coming out of me as a rainbow colored only of orange, white and purple tints, like Obsidianna’s and my own mane, coat, and hooves, representing our dedicated protection and love for our people, the rainbow clears the sky then lands into the great dark and evil Lingotas, which vanishes into pure non-existence under the force of our Unity Crystal and the magic of our love.

When I regain sight, I only can barely see the rainbow spreading a bit all over me and I fall into unconsciousness.

---

A strange pony-shape surrounded by black smokes and shadows walks to a table in a restaurant, onboard of the airship. It touches with it’s hands a plate, a menu and some dishes that suddenly becomes living, and have different animal forms and shapes. They play together or fight against eachother but they seems just odd things.

“Hey there what will you orde-” The waiter says before he gasps. “What is all of this!?!”

“What? Are you afraid of... Chaos?” As the shadow shape says that a strange, scary noise is perceptible.

One by one, each of the pony’s gear, the bow tie, the hat, the notepad and the pencil becomes animated, since soon as they become in-depth fabric yarn and thin objects become sewing threads.

“Wha- Why are you doing that? I was just going to ask what will you order?” The afraid pony says.

“And I’m just replying. I, will defeat and order the world...” The scary figure says in a scary tone.

“Um, I’m not sure we can propose that here.. Do you like apples?” He asks.

“Hmpf. You’re so boring.” The dark shape says.

The next instant a hole opens under the hooves of the pony and he falls through it, before the dark figure giggles evilly. He reunite his creations and they become one strange, horrible insect made of metal.

“Go. Fly away my little one, find your food and live your life.” He tells the creature.

---

“Aurora.” The precious yellow cream coated with diamond blue mane earth pony reaches for the littlepony unicorn. “Are you okay?”

When she open her eyes, she see the airship they are all in.

“Where are we? What happened?” Aurora asks.

“We are on board in direction of Equestria.” Twinklesprite replies while her mane moves a bit in the wind.

“Woah. I never flight that high.” Says the green coated and purple maned pegasi Suncream.

“The clouds and the sky are wonderful up here.” Says the cyan coated and magenta maned licorn Strawberry.

“Hey friends! Look at this! I found a scarab!” The clear cream fur with thin mane of golden hairs doe Flowercorn walks in the little room they have. “Isn’t it so cute?”

“What? Oh no! That is not a scarab! That is a evil, dangerous and scary Nightmare!” Strawberry says, scared.

Flowercorn have in her hoof a tiny, insect looking thing that have 8 legs, 2 pairs of wings, and 2 antennas behind the bulb abdomen that follows it’s movement and stay upwards however direction the thing is turned.

“What? No. I’m sure it’s a defenseless little bug. Why are you so scared of it?” She asks.

“The question is, why is it so small. If it wouldn’t, it would have eat you, and the airship too already by now.” Suncream says.

“You girls are saying whatsoever!” The young doe says. “Why would it stand on my hoof if it would be evil?!?”

“Because you know anything about this creature yet!!” Strawberry tells her, angrily.

A pair of yellow eyes with red pupils appears in the water in each of the glasses, while a strange, disturbing noise is perceptible.

“Why are you always so snooty about your knowledge, Strawberry! You never accepts that others can have stuff they learnt or whatever!” Aurora adds.

“Hey, calm down, she is right, of all of us she might be the most intelligent!” The precious pony Twinklesprite says, trying to defend the studious Strawberry.

“Of all of us I am certainly the one that have meet the most of these already!” Suncream adds. “If I say it’s dangerous I mean it is, very dangerous!” She shout.

“Kids! Why are you screaming in here?” Valentia walks in the room. “The princess is sleeping, and we don’t want her to be woke up by fights instead of unity right?”

All the young ones cross their hooves, being pouty. Suncream flies close to Twinklesprite.

“She called you a kid, hehe!” She adds a mockery.

“Get your dirty wings off my coat!” She shout, almost crazy.

“Hey, now! Stop, please!” Valentia tries to stop them again.

But suddenly, a lightning strike makes a thunder sound, and it sounds very close to the airship. The Nightmare unfold it’s back and extend it’s wings, then it flies until the forming cyclone over the airship.

Many ponies and deers get out of their room to look at what is happening on the bridge of the ship.

“Oh no.” Valentia says.

---

I wake up, as a strong, loud thunder sound shakes me. The last thing I remember is collapsing after a great fight, so I don’t understand much where I am at first.

“Princess Esperanza! You are awake.” I recognize the voice of Ethan.

“King Ethan. Tell me what happened. Could we retreat?” I ask.

“Yes. The lingotas retreated too but we thought it was good to get away as they will return for us utterly.” He says. “I hope you agree with that decision, Valentia proposed it.”

“Yes, that is a good idea.” I stand up and walk close to him. “I’m sorry we had to leave your lands.”

