> The Royal Apples: Into the Land of Neverwere
>  by Radical Gopher
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 01
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Ow!”
Luna looked up from her breakfast.  “Art thou well?” she asked, concern in her eyes.
“Ah’m fine,” Big Mac replied.  “Ah just banged ma horn on the headboard again.  How do y’all get used ta this thing?  And why is it so sensitive?”
“Tis because thy horn is new.  The nerve endings that connect it to the rest of thee are equally new, so they have to adjust to greater sensation.  Thou must give it time, my love.  Thou hath only had the horn and wings for two days now.  It always takes a little getting used to.  Tia and I spent nearly four months adjusting to our wings and learning to fly.”
“That’s another thing...” he said, adjusting his position in the large bed without upsetting the breakfast tray.  “That instructor you got fer me...”
“Thou meanest Soarin?”
“Eeeyup... He said he wants me to practice jumpin’ off the balcony.  Says it’s the best way ta get the feel o’ the wind in ma wings.”
“Not this one, I hope,” she said looking out the twelfth floor window.  
“Nnnope.  The second floor one, just off o’ the Royal Chamberlain’s office.  He says Ah have ta build up the instinct ta extend ma wings without thinking when in the air.”
“And he expects thee to land safely after jumping off a second story balcony?”
“Eventually, but fer now he’s riggin’ a large pile o’ mattresses fer me ta land on.  At least it looks out on an enclosed courtyard, with few windows so Ah don’t have ta demonstrate ma shortcomins’ ta every pony in sight.”
Luna smiled coyly.  “Believe me my love.  If there is one attribute thou doth not have, it is shortcomings.”  She leaned over and gave him a long, luxurious kiss on the mouth.  She loved the fact that he always tasted of apples.   Breaking off the kiss, she magically shifted her tray from her lap to a nearby table then pushed aside the covers and climbed out of bed.  Big Mac reached out to move his own tray aside when she stopped him.
“No... not with thy hooves.  Try using magic.”
“Uh... how?”
“Imagine lifting the tray with thy hooves, but keep them still,” Luna instructed.  “Let that feeling of chilled water you talked about yesterday flow up the back of your neck and into your horn.  The magic will do the rest.”
Big Mac nodded.  He focused on the tray.  To his surprise a green aura surrounded it and lifted it a few inches off his lap... then flung it violently against the far wall of the room where it landed with a loud crash.  “Oops!”
Luna put a hoof to her mouth and tried to suppress the giggle she felt bubbling up in her throat... with little success.  
Grumbling, the stallion climbed out of bed and began picking up the pieces of his breakfast tray.  
“Nay, beloved... Thou art royalty now and should leave cleaning up the mess to the servants.”
“They weren’t the ones who made it... Why should they clean it up?”
“Because tis their job.  Tis what they are paid to do.”  
Big Mac looked down at the heap of broken dishes and breakfast remains.  “It just don’t feel right,” he said even as he picked up a shard or two of shattered china and placed them in a nearby waste basket.  Luna smiled and gently shook her head at his reluctance.  
“Well, if thou insists on cleaning up after thyself, then at least use it as an opportunity to practice thy magic.”
“Eeeyup,” he muttered as he tried concentrating on the dishes.  He quickly discovered that the fine manipulation required to levitate the smaller individual pieces was easier to control than his earlier effort with the tray.  Still, by the time he finished he could feel a slight headache trying to edge its way into his consciousness.  It didn’t help that since his ascension to the status of alicorn, his other senses had also increased.  He paused to close his eyes and gently massage his temples.  After a moment or two his hooves were smoothly brushed aside as a smaller, more delicate pair took over the task.  He could feel the slight tingling of magic pass through him.  His headache faded.  
“Better?” Luna asked.
“Eeeyup.”
“I suppose thou realize that flying isn’t the only thing we will have to teach thee.  Thou must learn to control the magic that now flows through thee.”
“Eeeyup,” Mac replied, smiling behind closed eyes as he enjoyed the gentle caress of his fiancé.  
“As a matter of fact, Tia and I were discussing it just yesterday morning and we both think it would be a good idea to enroll thee in Magic Kindergarten.”
“Eeeyup,” he sighed, then his eyes popped open.  “WHAT?”
Luna nickered in amusement.  “Think about it, dear.  Aside from using the Unicorn Amulet, which was both extraordinarily brave and horribly risky, thou hast no experience in the direct manipulation of magic.  In many ways, thou are like a unicorn foal.  Thou hast to start from scratch.”
“What about hirin’ a tutor, like y’all did with Soarin?”
“Well, Soarin is rather interesting.  He hath...”  Luna suddenly paused, remembering she needed to practice modern prose.  “I mean... has taught young pegasi part-time at Basic Flight School, so he knows how to work with what they call groundlings.  Magic, though, especially at your level of power, is a lot more complex.”
Mac looked down at the remains of his breakfast tray.  She was certainly right about that.
“We looked at a couple tutoring candidates already, but working with grown ponies their expectations tend to be a lot higher and their patience correspondingly lower.  What you need is a pony of exceptional understanding, enthusiasm and quiet determination.”
“In other words... a kindergarten teacher.”
Luna smiled.  “Precisely.  The only drawback is there are very few teacher’s qualified to teach in Magic Kindergarten.  So few, that we can’t ‘recruit’ one as a private tutor without causing an increase in the size of the other classes at magic school.”
“So Ah’ll be enrolling in a class full o’ foals?”
“Well... yes and no.  You will be on the roster as a Teacher’s Assistant and if any pony asks, your official duty is to evaluate the curriculum by participating in it, which will be the truth.”
Big Mac thought about this for a moment, then quietly laughed.  
“Is something funny?” Luna asked.
“Just a mite ironic, that’s all.  Ah never had a chance ta finish school cause I had ta drop out ta take care o’ the farm and ma family.”
“So you missed out on your foal-hood?”
“Eeeyup.  Ah had ta grow all the way up when Ah was ten.  Now, Ah’m gonna be workin’ in a school... sorta.”
“You’re not bothered by the idea, are you?”
“Just a mite,” the stallion admitted.  “Ah know just about everythin’ there is ta know about apples and farmin’, so goin’ ta school so Ah can learn somethin’ new makes sense, but what Ah know about teachin’ young uns, y’all can fit that in a feedbag for a mouse.”
Luna gently leaned forward and gave Big Mac a gentle cheek to cheek caress.  “I wouldn’t worry about it.  You’ll do fine.”

**********

“But Ah thought the idea was ta teach me how ta unfurl ma wings without thinkin’?”
Soarin looked at the red-furred alicorn and grinned.  “It will be... but first, you need to learn how to tuck and roll for those times you make a bad landing.”
“Ah don’t recall ever seein’ any pony other than Rainbow Dash make a bad landing.”
“Then you never saw Princess Twilight practice for the Summer Sun Celebration.  It took maintenance a week to fill in all the face divots she left around Canterlot.”
Big Macintosh sighed.  “Alright then, let’s get ta work.  What’s first?”  Before he realized it, Soarin was cinching a leather belt around the stallion’s mid-section, pinning his wings to his side.  
“First, we keep you from damaging your wings when you tuck and roll.”  He pulled tight on the strap and the alicorn grunted.  
“Okay... now what?”
“You tuck and roll,” the pegasus replied as he shoved Mac off the balcony.
“WWWWOOOOAAAAHHHH...... OOOF!”  The stallion landed face first onto a thick mattress.  Any pony watching, and there were a few, thought that the way he landed made the red stallion look more like the letter ‘Z’ that an alicorn.   His left rear hoof twitched slightly as he looked up at Soarin.  
“More roll... less tuck!”

**********

“Good morning, Sir Macintosh,” the school nurse said brightly as she finished writing on her roster.  “How are you doing today?” she asked, picking up two file folders and attaching them to the clipboard.  
“Fair,” he replied in a rather somber monotone.  “Ah was observing the foals in Miss Hooferton’s class while they levitated different kinds of animals... learning how to lift things gently.  She even insisted Ah try it ma self.”
“I remember that exercise when I was a foal,” the unicorn replied smiling.  “I got to pick up and pet a baby ferret with my magic.  I could actually feel how soft it was right through my spell.  It even purred for me.”  She set the folders and clipboard aside and looking up at the farmer for the first time.  She gasped when she saw the stallion standing before her.  His face resembling a pin cushion.  “What happened?” she asked.
“Ah had the porcupine.”

**********

Applejack yawned as she came down the stairs and trotted into the kitchen.  “Mornin’ Granny,” she called out to the elder Apple.  
“Morning yer self, A.J.,” she replied as she loaded up her grand-daughter’s plate with half a dozen hot cakes.
The sound of slow hoof steps coming downstairs drew the farm pony’s attention.  Her younger sister walked into the kitchen, a wide yawn stretching the edge of her mouth like a rubber band.  “Morning Applebloom.  Did y’all remember ta wake Big Mac?”
“Ah knocked on his door, but he weren’t there.”
The farm pony finished tying the hair band on her mane and looked towards her grand-dame.  “Where’s Macintosh?”
Granny brought a gravy boat with syrup in it to the table.  “Yer brother was through here half an hour ago.  Said he wanted to finish plowing the new field before he had to be back at the castle.”
“Don’t sound like turnin’ inta an alicorn has changed Mac much,” Applebloom observed.
“Ya mean aside from the horn and wings?”
“Ah meant changed what’s inside,” the filly replied.  “Scootaloo was tellin’ me that according ta Rainbow Dash, he’s got the largest set of wings of almost any pony she’s seen.  They’re almost as big as Celestia’s.”
“Well... he was pretty big even before the change.  He probably needs a large pair just ta get off the ground.”
“So when do we get ta see him fly?” Applebloom asked.  Ah mean he’s had them wings fer more than three weeks...”
“He’ll show us when he’s good an’ ready.  There’s a lot more ta flyin than just flappin’ a set o’ wings ya know.”
“Ah suppose.  That’s what Scootaloo says anyway.”
“No doubt she knows herself what’s needed.”  Applejack paused to take a sip of coffee and noticed that her sister was already finished with breakfast.  It always amazed the palomino how quickly Applebloom could eat... or how much.  “If y’all are done, take yer dishes inta the kitchen then get yer mornin’ chores done so’s ya can be off ta school.”
“Aw... Do Ah have ta?”
“Eeeyup!”
The young Apple picked up her dishes in  her mouth and carried them into the kitchen, grumbling softly the whole way.  “Bad enough Ah gotta put up with Big Mac and his Eeeyup... now Applejack’s doin’ it.  Next thing ya know, they’ll have me Eeeyuppin’ everythin’ in sight.”
The palomino pony smiled at the grumbling, taking time to finish her meal before grabbing her stetson from the hat rack next to the door and heading out to the new field.  The farm hands were busy sorting and organizing wood for the fence that would keep trespassers out while their new orchard matured.  She watched them for a moment, scratching her head wondering why they were all wearing hardhats.  Shrugging, Applejack looked around and quickly spotted her brother.
Big Mac was pulling the plow briskly across the field.  He’d had to rig a new harness that could accommodate his wings, but it seemed to work well enough.  The ease with which he moved caused his sister to raise an eyebrow.  As strong as he was before the change, it was obvious that now, as an alicorn, his strength had at least doubled.  He might be having trouble adjusting to his new wings and horn, but the magic of the earth flowed through him like water under a bridge.  Judging from the half-smile on his face, it was clear he was enjoying himself.
“Mornin’, oh Prince o’ dirt,” A.J. playfully kidded her brother.  “How’s it coming?”  
“Mornin’ yerself,” he replied.  “Just about like we expected, though a tad faster even with all the rocks.”  As his sister watched he paused at the end of one furrow and concentrated.  There was a green glow and about a dozen large, hoofball sized rocks levitated themselves free of the soil.  Most of them drifted gracefully over to a large pile at the edge of the field and settled among their brothers.  The last one however just sat there vibrating slightly and refused to budge.  Mac grimaced, closed his eyes and focused on the glowing rock.  It shimmied, then rose a foot or two off the ground before suddenly launching itself straight up like a cannonball.
“OOPS...!  HEADS UP!” yelled the alicorn.
One of the work ponies looked up and saw the projectile as it reached the apex of its flight and started down again.  “FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!”  The other ponies with him dove to the ground and covered their heads with their hooves.  Turning, Big Mac tried to grab for the rock with his magic.  Unfortunately he’d forgotten he was still hitched to the plow.  One of his back hooves stepped on the harness leads causing his other hoof to pull short and, like someone tripping over a loose shoelace, the farmer toppled face first into the mud.  The rock came down a short distance away, missing the barn by about a foot and demolishing a rain barrel next to it.
The noise brought Applebloom to the barn door, milk pail in her mouth, her coat splashed with white.  “WHAT’S GOIN’ ON?”
Applejack uncovered her eyes and then saw her sister standing only a few feet from the demolished rain barrel.  “Y’ALL OKAY, LIL’ SIS?” she called.  
“AH’M FINE,” she replied, “CEPT AH GOT MILK ALL OVER ME.”
“DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT.  JUST GET INTA THE HOUSE AND CLEAN UP FER SCHOOL.  AH’LL FINISH THE MILKIN’.  
With a little cheer Applebloom put the milk pail down and trotted over to the house.  Once she was out of sight the palomino rounded on her brother, her heart still pounding in her chest.  “MACINTOSH APPLE... WHAT IN TARNATION Y’ALL TRYIN’ TA DO... KNOCK DOWN THE BARN?”
The stallion picked himself up from the mud and looked in the direction of the barn, his eyes dropping slightly to the ground.  “Nnnope,” he replied quietly.  
“Y’ALL KNOW YA COULDA HURT SOMEPONY, PLAYIN’ ROUND ALL CARELESS LIKE WITH YER MAGIC...”
“Ah weren’t playin’.” he said miserably.  “Ah was practicin’ like Ah’m suppose ta be.”
“Yer suppose ta be plowin’ the field, not doin’ tiddlywinks with a bunch o’ rocks.  Yer lettin’ all this magic stuff get ta yer head.  Y’all was born an Earth Pony.  Ya should act more like one when yer here and not like some kind of high fallootin’ Canterlot pony.”
“But A.J....”
“Don’t A.J. me,” she replied.  “Just get this field finished so we can get the seedling in afore sunset.”  With that, she turned and stomped off back to the farmhouse, too angry and too scared for further conversation.    
Big Mac watched her go, then, without a word, unhitched himself from the plow and walked off towards the north orchard, head down, ears drooping and wings nearly dragging in the dirt.  He knew deep down that his sister had been frightened by what had happened, which accounted for her harsh words.  Still, knowing that didn’t really take much of the sting off them, nor did it do much to relieve him of the guilt he felt.  He’d been careless with the rock, letting his stubbornness influence the amount of power he put into the spell.  He hadn’t intended to launch that rock into the sky, but he had and except for luck might have hurt Applebloom.  The thought of what could have happened made him feel horrible.
Reaching the gazebo he’d built for himself and Luna he sat down and gazed across the hills towards Canterlot.  Luna would be finishing up with her Night Court just before moonset.  She and Celestia would breakfast together around eight.  They expected him to join them before Luna went to bed and he headed off to “school.”  His life certainly wasn’t what it used to be.  
There was so much to know now, so much to learn, so much to do, and very little of it related to farming and apples.  It was like nothing he knew was of any use anymore, and even when he was pulling a plow, it was so dang easy he had to work twice as hard to get a quarter of the satisfaction he use to feel.  Magic had made his life easier and harder at the same time.  He sighed unhappily.  He was an apple farmer.  Not much in the grand scheme of things.  The kind of pony who didn’t really make much of a difference to the wide world.  He wondered morosely if Equestria might not be a better place if he’d never been.  
Emotions tangled with new, untapped relays within his mind.  Unfocused thought became unintended desire.  Mac suddenly became aware of a cold feeling traveling up his spine and into his horn, only this time it wasn’t like chilled water, it was like ice.  Ice so cold it burned.  There was a sudden explosion of light from his horn.  When it dissipated, the alicorn had vanished, leaving behind half of a charred gazebo.  
A unicorn watching from the shadows of a nearby apple tree smiled wickedly.  “Be careful what you wish for, my friend.”
> Chapter 02
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was dark.  So dark you could not see your hoof before your eyes.  But he knew he was awake, that his eyes were open.  He could feel them blink.   He could feel, though everything seemed ice cold.  His hooves, his backsides, his tail, all were telling him that it was cold, even his breath.  “Where?” he muttered.
“Questions are good,” came a voice, echoing across his mind.  He couldn’t be sure he heard it, but it did register somewhere deep within him..  “The trick is to ask the right ones.”
“What... what’s happening.”  
“Not bad, not bad.  A perfectly logical inquiry.  Unfortunately, not the right one.”
“Who?”
“You’re getting colder... Oh, no, wait, you already are cold.  You really can’t be getting colder if you already are.  At least not metaphorically speaking.”
Macintosh thought for a second.  
“When?”
The voice gave off a firm laugh.  “Now you have it.  When is just right and brings all the answers you want to those other questions in due time.  It’s the very nature of when.”
“Prove it,” said the stallion.
The world went white for a moment then refined itself into a late night street scene.  Somehow, the street looked familiar.  Macintosh looked around, then finally recognized it.  It was the street outside his Uncle and Aunt Orange’s place in Manehatten, though for some reason it didn’t look quite the same.  Everything looked, well dingy.  He’d always remembered the townhouse as being well lit and painted in tasteful, yet strong colors.  Warm earth tones had been replaced by grey limestone and only about one third of the street lights worked.  Patches of snow covered the sidewalk explaining why he had felt so cold.  
Climbing the short flight of steps to the front door Big Mac found a series of different buttons, each indicating a separate apartment rather than the large, single brass one that he’d remembered.  At some point, the old townhome had been subdivided into half a dozen small apartments.  He glanced at the nameplates and found one with the name Mr. & Mrs. Orange.  He pressed it and was rewarded about a minute later by a rather shrill, unpleasant feminine voice.
“Who the hell is ringing me at five in the morning?”
“Uh... Aunt Orange?  It’s me.  Big Macintosh.”
There was a rather lengthy pause.  “Who?”
“Macintosh... Macintosh Apple.”  He paused for a moment, then added, “yer nephew from Ponyville?”
The voice abruptly became shriller and much more abusive.  “I don’t have any nephew.  And if I did, he certainly wouldn’t be from any ghost town.”  She was joined a moment later by a male voice.  
“You *#(%D)* drunks gotta quit sleeping on our front porch.  Now CLEAR OUT before I come down there with a cricket bat and chase you off myself.”  There was a slight whine as the speaker button on the other end was abruptly cut off.  
Big Mac simply stared at the brass nameplate, unable to understand what had just happened.  It made no sense.  His aunt and uncle were close with the Apples.  He couldn’t count how many times they’d been out to the farm, using it as a kind of retreat from city life.  Why wouldn’t they know him?  And why would they call Ponyville a ghost town?  He sat down on the bottom step and tried to puzzle it out.  
He sat there long enough to see dawn begin etching a silhouette of the surrounding buildings against the sky, but as hard as he thought, he couldn’t understand what was going on.  His silent musings were abruptly interrupted by a sharp rapping on the bottom of one hoof.  The stallion looked up and found himself staring into the face of a young Manehatten police filly.  
“Hey buddy...This is private property.  I wouldn’t suggest loitering around here, especially since I live here.”  
Big Mac rose to his hooves then paused.  Something about her seemed familiar.  He couldn’t quite place it, not until he glanced at the nameplate on her shirt.  It read Seed.  
“Babs?”
The police filly looked at the stallion curiously.  “Do I...know youse?”
The filly was much older than she had been the last time he saw her, but there was no mistaking the dark caramel fur, two-tone red mane and tail, green eyes and freckles.  The only true difference was the police shield she carried as her cutie mark, complete with an embossed apple.  She looked to be about Applejack’s age.  
“Uh...maybe not directly,” the stallion said cautiously remembering his Aunt’s reaction.  “Ah’m Macintosh Apple.”
“Then you’d be from my mom’s side of the family.  I didn’t think there was many of youse left, let alone any unicorns.”  She smiled, “Say, why don’t youse come on up for some coffee.  Ay’m just getting off shift an’ Ay could do with some friendly company.”
“Y’all sure it a good idea bringin’ a strange pony inta yer house?”
“S’okay!  Ay gotta nose for when some pony’s slinging shit my way and when their being honest.  Your story ‘feels’ right.   ‘Sides,” she said bringing a hoof up to her hip and patting her sidearm.  “No pony messes with me when Ay’m packing Old Pete here.”
“What about yer aunt and uncle?  They weren’t happy to hear from me earlier.”
“Screw ‘em,” she replied.  “They may own the building, but Ay still pays them rent and they can’t say jack about whose I let into my own place.”  She unlocked the door and pushed it open, allowing Macintosh to step into the lighted foyer and out of the cold darkness of the street.  He shivered slightly, ruffling his wing feathers in the process.  
Babs saw this and her eyes went as wide as saucers.  “Wings?  Youse got wings?   Holy Canarsie...You’re...you’re...an alicorn!” she whispered intensely.  
“Uh...Eeeyup?”
“QUICK.  We gotta get youse outta sight...NOW!”  She shoved hard against Big Mac’s flanks, until they were next to a door marked with a large letter ‘B’ on it.  She unlocked it, then practically bum rushed her larger cousin inside before closing it more with a bit more force than normal.  Instead of turning on the light, however, she busied herself dashing around pulling down every window shade in the place.  It was only after the room was completely obscured from the outside that she flipped on a small lamp in one corner of the room.  
“Ah don’t understand.  What the problem with ma bein’ an alicorn?”
Babs looked at him in a sideways kind of way.  “Geeze... Where have youse been the last ten years?  Hiding on the bottom of a lake?  Ain’t no alicorns allowed in Equestria since I was a foal.”
“What about Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?” he asked.
“Never heard of no Luna,” Babs said as she put on a kettle.  “Celestia disappeared the day Nightmare Moon took over.  It was months before anypony knew what happened to her, ‘cept maybe Queen Nightmare.”
“Didn’t the Elements o’ Harmony defeat her?”
“The Elements of Whosits?”
“Harmony,” Macintosh explained.  “Six mares that went inta the Everfree and brought back magic powerful enough ta defeat Nightmare Moon.”
“Ay heard about them, Ay think.  A bunch of mares from Ponyville followed this wacky unicorn who claimed to be Celestia’s student.  She led ‘em into the Everfree then got herself and her cellist friend killed falling off a cliff.  Without her to lead ‘em the others gave up and came home.”
Macintosh shook his head.  “That ain’t right.  Twilight weren’t killed, Applejack saved her.”
“Applejack...Youse talking ‘bout my cousin, Applejack Apple?”
“Eeeyup.”
“No way!” Babs replied.  “She wasn’t even living in Ponyville at the time.  She moved in with Uncle and Aunt Orange after her Granny Smith passed away.”
Now it was Big Mac’s turn to stand there, looking sideways at the young mare.  What was happening?  Everything she said rang as the unvarnished truth, but none of it was.  It couldn’t be.  The stallion knew more about the adventures his sister had with her friends than anypony else, but none of that seemed to matter.  Somehow, his whole life had changed, as had Equestria’s history.  
“Hey...youse okay?”
“Nnnope.”
The whistling of the kettle drew their attention to the kitchen.  Babs quickly scooped up a couple of mugs and looked at Big Mac.  “Coffee or tea?”
“Uh...tea,” he replied absent-mindedly.  
As she fixed a cup of tea for Mac and an extra strong instant coffee for herself, Babs couldn’t help but worry.  Everything the strange alicorn had told her was true.  She knew it, all the way to the tips of her hooves.  But it wasn’t possible.  How could something be absolutely true but not true at the same time?  She passed the tea to her ‘guest’ and took a contemplative sip on her own drink.  “Is your drink any good?”
Macintosh nodded.  “Eeeyup.”  He looked back at Babs, his voice thick with choked up feelings he was trying to hide.  “So Equestria is under the rule of this Queen Nightmare?”
The police mare shook her head.  “Not anymore.  She was deposed after about a year.”
“What happened?” he asked fearfully.
“Well, things was pretty bad during that year, what with living with no sun.  Crops wouldn’t grow and a lot of ponies starved.  We lost about a quarter of the population of Equestria and might have lost more if we hadn’t learned to grow moon flowers.”
“Moon flowers?”
“That’s what we call mushrooms.  We also discovered there was some kinds of mosses we could eat, though the flavor was kind of....missing.  It was really tough”
“Who deposed Lu... uh, Nightmare Moon?”
“Youse can imagine how crazy things was in Canterlot, what with the coup and Queen Nightmare’s insane decrees.  Anyways, all the chaos she created wound up waking HIM up.”
“HIM?”
“We don’t say HIS name...it might attract his attention,” Babs whispered.  “He’s too busy entertaining himself over in the Gryphon Kingdom to bother with us, at least for right now.  Just kind of leaves running the things to us, more or less.  Unfortunately, what was Equestria is now a loose confederation of city-states.”
Big Mac took a thoughtful sip on his tea.  He was pretty sure he knew who his cousin was referring to.  The mug in his hoof trembled slightly with suppressed anger.  Thank Celestia he hadn’t tried levitating it earlier because if he had there’d be a tea stain on the wall right about now.  “What happened next?”
“Well, the first thing HE does is turn Queen Nightmare to stone.  He then brings back Princess Celestia and turns her to stone as well.  He sets them both up on like a pair of bookends just outside the main entrance to the royal palace.  After that, HE outlawed alicorns and ordered any who were found had to be arrested on sight.”
“Then y’all are taking a big chance with me,” the stallion replied.
“To tell the truth, Ay try to ignore as many of that snake’s edicts as Ay can safely get away with.  HE’s screwed up Equestria enough with his own brand of insanity.  Chocolate rain, molasses snow, days that are never the same length.  It’s crazy enough out there without enforcing equally crazy laws.  ‘Sides, youse family.”
“And Ah thank ya fer that,” Bit Mac replied.  Something occurred to him.  “What ever happened ta Princess Cadence?”
“No one knows,” the police mare replied.  “She disappeared the same day Nightmare Moon took over.  Rumors say she was imprisoned by the Nightmare, but Celestia’s captain of the guard helped her escape and they’re hiding.  One story even has them married and living happily in some idyllic chrystal palace somewhere in the far north.”
“Eeeyup.”
“Youse know something ‘bout that?”
“Just rumors, like y’all said.”  Big Mac took another sip of his tea and tried to calmly sift through a whole range of conflicting emotions.  He thought about what Babs had been telling him.   Everything seemed to change with the death of Princess Twilight and Nightmare Moon’s return.  The thought of his Luna still trapped by that evil spirit made him cold inside.  He took a deep breath to calm himself.  He still had to nail down exactly how things had gone wrong, and that would involve some very personal questions.  
“Can you tell me more about...Applejack, and her big brother?”
“Yeah, I can tell youse anything you want to know ‘bout Applejack.  But to the best of my knowledge she never had no big brother.  It’s too bad too.   If Granny Smith had had somepony able to help her she might not have lost Sweet Apple Acres or passed on so early.  I think losing the farm kinda broke her heart.”  
Big Mac simply looked at Babs, not believing what he was hearing.  How could she say that?  Of course A.J. had a brother.  He was her brother!  “Are y’all sure about there bein’ no older brother?”
“Absotively posilutly,” she replied.  “She did have a little sister by the name of Applebloom.  But they were split up when Granny Smith passed away.  She would have been my age ‘bout now.”
“Would have been?”
“She was sent to live with her cousins in Appleloosa.  The whole town was wiped out by the Nightmare Queen when it rebelled ‘gainst her a couple of years ago.  No pony survived.”
Big Mac slowly shook his head.  “Nnnope!”
“No what?”
“Nnnope!  It didn’t happen!  None o’ it.  It cain’t be true.”
Babs looked nervously at the alicorn.  “What can’t be true?”
“Yer story...it ain’t possible.  Applebloom cain’t be gone.  Sweet Apple Acres cain’t have failed.”
“Youse saying I made all this stuff up?”
Again the stallion shook his head.  “Nnnope...Y’all are telling the truth, but even though it’s the truth, it ain’t true.  Luna NEVER would have destroyed a whole town o’ ponies like that.  Ah know her...she ain’t evil like that!”  Mac’s voice shook with repressed emotion.  Fear, anger, confusion all mixed together within him.  
“Whose Luna?” asked Babs as one hoof quietly crept up towards her service belt.
“Princess Luna, ma fiancé.  We’re goin’ ta be married sometime in the next few months.”  
“But there ain’t no Princess named Luna,” Babs insisted.  “There was just Celestia and Cadence.  ‘Sides... It was Queen Nightmare who destroyed Appleloosa.  Not some Princess named Luna.”
“Princess Luna WAS Nightmare Moon!” Macintosh blurted out.  “She’s Celestia’s sister.  She was possessed by an evil entity that was driven out by the Elements o’ Harmony.  Ah know!  Applejack was there.  She told me all about it.  She’s the Element o’ Honesty!”
“Why would Cousin Applejack confide all this with youse?”
“Because AH’M HER BIG BROTHER!”  The stallion looked over at the police mare and noticed she had her service revolver drawn, but was pointing it at the floor, her mouth agape.  
“You’re telling the truth,” she half-whispered.
“So are you.”
“But we can’t both be telling the truth.  One of us has to be lying... or crazy.”
“Well,” muttered Big Mac, “Ah’m not crazy and yer not lyin’.”
“And youse ain’t lying and Ay’m not crazy,” she added.  “That only leaves the rest of the world.  Maybe every pony else is crazy.”
“About now, Ah’m almost ready ta believe that.”
Babs holstered her weapon then went over to a cabinet above the stove and pulled out a large bottle of amber liquid and two glasses.  “Ay think we needs to loosen our brains a little so’s we can wrap them around this conundrum better.”  She filled each glass with about two inches of the liquid, then passed one to Macintosh.  
This time the stallion did levitate the drink towards him.  He downed it in one quick gulp, something he normally didn’t do, even with the hard cider at home.  Babs did the same.  The drink burned going down and seemed to evaporate enroute to the stomach.  “Not bad,” he muttered, levitating the glass onto a nearby table.
“What do youse mean, not bad?” the mare responded.  “That’s genuine Blue Grass Bourbon.  Brewed and bottled before Ay was even born.  It’s the good stuff.”
“Eeeyup... but it don’t hold a candle ta Sweet Apple Aged Cider.”
“Maybe not, but then there aren’t many places brewing aged apple cider anymore, except Flim-Flam distilleries.  Ay prefer my bourbon.  It’s normally pretty hard to get, but A.J. brings me a fresh bottle from time to time.”
“You’ve seen Applejack?”
“Occasionally.  We kinda keep in touch, though Aunt and Uncle Orange won’t have anything to do with her no more.”
Macintosh hesitated slightly, almost afraid to ask the next question.  “How’s she doin.?”
Babs poured herself one more inch of bourbon, then capped the bottle and put it away in the cupboard.  She contemplated the drink for a moment, then downed it as quickly as the first before looking at Big Mac.
“She’s doing well enough.”  There was another moment of hesitation.  “She works over at a place called the Carousel Boutique over on 42nd Street.”
The stallion sat up and took notice.  “Ah know a place with the same name back where Ah come from.  It’s a clothing boutique run by a fashion designer named Miss Rarity Belle.  She must have moved her shop from Ponyville.  Never thought Applejack would ever be involved in the dress making business.”
Babs chuckled some.  “Well, youse got the owner’s name right, and the fact she came from out of town, but your sister ain’t no dress maker.”
“She’s not?”
“No,” Babs said, chuckling a little more.  “Youse see, the Carousel Boutique ain’t a clothing store... It’s a bordello.”
> Chapter 03
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The sun was fully up by the time Babs and Big Mac decided to cut short their conversation and try to get some sleep.  The police mare had the next day off, so she promised to go with him to visit Applejack.  Perhaps talking to her might help him figure out what was happening.  Being a true gentle colt, the stallion insisted on taking the couch, which turned out to be a fold out bed just large enough for his rather substantial frame.  The moment his head hit the pillow, he was asleep.  
His mind drifted off into the firm grasp of Morpheus and he began to dream.  However these dreams felt different.  Instead of simply meandering from dreamscape to dreamscape there was a focus and clarity to them that made them feel... real.  Like a split screen, he saw both his own life as he knew it, and the history of this world as Babs had told him.  They seemed to spin through his mind, like two parallel spokes on a wagon wheel.  Alike, but with different dings and missing flecks of paint.  As he watched, faces faded in and out.  Luna, Applejack, Granny, Applebloom, Celestia, his cousins from Appleloosa, all crowded their way through his dream.  One face in particular seemed to latch on and dig into his dream, making itself almost annoying.  It was the face of a brown furred unicorn with a black and grey mane, tail and neatly trimmed van dyke style beard.
The face turned to the alicorn and winced.  “You really have made a royal mess of things, haven’t you?”
It took the stallion a few moments to remember, but then it came to him, sharp and clear.  “Professor Pony?”
“Oh, I am so glad you remembered my alter-ego’s name.  After all, you don’t want to make HIM aware of your existence, or mine for that matter.”
“But, ya ARE him... ain’t ya?”
“I’m not HIM any more than HE is me.  HE is an uncouth slug, using ham-handed techniques to satisfy his own need for self-praise.  I on the other hand have an absolute knack for being the sophisticate.”
“If that’s another word fer ‘pain in the butt,’ then Ah’d have to agree.”
Professor Pony frowned.  “You aren’t very appreciative, are you?”
The alicorn snorted slightly.  “What exactly have I got ta be appreciative fer.”
“Why this glorious opportunity my ignorant princeling.  A profound lesson in the influence one pony can have in the lives of those around him, or in this case, what happens to others when that pony isn’t there to help out.”
“What does that have ta do with everything bein’ topsy-turvy?”
“Ever study meta-physics?” the professor asked.
“Meta-what?”
The professor rolled his eyes.  Without warning there was a small pop of air and a cone-shaped hat appeared on Macintosh’s head with the word ‘dunce’ printed on it.  “It’s a shame.  An alicorn with all this power and none of it focused to any purpose.  All right, I shall explain.”  There was another pop and the stallion found himself sitting at a school desk with a black board sitting in front of him.  The professor stood to one side levitating a piece of chalk and a pointer.  
“Now, imagine the universe as an apple tree with millions of branches coming off it.  The world you knew, let’s call it Equestria Prime for argument sake, is branch A.  Here the Elements of Harmony have been keeping chaos under control for more than a thousand years.  They have been lost, but recently rediscovered and used to maintain balance between good and evil.  This is the world you came from.  The one on which you happily lived until you made that rather Porlockian wish.”
“What wish?”
“Why the one where you speculated that the world might be better off if you had never lived?  Don’t you remember?” asked the disguised draconequus.
Big Mac sat quietly for a moment or two thinking.  “Ah think Ah do... but it weren’t a wish so much as a passin’ thought.”
“And there you have it!  A passing thought, which your unfocused alicorn magic interpreted as a desire to be fulfilled.  Unfortunately, it couldn’t accomplish your desire without rewriting the entire timeline on which Equestria Prime existed.  In essence, it would have meant sawing off the branch and leaving it to regrow minus your pitiful contribution.  This was something the universe would not allow and which no alicorn, not even Celestia can accomplish.  So it did the next best thing.  It simply removed YOU from Equestria Prime.”
“So where am Ah now?  Tartarus?”
“Well, thankfully that’s where I come in.  You see, Celestia was rather peeved at me for a somewhat risqué joke I pulled on her last week and she chastised me.  Said that I needed to become more of a gentle colt.  She even held you up as an example of how I should act around others.  So, for the past several days I’ve been hanging around observing you.  I must admit, watching you learn to fly and perform magic was quite entertaining.  I was nearby when you made your ‘unintended’ wish, so when your own magic tried to end your existence, I added a little tweak to it that sent you here instead... a world where you, Macintosh Apple, had never been born.”
“So Luna’s alright?” Big Mac asked hopefully.
“She’s perfectly fine... unless of course you take into consideration the hysterical fit she had when you disappeared and she was told it looked as if you accidently blew yourself up!”
“You told her...”
“No I didn’t.  Some ignorant guard pony assigned to your protection detail told her that.  Oh, what a scene it was.  Princess hysterics are something else to see.  Hoofspear couldn’t have written such a passionate scene on his best day.”
The stallion’s face fell.  “So she thinks Ah’m dead?”
“Well, as you’re so fond of saying...Nnnope.  As fun as it was to watch, there came a point where even I couldn’t take any more of her sobbing, so I told her what had happened.  Naturally, it’s now all my fault and I’ve got just one week to bring you back or I get to spend another thousand years providing pigeons with a poop roost.  Unfortunately, I just can’t snatch you back on my own.  It was your magic that got you there.  You are going to have to do some hoof-work of your own to get back.”
“Like what?”
“Well, the timeline or tree limb you’re currently on obviously split from Equestria Prime at a point in the recent past.  You need to steer it back closer in line, or parallel to the first branch so a bridge can be formed between the two, and you need to do so before any further divergences or branches are created that take you too far away to create the bridge.”
“And how do Ah do that?” asked Macintosh.
“As much as it pains me to say it, you’re going to have to...gaack... restore the balance between harmony and chaos.”  Professor Pony winced heavily and a shudder ran through him.
“Y’all okay?” the stallion asked.
“Ugh.  Saying that made me feel like I was hacking up a fur ball.”
“Cain’t y’all just make another one o’ yer mirror doors that leads from here back home?” the stallion asked.
“It would take too long.  Dimensional portals don’t grow on trees you know.  By the time I cobbled something like that together you’d be celebrating your 97th birthday.  And if you remember, I only have until the end of the week.”
Macintosh sighed.  The Professor was right.  He’d caused this mess in the first place by wallowing in a morose, self-indulgent funk, then allowing that to influence his new powers.  Luna, and undoubtedly his whole family were worried sick about him.  This wasn’t what he wanted.  It was totally irresponsible.  “Ah gotta get back home.  Ma family needs me and Ah gotta be there fer ‘em.”
“Let’s not forget the draconequus that needs you back as well,” the professor mumbled to himself, loudly enough for Bit Mac to hear.
“So where do Ah start?” the alicorn asked.
“First, find out how this world differs from our own, then take the steps necessary to put it on a parallel path.  As a matter of fact, you’ve already taken that first step.”
“Can y’all guide me with this?”
“Unfortunately...No!  The only way we can communicate is when you’re either unconscious or asleep,” the professor said.
“But how will Ah know what ta do?”
“You’ll figure it out,” the professor said, his image slowly fading from the stallion’s mind.  “You have to... If you ever want to see home again.”  With that, Big Mac suddenly woke up.  
He looked up at the wall clock and saw it was a little after two in the afternoon, or it would have been if the sun had been in the sky.  He looked over at Babs who was in the process of fixing both of them something to eat.  “What happened?  Did Ah sleep all day?”
His cousin shook her head.  “No, we had a short day.  Second one this week courtesy of HIM.”
Big Mac raised an eyebrow.  “That has ta be a mite confusin’.”
“It can be, if youse pay attention to the sky and not the clock.  We had to add an extra hand to the dial so we could keep track of the real days and night.”  The stallion looked.  Sure enough, there was a large, red, fourth hand designed to sweep once around the face every twenty four hours.  
Babs brought a small plate over and set it in front of the alicorn.  “Here, youse probably haven’t had anything to eat since you got here.”  
He looked down.  His plate was covered with a variety of different colored mushrooms and several pieces of bread that looked extraordinarily green in color.  He took a tentative bite from the mushrooms and found the flavor not bad, though the moss bread didn’t have much taste to it.  
“Sorry Ay don’t have anything fancier, but Ay ain’t had a chance to get to the store this week.”
Big Mac nodded his gratitude all the same. “That’s all right.  Y’all weren’t expectin’ company any more than Ah was expectin’ ta be company.”
Babs watched her older ‘cousin’ quietly while he ate.  “So... youse figured out why we have such different memories yet?”
The stallion nodded.  “Had an interestin’ dream.  Ever hear about meta-physics?”
“If youse mean ghosts and magical creatures and other worlds, yeah.  Who wouldn’t, ‘specially with HIM out there messing things up.”
“Maybe a farmer,” Big Mac muttered to himself.  “Anyway, Ah think the reason my memories are so different is ‘cause Ah’m from a different Equestria.  One where... uh HE doesn’t rule and where Applejack is ma sister.”
“Well, that’s one possible explanation,” the police mare replied, carefully examining him as he spoke.  Once again, there was no doubt he was being truthful.  “What are youse going to do about it?”
The alicorn paused for a moment.  “Ah think Ah’m goin’ have ta fix things here if Ah want ta get home again.
“Whoa...Whoa...Whoa!  Hold on there sport.  Wadda youse mean, fix things.  Youse ain’t thinking of taking on HIM, are you?  Ain’t no surer way of winding up on a pedestal than ticking off that snake.”
“Ah don’t plan on takin’ him on... just takin’ him out.  Yer Equestria is out o’ balance and the only way ta fix that is ta put Princess Celestia back on the throne.  That means HE has ta go.”
Babs went silent for a moment.  “Okay... How exactly do youse plan on doing that?”
“By collecting the Elements o’ Harmony.  They’ve beaten HIM before in ma world.  They can do the same here.”
“How will you find them?” his cousin asked.  “The only pony who knew where they’re hidden was Celestia’s student, and she died ten years ago.”
“It ain’t so much a matter o’ where, but who, and Ah think Ah’ve got that covered.”
> Chapter 04
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Do youse really think this is a good idea?” asked Babs as she tried to keep up with the slightly larger stallion.  “Trotting ‘round in public like this.  Ay mean if anypony peeks under that cape Ay found for youse, the game’s up.”
Big Mac glanced down at his slightly smaller cousin and slowed his pace.  “Y’all really don’t have ta come with me... not if it puts y’all in danger.”
“Hey... Let’s get some things straight here.  One, Ay’m a cop.  Danger is just part of the job.  Two, Ay'm your my cousin.  Maybe from a different world, but family is family.”
“What about Uncle and Aunt Orange?  Y’all didn’t seem too fond o’ them earlier.”
“Just ‘cause Ay don’t like them doesn’t make them any less family.  All that means is when Ay help them, they get a piece of my mind to go along with the help.”
“Ya sound a bit like Applejack.”
Babs nodded.  “Yeah, we’ve got a lot in common.  Anyways, back to what Ay was saying earlier... Third, anything Ay can do to help bring down that WORM will be gravy.”
Big Mac smiled.  It felt good to have somepony watching his back, even one that was only about half his size.   Of course, that was most ponies.  
Babs pulled the stallion aside and pointed to a nearby bank.  “We’re going to need some bits if we want to get passed the front door of the Carousel Boutique.  Cover fee’s close to fifty apiece.”  
“That’s pretty steep,” observed Big Mac.  Then he did a quick double-take.  “Wait a moment... Are y’all planning on goin’ in with me?”
“Well dah!  Youse think Ay’m going to send youse into the lion’s den alone?”
“But y’all said it was a brothel.”
“What?  Youse think they only cater to stallions?  This is the big city.  They swing any way there’s a profit to be made, well up to a point that is.  They don’t push drugs and won’t tolerate drunks, so youse can’t go there planning on getting plastered.  It’s a very high class establishment.”
Big Mac nickered slightly.  “Ah wouldn’t have expected anythin’ less from Miss Rarity.”
“What?  Youse know her?”
“Eeeyup.  Far away and long ago... Relatively speakin’,”
The police pony looked across the street then nodded at the stallion.  “Okay... Youse wait here,” Babs instructed.  “Ay’m going to get us some fundage.”  She quickly trotted up to the corner, then used the crosswalk and went into the bank.  Her police livery had been replaced by a medium green cape with gold trim which matched her eyes.  She still carried Old Pete, concealed within the cape in a special pocket.  
Big Mac looked around, watching as several ponies went by.  Though the sun had gone down, it still felt like it was late afternoon and the hoof traffic reflected that fact.  It might have been just a typical street scene in any large Equestrian city, save for one thing.  The stallion couldn’t help but feel as if there were a subtle tang of fear in the air.  A fear that was reflected in the eyes of most ponies he saw.  He hadn’t noticed it in Babs, but she was a police officer and was used to dealing with it.  Now that he was out and about, every pony else he saw was held by the subtle miasma.
His cousin returned a short time later.  “Here,” she said handing him a small purse.  “Clip this under your collar and use it sparingly.  Ay was only able to get us about 700 bits, so we have to make it last.”  She watched as Big Mac fastened it onto his collar then pulled the cape up to hide it.  “You know, that’s quite a rig you’re sporting there.  ‘Specially for a farmer.”
“It’s a gift from ma fiancé.  She called it functional and fashionable.”
“I’ll say... Oak and mahogany layered blend with some rather ornate carving, all trimmed with silver.  Something youse don’t have to be plowing a field to wear.”  Without warning she lifted the back of the collar to search for more decorations.  “Wait... Is that an emerald, shaped like a green apple.”
Big Mac gently pushed his cousin away and lowered the collar back into place.  “Let’s just say it’s a fancy piece o’ glass and leave it at that.”
“Hey...” whinnied Babs in annoyance. “I just busted my savings cause Ay thought youse didn’t have any money, and all along you’re carrying an emerald youse coulda hocked?”
“Nnnope.  It ain’t an emerald and Ah cain’t hock it, even if Ah wanted or needed to.”
Babs looked at the stallion for a moment then shrugged.  There just wasn’t any use arguing with the truth.  They walked along in silence for several minutes until they reached the corner of 42nd and Broadway.  This was Manehatten’s entertainment district.  Musical theatres, Vaudeville, saloons, restaurants, arcades, nickelodeons and, of course, a small, select number of pleasure houses dotted the streets.
“Which way now?” asked Big Mac.  
“Left.  It’s the seventh townhouse on the right.”  Babs looked up at the stallion.  “Have youse figured out what you’re gonna tell Applejack when youse see her?”
The alicorn shook his head.  “Nnnope.  Ah’m actually hopin’ ta get both her and Miss Rarity together, along with any o’ the other Elements who might be about.”
“How many of these Elements are there?”
“Six... Countin’ Miss Twilight’s, but with her gone we’re gonna have ta find somepony else who can take on the Element o’ Magic.”
“So, youse figure you’ll find the other five Elements here?”
“Here, or close by... They’re all friends in ma world.  That was even before Twilight brought them together as the elements.”
“Well, in case youse didn’t notice, this ain’t exactly your world.”
“Eeeyup.”
Reaching the townhome, the alicorn saw that there were very view indigent ponies anywhere along the street.  That had not been true for most of their walk here.  He asked Babs and she explained that the Lady Rarity, as she was called, had set up homeless shelters and soup kitchens several blocks over, giving ponies somewhere else to go rather than hang out on the street in front of her establishment.  Big Mac thought it was rather clever, and reflected at least a little of the generosity she was known for back home.  
Climbing the front stoop he watched as his cousin turned the crank on an elaborate, old fashioned doorbell.  There was a moment of silence, then the door opened and an elegantly dressed gentle colt greeted them.  
“May I be of assistance?” asked the pegasus.  He looked down at Babs and smiled.  “Officer Seed... a pleasure to see you again.”
“Youse can drop the officer.  Ay’m not on duty today.”
“Then the pleasure is doubly felt.  Are you here to visit your cousin?”
“Yes... if she has time for me.”
“Indeed... she always has time for you.”  The stallion looked up at Big Mac.  “Who might I ask is your very... substantial companion?”
“Him... Oh, he’s a cousin of mine from out of town.  I told him about the Boutique and he was very interested in seeing it and perhaps meeting Rarity herself.”
“The Lady Rarity doesn’t meet just anyone, but seeing as this handsome fellow is your cousin, I’ll ask her if she might be interested.  Might I have your name?”
“Macintosh...Sir Macintosh o’ Sweet Apple,” he replied, trying to suppress his accent.  The doorkeeper raised an eyebrow and nodded.  
“If you would follow me.”  He led the two into a large, ornate parlor that was very tastefully decorated gestured to a nearby sofa.  “I will inform m’ lady.  She and your cousin are presently entertaining a client, so it may be a while before she can see you.  In the meantime, may I offer you anything to drink?”
“We’ll start with tea,” Babs said.
The stallion looked at Big Mac.  “And what can I get for you, sir?”  
The alicorn didn’t answer immediately, his mind somewhat overloaded by the implication of Applejack being with a ‘client.’
“He’ll have the same thing as me.”
“Very well, Miss Seed.  It shall be here presently.”  The pegasus left, closing the parlor doors behind him.  
The pony handed Big Mac a white linen napkin that sat on the coffee table before them.  “Here,” she whispered, “take fifty bits out of your purse and carefully fold it into this napkin.  When they serve us tea, place your napkin on the tray.”
“That seems like an odd way o’ paying fer something.”
“Maybe where you come from, but Rarity is all about culture, style and form.  Passing money openly from one hoof to another lacks elegance.”  The stallion raised a quizzical eyebrow and Babs shrugged.  “Hey... her house, her rules.”
“What happens if a pony don’t pay?”
“Then they get very elegantly ejected on their flanks.
Sure enough, a few moments later a beautiful, young mare wearing an equally beautiful maid’s outfit entered the room with a tea cart.  She poured two cups of tea and gracefully accepted the two napkins without a word, then left.
“Do you always have ta pay fifty bits just to visit Applejack?”
Babs smiled.  “She usually slips me my napkin back at the end of our visits.”  She took a casual sip on her tea.  “So, what was that ‘Sir’ Macintosh business all about?”
“Ah remembered that Miss Rarity was always impressed by titles.  Ah thought using mine might draw her interest more.”
“Since when has an Apple ever had a title?”
“Y’all might be surprised, Officer Seed,” he replied with a grin.

