Managing Conflict
Another busy day had come and gone. Peter laid in bed, registering today's events. Rumble's very impromptu passionate display, and the challenge offered to him by the Capcom Warriors.
He wasn't one for fighting, but part of him was a bit eager, he liked the idea of at least knowing this spar was a lot friendlier, and he knows it would make those warriors happy to test their might.
Of course he still had the villains to think about, especially Cozy Glow. He couldn't fully forgive Celestia and Luna for keeping that a secret from him.
As Peter drifted off to sleep, he once again found himself in his human form, walking around in a void of darkness. He kept walking until he came across the woman that's been plaguing his dreams as of late.
"Gwen..."
"You don't seem so happy to see me," Gwen said. "Of course, it's hardly different from when I was alive. I can't count how many times you blew off me and our friends, because of your so-called responsibilities."
"You know I cared about you Gwen, I still do, and I miss you every day," Peter said. "But this needs to stop. I'm sorry I couldn't save you, but I have to move on with my life."
"Then do it, what's bringing you back to me?" Gwen taunted. "Guilt perhaps? You know, maybe if you were a bit more honest with me back in the day, things could have turned out differently."
"I wanted to tell you I was Spider-Man, but you weren't exactly his biggest fan," Peter said. "Plus I was worried it would have put you in danger."
"Lot of good that did, I still got taken hostage by The Green Goblin!" Gwen said.
"It was a miscalculation," Peter said. "But I still went to save you."
"Despite that, I'm still dead, because of you Peter," Gwen said. "It may not have been your webbing that killed me, but that doesn't make you any less responsible for what happened."
"Gwen...I wish I could undo that day, I really do," Peter said, the hero clenching his fists in pure agony. "I want nothing more than to make up for what I did. To you, to Uncle Ben, to everyone I hurt."
"Is that why you're so worried about Cozy Glow?" Gwen asked, piquing Peter's interest. "You overlooked the pure evil within that little Pegasus, all because you were distracted by Captain America and Iron Man duking it out. You didn't even notice one of your own enemies coming into Ponyville."
"I had to stop the fighting before the Avengers tore each other apart!" Peter said. "If I hadn't ended it, Equestria would be in a much worse condition."
"You could have ended it sooner, if you just spoke up, but you just can't be honest with your feelings, can you?" Gwen said. "How many times could you have prevented something Peter? How many times could you have just done what needed to be done? Or perhaps, you like the feelings of dread? Can't be a hero with nothing to save."
"I don't need to save lives to be a hero, I don't need to be a hero at all!" Peter said. "Spider-Man isn't my life, it's just part of it!"
"Yet it's always your biggest priority," Gwen said. "Face it, you just need the drama, you have to feel like you're worth something in life. I mean, you claim to care about Cozy Glow, yet you had this whole year to go and make sure she's alright, but no, you wait until you hear there's a problem before you start to care."
"No, that's not true!" Peter insisted. "I...I just, I mean with everything..."
"Finally speechless, Spider-Man?" Gwen teased. "Face it, you're no hero, you're a fraud."
"Just like we always believed..." came the voice of Venom, the symbiote emerging from the ground. "Since the day you had the suit, we always sensed the hidden selfishness in your heart Spider-Man. You wanted the fame and glory of being a hero. Don't you remember those old days? When being a hero was all about the money rather than the reward?"
"I was like that, and it was wrong," Peter said. "But that's not me anymore. I save people because it's the right thing to do!"
"Tell that to her," Venom said, pointing to a caged up Cozy Glow, the filly looking hurt and bruised.
"Where were you when I needed you the most?" Cozy Glow said. "Why did you let the Princesses hurt me?"
"Cozy," Peter reached out to the girl but he was distracted by the cackling laughter of the Green Goblin.
"Funny how things work out, Peter," Goblin said. "For all the people you believe that you saved, there are many who's lives only become worse because of your presence."
"We only exist because of you, and what you did to Eddie Brock," Venom said.
"How often have you turned a blind eye to the bigger picture?" came the voice of Mr. Negative. "Acting on pure emotion, and not understanding the plights of those who felt wronged by society."
"How often have you turned a blind eye to anyone struggling?" came the voice of Electro. "Is the life of a so-called villain not worth saving either? Why make us better people when you have an excuse to treat us like punching bags because of your own issues?"
Sonata then appeared before Peter, "You pretend to resent the Princesses, but when it's all said and done, you're still going to invite Luna for dinner, because you care more about the few friends you have than everyone as a whole!"
"That's a bit too generous, he couldn't even tell us when something was bothering him," Gwen said, now being joined by Peter's old classmates, Liz Allen, Flash Thompson and Harry Osborn.
"When was the last time you checked up on me? On any of us?" Harry shouted. "You come back to New York and for what? Just to play hero with The Avengers? Yeah screw the rest of us, once you got your pony friends we became an afterthought."
"Harry...I didn't mean to," Peter insisted.
"You think that's gonna make anything better?" Harry said.
"Wow, you can't even be a friend to kids you grew up with," Sonata said. "How long before you ditch your Equestrian friends?"
"I'd give him another year or two," Harry said.
"I wouldn't ditch them! Just like I didn't ditch you! I never wanted to!" Peter said. "Things just fell apart! I can make it work!"
"Funny you say that, tiger," came the voice of Mary Jane. "How many times has your precious wife told you this? Yet you always brush it off, because deep down, you don't care. You hit the jackpot with your new friends, and you never want to give that up to associate with the lessers."
"I wouldn't do that MJ," Peter insisted. "I would never want to hurt anyone, or deceive them, or just be a bad person in general."
"You really think that?" Came the voice of J Jonah Jameson, his former boss standing before him. "You are what I always believed you to be, a menace. You act righteous but you know damn well if you could, you'd deceive anyone if it meant making your own life easier!"
"Enough! I'm done with this!" Peter shouted, trying to will everyone away. "Nothing buts lies and deception! How well do any of you even know me!? You're all just a bunch of illusions!"
"They may not know you," Came a voice way too familiar, for standing before Peter was himself. This version had not only the symbiote suit, but his face was exposed to reveal his Nightmare Eyes. "But I know all about you. Those forms may be illusions, but you know deep down those feelings are real, and perhaps they have truth to them, a truth you can never admit to."
"Get out of my face!" Peter went for a punch but his other self dodged and appeared behind him.
"You're a failure, Peter Parker," Dark Peter said, dodging a backhand. "Soon that will spread to all those you love, starting with your precious little daughter."
"Bastard!" Peter leapt to attack but found nothing. "Show yourself dammit! I'm not done with you!"
"Peter!" Came the voice of Luna. "Peter! It's me!"
Using her magic, Luna had successfully entered Peter's dream, casting away all the negative illusions, leaving just herself and the hero, who had been reverted to Pony form.
"Luna?" Peter said.
"Peter, you really need to work on these negative emotions," Luna said. "They've been clouding your mind as of late."
"It's gotten pretty bad, I'll admit," Peter said. "Been like this for like a week, I don't even know why."
"Dreams are often our subconscious trying to tell us something," Luna said.
"Tell me what? What I already know?" Peter said. "I know I haven't seen my friends from Midtown. I know I screwed over Eddie. I know I've lied to Jameson and The Bugle, making money off of selfies. I know I once prioritized money over heroics. You know, the icing of the cake would be if my uncle showed up to blame me for his death, oh, maybe I could have gotten a visit from Rainbow Dash and Applejack from that alternate future where the Changelings destroyed everything."
"Don't jinx it, knowing your luck, it may happen," Luna said.
"Oh yeah, last thing I want is for you to suddenly turn into Chrysalis," Peter said, suspiciously eyeing the pony. "You are really Luna and not Chrysalis in disguise, are you?"
"If I was, it's only a dream, and you know it's a dream, so you can wake yourself up or just take control," Luna said. "I can assure you, this is the real me, no dream. Since I am here, you may speak to me about Cozy Glow."
"Oh good, I can finally get answers, seems like a real dream come true," Peter sarcastically mused. "Well since you offered, explain why she was sent to Tartarus."
"Celestia was terrified by the fact that she was the one who came up with the master plan to control Ponyville," Luna said. "Martin Li had input but Cozy Glow was the one to put everything together. She knew how to work emotions, plus there's evidence suggesting she was conversing with other villains, including old ones from years past."
"So rather than educate her on not talking to evil creatures, you just threw her in Tartarus with no chance at redemption?" Peter asked.
"Peter, she helped a villain sneak into Ponyville, on top of that, she may have traded secrets with Discord," Cozy Glow said. "We had to imprison her until we figured out Discord's situation."
"She's a kid though, an evil kid who has issues to work out, but still a kid," Peter said. "Starlight did some evil stuff and she got a second chance. Now she's the nicest pony you could know."
"Starlight I will admit was a mercy," Luna said. "Given that she directly cooperated with Loki, Celestia had considered imprisoning her in Tartarus as well. If not for her change of heart sometime after meeting her friend from The Crystal Empire, I guarantee that would have been her punishment."
"And she never would have gotten the chance she got, thus she wouldn't have changed," Peter said. "Luna, you know Cozy Glow deserved better than this. I just know she could be reformed if we give her a chance."
"Funny you say that, Sunset Shimmer has admitted to wanting to take Cozy Glow in," Luna said.
"Of course, Sunset knows what it's like being evil too, and she got her second chance," Peter said. "Can you find Cozy Glow so Sunset and I can help her be better?"
"We hope to," Luna said.
"Also, if she was in Tartarus, how did she escape?" Peter asked.
"Discord may have aided, his magic was detected at Tartarus," Luna said. "Guards that enter usually find themselves walking in circles until they're back outside, like if there's a mystical loop."
"How long has this been going on?" Peter asked.
"We're unsure," Luna said. "But, I promise you Peter, I will make sure this is fixed."
"Thanks Luna, glad I can still count on you," Peter said.
"Yes...anytime Peter," Luna said, the mare now blushing. "You know, Peter. There's much more we can still discuss, it doesn't have to be anything major either. We can just...talk about whatever you'd like. I just want to stay in your company for a bit."
"Uh sure, if that's what you want," Peter said, using his imagination to generate a grassy field with a picnic blanket. "Sweet, that worked."
"Quite well," Luna said, taking a seat.
"Anything you want to know?" Peter asked. "What did you want to discuss?"
"Well...let's start with Mayday, how has she been lately?" Luna asked.
"She's fine, still has her friends," Peter said. "There's Luster Dawn, a really sweet girl who understands my daughter well. There's also Franklin Richards, Mayday's new...crush."
"It's sweet that she found a boy to like," Luna said. "Tell me more on what she's been up to. Inventions she wants to make, hopes for the future, recent struggles with her introversion."
"Sure, let me start from the beginning then," Peter said.
Elsewhere at a campfire site on Mount Everhoof, the villains had called it a day and were trying to sleep, granted it wasn't an easy task. They had no gear so they had to make do by the fire, hoping it wouldn't go out.
Sonata struggled to fall asleep herself, constantly moving to get comfortable. As she did so, she saw that Cozy Glow was struggling due to the cold. Feeling sorry for her, Sonata had laid next to the young pony, cuddling right next to her in hopes of keeping her warm through body heat.
During this, Shocker opened an eye, seeing Sonata trying to comfort Cozy Glow. He decided to ignore it, a feeling that didn't last long. He relented and stood up, making his way to Mysterio and picked up his neatly folded cape.
He trotted over and placed it over Sonata and Cozy Glow like a blanket, the siren looking surprised by the act of kindness.
"Thanks Hermie," Sonata said.
"Don't call me that. Anyway I'm just keeping you warm so that you and that girl don't freeze to death," Shocker said. "Then that's two less people helping us find this stupid bell."
"Okay, whatever you say," Sonata said, smirking to herself as she brought Cozy Glow closer to her, comfortably falling asleep next to the filly.
The following morning, Aunt May was seen making some breakfast while Mayday, Benjy, Starlight and Trixie sat around the table.
"Food's almost ready," Aunt May said, checking to see who was present. "Though it looks like we're missing about four mouths to feed."
"Oh yeah, Twilight is usually up by this hour," Trixie said.
"She is, but she was working on some notes and plans for the Center," Starlight said. "Some of the rooms need extra resources, such as more radios and some more sports gear. She's making a list."
"What about Peter?" Trixie asked. "Sleeping in?"
"Seems like it, but it's better that way," Starlight said. "Peter does not strike me as a morning pony."
"He certainly is not one for mornings," Aunt May said, adding some extra touches.
Starlight turned her attention to the sole filly of the table, "So, Mayday, got any plans today?"
"I'm seeing Frankie again," Mayday confirmed.
"That boy comes over so often, he might as well live here," Trixie said. "Like seriously, he visits almost every day."
"Hard to blame Franklin, Mayday's a really nice girl, it's nice that he's so devoted to seeing her," Starlight said.
"Frankie's very nice too," Mayday said, a slight blush on her face. "I really enjoy being around him, he's one of the only individuals I feel comfortable with."
"He certainly feels the same way," Trixie said. "His face always lights up when he sees you, Mayday."
"You two spent time at the Gala, didn't you?" Starlight asked. "Did anything special happen then?"
"Anything on the romance side?" Trixie asked, Mayday's face turning redder. "He gave you a pretty rose after all.”
"It's sweet that he gave you a rose," Starlight said. "You must be really special to him."
"He gives me flowers all the time, he's being nice," Mayday said.
"Boys only give flowers to girls if they like the girls," Trixie said. "That boy really likes you Mayday, perhaps there's love in the air."
"Love!?" Mayday quickly got off her seat. "Uh, I should be going now."