“It’s okay, you had to too, after all. We can say we have that in common now.” He smiles, comforting me. “But something is happening outside right now.”

I fly outside and go for a high point of view, trying to see what is happening. That moment I see a gigantic, great, red, scary, naughty and terrifying eye, in middle of the cyclone.

“Mwah haha haha.” The eye laughs.

“No way.” Says Valentia, not trusting what she’s seeing. “Is that?”

“Abyss!” I scream. “What are you doing here?!?”

I fly at a point in middle of the bridge of the airship with the deers and the ponies and the storm. Valentia flies to me, hugs me for an instant, and grab her ruby spear, ready to use it if our ponies are attacked.

“Aww.” A dark, evil and negatively octaved voice says, coming from the eye. “Two cute ponies, trying to defend their adorable, defenseless, stupid little pointless childlike citizens.” He almost coughs out of spelling these last words.

“Our people are way more powerful than you think!!” I shout.

“Oh, are they... Because I see your guards are really having a bad time right now...” He giggles evilly.

I look down, and yet, the ranks of my army are very, very little. Only a handful of guards are here and ready, and Ethan feels like same.

“I will give everything I have for my little ponies!” I say.

“Oh, everything huh?” He answers, giggling disturbingly. “What if I want you to give me your magic, and I’ll let you go with your pathetic little useless hooved faces.”

“You will have to fight for it!” I scream.

“Okay then.”

The next instant the eye of the cyclone disappear and let flying down, the giant insect creatures with 8 legs and 4 eyes.

We try to forbid them to reach the airship, but its a swarm. They are way much numbered than me, Valentia, a few armed ponies and a few armed deers. The people screams and run in fear, and a few fall off the ship or get, at my terror, disintegrated by the mandibles of the creatures, as they claps down and erase a few people out of existence we understand these creatures’ actual strength. They are powerful as gods.

An insect approach me while I was busy defending against other ones, and with a leg it throw me through the first planks of the bridge of the airship.

“Esperanza! Are you okay?” Ethan jumps at the floor I am and tries to help me getting up.

“You deers are more agile than us, you may find a way to fight these insects..” I mumble, trying to not faint again.

I place a hoof on his head and I transfer magic powers from the Crystal of Unity. I then place my hooves on the ground and use the purple energy of the cube to solidify the airship slightly, giving us hope to not see it in pieces by the end of this battle. It is the last one we have, after all.

“Are you sure I am prepared for this?” Ethan hesitate.

“You sure are, your Majesty.” I close my eyes and reach his forehead once more.

The next second, Ethan have purple powder wings and horn, like an alicorn deer. He is amazed, and in an instant he flies upwards to fight the creatures.
I aim my hooves at the deers and flow the energy of the Crystal to them too, giving them all a pair of wing and horn.

I look upwards and see, I judged correctly. The deers avoids every bite of the monsters and use their magic to shoot at them or throw them against themselves. But suddenly a shadowy shape use magic to cancel every powers the deers have, including the King deer.

“No!” I fly upwards.

I can manage to use my magic and grab everyone of them and slow their falls, and place them gently on the bridge. But suddenly the shadow shape have sewing threads that grabs me and pin me on the ground. Everyone is afraid, as he lands around me in a dramatic crash on the ground.

A series of weird looking barriers of cartoon fabric yarns strings forms around us, preventing anyone to approach if they tried.

“You are mine now.” He giggles.

“What do you want from me?!??” I try to debate myself as he surrounds me with his long string-based arms.

“Your magic!!” He shout, as a thunder strikes all ears. “Are you silly? I said I want your magic! Give me all of your Crystal’s magic. Give it to me!”

“Never!” I almost can bite his tissue arms.

“Oh okay. You want the tough way then.” He says. “Here!”

He form a needle out of his sewing and fabric cotton cartoon material arms he seems to be made of, and plant it in me. I can’t do anything else than screaming in pain. But I suspect the objects being magic or barely physical, because a needle that size would make even more pain.

The next instants he pull on the bulb of the syringe and a thick, purple and shining fabric piece fill the tube. Meanwhile, I feel all of my own magic disappearing. I’m pretty sure it is not part of the cube’s magic. But I can’t do anything about it.

When he get off me and stand up, he take off with some fabric wings he invokes instantly, and disappear in the eye of the cyclone in the clouds. After a little time the entirety of the clouds disappears, leaving the airship and us, in middle of a sea of calm, normal clouds.

“Esperanza!!!!” Valentia almost crashes on the ground as she can finally come close to me.

“What’s happening to her?” Ethan asks.

“He didn’t only took the crystal. Abyss have took her alicorn magic!” She shout.

Everyone gasps. I feel my wings shrinking, my body losing strength and power, and any kind or form of magic in my horn is totally vanish. As Valentia tries to give me a hoof to stand up, everyone sees me as what I am now. The 5 friends comes by, trying to assess me.