**********

About thirty minutes later the parlor doors opened once more to admit two stunningly beautiful mares.  Big Mac recognized both of them immediately.  As with Babs they were both about ten years older, but time had simply ripened the beauty that was there into full bloom.  Rarity had gained perhaps twenty-five to thirty pounds, but it had softened her curves into something much more glamorous.  Applejack, though still quite slim, did not have as much hard muscle as before and had also softened into a creature of splendor.  This unnerved the stallion slightly because he wasn’t use to looking at his sister in quite so alluring a way.  He was relieved when she trotted over to Babs and gave her cousin a warm hug.  It was then that he noticed another difference.  Applejack had no cutie mark.  
Rarity smiled coyly at the alicorn.  “Sir Macintosh, I presume?”  Her voice was sultry and quite inviting.  The stallion nodded in response.
“Lady Rarity.”
“My house steward said you wanted to meet me, though he didn’t tell me the nature of your call.  I must admit I’ve never seen a unicorn as impressive in appearance as you before.  I do hope it involves something, shall we say, intimate and pleasurable.
“It involves somethin’ that happened ta you and five other mares ‘bout ten years ago,” Big Mac said quietly.  “Somethin’ Ah’m hopin’ you remember well enough ta help me, and at the same time, help all o’ Equestria.”
Rarity stiffened.  “You certainly do get straight to the point.”  She paused, then took a deep breath and poured herself a cup of tea, sipping on it before looking up at the stallion.  “It’s not a subject I like to talk about.  We lost a good friend then, maybe two.  I never knew Twilight well enough to really call her a friend but I had a feeling we could have been...simpatico, given time.”
“Y’all knew her well enough ta remember her name, even after ten years.”
“Well, one doesn’t easily forget things like that.  My friends and I were lost in that dreadful forest for almost a week.  We might not have survived if we hadn’t accidently come across a Zebra by the name of Zecora.”  Rarity stopped.  “Why would you want me to dredge up such horrid memories again?”
“Cause Ah think Ah can help y’all set your world back on its proper path.”
“Our world?” Rarity replied.  “The way you speak it sounds as if you don’t count yourself a part of this world.”
At that point Applejack stepped forward and interposed herself between Big Mac and Rarity.  “Listen here!  I don’t know who you are or why you’re here.  All I can see is you’re upsetting my friend and that’s grounds enough to send you packing, cousin or no cousin.”
“Applejack, darling, please.  I am perfectly capable of standing up for myself,” the white-furred mare insisted.  She looked up at the stallion once more.  “I am sorry, but I don’t think I can be of any help to you.  I’m much too grown up to go gallivanting off on some quest to save the world.”
“Without y’all, there ain’t no quest.  Life will just continue as is and y’all be forever subject ta the whims o’ a mad draconequus.”  As if to punctuate the statement a sudden wind rattled the window pane.  All looked outside in time to see the street covered in what appeared to be green ‘snow.’  Crystals instantly formed on the glass and the air turned bitterly cold.  Ponies who could be seen on the street were suddenly buried in at least a foot of emerald frost.
Rarity sighed even as she watched them shake themselves free and run for shelter, slipping and sliding along the sidewalk.  “Not again.”  
She promptly trotted over to the door and opened it.  Her steward was standing there.  As if by magic he produced a pair of thick, quilted shawls which he draped over Rarity and Applejack’s back without a word.  “Break out the cold weather clothing, Soarin.  Pass it out among the staff and what few customers are here and stoke up the boiler.”
“As you wish, m’ lady.”  The pegasus turned to go.
Rarity closed the door and looked back at her guests.  “The last time I listened to a pony about saving the world I nearly lost my life, and the only reason I listened was because she was Princess Celestia’s student.  Unless you can show me in some way you legitimately know what you’re talking about, I’m afraid my answer will have to be no.”
Big Mac closed his eyes for a moment, then nodded towards Babs.  
The police mare turned towards Applejack.  “Would you help me pull the shades down?”
“What on earth for?”
“Just do it... Please?”
Giving a slight snort, she joined her cousin and they quickly had all the shades lowered.  Big Mac then used his magic to unclasp the cape he was wearing and lift it from his back, spreading his wings in the process.  
Both Applejack and Rarity stared speechlessly at the alicorn, not believing what they saw.  “Ah know where ta find the Elements of Harmony,” the stallion explained.  “If you will help, we can retrieve them and save your world from HIM.”
The white-furred unicorn slowly stepped forward and put a hoof up to Big Mac’s left wing.  “This... This is incredible.  You’re a true prince, not a made-up one like Blueblood, but a true prince of the hoof, the horn and the wing.  How?”
The stallion explained quickly about his own Equestria and how it differed from theirs.  Applejack shook her head in disbelief.  “You... yer ma brother?” she asked, dropping the cultured Manehatten accent and reverting to a more countrified one.   “How did y’all get ta be an alicorn?”
“Same way as Princess Cadence and Twilight.  Ah sort o’ ascended when Ah spiritually connected with the earth.”
“Twilight’s alive... and Octavia... and... and Sweetie Belle?”
“Eeeyup, at least they are in ma Equestria.”
Rarity went very quiet for a moment as she tried to dab away a few tears.  Like somepony flicking a switch the unicorn suddenly became a commanding presence.  “Then by all means, you shall have my help.”
“And mine too,” Applejack said.  “Where Rarity goes, Ah go.”
“Eeeyup...Ah sorta counted on that.  Ya see, on ma world y’all were part o’ the original quest to defeat Nightmare Moon.”
“She was?” asked Rarity.
“Eeeyup.  You, Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinky, Applejack and Rainbow.
“You mean Rainbow Dash?”
“Eeeyup.  Weren’t she part o’ yer original group?”
The unicorn mare nodded.  “She suffered the worst of us, aside from Twilight and Octavia of course.  Broke both her wings and lost one of her eyes when we encountered an enraged Manticore.  
“Ah’m sorry ta hear that,” said Big Mac.
“You know,” muttered Rarity,” the only difference in the two quests is that we had Octavia with us instead of Applejack.  That must be the... what did you call it, darling, the point of diversion?”
“Divergence,” said Babs, rubbing a hoof across her chin.  “And no, it wasn’t.  He was,” she said pointing at the alicorn.  “Macintosh was never born in our world, so Granny Smith had no one to help her on the farm.  It failed, she passed away, and Applejack was bundled off to Manehatten to live with Uncle and Aunt Orange who tried to mold her into a sophisticated Manehattenite.  That’s why she never had a cutie mark and why she wasn’t in Ponyville when the first quest was formed.”
“A lot o’ ponies don’t have cutie marks,” Applejack said defensively.  
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Rarity assured her.  “All the chaos created over the years has prevented many ponies from discovering their true talent.”
“Anyways, we still have ta get Fluttershy, Pinky and Rainbow ta join us if this is gonna work.”
“Fluttershy’s no problem, darling,” said Rarity.  She used her magic to cover Big Mac’s wings once more with his cape and went to the door.  Once more her house steward, Soarin, was waiting at hoof.  “Would you be so kind as to send Cherry Blossom to fetch Fluttershy.  Tell her it’s important we meet.”
“Yes, m’ lady.  At once.”
The white-furred unicorn smiled.  “Fluttershy has a veterinary clinic not too far from here.  She’ll know how to contact Rainbow Dash.”
“Ah’m surprised she lives in the big city, considerin’ how much she loved her animal friends,” observed Big Mac.
“She moved here with me, darling, after Ponyville was destroyed by...HIM.  I had enough capital to set her up in business and we often visit.  Such a ravishing beauty.  Too bad she wasn’t interested in going into business with me.  She could have been the toast of the town.”
The stallion’s mind overloaded somewhat at the thought of the timid pegasus pony working at someplace like the Carousel Boutique, let alone hearing Rarity’s regrets on the subject.
“That only leaves Pinky,” said Rarity.  “But I’m afraid I have no clue as to where she might be.”
“What was her talent?” asked Babs.  “It might give us a clue.”
“Well, she was a fabulous baker and she was very good at throwing parties,” recalled Rarity.
“Sort of a party pony,” the police mare observed.
“In ma world, she had a real talent fer makin’ others smile, even when times were at their hardest.
“Same here, darling.  Pinky Pie knew how to make laughter infectious.”
“Wait... Youse said her last name is Pie?”
Rarity nodded.
“Youse don’t get out on the Vaudeville circuit much, do you?
“Not at all darling,” the unicorn replied.  “So little of what they offer has any cultural value.”
“Then youse wouldn’t know.  There’s a popular comedian who goes by the name Pink-a-Mania Pie...”
“Her first name is pronounced Pinkamena.”
“Whatever...  She has a show over at the Crazy Horse Theatre on 49th Street.”
“Does she have a really poufy pink mane and tail?” asked Big Mac, and does she bounce around like a kangaroo instead of walkin’?”
“Yeah.”
“That sounds like her,” Rarity said.  “Oh the stories I could tell you about that mare.  
They talked for about half an hour, listen mostly to Big Mac as he describe what life was like in his world.  When they asked him how old he was he told them.  
“Well, that’s ma age,” Applejack replied.  “Were you and yer sister twins?”  
The stallion shook his head.  “A.J. and Ah are about five years different in age.  Ah’m older.
“Wait a dadgum minute.  If yer five years older than her, yet we’re the same age here, and it’s been ten years since Nightmare Moon took over.  How come you ain’t five years younger than me now?”
“You forget, darling.  Since you know who overthrew Queen Nightmare time has hardly been regular anywhere.  Why, I have a socialite friend who just finished celebrating her mother’s second birthday and her father’s seventy-fifth.”  We don’t really know how long or short a time ago that all this happened, and it’s going to stay that way unless we do something.”
They were interrupted by a firm knock on the door.  It was opened by Soarin.  “Lady Rarity.  I apologize for the intrusion but your requested guests have arrived.”
“Guests?”
The door opened a bit more to reveal a butter yellow pony with a long pink mane and tail. She seemed reluctant to enter.  
“I’m sorry.  Am I interrupting something?” she asked in a near whisper.  Before anypony else could answer a somewhat louder voice interrupted.
“Aw, come on Flutters.  You’re being way too shy, especially around old friends.”  A cyan-blue hoof shoved the first pony through the door.  It was attached to a pegasus with a rainbow hued mane and tail and a patch over her left eye.
Rarity smiled.  “Rainbow... Is that you?  How in Equestria did you happen by, and at this particular moment?”
She looked over at the unicorn.  “I was delivering a package to Fluttershy’s clinic.  We got to talking and next thing I knew there was this green snow covering everything.  So I decided to wait until things cleared a bit.  Then one of your house maids came by with an invitation so I tagged along.  Hope you don’t mind.
“Not at all.  You won’t believe how fortuitous your visit is.”
Big Mac looked at the two pegasi mares.  Rainbow seemed to be just as athletic as always, except for being a trifle thinner and ten years older than when he’d last seen her in his own world.  Fluttershy was exactly the same.  Perhaps it was the air of innocence she projected, but he couldn’t see any sign of age on her at all, that was until she turned her head.  Her long pink mane and tail had a single, broad streak of white running through it.  Not grey, like Granny Smith, but pure white.
“Good evenin’ Miss Fluttershy, Miss Dash,” the stallion said without thinking.
The cyan mare looked at him, suspiciously.  “Okay mister... You obviously know us, but we don’t know you.”
“Uh...Uh...Rainbow...Maybe if you give him a chance he’ll introduce himself?” suggested Fluttershy even as she hid behind her friend.
“Allow me,” Rarity said.  “Ladies... I’d like to introduce you to Sir Macintosh.”
“Sir Macintosh?” the cyan pegasus asked.  
“Yes,” the unicorn said.  “Now if you ladies will take a seat I have quite a lot to tell you.”  Two pots of tea and a basket of scones later explanations were made.  
“Whoa... That is some serious stuff.   If you’re going to take HIM on, I hope you have a really solid plan cause we’re only going to get one chance at this,” said Rainbow Dash.  
“I take it then you’re ‘in’?” asked Rarity.
“Of course I’m in.  I may not be as fast as I was back in the day, but I’m still the fastest mail mare in all Equestria.”  
“Yer a mail mare... like Miss Derpy?”
“Derpy?  No way.  She hasn’t worked as a mail mare since she became Captain of the Wonderbolts.”
Macintosh looked at her.  “She’s Captain o’ the Wonderbolts?  Ah thought that was yer dream?”
“It was, until HE decided it would be more fun to use them in demolition derbies instead of races and acrobatic competitions.  Unfortunately what HE wants, HE gets.  That’s something else I owe HIM.”   Rainbow’s passion was infectious and it wasn’t long before she had the others eager to go out and recruit Pinky.
“Hot Doggies,” grinned Applejack.  “We’re finally gonna give back ta Discord what he deserves!”  The palomino pony suddenly threw both hooves over her mouth, her eyes wide in horror.  The others stared at her, equally horrified.  The whole room abruptly shimmied, waves rippling out into the ether.  
Applejack covered her eyes in shame.  “No...No...No...No... What have Ah done?”
Rarity once more took command.  “There’s no time to waste,” she said standing.  She trotted over to the parlor door and flung it open wide.  “Soarin... gather the guests and staff immediately, usher them out through the basement emergency exit.  Consider this a raid... as of now, we’re closed.  I’ll let everyone know when it’s safe to return.”  
“Yes, Lady Rarity.  At once!”  the stallion vanished to carry out his duties.  
The unicorn turned to face the other.  “Alright everypony... recriminations later.  Right now I want all of you to follow me.”
“Where are youse taking us?” asked Babs.  
“You’ll know when I do,” Rarity replied.  
> Chapter 05
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The white unicorn led her five companions down into the basement and through a heavy metal door that led to the wine cellar.  Once inside, she closed the door gestured to two large kegs of wine, directing Applejack and Rainbow to use a nearby coil of rope and strap them to Big Mac’s back.  When they finished, she trotted quickly to the back wall.  “Now,” she muttered, “let’s see if I remember this correctly.”  She counted eight rows of bricks up from the floor and twelve over from the left wall.  Her hoof brushed against a particular brick and a section of the back wall opened up in front of them leading into a dingy, dark corridor.  Her horn lit up like a bright torch and she guided the other ponies inside, making sure the wall was closed firmly behind them.
“Where are we?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“This passageway leads into the old subway tunnels that run underneath Manehatten.  Most of them have been closed since HE flooded them out during the hurricane four years ago.  The city didn’t have enough money to repair or reopen about ninety percent of them so they were left abandoned.”
“If they’re flooded, how can we use them?” asked Big Mac as he tried to settle his load more comfortably on his back.  He didn’t like the way his wings were pinned down, but there was little that could be done about it.  Underground they wouldn’t be of any use anyway.
Rarity glanced over at him.  “The water’s long since drained away.  We just have to be careful for weak spots in the ceiling.”
“Phew... it stinks down here,” complained Rainbow Dash.”
Babs gave her a twisted grimace of a smile.  “Youse can say that again.  Rot, mold and who knows what else.  Ay bet the sewers smell better than this place.”
“The sewers don’t come out anywhere near where we want to go, darling,” replied Rarity.
“Where’s that,” squeaked Fluttershy.
“There’s an old station not far from the Crazy Horse Theatre.  From there we can use the back alleys to make our way to the stage entrance.”
“Hopefully your friend Pinkie will want to see youse and maybe join this crazy search.”
“She’ll have ta,” Macintosh said.  “She carried one o’ the elements on ma world.”
It took them about fifty minutes to wend their way to the promised subway station.  As they approached they could see the glow of a flickering light reflected off the tunnel walls.  Reaching the platform they saw the light came from a small fire burning in a low, metal drum.  A group of five small, sleeping foals were arranged around the fire for warmth, all wrapped in threadbare blankets.  A larger colt, no more than twelve or thirteen, slept only a few paces away.  Next to him was a small pile of coals which he had been apparently using to feed the fire. Without a word Rarity pulled a small purse out from under her shawl, tiptoed over, and left it next to the sleeping guardian.  She then rejoined the others and they headed for the exit.  
The climbed the steps leading outside and found their way blocked by a large, heavy accordion gage.  The padlock securing it looked relatively new and Big Mac thought it probably belonged to the colt they had seen.  It explained why the foals felt it safe to sleep in the old subway station.  
“How are we gonna get through that without breaking it,” the stallion whispered.  
Without a word, Applejack stepped forward and pulled a bobby pin from her mane.  She carefully worked it into the keyhole and moved it around some, placing her ear against it.  After about thirty seconds there was a satisfying snap and the lock popped open.  Babs pulled the gate open and held it as every pony went through, then with Applejack’s help she replaced the lock as they’d found it.  Big Mac found himself speculating about what else he’d find different between this, and his own Applejack.
When they reached the street Bab’s pointed to a nearby alley.  They ducked in just as a patrol of three police stallions rounded the corner.  From the way they moved it was obvious they were searching for somepony.  Babs got every pony to cover just as flashlight beams swept across the alley.  
“What about down here?” asked one of the cops.  “I’ve got some hoof prints in the snow here.”
“Youse can check down here if youse want to,” said Babs as she casually stepped into the flashlight beam holding up her badge for all to see, “but I’ve already looked and there ain’t nothing bad here.”
One of the ponies smiled as he recognized her.  “Hey Babs... You heard about the general call out?”
“Yeah.  Thought Ay’d help out a bit before heading back home, even if it is my day off.”
Her fellow cop nickered some.  “Well, don’t put yourself out too much.  After all, we’re only checking things out because HE told us to?”
“Is HE here?”
The pony shook his head.  “Nah... HE sent one HIS lieutenants, Queen Chrysalis thank heavens.  Guess HE doesn’t think it’s worth HIS personal attention.  Though I wouldn’t want to be the pony who gets to tell the Lady Rarity her place was raided and pretty well tore up at the Queen’s insistence.”
“Ouch.” Babs replied.  “Anypony arrested.”
“Just the House steward.  They questioned him some then let him go.  Place was apparently closed today because of a problem with the furnace.  No heat... no clients.  Still, we got a mandatory curfew in effect and an APB out on anypony found on the streets, so you might want to head home yourself, just to avoid some rookie confusing you will a civilian.”
“Thanks for the advice,” Babs smiled.  “See youse tomorrow.”
“Right.”  The three cops switched off their flashlights and trotted happily off down the street, glad to not have to search the back alley.  Babs stood on the sidewalk and watched them until they disappeared around another corner.   She went back into the alley and rousted the others from their hiding places.  
“I am most certainly going to have a few words with the mayor about raiding my business,” Rarity huffed.  “Who does that insect think she is?”
“Just be glad youse wasn’t there.  Ay’ve seen what the Queen does to HIS enemies.”
“What does she do?” asked Big Mac.
“Suck a pony dry of all their emotions.  Leaves them like a kind of living zombie who doesn’t care about anything anymore... not even eating.”
The alicorn was silent.  Backed by Discord’s power, the Changeling Queen was even more dangerous than in his own Equestria.  A thought occurred to him.  “Does HE have any other lieutenants we should be concerned with?”
“Two,” said Rainbow.  “Some guy called King Sombra and somepony else called Ahuizotl.  Never met either of them and to be honest I don’t want to.”
“Well, with any luck youse won’t haff to,” said Babs.  She looked over at Rarity.  “Ay know these alleys... mind if Ay lead the way?”
“By all means, darling, but do hurry.  This cold air is playing havoc with my coiffure.”
Big Mac smiled at the comment.  The more Rarity changed, the more she stayed the same.  It only took them about five minutes to reach the stage door of the Crazy Horse Theatre.  
Babs climbed the short steps up to the door, but before she could knock the door flew open and an excited voice called out “There you are!!  Common in, you’re just in time for the show.”  
The police mare looked over at Lady Rarity, wary about leading the others into what might be a trap.  She’d been expecting that she would have to bluff her way into the theatre, especially with the city on lockdown.   The open invitation felt... wrong.  The unicorn, however, did not seem even the least concerned.  Instead she simply waved a hoof at Babs gesturing that she should proceed.  Taking a breath, she stepped across the threshold and into complete chaos, followed closely by the others.
The theatre was less a theatre at this particular moment and more a massive, well-orchestrated party.  Both customers and entertainers were cutting up on stage for the benefit of all.  The concession counter had been raided and quantities of refreshments, some having a slight alcohol content, had been distributed to everypony present.  Streamers and glitter were wafting down from backstage and flowing out into the auditorium thanks to a large stage fan that had been set up by the crew.  The orchestra was playing a lively tune and several members of the audience were actually dancing with each other.  In the middle of it all was a pink-furred earth pony swing back and forth across the stage and out over the audience on a wire harness.  She was singing a lively little song about smiling and many of the ponies present had joined in.  
Big Mac smiled when he beheld the sight.  Obviously there was very little difference between the Pinkie Pie of this world and his own.  As the song ended, the party mare made a comical “landing” on the stage and was quickly helped out of her rig by a couple of stage ponies.  She then trotted back stage and nearly tackled Applejack and Rarity, grinning from ear to ear.
“WOW oh WOW!  It’s been nearly like forever since I saw you guys how are you doing you know I’m doing really great I’ve got this great show going and I’m making a lot of ponies smile every day which has always been my dream and I’ve got my own theatre now so I can get a lot of other ponies work who also like to make ponies smile and laugh and it’s all really great though I have missed seeing you even though we aren’t that far from each other but then I’ve been really busy and who’s your new alicorn friend?”
“This is Big Macintosh,” Applejack said by way of introduction.
Babs shook her head at the effusive verbal assault.  “How’d youse know he was an alicorn?” she whispered fiercely.
“Oh...is it a secret?” Pinkie asked conspiratorially.  “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to.  Pinkie Promise.”
“What’s going on?” asked Rarity.
“Oh... I was in the middle of my regular show when the whole city went on lockdown, so since I’ve got a captive audience I decided to turn my show into a party until everypony can go home again.  Isn’t that spectacular?”
“Simply wonderful,” the unicorn replied.  “Do you think we could have a few minutes of your time?”
“Sure... just let me get the next act going.”  The party pony turned and called across the stage.  “Hey Trixie... Do you have your encore ready?”
Big Mac looked across the stage.  A pale blue unicorn with a snow-white mane and tail trotted up to them.  She was wearing a cloak and hat almost identical to the one Twilight had once worn on Nightmare Night a few years back.   He remembered it as being an authentic recreation of one worn by Starswirl the Bearded.
“The Great and Power Trixie is always ready,” she replied, a warm smile on her face.  She then whirled, galloped toward the curtain, executed a rather intricate summersault and landed in the middle of the stage.  There was a flash of light as she made her entrance and the crowd roared its approval.  What amazed the alicorn was that she accomplished her maneuver despite wearing what looked like a heavy, silver and gold, inlayed, leg brace on her left hind leg.
“She ain’t exactly what Ah remember.”
“Wadda youse mean?” asked Babs.
“The Trixie o’ ma Equestria was so full o’ herself she’d almost never smile.  Whenever she showed up in Ponyville there was always some sort o’ trouble.”
Babs shrugged.  “Well, our Trixie is the best stage magician anywhere.  She even had her own show in Las Pegasus before HE turned the whole town into a chocolate lake.  A lot of ponies might have drowned that day if she hadn’t distracted HIM with an improvised magic show long enough for the town to be evacuated.”
“So she’s a hero?”
“Yeah, but she’ll never admit to it.”
Big Mac shrugged.  He watched the performance from the wings for a few moments before rejoining the others just as Rarity finished telling Pinkie what had brought them.
“So let me get this straight.  You and your friends are all going into the Everfree and find that old castle that Twilight once told us about so you can kick HIS tail out of Equestria and set everything right.”
“Eeeyup,” the alicorn confirmed.
Pinkie got this really weird expression on her face and started bouncing around the group, her body deforming, inflating, stretching, twisting, flicking, blinking and every other outlandish type of movement one could think of before she came to an abrupt stop with her mane and tail total deflated.  She paused for a second or two, then her mane poofed out again and she grinned from ear to ear.  
“Are youse okay?” asked Babs.
“That was it...” she cheered.  “That was my dozy from this morning.  My Pinkie sense said something big was going to happen today and it did.”
“Yer Pinkie sense?” Big Mac asked.  He thought he’d heard about it before from somewhere, but he’d never seen it up close.  
“Yup.  It bounced me right out of bed.”
“You weren’t hurt were you dear?” asked Rarity.  
“Nope, and if you guys are going to try for Twilight’s treasure again then you can count me in.”
The others smiled hearing the party pony’s enthusiasm.  “Now all we need is some pony who knows magic.”
“What about Trixie?” asked Pinkie.
“I’m afraid we need some pony who knows about real magic, not theatrical tricks,” said Rarity.
“Oh, but she does know about real magic,” Pinkie replied.  “There’s more sorcery behind her stage magic than most ponies know.  She just plays it down because she likes to keep ponies guessing and it makes her act that much more interesting.  Besides, she probably wouldn’t mind getting back at HIM for what he had King Sombra do to her leg.”
Rarity looked up at Big Mac.  “What do you think?”
“It wouldn’t hurt ta ask her,” the stallion said.  
“If we’re gonna go trekking off inta the Everfree, we’re gonna need the right sort of gear.  Has any pony thought o’ that?” asked Applejack.
“Not a problem, darling,” said Rarity.  With help from both Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash she lifted the two small barrels off Big Mac’s back and removed the top of one.  Inside were piled a variety of gems from emeralds and rubies to sapphires and opals, with more than a smattering of diamonds.  “I keep these stashed away for emergencies.  We should be able to buy anything we need at least a dozen times over.”
“How soon before we leave?” asked Applejack.
“We shouldn’t take more than a day,” said Big Mac.  “Getting ta the Everfree will be at least a day’s travel and if Ah remember the stories right, the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters is about half a day’s travel into the woods.”
“Do you know the way?”
“Nnnope... but ma sister... gave me enough clues that Ah think Ah can find it when we get there.”
“What do we need?  Maybe we can find some of it here at the theatre,” suggested Pinkie.  
The group adjourned to one of the larger dressing rooms to make plans.  Between Rainbow, Rarity and Fluttershy they came with a list of items that would be useful.  With suggestions made by the party pony, they found about a quarter of these in and around the back stage area and property room.  She also took Trixie aside and, after gaining a Pinkie Pie promise from the stage magician filled her in on the general plan.  The blue and white mare didn’t hesitate at all to throw her lot in with the others.  She then trotted off to her dressing room to gather the supplies she would need herself.  
It wasn’t long before the lockdown was finally lifted and ponies were once again allowed out on the streets of Manehatten.  Pinkie announced that because of their extra hard work, every pony would have tomorrow off with pay.  There was a brief cheer and most of the theatre employees left, except for the manager and a few of the clean-up crew.  Splitting into groups of two, Babs, Rarity, Trixie, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy went out to purchase additional supplies.  Big Mac and Applejack put themselves to work sorting through what supplies they did have and preparing them to be packed.  
As they worked, Applejack talked about herself and the stallion learned how different her life in the city had been to his own AJ.  The hard times created by the Nightmare Queen’s reign, then Discord, had broken Uncle and Aunt Orange’s fortune, ending his sister’s life of privilege.  When she came of age work was hard to find.  Eventually she was forced to become a hostess at a Stallion’s club.  It was then she met Rarity and was brought in on the ground floor of her new business enterprise.  The unicorn brought with her a touch of glamour and class and despite the nature of her ‘job’ the farm pony started to feel rather pleased with her new found success.  
Listening to her, Big Mac started to feel somewhat uneasy.  It wasn’t the nature of her story that bothered him, though the idea of his sister being a Mare of the Night felt unnatural.  It was the way she told the story.  As she expanded the details the stallion had a growing sense that much of what she was saying was, at the least self-deluding and at worst a complete lie.  It was a quality he’d never encountered in his sister before.  It was like looking at the front of a building and knowing there was nothing there but a façade.  A sudden, chilling thought occurred to him.  It was so disturbing that he decided to put it to the test.
“Babs tells me that you and she get together from time ta time.”
“Yes... we’re kinda close.”  (True)
“What about Aunt and Uncle Orange?”
“Ah’d like ta be closer ta them...”  (False)... “but we’ve been on the outs the last few years...”  (True)
“Why’s that?” asked the stallion.
“They didn’t like ma choice of jobs...” (True)...  “As a matter o’ fact, they threw me out on the street when Ah told them...” (False)... With nothin’ but ma old stetson...” (False)... “And not two bits ta rub together...” (False)...  “Ah haven’t seen them since.”  (False)
“It’s amazin’ how different ma world and yer world are,” the stallion said.  “Where Ah come from HE ain’t anywhere near as powerful or as scary.  More like a really annoyin’ relative.”  He paused for a moment.  “It’s different in this world.  It’s no wonder ponies here avoid sayin’ HIS name.”
“That’s fer sure...”  (True)
“Every pony except you.  Ya showed the same kind of spunk as ma sister when ya said his name.”
“That was an accident...” (False)...
“It was?”
“Yes...”  (False)...”Ah ain’t got no reason ta be summonin’ HIM.”  (False, False, False).
Big Mac asked her about Rarity... what they did and how she had come to know the others.  As she talked he silently coiled several lengths of rope so they’d fit in a saddlebag.  This Applejack was way different than his.  You couldn’t get a lie past her or even get her to tell the smallest fib, except that one time she was under Discord’s spell.  The more she talked, the more convinced he became that she couldn’t possibly represent the Element of Honesty.  Add to that the fact he knew she had said Discord’s name on purpose.  Why, he couldn’t be certain, but it all pointed to the inescapable conclusion that she could not be trusted.  
As they finished with the items around the theatre, Pinkie and Trixie returned.  
“Y’all find what we need?” asked Big Mac.
We did better than that... we found some things we didn’t know we needed,” the party pony said with a grin.  With that, she unrolled an old map that showed not only where Ponyville use to be, but some minor details about the Everfree Forest.  Big Mac recognized many of the details, including a few landmarks he was sure would lead them to the castle where the Elements were hidden.  He quickly folded the map when Applejack came over.
“What about those magical components ya said ya needed?” the stallion asked Trixie.
“Most of what I need and can use I already have.  The trouble is I don’t know if I can carry it all.”
Big Mac grinned.  “You let me worry about that.  Heavy lifting has always been ma... er... talent.”
“From your cutie mark I’d have thought you talent had something to do with apples.”
“Well... it IS a big, heavy apple,” piped in Pinkie.  Trixie, Applejack and Big Mac chuckled at the observation.  
It wasn’t long before the others had returned as well.  Rainbow and Fluttershy had stopped at a surplus store and bought each of them a set of saddlebags for their gear.  In Big Mac’s case, it was an extra-large set.  They immediately began loading equipment, food and water into the bags.  Rarity had bought all of them some very warm ponchos along with hoof sheaths useful for both snow and mud.  
When they were all packed and ready Applejack suggested they should grab some rest before setting out for the train.  Big Mac thought about it for a moment then seemed to nod in agreement.  Turning, his horn abruptly flashed green and he caught the palomino directly in the eyes.  She folded up quite gently and began snoring softly.  
The others stared, aghast at what he had just done.  As they watched he quickly removed her saddlebags, then hogtied and gagged her so she couldn’t escape to warn anypony.  “Where can we put her so she’s safe fer a day or two?”
“You can use the couch in my dressing room,” said Pinkie.  “The stage crew will find her when they open up day after tomorrow.  It’s nice and comfy too.”
The stallion nodded and he quickly deposited his “sister” on the couch.  When he turned back to the other’s it was obvious they wanted an explanation.  
“A.J.’s all right. We can’t take her with us though.”
“Why not?” demanded Rainbow Dash.  You said she was part of our group.”
“Ah was wrong, but Ah think we can still do this without her.”
“Whatever did you do to her?” asked Rarity.
“Ah used a sleep spell Ah learned while helpin’ in Magic Kindergarten.  It’s normally used ta get foals ta go ta sleep during quiet time, though Ah put a tad more power in it fer Applejack.  If we’re lucky, we’ll be deep in the Everfree before HE finds out what we’re doin’.”
“Well, that tells us what youse did, but we’re still waiting to hear the why,” Babs said.
“Ah’ll explain it on the way.”  With that, the stallion tossed Applejack’s saddlebags across his own larger set and trotted towards the stage door.  The six remaining mares looked at each other, then as a group turned and followed him.  
> Chapter 06
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Big Mac did not want to draw attention by hiring a cab or even walking openly down the streets of Manehatten, so they returned to the old subway tunnels and made their way to Grand Central Station.  He explained on the way why they’d had to leave Applejack behind.  Neither Rarity nor Rainbow were easy to convince.  
“Well, I’ve known A.J. for a very long time and she doesn’t strike me as being a pony who’d side with HIM,” the unicorn insisted.  “If anything, she’s pretty neutral on the subject, out of respect for her clients.”
“Which clients are those?” Babs asked.
“Prince Blueblood for one, and Fleur de Lis.  They’re both staunch supporters of HIM.  But they don’t hold much sway over her.  As a matter of fact, her only concern of late is making enough money so she can retire while she still has her youth.”
“Ay’d have to agree on that,” said Babs.  “Applejack’s become a lot more mercenary since I was a filly.”  She paused for a moment.   “Youse do know there’s a standing reward of half a million bits to any pony who turns an alicorn in to the authorities.”  
Rarity stopped where she stood and pursed her lips.  “I hadn’t known that,” she muttered quietly.  Her head dropped slightly.  She wondered sadly if she had unknowingly encouraged that trait in her friend.  It would give her a very strong motive for betrayal, especially since she had no real kinship with Big Mac.  
The unicorn took a calming breath and blinked away the tears that had started to form.  “Well, if we’re ever going to get to Grand Central Station, we’re going to have to step it up a bit,” she said as she trotted boldly forward.  The others followed.      
Reaching the station they found themselves surrounded by herds of ponies coming and going in their daily routines.  It made them all feel a little safer about being out in the open.  Finding a kiosk, they purchased tickets on the next train west.  Once on the train, every pony slept except for Big Mac.  He couldn’t stop thinking and wondering how putting this world straight would help him get home again.  He was also somewhat worried about being able to find the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters.  While he had a rough idea of which way to go, he had never been there himself, nor had any of the others since they abandoned their quest once Twilight had died.  Eventually, exhaustion overcame him and he drifted off to sleep.
“You know, all things considered, you’re not doing too badly,” came a voice drifting out of his dream. “I mean look at you, leading your heroic little band of misfits off on a trek to save the world.  It’s positively Tolkienesque.”
“Tolkien... what?”
“Oh, that’s just a little fourth wall allusion.  Pay it no mind,” replied the draconequus.  “Too bad about Applejack, but you’re a lot better off without her, at least this time round.”
“Y’all got something ta tell me, Professor Pony?”
“Not yet... but soon.  And if you’re worried about how to get home, just keep doing what you’re doing and it will all turn out right.”
“Ya promise?” said Big Mac skeptically
“Of course not.  This is your show.  You created the circumstances so you have to solve it.  I will admit, it’s quite fun to watch.  Now if you will excuse me, I have to go refill my popcorn.”  With that the voice vanished and Big Mac woke up.  