"Mayday wait, what about breakfast?" Aunt May asked.
"I'll be back for it later," Mayday said as she left. "Better yet, bring it to my lab!"
Starlight glanced at Mayday's direction a bit, before glancing back to Trixie, "I think you may have gotten her quite flustered."
"I call it like I see it," Trixie said. "Mayday definitely has a crush on that boy, it's so obvious at this point that she's probably the only one who doesn't know, aside from Franklin of course."
"Mayday's first crush, that's so exciting!" Starlight said.
"Technically it's her second, Rumble was her first," Trixie said.
"Rumble? "Starlight asked. "Wait, that was real?"
"I mean she did seem to like being around him, and she would gush over him to the point that she'd get jealous if any other girl got near him, especially the Cutie Mark Crusaders," Trixie said. "This is probably the first time she's liked a foal that's closer to her age."
"Tell me this, how well can she manage this crush?" Starlight asked.
"It depends," Trixie said. "You don't need me to remind you how socially awkward she is to the point that it gives her anxiety."
"Right, especially in crowds, or any place with loud noises," Starlight said.
"She's still learning the fundamentals of being a social pony," Trixie said. "That's not easy for girls like her."
"Is it because she's an introvert?" Starlight asked.
"That's only part of the reason, even an introvert can be socially adept, just like some extroverts can be socially awkward," Trixie said.
"How can an extrovert be socially awkward?" Starlight asked.
"You should know, you fit the bill," Trixie said. "You like being around ponies yet you're so weird when talking to them sometimes."
"Huh? No I'm not!" Starlight said.
"You tend to babble, like when talking about your love for kites," Trixie said. "You even once put a spell on Big Macintosh to make him more talkative."
"Yeah, Remy thought it was funny but Applejack and Cheerilee weren't happy," Starlight said. "At least Cheerilee was nicer about it, Applejack looked ready to destroy me."
"Just don't try that with Mayday," Trixie said.
"I would never," Starlight said. "Still, I guess I can see your point, but I think you might be exaggerating a bit."
"Like I said, I call it like I see it," Trixie said. "It's not a bad thing, everyone has flaws. Even I make a mistake or two."
"You? Make mistakes?" Starlight sarcastically commented. "Nooo...impossible."
"Oh haha, real funny," Trixie playfully mused. "At the very least you're fun to converse with."
"Still, I will admit, this whole introvert thing can be confusing for me too," Starlight said.
"Most Equestrians don't really understand the concept, Peter believes a lot of them have to 'put it aside' so to speak," Trixie said.
"Peter's introverted too, isn't he?" Starlight asked. "How can someone so charismatic be an introvert?"
"Like I said, introverts can be socially adept," Trixie said. "Peter just knows how to adapt."
Starlight curiously turned to the other woman in the room, "Aunt May, you raised Peter, can you verify his personality?"
"Of course," Aunt May said. "Peter has always been very much to himself, even as a young boy. If he wasn't doing his science experiments, he was in his room reading his comics."
"So he didn't like being social?" Starlight asked.
"Well, it was a bit confusing for him," Aunt May said. "I think he wanted to fit in and have friends, but a lot of the time, he decided against it in the end. He would come up with a lot of excuses not to go. Some of it may have been Spider-Man related but I always had a nagging feeling that he just didn't feel up to it. He might have had a fear of making a fool of himself."
"Peter hides it well but he usually gets nervous talking to others," Trixie said. "That's why he tells jokes, to lighten the mood, not just for others, but for himself."
"So, anytime he tells a joke, it means he's uncomfortable?" Starlight asked. "But, he's joked around with me! Does that mean that...I'm making him uncomfortable?"
"No, I mean maybe sometimes but it's not you, it's him," Trixie said. "Look, maybe I explained it wrong. Not all his jokes are from him being uncomfortable, sometimes he just likes goofing around."
"Peter likes your company Starlight, so don't worry about it," Aunt May said.
"Well, that's good, I like Peter's company too, I mean if not for him, I'd still be hanging around Loki," Starlight said. "I could have ended up in Asgard during that big fight."
"Good point," Trixie said. "Peter just saved you from Ragnarök."
"I saved who from Ragnarök?" Peter asked, the hero making his way into the kitchen.
"Peter!" Starlight rushed over and hugged the hero. "I always find more reasons to appreciate you, my friend."
"Uh, wow...that's cool," Peter said, feeling a bit awkward. "Glad I can be your Asgardian Angel."
Starlight's eyes widened and pulled away, "I made you uncomfortable, didn't I?"
"Huh? No you're good," Peter said.
"You told a joke though, you usually only do that when you're feeling awkward," Starlight said. "And I made you feel awkward! Was it the hug? Do introverts like hugs?"
"Introverts?" Peter turned to Trixie. "What's going on?"
"This is Starlight proving my point about her being an awkward extrovert," Trixie teased.
"Am I really that awkward?" Starlight wondered.
"You're fine," Peter said. "Still, what's this about introverts and stuff?"
"It's basically me making sure of some research I've been doing," Starlight explained. "Making sure I understand all that I can about certain ponies. Mayday and Luster Dawn have been eye openers for sure, if I want to be a good counselor, I have to understand all personality types."
"That's good to know, just remember, there are different kinds of introverts and extroverts," Peter said. "Introverts can be social too. Twilight loves being around ponies, but she also likes having time to herself. Meanwhile extroverts can be shy and don't always like being the center of attention."
"Right...honestly this might be hard to figure out," Starlight said. "How do I tell the shy introverts apart from the social ones?"
"Just focus on other things," Peter said. "Does the pony like being with others? Does the pony prefer solitude? Does the pony want attention? Stuff like that. Mayday prefers solitude, she's fine not talking to others. But, if she considers you a friend, then she's really close to you and enjoys your company."
"Right, I have noticed that," Starlight said. "How does that compare to you and Twilight?"
"Well, Twilight likes solitude, but she can get lonely after a while, that's why she either wants to spend time with her friends or she goes out and socializes with other ponies," Peter said. "Me, I'm a bit selective but I don't mind giving an effort when I need to. I will admit, I have gotten nervous about socializing when I was a teenager."
"A bit too much at times," Aunt May said.
"I know Aunt May," Peter said. "And I will say that my time as Spider-Man really helped. Back then it was easier to be more extroverted because I wore a mask, literally. Spider-Man wasn't just my suit, it was like another personality for me. Since then I've tried merging Peter Parker with Spider-Man, and I can be friendlier to others, but I do need my alone time as well."
"Alright, so it depends on how much alone time a pony wants," Starlight said.
"Even an extrovert might want some alone time, in my opinion, everyone needs time to themselves," Peter said. "Extroverts just have more fuel than introverts do."
"Alright, that makes sense," Starlight said. "Oh, and what about the hugging thing?"
"You're allowed to hug me, we're friends," Peter said. "Mayday might be bothered unless she really likes you. She doesn't mind hugging Luster Dawn, mainly since Luster knows not to hug too tightly, unlike Flurry who goes overboard. It doesn't hurt Mayday but it embarrasses her. Twilight likes hugs though."
"Gotta say, you, Twilight and Mayday are great examples of different introvert types," Starlight said. "Maybe I can see if I can learn about it from your friends."
"Well, you can probably take some cues from Logan, he's kind of like Mayday, not really a people person, but loyal to those he cares about," Peter said. "It's good that you're learning more about this stuff though, the more ponies understand each other, the better things will be."
"One step closer to total harmony," Starlight said.
"Close as you'll get," Peter said. "It's not that likely that everyone will get along, but we can do our best to encourage it to make things easier than they are now."
"It's the least everyone can do, after all," Aunt May said. "The best way to achieve peace is to always be as kind to others as possible."
"Fluttershy's element, a key factor to respect, especially among friends," Peter said. "Speaking of which, I gotta go meet up with them later to discuss the upcoming butt-kicking we're gonna deliver to Team Capcom."
Aunt May furrowed her brow at her nephew, "Seriously, Peter?"
"To be fair, the best way to earn Capcom's respect is to try and beat them up," Peter said.
"Capcom does love communicating with their fists," Trixie said.
"By the way, where's Mayday?" Peter asked.
"Oh, Starlight teased her about her crush on Franklin and she ran away embarrassed about it," Trixie said.
"Huh? That didn't happen! You're the one who wanted the details!" Starlight said.
"Ugh, Mayday's crush..." Peter lamented.
"What's wrong, son?" Aunt May asked.
"Don't get me wrong, I like Franklin, he's a good kid and I guess if Mayday had to like a boy, then he's a good pick," Peter said. "I just feel weird knowing that she's developing these feelings. She's growing up too fast sometimes and I'm worried that one day she's not gonna need me around."
"Oh come now Peter, you know that will never happen," Aunt May said. "I know how you feel though, I went through this when you were growing up. Honestly it still feels like not too long ago that I was changing your diaper."
"Really, in front of my friends?" Peter said, feeling embarrassed.
"They'll understand, they're good mares," Aunt May said.
"If it makes you feel better Peter, my dad used to call me 'Chipmunk Cheeks'," Starlight said. "Still did when I went to visit him a couple of months ago."
"Not to make it worse, but that is a cute nickname for you," Peter said.
"Aw, thanks," Starlight said, the girl blushing from the compliment.
"My point here Peter, is that I got just as worried as you're feeling now, because it was hard for me to see you grow up," Aunt May said. "But, I had to accept it because in the end, the job of a parent is to help their child become a well-rounded individual. I had to trust that when you got older, you'd be able to handle yourself."
"I couldn't though, I screwed up a few times," Peter said.
"And that's okay, son," Aunt May said. "Everyone makes mistakes, and I was still there for you when you did. Even now I'm here, aren't I?"
"Well yeah, I wanted you close to me," Peter said.
"Because we built that bond, I'm still part of your life, and you have two kids of your own," Aunt May said. "No matter how old Mayday gets, I know she'll always want you in her life. Your daughter loves you so much Peter, you're a hero to her, even without your costume you mean more to her than anything. When the day comes that she gets married, she's going to want you there, walking her down the aisle. The day she becomes a mother, she might need your tips, just like you needed them from me."
"You really helped me with some struggles," Peter said.
"Because that's what I am here for," Aunt May said. "I may not be your birth mother, but for all intents and purposes, you are my son, and I will be there for you, just like you will for your daughter."
"Heh, this is a little embarrassing," Peter admitted. "But, thanks Aunt May. I always considered you my mother, it's nice hearing the confirmation on your end."
"Any time, dear," Aunt May said.
"I guess I shouldn't worry too much, it's just gonna take some getting used to," Peter said. "Still, just the idea of her getting married, I mean she's only nine so she's years away from that, but I will be ready for her big day."
"Walking her down the aisle, like fathers usually do," Trixie said, thinking to herself. "Kind of sad considering Apple Bloom couldn't have that."
"Neither did Applejack," Peter said. "Or Pinkie Pie, her father was not happy about her marrying Wade at the time, thankfully he's lightened up a bit since then. Everyone else at least had their fathers present to 'give them away'."
"Makes me wonder how my father would react to me getting married?" Starlight said.
"You know, couldn't Big Macintosh give Apple Bloom away?" Trixie asked. "Or you?"
"We asked, she didn't want that because she was afraid it would make her cry that her parents weren't around," Peter said. "Honestly I'm surprised she held it together with those buttercup flowers in her mane. Those were her mom's favorite."
"Apple Bloom never knew her parents, didn't they pass on when she was just born?" Trixie asked.
"Yeah, just like what happened to my birth parents," Peter said. "Wonder how they'd feel about me?"
"Richard and Mary would be proud of you too, Peter." Aunt May reassured.
"Hey Trixie, what about you and your dad?" Starlight asked. "I hear he's working at Las Pegasus."
"You met your father, Trixie?" Aunt May asked.
"A couple of months ago, I spotted him in the crowd during a show of mine,” Trixie explained. “I didn't actually go and talk to him though. It would be too awkward."
"Oh come now Trixie, you should give it a chance," Aunt May said.
"I'll go with you if you'd like," Starlight said. "We can bring Autumn Blaze, or Sunburst, or Maud."
"Bring all three of them," Peter said.
"Even better idea," Starlight said.
"...I'll think about it," Trixie said. "Still, I'm quite happy with my life here, I'm not eager to bring up a part of my life that I don't have fond memories of."
"It's up to you then, whenever you're ready," Starlight said.
"Good morning," came Twilight's voice as she entered the kitchen alongside Spike and Janet. "Did I miss anything?"
"Sit down, we'll fill you in," Trixie said.
"Time to start from the beginning, one more time," Peter said to himself.
Later near the Friendship Center, Silverstream was seen making her way inside when she spotted her best friend, "Rumble!"
"Hey Silver," Rumble said, greeting the girl.
"Is Apple Bloom here?" Silverstream asked.
"She's at home with Cumie," Rumble explained. "Given what happened yesterday, she's not too keen on coming here for a bit."
"You mean when you two were caught...what's a nice way to say it..." Silverstream came up with something. "Proving your love."
"Yeah, that," Rumble said. "Honestly, I don't regret it, I enjoyed myself, and so did she, but it was still embarrassing. She and I are gonna take a break, I actually only came here because I wanted to tell you something."
"Oh really? What is it?" Silverstream asked.
"Apple Bloom and I are going to take our honeymoon to Mount Aris, we're leaving tonight actually," Rumble said. "We'll be gone for a couple of weeks."
"Stay as long as you want, just give me the details so I can tell Terramar and Skystar to help make accommodations," Silverstream said. "Still, so happy you're finally going."
"I really appreciate you helping us get that room," Rumble said.
"What about Cumie?" Silverstream asked. "Who's watching him?"