“Princess Esperanza became. A filly?” Asks the little unicorn Aurora.

“Well, I don’t know for you, ponies of Equestria, but us, ponies of a nation pastly known as Equifrancia, if we lose all our magic, we become the very bare animal we are supposed to be originally. In her case, an actual common mare, not bigger than you, Aurora.” Valentia explains.

Ethan takes me in his arms.

“Thank you for being courageous enough, I didn’t thought you would try to fight these scary creatures.” I say in a light, gentle voice.

“You have tried to save us first when we evacuate. Now we are even.” He smiles. “Will you ever be stuck in this form?”

My fur shines a bit, and my eyes tries to regain their color for a second.

“He took her magic at one point in time. Luckily enough our bodies produce magic on their own, but she will need to rest a lot, and will probably never be able to recover from that loss. She had quite accumulated magic for hundred years by now.” She continues.

“We can see we are still bigger than littleponies because even as a simple alicorn mare, Esperanza is as tall as Aurora!” Twinklesprite laughs.

“Yes, that is right!” Aurora says.

We all giggle for a while.

---

The next hours, we modified the ship to land and travel on water, because it was damaged and we couldn’t use too much fuel, not knowing how far closest lands are.

“Shore in sight!” Someone shout.

“Land to see!” Someone else shout.

Soon, we will reach the docks and take hooves on wooden grounds. But suddenly, a line of guards are blocking us the way to access the concrete parts of the docks.

“On advices of Clearcoat, the mayor of Vanhoover decided we cannot let you enter Equestria!” A white pegasi guard with golden armors says, while a lot of similar beings stand fierce aside of him.

“We request access a fair amount of water and food.” I say.

But nothing happens. It is time the sun sets, and we are all tired, so I ask something again, this time Ethan have his purple powder wings and horns visible like before.

“Please, we had several tough times and we only seek a shelter.” I briefly look at Ethan that seems to support me proudly right now. “Hey, you still have a bit of the Crystal’s energy looks like!”

“Oh yeah? I didn’t noticed.” He replies. “If you don’t let us access the lands, I guess we will have to fight for it!”

“Are you sure about this?” I ask him. “We are all completely exhausted and hurt. We need to rest.”

“Yes. But they shouldn’t forbid us to go to Equestria. Right?”

The night has fallen. The scene was still.

Suddenly, a pink coated and orange-yellow maned unicorn jumps over the wall of guards which surprise them a bit, and the pink pony runs in direction of us.

“Aurora Sunshine! Is that you?” She cries a bit, while she pounces over her. “I’m so happy to see you! I was worried about you!”

“Luster Dawn!” Aurora says, after a little whimper, resulting of her still hurting rear-right leg in plaster. “I’m so glad to see you. I’ve been afraid to never see you again.”

Luster Dawn and Aurora Sunshine cuddles together before Luster spot the deers and her other friends, me and Valentia, and all of the other people that are still in the ship, trying to disembark.

“Oh my, by Celestia, what happened to you?!” She says, observing the state we are all in. “We need to take care of you!”

“Thanks, but unfortunately they will not let us pass.” I tell her. “Nice to meet you, Luster Dawn. I’m Princess Esperanza, here is Ethan the king of deers.” I blush a bit. “We... decided to unite our nations to survive better. Aurora has, I trust in it and I hope it’s true, became friend with few beings in her trip to the Deerlands, this is Flowercorn you might know, here is Twinklesprite, Suncream, Strawberry Jam, there is my most loyal guardian Valentia, and I think that’s all that is important for now.”

The young doe, the pegasi, the earth pony and the licorn all reach close to her and they all hug.

“Yes! Flowercorn I heard about you!” She smiles. “Aurora told me so much about you and other deers!”

“We had to flee our lands so fast. I could even take my last collection!” Twinklesprite whines, looking sad.

“You are Twinklesprite, so? And you make dresses?” She asks. Twinkie nods. “Recently I met a pony that can share that passion with you!”

“Oh really?” She have stars in her eyes.

“Let’s contact Twilight so she can resolve that thing! You have to come to ponyville, she sent me there to study friendship few weeks ago!” She says. “I’ll go to Canterlot and try to meet her if she isn’t busy.”

“We might establish a camp on a close unclaimed place if we can’t pass. We won’t stay in nature the whole night without doing anything.” I say.

“I guess it’s okay. I’ll look for Twilight. Good luck y’all!” She bows in respect of me, Ethan and Valentia.

We manage to get down to the sand somewhere nearby the ships and walk in direction of a hopefully blank place, south of Vanhoover. The night sounds fill our ears as well as the wind and some wet breezes from the ocean. Ethan carry me because he likes to feel my protector now that he is bigger than me. Valentia stays strong even if I see she is exhausted from all of this. I will never reward her enough for her dedication.