**********

There was no passenger train to Ponyville or any point south, so they rode as far as Canterlot Junction, one stop before the capital, and disembarked there.  Fortunately, there was an outbound milk train on its way to what had once been Appleloosa.  In spite of the devastation ponies still worked some of the farm lands in and around what had been Ponyville.  It didn’t take much more than a gem or two from Rarity to convince the engineer to at least slow down as they passed the remains of the old Ponyville station    When he did, everypony jumped off.  
Big Mac looked around at the wreckage.  The station itself was gone, though the loading docks were still there so local farmers could ply their trade.  The town... well there was no town to speak of save for a few rotted and abandoned buildings.  The library tree Twilight had been so fond of was literally torn out by the roots and lay decaying on its side.  
“Y’all told me what happened ta Twilight Sparkle... but what about her friend, Spike?”
“Spike?” asked Rainbow.  “Who the heck is Spike?”
“Don’t you remember?” asked Fluttershy softly.  “He was that adorable baby dragon that came to town with Twilight.”
“That’s the one,” Big Mac replied.  
“Well... sadly when he heard that Twilight had been killed he ran off into the Everfree.  No pony’s seen or heard of him since,” the yellow pegasus squeaked.  “It just curdles me up inside knowing that baby dragon was lost somewhere in the forest without any protection, and there was nothing we could do to help him.”
“Youse know we might not be much better off than that Spike fellow.  I mean having a map is all fine and good,” said Babs, “But how are youse gonna get past all the dangers a map doesn’t show?“
“What about Zecora?” asked Rainbow Dash.  “She helped us once before... maybe she’d help us again?”
“Perhaps,” said Rarity.  “Does she still live in that tree in the clearing?”
”As far as anypony knows she does, though I suppose she would know for sure because she was her and she has to know what she thinks and where she lives,” Pinkie Pie replied.  
“Ah suppose she would.”  Even as he replied to the party pony’s puzzling proclamation, an idea began to form in the alicorn’s head.  While he had never been to the castle in the forest, he had made a number of apple deliveries to Zecora’s home in his own world.  If she still lived in the clearing, and if this world was similar enough to his own, he might be able to convince her to guide them to Celestia and Luna’s ancient home.  The only question would be whether or not the zebra would help.  He remembered how she had been treated by the citizens of Ponyville before Twilight had come to town.  It was possible that without the lavender unicorn, she would have continued to be ostracized and might hold a grudge.  The Zecora he knew wouldn’t, but that wasn’t a guarantee against anything.  
“Asking Zecora fer help is a good idea.”
“So... which way do we go?” asked Babs.  
Big Mac nodded, pointing with his horn.  “That way.”  The others fell in line behind him as he trotted down the road.  Crossing between two short hills the party made fairly good progress.  While the town itself no longer existed, there were still a few isolated cottages and at least three farms remaining.  The stallion carefully avoided them.  He didn’t want anypony to see them and by extension, be able to inform on them.  Heading for Zecora’s home though meant going through the remains of Sweet Apple Acres.  Even before they reached the gate leading into the farm itself, he knew there was nothing to be found there.  There was no scent of apple trees or blossoms, something that couldn’t possibly be missed if there had been a working farm.
Passing through the gate the road became a bit rougher and was partially concealed by a thick growth of weeds and grass.  To either side was the remains of an orchard, now gone completely wild.  Many of the trees had been subsumed by the Everfree as it slowly expanded across what had once been lush farmland.  It wasn’t very thick, not yet at least, but given enough time all traces of Sweet Apple Acres would one day vanish.  
They saw the old farmhouse, or at least its foundation and circled round to find the path that led toward Zecora’s.  As they did, they came across a small family grave plot.  The old tree shading the tombstones still stood strong and tall, though its fruit remained uncollected except for what the local fauna ate.  The stallion paused for a moment and looked.  Though overgrown with weeds he recognized three of the headstones.  Carved on them were the cutie marks of his grand-sire and his parents.  A fourth, slightly newer stone rested beside his grand-sire’s.  On it was carved Granny Smith’s mark.  Between the two sets of stones was a much smaller headstone.   It bore no mark, but instead was engraved with the words “Baby Apple.”  A grave for a foal too young to even have a name of its own.  Looking at it sent a slight shiver down Big Mac’s spine.  He quickly turned away and resumed his search for the path to Zecora’s.  
Several minutes later the stallion came to an abrupt stop and looked around.  The path he sought wasn’t there.  Trixie looked up at him as he paused to consider the wall of trees that now stood before him.  
“Which way do we go now?”
Big Mac thought for a moment or two, then remembered another small spell he had learned in magic kindergarten.  It was one used to track where young foals might have gone when they strayed from the school and into the palace, which happened frequently since neither Celestia nor Luna believed in locks except where privacy or safety demanded.  Instead of picturing a particular foal, however, the stallion focused on the image of Zecora.  He closed his eyes and concentrated as a pulse of what felt like chilled water flowed up his back and through his horn.  When he opened his eyes a small ball of green energy floated gently in front of him.  It drifted lazily away from him and stopped at the tree line, waiting for him.  
“Nice trick,” commented Trixie.  “Do you have an encore to go with it?”
He nodded to the other ponies.  “We follow the light.  With any luck, it’ll take us ta where we need ta go.”  Moving forward, the alicorn used a combination of his large size and a few simple cutting spells to clear a path for them, all the while making sure the wisp of light didn’t get too far ahead of them.  When they came across a tangle of vegetation too think for him to handle alone, both Rarity and Trixie helped to push the plants back.  They paused shortly before noon to rest and eat something.  Normally, the use of this much magic would tire the stallion out quickly, but the physical part of blazing a new trail seemed to energize him enough so his use of magic didn’t feel as draining.  Big Mac wondered if it was because of his alicorn or earth pony nature.  Regardless of which, he was able to push himself longer than the two unicorn mares helping him.  
He examined the rest of the party.  Everypony seemed to be managing the trek well enough, though Trixie was perhaps having the hardest time.  Her leg brace would catch from time to time in the foliage and she would have to shake it clear.  It had also developed a slight squeak which if it got worse might attract predators.  He doubted she could run very well with it.  This world’s Trixie was a good deal different from his own.  She still had a stage persona where she’d refer to herself in the third person, but unlike the Trixie he knew, she put it aside as soon as the performance was over.  That made her a lot easier to get along with.  He wondered if her injury might have contributed to the difference.
They rested for about fifteen minutes after eating, then began working to continue their path through the forest.  Another hour’s effort and it seemed to everypony that the trees ahead were thinning out a bit.  Without warning, the group abruptly broke through the brush and found themselves on the edge of a large clearing.  In the center of the clearing was an enormous tree, obviously hollowed out and being used as some pony’s residence.  An assortment of tribal masks and bottles hung from the tree limbs.  Each threw off a different color depending on the color of the glass and the angle of the sun.  
Big Mac held out his foreleg, keeping the others from walking into the clearing.  It was a good thing he did.  Just like the Zecora of his world, this Zecora had surrounded her house with a thick garden filled with a combination of poison joke, cat o’nine tails, skunk weed and grab grass.  Any unsuspecting pony who blundered into this particular garden would spend at least a month recuperating.  It was encouraging, however, to note that none of the annoying plants or weeds were lethal.  The stallion felt that meant there was a good chance the shaman would be willing to listen to an honest, heart-felt request.  
Telling every pony else to wait where they were, the alicorn extended his wings and leapt across the threatening plants.  Gliding more than flying, Big Mac landed in front of Zecora’s door and reached a hoof out to knock on the door.  
Before he had a chance there was a loud roar and a purple and green scaled creature dropped from the tree and blocked his path.  It stood about three and a half heads taller than the stallion and bore a mouth full of sharp pointed teeth and a full set of claws on each of its hands.
“WHO DARES INTRUDE ON THE ABODE OF QUISQUE DRACONIS?  GUARDIAN OF THE PATHWAY TO WISDOM.”
“Ah’ve come ta see Zecora,” Big Mac replied, keeping his voice calm and firm.
“AWAY!” it bellowed, “AWAY!  LEAVE MY MISTRESS IN PEACE OR I WILL REND YOUR HEART FROM YOUR BODY!”  Off to one side Rarity nearly fainted even as the others shied away from the clearing.
Instead of cowering in fear, as the monster wanted, the alicorn calmly examined the creature.  He could sense that most of the threat was bluster combined with a dash of theatricality.   Big Mac smiled.  
“How are y’all doing... Spike.”
“LEAVE THIS PLACE, NOW BEFORE...”  The creature’s eyes suddenly went wide.  “What did you just call me?”  
“Spike...” the stallion replied.  “It is your name, ain’t it?”
“That WAS my name,” the creature said.  “But how do you know it?  Have we met before?”
“Eeeyup.  A long time ago and far from here. Ya wouldn’t remember.  Ah’m a friend o’ yer sister... Twilight.”
The dragon became very quiet for several moments as he studied the visitor.  “I don’t believe you.  You are an alicorn, and a stallion.  She had no friends like you.  I would remember.”
“Ah don’t lie.  It was long ago and far away.”
Again Spike paused and thought for a moment.  “What do you want...HERE AND NOW?”
“Ta see Zecora... Like Ah said before.”
Spike, or Quisque as he now called himself, drew close to Big Mac and locked eyes with him.  The dragon’s features were slightly different than Big Mac remembered.  Soft round curves had become hard muscle and his round muzzle was longer and somewhat more angular, but it was still Spike, despite appearances.  Green, tip-tilted reptile eyes seemed to bore deeply into the stallion’s own before finally pulling back.  
“Wait here.  I’ll see if she wants to meet you.”  The dragon disappeared inside and the door closed with a firmness that seemed to say “Not Welcome.”  When it reopened about ten minutes later the dragon was dressed in a dashiki tailored with a number of Zebraca symbols, including one that mimicked Zecora’s own tribal mark.  
“The mistress will see you now,” he intoned.
“What about ma friends?” Big Mac asked, gesturing towards the others.
Spike looked over at them, huffed slightly, and gestured with his hands.  The plants within the garden immediately parted creating a safe pathway to the door.  The six mares cautiously trotted through the garden and entered the shaman’s house.  As she passed, Trixie looked at the dragon.  
“That was a very neat bit of magic there,” she complimented.  Spike simply shrugged.  
“It’s all in knowing how to talk with them.”
When the last mare entered the stallion followed, descending a short set of steps into the main room of the tree house.  It was much like Zecora’s home on his world, if perhaps a touch bigger.  Potions and books lined the shelves and a large cauldron sat in the center of the room.  One difference was the life-size marble statue of the shaman that sat in one corner.  Big Mac paused to look at it.  It was an extremely accurate likeness, even down to the gold hoop ear, neck and leg rings.
The dragon looked at the guests.  “Would anypony here like some tea or other refreshments?”
“Thank-you,” replied Rarity.  “A nice cup of chamomile would be splendid and a small hayseed biscuit if you have any.”
“I’ll see what I can find,” Spike replied as he strode across to the kitchen.  Big Mac couldn’t help notice he stole more than a few glances at the white-furred unicorn.   Looking around he saw the walls were festooned with various masks and cultural decorations, including one very plain looking guitar.  
They all took seats around the room and waited.  Spike brought the tea, turned down the lights in the room with a wave of his hand and then silently stood against a far wall.   The stallion watched the entrance, waiting for the shaman to arrive.  When she didn’t he looked over at the dragon.
“Where’s Zecora?” he asked in a low voice.
Instead of replying, the dragon simply put a finger to his lips.  A moment later, Big Mac heard a voice that seemed to echo softly about the room.  
“It seems my dream has now come true.  A red prince seeks for some lost clue,
To find a power hidden deep within the forest’s ancient keep."
The stallion looked around, but could not tell where the voice was coming from exactly.  He noticed the other ponies were also looking, so they must have heard the same thing he had.  “Zecora?”
“You need not fear, for I am here.”  There was a soft sound, like the grinding of polished stone.  It drew Big Mac’s eyes to the statue.  As he watched it slowly, ponderously, stood and looked at him through a pair of brightly shining golden eyes.  
> Chapter 07
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Everypony stared unbelieving at the statue as it slowly moved across the room to stand next to Spike. “I must seem strange to you of flesh and blood.  But I have heart, though now I’m stone and mud.”  Zecora placed a friendly hoof across the dragon’s shoulder. “If you all wonder why I can move still, tis thanks to this young dragon’s mystic skill.  His magic spells have cured what madness wrought, undoing what HE planned to be my lot."  
“Was this HIS doing, the chaos worm?” asked Rarity.  
The zebra nodded.  “HE cursed me when I would not bow to HIM, thought truth be told HE did it on a whim.”  She looked over at the unicorn. “Capricious is HIS mood when HE begins to brood.”
“Helping Zecora was the least I could do,” the dragon explained.  “She took me in and raised me after... after Twilight died.”
“Ah’m sorry,” Big Mac replied.  “She was a real decent pony.”
“If the truth you tell, did you know her well?”
“Sort of...”
Spike scratched his head briefly.  “What do you mean... sort of?”
“He means,” Rainbow interrupted, “that the Twilight he knows is from another place... or time if you get me.”
“Another time?” the dragon asked skeptically.
“Yes,” Trixie responded.  “A time and place made different by his existence.  You see, on our world he was never born.  On his world, he’s an alicorn.”  The unicorn put a hoof to her mouth.  “Did I just rhyme?”
Zecora smiled and looked at the other ponies, then back to Big Mac, her head turning ponderously. “By all that ticks and tocks... We have a paradox.  The world from which you came, is ours...but not the same.”
“Eeeyup.”
“He wants to go home, but before he can he’s got to help us straighten things out here,” Babs added.
Spike looked back and forth between the ponies.  “Let me guess, you came here because you thought we could help you?”
“Well...um...not so much you, but Zecora.  In ma world, she’s a well-respected sage and shaman,” the stallion explained.
“The same’s true here.  That’s why you-know-who put a curse on her when she wouldn’t join his chaos legion.”
“So how may I now aid in this great quest you’ve made?”
“We have a map that shows us how to get to the castle of the pony sisters,” explained Rarity.  “Unfortunately, it’s more than a little out of date and doesn’t show us the kind of dangers we might encounter.”
“Yeah,” Rainbow said, interrupting the fashionista.  “We were kind of hoping that you’d be able to guide us to the castle.”  Rarity gave the pegasus an annoyed, sideways glance.  
Zecora let out a sigh that sounded like wind whistling through rocks. “Though true I know which path to trod, our journey’d be a long, slow plod.  My hooves of stone would hold you back, for speed is something that I lack.”  
“Well,” replied Babs, “if youse can’t come, how’re we gonna figure out how to avoid those threats in the Everfree that the map doesn’t show.”
“Yes,” added Trixie.  “The last time they went into the forest blind it almost swallowed them completely.  Therefore a guide is essential to our success.”
“And what do you seek in the forest so deep?”
“The same thing we were searching for the first time,” said Rarity.  “The Elements of Harmony.”
Zecora pursed her stone lips for a moment.  “While it is quite true, I can’t go with you.  I can send my protégé.  He is quick, and knows the way.”
“Me?” replied the startled dragon.  “But I’ve only been there once; that time I was out looking for some thistle-root.  The only reason I found the castle was because I could smell the plants from a mile away.”
“But if you found it once,” Rarity said, “you should be able to remember the way.”
“Eeeyup,” nodded Big Mac.
“Yeah, and living out here with Zecora gives you a better idea of the kind of beasties we might run into,” Rainbow asserted.  
Spike looked over at the shaman.  “You can’t be serious.  I don’t know the Everfree as well as you...”
“But you do know it well enough to help them if things get rough.” Zecora reassured him.  
“I can’t go,” the dragon said looking at the zebra.  “If anything were to happen to me there’d be no pony around to help you.  You’d be all alone out here, and the potion I brew for you would eventually wear off.  You’d be trapped in stone again.”  
Zecora reached up with a hoof and enfolded the dragon with her foreleg.  “I understand and feel your fear.  Our chance to break HIS power’s near.  The aid you give these pony folk may twist HIS curse into a joke.”
“But...”
The zebra moved her hoof under Spike’s chin which she lifted so she could see his face. “The time is now when you must rise and face the world with your own eyes.  You’ll lead them to where they must go to learn the secrets they must know.”
The dragon responded by wrapping his arms around Zecora.  “Okay...If you want me to go with them, I will.  But I’m not doing it for them, or for Equestria.  I’m doing it for you.  I already lost one big sister.  I don’t want to lose you as well.”
The shaman returned his hug, then sent him off to pack what he would need for the journey.  While he was gone, she turned to face Big Mac.  “This task of yours, succeed it must, for in you we have placed our trust.”
“Ah’ll do what Ah can,” the stallion replied.  
Zecora smiled. ”I think that you may do much more.  This journey tries you to the core.”  
Turning, she walked over to a nearby shelf and picked up a satchel in her mouth.  This she deposited at the feet of Trixie.  The blue-furred unicorn looked down at it then back at the zebra.
“What is this for?” she asked
“This bag is what I take with me when ere I walk beneath the trees.  The potions now contained inside should help you fight or run or hide.”
“But why me?” asked Trixie.  “My magic is confined to illusion and theatrical tricks.  I can’t even teleport more than a couple of yards.”
“Pony feathers,” laughed Pinkie Pie.  “I’ve seen your act, and while you may not want to admit it, there’s more magic about you than legerdemain.  You’re the closest pony we have to the Element of Magic.”
“But I’m not a mage.  I never went to Celestia’s school the way most unicorns did.”
“Neither have I, darling,” replied Rarity.  “Lack of formal schooling isn’t what’s important.  Practice and study is.”
“Yeah,” Pinkie asserted.  “And I’ve seen the library you keep in your dressing room at the theatre.  You have enough books to equal at least a doctorate in Thinkology, or whatever kind of degree they give magicians.”
Trixie looked down at the satchel, then used her magic to levitate it open and examine its contents.  “At least you have this stuff labeled,” she muttered to Zecora.  “Though I don’t know if it’s a good idea to carry a vile of Grab Grass seed in the same bag as Poison Joke or Dogwood Bark.”
“Everything in there is a powder, and will not mix until you add water.”  
“Good to know,” the blue-furred unicorn said as she closed the satchel and settled it across her shoulder.
It wasn’t long until Spike... or Quisque, returned.  He had exchanged his shirt for a tan canvas vest filled with pockets.  Two knives were strapped to a simple belt, one long, one short.  Several pouches hung from the belt as well.  He looked at the ponies assembled before him.  “Well, I’m ready anytime you are.”
“Then we should leave ASAP,” said Rainbow.
“ASAP?” asked the dragon.
“As Speedily As Pegasi,” she explained, flipping her multi-hued tail jauntily.
“That’s not what I was told it meant,” said Fluttershy quietly.
Pinkie chuckled, looking over at Rarity, Trixie and Babs.  “I always suspected she was A Sap, but I never thought I’d hear her admit it.”
Rainbow simply grumbled in response and headed for the door, the others following.  Big Mac turned to follow when he felt a hoof touch one wing.  He looked back to see Zecora.  
“I know that your quest is true and that your best is what you’ll do.  But please, bring Spike back home to me.  He is my only family.”  
The stallion looked at the shaman and nodded once.  “Eeeyup.”