"Flitter is, she's already our babysitter after all," Rumble said. "But if you want to help, that would be great. I want our baby to know his Aunt Silverstream after all."
"Aw, I feel honored," Silverstream said. "It's like we're family."
"Well you're one of my best friends, and friends are the family you choose," Rumble said.
"That makes you family to me too," Silverstream said. "And families get hugs!"
Silverstream pulled Rumble into a tight hug, one that the stallion sheepishly returned. Though in the corner of his eye he could spot Gallus walking into the Friendship Center, Rumble suddenly feeling tense.
"Hey what's wrong?" Silverstream asked, noticing Rumble's change in demeanor. She looked aside and spotted the Griffon, her mood souring. "Oh, it's him."
"You haven't spoken with him much lately, that right?" Rumble asked.
"Not since the fight that was his fault, and not yours," Silverstream said.
"Look, I know he's annoying and he's got a lot of issues to work out, but he's still a friend of yours," Rumble said. "You've been close for the last couple of years, don't throw it all away just because of one incident."
"It wasn't just that," Silverstream said. "Since that whole situation with Cozy Glow, Gallus just showed such apathy towards it that it really bothered me. Plus, the mean things he's said about Peter and how he treated you. It got on my nerves."
"Did you ever talk to him about it?" Rumble asked.
"I tried to, but I'm not good at confrontation, especially with someone who's supposed to be my friend," Silverstream explained. "Then came that moment where he tried forcing an ultimatum, it just really ticked me off."
"Silver, it makes sense that you're upset, but I still think you need to work things out," Rumble said. "I don't think I want to be a major reason why you stopped being friends with him, and if anyone can turn a grump into a decent individual, it's you."
"I don't know, after the other day, it might be awkward," Silverstream said.
"Worth a try," Rumble said. "But I know how you feel. Things are still pretty rough with me and Wind Sprit, granted I didn't know her as long as you knew Gallus, but I still considered her a friend."
"Forgiveness is hard," Silverstream said.
"But worth it," Rumble said.
"I'll consider talking to Gallus, I still need some time away from him to think things over," Silverstream said. "As for Wind Sprint, I think I saw her playing Buckball recently with some others, maybe you can go and try to talk to her now, see how she's doing."
"I guess that's a start, let's go give it a try," Rumble said.
Not too far away, Sweetie Belle and Smolder were seen walking together as they got close to the Friendship Center. The unicorn girl had her eyes on several other ponies nearby, paying special attention to some of those that appeared to be romantically involved with one another.
"Smolder, how often do you think about getting married?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"I think about it sometimes, but it's kind of pointless since I don't even have a boyfriend," Smolder said.
"I shouldn't myself but, I still have Apple Bloom's wedding on my mind," Sweetie Belle said. "She and Rumble looked so happy that day."
"Do you feel jealous?" Smolder asked.
"Kind of, I know it's wrong but I just wish I had a boyfriend to love me," Sweetie Belle said. "It's just ridiculous, the two boys I really liked were ones I could never have. Well, I could have had Rumble, but I screwed that up big time."
"Wasn't there another guy?" Smolder asked.
"Doesn't count," Sweetie Belle was quick to dismiss. "Also, despite what rumors say, I did not get intimate with him. I may have...used my magic creatively and uttered some names...but anything he said was just him trying to tick off my sister."
"Still, that aside, you've been feeling this way for years, you really need to forget about Rumble and move on," Smolder said.
"It's hard to, I mean he started dating one of my best friends," Sweetie Belle said. "Honestly it's almost surprising how often I saw him considering he moved to Cloudsdale, but since that city's right above us and Rumble's really fast, I guess distance didn't matter. He just wanted to be with Apple Bloom."
"That is kind of sweet," Smolder said. "But I get what you're saying. Sounds like you're not over either guy."
"Peter's easier to accept that I can't be with him, since I was a filly when I fell for him and he was a stallion," Sweetie Belle said. "Rumble was actually closer to my age. So that just feels like an even harder failure for me."
"Take it from me, obsessing over the what-ifs is not good," Smolder said. "I never told anyone this but, I always had a thing for Sandbar. I was a bit bummed out he went with Ocellus, and I still am to an extent, but in the end there isn't much I can do. Either way, I am very happy for Ocellus, out of all my friends, I felt a special connection to her, and seeing her happy makes me happy too. It's bittersweet but the best I can do now is be a supportive friend, because her friendship is too precious for me to take for granted."
"You're so sweet," Sweetie Belle, nuzzling her friend's cheek. "A big softie under those hard scales."
"Knock it off, this is why everyone thinks that we're dating," Smolder said. "No offense to you, if I were a guy I probably would date you, but I don't need rumors spreading."
"Just ignore them, a lot of those rumors are probably from horny stallions who want to see two cute girls making out with each other," Sweetie Belle said.
"You're cute, I'm not," Smolder said.
"Don't give me that, I've seen how some boys look at you," Sweetie Belle said. "You know what, you and I are gonna go find some boys to date."
"Where?" Smolder asked.
"Where else? The Friendship Center," Sweetie Belle said. "Actually, let's go around back. Sometimes I see some athletic ponies playing outdoor games. Let's get ourselves some strong stallions."
"I don't think I want to date a jock," Smolder said.
"Not like we have anything to lose," Sweetie Belle said. "Let's hurry."
At the Buckball field, Rumble and Silverstream were passing through, taking note of the ponies practicing their moves.
"A lot of talent here," Rumble said. "One day you and I should do another big Buckball game, but this time we can be on the same team."
"We do make a good team," Silverstream said, glancing at the ponies. "Gotta say, some of these stallions are pretty cute."
"Hey if you want to go take a chance, I can talk to Wind Sprint alone," Rumble said.
"Eh, I'm kind of nervous doing that alone," Silverstream said.
"Alright, I'll help you out later then," Rumble said. "Actually, they might come to you, that's what stallions do after all, they go to the girl."
"Think they would come to me?" Silverstream asked.
"They'd have to be pretty dumb to not see that you're a very pretty hippogriff," Rumble said.
That got a blush on Silverstream's face, "Aw, thanks buddy."
"Don't mention it," Rumble said, then spotted who he was looking for. "Wind Sprint!"
"Huh?" Wind Sprint turned to spot her friend. "Rumble!?"
"Hey, been a while since we talked," Rumble said.
"Yeah...it's so nice to see you," Wind Sprint said, awkwardly floating down to the stallion. "So...how's Apple Bloom?"
"She's fine, we're going on our Honeymoon later," Rumble said.
"That's cute," Wind Sprint said, trying to think of more to say. "Is your son doing well?"
"Yeah, he's got a lot of energy for sure too," Rumble said. "We're hoping he slows it down but he definitely gets his excitement from me, though Apple Bloom would tell you she was hyper as a kid too, so maybe a combination."
"Yeah..." Wind Sprint said.
Rumble could tell she was feeling awkward, so he thought it best to just get this over with, "Look, Wind. I know things have been awkward for the last year, but I really don't want us being this way. When I met you, I instantly knew I wanted you as a friend. I know The Crusaders liked you too."
"What about Dinky?" Wind Sprint asked.
"Uh...well, she still needs some getting used to since she's not happy with what you did," Rumble said. "But we can work that out too. Fact is, a lot of other ponies went through this. Fluttershy had to learn to forgive Pinkie Pie, Johnny Storm and Bobby Drake had to settle their issues, even The Royal Sisters as well as Cap and Mr. Stark did their best to work things out. No reason we can't. I just want to really put this behind us."
"I want to as well but...I still can't get over it," Wind Sprint said. "When I came here, you were instantly nice to me and I still turned on you because of orders. I even ended up quitting The Wonderbolts because of that."
"Really wish you didn't," Rumble said. "You have amazing talent."
"I joined The Wonderbolts with you, not just because it was cool but because I wanted to hang out with my friend some more," Wind Sprint said. "Now I feel too guilty to do that."
"Wind Sprint," Silverstream said, getting her attention. "You remember me, right?"
"Yeah, Rumble's new best friend, the one who didn't betray him," Wind Sprint said.
"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself, like Rumble said, you made a mistake," Silverstream said. "He would have followed Mr. Stark and Spitfire no matter what at one point too. It took that mean lady hitting Apple Bloom to get him to realize that The Accords had faults. I know you made a mistake and you felt like you betrayed Rumble, but he cares enough to still want you as his friend, don't throw it away for guilt, just try again from the beginning."
"Silverstream and I had a really bad start," Rumble said. "Now she's a girl I would trust with my life. I think you and I can fix things too."
"Well..." Wind Sprint lightly kicked the ground. "I want to, but-"
"Watch out!"
BONK!
"OW!"
"Sweetie Belle!" Smolder shouted in worry.
"Sweetie Belle?" Rumble turned to see his unicorn friend keeled over in pain after a buckball hit her in the head. "Oh no!"
"Sweetie Belle!" Silverstream worriedly rushed over along with Wind Sprint.
"I'm really sorry!" an orange colt with blue hair insisted. "I didn't expect her to be there."
"Didn't expect her? What are you blind? Do you not pay attention when throwing your stupid ball!?" Smolder shouted, getting in the pony's face. "You hurt my friend!"
"I will make it up to you, I promise," the pony said.
"First Base, what's going on?" Wind Sprint asked the colt.
"I may have accidentally hit Sweetie Belle in the head with my ball," First Base said.
"Uh, 'may have'?" Smolder sarcastically asked. "You DID hit her! Now she's in pain!"
"Mistakes happen!" First Base insisted.
"I'm gonna make you regret what you did!" Smolder shouted, cracking her knuckles.
"Uh, Smolder, maybe don't start a fight," Rumble said. "Take it from me, you will earn Twilight's wrath."
"He said he's sorry, I don't think he would hurt Sweetie Belle on purpose," Silverstream said.
"I have a lot of respect for the Cutie Mark Crusaders, as do many of our old classmates and peers," First Base said.
"...Fine," Smolder said, gently stroking Sweetie Belle's head. "You better make this up to her!"
"I will, I promise," First Base insisted.
"Let's make sure it isn't too bad," Silverstream said. "She did take a blow to the head after all."
"Sweetie Belle..." Smolder lifted her chin up to check her face. She had a bruise on the side of her forehead and she looked very dizzy. She held up a couple of digits. "How many claws do you see?"
"Who's Sweetie Belle?" the girl said.
"Oh no! I think she has amnesia!" Silverstream said.
Smolder again glared at First Base, "You son of a-"
"Smolder!" Rumble shouted. "Please, don't lose your temper. Sweetie Belle will be okay, just...take some time to cool off."
"Alright fine," Smolder said, angrily stomping off.
Rumble lifted Sweetie Belle into his hooves, holding her bridal style. "I'm gonna get you to the nurse's office, alright Sweetie Belle?"
"Why is everything spinning?" Sweetie Belle said. "Am I on a carnival ride?"
"Geez First Base, how hard did you throw that ball?" Wind Sprint asked.
"I just threw it like normal," First Base insisted.
"She'll be fine, but we should let her sister and brother-in-law know," Rumble said.
First Base gulped in worry, "Isn't her brother-in-law that pony with the ice powers? He's not gonna turn me into an ice cube, is he?"
"Just explain what happened, Rarity is very understanding, and I doubt Bobby will get that mad," Silverstream said. "I'll go and find them, just try to maintain your composure."
"Yeah, sure," First Base said.
"I'll go find Princess Twilight," Wind Sprint said.
"We'll be right back, just try to stay out of Smolder's way for now" Rumble said, flying Sweetie Belle to the nurse's office.
"Yeah, sure," First Base said, the boy still feeling worried.
While this was going on, Adagio and her team had returned to Tartarus, courtesy of Discord's portal.
Meanwhile at Mount Everhoof, Adagio and her team finally spotted the bell in question, however it was guarded by powerful magic. When Sonata tried grabbing it, a powerful magic knocked her back. Electro tried touching it, and it ended up burning his hoof.
"That's some strong magic," Sonata said.
"Well this is just great, now how are we supposed to get it?" Electro asked.
Shocker tried blasting with his gauntlets, to no avail, "There's no way past this barrier."
"Doesn't Tirek absorb magic?" Cozy Glow asked. "Should we ask Discord to bring him here?"
"No, he mentioned that he could only take magic from living beings," Adagio said. “But if we combine all our resources, we might be able to blast through this barrier and get what we need.”
"Are we strong enough?" Aria asked.
"Let's find out, get ready for some high notes," Adagio said. The siren and her friends charged up some energy and let out a powerful banshee like screech, bothering the ears of the other villains.
Despite their yelling, the barrier did not disappear, only barely opening for a bit.
"This sucks, what now?" Aria asked.
"We need a bit more power," Adagio said. "Boys, any chance we could borrow some of your negative emotions?"
"...What's gonna happen to us?" Electro asked.
"You'll live, we won't steal your lifeforce," Adagio said. "We just need enough to pry open this gate."
"If it's negativity you need, then perhaps I can help," Martin said. "I can take all the negative emotions these gentlemen have and amplify it, giving you two more than enough negative energy."
"That sounds good, so long as they agree to it, and that it doesn't hurt them," Sonata said.
"Gentlemen?" Martin said, getting their attention.
"...Fine, get this over with," Shocker said. "You owe us one for this."
"What about Cozy Glow?" Mysterio asked.
"I'd rather she not be part of this,” Sonata said. "Go for it, Mr. Negative."
Using his powers, Martin enhanced the bad energy from within the three men, focusing on their disdain for Peter and Discord as the sirens felt the energy circulating through their bodies.