**********

They traveled for about three hours before the weather abruptly changed and it began raining.  Thankfully, it was normal rainwater and not some odd combination of yogurt and candied yams.  
“Where Ah’m from, HE normally made it rain chocolate milk... and sometimes whiskey and soda.” Big Mac offered.  
“I don’t think I’d disapprove of the latter, so much darling.  Especially after a particularly trying day,” Rarity said with a smile.  “But after having survived the cheese storms of two years ago, I never want to see another fondue as long as I live.”
“Youse got that right, sister,” muttered Babs.  “It took the Manehatten PD a month to get the patrol wagons back into service.  Especially after all that cheese got hard and rancid.”
“I don’t know if any pony’s considered this... but what happens when you find the elements and put... you know who... back wherever he came from?”
The others paused and looked at Spike.
“Well... think about it.  All his spells are going to melt away and evaporate like ice on a hot griddle.  That means the Nightmare Queen will be released to bring back eternal night.”
“I suppose we’ll just have to deal with her in the same way,” offered Rarity.  She looked over at Big Mac.  “Didn’t you say the Elements were first used to get rid of her?”
“Ma sister...” the stallion paused for a second, “...told me the Elements cleansed Nightmare Moon from Princess Luna.  But that was a couple of years before they were used again ta trap... Uh... HIM.”
“Who’s Princess Luna?” asked Spike
“Celestia’s younger sister,” the alicorn said.  “She was possessed by the mare you call the Nightmare Queen and banished ta the moon fer a thousand years.  The Elements o’ ma world managed ta break her hold on the princess and reunite the two sisters.”
“I think I remember Twilight saying something about the banishment and all, but nothing about her being Celestia’s sister,” said Rarity.
“Eeeyup... T’were a kinda surprise ta us as well, but it all worked out.  The same way it will here.”
“I’m glad somepony thinks so,” said Trixie.  She held out a hoof and caught several raindrops.  “It’s starting to come down heavier.  Maybe we should find shelter.”
Spike pointed ahead of them.  “There’s a small cave only about ten minutes farther along this trail.  We can hold up there if need be.”
Following the adolescent dragon, it wasn’t long before the cave was found and they were all hunched over a small but warm fire conjured by Trixie.  The stage-magician took a couple of minutes to check Zecora’s satchel and make sure its contents were dry.  Fluttershy used the campfire to brew a pot of tea for everypony.  
The rain outside increased in strength darkening the forest.  It continued for about two hours before coming to an abrupt stop.  The clouds scattered as rapidly as they had gathered, revealing a nighttime sky.  This was in spite of the fact it should have been a couple hours before sunset.  
Trixie took advantage of the opportunity to sit on a convient rock to work on her leg brace.  It came off easily.  She removed a small vial of oil from her saddlebags and applied to several joints.  The metallic squeaking was reduced significantly.  With nothing else to do, Spike came over and sat down watching her.  He noticed that the fur on the withered leg had been shaved off and replaced with a skin tight stocking that matched the unicorn’s fur color.  
“You’re the first pony I’ve met with something like that,” he said pointing to the brace.  “How’d you ding up your leg.”
Rarity, who was sitting nearby gave the dragon a disapproving look.  “That’s rather a crude question to ask.”
Spike shrugged.  “I was curious.  Twilight always taught me to ask questions when I wanted to know something.”
“Well... there’s asking questions and there’s making a polite inquiry.  You should learn the difference.”
“That’s alright,” Trixie said.  “The simple truth is that I ran afoul of an Ursa Minor while performing in Las Pegasus a few years back.  The creature busted up my act, the casino and me, in that order.”
“That must have been awful,” Spike said.  
“I don’t really remember too many details about the incident itself.  I know HE happened to be in the audience and decided to liven things up by flooding the town with chocolate.  I distracted HIM by challenging HIM to a magic duel.  I lost the moment he summoned the Ursa.  I’m not really the hero type, but I was pissed about my show being ruined and I couldn’t bring myself to run until the audience had a chance to escape.”
“Did it hurt?”
“Getting swatted by an ursa isn’t pleasant.  It can ruin your whole day,” she said with a rueful smile.  “I will say this... there’s nothing like spending half a year in a body cast to help one re-imagine their life.”
“And your leg never healed?”
Trixie’s smile vanished and she pursed her lips.  “It did, until HE sent his minion, King Sombra, to make a sympathy call on the day I was discharged.  That worm didn’t like the fact I’d become a minor hero for standing up to HIM.  Sombra ‘chastised’ me with a spell that withered my leg.  I suppose I should be grateful he didn’t make me a quadriplegic.  
“So you and Zecora have something in common.”
“A lot of ponies have HIM in common.  Given a chance, most would gladly give him a quick buck in his tenders... if they could get away with it.”  Trixie returned to working on her leg brace.
The adolescent dragon sat quietly for a while, then looked around at the other ponies in their group.  “I know I’m somewhat of an outsider, having hidden in the Everfree for the last few years, but I don’t understand.   If HE’s such a bad thing for Equestria, then why hasn’t anypony stood up to HIM before now.”
“He’s chaos incarnate,” Rarity explained.  “No one has the power to take him on, except perhaps Celestia.”
“So it takes power then...” Spike observed
“Power and somepony to lead the way,” the unicorn said.. “None of us would have dared to go after the Elements if not for you sister, Twilight, the first time and now our big, red alicorn friend over there.”  She nodded quickly towards Big Mac.  
“Who is he anyway?” the dragon asked.
“He says he’s from another world, just like this one, only there, Twilight didn’t... uh fail to get the elements...”
“You mean die,” Spike corrected her.
“I was trying to be sensitive.  She was your sister after all.”
“You don’t have to worry about that around me.  I’m a dragon... I’m tough and I can take it.”
“But don’t you miss her?” asked Rainbow who’d been sitting nearby listening.
“Of course I do,” Spike replied.  “I miss her every day, and I’ll never say that losing her didn’t hurt, but she’s gone and Zecora’s my new responsibility.  It’s easier to get along by focusing on that.”
Rarity nodded quietly to herself.  Few stallions she knew could handle loss in such a mature way.  Her estimation of the young dragon went up a few points.  He was going to grow into a lady killer if he continued to develop along such lines.  For a brief moment, she wondered what it would be like to have a dragon as a special somepony, but banished the thought from her head... or at least tried, though it took some effort.
Big Mac decided that staying in the cave until daylight, whenever that happened, would be a good idea.  Everypony rested and along about midnight the sun slowly rose in the south, then hovered about a third of the way across the morning sky.  That was something the alicorn silently wondered about as they all packed their saddlebags and began their trek once more.  How would they restore the normal cycle of the sun and moon once Discord was dethroned?  He hoped having Celestia and Luna back in charge would solve that problem.  He knew for a fact that there wasn’t anything he could do.  Certainly, he had raw magic, but such power was dangerous and best left untapped if the pony wielding it was untrained.  He was brought out of his reverie by a scream of terror.  
Whirling, Big Mac’s jaw dropped open in both surprise and fear.  There before him towered the largest scorpion he’d ever seen.  It stood at least two ponies high with a tail as thick as a year old sapling.  Its reddish-black stinger glistened with poison.  The monster clicked its pincers together loudly and hissed as it examined the prey scattering before it.  Focusing on the largest, and potentially most filling morsel, it charged towards the alicorn with a hiss.  
> Chapter 08
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Of all the fights Big Mac had been in, this was the most chilling one to date.  The nature of the beast attacking him, combined with its enormous size, made him feel more than a little overwhelmed.  Certainly, he’d fought off Queen Chrysalis’ minions, dropped a tree on the changeling witch, beaten King Sombra to a pulp, and killed three large timber wolves single hoofed.  But this felt different.  He knew what he was fighting.  He’d seen scorpions before when he visited his cousin Braeburn in Appaloosa, but nothing this monstrous.  He hadn’t liked them then, and definitely didn’t like them now.  To top it all off, the beast seemed to single him out for attack, ignoring the other ponies as they scattered in fear.  
It charged, closing the distance between itself and the alicorn at an unbelievable speed.  For a split second, Big Mac hesitated.  Then just before the creature was on him he instinctively jumped straight up.  
Imagine if you will combining the strength of an earth pony with the agility of a pegasus.  The resulting leap put him some thirty feet above the ground in less than a second.  The scorpion’s pincers closed on empty air.
Now under normal circumstances, most pegasi would immediately began flapping their wings so they could go into a hover.   Unfortunately, the alicorn hadn’t mastered that particular skill yet.  He did know how to glide short distances, but his jump and been straight up.  With no forward momentum, gravity applied itself in its own unique, masterful and inevitable way.  
Big Mac found himself plummeting straight down.  
He twisted around and flapped his wings furiously, trying to get his hooves under him without much success.  Gracefulness was another pegasi trait he had yet to develop.  He landed tail first on the back of the scorpion, missing the poisonous stinger by several very uncomfortable inches. Fortunately, having “evolved” as an earth pony, mass was his friend.  The scorpion couldn’t support both itself and the impact of the sudden weight that landed on its back.  The monster went down, its legs splayed out in six different directions and its tail pointed straight up.  Its angry hissing turned into a single, short whimpering screech.  
The stallion did remember Soarin’s “tuck and roll lessons.  In an instant he found himself standing firmly on the ground in front of the monster as it tried to shake off the blow and push itself back to its feet.  Big Mac didn’t give it a chance.  Spinning on his front legs, he bucked upward, catching the scorpion under the chin and between the mandibles.   The monster’s head snapped upward several feet and the front half of its body was lifted off the ground.  When it crashed back down, it was unconscious.  
The other ponies, seeing the danger was neutralized, slowly gathered around the alicorn.  
“Holy Canarsie!  Do Youse see the size of this monster?”
“That... Was... AWESOME!!”
“Oh... the poor thing.  I hope it isn’t too badly hurt.”
“Wow!  You totally owned that thing!”
“I certainly hope it doesn’t start leaking blood all over the place.”
“What do you think?  Some white wine and melted butter?”
The other ponies turned and looked at Trixie.  She just shrugged.  “Hey...  What can I say?  It looks like a lobster and I’m hungry.”
“This thing shouldn’t be here,” muttered Spike.
“Nnnope?”
“Everfree scorpions live about forty miles from here, off towards the mountains.  They don’t wander this far from their caves unless driven by hunger.”
“Could it be a rogue, darling?”
The dragon shook his head.  “I don’t know.  I’ve never heard of rogue scorpions before.  They always hunt in pairs.”
“Then Ay’d suggest we beat hooves, unless youse all want to meet up with its pal.”
The suggestion was met with unanimous agreement and the group of seven ponies and one dragon were soon back on the trail towards the palace of the pony sisters.  
As they traveled the forest around them began to grow thicker and more menacing.  The air itself became heavy and stagnant with the stench of rot.  There was no breeze to freshen the air, no scent of growing things.  It was as if the forest was consuming itself.  Big Mac wondered how anything could live in such an environment.
“What is this place?” Rainbow Dash asked looking around at the trees.  The canopy above them had completely closed off the sky and there were so many vines hanging from the trees that a pegasus couldn’t possibly fly even a few feet off the ground without becoming ensnared.  She shuddered nervously, feeling as if she were in a box with the lid closed.  
Fluttershy wasn’t as bothered by the trees as Rainbow.  She much preferred walking to flying.  The surrounding dimness would have been a problem for her if Big Mac, Trixie and Rarity hadn’t lit up their horns, casting a welcome light about the travelers.  
“I don’t remember seeing this on the map at all,” muttered the fashionista.  
“It isn’t,” Spike replied.  “Zecora calls it the Blight and it’s a fairly recent development.  Nothing but plants, mosses and fungi live here.”
“What about birds and animals?” asked Fluttershy.
The dragon shook his head.  “They abandoned this part of the forest when the Blight appeared, at least any small creatures did.  The trees tend to eat them.”
“WHAT?” the pegasus exploded, coming to a dead stop in the middle of the trail.  The others all came to a standstill and looked at her in surprise.
“Oh, you don’t have to worry.  Anything larger than a raccoon gets ignored.  The trees use their vines to snag prey, but they’re too weak to grab and hold big animals.  The only thing we have to avoid is eating any of the mushrooms that grow here.”
“The mushrooms?” asked Trixie.
“They have a toxin in them that’s hallucinogenic.  Eat one and you’ll wander aimlessly for days before the effects wear off, if something else doesn’t eat you in the meantime.”  Spike turned and waived everypony forward.  “Come on.  The trail leads this way.”
Trixie paused for a moment, wondering if perhaps Zecora might not want a sample of the mushrooms for her potions.  Reaching into the satchel she looked for an empty jar, then found one already filled with a brownish white paste and labeled ‘Blight Mushrooms.’  She smiled to herself.  The shaman was obviously well ahead of her.  She would make a good stage magician.
They continued to make their way through the Blight.  As promised, the trees and vines ignored them save for when one of them accidently brushed an overhanging branch or leaf.  Then the plants appeared to pull back some, clearing more of the pathway for them to use.  Several hours of travel eventually brought them to a somewhat more hospitable section of the Everfree.  They could feel the wind blowing gently through the trees and the scent of decay and rot no longer hung about them.  When Big Mac noticed that both Fluttershy and Trixie seemed to be lagging, he called a halt so they could all rest get some food.  
They gathered dead, dry wood from nearby and with Spike’s help, quickly had a small camp fire going.  Fluttershy again took out her ornate metal teapot and set it upon the flames to boil while Pinkie and Rainbow passed out travel rations to everypony.  
The dragon looked at his food bar with a bit of disappointment.  It consisted mainly of compressed dried oats, fruit, dandelion seeds, and several different kinds of nuts, all wrapped in a layer of hay seed and alfalfa.  “What... no gem pieces?”
Rarity raised one bemused eyebrow, then levitated a yellow gem from her saddlebags and dropped it in Spike’s lap.  
Picking it up, the dragon grinned from ear to ear.  “Wow... amethyst.  I haven’t had that for a long time.”  He took an enthusiastic bite out of the gem and turned to face the white-furred unicorn.  “Thank you, my lady.”
For some strange reason, the compliment made Rarity feel a bit giggly inside, though she tried not showing it on her face.  
As they rested, the sun once more vanished from the sky, this time like a house light being shut off.  The air began to get cold and a snowflake slowly drifted down into the camp.  
“Uh oh...” muttered Babs, “looks like we’re gettin’ a slight change in the weather.  Anypony think to pack a tent big enough for eight?”  She paused to look at her otherworldly cousin.  “...or ten?”
“No need,” Big Mac reassured them.  Closing his eyes he concentrated.  Within moments a large, green dome formed over them, blocking out both the snow and cold.  A small hole in the top allowed the smoke from their camp fire to escape.
“Not bad,” admired Rarity.  “But I thought you said you weren’t good at magic.  How’d you manage a shield spell?”
“Ma sister’s friend’s BBBFF taught me this trick, though it ain’t so much a shield as a kind o’ tarp.  If ya pushed, y’all could probably put yer hoof through it.”
“It works well enough for me,” Trixie said.  “Better a weak shield than getting any of that snow on us?”
“Is something wrong with the snow, darling?”
The blue unicorn nodded.  “It’s yellow.”

**********

Applejack had paced back and forth across the interrogation room for more than an hour before the door opened and another pony entered.  He was wearing the uniform of a Manehatten Police Officer and carried a tray in his mouth.  On the tray were two cups of coffee and a plate with three sandwiches wrapped in wax paper.  This he carefully placed on the table.  He gestured for the palomino pony to take a seat, then pushed the tray across to her after taking one of the cups for himself.
“Sorry for the delay.  We’ve been busy processing the ponies arrested when we raided the Carrousel Boutique.”
The mare frowned at him.  “Ah don’t see why you had to raid the place.  Rarity and I have always been on good terms with the law.”
The police pony shrugged.  “Hey, we don’t make those decisions.  We just carry out the orders we’re given.”  
He took a long, slow sip on his coffee, keeping one eye open and on Applejack.  Normally, she preferred to dine in private, but after nearly a day and a half without anything to eat the mare was famished.  As the cop watched, she elegantly unwrapped one of the sandwiches and took a small, delicate bite.  It was dry and lacked flavor, but she ate it as if it were the finest pâté.    
“So... if you’re an employee of the boutique...”
“Co-owner,” Applejack corrected him.
“Fair enough... a co-owner, what were you doing tied up in a trunk at the Crazy Horse Theatre, at least a dozen blocks away?”
“I was making a house call for a kinky client?”
The officer chuckled.  “Well... that might explain why we didn’t find any of your clientele at the boutique.”  The pony’s face became a bit grimmer.  “Still, someone there invoked “HIS” name, and that means being a co-owner, you’re going to have to talk to one of HIS lieutenant at the very least.”
“Indeed.”
“You don’t seem overly concerned about it.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow.  “Is there a reason I should be?”
The police pony shook his head.  He had a distinct feeling she knew something that they wanted to know.  That wasn’t good.  It was also sadly obvious she didn’t understand the ramifications of what it meant to meet with one of the three.  He knew from past experience that such interviews never went well for the individual being questioned.  Even the most hard-core suspects had their bowels turn to jelly when confronted by one of HIS lieutenants.  The thought of what might happen to such a beautiful mare was uncomfortable, but there was nothing he could do about it.  
“Look,” he said.  “I’m going to give you a quick piece of advice.  When they come to question you, answer them as quickly and honestly as you can.  Don’t hesitate, don’t act flustered, don’t lie, and above all, don’t try to cut any deals with them.”
“Why?”
He lowered his voice to almost a whisper.  “Because that would be a mistake you would regret for the rest of your life.”  
Applejack frowned.  “If y’all think for one moment you can scare...”
She was interrupted by firm and powerful knocking.  The police pony rose from his chair and went over to the door.  When he opened it, he was confronted by his desk sergeant.  
“Our visitor has arrived and wants to talk with the suspect now.  You’re relieved.”  
His boss pushed the door open wide enough to allow the police pony to leave.  As he did a shadowy figure seemed to flow by him and sweep into the room.  The air suddenly became chilled.  He looked back in time to see the confident expression on their suspect’s face change to one of uncertainty before the door closed behind him  
Shaking, Officer Quarryhoof made his way over to a small coffee pot that sat at one end of the squad room.  He refilled his cup and steeled himself for the inevitable.   It was a full two minutes before the muffled screams began.  

**********

The sun stayed down the rest of the night, then surprisingly rose normally at about the right time.  As it rose the snow melted, though it left behind a somewhat pungent, ammonia smell that was not helped by the warmth of the day.  Gathering their supplies, the party once more set out with Spike in the lead.  
As he broke the trail ahead, the dragon would glance back at his flock from time to time.  Twilight, even after all these years, had been a pony whom he understood.  Despite her seeming reclusiveness she’d had a heart that desperately wanted to nurture anypony who needed help.  It was what led her into the first quest for the Elements and what eventually killed her.  She could have jumped clear and survived when the cliff face crumbled beneath Octavia, but she’d grabbed the other pony’s hoof and wouldn’t let go, not even to save herself.  She cared.  Deep within himself, he knew that.
Now, looking at the current group of ponies, four of whom had been on that last expedition, he found himself wondering why they would risk so much for a world that had given up on itself.  A world that would not fight back against either the Nightmare Queen or its current ruler, the master of chaos himself.  How could these ponies care if no pony else did?  He wondered how intensely they cared.  Certainly it was enough to follow Twilight.  Now, they were following this strange out-worlder, a pony who by rights should have absolutely no reason to care for a world that was not his own.  
His sister had always insisted that deep down, every pony had a spark within them that could, if fanned, make the world a better place.  Some pony though had to do the fanning.  Spike stole another glance at Big Mac.  He was impressive, but unlike Celestia whom he had known personally he seemed more... common, more ordinary than a Prince should be.  Maybe that was why they followed him.
The trail broke out of the forest and angled upward along the ridge of a steep set of hills.  On one side, the hills sloped sharply down into a thickly forested marsh.  On the other, it dropped off abruptly into a river gorge.  Keeping as far to the center as possible, they wound their way across the hilltops, then gradually descended toward the gorge.  As they walked they could hear a roaring somewhere up ahead.  
Reaching the base of the hills, they discovered where the gorge started.  To Big Mac, it looked like somepony had simply carved a gash in the earth.  There, they discovered a wide stream that flowed through the forest, then upon reaching the nearest end of the crevice dropped away in a series of waterfalls until it began flowing again along the bottom of the canyon.  This was the source of the noise.  
Taking a closer look, the alicorn could see this wasn’t a good place to cross.  The water was too deep and ran too quickly for a pony to ford without risking an unplanned trip down the falls.
The trail followed the stream for about a mile before they came across a fairly wide and shallow spot that would be easy to cross.  Checking their map, it became clear they had to cross the stream in order to reach the castle.  The water still flowed at a good rate of speed thus they had to tread carefully so as not to have their hooves swept out from under them.  Pinkie, Rarity, Spike and Babs roped themselves together and with Big Mac acting as the anchor pony were able to cross with little problem, aside from getting wet which slightly upset the fashionista.  Rainbow and Fluttershy easily hopped the stream with a couple of easy wing beats, and Macintosh simply strolled across carrying Trixie on his back.  
Rarity shook the water out of her fur and went over to Spike.  “Where to next?”
“The trail goes about three miles straight through the woods, then we have a choice to make,” he replied.  “We can either head west for a day, then cut north and back east to get to the castle, or we can go through the Frost Swamp which will put us at the castle by tomorrow morning.”
“Frost Swamp?” asked Babs.  “I don’t remember seeing that on the map.”  
“It’s not.  It popped up a few years ago after that really cold winter HE caused.  Zecora thinks it’s the Everfree’s attempt to compensate for and isolate the chaos magic that HE uses.”
“Is it dangerous?” asked Fluttershy.
The dragon shook his head.  “Not particularly, unless you spend more than a day within its borders.  Then, you freeze solid.”
“Well, that can’t be pleasant,” said Trixie.
“How big is this swamp?” asked Rainbow.
“At this point, it’s only about fifteen miles wide.  We can cross it in about four hours, but we want to do it while the sun’s up.  At night, it gets really, really, really cold.”
Babs looked at her watch.  “We’ve got more than enough time to cross if we start now.  Ay say let’s go for it.”
“Eeeyup.” Affirmed Big Mac.  The other ponies nodded in agreement and they set off.
It only took them about an hour to reach the edge of the Frost Swamp, but when they did it wasn’t what they expected.
Instead of ice dangling from the trees or snow covering the ground, everything looked perfectly normal... or at least as normal as the Everfree Forest could look.
“I don’t understand,” said Rarity looking around as she followed Spike.  “Where’s all the winter weather?  I’d expect a place called the Frost Swamp to be a lot more...white.  How can you even tell when you’re in it?”
The dragon turned his head and regarded the unicorn.  “Look at your hooves.”
Rarity did and saw to her surprise that the ground was frosted in a delicate pattern of ice.  This was true of every other pony.  Wherever their hooves touched the earth, ice-chrystals formed.  Looking back, she saw a trail of white along the ground, marking their passage.  She paused for a moment and watched as the patterns slowly expanded outward from her hoof.  
“This is amazing,” exclaimed.  “I would have thought everything would be a lot colder around here, but I’m standing in ice and I don’t even feel the slightest chill.”
“You won’t” said Spike.  “The swamp doesn’t make you feel cold... It slowly pulls the heat out of you until you turn into a permanent block of ice.”
“How do youse know?”
“If you don’t believe me, just ask him,” the dragon said point off to their right.  Everypony looked.  To one side of the trail was a large clear block of ice in the shape of a sleeping grizzly bear.  He had been difficult to see because the ice was transparent.  The creature had apparently lain down to take a nap and never woke up.
Fluttershy gasped and flitted over to the bear.  “Oh... the poor little thing.”
“LITTLE?” replied Rainbow Dash
The yellow pegasus reached out a hoof to touch the ice sculpture.  
“NO!  DON’T!” yelled Spike.  
Fluttershy’s hoof stopped barely an inch from the ice sculpture and she turned her head to look at the dragon.  The end of her mane brushed against the ice and stuck there.  A trail of white climbed up along her hair even as she tried to pull away.  “I’m stuck,” she squeaked in panic.
“HELP HER... SOMEPONY!” called Spike.  “SHE’S TURNING TO ICE!”    
> Chapter 09
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Without thinking Big Mac grabbed a fallen tree branch with his telekinesis and brought it down as hard as he could on the part of Fluttershy’s mane that was frozen to the ice bear.  The hair shattered, allowing the pegasus pony to stagger away from the frozen creature before falling to her knees.  This however did not stop the process and her mane continued to slowly turn white.  
Reacting with equal swiftness, Rarity retrieved a pair of scissors from her saddlebag.  Using her own spell she quickly snipped off a part of the pink mane above where the ice crystals were spreading.  These dropped off and froze to the ground like so many shattered pine needles.  
Fluttershy climbed back to her hooves and stared, wide-eyed at the close call she had just experienced.  “That... that.... that could.... could have.... been... been me!” she panted, her voice almost inaudible with its softness.  She looked over at her friends, then her eyes rolled back into her head and she collapsed like a sack of flour.
Trixie and Rainbow Dash were at her side instantly checking the pegasus for any possible injury.  They both looked up in relief.  
“She’s alright,” the blue-furred unicorn assured them.  “It looks like she just hyperventilated and passed out.”
“Is she going to be out long?” asked Spike.
“Can’t tell.” Rainbow said.  “The last time she had a panic attack like this she was asleep for almost three hours.”
“Well, we can’t wait around here.”  Babs looked up at her cousin.  “Think youse could carry her.”
“Eeeyup.”
They loaded the unconscious pony on Big Mac’s broad back, setteling her in so she would not easily fall off.  The stallion couldn’t help but notice her mane looked decidedly lopsided and was only about half its former length.  Still, a mane could grow out.  He wasn’t sure a frozen pony could be thawed.  
The party marched on through the day, finally emerging from the Frost Swamp as the sun gently settled towards the horizon.  
Fluttershy came to as they left the swamp.  Her cheeks blushed when she discovered she’d been riding on Big Mac.  The stallion thought it made her look cute, in an innocent, foalish sort of way.  
She quickly scrambled down and took refuge next to Rainbow Dash who teasingly ruffled her mane.   
“Looks like we’re going to have a normal sunset tonight,” observed Rarity.  “YOU KNOW WHO isn’t mucking with it today.  That’s surprisingly considerate of HIM.”
“That isn’t a good thing.” Said Pinkie.
“It isn’t?  Why?”
“Well... I like to play pranks.  I know if a pony who likes to have fun and prank other ponies isn’t having fun and pranking other ponies, then that means something else has to be keeping him busy.”
“You think that something else could be us?” asked Rainbow Dash
“Could be,” Trixie speculated.  “But that means HE would have to know what we’re looking for and maybe even where we’re going.”
“That’s not good,” muttered Spike
“Nnnope.”
Babs looked at the others.  “So what do we do?”
“We keep goin’ an hope we beat HIM ta the castle.”  Big Mac looked at their guide.  “Y’all said if we cut through the swamp we’d reach the castle by morning.  How close is it?”
“It’s only a couple of miles,” Spike replied.  “I was assuming we’d camp and arrive fresh at daylight.”
“Can we reach it tonight?” asked Rarity.
The dragon nodded.  “Sure, if you want to risk reaching an ancient, haunted castle at night.  There’s no telling what kind of monsters might be lurking around in the dark.”
The ponies all went silent for several moments considering the possibilities.  Babs was the first to speak.
“Ay don’t know about any monsters, but I do know we won’t have a chance of finding anything if HE reaches the castle before we do.”
“As close as we are, wouldn’t we have seen some sign of HIS minions by now if HE was at the castle?” asked Fluttershy.   
“OH!  I know!  Maybe they’re all having dinner.  If they are it would be a good chance for us to sneak in, wouldn’t it?  Especially if they’re having dessert.”
“Ay kind of doubt they’d all be eating at the same time,” Babs said.
“So... I get the idea you want to push on, even after the sun goes down,” observed Spike.
“Eeeyup.”
“Alright then... Those of you with horns, light the way for every pony else, but keep it as low as possible.  The Everfree thins out the closer we get to the castle.  You don’t want to alert anypony who might be on guard.” 
They formed a column of twos.  Spike and Rarity led the way.  They were followed by Big Mac and Babs.  Then came Fluttershy and Rainbow with Pinkie and Trixie close behind.
Pinkie had stopped bouncing, but if any pony listened closely enough, they could have heard her softly humming a tune through her smile.  Trixie remembered it from one of the shows at the theatre, something called “Giggle at the Ghosties.” The song buoyed her up a bit.  She didn’t want to admit it to the others but her withered leg was throbbing painfully.  Most ponies assumed that the nerves in it were dead, but nothing could be further from the truth.  
The mage tried pushing it out of her mind and focused on several quick spell formula she could call on if needed.  The satchel loaned her by Zecora had components in it she could mix and cast with only a few seconds of effort.  They’d be useful as catalysts for some of her simpler stage magic, enhancing and prolonging the effects.  
It happened between one step and the next.  Without warning a shock of searing pain raced up Trixie’s leg, causing the withered muscles to lock in place.  Her metal brace prevented her leg from folding beneath her, but she staggered for an instant and let out a loud gasp.  It brought the whole party to a halt.
Pinkie was at the unicorn’s side in a flash.  “Cramp?” she asked, reaching across and running a hoof up and down Trixie’s left rear leg.  The muscles had tightened so they now felt like rocks.  The blue unicorn nodded, gritting her teeth even as tears formed along the bottom of her tightly closed eyes. 
“I... think I might have pushed a little too far,” she grimaced.
Babs and Big Mac were by the unicorn’s side as well.  “Youse still able to walk?”
Trixie shook her head.  “Not for a while at least.”  
By now Pinkie had removed the leg brace and was trying to massage the muscles so they’d unclench.  Her efforts didn’t seem to be having much effect.  She looked over at Rarity.  “You wouldn’t happen to know any healing magic, would you?”
“Sorry, darling.  My talents lie in fine manipulation and locating gems.  I’ve never really studied anything more than basic first aid.”
“What about you?” Pinkie asked turning towards Big Mac.  
“Mmmaybe.”  He lowered his head, touching his horn to Trixie’s leg and closed his eyes.  The horn shimmered with a pale, green translucence that spread across to the unicorn’s leg enveloping it completely.  Trixie sighed in relief as the pain faded, along with the glow of alicorn magic. 
“Thank-you.  That is such a relief,” she said with an appreciative smile.  
“Hey... I thought you didn’t know any big magic spells,” Rainbow Dash remarked.
“Nnnope... Nothin’ big.  Just some small ones fer fixin’ up bumps and bruises.”
“Magic Kindergarten type spells?” asked Fluttershy.
“Eeeyup.”
“No wonder unicorns are so soft,” Rainbow chided with a grin.  When I was a foal in Flight School we didn’t have any kind of magic for our bumps and bruises.  All we did was slap a band-aid on it take a lap.”
“So tell me darling, how exactly does one get bruised bumping into clouds?” Rarity countered.  
“The band-aid was probably for the cloud,” Pinkie observed.  Every pony chuckled and Rainbow grinned back at them.
“Touché.”
“Not to break up the party... but we still have a castle to get to,” Spike reminded them.
Trixie replaced the brace, but when she stood her leg was stiffer than before.  She tried taking a small step but staggered and almost fell.  “Well, it doesn’t hurt anymore,” the unicorn observed, “but I really did push it too far.”
Without a word, Big Mac reached down, clamped his teeth on Trixie’s cape, and hoisted her onto his back before anypony realized what he was doing.  As soon as the mage was settled comfortably he nodded to the others.  “Let’s get.” 
They all fell into a column of twos except for Pinkie who now walked on Big Mac’s right while Babs paralleled his left flank. 
The sun set and the world settled into twilight.  The forest closed around the ponies.  Fortunately, the trail they followed was well enough defined that all could follow it in the dark.  Spike raised his muzzle into the air and flicked his tongue in and out several times.  
“Smell that?” he asked.  The other ponies just shook their heads.
“It’s thistle root,” the dragon explained.  The castle’s very close now.”  Several more minutes of walking and the forest opened up, revealing a chasm some twenty paces ahead of them.  The full moon illuminated the whole area.  Looking across the gap they could all see the tumbled down ruins of an ancient castle.  
Mac had never seen the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters before, but Applejacks descriptions had been accurate enough that he knew precisely what he was looking at.  He looked around and quickly found the collapsed rope bridge that hung over the edge of the chasm.  
“Rainbow?” the alicorn asked, half turning.
“Already on it,” she replied, diving over the edge and disappearing into a thick mist.  As the other’s watched the rope bridge began to lift, its wooden slats brushing noisily against each other. 
“How’re youse doing?” called Babs.
“Doing fine,” came a disembodied voice.  “It isn’t heavy, just clunky and awkward to lift.  I’ll have it up in two shakes of a pegasi’s... URK!”  There was a sudden rustle of feathers and the kicking of hooves against stone.  The bridge slapped hard against the chasm wall as the pegasus let go of it.  Above the others could hear Rainbow struggling against something or somepony. 
“Get OFFA ME!   GIT OFF... OFF... NOW!  GAH!!!  Hey!  Some help here... NOW!” 
Mac was the first to react, lifting Trixie off his back then spreading and locking his wings into a glide position before leaping over the edge of the cliff.  As he kicked off with his back hooves, it dawned on him he didn’t have any idea of what he was going to do, except possibly ram whatever was causing Rainbow problems.  
The mist closed around him instantly.  The chasm walls became nothing but dark shapes drifting in and out of sight.  He heard the sound of struggling low and to his left.  Dropping his wing slightly, he found himself side-slipping much faster than he intended.  He flared and tried back flapping his wings, relying more on a vague instinct than any firm understanding of what it would do.  
His frantic, uncoordinated flapping caused the mist ahead of him to part for a moment.  He suddenly saw Rainbow, entangled in a web of what looked like prehensile tree limbs.  Most were thin tendrils which were growing before his eyes, pulling the pegasus into a thicker series of branches.  The more she struggled, the tighter they wound themselves around her legs, wings and barrel.  One was even slowly encircling her throat.  
Mac tried to fly over to Rainbow, but having lost most of his forward momentum he began to sink rapidly into the chasm.  Gritting his teeth, he locked his wings out straight and dove away, hoping to get enough speed to circle back up to his companion.  
The cliff walls were narrow and he nearly collided with one as he banked upward at the end of his dive.  He could feel his primaries brush against the rock as he circled back.  Fortunately, there was a slight breeze rising from the base of the chasm.  It lifted him enough to come in above the struggling pegasus.  Shifting his wings he did a barely controlled half roll and smashed into the thicker tree limbs.  Both his momentum and weight helped shatter them, knocking Rainbow free.  Broken splinters of wood pierced his skin and wings in dozens of places.  For an instant, Big Mac thought he heard a grinding of wood that sounded like an angry growl, then he tumbled free and plummeted into the chasm.
The world spun around the alicorn prince and he flayed frantically with his wings trying to right himself.  The mist faded and he had a twisting, spinning glimpse of the chasm floor below him, strewn with thick, sharp outcroppings of obsidian rock.  This was going to hurt... a lot!  However, mere moments before he smashed into them there was a prismatic streak and something grabbed him by the tail, abruptly pulling him out of his uncontrolled dive.
“Come on big guy!  Spread your wings and fly right.”
Soarin’s lessons kicked in and Macintosh did spread his wings, even though doing so hurt.  He quickly slowed, though not enough for a controlled landing.  As his front hooves slammed into the ground, he tucked and rolled, summersaulting twice before coming to a complete stop with Rainbow dash on top of him.  She was still holding onto his tail with her teeth.  
“You okay?” the pegasus asked.
“Eeeyup!  How ‘bout you?”
“Good enough, though that landing could have been a lot better.  Definitely wasn’t up to Wonderbolt standards.”
“Nnnope.”
The two ponies looked around for a moment.  “Looks like the only way out is up,” muttered Rainbow, spreading her wings.  “You ready for a real flying lesson?”
Big Mac spread his wings, then winced in pain.  “Nnnope.”
The pegasus walked over to him and gave his wings a quick once over.  “Whoa... hold it big guy.  You’ve got more splinters in you than feathers in your wings.”  She shook her head.  “This is going to take time and a couple pairs of tweezers.  Look, you wait here and I’ll go back up and let everypony know we’re okay.”  
With that, Rainbow Dash crouched then exploded upward, disappearing into the mist, leaving the stallion behind, wondering how he was going to get out of the chasm himself. 
	
> Chapter 10
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Macintosh Apple looked around judging the steepness of the chasm’s walls as well as their height.  He trotted over to one of the nearby rock formations and examined it.  There appeared to be a number of possible hoof holds tracing their way up towards the top.  He concentrated for a moment and re-lit his horn so he could get a better look.  At first glance, it looked promising, until he tapped the rock with his forehoof.  Small slabs crumbled off and dropped to the ground.  He wasn’t exactly an expert when it came to rocks, but he recognized sedimentary shale when he saw it.  Even if he could negotiate the hoof holds, they wouldn’t take his weight without crumbling beneath him.  

Turning he trotted over to the other cliff only to discover it was essentially the same.  Climbing wasn’t an option, at least not around here.  Perhaps further down the chasm the rock face might change.  Anything was possible.  Big Mac tried extending his wings again, wincing in pain.  He proceeded to fill the time while waiting for Rainbow to return by counting the number of splinters visible.  He counted at least 180 of them.  Taking hold of a small splinter with his magic, he tugged gently.  After a moment or two, it popped out. “Ouch,” the stallion muttered.  One down, 179 more to go.  At this rate, he’d have them all out by tomorrow morning.  

Big Mac sighed ruefully.  Climbing was obviously not going to offer a quick fix to his current circumstance.  Neither would plucking out the splinters one by one.  He doubted that even working together Fluttershy and Rainbow would be able to fly him to the top of the chasm.   He wondered quietly if there might be some kind of hidden path or stairway to the top.  Almost as if in response to his thought his element, hidden beneath his collar, began softly glowing.  He felt a tug.  It wasn’t strong, barely more than a whisper in his mind, but he could feel it none the less. 

The stallion looked around.  There was still no sign of his companions.  He debated for a moment whether to stay where he was and wait for them or not.  A second tug, a bit stronger than the first, urged him to follow.  Big Mac turned to face down the chasm.  He began slowly walking in the direction of the pull, making sure his every fourth step left a firm indentation in the ground.  

**********

“And what do youse expect us ta do even if we could get down there?” asked Babs.

“Well, if we could find a way down from this side, there’s probably a way up on the other,” Rainbow said.  
“At any rate, we won’t find it just standing around here, and I am not going to get anywhere near those tree vine tentacles again, so fixing the bridge is OH...  EWE...  TEE!”

“I hope he hasn’t been hurt by those splinters,” whispered Fluttershy.

“Nah.  He’s an alicorn prince.  Nothing can hurt him.  Though I have to admit, even without the splinters in his wings he isn’t much of a flyer.”

“Rainbow Dash... I will not listen to you disparaging such a noble-hearted steed,” admonished Rarity.  “After all, he got those splinters rescuing you.”

THWAK... CRUNCH... THUD... “Hey everypony!”  BONK... WHUD... WHAP... “I think...” SPRONG... THWAP... “I just found...”BAP...  PHWANG... “some stairs...” BAMM... SLAM... FWAP...  “leading down!”   SPLAAAT!”

All heads turned in the direction of the voice.  Sure enough, about fifty feet to the left of the broken bridge, shrouded in mist, was a long staircase which the party pony had inadvertently found.  
“Youse alright there Pinkie?” Babs called.

“Okie Dokey Loki!” came the echoing response.

The police pony raised an eyebrow.  “How come she ain’t hurt?  No pony Ah know could take that kind of fall and just shake it off.”

“You’re talking about Pinkie-Pie darling,” Rarity said.  “Her cutie mark isn’t the only thing rubbery about her.”

“What are we waiting around here for?” groaned Rainbow.  “Let’s get down there and find the prince.”

“Wait, what about Trixie?” asked Fluttershy.  “She still can’t walk.”

“It’s okay,” the illusionist said.  “I can just wait up here until you get baaaccCCKK...WHOOP!!!”

Without warning Babs had trotted over to Trixie and positioned the mare across her back.  “Sorry Ah’m not as big as ma cousin... But Ah am an Earth Pony and an Apple on my mom’s side of the family.”

“That’s quite alright... just, please, let me know if I get too heavy.”

“Youse got it.”

Carefully, the five ponies threaded their way down the long carved staircase, reaching the bottom a little slower than Pinkie.  

“I hope there’s a stairway leading up on the other side,” observed Trixie

Rarity looked around.  “Logically, there should be.  After all, why have only one way to cross a gorge?”

“Maybe we could find it faster if Pinkie could fall up?” Babs offered, a small grin on her face.

“Oh, I wouldn’t put it past her to be able to do just that,” said Dash.  “You don’t know her like we do.”  
Reaching the bottom, the rainbow maned pegasus took the lead, hovering about a foot off the ground.  “Bit Mac should be right around the bend there,” she pointed.  The others quickly trotted after her, but all came to a stop when they found no pony waiting patiently for them.  

“Where’d he go?” asked Spike.

“Well, he couldn’t have flown away,” Rainbow observed.  “His wings were pin-cushioned.”  

They looked around briefly until Fluttershy pointed to a set of hoof-prints crossing the chasm floor and heading into an indentation in the cliff.  

“Well, this is just fabulous,” muttered Rarity in annoyance.  “Here we go to all this trouble to climb down here and what happens?  Our rescuee decides to go spelunking.  There’s nothing like damp, dark underground passages to ruin one’s coiffure.” 

“Except this one don’t look so dark,” observed Babs.  

Every pony looked.  Sure enough, there appeared to be a bright, greenish light coming from somewhere deep within the cave.  

“Think we should investigate?” asked Trixie.

Spike stuck out his tongue, sniffing the air.  “I don’t hear any screaming or horrible sounds of death, and the air smells reasonably fresh.  Besides, we know Prince Macintosh is already in there and if there were traps or danger he would have triggered them.  So what do we have to lose?”

“Our lives?” answered Pinkie as she bounced into the cave.  Spike, Babs and Trixie looked at each other.  The dragon shrugged then they quickly followed.

“Why don’t you girls go ahead and check things out?” whispered Fluttershy nervously.  “I’ll stay out here and guard our escape route.”  Rarity opened her mouth to protest, but Dash interrupted her.  

“Good idea Flutters.  You can warn us if any Chasm Dragons show up?”

“C...C...Chasm dragons?” the yellow pegasus stuttered, her eyes widening.

“Yeah.  Big ones.  Claws like razors and teeth like spears.  You can warn us if one shows up.”

“Uh... um... Maybe on second thought I’ll stick with you guys.”  She swiftly galloped after the others.  Rarity looked at Dash, one eyebrow cocked higher than the other.

“Chasm dragons... really?”

“Yup.  Read about them in a book.”

“Not that cheesy fantasy series will all the bad puns?”

“Hey... I like puns.”  The two ponies followed the others into the cave.

Everypony except Pinkie was cautiously looking around, searching for the slightest hint of danger.  The party pony however was blithely bouncing along ahead of the others.  

“Isn’t that dangerous?  Letting her take the lead like that?” asked Spike.  

Trixie chuckled aloud.  “I wouldn’t worry.  The Pinkster has a kind of sixth sense, or is it seventh or eighth?” she mused aloud.  “Anyway, whenever anything weird, dangerous, or uncommonly goofy is about to happen, she gets a series of twitches that warn her.”

“I didn’t know earth ponies had that kind of magical ability.”

Rarity smiled at the dragon, making his heart thump a little more.  “All ponies have magic, darling.  It’s just that pegasi manifest it as flight and earth ponies’ magics are focused on plants, the environment, or in the case of Pinkie’s family, rocks.”

“I already knew that... I just didn’t know it could focus on anything so... ethereal.”

“Pinkie’s a natural for that sort of thing,” Trixie replied.  “After all... what’s more ethereal than laughter, or any emotion when you think about it.  You can feel it for a short time, then, poof, it’s gone, except for the memory of it.”

“And the memory is part of our spirit... flowing on after our physical forms have vanished,” Spike said.  “At least that’s what Zecora taught me.”

“She’s a fine Zebra,” the fashionista observed, “and a good soul.”

“I learned a lot from her.  She took me in and taught me after... after... Twilight...”  The adolescent dragon suddenly stopped and sniffed, running his forearm across his face to keep any tears from forming.  

Seeing this, Rarity turned and threw her forelegs across his shoulder, pulling him into a silent hug which she held for a moment or two.  When she let go, Spike’s cheeks were slightly flush, but he was smiling.  

“I’m sorry I didn’t have a chance to get to know your Twilight better.  In the short time we had together, she seemed like a knowledgeable and dedicated soul.”

“She was that,” Spike agreed.  His voice became very soft, so much so that only Rarity could hear him.  “What hurt most was I wasn’t there to help her when she needed me.”  His face suddenly tightened into something much grimmer.  “That’s not going to happen with Zecora!” he muttered.

The travelers went deeper into the cave, walking silently for several moments before coming to a stop.  “Say... is it my imagination or is that light suddenly getting brighter?” observed Babs.  

Pinkie responded by pulling an oversized pair of sunglasses out of her mane and plopping them over her eyes.  “Nope... it’s not your imagination.”  The others all shielded their eyes with their forelegs.  

“Interesting,” said Trixie.  “Light... but almost no heat.  It’s coming from just ahead, through that opening.  
“Do you think it’s safe to go in?” squeaked Fluttershy.

“That’s not the question we should be asking now,” Spike replied.  “The question is... What’s in there and where’s the Prince?”

“Well... There’s only one way to answer that,” replied Rainbow.  With that, she stepped through the opening.  The others looked at each other briefly, then followed.

To Be Continued...

> Chapter 11
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Big Mac looked intensely into the cave that opened before him.  The darkness that filled it felt neither foreboding nor inviting.  It was just there, along with the insistent, but weak tug he felt on his amulet.  Taking a calming breath, the stallion slowly crossed the threshold.  After taking about ten steps it became necessary to focus a light spell through his horn.  It was one of the simpler spells he’d been taught at magic kindergarten and within moments he found himself surrounded by a green aura that extended some fifteen paces ahead and around him.

Each hoof step echoed softly from the cave walls.  This was because the floor was, strangely enough, composed of earth which deadened the sound.  The others would have no trouble following him even in here.  

Deeper and deeper into the cavern he went.  There were no side tunnels, no abrupt turns to confuse the passageway, just a slow meandering path that eventually led to a back wall and one final opening.  It was easily large enough to accommodate three ponies walking abreast, thou a little too low for his horn.  

Dipping his head slightly, the alicorn prince passed through the portal and found himself in a gigantic cavern, the ceiling of which towered far above him.  Jewels of every kind and descripting were imbedded in the walls.  They picked up and reflected the light of his magic, giving the impression that they were stars in an eternal night sky.  Ahead of him, he saw an immense, pale white tree from whose branches dangled an array of gemstones, like fruit from an apple tree.  Oddly, he could see no leaves of any kind and except for the jewels, the tree appeared to be as bare as a winter maple. 

As he approached, the tug on his amulet seemed to be getting stronger.  He didn’t remember any stories Applejack had told him about a tree, but somehow he sensed it had something to do with the elements.  One other thing he noticed as he approached was that the base of the tree was entangled by a strange, black, thorny vine, like a weed that was slowly strangling a flower.  Where it touched the base of the tree the bark was an ashen-gray color.  The farmer within him immediately took offense at the intruding vine.  How dare it threaten a perfectly beautiful tree such as this?

Dropping his saddle bags on the ground, Big Mac quickly searched through one and pulled out a small hoof-axe.  He’d brought it along in the event they needed to camp during their journey.  Now, he had another purpose for it.  Tracing the vine to a point away from the tree roots, he braced himself and swung.  The axe, honed to razor sharpness and backed by the stallion’s enhanced strength, sliced effortlessly through the vine.  

There was a sudden hiss of movement and the vine suddenly lashed out at Big Mac, wrapping itself around the hoof that held the axe.  Startled, the farmer brought his free hoof down sharply on the offending plant.  It shattered, then pulled buried tendrils out of the ground surrounding the stallion.  Each one gripped him, ripping at his hide with its thorns.  Within moments he found himself entangled from all sides.   Pulling with all his might, he backed towards the white tree, physically yanking a number of tendrils apart like over-stretched rope.  Still, they reached for him, determined to stop his efforts to save the tree.  They grasped for his head, threatening his eyes.  Big Mac twisted his neck and in the process brought his horn in contact with one of the lower tree limbs.  

The world became a brilliant green.  Energy flowed like water out of the stallion’s Element of Courage, through him, into his horn and onward to the tree.  The vine suddenly began writing as if in pain.  Green fire consumed it and raced back into the ground from which the black plant had sprung.  Surprisingly, the fire only attacked the vine.  Big Mac was left untouched by the inferno that flashed before him.  He staggered slightly, trembling as the green energy continued to flow into the tree and out of him.  The world around him went gray and he dropped dizzily to his knees.  

When he opened his eyes a moment later, he could see the white tree standing tall before him.  It glowed with a greenish aura that radiated off every gem on every branch.  Slowly, the alicorn stood.  He looked down at his element and found it was still glowing, though not as brilliantly as before.  A soft, gentle voice whispered in his head.

“Thank-you.”

The alicorn didn’t look around.  Somehow, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the tree was speaking to him.

“In all my lives, across all my realms, I have never before seen one of your kind assume the mantle of courage.  You are the first.” 

“Yer realms?”

“Yes... I am Arual.  I am the Spirit of Harmony.  I exist in this form across all eleven of my realms.  What you would call parallel worlds.  Parallel Equestrias.  Yet in each I am one and the same.  One Arual, eleven worlds.  Aware and part of each world as each world is a part of me.”

“Ya destroyed that vine.”

“Yes, with your help.  Here, and on other realms, I have been struggling against it for centuries, able to do little more than hold it at bay without all my elements.  I had nearly drained the last of my power doing so, but then you arrived, bringing an element from another realm, one untainted by Discord’s evil plant.”

“Yer elements?”

“Yes... my Elements of Harmony.  I loaned them long ago to Celestia and Luna so they might be used to keep the world safe from chaos.  Unfortunately, on five of the realms, they failed to return them to me after defeating Discord.  I fear they can no longer hear me because they are not one with the elements.  Not that they ever did really hear me.  They are not good listeners.  You... are different.  You listen, and do not let words drown out what the world whispers to you.”

“Uh... thanks.”  The chamber became silent for several long moments.  Big Mac felt as if there were a presence within his mind, examining him silently, gently.  In other places and under other circumstances he might have been afraid, but not here, not now.

“Interesting.  I knew not that within your home realm Chaos has not only been tamed, but is now counted as a friend.  Truly, your world has achieved harmony... after a fashion.”

“Ya didn’t know?  Ah thought ya knew everything within all yer realms?”

“Where I am of full potency, my knowledge is deep and abiding.  Such is not the case upon some worlds, nor on this one.”

“Ah take it ya need the elements returned here as well.”

“Yes... but do not swear any oath to restore them to me, at least not until there is need.  You will know the time, just as all who hold the elements discover.”

“As ya wish.”

“I understand your need and will help you in your quest, but be warned, Chaos was mistaken when he told you to put this world back in parallel with your own.  That is not possible.  Not now, after so much change.  The best you can hope for is to restore the balance between Chaos and Harmony.  When that is accomplished, I can open a pathway for you between this world and your own.  Fail, and you will spend the rest of your life here, without those who love you.”

“Ah thought the worlds had to be in alignment.”

“None of them truly are.  Each has its nuances, its differences, and in the balance of Chaos and Harmony, such must always be true as measured against the Prime.  If they were all, exactly the same, there would be no hope, no individuality.  It is how Chaos best serves Harmony.”

Big Mac thought about it.  Each realm had to be different, unique, yet with shared elements that united them.  Elements such as Arual, and Discord.  His mind suddenly grasped an essential truth.  Discord or Chaos was as much a shared element between the worlds as the Tree of Harmony.   Which means each Lord of Chaos was aware of the others.  He wondered if the Discord of this world knew what the Discord of his world had been telling him.  It would explain why he had not heard from the draconequus for several days.

”Yes...” the tree whispered.  ”He does know.  You have very little time left with which to accomplish your task, so I will grant you what you need most, though the price will be heavy.  After that, it will be up to you and your friends.  Do you accept my gift?”

The stallion pondered what he’d been told.  Arual’s tone, more than anything gave away just how high the price might be.  Still, there were ponies who needed him, both here, and at home.  Prince Macintosh took a deep breath and turned to look directly at the tree.

“Eeeyup!”

The world burned green.

**********

Dash was the first to step into the chamber with the Tree of Harmony.  What she saw brought her up short, her mouth hanging open in shock.  The others crowded through the passage and joined her.  They too froze where they were, unable to fathom what they saw.  

Before them was Prince Macintosh, his body levitated several feet off the cavern floor.  He was surrounded by a brilliant aura of green energy, emanating from something on his plow collar.  Next to him, sheathed in a purifying white light was a bejeweled tree.  Arcs of energy passed back and forth the two figures casting insane shadows across the cavern.  

“What the buck’s happening?” yelled the cyan pegasus.

Trixie shook her head, clambering off of Babs’ back and standing shakily on her own hooves.  “I don’t know.  This isn’t like any kind of magic I’ve ever used, or seen for that matter.”

“What can we do?” asked Rarity, looking at the white maned magician.

“It doesn’t look like he’s in any pain.  We don’t know what’s happening so we don’t know whether it’s better to interrupt the spell or ride it out.”

“Well, I for one am not going to sit by and see a friend get zapped,” yelled Dash.  The pegasus leapt from the ground, intending to somehow tackle the alicorn and knock him away from the tree.  The next thing she knew, someone was holding her back by her tail.  She turned to see that Fluttershy had clamped her teeth on her multi-hued tail, and that both Rarity and Pinkie were anchoring the yellow pegasus, keeping her from going to Macintosh’s rescue.

“Let go you guys.  LET GO!  LET GO!  LET GGGGGG.... “   There was a sudden explosion of light and every pony was blasted back several feet.  When they recovered several moments later the light had vanished and the room thrown into near darkness, save for the soft, white glow from the tree.

“OOOHHH!  What just happened?” muttered Babs, picking herself off the cavern floor.  She looked up and saw every pony else was lying on the ground.  All, that is, save Big Mac.  Pulling herself back to her hooves she staggered over to her cousin.  He was sitting on his haunches, staring straight ahead at the tree.   His eyes were solid green in color.  

“Hey... Cousin... Are youse okay?”

As she watched, the stallion’s eyes slowly reverted to normal.  He shook his head then blinked several times before looking down at the smaller police pony.  She noticed that the front locks of his mane were streaked with white.

“Babs?  Are ya still here?  Are y’all still here?”  He shook his head again and looked at the others.  “It’s been so long... so long since Ah last saw ya.  Ah was afraid y’all had gone on without me.”

“We waited... Isn’t that what ya wanted us to do?”

“Eeeyup... but Ah didn’t think y’all would wait this long for me ta get back?”

“What’re youse talkin’ about, Mac?  Youse didn’t go anywhere.  Neither did we.”
“But ya did... Ah did... Ah’ve been gone a very long time.”

Worried, the mare looked at her cousin.  “How long?” she whispered.  “How long do you think youse were gone?”

“A lifetime... maybe two, or three.  A hundred years at least.”

A cold sliver of ice raced down Babs’ spine.  It wasn’t the expression on his face, a combination of confusion and cold certainty that frightened her.  No, it was her own internal sense of truth, of honesty, that scared her.  The mare looked at her cousin.  He was telling the truth.  But the truth was impossible.  
“How?” asked a voice behind her.  Babs turned to see Rarity was back up on her hooves once more.  The others were also awake and recovering quickly.  “How could you have been gone a hundred years?”

Big Mac looked at her.  A firmness came into his voice, one that banished the confusion and uncertainty that had existed moments before when he had ‘returned.’

“We don’t have time ta figure out how Arual did it.  All Ah know is she took me some... someplace where Ah was able ta learn how ta use ma alicorn powers properly.”  

“Who’s Arual?” asked Pinkie Pie.

The stallion nodded towards the tree, using his horn as a pointer. “She is.  The Tree o’ Harmony.”

“Wait a moment,” said Trixie.  “You weren’t out of our sight for more than about forty minutes.  It’s not possible to learn more than a single spell in that amount of time, let alone the hundreds that even an apprentice mage would know.” 

Mac looked at her quietly.  “Ah’m beginning ta understand that where there’s magic involved, impossible’s a word used as an excuse.”  To demonstrate, he spread his wings for all to see.  Just as Rainbow Dash had described they were festooned with splinters of wood.  The prince closed his eyes and focused, wincing briefly as green magic surrounded his wings.  He flicked them once, gently, and the splinters fell free.  The holes left behind quickly filled themselves in.  Big Mac sighed in relief as the pain vanished.

“Whoa... that is really cool,” muttered Rainbow Dash.  “Can you show me that trick?”

The stallion smiled ruefully.  “Only if ya’ve got a decade or two ta spare... and a horn.”  He looked at the others.  We’ve got ta go now.  Before... You-Know-Who gets here himself.  His Lieutenants are already in the castle above us.”

“How are we going to find these elements of yours and figure out how to use them with the castle under guard?” asked Spike.

“We can still get by ‘em and recover the Elements.  Arual showed me how.”   Big Mac turned and to everypony’s amazement easily scooped up his saddle bags and placed them on his back telekinetically.  He paused for a moment, looking at Trixie.  Pacing over to the blue furred unicorn mare, he closed his eyes and focused his magic.  There was a brief moment when she suddenly felt a tingling sensation through her back legs, then her braces fell apart.  To her astonishment, she found that her withered limbs could now support her weight.  

“The spell is only temporary,” Big Mac explained, “and should last a day or two.  But once we have access to the Elements, Ah’m certain it can be made permanent.”

“Wait... everything we’ve seen you do down here in the last few minutes had to take a lot of magic just now,” observed Rarity.  “Wouldn’t, You-Know-Who have detected it?”

The alicorn turned and smiled slyly.  “This chamber’s shielded from detection... and our foe believes the tree ta be incapacitated, at the very least.  He doesn’t know we found it, so he’s not even trying to find us in here, and that gives us an advantage.”

“What advantage?” asked Spike. 

“Surprise!”

To Be Continued.....

> Chapter 12
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

King Sombra slowly paced back and forth in front of the old castle, stopping periodically to watch as Queen Chrysalis ordered her minions to fan out and began their search of the grounds.  “If our draconequus master is right, then the alicorn and his party should be showing up sometime soon.  It’s been almost a day since they were seen at the old Ponyville depot.”

The queen of holes looked at Sombra.  “It’s almost poetic, don’t you think?”

“What is?”

“Well, the fact that just at the point where we have almost all of Equestria under our hooves, this Alicorn Prince suddenly appears to challenge us.”

Sombra chuckled.  “You heard our prisoner.  He may look like an alicorn, but he’s nothing more than a poor dirt farmer.  The wings... the horn... it all has to be an elaborate ruse”

“How can you be sure?” Chrysalis asked.

“Because, in all the long history of this land, there has never been an alicorn prince... not once.  Just look at his choice of companions.  A lame stage magician, a prostitute... a clown.  What kind of threat could they pose? ”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re jealous?” the queen replied sarcastically, licking her lips in amusement.  Envy had such a delicious flavor to it, and there was more than enough dripping off the armored unicorn mage to feed her for several days.  Best of all, he was so wrapped up in himself he couldn’t feel the subtle tug on his soul that accompanied any decent feeding... not that she needed it.

“Jealous?  Why would I be jealous of that red-furred buffoon?”

“Because he isn’t a fake.  He’s exactly what you wanted to be,” the queen replied, “what you were striving so hard to become a millennia ago; an alicorn stallion.  One who could dominate and mate with Celestia and Luna.  One that could rule all of Equestria as high king and emperor of the world.

Sombra glared at her.  “You know not of what you speak.  The Lord of Chaos rules this land.  It is best you do not forget that.”

“Oh, believe me, that’s the last thing I would ever forget.”  Chrysalis was interrupted in her taunt by one of the smaller changelings.  He quickly whispered something in her ear.  She smiled.  “Excellent.  Have a dozen roving guards patrolling the castle in two-pony teams.  I don’t want even a para-sprite to be able to get in or out.”

“Yes your majesty... and what of your collection?  Where would you like us to put it?”

“The throne room for the moment.  It seems an appropriate place... don’t you think?”

The changeling bowed.  “As you wish your highness.”  He turned and trotted away to carry out her orders.”

“I do not see why you insist on bringing that “collection” of yours everywhere you go.”

“Oh please... I shouldn’t have to explain myself to you.  Especially considering how much I know you like to gloat, yourself.”

Sombra opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by a small, wet drop splashing against his muzzle.  A second one struck him between the eyes.  “And here we go again,” he muttered, trotting over next to Chrysalis who was sheltering under a nearby tree.  Several more drops splattered against him before a full down pour inundated the surrounding land.  He took a deep breath, smelling the scent of chocolate milk as it rained down.  “You’d best make sure your servants don’t drink any of this rain.  It’s laced with brandy.”

“That is not a problem,” the queen replied, chuckling.

“What’s so funny?”

“Can you imagine what it must be like in Manehatten right about now?  Thousands of ponies standing in the rain, mouths open to the sky and all of them getting deliciously drunk.”

King Sombra shook his head.  “You are so bizarre sometimes...”

“Yes, I know,” she purred, taking yet another tiny sip of the unicorn’s frustration.

**********

“Does this cave go much farther?” asked Rarity, her horn glowing dimly in the blackness.  The ponies were all following Big Mac who led them, single-file, down a secret, winding passage under the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters.

“Nnnope.”  His own horn was lit up, casting a greenish-white light for all to see.  Trixie was also helping, though her light was a little dimmer being pale blue.  

Rainbow Dash walked immediately behind the stallion.  “You sure we’re going the right way?” 

“Eeeyup.”

After a few minutes the party came to the end of the passage.  Ahead of them was a solid wall of granite blocks.  “That looks like the foundation wall of a castle,” observed Spike.

“Eeeyup.”

“The Pony Sister’s castle?” asked Fluttershy.

“Eeeyup.”

“Ah hope youse know how to get in.”

Instead of answering the alicorn simply closed his eyes and focused.  His horn became brighter and as the others watched he traced it along the lines between the stones.  Everywhere his horn touched he left a glowing trail of light.  When he finished, he stepped back several paces and took a deep breath.
“AMICE!”

Big Mac’s voice echoed slightly.  For a brief moment there was silence, then the sounds of moving stones filled the passageway.  The stones individually slid apart leaving a pathway through the wall large enough for the stallion and his companions.  

“Whoa,” muttered Rainbow.  “That is so cool.”

Trixie looked up at the opening.  “Did your friend Arual show you this?”

“Eeeyup... after a fashion,” the stallion replied.   The others did not see him close his eyes and shudder for a moment.   “Come on,” he muttered forcefully, “we’re burnin’ daylight.”

Cautiously the ponies made their way into the ancient castle.  The wall sealed itself behind them as they looked around.

“These look... look like the dungeons,” Fluttershy observed nervously.

“Eeeyup.  We’ve got ta go through here ta get ta where we need ta be.”  As they walked Big Mac looked over at Spike.  “Ah noticed a guitar hanging on the wall at Zecora’s.  Was that yers?”

The dragon nodded.  “I practice with it sometimes, but I’m not very good... yet.”
“But ya do know how ta read music?”

“Sure,” Spike replied.  “Is it important?”

“It could be.”

The continued on into the castle.  As they rounded one corner, they unexpectedly heard the sound of a hissing chatter.  Big Mac signaled every pony to stop, then he and Spike peeked around the corner.  
There standing in the middle of the next hall were a pair of changelings, arguing with each other.  They pulled back and Spike put a finger to his lips.

Reaching into his shoulder bag, he pulled out three vials, one of which was empty.  He carefully uncorked the first two and sprinkled some of the contents of each into the third.  Capping them tightly, he quietly shook his new compound then peeked around the corner before tossing it with a gentle, underhand throw.  It shattered at the hooves of the changelings, producing a blue and pink cloud.  The hall was filled with the sound of coughing and then silence.  When everypony looked, the creatures were lying unconscious in the middle of the hall.  Both had been shrunk to something the size of humming birds.  Spike used his breath to burn away any residue of the powder on the floor, then picked up his victims and deposited them in a small mason jar which he dropped into his sack, after punching a few holes in the lid with his claws.  He grinned at the others.  

“Nice trick,” remarked Babs.

“Wasn’t much... just a few of Zecora’s powders mixed together in the right order.”

“Remind me to talk to her later about doing a magical cosmetics line.  I bet she could whip up something that would take the wrinkles off a Shar Pei.” Rarity said.

Rainbow responded by slapping a hoof to her face.

Turning several more corners, the ponies soon found themselves facing yet another blank, stone wall.  This time however Big Mac counted seven hoof-spans right of the wall’s center, then pressed in on a keystone.  A door opened in front of them leading into a long chamber, at the end of which sat an ornate calliope.  The stallion nodded to himself grimly, then went over to the left side of the instrument and pressed a panel.  A small door popped open, from which the alicorn withdrew a rolled up scroll.  Carefully, he unfurled it and placed it on the music rack, holding it in place with the stays on each end of the rack.  

“Can ya understand this, Spike?” Big Mac asked.

The adolescent dragon studied the scroll for a few minutes and nodded.  “This isn’t your typical sheet music,” he grinned.

“Nnnope... but then, this ain’t yer typical organ either.”

Trixie looked up at the alicorn.  “How do you know so much about this place?”

“When the Tree o’ Harmony was teaching me ta be an alicorn, it was doin’ it in here,” he replied.  “Or Ah should say in a dream-replica o’ this place.  The spell it used made it feel like Ah was haunting the castle fer more than a hundred years.  I got to know it pretty well.”  

“How on earth could the tree know so much about it?” asked Rarity.

“If ya stand quiet fer a few minutes, ya can probably feel the magic surrounding it.  Most o’ the spells used when it was built are still active, along with a lot of the preservation magic.  That’s why this organ still works, and why that scroll didn’t fall apart when Ah unrolled it.  The tree can sense and ‘read’ nearby magic.  That’s how it called ta me.”  

“That makes sense,” murmured Fluttershy.  “After all, the tree’s probably been here longer than the castle.”  The yellow pegasus looked at the stallion and noticed a lost... faraway look in his eyes.  
Realization suddenly dawned on her.  “You were trapped in here for what seemed like a hundred years... Alone?”

“Uh... Eeeyup,” he said softly.  “Except for Arual, and a few ghostly memories Ah was able ta conjure up and talk with ta keep me from goin’... crazy.”

The others looked at Big Mac for a few moments, silently processing what they’d heard.  

“Whoa,” muttered Rainbow.  “That’s... really... heavy.  I couldn’t imagine being alone for a week, let alone a hundred years.”

“Nottomentionbeingallaloneonaworldwhereyouwereneverbornandyouhavenorealfriends
orfamilyorlovedonestocomfortyou!” Pinkie Pie verbally machine-gunned. 

“Do we have ta talk about this... now?” the stallion asked uncomfortably, his tone carrying more than a little frustration.

“No,” replied Babs.  “What we’ve gotta do is find those Elements so’s we can get youse home to your world.”

“Right!” replied the others.

“So what’s the plan?” Spike asked.

“We know the castle is being patrolled by You-Know-Who’s minions.  So, we make them think it’s haunted.  Once they’ve evacuated, we should be able ta get ta the throne room where the elements are hidden.”

“OH?  OH!  You mean just like Nightmare Night!” observed Pinkie.

“But without the candy,” said Rarity.

The party pony’s face dropped several inches.  “AAAAAAWWWWWW!”

“So how do we do that?” asked Fluttershy.

“When the castle was first built, Princess Celestia oversaw the construction.  On ma world, she’s a bit of a practical joker, especially when it comes ta her sister, Luna.  With that in mind, she had a large number o’ traps, deadfalls, revolving floors, ceilings and walls, and a variety of ‘funhouse’ type gimmicks built inta the design.  The same is true here, and the calliope here is the control for them all.”

“So that’s why the music sheet’s full of key combinations and pictographs,” the dragon replied.
“Eeeyup... they’re the triggers for each gag.”

Spike scratched his head fin.  “So how do we know when to trip a particular trap?

“Just watch the music sheet.”  They all did for several moments.  Suddenly, one particular set of notes turned momentarily from black to gold, then faded.  “That was somepony walking within range o’ one of the traps.”

The adolescent dragon grinned wickedly.  “So all I have to do is wait until a set of notes lights up, then press the right keys.”

“Eeeyup.”

“This is going to be EPIC!” Rainbow Dash observed.

**********

Chrysalis sat in Celestia’s ancient throne, watching as her subjects moved five book cases worth of what looked like large snow globes into the room and set them up near the dais.  One of the changelings pulled out a feather duster and diligently began sprucing up each shelf.   

Looking around the queen quietly admired the level of magic required to build and preserve the wrecked castle.  Torn tapestries which should have fallen to pieces hundreds of years ago still hung from the walls as if waiting for some skilled weaver to repair them.  Dust and cobwebs could be seen around the room, but not at the levels one would have expected for close to a thousand years of neglect.  

Chrysalis knew the story of Celestia’s battle with Luna.  The pain of having to banish her sister must have indeed been great, for she had abandoned the castle, lock, stock and barrel and moved her court to what had originally been the summer palace at Canterlot.   She looked forward to her minions finding the library.  If the preservation spells held as well there as they had the rest of the ruined structure, she would have access to knowledge that had been forgotten a thousand years ago.  Knowledge she did not intend to share with anyone.  

She was interrupted in her reverie by the sound of a startled cry that was abruptly cut off.  The queen looked around, but could see nothing of the changeling servant who’d been tending her collection, except, that is, for the feather duster that now lay abandoned in the middle of the floor.  Rising from Celestia’s old throne, she called for the two guards who were just outside the chamber.  When there was no response, she went to check on them, only to discover they too were missing from their post.  

“What is going on here?”  Even as she began searching for her minions Chrysalis had the feeling there was no pony around to answer her question.

Outside, King Sombra was standing on the west side of the castle.  A number of pegasus reinforcements from his own personal guard had arrived and he was in the process of organizing them into airborne reconnaissance teams.  No pony would be able to approach the castle undetected with them flying around.  

Without warning, a rectangular section of wall began spinning at an insane rate.  From it, half-a-dozen changelings were suddenly ejected, like watermelon seeds being spit from some hungry pony’s mouth.  They landed all over the place with one, actually coming to rest at his hooves.  He watched as the creature shakily stood on its hooves.

“What happened?  What are you doing out here?” he demanded.  The minion replied in its own, strange, rasping chitter.  

“Speak normally, you half-insect.  You know I can’t understand your hive tongue.”

“Haunted,” the changeling whined.  “Castle haunted.  Pulled this one into wall.  Spun around till dizzy and spat this one out.  Hive brother chewed up by castle.  Vanished... no more!  Castle haunted... hungry.  Warn Queen Chrysalis.”  

“IDIOT.” Sombra growled.  “It’s no more haunted than my own palace.  GET UP and get back to...”  
CRUNCH!  The Shadow King suddenly found himself knocked head over hoof as yet another changeling was hurled from one of the castle towers only to crash face first into the sorcerous unicorn.  

“HIVE BROTHER!  Not consumed in small piece are you!” responded the first changeling joyously.

Angrily, Sombra shook the changeling off his back and turned to look at the castle.  Over the course of the next few minutes he saw two dozen or so changelings ejected from the castle through windows, doors, the roof and numerous other locations.  The air was filled with their frightened chittering.  Several of them banded together in small, fearful groups.  After quickly consulting with each other, several of these bands rose into the sky, circling the castle like frightened bats.  One or two spiraled off the main group and headed off over the Everfree.

“FOOLS!” the witch king yelled.  “Get back here... Your queen is still inside!  You MUST defend her!”

Only a few of the frightened changelings responded, spinning off the main swarm to land next to Sombra.  “Where queen...?  Where Chrysalis?” they hissed.

“INSIDE,” the unicorn growled.  “She’s in the castle... Go to her... Find her.”  

Even as he spoke the air suddenly crackled with a discharge of magical energy.  A greenish sphere of energy exploded in the upper branches of a nearby tree, shattering limbs and sending fragments of wood spinning outward in a cloud of shrapnel.  Sombra barely managed to raise a barrier of chrystal between himself and the blast.  A number of changelings were not so lucky as they were pin-cushioned by splinters.  

The witch king looked up in the tree only to find a confused and angry Chrysalis glaring back at him from the charred and smoking branches.  “What happened?” 

“YOU TELL ME!” the queen spat back angrily.  “As far as I can tell the castle is fighting us.”

“How?”

“I don’t know,” Chrysalis hissed.  “Maybe we set off a general protection spell... maybe the castle has a guardian entity we’ve awoken.  All I know is one minute I’m standing outside the throne room and the next I’m in a tree.”

“Could it be him... the Alicorn Prince?”

“Impossible... unless you were fool enough to let him get by you.”

“No pony passed this way save our own servants.”  Sombra replied.  “We need to go back inside and find the source of this defense as well as the Elements.  They cannot be allowed to fall into his hooves."

“Be my guest...” Chrysalis hissed as she lifted herself from the tree and touched down next to the unicorn.  “It’s your turn to go explore the castle.  I’ll stay out here and rally my children.  They’re frightened and need my strength.  Maybe you and your ‘better’ half will have more luck."

“Insolent cow!” Sombra sneered, turning away from the queen.   He signaled his guards to form on him.  Pausing for a moment, he focused energy through his horn.  Both it, and his eyes turned reddish-black.  “Meet me in the grand ball room,” he whispered within his mind.  The King of Shadows waited until he received a confirming murmur before leading his pegasi guards into the castle. 

To be continued...

> Chapter 13
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Spike studied the music sheet.  “It’s been quiet for almost fifteen minutes now.  Do you think they’ve all left the castle?”

“The first wave... maybe.  But we’re a long way from frightening off somepony like King Sombra or Chrysalis.”  Big Mac thoughtfully rubbed the back of his neck.  “Ah don’t want ta rush in quite yet, but somehow Ah have a feeling this may be our best opportunity.  The elements ain’t difficult ta find if ya look for ‘em in the right place.  Unfortunately, that right place is fairly obvious.”

“Meaning the throne room.”

Everypony turned and looked at Pinkie Pie.  “What?  It’s kind of the best place, isn’t it?  I mean, that’s where I’d put them.”

“Eeeyup.  And we can’t afford ta let HIM get his claws on ‘em.”

“So how do youse want to proceed?” asked Babs.

“Thanks ta Arual, Ah probably know this place better than any pony here, so Ah’d be the best one ta lead a wild goose chase.  With Spike operatin’ the calliope, Ah can lead ‘em inta pretty much every trap they haven’t found yet and keep ‘em away from the throne room.”

“Meanwhile,” Trixie said, “the six of us would retrieve the Elements of Harmony.”

“But if Prince Macintosh isn’t there to show us how they work, what good would that be?” murmured Fluttershy.

“That’s somethin’ y’all have ta figure out for yerselves.  That’s the only way ta get the magic ta work the way it should.

“Isn’t there any kind of clue you could give us?” asked Rarity.

“The only thing Ah can tell ya is somethin’ ma world’s Twilight knew goin’ in ta the castle, and that’s the followin’: ‘The sixth element will appear when the first five are revealed.”

“Well, that’s pretty cryptic,” observed Rainbow Dash

“Maybe not,” said Trixie.  “It does give me an idea.”

The alicorn trotted over to a sconce imbedded in a nearby wall. Reaching up he pulled it down.  A section of wall dropped away revealing a passageway that sloped upward.  “This will take ya straight ta the throne room.  Y’all will find a recessed stone at the end of the passage that opens the wall there.”

The ponies looked at each other for a moment, then abruptly gathered around Big Mac and gave him a group hug.  “Stay safe... cousin,” muttered Babs.

“Where’s my hug,” grumbled Spike to himself.  He stiffened when Rarity unexpectedly came over and gave him a kiss on the cheek and ruffled his crest.  His face turned crimson and he smiled, a bedazzled look in his eyes.

“You too,” Rarity whispered.  “Be safe.”

“The six ponies went into the passage, Trixie in the lead.  

“Good luck.  See ya on the other side o’ the rainbow,” the alicorn said as he closed the secret door behind them.  He then turned back towards Spike.  The adolescent dragon was gazing off into space, his eyes glazed.

“Ya alright?”

“Yeah... I’m great,” he muttered dreamily, holding one hand to his cheek.

Big Mac chuckled to himself.  The more things changed, the more they stayed the same.  “If y’all done pinin’ fer yer true love, we’ve got work ta do.”

“What... oh, yeah... sure,” the dragon replied pulling himself out of his stupor.  “One question...  How am I going to know which traps you want me to trigger?   I assume you’re going to be galloping all over the castle.

In response, the alicorn gently touched his horn to Spike’s crest.  There was a brief spark of electricity.  “Whoa... what was that?”

“That was me makin’ a connection between the two o’ us,” Big Mac said, his voice echoing eerily in the dragon’s head.  

“You mean I can read your mind?”

The stallion shook his head.  “No, but Ah can send ya messages, letting ya know where Ah am and which traps Ah want ya ta set off.  Unfortunately, it’s one way only.”

“Cool.  Between the two of us, You-know-who and his lackeys won’t know what hit them.”

“That’s the idea,” Big Mac grinned.  

********** 

Sombra’s small legion consisted of about two dozen pegasi, all dressed in black armor and sporting gray fur with white manes and tails.  This last was due to a glamour he’d placed on the armor.  If there was one thing the witch king disliked, it was a lack of uniformity amongst his guards.  They followed him, four abreast, as he began a systematic search of the castle.  His plan was simplicity itself.  Search out the library, where he would undoubtedly find blueprints of the fortress, then explore, it room by room, until he discovered where the Elements of Harmony were hidden.  Once he had them in hoof that alleged alicorn prince would be helpless against his master.  

They were heading in the general direction of the throne room when Sombra suddenly heard an odd sound behind him.  He halted and turned only to see a large, green sphere of energy rolling down the passageway straight towards him.  It looked, and oddly sounded like a bowling ball, except a hundred times as big.  The unicorn called a warning to his guards and dove out of the way.  Unfortunately, being in formation his guards had no time to turn or avoid the threat.  Seconds later the sphere collided with them, knocking them all aside like ten pins.  An instant after passing, the “bowling ball” vanished with an audible pop.  

The witch king looked down the hallway to see the grinning face of an orange and green male zebra.  The creature rose onto its back legs and used its forelegs to make an obscene and very insulting gesture before galloping off to the left.  Sombra fired a magical blast with his horn, but missed, turning part of the doorframe to black chrystal.  

“Don’t just lie there you fools,” he yelled at his guards.  “After him!”  All but two of the pegasi leapt to their hooves and either charged or flew off in pursuit.  The two remaining guards, who were unconscious, were unceremoniously shoved over to one side of the hall by the unicorn before he too galloped away following his soldiers.

As he raced off Big Mac stepped out from behind one of the old tapestries.  Moving quickly and quietly, he trotted over to the guards, scooped them up with his magic and walked briskly over to a nearby window.  He dumped the pegasi into the moat just outside.  The cold water shocked them back to consciousness.  They paddled around for a moment or two, confused, before suddenly slapping at the water and climbing over each other in a desperate sprint for the far bank.  Scrambling out, they both began dancing and rolling around in the dirt, trying to dislodge the dozen or so fiddler crabs that had latched onto their wings, tails, and other extremities.   Prince Macintosh calmly watched them for a moment, then returned to the task at hand. 

The captain of Sombra’s guard hung back waiting for the king to catch up with him.  “Who was that, sire?  We’ve been warned to be alert for a red-furred stallion dressed as an alicorn as well as his ‘harem,’ but nothing was said about a zebra.”

“An ally perhaps, or just an interloper trying to find the secrets of this castle for himself.  It doesn’t matter.  When you catch him... he dies, understood?”