The Dazzlings fully absorbed the negative feelings and tried again, blasting the magical barrier. Just the sound of their high-pitched screeches made the men feel even more irritated as they just wanted this over with.
"It's working, keep it up!" Negative said, using some spare energy he had to attack the barrier as well.
A hole was opening but it still would be a while before the barrier was down. Not wanting to wait, Cozy Glow sped in to grab the bell. However her ears were ringing in pain and her body being exposed to the magic made things harder.
"Cozy!" Sonata called, surprising her allies as the sudden stop reactivated the magic, hitting Cozy hard and knocking her to the ground. "COZY GLOW!"
Sonata ran over to help the girl up, seeing some burn marks on her wings as the others gathered around the young pony.
"How are her wounds?" Mysterio asked.
"I see some burns," Shocker said.
"Look!" Electro said, gesturing nearby. "The kid actually grabbed the bell!"
"Great, now we can bring it to Discord!" Sonata said.
"Okay, but why should we exactly?" Electro asked. "We're the ones who worked for this thing, it should be ours!"
"You think Discord would actually let us have it?" Aria asked.
"We have the bell, let's just fight him ourselves," Shocker said.
"What about everyone else?" Sonata asked. "Like Tirek, or Chrysalis, or even Osborn."
"I bet they hate Discord too," Shocker said. "If we can convince them-"
Nearby Martin was seen chipping away at a nearby rock, much to everyone's confusion.
"Li, what the hell are you doing?" Electro asked.
"I've always wanted to do a little sculpting," Martin said.
"...Seriously? I know you mentioned having an art degree but now's not the time for it," Shocker said.
"Is it?" Martin said, showing off the shape. "Or is our true destiny, ringing?"
Adagio knew what he was doing, the mare smirking in satisfaction.
Meanwhile at the nurse’s office, Rumble had explained everything, the nurse leaving the room to get some supplies while Sweetie Belle laid on the bed.
"Wonder why she needed to leave to get this stuff? Shouldn't it be in the room already?" Rumble wondered. "Guess this place is still disorganized, it did just recently reopen."
"Uuuhhh," Sweetie Belle groaned in pain, holding an ice pack to her head. "It's all throbbing."
"Sweetie Belle?" Rumble said, getting her attention. "Are you feeling better? Do you recognize me?"
"...You're cute," Sweetie Belle said, earning a blush from Rumble.
"Uh, thanks," Rumble said, feeling awkward.
Sweetie Belle tossed the ice pack aside, glancing seductively at Rumble, making the boy feel even more strange.
"So, do you still not recognize anything or-" Rumble then felt himself pulled into a heated kiss by Sweetie Belle, the boy freaking out as he stumbled backwards, falling on the floor. "Sweetie Belle!"
"I want kiss," Sweetie Belle said, crawling over Rumble and locking him in another kiss, the boy nervously sweating from what was happening. He wanted to push her off, but he was afraid of aggravating her injury.
"Stay calm, think of a way to break away without hurting her...wow she's a good kisser," Rumble mentally slapped himself. "You're married dofus! You have a son too! Just pull away gently so that-"
"They should be in here," Wind Sprint said, opening the nurse's office, the full view of Sweetie Belle making out with Rumble being exposed to Twilight, Peter, Silverstream, Rarity, Bobby, Scootaloo, Smolder and First Base.
"Please tell me this is just a bad dream..." Rumble began to sweat hard as Sweetie Belle pulled away.
"Hey, this isn't a show!" Sweetie Belle said.
"...Rumble," Twilight said, rage seeping into her voice.
"I swear, I can explain," Rumble said. "Uh, Sweetie Belle, do you mind getting off me? This is very uncomfortable."
"You don't feel uncomfortable," Sweetie Belle said. "But I am feeling something else."
"Crap!" Rumble didn't care anymore, he flew away from the girl, the gust of wind knocking her back as he went behind the bed, the boy feeling very humiliated. "Dang it.”
"Sweetie Belle!" Smolder ran to check on her friend, who fortunately wasn't hurt but still a bit dizzy.
"Ugh, so much yelling," Sweetie Belle said. "Where's that ice pack I just had?"
"There it is," Smolder said, grabbing it to place on her friend's head. "Hey, are you getting back to normal?"
"What's normal?" Sweetie Belle asked.
Rarity knelt beside her sister, checking her bruise, "It isn't as bad as I feared but it is a terrible bump. Sweetie Belle should be brought home immediately and placed in bed."
"Well, the nurse did want to bring her some medicine first," Rumble said, earning some glares from Rarity, Smolder and Bobby.
"Mind explaining why you were making out with my sister-in-law?" Bobby asked.
"I'd like to know as well," Twilight said. "This is the second day in a row you let your passions run wild, only this time, with a girl that isn't your wife! Now why were you kissing Sweetie Belle!?"
"It was an accident!" Rumble said. "She came onto me!"
"She was leading the kiss," Silverstream pointed out. "So it stands to reason that she started this."
"Yeah, she just started kissing me for no reason," Rumble said.
"Well you didn't seem to be resisting," Twilight said.
"I was afraid of hurting her more, that's why!" Rumble said.
"Rumble, you expect me to believe that you couldn't get a mare off you without hurting her?" Twilight asked. "She wasn't even using her magic to keep you restrained."
"She's probably got a concussion, I didn't want to shove her away," Rumble said. "I mean, I guess I did because things just got too awkward but-"
"If we hadn't come in, and you felt 'awkward', would you still have moved?" Twilight asked.
"Of course, I don't want to do anything I'll regret," Rumble said.
"Rumble, two days ago you picked a fight with Gallus, yesterday you pulled Apple Bloom into a public changing room to rut her, and now I catch you making out Sweetie Belle in the nurse's office," Twilight said. "You are way past the point of regrets!"
"Princess, aren't you being too hard on Rumble?" Silverstream asked. "He made a few mistakes, it happens to the best of us."
"She's right," Peter said. "Twilight, you're being too judgmental."
"Peter, he cheated on Apple Bloom," Twilight said.
"He didn't cheat, Sweetie Belle kissed him," Peter said. "Believe me Twilight, I can tell the difference."
"I am fully aware that you know the difference, Peter," Twilight said, a hint of resentment in her voice.
Peter sensed the hostility but knew this wasn't the time or place to address it, "Look, we both know Rumble well, we practically raised him. Even when he stopped living with us, we were both there to guide him, to see him grow up, to watch his maturity into adulthood. We both know he wouldn't do anything like this on purpose. He loves Apple Bloom, if he says Sweetie Belle came onto him, I believe him, because clearly Sweetie Belle is not in the best state of mind."
"It's true, she even showed signs of amnesia," Silverstream said.
"Amnesia!?" Rarity shouted in worry. "Is our darling little Sweetie Belle gonna forget about us!? About me!?"
Bobby glared at First Base, "I'm so gonna kick your ass for this."
First Base freaked out and hid behind Silverstream, "I thought you said they'd be understanding."
"And they are, because Bobby isn't going to hurt you!" Peter said, glaring at the ice hero. "Are you Bobby?"
"Not making any promises," Bobby said.
"Dude, he made a mistake!" Peter said. "Like, holy crap, is making a mistake really that much of a taboo now? I'm worried about Sweetie Belle too but I'd like to think this kid wouldn't hurt her on purpose."
"He said he admired her," Silverstream said. "And all the Crusaders."
"Wait, really?" Scootaloo asked.
"Hey you girls are practically legends among our peers, given how well you mastered the concept of Cutie Marks," First Base said.
"We didn't master it, we just learned to understand them more, anyone can with the right focus," Scootaloo said.
"Still, you got your marks at the same time, that's super rare!" First Base said. "And they're all the same too! Plus you're one of the only kids who had the guts to stand up to Diamond Tiara, on top of that you're close friends with Princess Twilight and Spider-Mane. You're the envy of our classmates."
"Wow, I feel honored," Scootaloo said.
"Uh...by the way, are you dating anyone?" First Base asked.
"Heh, you're cute but I'm taken," Scootaloo said.
"Wait, really?" Peter asked. "By who?"
"You'd need to see it to believe it," Scootaloo said. "He's a good kid though, you've probably met him at least once, I'll introduce you later."
"I look forward to that," Peter said, then noticed First Base looking disappointed. "There's plenty of options kid. I've been turned down so I know how you feel."
"Pfft, who turned you down?" Wind Sprint asked. "You're the cutest superhero in Equestria!"
"Bullshit, everyone knows I'm the cutest," Bobby said, much to Rarity's annoyance.
"You wish," Wind Sprint said, then turned to Peter. "Seriously, lots of girls have had a crush on you...myself included."
"I'm flattered," Peter said. "But I've been turned down, it sucks but you just gotta pick yourself up and move on. Girls are lucky though, they're not expected to make the first move, so you don't have to worry about that too much."
"Didn't Twilight make the first move with you?" Bobby asked.
"I said they're not expected, not that they don't," Peter said. "Look, let's just keep Sweetie Belle comfortable."
"She sure was comfortable with Rumble," Wind Sprint said.
"Not funny!" Rumble said.
"How long are you gonna stay behind the bed? Did Sweetie Belle make you that hard?" Wind Sprint asked.
"Please don't word it like that," Rumble said. "I just want to move on from this. I still have my honeymoon to go on."
"Are you going to tell Apple Bloom?" Silverstream asked.
"...Should I? I mean, I don't want to keep secrets from her, but I don't think she needs unnecessary stress," Rumble said.
"She's gonna find out, girls have a way of finding out these things," Peter said. "That and the guilt might get to you. You're better off being honest with her, she might get mad, but she'll be even madder if she finds out on her own."
"...Scootaloo, you know Apple Bloom really well, how do you think I should go about this?" Rumble asked.
"Don’t worry, I’ll help you out," Scootaloo said.
"Yeah, alright," Rumble said. "Twilight, I'm sorry for upsetting you again."
"Just...try to behave yourself, I don't want this place getting shut down again," Twilight said.
Silverstream raised her eyebrow at her fellow Princess, a little bothered by that reply. "Princess Twilight, I seem to recall that when me and my friends made a mistake, you were quick to defend us from Neighsay, and you barely knew us at the time. So, I should hope that you know Rumble made a mistake, and he's family to you."
"I recall that day, Silversteam, you nearly got my school shut down," Twilight said. "Not that it mattered since it got shut down anyway."
"Alright, Twilight, come with me, now," Peter said, leaving the room.
"What could he want?" Twilight wondered as she followed her husband.
"Damn, Peter really grew a pair," Bobby jokingly stated.
"Bobby, not the time!" Rarity scolded. "Also, where is this nurse?"
The ice hero turned his attention to Rumble, "Yo perv, where'd you say the nurse went?"
"Bobby!" Rarity scolded. "Please stop being immature!"
"He was the one making out with Sweetie Belle," Bobby said. "Which doesn't leave this room by the way! Apple Bloom can find out because she's gotta know but I don't want this mucking up Sweetie Belle's reputation."
"You think I'll let that happen to my friend?" Scootaloo asked.
"Yeah, no one's gonna drag her name through the mud," Smolder said.
"Look, Rumble, just tell us where the nurse is," Bobby said.
"She left a while ago and hasn't returned, she's looking for supplies," Rumble said.
"What supplies? She should have everything here!" Rarity said, groaning in annoyance. "This is why Twilight needs to let us help more, she complains that Peter does everything alone yet wants total control over this place. Then stuff like this gets overlooked."
"Twilight thinks she can do everything herself, for better or worse, this shows why she's a match for Peter," Bobby said.
"Well, I'm going to find the nurse and hurry her along," Rarity said. "Bobby, please keep an eye on Sweetie Belle."
"I'll help too," Smolder said.
"Same, Sweetie Belle's my pal after all," Scootaloo said.
"We'll leave you to it then," Wind Sprint said. "Let's go Base."
"What about Sweetie Belle, can I do anything to help?" First Base asked.
"You've done enough," Rarity said, making her way out the room.
"I really thought she'd be more understanding than this," Silverstream said.
"Silverstream, her sister got whacked in the head with a buckball, and she got exploited by Rumble," Bobby said. "Of course she's not fine."
Silverstream furrowed her brow, "Can you please not say that? You know Rumble wouldn't do this on purpose."
"Whether he did or not, the kid did not handle this well,” Bobby said. “When he got married, I figured it meant him growing up, but that sure isn’t happening.”
"Even if Rumble's still got some growing up to do, he's at least trying his best," Scootaloo said. "He's got friends who care about him and he cares about them."
"Silverstream definitely seems to like him," Smolder said. "But I kind of agree with Bobby, he does do stupid things sometimes, and I'm worried it's going to drag Silverstream down."
"Geez, so that's how it's gonna be," Scootaloo said. "You know, you two can handle Sweetie Belle for now then, I'm gonna make sure Rumble's alright."
With Scootaloo gone, all that was left was Bobby and Smolder to take care of Sweetie Belle.
"This is not a good day, huh?" Smolder asked.
"Just a bump in the road," Bobby said, laughing to himself. "Get it, bump?"
"Not ready to laugh about that, I really got worried about her," Smolder said.
"She'll be fine," Bobby said. "Let's get her back in bed."
"Yeah, sure," Smolder said, helping Sweetie Belle back on.
"Anything I can do for her?" First Base asked.
"Just wait outside for Rarity," Bobby said.
"Sure, I will," First Base said.
"I'm gonna get back to my Buck Ball practice, keep me up to date on Sweetie Belle," Wind Sprint said.
"Sure thing, kid," Bobby said as Wind Sprint made her leave.
Outside Scootaloo was frustratingly making her way out of the center, "What an overreaction.”
"Hey Scootaloo," Tender Taps greeted, Laura right beside him. "Everything going well?"
"Not exactly, Sweetie Belle just got hurt, and both Bobby and Rarity are ticked off," Scootaloo said.
"She's hurt? What happened?" Tender Taps asked.
"She took a Buckball to the head," Scootaloo said. "She should be fine, she just needs time to recover."
"Wow, a Buckball to the head? That sucks," Laura said. "I heard you Crusader girls are pretty thick headed, so you should be fine."
"Not funny," Scootaloo said. "But she will be fine, once the nurse checks up on her."
"We'll be sure to check up on her ourselves soon," Tender Taps said.
"What do you mean 'we'?" Laura asked.
"Come on, be friendly," Tender Taps scolded.
"Oh fine," Laura said.
"Well I gotta talk to Rumble about something, see you later," Scootaloo said, making her leave.
Meanwhile in Twilight's office, Peter looked to be very disappointed in his wife, "Twilight, what was that about in there? You were being too hard on Rumble in there, and then that comment to Silverstream? Twilight, I know you're worried about the Center and all, but it's really messing with your head."
"I just want to make sure this place runs smoothly," Twilight said. "No troubles whatsoever, everything in order."
"I understand that you want that," Peter said. "But don't set unrealistic goals on yourself. You can't control everything and you can't prevent accidents. Everyone here is liable to mess up and what matters is addressing it properly after the fact. Now, what Rumble did looked bad, but I'd like to think he wouldn't do something that stupid on purpose."
"Do you really think so? He's shown that he isn't as well behaved when he was a kid," Twilight said. "Three days in a row he caused trouble."
"Two days ago, he punched someone who was quite honestly asking for it," Peter said. "Yesterday, I'll give you that, but it just means that Rumble really loves Apple Bloom. Today, I really do think Rumble didn't intend to do anything. Sweetie Belle's always been a bit weird with romance, and since she was out of it, she probably acted on instinct."
"I guess you're right," Twilight said. "Sorry, I know I shouldn't say such things, but given everything that's happened, plus trying to manage this place, I guess my judgement has been lacking."
"Are you overworking yourself?" Peter asked. "You are letting your friends help you with the planning, aren't you?"
"I am...a little," Twilight said.
"Twilight!" Peter scolded. "You know better than to overwork yourself!"
"I just want this place to be as perfect as possible, I need this place to be a success!" Twilight said.
"Twilight, this center is great and all but why are you so adamant on working yourself so overly hard for it?” Peter asked. “You haven't gotten this worked up since this place was still a school."
"Peter, I'm the Princess of Friendship, this place is what defines me in my title," Twilight said. "My School of Friendship failed, but my Friendship Center could be a success! Without it, how can I prove myself as The Princess of Friendship? Who would I be without this place?"
"You would be Twilight Sparkle, a mother of two beautiful children, the younger sister of a great stallion, the older sister of a kind dragon, and a dear friend to many different ponies," Peter said. "That's all that should matter. Nothing more. Ambition is great but not if you're overworking yourself just because of this Princess of Friendship stuff!"
"Stuff? Peter, this is a title and a duty given to me by Princess Celestia!" Twilight said.
"For what!? Why did Celestia give you this title? What is Celestia even planning for you!?" Peter asked. "When you first got this Princess of Friendship title, I thought it was cool at first, because it showed just how hard you worked. I barely understood it, but I respected what it meant to you. But now, it seems like it's just controlling your life and one big set-up for Celestia to use you for whatever grand scheme she had! For God's sake, she intended for you to just take over the country with little to no warning! That's just messed up, Twilight!"
"Celestia wouldn't do this without reason," Twilight said.
"Twilight, I know you respect Celestia, and for good reason, she is your mentor and she's the Princess," Peter said. "But once in a while, you have to think for yourself. It just seems like a lot of the time you just want to live up to Celestia's expectations, especially with this Center."
"What about Friendship and Harmony?" Twilight asked.
"Twilight, you weren't exactly showing either trait with Rumble," Peter said. "Again, I know he made mistakes but you're getting to a point where it just seems like you're quick to judge."
"Honestly, sometimes I do kind of feel a bit annoyed by his actions, ever since he got into that ridiculous rivalry with my ambassador students," Twilight said.
"Ambassador students?" Peter asked. "Twilight, it almost sounds like you value them just to have good relations with other countries, not fair to them individually. Plus Rumble put it behind him, now Silverstream's his best friend. It worked out."
"What if it didn't?" Twilight asked.
"Does it matter? Instead of worrying about what-ifs, just be grateful that things turned out alright," Peter said. "Twilight, you can't control everything that happens. What makes you a great leader isn't how much you dictate the actions of others, but how well you handle yourself whether things go right or wrong."
"Yeah, you're right," Twilight said. "I guess I overreacted too much. I probably should apologize to Rumble for how bad things have been between us. I just want everyone to be happy."
"Even if not everyone, try to do as much as possible in regard to the happiness," Peter said. "And know this, if you really like being Princess of Friendship, that's great. I'm not telling you to give that up, what I want is for you to make your own choices and be confident in it. Celestia probably has your life planned out, but it's still your life in the end. Shape your own destiny, don't let anyone else shape it for you."
"Of course, I will do just that," Twilight said. "Thanks for talking things out with me."
"I'm your husband, keeping an eye out for you is the least I can do," Peter said, giving his wife a kiss. "Come on, let's make sure Sweetie Belle's tended to properly."
"I should go see if Rarity found the nurse, you go on ahead," Twilight said, teleporting away.
"Sometimes I forget she can do that," Peter said, then heard some chuckling nearby, courtesy of a mare with white hair and red eyes.
"You're such a good husband," the mare took a bite out of an apple. "Princess Twilight is lucky."
"Uh, thanks, I guess?" Peter said. "How long was she here? I didn't even notice her."
"Good stallions are hard to find, what poor luck that the perfect stallion is taken," the mare said, making her exit. "Oh well, such is life."
Once she was gone, Peter scratched his head in confusion, "Weird, she doesn't set off my spider sense but I can't help but feel there's something odd about her. Maybe it's my imagination, I mean she looks like a regular pony, sounds like one too. No time to think, I gotta check on Sweetie Belle."
As Peter left, the pony had shifted back into her true form, Eris, the draconequess looking very satisfied. "This will be fun."
Meanwhile Rumble had left the Friendship Center, he was already on his way back to his home with both Silverstream and Scootaloo right beside him.
"So, need to practice what you're gonna say before you say it?" Scootaloo asked.
"That kind of thing never works," Rumble said. "I just gotta go in and be honest with her."
"Yeah, it should work out, the Apples value honesty above all," Silverstream said.
"Usually, but keep in mind that this is a pretty big thing to be honest about," Scootaloo said. "Just be careful how blunt or forward you are about it, otherwise you'll definitely tick off Apple Bloom."
"I think I got that," Rumble said, arriving at the front of his house. "Wait here, I'll talk to her alone first."
"Sure, we're with you buddy," Scootaloo said.
Taking a breath, Rumble had gone inside, spotting his wife cleaning some furniture with a feather duster. "Apple Bloom?"
"Hm? Apple Bloom turned around to spot her husband, "Oh, Rumble, glad yer here. Ah got something to tell ya."
"You do?" Rumble asked.
"Yeah, just promise you won't be too disappointed," Apple Bloom said.
"You could never disappoint me," Rumble said. "What's on your mind?"
"We might need to postpone our trip to Mount Aris," Apple Bloom said.
"Huh? What for?" Rumble asked.
"Well, Spring time is a very busy time fer us on the farm," Apple Bloom said. "We got a lot of orders to fill, so Applejack and Big Mac need me to help with the farmwork. Plus Remy heard about this tournament them Capcom folks wanted and Twilight's setting something big, so Big Mac figured we could make good business there, assuming Peter wants to do this."
"He might, it'd be awesome to see him fight in a Tournament," Rumble said.
"If it happens, it means more work, and the family's gonna need mah help," Apple Bloom said. "So yeah, gonna have to put a rain check."
"Hey, you do what you have to do," Rumble said. "And if you need help with it, you know I'm right there. I'm part of this family now too after all."
"Ah knew you'd understand, yer the best," Apple Bloom said, giving a nice kiss to her husband. "The day will come though, ah really look forward to it."
"Hey it's a Honeymoon with you wherever we are, I'm fine celebrating our love even here," Rumble said. "I'll make a nice dinner for us later."
"I'll make us dessert," Apple Bloom said. "So, how was it today at the Center?"
"Uh, awkward," Rumble said.
"Did um...you run into Twilight?" Apple Bloom asked. "Is she still mad about yesterday?"
"Yeah," Rumble said. "It's fine, she mostly just blames me."
"It's not fine, ah went along with it too," Apple Bloom said. "I got no regrets either, you were amazing. But of course you always are in bed."
"Only because it's you," Rumble said. "Which brings me to something else."
"What is it?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Today...Sweetie Belle got hurt," Rumble said, alarming his wife.
"Hurt? How? Is she okay now? Apple Bloom asked.
"She's fine, last I checked," Rumble said. "Seems like the place wasn't ready for her injury though, Rarity's pretty ticked about it."
"What happened to her?" Apple Bloom asked.
"One of the Center Goers hit her in the head with a Buckball," Rumble said. "Completely by accident of course. But he clonked her hard. I was able to get her to the nurse's office right afterwards. Though, she was really out of it when I got there."
"Ah can imagine, it must have hurt," Apple Bloom said. "Ah should go and check on her then, make sure she's alright."
"Wait..." Rumble said, wanting to talk more but the fear was getting to him. "The thing is..."
"Hm? What's wrong?" Apple Bloom asked.
Rumble couldn't do it, the fear of his wife's reaction got to him. He instead just pulled her in for a hug, "It's great kind and caring you are to others, especially your friends. I love you, and you mean the world to me because of who you are as a pony."
That confused Apple Bloom momentarily, the girl then slowly returning the bug, "Love ya too, sugar pie."
Rumble knew he could regret this, though hoped this never would need to be brought up. Not like anyone there was gonna talk, knowing this could negatively affect Sweetie Belle. Speaking of which, "Silverstream and Scootaloo are outside, I gotta say something to them quick."
"Sure, I'm gonna go and gather some things fer Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom said. As Rumble went outside, Apple Bloom trotted to the kitchen, still thinking over Rumble's words. "Ah get the feeling there's more to this story, but Rumble can tell me when he's ready to."
Outside Rumble faced his two friends, "Yeah, I couldn't tell her." Immediately Scootaloo whacked him on the forehead, "Ow! What the heck was that for!?"
"She's gonna find out eventually!" Scootaloo scolded.
"Yeah, I know, but it's really not easy," Rumble said. "If you had a boyfriend, would you be happy that he kissed another girl?"
"If I understood the situation, I think I'd be able to play it cool," Scootaloo said.
"You say that until the raw emotion kicks in," Rumble said.
"Rumble, this is silly," Silverstream said. "Sweetie Belle kissed you, not the other way around. If you hide it like this, then it's going to make it seem like you took your own initiative."
"I'll try telling her later, but right now, I need a bit more time," Rumble said.
Scootaloo shook her head in annoyance, disliking how Rumble was handling this situation, "Fine, but don't take too long."
"I gotta help Apple Bloom with something, you two go and make sure Sweetie Belle's doing better," Rumble said, heading inside.
"Think this will come back to bite him?" Silverstream asked.
"Right in the flank," Scootaloo said. "For now, let's do what he asked and check on Sweetie Belle."
"Okay," Silverstream said, following Scootaloo.
Back in Taratrus, the villains had stepped through a portal that Discord made, finally leaving the snowy mountain and facing the chaos creature.
"So? How was it?" Discord asked.
"Fine," Adagio said. "But you would probably know that, seeing as you like to check in a lot."
"Well not exactly this time, I was so preoccupied by Goku Black and helping out Tirek," Discord said. "Also Osborn's been acting nuttier than usual."
"So, you don't know what happened?" Adagio asked.
"I trust you got the bell," Discord said. Martin tossed the item to him, Discord quickly inspecting it. "This is odd, there seems to be no magic."
"You told us to retrieve the bell, not make sure it works," Shocker said.
"Hm...maybe the magic's gone...or it's just a bit rusty," Discord said. "Well good work, go take a break now."
"Wait, Cozy Glow got hurt trying to get it," Sonata said, gesturing to the girl resting on her back. "Can you magic her better?"
"Sorry, no," Discord said. "I am not a healer type. I mean, I could try but I might accidentally turn her wings into hockey sticks."
"...That was the most random shit I've heard all day," Shocker said.
"Random's all part of the fun," Discord said. "Now I have some worlds to inspect, tootles."
Discord disappeared in an instant, leaving the villains behind for the moment, and Sonata looking furious.
"He's so useless," Sonata looked to Cozy. "We gotta heal her wings."
"She'll be fine," Adagio said, pulling out the real bell. "For now, we have our own bit of planning to do."
Back at the center, Sweetie Belle was doing much better, no longer dizzy or loopy. Thanks to proper treatment she was making her recovery, though needed to keep an ice pack to her head for the moment to quell the bump.
Apple Bloom had arrived with some treats, though the farmer filly couldn't help but notice that everyone seemed odd around her, though she didn't pay much mind at the moment.
As she talked things over in the nurse's office to Twilight, with Apple Bloom, Rarity and Smolder right beside her, Peter was outside talking with his friends.
"So, Marvel vs Capcom, you guys want part of that?" Peter asked.
"Little surprised they want another tournament," Johnny said. "I mean, I'm all for it but what do you think is really bringing it on?"
"From what they said, it's nothing competitive, they just want to do this for fun," Peter said. "It's like their way of bonding with us."