“Yes, sire.”  The pegasus surged ahead to join the rest of the guard, but came to an unexpected stop as he rounded a corner.  The hallway had come to a stop, ending in what appeared to be a blank wall.

“Where is he?” the captain demanded.

“We don’t know, sir.  We were close enough behind him that we know he didn’t duck into any of the rooms along the passageway, but when we rounded this corner, he was just... gone.”

“He couldn’t have vanished.  Check the walls for a hidden door or panel of some kind.”  

“Yes, sir!”  Seven of them began checking every square inch of the wall.  After a few moments one stallion signaled the Captain.

“What have you got?”

Without a word, the guard pressed the corner of one stone.  A door suddenly and silently slid open, revealing a darkened chamber beyond.  “I think this leads into one of the towers, sir.”

Sombra cantered up, joining the Captain.  He gestured to some unlit torches lining one wall of the corridor.  These immediately burst into flame.  Several pegasi reached for them and, trotting slowly on three legs carefully passed through the door.  After a moment or two the other guards followed.  The witch king held himself back, waiting for an all clear from the Captain.

The ponies looked around the chamber.  It was composed of circular wood paneling with no windows or obvious doors and was about forty feet across.  A ceiling of wooden beams could be seen about fifteen feet above them.  No stairs or openings could be seen leading upwards. 

“What is this place?” one soldier muttered.

“Don’t know,” whispered a second.  “It ain’t a guard room or dungeon.  There ain’t no furniture here... maybe it’s supposed to be a store room.”

“Maybe,” the captain said cautiously.  He turned to look at Sombra.  “Sire?”

Without warning an iron door slammed down, blocking the only exit and separating the King from the guards.  

“It could be a trap,” offered one of the pegasi.  The captain responded by slapping his hoof over his face and groaning.  There was a slight, but definite drop as the whole floor shifted.  A moment later a vibration began to build.  There was a sensation of movement and the entire room began shuddering, faster and faster.  The ponies could all feel the air around them begin to move in a centrifugal pattern.  Within seconds they were sliding across the floor.

The captain found himself pinned against the chamber’s wall, pressed flat with his wings spread against the force.  He found he could only look around by moving his eyes.  Every pony in his squad was plastered against the wall.  The floor dropped away leaving them suspended like insane silhouettes on wallpaper. 

“Hey...” yelled one guard, a foolish smile on his face.  “This isn’t so bad.  I think I was on a ride like this at Corny Island in Manehatten.”

“Cyclone... You are an IDIOT!” yelled another.

“I’m getting dizzy,” whined a pegasus on the wall opposite the captain.

“It’ll be okay,” hollered Cyclone.  “Just as long as no pony gets sick”  

“BLEEERGGHHH!”

“....Or has a weak bladder!”

“SHUT UP CYCLONE....  BEFORE I DRAG MYSELF OVER THERE AND STRANGLE YOU!” the Captain bellowed.   He could barely be heard over the yells of the other pegasi.

The room continued to spin for another minute, then a panel suddenly opened behind two of the guards, sucking them out of the room before they had a chance to even blink.  Seconds later, another panel opened and three more guards vanished.  They continued disappearing individually or in groups of two or three.  Cyclone vanished, then several moments later the wall behind the Captain disappeared.  He found himself blasted up a spiral tunnel and out through a turreted roof hatch.  

It took the pegasus captain what seemed like an eternity before he could stabilize his flight, just in time to plow face first into an open pasture and slide through a run-down, rail fence.  When he uncrossed his eyes, he found himself buried up to his muzzle in some farmer’s pig pen.  Judging from what he knew of the area, it had to be at least fifteen miles from the castle.  

An earth pony wearing a straw hat cantered up to the fence.  “You okay there fella?”

“Fine,” the captain waved a hoof weakly over his head.  “I’m just gonna take a little nap here if that’s alright with you.”  He then passed out.

**********

Following the passageway, it took almost no time at all for the six mares, led by Trixie, to find their way into the ancient throne room.  

“Will you just look at this place?” Rarity muttered to the others as they looked around.  “It’s bad enough that the rotunda is split wide open and the tapestries are shredded, but it doesn’t look like anyone’s swept or dusted in here for a couple hundred of years.”

“Closer to a millennium,” observed Babs.  “Ain’t youse ever studied Equestrian history?”

“Fashion history, yes, but little of the mundane sort.”

The police pony gestured across the chamber with her forehoof.  “This is where Princess Celestia fought Nightmare Moon, then banished her from Equestria.”

“I remember the story,” said Fluttershy.  “Prince Macintosh said that on his world, Nightmare Moon was really Celestia’s sister... Luna.  She was so broken hearted over having to send her own sibling away, she just abandoned the castle and moved her court to Canterlot.”

“I’ve heard part of that,” remarked Rarity, “but nothing about the Nightmare being her sister.”  

“Heavy!” replied Rainbow Dash.  “So she just left the Elements of Harmony here... unguarded?”

“They might not have been completely unprotected,” said Trixie.  “With all the stories of the Lost Castle of the Two Pony Sisters being haunted, there might have been some kind of magical guardian hanging about.”

“Now you sound like you’re describing a Daring Do adventure.  If there were such a thing... how come he didn’t take care of the Queen of Holes and King Somnambulist?” asked Rainbow.

“Maybe they didn’t alert the guardian?” Trixie offered.

“The question is, how do we find the Elements and not wake up this guardian ourselves,” said Babs.

“Oh I know, I know!” grinned Pinkie Pie as she bounced up and down.

“Alright, how?” asked the cyan pegasus.

“We distract him by throwing him a party.”

“Pinkie, darling, a party isn’t the solution to every problem,” chided Rarity.  “What good would it do?"

“Don’t know... but it couldn’t hurt,” the party pony grinned.

“I think we should save the party for later,” Fluttershy added.

“AAAWWWW!”

“Hey guys,” called Rainbow.  “Check this out.”  They all trotted over to a small alcove where the pegasus was standing.  

“My word... muttered Rarity.  Standing before them were half a dozen ornate trophy cases, each with five glass shelves.  On the shelves rested almost a hundred miniature, highly detailed statuettes.  Each was contained in a chrystal sphere resembling a snow globe, but without the water or faux snow.  The smallest stood about an inch high while the largest stood about seven and a half inches.  All were carved from marble and were perfectly proportioned to each other.  There were ponies, unicorns, pegasi, griffons, minataurs, one dragon, much larger than the rest and a variety of other species.  There were even two alicorns, standing together in the same globe.

“These look like Princess Celestia and Nightmare Moon,” said Trixie. 

“How about this crazy looking one...” giggled Pinkie.  “It looks like a snake with a pony head, mismatched arms, legs, wings, horns... just about anything you can think of.”  The party pony looked over at her friend.  “Fluttershy, you’re good with animals.  What is that?”

“I don’t know,” the yellow pegasus whispered.  “It might be a chimera.”

“Whatever it is, this is one wild collection,” observed Rainbow.  “I wonder how it got here.  It doesn’t match any of the other furniture.

“Alright everypony,” Babs announced.  “Enough sight-seeing.  Prince Macintosh thinks the Elements are somewhere in here.  It’s time we got searching.”  

The six mares began examining every nook and corner they could think of, searching for some clue as to the lost elements.  Several long minutes passed, but with no luck.  They were interrupted in their search when the sky outside the window suddenly took on a sparkling, greenish glow.  Every pony paused and looked.  The entire castle was surrounded by a green sphere, like a fishbowl had been upended over it.  Through it they could see a number of changelings buzzing around in frustration, accompanied by Chrysalis.

“What is this?” asked Babs.

“A shield spell,” said Rarity.

“And a very powerful one,” Trixie added.  “Looks like our prince is giving us time to search.  We’d better step it up some.”

Everypony nodded and they quickly renewed their search.  Trixie went up on the dais where the two wrecked thrones stood and looked around.  She suddenly paused, focusing on an ornate, stylized compass rose that rested at the foot of the platform.  Oddly enough, she could swear it was pointing perfectly north.  If the castle had been built more than a thousand years ago, then the compass markings should be several degrees off, if one took magnetic drift into account. 

“Girls... I think I’ve found something.”    

To be continued...
> Chapter 14
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	King Sombra stood for a moment, not quite believing his guards had just walked into some kind of trap.  Lowering his head, he cast a spell at the door, anticipating it would open.  Instead, the spell rebounded and the door remained closed.  He cursed silently under his breath.  Of course his spell wouldn’t work.  The door was made of cold iron.  He would have to think of another way of opening it.  He paused for a moment and listened.  Aside from a slight vibration he could feel in his hooves, the unicorn could hear nothing through the door.

“Most ponies knock before entering someone’s home, but I suppose your sire didn’t raise you to think of such courtesies.”

The witch king turned.  There at the far end of the hall was the same strangely colored zebra they’d been chasing.  
“Who are you?” the unicorn growled.

“You’ve gotta catch me if you want to know that.”  The annoying pony charged off, back the way he’d come.  Sombra galloped after him.  When he reached a turn in the hall the unicorn could still see his opponent some distance ahead.  He cast another spell, turning the floor beneath the zebra’s hooves to slick, smooth chrystal.  However, instead of sliding head-first into a wall  the creature stopped, stuck out his tongue and gave Sombra a loud, irritating razz-berry before cantering around another the next corner.  

The unicorn smiled to himself and did not pursue.  He had noticed that the ‘zebra’ had cast no reflection in the chrystal.  It had to be an illusion, and for an illusion to work, the spell-caster had to be within line of sight.   

“Coram oculis ultra.”  A bright flash filled the hallway.  Every nook and cranny, every possible hiding place was instantly revealed to the witch king.  Nothing.  Despite the power of his spell he saw nothing.  No opponent, no threat, no target on which to focus his growing frustration.  Scowling, he turned and galloped back to the iron door, never once looking directly up.

From his perch in the rafters Big Mac watched Sombra run back the way he’d come.  The stallion nodded silently to himself.  He saw what he’d been expecting, what he’d been hoping for.  It seemed there were many things about this world that were identical to his own.  The unicorn has shown him a weakness he could exploit.  He launched himself and spread his wings, careful not to let them brush against anything that could cause even the smallest noise.  It only took a few seconds to silently spiral to the floor.  

The alicorn looked around for something useful.  He quickly spotted a particular bit of furnishing that might just help him.  He peeked around the corner just enough to see that Sombra’s attention was focused on the iron door.  Using his magic, he positioned the accouterments near the turn in the hallway, then cast a pair of simple spells.  

Focused as he was on the door, Sombra felt, more than heard a presence behind him.  He turned and saw once more the illusionary zebra as it walked boldly into the hall and stood next to a window.  

“Hey... Yer Majesty... How’d ya bend yer horn up like that?  Run inta too many walls face first?” the Zebra taunted.  

The witch king scowled for an instant, but as he glared passed the illusion he suddenly saw the reflection of a red-furred alicorn in a mirror just where the hallway turned.  He twisted, as if to face the zebra, then suddenly lowered his head and cast a powerful spell, aiming it to reflect off the mirror and paralyze the figure just beyond.  In an instant, the mirror, the door, and everything within twenty paces of it was encased in solid crystal.  

Sombra smiled and trotted forward to make sure his intended target was thoroughly immobilized; triumphantly striding past the illusionary zebra in the process.  The unicorn started and abruptly whirled, realizing his mistake too late.  A pair of hooves nailed him in the face, snapping off his horn and sending him flying into the far wall.  

The zebra vanished, revealing a bemused Big Mac.  There wasn’t anything quite as satisfying as a good old fashioned Apple family double-hooved buck.  The alicorn looked down at the figure lying on the floor.  A black, bone ring lay next to the pony’s head, spinning on edge after having fallen off what was left of his horn.  He felt a slight pang of guilt over the broken horn, remembering back to Prince Blueblood, but knew that given time it would grow back.  The crystal spells that had been cast about the room evaporated into nothingness.

Taking a step forward, Big Mac crushed the bone ring under his hoof.  There was a wail of anger and frustration and a black cloud of ash exploded upward bearing the witch king’s face.  The farmer paused to look at the unconscious unicorn, half expecting to see Celestia’s troublesome nephew once more.  Surprisingly, though white, this pony was much lankier and sported a red mane and tail and a barber’s blue and white striped vest.  It took the alicorn a moment before he remembered where he’d seen him before.  In that instant, something struck Big Mac hard in the back. 

The blow was enough to catapult him into a nearby wall.  Momentarily stunned, he sagged to his hooves and shook his head, trying desperately to clear it.  He struggled to swing around, his limbs and barrel suddenly becoming quite heavy and hard to move.  Twisting his neck, he was able to see he was now half embedded within a chrystal coating.  It rapidly climbed his neck, trapping him as it spread across the rest of his body.  Within seconds, he was fully encased, though he was still able to see and hear through the transparent, black sheath.  A long, evil laugh echoed down the hall, followed by a shadow that materialized from the darkness.  The farmer’s eyes went wide when he saw that it was Sombra.  

“I have not survived a thousand or more years without learning a few tricks, Princeling.”  The king’s tone was jeering and he smiled at Big Mac wickedly.  “True, your alicorn magic trumps any other pony’s in this world, but you are a mere novice when compared to one such as me.  Power is best served by knowledge, and that is something you sadly lack.”  The witch king triumphantly paced around the red-furred stallion.  “Now, the only thing left to do is find and gather up your friends and the elements before they can be turned against us... Not that they have much of a chance of figuring them out without your help.”  

*********

“Look at this,” Trixie motioned to the others.  They quickly gathered around the blue-furred unicorn.  

“What is it?” asked Fluttershy.

“The symbol on the floor... it’s not right,” the mare mage said excitedly.

“I’ll say it’s not.” Rarity replied.  “Rococo is so old school... I would have expected the princesses to have had something that would match the décor much better, like an early Baroque.”   

“If it’s not Baroque... why fix it?” Pinkie chanted with a grin.	

“That’s not what I meant,” groaned the fashionista.

“That’s not what Trixie meant either.  Trixie means look at the compass rose.  It’s pointing north.”

“So?” asked Babs.

“When this place was built, magnetic north was over there.”  The mage aimed a hoof about sixteen degrees to the left. 

Rainbow wrinkled her nose.  “So the compass spins... so what?” 

“If this part of the floor moves, there has to be some kind of mechanism underneath.  Add the fact it’s located right at the base of the thrones.  Now imagine you’re an all-powerful alicorn princess.  You live in a somewhat chaotic world.  Where would you put your most powerful magic?”

Babs patted her concealed sidearm.  “Where I can get to it... fast.”

Fluttershy gasped.  “Then this must be...”

“...Where the elements are hidden,” Pinkie finished in her sing-song voice.  

“Quick,” said Rainbow, “Look around.  There has to be a switch or button or something here.”

All six ponies spread out and began searching.  Tapping her chin thoughtfully, Trixie looked around, then cautiously climbed the steps of the dais.  If the triggering mechanism for the elements was here, then it might be booby-trapped itself to prevent any accidental discovery of the secret.  She wasn’t absolutely certain this was the answer, but it did make more than a little sense.  She glanced up through the shattered dome and saw two dozen changelings pounding against the green shield above.  She and her friends didn’t have much time to waste examining the room.   

The mage quickly examined the two thrones.  Each were identical except for the symbol emblazed on the back rest.  One was that of the sun, while the other was the moon.  Each had a set of raised jewels along the arms, green, blue, red, amber and orange.  Carefully, Trixie pressed on the green gem.  Nothing happened.  She had the same result when she tested the others.  Pausing for a moment, she considered the set-up, then abruptly sat down in what would have been Celestia’s throne.  A thick cloud of dust billowed out of the cushion as it practically disintegrated beneath her rump.  She coughed for a moment or two, then pressed down on the first green gem.  Still nothing.  

“What the hay are you doing?” asked Rainbow Dash.  “Looking for a promotion to princess?”

“No... Trixie’s... I mean I’m trying to puzzle out that compass rose.”

“Youse look kinda ridiculous sitting on a throne that’s way too big for you,” Babs observed.

The mage’s eyes widened as a thought came to mind.  “You’re right!  I do!”  She looked over at Rarity.  “You’ve got a good eye... How much bigger would you say Celestia was compared to me?”

“Well, judging from some old fashion photos I once had, She was about three times the average pony’s size.”

“Good.  Now would you come up here and sit on my lap?” Trixie asked.

“I beg your pardon...  But a lady never would sit in anypony’s lap, unless that pony were her special some pony.”

“Please,” Trixie asked, “I’m trying to figure something out.  Would you just sit in my lap.”

“Well,” responded Rarity, “if you really think it would help....”  She gracefully trotted over and after a few false starts, delicately sat atop Trixie.  

“Now for you, Dash.”

“No way am I going to sit there... What do take me fore, a filly fooler?”

The mage sighed.  “I don’t take you for anything other than a few extra pounds.  Now get down here!”

Reluctantly, Rainbow joined the other two, hovering a foot or two above them before abruptly folding her wings and plopping loudly into Rarity’s lap.

“OOOFF!... Rainbow, was that really necessary?” the fashionista complained.

“No... but it was fun,” the pegasus grinned.  She looked back at Trixie.  “Now what?”

“Hold on... I’m not sure what will happen.”  The white maned pony pressed firmly on the green gem.  There was an audible click and a panel opened in the wall behind the two thrones. 

“Oh... that looks like a secret passage,” said Rarity.  “Probably so the princesses could escape the pressures of court.”

“Maybe.”  Trixie pressed the blue gem.  The door behind them slid closed.  Next she tried the red jewel.  Again, there was loud click and both thrones rotated towards each other.  “I’m guessing this was so Luna and Celestia could talk to each other face to face during the royal court”  Pressing the gem a second time rotated the seats to face the front of the throne room.  

“This doesn’t seem to be getting us anywhere,” Rainbow Dash complained

“No, it doesn’t, but as they say, third times the charm.”  Trixie pressed firmly on the orange gem.  The entire dais abruptly shuddered and a grinding sound, like massive stones rubbing against each other filled the chamber.  The compass rose in front of the throne dropped about half a foot, startling Babs and Fluttershy who were both standing on it.  They leapt clear, then watched as the massive disc split in half and opened up, revealing a deep, dark pit.  All six ponies gasped as a great, copper-sheathed orrery rose until it towered above them all. 

There was a metallic clank, and the device started moving, spinning its brindled arms about in a slow, methodical dance.  The copper was streaked with tarnish and age, but the mechanism seemed to work to perfection.  

“Will you look at that!” muttered Rarity.  “The thing’s positively filthy.”  She climbed off Trixie’s lap along with Rainbow.  The three mares stood around the device and watched it move hypnotically.  

“That’s not as important as what’s up there,” said Fluttershy, pointing with her hoof.  The other mares looked.  Mounted at the end of each of the arms was a spherical stone.  

“Are those...?” asked Babs.

“They might be,” replied Dash.  “Come on... Let’s get a closer look.  With that the pegasus pony moved in toward the orrery, hovering less than a foot from stone.  “Hey, this one has a diamond carved on the stone!”

“And this one has a cloud with a lightning bolt,” said Fluttershy, joining Rainbow in her hover.  “I think these are our cutie marks.”

Pinkie Pie giggled.  “Hey Babs... I think I see one with a badge on it... It must be yours.”

“So howse do we get ‘em down off that contraption?” the police pony asked.

Trixie stepped forward and studied the mechanism for several moments, then smiled.  “Trixie has this.”  She closed her eyes and concentrated.  Her horn began glowing as each of the stones was enveloped by the same glow.  Pushing her magic, she tripped a release catch on the arms of the orrery.  There was a ratchetty, metallic clank and the stones floated free.  The orrery slowed to a stop and each orb gently floated down to the base of the dais where the blue furred mage lined them up.  Sure enough, every stone had a matching symbol for five of the six ponies.  There was, however, nothing showing a moon and wand on it. 

“Gee... Where’s yours Trixie?” Asked Pinkie.  “How come you don’t get one?”

“I... I’m not sure.   Maybe Trixie’s is hidden somewhere else.  Maybe...”  She stopped talking when a sharp, almost deafening crackling sound filled the room.  Everypony looked up.  Above them the green shield seemed to be slowly fracturing even as the changelings continued to pound on it.  

“Whoa.... I think it’s time to go!” the mage yelled.  Whirling, she grabbed a heavy vase and started to drag it towards Celestia’s throne.  Seeing her strain, Rarity added her own telekinesis to the effort and together they levitated it into the Sun Goddess’ seat.  Trixie slapped at the green gem and the hidden door behind the thrones abruptly slid open once more.

“Come ON!” she cried.  “Grab the stones.  It’s time we made our exit.”  As one, all six ponies galloped for the door.

To Be Continued...
> Chapter 15
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Just as they ducked into the doorway the shield above them finally shattered.  Green energy evaporated, drifting away on the breeze and the changelings dove for the open dome of the throne room.  Trixie turned and faced Celestia’s throne.  Her horn glowed brilliantly and the massive vase sitting there was shoved off it.  It fell onto its side and rolled down the steps of the dais, taking out two of Chrysalis’ minions.  The blue-furred mage then used her telekinesis to push the blue gem, slamming the secret door shut before any of the changelings were quite able to figure out what had happened.  

“Well,” gasped Rarity, “that was a rather narrow escape.”

“Yeah, but where are we now?” Babs asked.  

“If I know my Daring Do books,” Rainbow offered, “Then this passage leads either to the kitchen, a dungeon, or Celestia’s royal suite.”

“Well, we certainly won’t find out sitting around on our flankity-flank-flanks,” Pinkie Pie suggested.  “Let’s go.”  She began bouncing ahead of her friends humming to herself.

“Not so loud,” warned Trixie.  “The passageway echoes something fierce.  We need to be really quiet.”

“Okie Dokie Loki,” the party pony whispered drawing a zipper across her lip.  The ponies all stared in amazement, all except for Trixie.  She smiled and looked at the others.

“She’s always doing that sort of stuff,” the mare said with a rueful smile.  “Get used to it.”

The passage proved to be somewhat long and it was almost ten minutes before they reached its end.  Examining the wall closely, Trixie found a small lever that was not particularly well hidden.  She listened at the door for a moment, then carefully used her front hoof to push it down.  The door opened into alcove containing a suit of ancient equine armor.  Babs peeked around the mage and figured there was just enough room for them to comfortably squeeze by. 

Stepping through, the six mares found themselves within a large library, at least three levels high.  Spider webs cascaded down the shelves and across the ceiling buttresses and dozens of black spiders, each with a single, five pointed star on their abdomens.

“Oh... how horrid,” whispered Rarity as she tried to bush a clump of the sticky web out of her mane.  “I’m going to need at least a week at the spa just to get this gunk out.”

Rainbow was equally disgusted, if not more direct, as she tried to push her way through the webs.  “Ugg!  Yuck!  This place needs fumigating, something fierce.”  A spider skittered across the floor in front of her and she raised a hoof, intending to smash it.  Without warning Fluttershy knocked her hoof aside.

“Rainbow... don’t.  They’re just harmless Star Spiders.  They won’t hurt you.”  The cyan pegasus looked at her friend.  She was literally covered with strands of web and at least a dozen spiders.  She giggled slightly as they roamed across her, their tiny legs tickling her fur.  

“You know Flutters... sometimes you really come across as seriously demented.”

Trixie couldn’t help but smile.  “Actually, she’s right.  Star Spiders, or Preservers as they’re sometimes called, aren’t dangerous.  In fact, their web as a slight, magical quality to it.   Any non-living object that is wrapped up well enough tends not to suffer the effects time as much as it normally would.”

“Youse means these here books are still readable?” asked Babs.

“From the looks of things, I’d say more than 95% of this library is still relatively intact.”

“I never knew that!” smiled Fluttershy.  “It makes these cute little spiders that much more valuable.”

“Well, it’s pretty common knowledge for mages who don’t have access to preservation spells for their books.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Celestia herself didn’t plant this colony here before abandoning the castle.”

“It’s still gross,” muttered Rainbow.

“Judging from the look of things, I don’t think any pony’s been in here for a couple of hundred years,” muttered Fluttershy.

“I kinda wish ma cousin were here,” whispered Babs.  “He’d probably know how ta get back ta Spike down in the dungeon.”

“Well, since he’s not, we’re going to have to do the best we can,” Trixie replied.  Noticing a large, cobweb covered desk, she went over to it and tested out some of the drawers.  She opened the first one, then waited patiently as three or four dozen spiders skittered out and made their escape.  Reaching in, the mage pulled out an old, leather bound book and blew the dust and webbing off it.  

“Look at this!  It’s Princess Celestia’s daily calendar book.”  She flipped through it for a moment or two, then paused.  “Noon.  Private dinner with Starswirl.  Discuss current situation with Sombra and the Chrystal Empire.”  She flipped another page.  “Mid-Morning.  Diplomatic meeting with Lord Firebrand of the Southern Dragon Clan.  Invite Luna.”  

“Boring,” mumbled Rainbow.

“I thought you were the one who liked Daring Do?” observed Rarity.  “This is exactly the kind of thing she’d drool over.  Come to think of it, this entire room has to be a historical treasure.”

Trixie put the book back in the drawer and closed it.  “I think that qualifies as an understatement,” she chuckled.

“Sorry ta interrupt, but don’t youse think we should be concentrating on something a little more immediate?” asked Babs.  She placed the stone orb on the desk in front of her.  “Such as figuring these things out and finding the elements?” 

The mage looked across at her and sighed.  “Right... Back on task!  Everyone bring the orb they picked up and put it on the desk.  Fluttershy, Rarity and Rainbow followed Bab’s example.  They all then looked at Pinkie who had, by now unzipped her mouth once more.  She reached up into her mane and, after some searching brought out a spherical object, plopping it onto the desktop.

“That’s a bowling ball, Pinkie.” Trixie deadpanned.

“OH, Right!  You want that other round thingy... Hang on one second.”  She began a through combing of her mane, in the process of which she pulled out a fishbowl with a small, green baby alligator inside, a soccer ball with a face painted on it just above the name Wilson, and a red balloon which promptly floated up to the ceiling, carrying with it a miniature basket and two mice wearing ruffled shirts and culottes.  As they ascended both began squeaking loudly. 

“What was that?” Rarity asked.

“I’m not sure,” Fluttershy replied.  “They sounded like they were from Prance and said their name was Montgolfier.”

“PINKIE!” 

“Right... Magical rock.... got it.”  She reached into her mane and pulled out the last of the stones they had removed from the orrery, placing it carefully on the desk next to the others.

“Okkaayyyy!” muttered Rainbow, backing up a few paces.  “Why exactly is your rock glowing?”

**********

“So... Where are they?” Chrysalis asked, glaring at her minions.

The two changelings chittered for a moment with each other, then turned and addressed their queen.  “We are not sssure, great one.  When we firssst broke ssshield we thought poniesss right here, in throne room, but they dissssapeared.” 

The Queen of Holes studied the now silent orrery then returned her gaze to her servants.  “Only two of them are unicorns... They couldn’t have all vanished.”

“Perhapsss they essscape down one passsssageway.”

“Then I suggest you lot disappear down these passageways and FIND THEM!”  With a collective shudder the changelings broke into teams of three and scattered, flying off down the dozen or so escape routes their quarry may have taken.

Chrysalis returned her focus to the orrery, examining it closely.  She could sense residual magic radiating from the device but no power source.  Frowning, she trotted over to her display cases, carefully making sure each object within was intact.  She smiled wickedly as her gaze focused on the figurine of the draconequus and lingered there for several long, delicious moments.  

Her reverie was interrupted by a pair of heavy hoof steps as they echoed across the throne room.  She turned and beheld Sombra as he entered.  Across his back lay a lanky, hornless unicorn with white fur, a red mane, tail and moustache.  Levitating behind him was a large chrystal shard that was difficult to see through.  

“I’ve brought you another trophy for your collection, my dear.  Hope you like it.”  He lowered the shard to the floor next to her.  She peered at it for a moment, then smiled.  

“You actually caught him?”

Sombra nodded.  “He never saw me coming... Although this time my gambit cost me a bit more than I intended.”  He lifted the other unicorn off his back and placed him on the floor in front of the queen.  “Somehow, our foe knew about the bone ring.  As soon as he broke my “brother’s” horn and knocked it free, he crushed it.”

“Do you have a replacement?”	

Sombra shook his head.  “Even if I did, his horn is broken, so it wouldn’t work.”

“Pity... It was such a nice trick, but I guess any strategy if over-used will eventually fail.  At least it worked well enough until now.”  Chrysalis looked at the unicorn.  “What do you intend to do with him.  The moment he wakes up he’ll turn against us.”

“I suppose I could send him home to mother.  He won’t remember much, but then I’d miss having him around.  He was somepony I could easily talk to.”

The queen chuckled.  “Under the circumstances, it seems a bit like taking to yourself.  If you want, I’ll get you a mirror.  Then you won’t miss much.” 

“Quite!” Sombra replied, drolly.  There was a sudden snort and groan as the white unicorn opened his eyes and wobbled to his hooves and looked around.  

“What...?  Where...?  Who...?”  There was a sudden flash from the king’s horn.  An instant later he found himself encased in a dark, chrystal prism.  

“That was wicked,” Chrysalis smiled.

“It’s just temporary... until I decide what to do with him,” the dark king replied.

“Speaking of which...” the queen paced slowly around the larger shard containing Big Mac.  “My, my.  Such a magnificent specimen.  If I were to guess, I’d say he must have been an earth pony at one time.  Neither Pegasi nor Unicorns could pull off that physique.”  As she examined their captive she could see he was following her with his eyes.  She gave Big Mac a smug half-smile.  “Oh my... is our great big princeling unhappy with his imprisonment?” she taunted. 

“His cutie mark is rather interesting.  I mean suns, stars, magic symbols, they all seem more likely for an alicorn... but an apple?”

“I think that just proves my point,” Chrysalis said.

“Maybe...” muttered Sombra, “but it’s hard to think the fates would choose such as him to elevate to godhood.”  The queen nickered, a distinctive buzzing sound to her voice.

“It’s as I said before... You’re jealous.”  The witch king simply humphed at her observation.  “Now... before we get side tracked, we need to focus on finding his companions.”

“How much of a threat could they be without him to lead them?”

Chrysalis scowled.  “More than you know.  See that?” she asked pointing to the orrery.

Sombra looked.  “Where in Faust did that thing come from?”

“Apparently, under the throne room.  What’s more, I detected traces of magic on it... HER magic!  I believe they may have found one or more of the elements.”

The witch king cussed loud and long.  “WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SOMETHING SOONER!”

The queen looked disdainfully at him.  “I already have my minions scouring the castle.  They should be able to find them in short order.”

“Yes,” Sombra spat.  “And in the meantime they’re out there somewhere puzzling out the most powerful magic in Equestria.  If they manage to gather all six elements...”

“Ah... but as far as the stories go, only the princesses could manipulate their magic.  I don’t think there’s much to worry about... not as long as we have their alicorn prince under our control.”

The witch king began pacing back and forth angrily.  He stopped and pointed a hoof directly at the queen.  “You are taking this way too calmly.  We screw this up and you know who will turn us into book binding.” 

“You know, that’s your problem.” Chrysalis said slowly striding past.  You’re always looking at the negative side of things.”  She climbed the dais and gracefully took a seat in Luna’s throne.  “For all intents and purposes we’ve won.  Soon we’ll have the elements in our control and nothing... absolutely nothing will be able to challenge our power.”

“Our power?” Sombra asked.

“What I meant was ours... and our master’s power of course.”

“Of course,” he responded sarcastically.  Chrysalis leaned back in the throne smiling.  Without warning it began rotating end over end like some kind of mad rolodex.  It happened so fast that the queen was unable to do much more than let out a surprised gasp before vanishing from sight.  

Sombra whirled and looked at Big Mac.  The alicorn’s expression hadn’t changed, trapped as he was but something the witch king saw in his eyes made him certain that he was somehow responsible for this latest trap.

“Way ta go, Spike!” Macintosh thought. 

**********

Chrysalis’ thoughts were a bit more florid as she picked herself up out of the mud.  Despite her great power, she had been unable to avoid the unexpected trap.  She looked around and saw at least half a dozen of her own minions huddled together, obviously having fallen victim to similar deadfalls.  

“What are you doing standing around out here?  Get back inside and FIND THOSE PONIES!!!”

“But haunted... Castle haunted!” one of the changelings protested, shivering.  There was a sudden flash of green and the only thing left of the insect-like creature was a burned spot in the grass and a pair of smoldering wings.

“Does anyone else have an objection?” Chrysalis demanded.  The remaining changelings immediately buzzed off towards the castle.  

**********

“Okay... tell me the glowin’ stone’s a good thing,” said Babs.

“I don’t know.” Trixie replied.  “There has to be a reason why it’s glowing.”

“Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Pinkie’s cutie mark is glowing too,” said Rarity.  They all looked.  Sure enough, the three balloons on her flank were indeed pulsing.  

Trixie looked closely at the glowing orb and noticed it had the same symbol.  “That got to be it,” she muttered.  “Quick... everypony... pick up the orb with your cutie mark on it.”

“You think it’s safe?” asked Fluttershy.

“Is anything around here safe?” asked Rainbow.  She boldly reached across the table and put her hoof on the stone with the cloud and lightning bolt.  It immediately started glowing.  The others followed suit, all save Fluttershy.

“Please, darling,” encouraged Rarity.  “Now is not the time to be timid.  Hesitantly, the yellow and pink pony reached for the stone.  Suddenly, there was a loud crash from the far end of the library.  Everypony whirled and gasped as the doors collapsed and half a dozen changelings charged in.  The leader smiled wickedly, showing his fangs.  He turned to one of his companions.  

“Quick... tell queen, we found them... and library!”    

> Chapter 16
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The changelings advanced menacingly into the library, spreading out to prevent any of the ponies in front of them from escaping through the main door.  The girls all backed up slowly, trying to keep some distance between themselves and their opponents, all that is except for Rainbow Dash and Babs.  

“All right you bug eyed monsters... You want a piece of me?  You’ve got it,” snarled the cyan pegasus.  Like a bolt, she shot forward and spun in mid-air, landing a solid left rear hoof against what she thought was the leader.  The changeling tumbled back into its companions, knocking one over before coming to a stop.  It rose, then hissed angrily.  Rainbow back-flapped trying to gain enough range for another flying kick.  In the process she lifted several feet into the air, then bumped into one of the cobwebs running between the ceiling and floor.  Within seconds she found her wings completely ensnared by the sticky material.  

“Arg!  Let loose, let loose!” she swore, pulling desperately against the spider silk.

“Hang on!” called Rarity.  She quickly studied the webbing, then her horn lit up.  She grabbed a loose thread with her telekinesis and pulled.  The entire structure trapping Rainbow unwove like a piece of knitting.  Diving free the pegasus landed next to the fashionista.  

“That was pretty cool... thanks.”

Smiling the unicorn aimed her horn again.  “If you think that was something, watch this.”  She pulled on several different threads simultaneously.  An entire section of cobwebs came free and dropped on two of the changelings, tangling them in a mass of translucent silk.  “Never mess with a seamstress where cloth is involved,” she grinned wickedly.  Seconds later a heavy, leather bound book struck Rarity in the face, knocking her momentarily senseless.

“That is no way to treat a book!” Trixie yelled indignantly.  Her own horn dropped and a blast of magical energy nailed one of the changelings in the face.  “Or a lady!!!”  

One of the little monsters charged towards Babs, its jaws wide and long, sharp fangs exposed.  Instead of retreating however, she calmly reached under her jacket and pulled out her service revolver.  Seeing the weapon pointed at its head, the changeling screeched to a stop.  “Aww!  The poor little thing.  Youse brought yer TEETH but didn’t know this was a gun fight!”

The creature ducked, then turned and ran back the way it came.  Babs smiled.  “That’s right... youse better run!”

Rarity picked herself up of the floor and put a hoof to her muzzle.  “Ow!”  She then looked over at the police pony.  “I thought you once told me that the only thing the Manehatten police carried were rubber bullets?”

“Well... He didn’t know that.  And what he doesn’t know won’t hurt us.”

“Looks like we’re whittling them down to size,” grinned Rainbow.  A moment later at least nine more changelings pushed their way into the library.   The grin faded.  “Or not?” 

“We’ve got to protect the stones...” said Trixie.  “They’re our only clue to the elements.”  She blasted yet another of the monsters in the face.  As she did, two more slammed into her.  One tried biting down on her leg, but broke its fangs on her brace.  It rolled away holding its front hooves to its mouth.  Rainbow gave the other one a solid kick, sending it across the room and into one of the bookcases.  Its impact buried the monster under a small pile of books. 

Off to one side Pinkie was aiming a large, colorful cannon she’d pulled out of her mane.  “Okay you evil, grinning minions.  It’s your choice.  Cake or Death!”  Three of the creatures charged her even as she pulled the lanyard.  “Okay... CAKE IT IS!”  A huge cannonball that looked suspiciously like a pineapple upside down cake flew from the cannon’s muzzle, blasting them back out the door.  They hit the far wall of the corridor and found themselves glued there by the splattered, sugary confection.