"As long as it's really friendly, and not them holding a grudge from years ago," Remy said.
"I'd like to give them more credit than that," Peter said. "They're really not so bad in my opinion, and they've made an effort to be better. Honestly, I think it's because of how crummy they were years ago that they're trying so hard. I think they just want a tournament for fun, like the old days."
"I will admit, taking part in their Street Fighter tournaments was entertaining," Logan said. "One of the few times the X-Men seemed to just enjoy themselves."
"Exactly, so I say we just go with it," Peter said. "It'd make them happy, and we get a little fighting in. Keep us sharp for any trouble."
"I'm good with that," Logan said.
"Totally," Johnny said.
"Yeah, bring it on!" Wade said.
"Let's remind them just how good we are," Janet said.
"I'm down with it." Bobby said.
"Should be fun," Remy said.
"Then it's agreed, let's find some heroes who want to take part," Peter said.
"Sounds like you're all ready to go," Came the voice of Sunset Shimmer. "Just when I was about to ask if you came to a decision."
"Hey Sunset, is Capcom around?" Peter asked.
"Not this time, I came by myself," Sunset explained. "But now I can relay them some good news. This is gonna be fun, I can tell."
Twilight poked her head out the door, "Sweetie Belle's recovering nicely. Peter, do you want to see her?"
"Sure do," Peter said, heading inside.
"Hey, wait up," Bobby said, following his friend.
Outside Twilight turned her attention to Sunset, "Good to see you here. Is this about The Tournament?"
"Yeah, everyone here seems to be in it, they just need to find some teammates," Sunset said. "Might help if you go to Earth, see if anyone wants to come."
"Think Tony will come?" Twilight asked.
"Don't count on it," Johnny said. "According to Reed, he's very much retired. He even got himself a successor."
"Really? Is Tony's successor any good?" Twilight asked.
"According to Reed...no, she's actually very annoying to be around," Johnny said. "She already thinks she's so much more amazing than Tony."
"Must be another 'punk-shit' as Spencer would say," Sunset stated. "I can see where he's coming from, I mean...these last few months I've gotten to know America Chavez, and Sweet Celestia she is such a pain! She acts like she's invincible and Stephen believes she's going to get herself killed. And if he or his wife try to reign her in, she's all like 'You ain't my parents' or whatever."
"Didn't her parents die because of some bee?" Johnny asked. "So dumb."
"Eh, wouldn't be surprised if she faked it, I mean no way that's possible," Sunset said.
"She freaked out when she saw that one bee from Sonic's world and nearly got some Asgardians stranded, I don't think she faked it," Johnny said.
"Regardless, it's kind of mean to mock what happened to her parents," Twilight said. "Let's try to be better than that."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Sunset said. "Still, it really is weird."
"I still hope Tony comes, not as a fighter, but as a guest," Twilight said. "I kind of miss him. I know he caused trouble once but since then he's made things right. He seemed really bothered by what happened with Mayday."
"She's forgiven him, hasn't she?" Remy asked.
"Yes, she forgave everyone, aside from Carol Danvers," Twilight said. "But Tony just hates that he let that conflict get so carried away. It's not just because Mayday is Peter's daughter, he just never imagined he would be the reason a little girl would cry in fear."
"At least he knew when to stop," Logan said. "Should it have reached that point, no. But honestly, things could have been so much worse."
"Thankfully everyone came to their senses," Johnny said. "Even if I needed a little help from Rainbow Dash."
"A good wife watches out for her husband," Logan said. "Ironic though, it took Fluttershy a while to forgive Pinkie Pie."
"I didn't even know she could hold onto a grudge," Remy said. "She's so calm."
"Fluttershy is usually calm, but she tends to bottle up her frustrations," Logan said. "I tell her it's not good fer her health, but she just doesn't like being angry."
"Sounds a lot like Peter," Twilight said. "He's been dealing with...a lot lately, given his nightmares."
"What about?" Sunset asked.
"Well a lot of them seem to be about his old girlfriend, Gwen Stacy," Twilight said. "Then there's all the recent stress he's been dealing with because of Gallus, ponies being mean to Mayday, Cozy Glow. He even dreamt about that symbiote suit and his old regrets with Harry Osborn."
"The trauma is catching up to Peter, he's gotta deal with this now," Logan said.
"Don't worry, I have a plan, and it involves my trip to Earth," Twilight said. "Think any of you guys can help me?"
"For Peter? Hell yeah," Johnny said.
"You got my word," Logan said.
"Alright, good," Twilight said. "Sunset, tell Ryu the Tournament is on, I can have an arena ready in about five days."
"Sounds good to me," Sunset said, opening a portal. "See you later."
Once through, Twilight turned to the others, "Let's get to work."
"Twilight?" Came Rumble's voice, getting her attention.
"Oh, hi Rumble," Twilight said. "Everyone, give us a moment."
"Sure, let's go," Logan said, leading the group away.
"Hey, Twilight," Rumble said. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm really sorry for any trouble I've caused lately."
"It's fine, I'm sorry for acting the way I did," Twilight said. "I just want this place to go as smoothly as possible, but it's not worth it if I push you away."
"You could never do that, I want to be part of your life," Rumble said. "You're still like a mother to me, and I still want to be family to you too."
"You are honey," Twilight said, gently stroking his face. "Sometimes when I see you, I remember the adorable little colt who would look up to me, the colt who was a big brother to Mayday and still is to Benjy. I just want to make sure you're the best you can be."
"I will be, for you Twilight," Rumble said.
"Not just for me, do it for yourself," Twilight said. "You're very independent, try to stay that way. Value your friends and family, but always try to think for yourself."
"Yes Twilight," Rumble said, then received a kiss on the forehead from the mare.
"That's my precious guy," Twilight said. "Now, I need to talk to Peter's friends, if you want, go see Sweetie Belle. She's pretty much forgotten what happened so it's all good."
"...Gonna be embarrassing though," Rumble said.
"I know, but try to make peace with it," Twilight said. "It's good for you."
"I will," Rumble said, making his way inside the room.
Turning away, Twilight felt ashamed of herself, "It's so much easier to tell others to do this, than to do it myself. But if I can make anyone else better than me, then it's worth it."
At the top of Castle Doom, Tron is seen looking into the distance, holding a Servbot on her lap as she contemplated her future.
"Tron..." Came Wesker's voice. "The Prowler came back with some gear he needs you to inspect."
"He needs me?" Tron asked. "What about Eggman or Wily?"
"Those two are busy with their own plans, plus Prowler trusts you a tad bit more," Wesker said.
"Glad I'm still good for something then," Tron said, setting her robot down as she stood up.
"Did that statement have a deep purpose to it??" Wesker asked.
"I just feel like I don't really...belong...with guys like you," Tron said. "You have this ambition and will do anything you must to achieve it. I'm just a simple pirate, I'm fine with stealing valuables but I'm not that hardened of a warrior, at least compared to you, Juri and Vergil."
"Tron, you serve your purpose," Wesker said. "You build machines, you gather resources."
"But you have Eggman and Wily to build machines, and Prowler is a much more capable thief," Tron said. "What am I good for now?"
"Tron, I don't have time to discuss your existential crises," Wesker said. "So long as you are under my employment, you will do what I ask, no questions."
Feeling a bit disappointed in letting herself vent, Tron agreed to Wesker's demands, "Yes sir."
The young woman made her way to the lab, leaving only her Servbot behind. The little creature worked up the nerve to talk to Wesker, "I know you're the boss, but can't you be a little nicer to Miss Tron?"
"Are you speaking to me?" Wesker asked.
The Servbot gulped, knowing he could easily be crushed but he couldn't let what was basically his mother feel less than herself, "Miss Tron just wants to feel like she really is valuable to you. She really admires you Mr. Wesker. You're kind of like a father to her in a way."
"A father? That's just pushing it," Wesker said.
"Miss Tron's parents are gone, she only has her brothers," the Servbot said. "With you, well the reason she follows you and obeys you is because she just wants a parental figure, and she's afraid that if you find her useless, you will make her leave...or worse."
Wesker stared at the robot for a second, the man then chuckling to himself, "For a robot, you seem pretty adept at understanding human emotion. However, I do not have time for such ridiculous things. I employed Tron to build an arsenal for me, not because she wants a daddy to tell her that he's so proud of her. So long as she understands her position, she does not have to worry about losing her employment, or her life. Am I understood, Little Follower?"
"Yes..." the Servbot said.
"Go reunite with your brothers and make yourself useful," Wesker said. "Perhaps you can assist in the production of Victor's Doombots."
"Okay," the Servbot said, making his exit.
Wesker took a moment to let what Tron and her robot said to sink in, feeling a rare sense of confusion, "Why is she so worried about this now? How badly did Vergil get in her head?" The villain shook it off, "No matter, I have my own work to do."
Days passed by, the Tournament was underway. Everyone gathered in Canterlot, fully excited for what was to come.
It was a big arena, usually reserved for events like Wonderbolts racing, and the crowds were all in.
Merchandise was seen out front, and to no surprise, lines for Spider-Mane relate items were very long, many fans eager to show their support for Equestria's top hero.
Other things were available too, including merchandise for the other heroes, especially Johnny. A bunch of Human Torch merchandise was made at his request, and while it was profitable, it still paled compared to Peter's.
"Holy wow..." Apple Bloom said, the girl walking through the markets along with Rumble and her son. Joining them were The Cutie Mark Crusaders, along with Dinky. "Everypony's super excited for this."
"Yeah, I don't blame them," Rumble said. "This is a big event, about five years after the last Tournament."
"Peter's gonna do great, and so is Bobby," Sweetie Belle said. "My boys totally have this."
"Dang it, the Spider-Mane merchandise line is too long," Dinky said. "I kind of hoped to have something to wear."
"There's always stuff for Remy," Apple Bloom said.
"Yeah but Gambit's not as cool as Spider-Mane," Dinky said, much to Apple Bloom's annoyance.
"Ah shouldn't be mad because ah love Peter," Apple Bloom began. "But ah love Remy too, since he's mah sister's husband. So please refrain from wording things that way."
"Hey you're the one trying to generate hype for a member of your family," Dinky said.
"You'll understand why when you see Remy in action," Apple Bloom said.
"Oh hey, I can see Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon," Sweetie Belle said. "Weird, they're selling Iron Stallion merchandise."
"I thought Tony wasn't fighting?" Scootaloo said.
"He isn't, guess they just wanted to go into business for themselves," Apple Bloom said.
"Hurry up Lily!" Came the voice of Carrot Crunch, the boy sporting a Captain Equestria shirt. "The seats are filling fast!"
"Coming!" Lily Longsocks said, the girl sporting a Spider-Mane shirt.
"Guess Lily's showing her support fer Peter," Apple Bloom noted.
"That's it, I'm getting in line," Dinky said. "I'll catch up with all of you later, make sure you hold my seat."
"Sure thing," Scootaloo said.
"Rumble!" Silverstream called, flying over to greet her friend. "Big day today, huh?"
"Yeah, you're in for a treat," Rumble said.
"I sure hope so, I couldn't see the last one because well, I didn't know about it," Silverstream said. "This time my aunt came by with several of her subjects."
"Oh yeah, ah heard some of the other Kingdoms are here," Apple Bloom said. "Like the Yaks, and The Changelings."
"Cool, so every nation can see Equestria's best heroes," Rumble said.
"Well technically they're Earth's best heroes," Scootaloo said.
"Yeah, but the best among them live in Equestria," Rumble said. "Especially Peter."
"Very excited for my aunt to see Peter fight," Silverstream said. "Let's hurry, Ocellus, Sandbar, Gabby and Smolder are waiting for us."
"Uh...is Gallus around?" Apple Bloom asked.
"I saw him with Yona, he's gonna be sitting with us but Yona made him promise not to talk to any of you," Silverstream said.
"Good, I need time before I can talk to Gallus without losing my cool," Rumble said. "Let's hurry then."
The arena was filling up, everyone was seen with their groups. The Apples all sat together, Apple Bloom greeting Babs, while Braeburn was seen chatting with Big Macintosh and Cheerilee, while Granny Smith looked ready for a showdown.
"Make'em bleed Spider-Mane!" the woman shouted, showing her Spider-Mane gear on full display.
"Granny, please, not so loud," Big Mac said.
"Beat'em up dad!" Oliver shouted, joined by his sister and cousin. "Leave them bruised!"
"Oh good grief, Granny's got Oliver all worked up too," Applejack lamented.
Sugar Belle made her way through the crowd with her three friends, the girl holding onto a special banner she made. "I hope Bucky can see this."
"He will, we'll help you out," Double Diamond said. "He's going to appreciate your support."
"I hope so," Sugar Belle said.
Soarin and Spitfire also made their way through the crowd, sitting not too far away from the many thrones for the royalty.
"This really is big, huh?" Spitfire said.
"It's huge, Marvel vs Capcom, again," Soarin said.
Fluttershy dusted off a seat for Rina, the girl joined shortly afterward by Thunderlane and Lightning Dust.
"Super excited for this," Lightning Dust said. "I hear this Tournament is bigger than the last one."
"I heard the same," Thunderlane said. "Peter's got his work cut out for him."
"He's got this," Lightning Dust said.
Celestia was sitting on her throne, beside Luna and in the company of other rulers like Queen Novo, King Thorax, Fire Lord Ember, Grandpa Gruff, Rain Shine and Prince Rutheford.
"Where is Thor?" Luna asked. "And Lady Sif?"
"Thor is fighting in the Tournament," Celestia explained. "As for Lady Sif, she had recently given birth and chose not to come."
"Oh, that's great," Luna said. "Is it a boy or a girl?"
"A girl, her name is Torunn," Celestia said.
"A great name," Luna said. "I shall take the time to bless his child with the sweetest of dreams in hopes that she grows into a fine young woman."
"Thor and Sif would appreciate that," Celestia said, noting someone else in the crowd. "Looks like Tony Stark is here."
Luna turned to see that Tony was indeed there, with his wife Pepper and his daughter Morgan. "He truly has no desire to fight. It is a shame to see a great man lose his will."
"So long as he is happy in his own right," Celestia said.
Tony looked up at the Royalty, specifically Luna, the man waving to his old ally as he sat with his family.
Mayday sat in the crowd alongside Luster Dawn, Twilight and the rest of her family, in addition to Autumn Blaze. Cadance was not there, she was prepping for her role as host. Mayday felt very uncomfortable being around so many ponies, something that Starlight was quick to notice.
"You okay, Mayday?" Starlight asked.
"I feel so uncomfortable, there's a lot of ponies," Mayday said. "What if it gets too loud?"
"It might, but don't worry," Starlight brought something out. "I got you some earmuffs, these should cancel out the noise."
"Oh, thank you Miss Glimmer," Mayday said.
"It's just 'Starlight' honey," the mare said, giving Mayday her earmuffs. "But you're welcome."
"I'll keep you safe too," Luster Dawn said, hugging Mayday.
"Me too," Flurry said, sandwiching her cousin.
"Thanks girls, you're the best," a shy Mayday said.
"That was thoughtful Starlight, thank you," Twilight said. "I was planning on creating a soundproof bubble, but this works too."
"Mayday!" called a familiar voice. Mayday turned to see Franklin, the boy running over.
"Frankie!" Mayday broke away from the other girls and greeted Franklin with a hug. "Are you here to sit with me?"
"If you want," Franklin said.
"Of course!" Mayday said. "You know I love...I mean, like your presence."
Luster Dawn and Flurry Heart began giggling, much to Mayday's annoyance.
"Neat. Oh, I got you something," Franklin said, holding out a box of chocolates. "Hope you like."
"Wow, thanks," Mayday said, popping one in her mouth. "Tasty."
"Aw, I want chocolate," Flurry said.
"Sorry, I didn't get any for you," Franklin said. "Unless Mayday wants to share with either of you.
"It's fine," Luster Dawn said. "You got those for Mayday, she should enjoy them."
"I don't mind sharing," Mayday said.
"You can do what you want, as long as you're happy," Franklin said.
"Wow, you're such a nice boy," Sunset said, making her way over. "If I may suggest something, next time, get Mayday some Honmei chocolate. She would love those, especially if they came from you."
"Sure, I'll keep that in mind," Franklin said.
"Bring enough for us," Flurry said.
"You might prefer Tomo-Choco. That's just my opinion though," Sunset said. "Wait, I think the girl is supposed to give the chocolate. Still, Mayday will appreciate it."
"Are you joining us?" Twilight asked.
"I'm actually gonna stay out here, kind of on guard duty," Sunset said.
"Huh? Guard duty?" Twilight asked.
"Peter's worried about the villains, so I brought some outside help," Sunset said.
Circling the arena were Cloud Strife, Tifa, Kratos, Master Chief, Goku, Vegeta, Terry Bogard, Paul Phoenix, Marshall Law, Akira Yuki, Jacky Bryant, Naruto, Mark Grayson and All Might.
"Oh, interesting," Twilight said. "I hope Celestia doesn't mind."
"Not sure why she would, I even kept it as minimal as possible, kind of wanted to bring more," Sunset said. "Still, there's a few less than I planned. Where's-"
Suddenly a blue blur appeared beside Sunset, startling her. "Hey, sorry I'm late."
"Sonic, for someone with superspeed how can you be late?" Sunset asked.
"Is Mayday here?" Sonic asked, Sunset gesturing to the girl. "Oh good, I stopped by the Big N to find someone who wants to see you." Sonic dashed off again, returning with a Pokémon. "You remember Jigglypuff?"
"Jiggly!" The Pokémon said.
Mayday's eyes widened in joy, "Jigglypuff!" Mayday took the Pokémon in her hooves. "I missed you!"
"Jiggly!" the Pokémon returned the affection.
"Oh, is that why you were late?" Sunset asked.
"Traversing that world isn't always easy, I have to dodge goombas, bokoblins, waddle dees and octarians," Sonic explained. "Even a few emblem loving dragons, but it's worth it to get Mayday her friend, figured she could use some extra good company."
"You're so thoughtful, thank you Sonic," Twilight said.
"It's nothing," Sonic said, then looked behind. "Here come my friends."
"Oh, Tails, Amy and Knuckles, excellent," Sunset said. "Sonic, I really do appreciate you playing guard. I know it's not your thing."
"Usually no, but I don't mind helping some friends," Sonic said.
"I owe you for this," Sunset said. "For a lot actually."
Sonic shook his head, "I don't hold debts to friends. If the situation were reversed, I know you'd do the same."
"And I am, I will help you find this Eggman guy," Sunset said. "Wily too, but for now, the Tournament is about to begin."
"Any second now," Twilight said, then noticed a group from the distance. "Oh! This way! Over here!"
"There she is," a mare said. "Harry, Flash, you boys ready?"
"Ready as I will be, MJ," Harry said.
"Yeah, let's do this!" Flash said, trotting over.
"Who are those three?" Luster Dawn asked.
"Meet some of Peter's old classmates," Twilight said. "Flash Thompson, Harry Osborn, and Mary-Jane Watson."
"Hello Princess, thanks for having us," MJ said. "Wow, Equestria. Been so long since I was around this much excitement."
"Twilight, you found Peter's old friends?" Sunset asked.
"Most of them," Twilight said. "I couldn't find Eddie Brock, and Liz Allen couldn't make it."
"She's with the kids," Flash said. "She sends her regards though."
"Isn't Eddie Brock an enemy of Peter?" Trixie asked.
"Yes, but I still figured he could make peace," Twilight said. "Still, this is a nice start."
"Which one is Peter's daughter?" Harry asked.
"Right here," Twilight said, gesturing to the young filly and her Pokémon. "Meet Mayday."
"...Is that what I think it is?" Flash asked.
"Multiverse is a big place," Twilight said. "It let Peter meet Luke Skywalker."
Harry chuckled to himself, "Wow, kind of wish I could have seen that."
"He even got to meet another 'Harry', quite a wizarding experience," Trixie said.
"...Wow," Harry said. "Well, it's still nice to meet you Mayday."
"Yeah, up top!" Flash said, holding his hoof out and startling Mayday, earning a glare from Franklin. "Uh...what happened?"
"She's very shy, so be gentle talking to her," Twilight said.
"Oh, sure," Flash focused again on Mayday. "Hi, I'm Eugene Thompson, call me Flash."
"Flash...isn't that the name of the guy who bullied my daddy!?" an annoyed Mayday asked.
"Well, this is awkward," Flash said. "Would you believe me if I told you that it was a misunderstanding?"
"Sorry mister, but I don't think I want to talk to you," Mayday said.
Twilight sighed in frustration, "Sorry about this, I should have considered what could have happened."
"It's fine, I don't blame her," Flash said. "We'll clear this up soon."
"Yo! Equetsria!" Rainbow Dash said, the girl on the stage.
"What is Rainbow Dash doing?" Twilight asked.
"Before the tournament starts, how about a little something to get us all excited!" Rainbow Dash said. "Specifically, a pre-tournament showdown!"
"A pre-tournament what!?" Twilight asked. "Rainbow Dash! Off the stage!"
"Come on Twi, this is a big opportunity for us, let's give everyone more of a show!" Rainbow Dash said. "I, on behalf of the Elements of Harmony, challenge any of you non-Capcom outworlders to a fight!"
"Oh Sweet Celestia..." Twilight lamented.
"I'm up for a fight!" Goku said.
"Same here! I wanna be Best in The Multiverse!" Paul shouted.
Rainbow Dash turned to the nearby hedgehog, "So, Sonic, up for a challenge?"
Sonic was about to turn it down when Mayday showed up, "Oh, are you gonna fight too, Sonic?"
"Uh...well, I didn't plan to," Sonic said.
"Too bad, kind of curious about your speed," Mayday said. "It's fine, guess you're like daddy, you don't fight unless you need to. Plus, I get the feeling you don't like large crowds either."
"Well..." Sonic said.
"Come on Sonic, that little girl wants to see you fight, you gonna let her down?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight scolded.
"It's fine, I'm used to trash talk," Sonic said.
"You should go and fight her," Knuckles said, getting Sonic's attention. "Make her shut her mouth."
Sonic looked back to Mayday, while she didn't really expect him to fight, part of him did want to look strong for her, if at least to show her that she can overcome her own shyness by putting himself in the ring. Plus, this was all done for fun and he didn't mind stretching his legs.
"Fine, you're on!" Sonic said, stepping into the ring, alongside Goku, Paul and Terry.
"Anyone else!?" Rainbow Dash asked. "We'll even throw Spike and Shining Armor in!"
"Hey!" Spike shouted in displeasure.
"Come on, look good for your wife who's waiting somewhere in the arena," Rainbow Dash said.
"Ugh, fine," Spike said.
"Sweet, we need eight now!" Rainbow Dash said. "Anyone else?"
"Come on Cloud," Tifa said, bringing the ex-Solider into the ring.
"I'll go and fight too," Tails said. "Sonic could use a buddy in there."
"Just one more," Rainbow Dash looked to Kratos. "How about you, big guy?"
"Go for it, Kratos!" Mark cheered.
"Go Beyond Plus Ultra!" All Might said.
Akira trotted over, "I can step in if you choose not to fight."
Kratos looked to the crowd where his son was sitting, "No, I will fight."
"Great! Now for all my friends to get their flanks in here!" Rainbow Dash said.
"Geez, alright, let's go in," Twilight said, warping herself and her friends and brothers into the ring.
"Good luck, Sonic!" Amy called. "You too Tails!"
"Go get'em, Sonic!" Jacky cheered.
"Show them your might, Paul!" Law said.
"Shining Armor, Spike, Girls, be ready," Twilight said. "This arena's about to change."
"Huh? How?" Applejack asked.
"Stephen had a spell ready, and it looks like he's about to cast it," Twilight said.
From the distance, Strange readied his magic, using it to transform everyone in the arena, save for the amazed members of the crowd.
"What in Equestria?" Ocellus asked.
"No way," Rumble said.
"Is this...their true form?" Queen Novo asked.
"Well how about that," Tony said.
In the arena, and around the ring, everyone had turned into humans, startling the Equestrians, a few of them losing their balance.
"Glad we got some clothes at least," Applejack said, trying to stand up straight.
"Sweet, I got legs," Rainbow Dash said, throwing air kicks.
"I didn't plan for this!" Rarity shouted in annoyance.
In the middle of the ring, Cadance, now human, was seen clearing her throat. "Guess we're doing it this way. Well, if both teams are ready, the warmup battle will begin!"
"Mind giving us a second here?" Applejack said. "Ah need to get mah legs ready."
From the back, Logan, also human with his team, was seen stretching his legs as everyone else looked ready for a fight.
"Didn't expect any of this," Logan said.
"Dashie's gonna kick ass!" Johnny said.
"I'm glad the spell worked," Strange said. "It won't stay for long, but it should last long enough."
"Glad you're with us," Janet said.
"Eh, I wasn't busy," Strange said. "Clea's watching over the Sanctum in my absence, as is Wong."
"It's fine, shouldn't take too long," Janet said. "I get the feeling that this is gonna be a good victory for us."
"Yeah, let's get hooked on that feeling!" Quill said, ready to battle. "I'm ready to show Equestria just what I got in store."
Team Capcom looked amazed as well.
"Wow, Sonic's actually gonna fight," Mega Man said. "Didn't think he would."
"Really want to see Spider-Man's wife fight," Ken said.
"Same here," Dante said. "This is gonna rule!"
Leon checked the crowd, an uneasy feeling taking over. "Weird seeing Changelings here."
"Don't worry, they're good ones," Chris said. "Nothing like the ones from that future."
"...I should check on that Sweetie Belle one day, make sure she's doing alright," Leon said.
"You'll get your chance," Chun-Li said. "For now, focus on the Tournament, have fun."
Near the entrance, Peter and Ryu were standing side by side, eagerly awaiting the showdown.
"Your wife is combat capable, correct?" Ryu asked.
"Yeah, I personally help with her training in that regard," Peter said.
"Will being human affect her?" Ryu asked.
"She fought as a human before, very well too," Peter said. "My wife's just that amazing."
"Your admiration is commendable," Ryu said. "Truth be told, I would not mind engaging with your wife in combat, just to see her skills."
"That would be kind of weird for me to see," Peter said. "It's all good though."
Unknown to them, Discord was seen scrolling through some portals in Tartarus, "Where is that dang witch? How has she avoided my sight for so many years? It's...hold on." Discord could also see the Tournament was happening. "Oh, Norman, Tirek!"
"What is it?" Goblin asked, making his way over with Tirek.
"A tournament is underway," Discord said.
"Seems to involve the heroes of other worlds," Tirek said.
"Pfft, big deal, they're just flexing their muscles," Goblin said. "I say let them beat each other up and later...huh?" He spotted a certain someone in the crowd, "Is that..."
Suddenly Goblin held his head in pain, a voice now crying out, "Harry! Oh it's been so long since I've seen him! Harry!"
"Shut up Norman, your brat son can't hear you!" Goblin shouted, alarming Tirek and Discord.
"I need to see my son! Send me out there!" Norman shouted.