Five more changelings joined the fight, driving the six ponies back towards a corner of the library.  They quickly discovered they were being crowded into an area too small to fight in.  Desperately, they continued to kick, butt, slam and bounce against their opponents.  More of the creatures joined the struggle making resistance harder and harder to manage.  

Just as it looked as if the six friends would be trapped, a black curtain seemed to descend on the room.  Within seconds Chrysalis’ minions found themselves being inundated by thousands of the small star spiders.  Spinning their webs furiously, the arachnid army bound the changelings so tightly they could not move, let alone attack the others.  The library abruptly went silent, save for the muffled moans and hisses of the chitin clad creatures.   

“What just happened?” asked a mystified Trixie. “Who got the spiders working for us?”

“Um... I guess I did, sort of...” muttered Fluttershy in a very timid voice.  

“Youse?” asked Babs.

“Well, not me, really,” Fluttershy replied, holding out one of her wings, upon which sat a slightly larger than normal spider.  “It was Wilbur.  He was kind of upset that his library was being damaged, not to mention their homes.”

“HIS library?”

“Uh huh.  I explained to him about the changelings and he and his friends decided to help us.”

“Way to go Flutters,” grinned Rainbow.  “I didn’t know you spoke star spider.”

“Well, actually I don’t, but I have talked to the spiders around my house occasionally, and their language is very similar, except for the way they conjugate their adverbs and use double negatives as a positive pronoun.”

“Bilingualism aside, we really need to get out of here and find someplace safe from any more changelings,” Trixie pointed out.  

“Wilbur says he knows a place.”

“Okay then Wilber... Youse can lead da way,” Babs replied.  

Spinning a tiny thread, the spider lowered itself from the yellow pegasus’ wing and scuttled across the floor.  When it reached the bookcase along the far wall it clambered upward then across to one particular book which it then tapped on several times.  

“I think he wants somepony to pull that book out,” said Fluttershy.

“I’ve got it.”  Rarity’s horn glowed and the heavy tome tilted outward until there was an audible click.  The entire bookcase recessed into the wall, then slid aside revealing yet another secret passage.  

“Ooo!  This looks interesting,” said Pinkie.  “I wonder where it goes?” 

“Someplace away from them, I hope,” Babs responded pointing at the now silent changelings.  

“Well, there’s only one way to find out.”  Trixie strode boldly into the corridor, lighting her horn so they could all see.  “Bring the stone orbs,” she called over her shoulder.  “But make sure you’re carrying one without your cutie mark.”

All five mares scooped up the rocks and followed her.  As the last of the ponies passed through the door, it slid shut behind them, leaving a library full of scuttling spiders and screeching changelings.

**********

“I swear, I am going to FIND who’s responsible and then I will SUCK THEM DRY!!”  A very angry and thoroughly drenched Chrysalis slogged into the throne room, her wings, mane and tail sloppily trailing behind her.  Bits of moss hung from her chitin and filled numerous holes across her body.  A lily pad hung, impaled, from her horn and her crown had now become the throne for one of the resident frogs.

Sombra couldn’t help but gloat.  “Enjoy your dip in the moat?  I must say, that new look suits you perfectly.”  His ersatz compliment was rewarded by the wet slap of both the lily pad and frog in his face.  

Five of the queen’s changelings surrounded her and began fanning her with their wings, blowing away the excess moisture from her body and drying her mane and tail.  A sixth worked to remove the moss from her holes.  Her attention was abruptly drawn away from her servants by the sound of a loud moan.  

“Ooohhh!  What just happened?”  Flim slowly rose from the floor and put a hoof to the side of his head, his eyes screwed tightly shut.  “Why do I feel like I just drank several gallons of cider?”  He wobbled for a bit, then settled back on his flank.  “Say Flam... you wouldn’t have a couple of aspirin on you?”  The lanky, white-furred pony started moving his hooves slowly around his face.  One hoof touched the broken stub of his horn.  His eyes shot open.  “MY HORN!”

“It’s alright brother... It will grow back eventually,” replied Sombra as he quickly shifted into the mustached form of Flam and put a hoof on his shoulder.  

Flim looked up at his brother, then noticed the ruined throne room.  His eyes wandered about.  “Just where in Celestia are we?  Last I remember, we were trying to hock some cheap looking jewelry to a museum claiming they were ancient artifacts.  Flim’s gaze came to rest on the chrystal imprisoning Big Mac.  “SWEET MOTHER OF EDISON...! is that an...an...alicorn PRINCE??!!”    

“Yes indeed, brother of mine,” Flam replied.  “As a matter of fact, I was just wrapping up negotiations with our client here to take him off our hooves for a rather tidy sum.”  

“How much?” Flim whispered, reaching out to touch the chrystal.  

“Enough to take care of both of us for the rest of our lives, in luxury.”

“Well that’s certainly nice, but it doesn’t explain why my horn’s broken or how we got here.  Why don’t I remember seeing this before?”  Flim asked, turning to face his brother.  As he did his eyes caught sight of the Changeling Queen.  “AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!  CHRYSALIS!  CHRYSALIS!   CHRYSALIS!”  He jumped up and climbed Flam’s back like a mountain, screaming incoherently the whole time.

Chrysalis sighed in annoyance and shot a flick of energy from her horn, striking Flim in the eyes.  He immediately sagged and rolled off of Flam’s shoulders, dropping heavily onto the floor where he started quietly snoring.  “That was mildly annoying,” she said.

“Yes,” Flam agreed as he shifted once more into the form of Sombra.  “Perhaps now would be a good time to add him to your....’collection?’”

Before she could reply, an out of breath changeling burst into the throne room.  “Poniesss... Poniesss in library.  Come quick, quick.... catch them.”

“You found the library?” smiled Chrysalis.

“Yes, majesty... Poniesss there now... hurry.”  The queen looked over at Sombra.

“Would you be kind enough to take my minions, gather up our want-to-be heroes and bring them back here, along with anything they may have found.  I’ll take care of your ‘brother’ and keep an eye on our mysterious friend here.”

“As you wish.  Just remember... HE will want to deal with the alicorn himself,” the king reminded her before galloping out of the room, the changelings buzzing madly around him.   

Chrysalis smiled.  “Oh I’ll remember.”  She slowly sauntered over to the unconscious Flim and examined him for a moment.  “Even with your horn broken, you’ll make a wonderful addition.  I just have to think of an appropriate pose.” 

Trapped in the chrystal, Big Mac could only watch out of the corner of his eye as the queen walked hungrily around the slender pony.  Raising her tail, there was a brief flash as it suddenly transformed into a long, tapered appendage with a tuft of fur on the end.  The tuft then shaped itself into a set of fingers and thumb before snapping loudly.  There was a flash and the pony vanished.  Once the spell was finished, the queen’s tail reverted to its normal form.  

Looking up, Chrysalis saw that Big Mac had been watching her.  She smiled wickedly.  “Wheels within wheels,” she chuckled, “but being nobility you are undoubtedly familiar with that... Or are you?”  She walked back to the dais, avoiding the thrones this time.  “Don’t worry... soon you and your friends will cease to be a threat and I will have all Equestria, and the world, for my very own...forever.” 

**********

The passageway was not very long at all.  Within moments the six ponies found themselves in a small room off the main library.  It was much cleaner than the previous room, with not one cobweb anywhere in sight.  “There’s a lot more innate magic here.  It’s much more concentrated as well,” Trixie observed.

“What kind of magic are we talking about?” asked Babs.

“Preservation spells for the most part.  Not just on the books, but pretty much everything here.  I also feel several different kind of concealment spells.  I don’t think this place will be easy to find, for either Sombra or Chrysalis.”

“It looks rather like a reading room,” Fluttershy said.  “Just look at the way the cushions are arranged.”

“A lot fewer book cases as well, and fewer books.”  Rarity looked around briefly.  “We must have stumbled upon one of the pony sisters’ rooms.”

“Judging from the design on the window, this place must have once been Princess Celestia’s private retreat.”  Every pony looked where Trixie was pointing.  Sure enough, the stained glass window depicted several stylized images of the sun, each reflecting one of the four seasons.  

“If this place is concealed the way you said, maybe we can hide here long enough to figure out these stone symbols,” offered Rainbow Dash.

“Good idea,” said Pinkie.  “The sooner we do this, the sooner I can get back to entertaining other ponies.”  Everypony agreed.  Each then took out the orb they had been holding and placed them in a circle on the ground.  

“Alright,” instructed Trixie.  “We each have to touch the orb with our cutie mark on it.  Fluttershy, you were going to be last the last time we tried this, so why don’t you start off?”

“Are you sure,” she asked.  

“Aw come on Flutters,” urged Rainbow.  “Just do it.”

Carefully, the yellow pegasus reached out a hoof and placed it atop the stone with her three butterflies.  The orb glowed in response.

“Kind of weird that these stones all have our own cutie marks.  Why do you suppose that is?” asked Rarity.

“Maybe we all have some kind of connection with the elements.  Heck, as far as we know, we might even be the elements.”  Pinkie grinned and reached out a hoof , touching the stone with three balloons on it.  The others all followed suit.  As soon as the last pony had their hooves touching the orb there was a brilliant flash of light.  When it cleared they all saw the stone orbs had all shattered to gravel.  

“Okay,.. What next?” Babs asked.  They didn’t have long to wait.  Six translucent chrystal shards rose from each pile of debris and slowly began circling the five ponies.  The shards began spinning faster and faster until they were a blur. 

“This is weird,” said Rainbow.  “I think I’m starting to hear some kind of echo in my head, like a song, but it only repeats one word.”

“So do I.”

“Me too... me too!”

“I hear it as well, darling.”

“I think we all hear it.”  Babs looked over at Trixie noting the confused expression on her face.  “Don’t you hear nothing?”

“No,” she admitted.  “I don’t.  What words are you hearing?  The girls all answered at once, creating a cacophony of sound.

“Charity...My word!”

“Honesty...Yowsers!”

“Loyalty...Whoa... cool!”

“Laughter... Hee, Hee... it tickles!”

“Kindness...Oh my!

As each word was spoken the shards vanished and were replaced by a gold necklace that trailed around the neck of each pony.  Every necklace contained a gem the same color and shape as the bearer’s cutie mark.  

“Hey, looky here!” cried Pinkie.  They all followed her gaze.  In the center of their circle a silver light began coalescing.  As they watched, it took on the shape of a wand and crescent moon. 

Rarity smiled.  “I think this one’s yours, Trixie.”

The silver maned unicorn looked up at the glowing symbol.  “When the first five elements are found, the sixth shall appear.”  Stepping into the center of the circle she slowly raised a hoof to touch it.”

“Which element is it?” asked Fluttershy.

“Magic,” Trixie whispered as her hoof touched the glowing icon.  There was a multi-colored flash of rainbow light and the world just... vanished. 

To be continued......
	                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
> Chapter 17
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Chrysalis stood silently, admiring her collection before placing the newly created globe containing Flim on a shelf next to the two princesses.  She closed the glass case then turned back towards Big Macintosh, blowing on the end of the wand to extinguish its magic.  Such a useful tool.  It had made adding to her collection so much easier.  Too bad it only had two settings.  She carefully slid it into a specially made sheath on her left foreleg.    

“I can see it in your eyes,” she purred.  “You’re thinking the queen’s power must be limited.  She uses devices and not natural magic to imprison her enemies.”  She chuckled wickedly.    “Maybe you haven’t heard the old saying. ‘It’s better to use a trowel than dig with your own hooves.  Didn’t anyone ever teach you about the conservation of magic?  No?”  She chuckled again. “You think you’ve put all the pieces together... Well, maybe ‘almost’ all of them.  But you still do not know who I really am, or should I say... am not.”  

The alicorn simply rolled his eyes silently in response.

“Oh don’t give me that.  I’m just as aware of your secrets as you are mine.  For example, I know for an absolute that you aren’t from around here.  You can’t be... The ‘you’ who should have existed here doesn’t.  Why there is no you in this reality, I don’t care, but it did leave a hole through which you could slip and physically manifest yourself.  The rules of both chaos and order prevent two nearly identical beings from existing in the same place at the same time.”  The queen circled Big Mac as she spoke, studying him closely.  “The only thing I’m not sure of is why you are here in the first place.”

The stallion arched one eyebrow as if he didn’t believe her, causing the queen to frown.  

“Stubborn... Just like your faux sister.”

A flash of concern traced its way across Big Mac’s eyes.  

Chrysalis noticed this and smiled again.  “Oh, we had a bit of a hard time, getting her to talk, at least once she learned she could not cut a deal with us for a reward.   Rather naïve of her, but then I’m certain the sister you left back in your own world wouldn’t have fared much better.  Eventually she saw things our way, so I rewarded her by making her one of my trophies.”  

The queen pulled a small globe out of one of the cabinets and held it up for Mac to see.  Within was the small figure of Applejack, bound, gagged and tied spread eagle between two upright poles.  “One of by better efforts,” she grinned wickedly.  If you look closely, you can see where she was bleeding.”  She placed it back on a shelf.

The stallion closed his eyes, trying to focus his anger away from the Changeling Queen.  Now was not the time.  Maybe this Applejack wasn’t anything like his ‘real’ sister, but he still couldn’t help but feel he should be protecting her.  Drawing deeply upon his calm, stoic self he hid his anger from Chrysalis.  “Wait,” he whispered to himself... “Wait.” 

“If I were to guess, I would almost swear that HE sent you.  It would be so like him, sending an emissary where he couldn’t go himself.  And just what would he want to accomplish here?  This isn’t his world.”  She looked over at the alicorn stallion, then batted her eyes mischievously.   “I bet you know... and that I’d be able to make you tell me,” Chrysalis cooed.  Even playing the vamp, there was something decidedly evil about her.  Mac would have shuddered if he could have. 

The stallion wondered exactly what the queen had meant about knowing who she wasn’t.  There were oddities in her behavior, things he hadn’t seen before, but that wasn’t very surprising.  After all, this wasn’t his world, nor was she the Chrysalis he knew.  Still, some of the behavior just didn’t match what he expected.  He pondered this.  Why wasn’t she afraid of Discord, even to the point of making not so subtle hints that she intended to take over the world?  What was her motive?  Why was she so fascinated in collecting trophies of her enemies?  Even the craziest of ponies had a motive for doing things, no matter how irrational they appeared.  Case in point, Pinkie Pie and her joyfully insane ability to defy the very laws of physics.  Her motive was making others happy.  Applejack... His Applejack, would do anything to protect her loved ones.  Twilight... the key to her passion was learning and improving herself.  What was the key here?  

His thoughts were interrupted by three changelings who came buzzing into the chamber.  They landed in front of the queen and prostrated themselves to her.  

“Poniess.... they have escaped... escaped the library, we know not how.”

“FOOLS!”  Chrysalis screamed.  “IMBECILS!  MUST I OVERSEE EVERYTHING MYSELF AROUND HERE?”  There was a sudden flash of green magic and one of the changelings crumbled to dust.  The surviving drones shivered in fear, not even daring to look up.  “I swear you are as useless as my brother...”  She caught herself, pulling in the rage and focusing at the task at hoof.  “You two stay here and guard my knickknacks.  I’ll go sort this out myself.”  Angrily the queen flung herself into the air and went in search of King Sombra.  The drones climbed slowly to their hooves, looked at each other, then dutifully went over to the door Chrysalis had exited through and posted themselves, their attention focused on the hallway beyond, their backs to the trophy cases.  

Big Mac realized that for the first time since his capture no one was watching him.  Carefully he reached within himself and drew upon his core of magic.  His horn begin glowing softly, its aura creeping outward until it had enveloped the trophy cabinets.  He was more than a little delighted to find that each figure still resonated with life, even though dimmed down considerably.  Just like castle in Canterlot, when he had defeated Chrysalis and Sombra in his own world, the ponies were alive and trapped within chrystal shells, abet, much smaller than before.  Reaching out with his mind, he was able to identify many of the figures.  Flam, Celestia, Nightmare Moon, Trouble Shoes, Time Turner, at least a third of the Wonder Bolts.  Even...  

The alicorn prince paused in surprise.  No wonder she didn’t appear to be afraid of Discord.  He was here, trapped in a chrystal globe, much as he had been trapped in stone.  Big Mac mentally shook himself.  If the draconequus was here, then who or what was ‘He Who Could Not be Named,’ the one Applejack had referred to as Discord?  The alicorn focused his attention on the changelings.  

He saw that the two guards were still shivering in fear, their chitins clicking loudly.  The stallion felt a touch of sympathy for them, despite their nature.  It made no sense.  In all his dealings with Chrysalis in his own world, she had never so blindly lashed out at her minions as she had just now.  Certainly, she could grow angry with them, but to simply vaporize one in a moment of irrational anger...  Where was the hive queen in that?  Where was the nurturing, abet totalitarian, mother’s instinct?  They were her children after all.  Her attacks on Canterlot had been based upon the need to find sustenance for her drones.  Why would she hurt them?  

A memory suddenly flashed in his mind.  A whisper of a voice forced its way into his consciousness.  ”Questions are good.  The trick is to ask the right ones.”

“Not why,” the stallion thought.  “WHO!”  	

Wheels within wheels.  She’d said it herself.  Whoever she was, she wasn’t Chrysalis, nor was she Discord.  She was, however, a trickster, a schemer who loved convolutions as a way of preserving her sense of superiority.  One who was not above using others as her agents.  Mac wondered briefly what had happened to the ‘real’ Queen of the Changelings.  There was no figurine of her in the cabinets, and somehow, he was certain she couldn’t be dead.  If she were, then this ‘Other’ would have no control of the Changelings themselves.  They would have rebelled at the murder of their queen, or her overt usurpation.  That left one logical possibility... possession.  Chrysalis was indeed there, but she was under the control of this ‘Other.’  

It all made sense.  This ‘Other,’ this being, had used the chaos of this world to somehow enter it, overthrow Discord and seize control of one of his Lieutenants as a means of disguising itself.  Big Mac would have scratched his brow had he been able to move.  No... not it.  HER.  From the mannerisms Chrysalis had displayed this ‘Other’ was entirely comfortable with the female form.  He doubted a male entity would have been able to come on to him as effortlessly as the queen had.  

Memories of his own combined with knowledge he had learned from Arual.  Like rows of dominos dropping into place to form a pattern, it suddenly occurred to the alicorn prince who exactly this being had to be.  No two nearly identical beings could exist on a single world.  Such were the rules of Chaos and Order both.  That was, of course, unless there was a loophole.  A loophole just like him.


**********

Guided by the yells of her minions, it did not take Chrysalis long to locate the library.  She landed before them.  Those who saw her immediately dropped to one knee, giving the spiders they were battling ample opportunity to web their hooves to the floor.  King Sombra was using his magic to slice thick chunks through the webbing that blocked their way into the library.  As quickly as he cut, however, the star spiders were quicker to fill them in.  There were thousands of them for each and every drone.  

Chrysalis simply rolled her eyes at the scene before her.  Such simpletons.  She really had to find a way to improve their cognitive abilities, otherwise they’d never really be good for much more than cannon fodder.  
“STAND BACK!” she commanded.  

The changelings, or at least those who could, instantly moved away from the door.  There was a flash of green magic, accompanied by the echoing sound of something snapping.  Within moments the hallway was filled with thousands upon thousands of wasps.  They immediately dove upon their ancient foes, driving the spiders back into the library and the dubious safety of their webs.  Using their bodies, they sawed their way through strands of webbing, driving the star spiders deeper and deeper into the library.  Behind them, Chrysalis advanced at a saunter, looking around at the thousands of books that were hidden behind the all preserving webs.  

The queen looked at one of her minions.  “You were in charge.  Where did you see them last?”  The changeling raised a shaky hoof and pointed.

“There... poniess were there... all together.  Then spiders came... attacked us.... captured many... pushed us out of room.”

Chrysalis looked around at the webbing.  At least a dozen of her drones were trapped, wrapped up tightly against the book shelves.  “They were here... Where are they now?  How did they escape?”

The changeling shuddered.  “I not know,” he replied, his voice barely a whisper.  

A thousand or more wasps broke off their attack on the spiders, flinging themselves on the drone.  He opened his mouth to shriek, but it was instantly filled with angry, stinging insects.  The others leapt aside as he ran down the hall, pursued by his executioners.  He did not get very far.

The queen looked at yet another drone.  “Free them,” she ordered, pointing to her trapped minions.  “And find me the ponies...NOW!”


**********

Babs slowly opened her eyes and discovered she was tangled up with a pile of ponies.  She tried to stand, only to feel a sharp pain in her haunches.  “Who’s sittin’ on my tail?”

“Sorry,” muttered Fluttershy.  She stretched her wings, intending to untangle herself only to discover her mane was wrapped around Rarity’s left hind hoof.  

“My apologies, darling,” the fashionista said, shaking her leg in an effort to loosen the pink locks.  

A muffled voice rose from the center of the pile.  “Who the heck’s laying on my head?  Get Off!” 

“Calm down Rainbow.  Give Trixie a second and we’ll sort this out.”

“This is fun,” Pinkie observed.  “It’s been ages since I played diamond dog pile.”

There followed a series of moans, groans, grunts and snipes as the six ponies dismounted from their make-shift pyramid.  

They all looked around in confusion.  The clouds they apparently were standing on were soft pastel pink fading to violet.  They stretched as far as could be seen in every direction.  All of them were cast in a soft, twilight-like glow.  Even as they watched, a separate drift of clouds appeared to rise about them, forming a cylindrical passage.  At the end, was a white radiance that beckoned them onward.   

“Any of Youse have an idea of where this is?”

“I don’t think it’s the castle, if that’s what you mean,” replied Rainbow Dash.

Pinkie pulled a small, stuffed, black-furred scotty dog from her mane and nervously hugged it to herself.  “I have a feeling we’re not in Equestria anymore.” 

“You aren’t... and yet, you are,” a voice echoed through their minds.

Rarity looked around.  “Who..?”

“As you are a part of me, I am also a part of you.”  All six ponies looked in the direction of the light.  Slowly, the light dimmed as a soft white silhouette formed in front of them.

“Princess Celestia?” they gasped.

“No,” the figure replied... “but I have borrowed her form so that you may see and hear, and by extension, believe.  I am Arual.”

“Youse the one who spoke to Prince Macintosh... the one he called the Tree of Harmony.” 

“I am.  As you have drawn together the elements of my harmony, I have drawn you together.  It is through you that balance may be restored to your world.  When you call upon these elements as one, they will channel great power, but it must be channeled by all as one.  It cannot be used by a single pony.  That is what separated your Princess from the elements.  No one can stand alone.  Only in friendship, only in the harmony it creates can you focus your form and power, one and all.”

“That’s kinda confusing,” muttered Rainbow Dash.  “Don’t you have some kind of instruction booklet we could read or something?’

Arual smiled.  “You will understand... within your hearts.”

The glow behind the Princess began to expand.  Straining, they all thought they could see the outline of a tree before the light encompassed them.  


**********

Spike had been pacing back and forth nervously for the last several minutes.  By now, he’d remotely tripped at least four dozen traps around the castle, catching any pony who happened to be in close enough proximity to the trap.  He could still feel his link to Prince Macintosh, but the alicorn had sent him no messages other than to say he was in the throne room and to tell him to trigger the trap on Princess Luna’s chair.  That had been more than fifteen minutes ago and the dragon was becoming anxious.  He had no idea where the others were or what was happening above him in the castle.  He wasn’t certain as to what he should do, but if worse came to worse, he could always set the castle traps to automatic and escape back to Zecora’s hut.  At least there, he could protect her.  

His thought were interrupted by a glowing white sphere that began to form in the middle of the room.  It slowly grew brighter until he was forced to turn his head away and close his eyes.  There was a flash, and the light vanished.  When it faded, he found himself staring at the six mares he had traveled with to the castle.  They were sitting on the cold, stone floor facing each other in a circle.  All wore a golden amulet around their necks with their cutie mark formed in crystal as the center piece.  There were other changes, but the dragon wasn’t exactly sure he was seeing things right.

“You guys okay?”  

“Ah think so,” replied Babs, rubbing her hoof across the back of her head.  She looked at the others.  “How about youse guys?”

“I’ve been better, but considering the circumstances this isn’t bad.”  Trixie stood and flexed her braced leg.  For some reason, it had stopped hurting.  It was the first time in ages and she almost missed the ache that had always accompanied it.  She looked down at her hooves and was surprised to see that her legs seemed to glow with a sort of translucence that made them appear thicker and stronger, like an earth pony’s.  “Uh... does any pony else feel like something’s a bit... off.” 

“Oh my,” exclaimed Fluttershy, “...look at Pinkie.”

They all turned, eyes widening in amazement.  The party pony was sporting a realistic pair of translucent wings on her back and a spiral horn from her forehead.  She looked back at her friends.  “What... what are you all starring at... WHOA!... You all look like alicorns!

It was true, every pony had somehow obtained hooves, horns or wings that were clearly visible, yet at the same time insubstantial.  

“Are those things real?” asked Spike.

Babs turned to look at her ‘wings’ and discovered that they moved exactly like those of a pegasus.  Giving an experimental flap, she lifted herself a foot or two off the ground.  “Ah don’t know if they are, but they sure act like their real.”

“Why is there a soft, warm buzzing in my head?” asked Rainbow.

“It’s your horn, dear.  What you’re feeling is ambient magic, the same way all unicorns do,” Rarity explained.  “It means you are tapped into the magical energies that surround us all.”

“Cool... if a bit, annoying,” replied the pegasus.

“Not to worry.  Once you’re used to it you should be able to tune it down so it’s not really noticeable.”
Trixie bounced up and down on her hooves several times, relishing the lack of pain in her rear hoof.  “I feel as if I could kick down a small building if I wanted to.”  

Babs turned to the blue-furred unicorn.  “Youse think this might be permanent?”   

The magician shook her head.  “Judging from the translucent nature of the appendages, I’d say they’re tied into the magic of the amulets.  Kind of like a manifestation of the power we now wield.”

Rarity nodded in agreement.  “I can feel a sort of energy flow coming from the amulets.  I wonder how you turn off the effect?”

“You could try taking off the amulets,” Spike observed.

The all looked at the dragon, wondering why none of them had thought of that.  Fluttershy reached behind her neck and undid the clasp holding the amulet in place, letting it drop into her hoof.  The translucent effects immediately faded for one and all.  Pinkie, who was several feet into the air, abruptly face planted with the floor as her wings disappeared.

“OH MY!” the yellow pegasus said, folding into herself.  “I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean for you to fall.  Are you all right?  You aren’t hurt?”

Pinkie bounded to her hooves smiling.  “That was incredible.  I’m going to have to add that to my act!”  

“Try putting it back on,” Trixie suggested, suppressing a slight hiss of pain as her back leg began throbbing once more.  

Fluttershy did.  There were a few moments where nothing happened, then the magical appendages reappeared.  

“Looks like you can only use those things together,” Spike commented.  

“Just like Arual said,” repeated Rarity.  “A power that must be channeled by all, as one.”

“So what do we do now?” asked Rainbow.  “I mean it’s cool that we’re all alicorns, but does that mean we attack Chrysalis and Sombra or what?  And if we do, how does our power work?”

Trixie scratched her chin for a moment.  “The elements are raw, natural magic, but their source is the tree of Harmony, which is some kind of living being.  I remember reading somewhere that this kind of natural magic often displays a kind of sentience of its own.  It forms spells that accomplish the intended task without any kind of active spell casting on the part of those who bear it.”

“Sort of like flying by instinct,” said Rainbow.

“So how can you know it works that way?” asked Spike.

Rarity looks over at Pinkie Pie.  “Darling, would you do us a favor and fly around the room three times, then land next to Babs?”

“Okie Dokie Loki!”  The party pony launched herself skyward, did three quick circuits, than landed next to Babs as requested.  

“You’re almost as good a flier as Dash is,” observed Babs.

The cyan pegasus grumbled.  “No she isn’t... and besides, I would have been 20 percent cooler.”

“Hey Rainbow... catch!”  Trixie hurled an empty vase across the room.  With little or no time to react, the pegasus grabbed it in mid-flight using telekinesis.  It stopped and floated in front of everypony, much to their, and Dash’s, surprise.  

“Fluttershy... would you kindly go over to that table and give it as hard a buck as you can?” asked the magician.  

“Okay... but I’m not really all that strong.”  The timid mare trotted over to the table, whirled and gave it a solid, double buck.  Despite being made of oak, the table flew across the chamber, struck a wall and shattered into a dozen pieces.  “Oh my!  Did I just do that?”

“What’s all this about?” asked Pinkie.

“Don’t you see...? The magic of the amulets and the elements is innate.  You don’t have to know how to fly, the elements gave you wings and the ability to use them in one package.  The same is true with simple magic, or at least telekinetic spells.  And as for kicking things in, you now have the strength of an earth pony.”

“All this because of the elements?” asked Babs.  

Trixie nodded.  “Now that we’ve found them, it’s simply a matter of figuring out how best to use them.”

“YOU CAN DO THAT BY SIMPLY TURNING THEM OVER TO ME!”

Everyone in the room whirled at the sound of the voice.  There, standing before them was Queen Chrysalis with about three dozen changelings at her back.  “Your game of hide and seek is over, ponies,” she grinned wickedly.  “Olly, Olly, Oxen Free!”

To Be Continued
> Chapter 18
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Babs looked at Rarity and Trixie.  “How’d she find us?”
“Pathetic,” grumbled Chrysalis.  “How could I not find you, especially after gaining access to the castle’s library?”  At a gesture from their queen the drones spread out, encircling the ponies.
“What do we do now?” whispered Fluttershy.
“I don’t know about you,” threatened Rainbow.  “But this Bee-itch needs to be scratched... HARD!”  She rose up tensing for a charge even as Rarity put a hoof across her shoulders.  
“No... We can’t split up... not now!” the fashionista breathed softly.
“So what do we do?”
“Maybe if we could find Prince Macintosh, he’d know,” Fluttershy replied softly.
“He’s in the throne room; but I think he’s trapped somehow.” Spike murmured.
Trixie nodded to herself.  “Well, at least it’s a part of the castle I’m familiar with,” she said in an undertone.  “Everypony stay close.  I use this trick a lot in my act.”  
She hoofed a set of glass pellets from the inside of her cape then locked eyes with the queen.  “BEHOLD... THE AWESOME MAGIC OF THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!”
She hurled the pellets against the stone floor causing them to rupture and flash into an instant smoke cloud.  The unicorn focused, wrapping the others in her aura, then counted down from five.  When she hit three her horn flared and the entire group, Spike included, vanished.  
Surprised by the misdirection of the count-down, the queen’s hastily summoned a magical blast that bounced harmlessly off a nearby wall.  The queen snarled, sweeping her foreleg across the room.  “All of you... Spread out... Search the castle.  I want them found, and I want them found NOW!”
The six mares abruptly found themselves back in the throne room.  The sudden blast of air made by the teleport caused the two changelings still on guard to whirl away from the door.  Seeing the ponies they both leapt into the air in an effort to escape.  They found their path blocked by Rainbow and Babs.  The minions hissed and charged towards the two ‘alicorns, only to find themselves catapulting back into the room and skidding across the floor, stunned.
“Wow!  First time Ay ever did a flyin’ buck like that.  If Ay could do that on a daily basis Ay’d have the whole precinct cleaned up in no time.”
“I’ve done that move plenty of times,” boasted Rainbow.  “But being able to kick as hard as an earth pony?  That makes the move that much cooler.”
“Girls... we need to focus,” called Trixie.  “It won’t be long before Chrysalis finds us here, and we’ve got to be ready.”
“I thought we needed to find Prince Macintosh?” asked Fluttershy.
Spike pointed to a translucent block of crystal.  “There he is.”  The others turned and let out a collective gasp.
“Oh my,” muttered Rarity.  “He looks quite a bit like a fly trapped in amber.  How do we get him out of that?” 
“Maybe we could do some rock bucking, like back on my family’s rock farm,” suggested Pinkie Pie.  “My sister Maude could do a wicked jack-hammer move that could bust up any kind of rock you would want.”
“Think youse could copy that?” asked Babs.
“I could try.  Maude said it was just a matter of hitting it with your hooves at the right angle, and looking for the cracks.”
Even as she spoke Big Mac’s horn began glowing softly.  It spread across the interior of his prison, gaining strength until the outer layer began displaying stress fractures.  These spread rapidly until there were so many the figure within could no longer be clearly seen.  A high pitched whine filled the room.
“Every pony get back,” yelled Trixie as she skittered away from the chrystal.  Moments later it shattered, falling away from the alicorn stallion like a curtain.  
Big Mac staggered slightly, the effort having drained him more than a little.  
“You okay, big guy?” asked Rainbow.
“Eeeyup.”  He shook his head to clear it then looked at the others.  “Looks like y’all found the elements... Though Applejack didn’t describe them as turnin’ ya into alicorns.”
“It might be a difference between our world and yours,” Trixie offered.  “How did she describe the effect?”
“Kinda like a giant rainbow that jumped out of ‘em and washed over whoever or whatever they was fightin.’”
“Hey guys!  Looky over here!” Everyone turned in Pinkie’s direction to see her standing next to a display case filled with what appeared to be snow globes.  Smooshing her muzzle up against the glass her eyes tracked back and forth like maniacal pinballs.  It’s a petrified pony parade.”
“Darling... how can it be a parade if none of them are moving?” Rarity asked, “though I must admit the craftsmanship is incredibly detailed.” 
“Best be careful... Them there ponies is still alive,” Big Mac cautioned.
“Alive?” repeated Rainbow Dash.  “But how?  Why?”
“Magic,” Trixie replied.  “As to why, I’d guess it’s exactly what it appears to be... a prison, filled with every pony Chrysalis ever overcame.”
“But why keep it here?”
“Ay’m bettin’ it’s like the old saying, ‘keep yer friends close and yer enemies closer.’” observed Babs.  “Well, these here are Chrysalis’ enemies, so she doesn’t want them getting free any time soon.”
“Hey guys... look here!  It’s HIM!”  The other ponies quickly gathered around Pinkie, mouths dropping open,
Big Mac nodded.  “Ah saw that too.  Looks like ‘He who shall not be named’ is as much a part o’ the Bug Queen’s collection as every pony else.”
“But... How?” asked Rainbow.
“Wrong question.  What ya got ta ask yerself is who?
“Meaning who’d be powerful enough to trap him like this?” asked Rarity.
The alicorn nodded.  
“Well, it can’t be Chrysalis... she doesn’t have enough power herself to pull this off,” observed Trixie.
“So it has to be someone at least as powerful.”  Trixie scratched her head briefly.  “Another god of Chaos?”
Big Mac shook his head.  “Eeeyup an’ nope.  It’s somethin’ Ah learned from Arual.  There cain’t be two o’ a kind on any o’ the 11 world’s o’ Harmony.  Ah can be here cause o’ an accidental wish and because there ain’t another me here.  Astral spirits can visit here, but they cain’t take physical form if there’s another one o’ them here.”
“So a god of Chaos can peek in on this world, but can’t manifest,” explained Trixie, “Not unless the god of Chaos for the other world is dead.”
“OH!  OH!  Or unless they take over the body of somepony who died...  You know, like a zombie queen! WHOOOO!” chimed in Pinkie in the most ghostly voice she could create. 
“On my world, the princesses used the Elements o’ Harmony ta trap Dis.. er, He who shall not be named, within a stone statue.  Ah’m guessin’ somethin’ similar happened here, only it was Nightmare’s rule and the chaos it created that freed him.  He then overthrew the Night, and was in turn overthrown by this other entity.” 
“Impressive theory, darling, but just who is this entity?”
“If it’s a Chaos entity, wouldn’t that make them a dragonesque like who know who?” Trixie asked. 
“Maybe... maybe not,” the alicorn prince responded.  “Ah do get the feelin’ that it may be a female, rather than a male entity.  It seems quite comfortable in its current body.”
“Which body is that?” asked Spike.
“Chrysalis,” Big Mac replied.  “Ah think this entity took over the queen in order to gain control of her hive.”
“Youse can’t be serious.  None of them changelings would put up with a fake ruler for a Manehatten minute,” Babs pointed out.
Rarity shook her head.  “I don’t think they know, darling.”
“Well, then they need to find out, the sooner the better,” asserted Rainbow Dash.  
“Good luck convincing a hive with about 10,000 worker drones,” replied Trixie.  “They’re not known for being able to keep more than a thought or two in their heads at one time.”
“Ah don’t think we’ll have ta worry ‘bout that.  If we drive whatever’s possessin’ Chrysalis out o’ her body, it’ll change everything.”  The six ponies and one dragon looked expectantly at the alicorn prince.
“Youse got something in mind, cousin?”
“Ah just might...”