"Ugh, great, now I gotta deal with this whiner," Goblin said. "Be right back."
Goblin left the two behind, Discord scratching his head, "What a weird guy, you'd think I'd be used to this considering I spent years as his captive."
"That never made sense to me, why are you teaming with someone who held you captive?" Tirek asked.
"Well for starters, lack of sense makes this fun," Discord said. "But if I'm being serious, I kind of admire his ambition, and he can still be useful to me." "That and this can all make for some marvelous payback."
"Eh, well I'm interested in seeing this Tournament, give us an idea of what to prepare for," Tirek said.
"I'm gonna get a front row seat, maybe even find a contestant or two myself," Discord said.
"Do you plan to strike now?" Tirek asked.
"Feels too soon, I want them to sweat a little more," Discord said.
"Works for me," Tirek said. "Do what you must." Discord disappeared, leaving Tirek to himself. "Hm...they appear to be human, should be impossible in Equestria, unless there's powerful magic afoot."
Back at the arena, Cadance held her hand up, "Well, both sides are ready, so begin!"
"Twilight Sparkle is mine!" Goku immediately powered into Super Saiyan and lunged after Twilight, the girl putting up a forcefield and flying upwards.
Rainbow Dash focused on Sonic, going in for a kick to knock the hedgehog back, taking him by surprise, "Alright, I see you, let's do this!"
Everyone else clashed with someone, finding their own opponent.
Cloud and Spike clashed their swords together, the larger Buster Sword slowly overtaking Spike's smaller sword as the dragon jumped back.
He breathed fire onto his sword and attacked again, with Cloud parrying and kicking Spike back, then sending a beam blade at the dragon as he dodged out of the way.
Spike spat fire at Cloud, but the buster sword made for some good cover as he powered through and knocked Spike back.
"This guy's tough, Sunset has some really strong friends," Spike went to attack again.
Meanwhile Applejack and Tifa were throwing hard strikes at each other, each one blocking the other. Tifa was amazed by Applejack's natural strength, more to this girl than she expected.
"Nice arm work," Tifa complimented.
"Thanks, but I'm more of a leg girl," Applejack parried Tifa's strike back and turned to buck kick Tifa in the stomach, sending her flying backwards. "Whoo, even as a human this works well."
Kratos rushed in to attack Shining Armor with a punch, the guard captain immediately putting up a giant magical shield that nearly stumbled him. Kratos punched again, sending Shining Armor skidding back.
"Wow he's strong," Shining Armor generated a magical spear. "But I won't back down!"
"Interesting," Kratos said, grabbing his Leviathan Axe. "This should be enough for now."
"Don't underestimate me! My daughter's here and she is not seeing her father looking weak!" Shining Armor said, lunging in to whack Kratos, the spartan quickly blocking with his shield.
"I doubt your daughter will see a weak man, today," Kratos parried Shining Armor away. "But I do not intend to look weak for my son either!"
Both men clashed again, trying to get the upper hand on one another.
Tails was seen battling Fluttershy, the girl moving much quicker than he expected, despite him flying around he had a hard time getting a strike in.
"Glad Laura's training is paying off, even in my human form," Fluttershy knocked Tails back. "I should be careful, don't want to hurt the cute little guy."
Rarity engaged in combat with Terry, keeping things just about even between the two, even surprising the lone wolf with her martial arts capabilities.
"Not just a pretty face, are you?" Terry asked, going for a kick that Rarity dodged.
"Try not to fall for me," Rarity said, getting a kick in. "I'm happily taken."
Terry kept his composure, smirking at the lady, "He's a lucky guy then." He continued his attack, trying to take her down.
For Paul he tried throwing punches to Pinkie Pie, who was very adept at dodging his strikes, to his confusion, "How are you so fast?"
"Pinkie Sense," the girl explained.
"Pinkie what?" Paul asked, then took a punch to the jaw. "Ow!"
"Stay focused," Pinkie said, rushing in for a flying martial arts kick that sent Paul flying back.
"Ow...this girl's good," Paul leapt back onto his feet. "But I can't be Best in the Multiverse if I don't give it my all! Come on girl, I'm not done with you!"
"Okie dokie then," Pinkie said, going to fight some more.
Sonic and Rainbow Dash continued fighting on the floor below, speeding across the ring and trading blows with one another.
"That all you got!?" Rainbow Dash taunted.
"You wish," Sonic said, going for a kick that Rainbow Dash dodged out of the way of and went for a kick that knocked Sonic back.
The hedgehog hit the floor and rolled through, spin dashing into Rainbow Dash and getting her in the stomach, then hitting an uppercut that knocked her into the air and then leapt up to kick her down.
"Wow, he's good," Rainbow Dash looked ready to continue, dodging a downward kick from Sonic as she sped in to attack again. Sonic managed to block and punched Rainbow Dash hard, following up with a powerful Homing Strike.
"Dashie! You okay!?" A nearby Pinkie Pie asked.
"You're open!" Paul shouted, hitting Pinkie Pie with a strike that knocked her near Rainbow Dash.
Above, Goku and Twilight continued their battle, Goku going for hard strikes while Twilight blocked with some magical forcefields. She then blasted Goku across the air, sending a beam that Goku deflected into the sky and sent a ki blast of his own that Twilight easily blocked.
She warped behind him, Goku sensing her presence and warping himself, trying to attack from behind but Twilight elbowed his stomach quickly and turned to magic blast him.
Goku powered up some more, kneeing Twilight in the stomach and kicking her away, sending some ki blasts after her, to which Twilight put up a magical barrier.
"He's fast, but I can be fast too!" Twilight used her magic to amplify her speed and hit Goku in the stomach with a knee strike and punched him aside, the two continuing their clash in the skies above.
"Wow, Twilight is amazing," Rarity said, then quick blocked a punch from Terry using defense magic.
"Focus on me," Terry swept Rarity's feet as she cartwheeled and went for a magical blast that her opponent quickly rushed in to parry. "Are you okay?"
"Huh?" Rarity asked. "I'm fine but why would you-"
"BUSTER WOLF!" Terry hit a power punch that blasted Rarity with fire, sending her flying back.
"That was rude," Rarity said, then slowly got back up, waving her hands. "I think I've had enough for now, I can't compete with this."
"Really? You're doing great," Terry said.
"Thanks, but I think I'm all worn out," Rarity said.
"Well, that's fine," Terry said. "Good fighting you, I can sense potential."
"Thank you," Rarity said, making her way out the ring.
"I'll warp you into the crowd," Sunset said. "Part of Stephen's spell is also a barrier to protect them from stray attacks."
"Thank you," Rarity said, getting warped back in to be with her daughter and parents. "That was an adventure."
In the ring, Tifa got a few punches in, finishing her combo with a somersault kick that sent Applejack flying outside.
"Ow..." Applejack stood up, dusting herself off. "Well ah guess I'm done."
"You did great!" Tifa said. "Almost had me too."
"Yer just saying that to be nice," Applejack said.
Tifa lifted part of her shirt up, "You left a really bad mark on my stomach with that kick, so don't underestimate yourself. Keep training, you'll get even stronger."
"Thanks sugarcube," Applejack said.
"By the way, love the hat you had on, I used to wear one too back in Nibelheim," Tifa said.
"Yeah, ah should go find it," Applejack said. "See ya later."
"See ya," Tifa said, then saw Spike get knocked past her.
Cloud charged in with a Cross Slash attack, knocking Spike's sword away and the boy flying out of the ring. "That's done."
"Couldn't you have taken it easier? You're already much stronger than him," Tifa said.
"He came after me, I gave him a fair fight," Cloud said, sensing the vibrations from Goku and Twilight fighting. "So noisy."
"Um, excuse me," Fluttershy said, gesturing to a downed Tails. "I think I hurt him."
"Whoa, you beat Tails?" Tifa asked. "He's much stronger and faster than he looks, you must be amazing."
"I don't know what happened, I got into the zone and then hit his pressure point, really hard," Fluttershy said. "I hope he's not dead."
"He’ll be fine," Tifa said, picking the fox boy up in her arms.
"I should leave," Fluttershy said flying away in embarrassment.
"She's too soft-hearted," Cloud said.
"Kind of like Aerith, right?" Tifa asked, Cloud sheepishly turning away.
Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie both rushed at Sonic and Paul, both sides engaging hard, though Sonic managed to zig zag around Rainbow Dash, the girl doing the same while Paul got a decent strike against Pinkie.
"It's over, take this!" Paul hit his Burning Fist attack, punching Pinkie Pie out of the ring.
Nearby, Rainbow Dash got some punches in on Sonic, knocking him back as she was about to deliver her finishing blow, but the hedgehog rolled and drifted around to punch Rainbow Dash near the edge.
Once she was struggling on her feet, Sonic charged up and hit a Homing Shot at the girl, sending ten energy orbs in and knocking her out of the ring.
"Nice moves," Paul said.
"Thanks, you too," Sonic said.
Rainbow Dash groaned in pain, "Dang, I had him! Should have used the Sonic Rainboom."
"You'll get him next time," Pinkie said.
"Rainbow Dash!" Sonic said, getting her attention as he delivered a thumbs up. "Great job."
Despite her bitter feelings, Rainbow Dash returned the gesture, "Thanks, you too."
"He's nice," Pinkie said.
"Yeah, not too bad," Rainbow Dash agreed.
Shining Armor his assault, trying to get the upper hand in battle, but Kratos successfully parried an oncoming strike, staggering Shining Armor back.
Kratos charged his axe and unleashed his Winter's Bite attack, massive ice sending Shining Armor flying back. The man stood back up, not ready to give up, but wasn't sure if he could continue.
Feeling some pity, Kratos placed his axe away, "We are done here."
"Huh? What for?" Shining Armor asked.
"I merely wanted to see what an Equestrian solider is capable of, I got my answer," Kratos said. "You fought well, what is your name?"
"Shining Armor," the Prince said. "Former Captain of The Royal Guard, Prince of the Crystal Empire. How shall I address you?"
"Simply as Kratos," the spartan said. "Well fought today."
"Thank you, Kratos," Shining Armor said, making his leave. "Kind of wish I had someone like you in my army."
"Hone your skills, and you will be what you hope to have," Kratos said, making his own leave.
"I hope so," Shining Armor said.
Above, Goku and Twilight were at their last stand, Goku powering into Super Saiyan Blue, "This will end it! KAMEHAME..."
"This attack, must be his favorite," Twilight said, ready to react.
"HAAAA!!!!" Goku sent his beam at Twilight, the girl immediately firing her own magic to counter the beam.
"Grrrr....KAIOKEN!" Goku shouted.
"Kaio-?" Twilight struggled to maintain the beam. "What's going on!"
Goku had begun showing a red aura, increasing the power of his beam. "Kaoiken times two!"
Twilight continued to struggle as Goku continued to increase the power of his Kaioken. "Looks like he learned a new trick, not sure if I can keep this up..."
Finding some last bits of motivation, Twilight charged up her magic and put everything she had into sending the beam back at Goku.
"She's strong..." Goku thought about continuing the Kaioken, but knew the risks if he tried. "Gotta think of another plan, fast!"
Twilight pushed harder, sending the beam flying fast and seemingly overtaking Goku, as the Saiyan was no longer where he was. "Wait, where did he...?"
Suddenly Goku appeared beside her via instant transmission and threw a Kaioken times five punch toward her face, stopping short an inch, startling the girl.
"Why did you stop?" Twilight asked.
"We both know what would happen if I connected," Goku said. "You're strong but...I get the feeling you weren't totally ready for this fight."
"Yeah, I didn't know I'd be fighting today." Twilight said.
"You should always be ready, you never know what could happen," Goku said.
"That's for sure," Twilight said. "I'll take the loss here."
"Figured as much," Goku said, powering down. "You still did great; you have a lot of raw talent. Keep getting stronger, so we can fight at your absolute best. Fully prepared, and hopefully not pregnant."
"Oh yeah, that was really dumb of me last time." Twilight said. "I got lectured on that a lot."
"If Chi-Chi fought pregnant, I'd be pretty unhappy too," Goku said. "Thanks for the good fight though."
"Sure," Twilight said.
From below, Cadance made the ruling, "Looks like Goku and his team wins!"
This garnered less than favorable reactions, many in the crowd pulling for Twilight and her friends.
"Everyone's mad," Peter said.
"Makes sense, they would want Twilight and her friends to win," Ryu said. "Which means they might boo me and my friends."
"Don't let it distract you, give us a good fight," Peter said.
Chuckling to himself, Ryu flashed a rare smile of confidence to Peter. "You really want my best? I've been training hard to defeat you. Even if this is for fun, I am not taking it easy on you out there."
"Fine by me," Peter said. "I need to be at my best, so come at me like you really want to hurt me."
"Sure, I will," Ryu said, then saw Peter holding out his fist.
"I'm holding you to this," Peter said. "Promise me a good fight."
Amazed by Peter's determination, Ryu nodded in agreement, "You have my word."
With that fist bump, the two were ready to reignite a rivalry, for at least one more battle. Equestria was about to be Taken for a Ride.
And just like that, long chapter, again. 
Can't be helped, lot of characters to write for. Still, big showdown next chapter.
Marvel vs Capcom is back.
Stats
Page generated in 0.023 seconds
Total duration
689 users online
1,218,033 hits today, 2,782,760 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
If Wanda goes unstable like in house of M or multiverse or madness
I wonder which team of villains she may join?
Wesker
Loki
Or osborn
Maybe the one who can guarantee Quicksilver’s safety
Fun fact: did anyone know that Liev Schreiber, who voiced the Storm King, also played Sabretooth in X-men origins: Wolverine?