**********

It didn’t take long for word to reach Queen Chrysalis of the battle raging in the throne room.  The scout drones who had seen the ponies had summoned three full changeling squads who immediately attacked.  Though under-powered in terms of magic, they were so desperate to avoid being punished by their queen that they were fighting like fanatics.  
Even as she made her way toward the throne room, she worried less about the fight in progress than that her ‘collection’ might suffer some damage.  It wasn’t as if any of the figures could be destroyed or freed, but the cabinets were rather expensive.  She’d hate having to commission a new set, especially considering how difficult it was to obtain enough unicorn horn to carve a decent frame for the polished crystal exterior.  At least, she mused, if it became necessary she could start with the horn of an alicorn princeling. 
Two more squads raced passed her, slamming headlong into the great oaken doors that marked one of several entrances into the throne room.  They shuddered, but held, causing the rear of the formation to pile up against those in the front.  
“Pathetic,” muttered Chrysalis.  Under normal circumstances, the doors would have been shattered to splinters, but these were being reinforced by an active, magic spell.  The changeling squad leader should have recognized it.  
Groaning and hissing, the drones pulled themselves back to their hooves trying to distinguish between the stars painted on the walls and the ones in their heads.
“Stand back,”
Scrambling, the changelings complied.  Chrysalis charged her horn and fired a green bolt of energy at the door.  The wood split wide open as the protection spell was neutralized and within seconds the two squads charged into the room.  The queen strolled calmly in and surveyed the scene before her.  Over a hundred and fifty drones were circling the dais in a counter-clockwise spiral, desperately trying to overwhelm the six ponies and one dragon standing before her.  
Magical energy pulsed across the room and colorful beams of light swept back and forth, blasting at any changeling that got too close.  For his part, the dragon was alternately blasting out great, greenish gouts of fire which enveloped one or two drones at a time, causing them to vanish, and tossing vials of magical potion.  One struck a drone and he froze in place, glued to the floor like a fly trapped in honey.  
Watching the fight, the queen couldn’t help but smile.  The ponies were not putting they’re all into the battle.  They were holding back, trying to both win and not kill any of their attackers.  Even the ones immolated by dragon breath were still alive, transported rather than cooked within their own chitin.  It was a losing strategy.  For every drone they took out, another replaced it.  
A couple of energy beams glanced off the ceiling and struck the floor near her trophy cabinets.  Confident the battle would soon be hers, Chrysalis trotted over to them and threw up a protective barrier around herself and the cabinets even as she quickly examined them for damage.  Finding none, she looked around and spotted the alicorn prince right where she had left him.  Reaching out with her telekinesis, she picked up the amber prison in which he was encased and brought, it too, within the protective bubble.  After all, it wouldn’t do to have somepony accidentally set him free.  He might not be as ‘restrained’ as the others.
Returning her attention to the fight, she noticed that the blue unicorn was lying unconscious on the dais.  A dozen drones lay unmoving around her as the other ponies shifted to cover the hole now in their defenses.  Her magical appendages had faded, causing those of the others to flicker slightly.  The spiral surrounding them tightened, making it difficult for the queen to see what was happening.  
Chrysalis took two steps forward, placing herself now between the battle and the alicorn.  Two more vials soared across the room.  One hit a changeling commander, shrinking him down to the size of a mouse.  His squeaking protest caused the queen to momentarily forget herself and laugh.  The battle had become a thing of pure chaos, and she was loving it.  The second vial arched high in her direction.  A quick blast of green energy caused it to vanish, leaving behind a small cloud of blue pollen that settled on three drones.  They instantly lost all sense of direction, crashing head first into several of their fellows.   The resulting pile-up of changelings left a number of gaps in the sphere enveloping the ponies.  
Chrysalis couldn’t help herself.  She laughed once more, drinking in the delicious sense of victory.  Too late, she became aware of movement next to her.  The queen whirled, just in time to feel a green, glowing hoof make contact with the side of her head.  

“T’TORBI ARAF!”

It felt as if the word echoed not only across the vaulted chamber of the throne room, but through time itself, screaming out of the past and into the future, creating its own Doppler shift.  Chrysalis collapsed like a sack of flower, her head... no... her consciousness spinning wildly out of control.  She didn’t pass out, but she felt horribly sick, as if she’d gorged herself on every emotion there was a dozen times over.
The changelings broke off their attack on the five remaining ponies.  They flared high into the sky before diving, en mass, towards the new threat to their queen, towards Big Mac. 
“Look out!” screamed Fluttershy, surprising every pony who heard her.  To her amazement, Prince Macintosh simply smiled.  His horn glowed a brilliant green, sending out a swath of magic that enveloped the drones.  They immediately stopped flying, then slowly settled to the ground before curling up and going to sleep.  The effect spread beyond the room, ending the drones' efforts to reinforce their brotheren.  
Chrysalis looked about her, confusion running through her mind.  She stood, her legs wobbling under her even as the alicorn prince helped her stand.  The queen looked at Big Mac.  “Who the heck are you?”  Her head swiveled as she took in her surroundings.  “Where in Tartarus am I?  What have you done to my minions?  WHAT’S GOING ON HERE!?”   
Big Mac pointed across the room to a far wall where a deep purple cloud of sparkling magic began coalescing.  “Ah think SHE may have some answers for us.”
As everypony watched, the cloud began to solidify into a long, slender serpentine form.  It had the legs of a dragon, the cloven hooves of a goat, the body of a lizard, two arms that became griffon talons, and the head of a pony.  From its back sprouted two small, vestal bat wings.  Along its spine ran a twin row of triangular spikes.  A pair of donkey ears dangled from its head and two spiral unicorn horns grew out of its forehead.  The creature was lavender in color, except for its hair, which was a deep indigo.  The hair sported two stripes, one dark pink, the other a dark purple that seemed almost invisible against the indigo.  It had thin, purple eyebrows and both eyes were red within a yellow sclera.  
Big Mac looked at the creature, his eyes open with more than a little surprise.  Not only was it symmetrical, a characteristic he had not expected in a draconequus, but it had a cutie mark on its hip, one that he recognized.  The creature slowly stood and glared at the alicorn.
“Do you have any idea of what you’ve done?” it asked slowly, its rage barely suppressed.
“Uh... Nope.  Cain’t say as Ah do...... Twilight.”  

To Be Continued...

> Chapter 19
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Who are you?” Chrysalis demanded angrily, as her focus shifted from Big Mac to the draconequus. 
“Don’t you remember, your majesty?” Twilight replied, a tincture of humor replacing some of the fury in her voice.  “Oh, I’m so disappointed.  Especially after all the things we did together, all the time I spent learning your most intimate of secrets.”  She shook her head in disappointment at the changeling queen. “And now here you are, making demands like some foal who thinks they’re entitled to know anything.”
A blast of magic struck the draconequus full in the face.  “You DARE mock me?” screamed Chrysalis.  “You know not who you are dealing with... but I shall gladly enlighten you!”  The spell faded and the changeling queen stared, unbelieving, at her opponent.  Twilight hadn’t even blinked.  She put one taloned hand up to her mouth and yawned in mock boredom.  
“Really now?  Is that your pathetic response?  You’re going to throw a tantrum?  You really are a foal.”  There was the sound of someone snapping their fingers as the tuft on the draconequus’ tail twitched.  It was accompanied by a flash of light.  Chrysalis vanished, only to be replaced by a much younger version of herself.
“And just like any naughty foal, there are times one must really put their foot down...”  A massive boot suddenly appeared in the air over the newly formed changeling princess.  “Good bye bug,” Twilight sneered.  The boot hovered there for an instant, then came down with enough force to crush her.  Chrysalis curled up like a terrified foal, not wanting to see the deathblow as it struck.  It never connected.  Instead the boot was stopped by a half-domed shield that shattered the magical construct to pieces.  
“Who dares?” hissed the draconequus. 
“Ah do!”  
She focused once more on the red-furred alicorn and laughed.  “This is too precious.  I mean, isn’t the queen of holes your enemy?  Now, you defend her life against me?   And they say I’m fickle.”
“Eeeyup.”
The draconequus slithered over to Big Mac and placed a finger on the end of his muzzle.  It was all he could do to not flinch.  
“You would stand against me, and defend a world you aren’t even a part of?  
“Ah haf ta.”  
“Why?”
“Cause it’s the right thing ta do.”
The Twilight chimera giggled.  “Oh, that is so noble sounding of you, even with the countrified twang you give it.  I’m betting on your own world you’re some kind of brave and bold knight.”  She blinked her eyes coquettishly at him, then physically pushed him back about a dozen feet with hardly any effort at all.  “You realize that your alicorn powers are no match for the power of chaos, don’t you?”
“Nnnope!  Don’t know nothin’ o’ the kind.”
The draconequus pouted.  “And here I was thinking you had some brains in that thick, bumpkin head of yours.”  Her voice suddenly became more intense.  “Why I even believe you’ve forgotten all about my associate.”
Even before she finished speaking Big Mac had abruptly tucked and rolled to the left, avoiding the black crystal spikes that suddenly erupted from the floor.  Glancing out of the corner of his eye the farmer could see the figure of King Sombra standing in the arched doorway behind him.  He smiled crookedly.
“Nnnope.”  There was a flash of light as two large hands appeared, hovering over Sombra.  Before the unicorn could react he had been picked up by one hand as the other deftly reached down and removed something invisible from his horn.  A bright light enveloped the witch king as he turned into the tall, scrawny form of Flam.  “Didn’t forget ‘bout him, just didn’t pay him any mind ‘til Ah had ta.”  
“Brother?” the yellow unicorn asked in confusion, looking around the room.
“Ah’d look fer him outside if I was you, where it’s safe,” Big Mac commanded, pushing the snake-oil sales pony out the door.   One hand vanished even as the other crushed the black bone ring it had removed from Flam’s horn.  There was a cloud of black smoke and a scream of anger as the ring ceased to exist.  Flam took one look at the draconequus and ran as fast as his hooves could carry him. 
Twilight sighed.  “I suppose this is something I’m going to have to take care of myself.  Good help has been so hard to find since I lost my number one assistant.”  She looked over at the other five ponies as they helped Trixie to her hooves.  The draconequus suddenly brightened. 
“OH!  There you ARE!”  There was the sound of snapping fingers and Spike appeared next to her.  She used her magic to pick the young dragon up by his tail.  “My!  How you’ve grown.  It really has been too long since I last saw you.”  She reached out and grabbed him, pulling him into a hug that easily could have been mistaken with that of a python.  The teen drake’s eyes bugged out slightly.
“HEY, YOU BIG BULLY... LEAVE HIM ALONE!” yelled Rainbow Dash.  She started to throw herself at Twilight but was brought up short when Babs clamped her teeth on her tail.  
“Easy there darling,” cautioned Rarity with a whisper.  “We need to stay together and let Prince Macintosh lead the way.”
“If there’s any bit o’ Twilight still in ya, y’all might want ta ease up on Spike so’s he can get a breath,” Big Mac warned.  
“Oh... I suppose so.  I really don’t want to break him... yet,” the draconequus replied.  She gently tossed Spike to one side.  The dragon collapsed, unconscious on the floor.  To everypony’s relief, they could see he was still breathing.  
“By the way, the name’s Eris, not Twilight, though I’ll be the first to admit there is more than a little bit of your unicorn friend in me.”
“Eeeyup.  Ah can see that,” the alicorn replied.  “Ah’m guessin’ she was yer key inta this world.”
“My key...?” she asked, then smiled wickedly.  OH, you are certainly most perceptive.”
“I knew it,” offered Pinkie Pie to the other.  “A zombie ghost.”
Eris looked at the party pony with a deadpan expression.  “Really?  Was that your best guess?”
“It’s obviously somethin’ more, Ah’d say.” Big Mac observed.  “Ah just wonder why ya chose Twilight?”
“You know, it’s rather funny how that works,” replied the draconequus.  “There I was, a disembodied spirit, a tourist if you will, floating around this world on a lark when I chanced upon your poor friend, broken in too many places to count and slowly bleeding out after her fall.  Barely alive, she had just enough free will left to accept my offer of life, though I wouldn’t necessarily vouch for her state of mind at the time.”
“In plain, simple terms, you took advantage of her,” Trixie asserted.
“Of course I did.  She would have been dead otherwise,” Eris offered.  “I took over her body and pushed her deep into her own mind, then applied what magics I needed to cause her to shape and heal into the form you see now.  A much more svelte look if I say so myself.  It took me a while, but the effort was worth it.”
“If Ay understood the prince, yer a spirit of chaos,” Babs asserted.  “There can’t be more than one o’ youse on a single world.”
“Quite true,” Eris replied, chuckling, “But I am so much more...  Fortunately, I completed manifesting on this world at an opportune moment, while my ‘doppelganger’ was still trapped in stone.  Naturally I took the statue and put it in stasis so the chaos unleashed by your Nightmare Moon could not set him free.  The rest was a simple matter of using a disguise spell to make everypony believe I was him and overthrowing your evil queen of the night.”
“So HE was actually you the whole time?” Fluttershy whispered.
“Guilty as charged,” Eris replied with a slight bow.  “He must be so mad right about now.”
“If y’all are a disembodied spirit, where’s yer original body?” asked Big Mac.
“Safe enough, on my own world.  I can easily move my spirit back and forth between here and there when I want, making me the first of my kind to have control of two of the eleven worlds.”
“Ta what purpose?”
“Oh, I dare say that with this kind of power, it shouldn’t be too hard to gain control of all eleven worlds, one by one.  I know how to now.  Then, I won’t be just a chaos entity... I’ll be a goddess.”
“Y’all should be careful what ya wish fer,” the alicorn said.  “Bein’ a goddess might not be all it’s cracked up ta be.”  Big Mac fired a burst of energy from his horn and Eris dodged easily, then frowned as she saw it envelop Spike and teleport him back among the other ponies.  
“Now that was uncalled for.  I said I didn’t plan to hurt him,” the serpent pouted, snapping her clawed fingers.  There was a pop, and the farmer suddenly found himself floating in a gigantic fishbowl complete with miniature castle and a faux treasure chest.  “This is going to be as easy as shooting fish in a barrel, or bowl as it were...”  
Holding his breath, Big Mac teleported behind the draconequus and landed a solid buck to her chin, launching her up and across the room to land in her own fishbowl.  Concentrating, he transformed a chandler that hung over the bowl into a gigantic bag of flower.  It split open and dumped the contents into the water, turning it to glue.  
“Ya know, that’s exactly what happened first time Granny Smith tried teachin’ me how ta make a pie crust.”  
Eris quickly surfaced only to discover she was covered head to tail in a thick, sticky paste.  Glaring angrily at the alicorn she raised her hand and snapped her fingers.  Nothing happened.  With her hand covered in glue, she couldn’t produce the snap she normally used to cast a spell.  The draconequus slithered sloppily out of the fishbowl and grimaced, then burst into flame, cooking the paste off her body.  
“Clever princeling... I’m going to have fun humiliating you.”  She reached for Big Mac, her arm stretching like rubber before grabbing him around the barrel.  “Let’s see how much you like getting squeezed.”  
The arm stretched and tightened.  The farmer groaned slightly in pain, then used his last breath to gasp out a single, arcane word.  In response a simple white bucket appeared over Eris’ arms before tipping over and spilling its contents.  There was a flash of icy white mist as the liquid froze her arms solid within an instant.  The draconequus screamed in pain and released Big Mac even as her upper arms cracked, then shattered into a thousand fragments.  Her grip on the alicorn eased and her hands sloughed off him, turning into putty.  He smiled, remembering back to when he was a captive audience as Twilight rehearsed a chemistry lecture one summer evening.  She’d certainly been right about the effects of dry ice.  
“THAT HURT!!!” Eris growled as a new set of arms grew out from her shoulders in a matter of seconds. She snapped her fingers again and a miniature tornado engulfed the stallion. 
Big Mac found himself swept off his hooves, unable to target a counter-attack at the draconequus as he whirled madly around the room.  Thinking fast, he cast a spell on himself, giving his body the density of stone.  He dropped back to the floor, cracking the tile beneath him. Obscured by the dust-laden winds, the alicorn cast a spell that caused a small, black cloud to form at the apex of the funnel.  Within seconds Eris found herself inundated by a blast of sleet, followed by a barrage of hailstones.  
“Now that’s just rude...”  The draconequus snapped her fingers and the throne room abruptly ripped itself apart.  Some of the castle stones rearranged themselves into a barrier, blocking the ice assault.  Others turned into a pair of massive stone golems, each armed with an imposing club.  They began advancing on Big Mac.
The six other ponies braced themselves against the winds whipping around them.  Rarity looked over at the revived Trixie.  “What do we do now?”
“I’m not sure,” the blue furred pony replied.  “I can feel the power of the elements, but I don’t know how to control or aim it.”
“Well, we’d better do something quick,” said Babs.  “Ay don’t know how long my cousin can keep Twilight, or whatever she’s called busy.”
She was cut short by the wail of foal.  Everypony turned to see a young Chrysalis, crying in terror as the wind began pulling her toward the center of the maelstrom.  The shield that had been protecting her collapsed.  Fluttershy was the first to react, galloping over to the former queen of holes and scooping her up.  The wind tore at her long, pink tresses as she fought her way back to the side of her companions.  
“What’d you do that for?” asked Rainbow Dash.        
“I couldn’t just leave her out there... she looked so lost and afraid.”
“Flutters... we’re not talking about some bunny rabbit.  That’s Chrysalis for hoof’s sake!”
“Is it?” the yellow pegasus replied.  When Dash looked, she saw the changeling queen hugging tightly to her friend and mewling like a lost kitten.  She had to admit, the foal certainly didn’t act like Chrysalis.
“Whatever... Just don’t expect me to help take care of her, especially if she needs changing!”  The cyan pegasus paused and looked closely at the foal.  “What’s that on her leg?”  Reaching over, she opened the overly large sheath bound to her left foreleg and pulled out what looked like a gnarled, black stick.  That’s when everything went south.
It seemed to everypony that the whole world dropped about a foot as they were all thrown off their hooves.  Laughing manically, Eris spun around in mid-air as the world about them shook.  
Big Mac launched himself into the air, hovering just above the draconequus and fired a blast of green energy, not from his horn, but from the element hidden behind his plow collar.  It caught the princess of chaos by surprise and knocked her to the ground, sending her skidding across the tiled floor.  The earthquake stopped.  
“This has gone on long enough,” she snarled, picking herself up and dusting herself off.  Her fingers snapped once more.  A dozen columns of stone erupted from the ground, encircling the alicorn prince before arching inward and fusing together at the top.  “Does the little birdie like its new cage?” she mocked.
“Nnnope,” Big Mac replied.  There was a flash and he disappeared.
“Teleporting... really?  That is so old hat.  All I have to do is trace the energy flow and I know where you’ll be popping back in.”  She readied a spell, holding it in her claw as she turned around.  A confused expression crossed her face.  “Where did you go?” she muttered.  She then called out in a sing song voice... “Come out, come out wherever you are.”
There was another flash and the stallion appeared right behind Eris.  “Ah’m right here!”  He spun and kicked with both back legs, sending her tumbling across the throne room.  She rolled to a stop and rubbed her chin, even as a tooth wobbled, then fell out.  
“How...?” then she grinned, unintentionally showing the new gap between her teeth.  “Oh, I see... You didn’t teleport.  You shrank yourself down to the size of an insect.  Clever boy.”  She snapped her fingers and the stallion suddenly found himself entangled in a massive ball of cotton candy.  Eris waived her hand and the candy sphere shot across the wide open room splattering against the only wall left standing, the one behind the two thrones.  Mac slid down about three feet then found himself dangling from several thick cords of spun sugar.  Before he could react, the draconequus conjured a dozen candy cane spears, the end of each being sharpened to a razor like point.  
The alicorn prince saw what was coming next, so he cast a shield spell between himself and his opponent.  The candy canes shattered against the magical barrier, sending red and white striped shrapnel everywhere.  Everypony in the room ducked as the sweet barrage sailed over their heads. 
“HEY! You can’t do that!” yelled Pinkie Pie.  “You’re wasting a perfectly good treat!”
“Pinkie, darling,” Rarity pointed out, “You should worry less about her crimes against confection and focus more on how we stop her.”
“Maybe this does something,” offered Rainbow, holding up the black, twisted stick.  “I mean it did belong to her after all, when she was still Chrysalis.” 	Unfortunately, the cyan pegasus’ voice had a tendency to carry, even when she whispered.
Turning, Eris saw Rainbow as she held up the stick.  “THAT’S MINE!” she shouted.  She snapped her fingers and a pinkish field of energy wrapped itself around the wand.  Before she could react, it was jerked out of Rainbow’s hoof and began sailing across the room.
Struggling to free himself from the cotton candy, Big Mac saw what had drawn Eris’ attention, recognizing it instantly.  “Don’t let her get her hooves on the wand!” the stallion called, even as he yanked himself free of the last threads of sugar and dropped to the ground.  
Both Rarity and Trixie reached out with their telekinesis and grabbed the wand.  Unfortunately, they couldn’t do anything except slow its progress.  
Reacting quickly, Babs swiftly drew out her service revolver and aimed it, not at the draconequus, but at the wand.  She cracked her neck, rotated it and closed one eye before squeezing the trigger.  
The sound of the shot echoed through what was left of the throne room and out into the glade in front of the castle.  Time itself seemed to slow down as the bullet made contact with the gnarled wand and shattered it.  “NO!” screamed Eris as the world was absorbed by a silent, blindingly white explosion.  For an instant, it felt as if the sun had descended to the earth.  The last impression that Big Mac had was that somehow, things had just gotten worse.  

> Chapter20
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first thing that pierced the silent white was a soft babble.  Big Mac was confused.  It wasn’t the kind of sound that only ten ponies would make.  No, this was the sound of a crowd... a very, very large crowd.  Perhaps a hundred or more ponies, all very confused and disoriented.  Moments later, the blinding white resolved itself into dozens and dozens of shapes.  The stallion looked around and found himself surrounded by a score or more of ponies, griffons, minataurs and others, all wearing the same confused look on their faces.

One pony in particular drew his attention.  There, still tied to a wooden frame was the battered and bruised figure of his sister, Applejack.  Unlike the others, she was unconscious.  Reaching across with his magic, Big Mac gently unbound her and drew her to him.  On close examination, he could see the injuries, though serious, were not life threatening.  He placed her on the ground in a cushion of magic, then turned his attention back to the crowd. 

The prince noticed that the two display cabinets Chrysalis, or more correctly Eris, had brought with her were shattered, presumably by the explosive release of so many ponies who had been trapped there.  Many of the ponies, and others, were slowly getting to their hooves.  They filled what was left of the throne room and spread outward into the glade in front of the castle, cast there by the silent explosion that had released them.  One figure, a white alicorn with a pastel rainbow mane seemed to be getting a better handle on things than the others.   She seemed to flow to her hooves and spread her wings, lifting her head so she could better see around her.  Her eyes caught those of Big Mac and she shook her head in disbelief.  

“Who are YOU?”

“No time ta explain,” he said.  “Just think o’ me as a friend.  We gotta get all these ponies sorted out before......”  A scream of rage cut through his response.  

“YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS... ALL OF YOU,” Eris screamed.  

“Uh oh,” muttered Rainbow.  “I think we ticked her off.”

Celestia looked towards Eris.  “Twilight?  Twilight Sparkle?  What...?”       

A huge thundercloud magically formed not more than about twenty feet above them.  It darkened, swirling angrily in a counter-clockwise direction as it expanded.  Bolts of red and black lightning began dancing around the chamber.  One of them struck a pale green unicorn with a white and green mane and tail.  She vanished in a shower of reddish sparks.  Big Mac didn’t know her very well, but thought her name might have been Lyra.  Seeing this, a number of ponies began to panic.  Screams filled the air as they galloped wildly around seeing some kind of shelter or escape.

“Yer Highness!” the stallion yelled over the constant crash of thunder.  “Focus... We haf ta turn this storm back on itself before anypony else gets hurt.”

“Why would Twilight...?”

“SHE AIN’T TWILIGHT!!!” Big Mac roared.  “SHE’S ERIS..., AND SHE’S ABOUT TA USE EQUESTRIA TA MAKE HERSELF A GODDESS!”

Grim understanding and determination abruptly filled Celestia’s eyes, replacing the confusion that had been there moments before.  “Not on my watch, she doesn’t!”  A beam of golden light burst forth from her horn, striking the cloud above.  She looked over at Big Mac.  “This storm’s powerful...  I could use your help.”

“What do Ah do?”

“Add your magical energy to mine.”

The alicorn prince nodded and a bright green light joined with Celestia’s golden nimbus.  The cloud ceased growing.  “Now what?”

“I’m not sure.  There’s a lot of raw, chaos magic here.  It’s hard to overcome,” the sun goddess replied.

Big Mac noticed a brown pony who wasn’t running.  He had an hourglass on his flank and was waving his forelegs back and forth, trying to get their attention.  He yelled something that was hard to hear over the storm.

“T Y  EVE SING T E POLA ITY OF T E NEUT ON FLOW!"

Prince Macintosh looked over at Celestia who had also seen the pony.  “Did ya get that?”  

Celestia nodded.  “I believe so.  On three.... One... Two... THREE!”  The streams of their energy crossed, entwined and expanded outward to engulf the entire cloud.  There was a flash, then green and gold sparks burst apart like fireworks and the cloud vanished. 

The electricity in the air dissipated quickly, as did some of the panic.  

“You two are determined to ruin everything, aren’t you?” growled Eris, snapping her fingers once more.  The very ground beneath their hooves turned to rubber.  Any pony who was walking or jogging before now found themselves bouncing uncontrollably with each step.  Several of them fell, thrown off balance by the uncertain terrain.  As they hit the ground, it was like their bounce had been increased exponentially.  Each rebound threw them a little higher, then higher again into the air.  A couple of the pegasi tried to counter the rubberized ground by flying, or at least trying to.  Their efforts were negated when their wings vanished in a puff of smoke. 

The draconequus laughed with a brutal callousness.  “You know, I think they’re starting to like this.  Just look at them all, jumping for joy.”

One of the minotaurs reached down and grabbed a chunk of building stone, hurling it at Eris.  “If you’re gonna mess with the best, get ready to take a long, unplanned rest!” he yelled.  

“Really?  Didn’t anypony teach you not to telegraph your blows?” The chimera said, snapping her fingers.  She teleported about two feet back from where she had been standing.  When she reappeared, Eris was wearing a telegrapher’s outfit.  As the stone sailed past, she whipped out a label, licked it, and slapped it on the side of the stone.  From Big Mac’s point of view, it looked like it read RETURN TO SENDER.  The stone abruptly whipped around Eris and flew straight back at the minotaur.  It struck him in the torso, sending him tumbling to one side.  

“That’s what I’d call getting caught between the rock and a hard case,” laughed the draconequus.  She snapped her tail and the rubberized ground turned into a two foot deep morass of pistachio pudding.  Ponies who had been bouncing everywhere suddenly splatted into the creamy mess.  Most found themselves covered from head to hoof in the pale green goo. 

Celestia leapt high into the air and fired an intense bolt of pure sunlight at Eris, hoping to at least draw the creature’s attention to her so her subjects might have a chance to escape.  The draconequus once more snapped her taloned fingers.  A hand mirror, about the size and shape of a tennis racket materialized in the air before her.  She grabbed it in her magic and used it to swat Celestia’s spell back at her.  

Sensing an opportunity, the princess also created a mirror floating in front of her.  She caught the spell with a smooth backhand stroke and sent it back at Eris.  The chimera responded by returning the bolt with an overhand swing.  She snapped her fingers and a thick net and marked tennis court materialized.  As Celestia had hoped, the impromptu game drew the draconequus’ attention away from the rest of the ponies.  

Most of the ponies took advantage of Eris’ preoccupation and made a dash for the glade outside the castle.  They quickly discovered the rope bridge across the chasm was still down, so the rush to escape quickly ebbed.  One pegasi tried to fly across the gap, but remembered too late that his wings were missing.  Fortunately a griffon managed to snag him before he vanished into the fog filling the chasm.  Gilda gave the idiot pony a good chewing out when they landed back in the glade.

The “game” between Celestia and Eris became more intense as the bolt of energy began flying faster and faster.  

“We’ve got to do something!” Rarity said.  “The princess can’t keep this up forever.”  

Even as she spoke, a second bolt of energy joined the first.  Again, a mirrored tennis racket appeared as Eris grew another arm to handle it.  Celestia created and levitated a second mirror paddle.  Then came three... and four... then five, six and seven in quick succession.  There were so many bolts of energy flying that it was hard to follow who was serving and who was returning.  The draconequus was handling seven rackets by then, one in each of her six hands and another in her prehensile tail.  Eris was laughing manically, thoroughly enjoying the chaos being unleashed. 

Wrinkling her muzzle, Celestia joined all seven of the paddles he was levitating by the handle, creating one, overlarge propeller of paddles which she spun.  The bolts of energy struck her propeller, sending each back at Eris on a precise trajectory.  

“No Fair!” the draconequus squawked loudly.  An instant later a large, mirrored parabolic dish appeared before her, catching each bolt and sending them back at Celestia like a chain of balls.  

The back and forth continued for about ten more seconds, then the energy spheres began spinning on their own, forming into a vortex between the two “contestants.”  Gathering themselves into a single spinning sphere, the energy began to rise above them.  

“LOOK OUT!” somepony yelled.

The ball of light abruptly burst.  Something however shunted most of the energy upward, away from the combatants, though it still succeeded in knocking everyone off their hooves except for Celestia and Eris.  

“THIS I DO NOT BELIEVE.  THE FATE OF EQUESTRIA ITSELF HANGS IN THE BALANCE AND THEE DECIDES TO SETTLE THE ISSUE OVER A GAME?!” 

Everypony save the princess and the draconequus turned at the sound of the voice.  There, hovering before them was another alicorn princess, though this one’s fur was black as midnight and a pair of bat wings had replaced the normal pegasi ones Celestia wore.  Mist roiled off her body like steam and both her star-filled mane and tail danced in the non-existent breeze.  

“LUNA!” Big Mac called, drawing her attention to him.

“LUNA?  NEIGH, I AM NOT THAT WEAK, WILLED, SPOILED FILLY.  I AM THE NIGHT, I AM THE STARS AND THE MOON.  I AM NIGHTMARE MOON!”  Her eyes alighted on the alicorn prince, then widened in surprise.  “DOTH MINE EYES DECEIVE ME?  ART THOU TRULY A PRINCE OF THE HOOF, THE HORN AND THE WING?”

“Uh... Eeeyup?”

“HAZAH!  THEN THOU SHALL JOIN ME IN CELEBRATION ONCE I HAVE DEALT WITH THE USUPER AND PUT MY SISTER BACK IN HER PLACE!”  

Big Mac was more than a little unnerved, having loved the gentle Luna and now seeing her alter-ego in the fur.  

“Sister... Focus!” cried Celestia.  “First we must deal with Eris... Then we can ‘discuss’ our own issues.”

Nightmare Moon threw a silvery sphere around the draconequus, trapping her.  “THERE SHALL BE NO DISCUSSION!  THOU SHALL SUBMIT TO MY WILL, OR ONCE MORE SUFFER BANISHMENT TO THE SUN!”

“You know, it’s never a good idea to divide you attention in a fight,” smirked Eris.  She snapped her clawed fingers.  The silver orb surrounding her shattered like a mirror, sending shards of solid light expanding in every direction.  

Big Mac, Celestia, and Nightmare all threw up shields to protect themselves.  The other ponies ducked down behind a pile of debris as the jagged pieces of light passed over them.  The draconequus reached out with her own power seizing the shimmering protective spheres in magically constructed hands.  “I guess it’s time I got a grip on things here.  Or maybe...”  The hands began tossing the balls of energy around, juggling them back and forth, occasionally bouncing them off the floor.  “...I should juggle things up a bit.”  

Laughing furiously, Eris did not see the small vial of blue powder as it arched through the air and smashed at her hooves.  The draconequus was instantly enveloped in a blue cloud.  Her magic hands disappeared as she begin sneezing, allowing the three alicorns to drop to the ground safely beyond the cloud.  

“NO...ACHOO!  FAIR USING MY OWN...KA-CHOOO!  POISON JOKE...AAAHHHCHCHOOO!  AGAINST ME!”  KA-CHOOO...”  The serpent twisted around on herself as she fired off volleys of sneezes.  Unfortunately, each sneeze seemed to have an effect on the local environment as trees melted, lava pits opened and cotton candy clouds deluged everyone with chocolate milk.  One pony was turned into a humpbacked whale that almost crushed other ponies around her while a second was changed into a potted plant, whose last cognitive thought was “Oh no... Not Again!”

Another stray bolt of magic ricocheted off the wall several times before hitting Spike.  The teen dragon roared with surprise as he suddenly transformed into purple, pegasi colt with a green mane and tail.  The second vial he’d been holding slipped from his newly formed hoof, hit the ground and shattered.  Within seconds a pale green ivy plant shot out of the ground.  It wrapped its vines around Spike and his friends before spreading out, attaching itself to a nearby wall and climbing it, ponies bound tightly within.  

“I can’t move,” Rainbow Dash announced.  “What the hay is this thing?”

“Some kind of clinging vine, Ay’d guess,” observed Babs as she tried twisting her way free of it.

“Explosivus Pyrocanthinium,” replied Spike.  “I was hoping to ensnare Eris with it.”

“Explosivus...?  Youse don’t mean this stuff’s gonna blow up, do ya?”

“No,” said Trixie.  Explosivus only refers to its rate of growth.  I once used some to keep an audience from walking out on my show.”

“A captive audience?” Rarity exclaimed.  “Isn’t that a bit unprofessional?”

“What can I say,” the stage magician replied.  “Young and stupid.”

“So how do we get untangled?” asked Rainbow.

“Maybe we could chew our way out?” offered Pinkie Pie.  She grabbed a mouthful of vine and began gnawing vigorously.  She quickly spat it back out.  “Blech!  This stuff tastes horrible.  Anyone have a cupcake?  I need to get this taste out of my mouth.”

“I should have warned you,” said Fluttershy.  “Only little lambs eat ivy.”

Rarity looked over at Trixie.  “How did you finally get your audience unwrapped?”

“I didn’t,” replied the show pony grinning sheepishly.  “That’s one reason I took my act on the road.”

“Maybe Spike can use his dragon breath to burn us free?” suggested Pinkie.  

The newly transformed stallion managed to turn his head enough to look at the party pony, one eyebrow cocked sardonically.  “Even if I still could, there are at least a dozen reasons why that wouldn’t be a good idea.”

The castle shook again as Eris gave one last triumphant sneeze.  The floor beneath Celestia and Luna collapsed, dropping them both into the lower levels of the castle.  Dropping their shields, they both sprang into the air, only to be seized by two separate coils of black, thorny vines. 

Seeing this, Big Mac focused his magic into a tight beam of energy and severed the vines below their coils, freeing the princesses.  He then turned towards the other ponies.  His magic once more severed the ivy from its roots, causing it to instantly crumble and drop Spike and the others to the floor.  The stallion turned just in time to be flattened by a bolt of energy coming from Eris.  Dazed, he saw the draconequus teleport so she was standing just above him.

Eris glared at Big Mac.  “This is all your fault, interloper.  This world was mine until you stuck your muzzle into it and inspired this quest.”  Dark chaos magic flared between her paws, expanding into a sphere that began drawing the air itself into it.  “I have had enough of your interference.  I don’t know exactly how you arrived on this world, but you are leaving it...NOW!”   She raised the sphere high above her head intending to bring it down onto the alicorn prince.  

Stunned as he was, all he could think of doing was rolling out of her way and leaping to his hooves.  It wasn’t enough.  The sphere’s energy enveloped him and he began to feel a sharp burning sensation that drove down to the very core of his being.  For a brief instant, he felt as if he was dissolving... And then, it all suddenly stopped.  The sphere vanished like a popped balloon, leaving Eris with an expression of absolute confusion on her face.  

“What...?  Who...?”  She tried to summon her power to herself, but there was only the slightest sputtering crackle as she snapped her fingers.  “My power... What’s happened to my power?”

“I’m afraid I am what happened, my dear,” came a voice from behind her.  She whirled and looked, as did every other pony within sight.  There stood a tall, lithe, serpentine chimera.  His mismatched parts emphasized the very chaos he represented.  He casually levitated a small whisk brush across his shoulders dusting off several small pieces of granite.  “As much as I appreciate and enjoy all the chaos you’ve created, I think it’s high time we had a little chat,” he grinned wickedly.   
> Chapter 21
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Well, well, well.... I take an enforced vacation of a thousand years or so and everything seems to have gone to Tartarus,” quipped Discord.  “Not that I mind, no, not in the least, but I do dislike the thought of everypony else leaving me out of the fun and chaos.”  

“How... How did you escape?” cried Eris.

“You, of all beings here should know the answer to that,” he replied.

“Well...Ah don’t,” asserted Big Mac.

The draconequus looked up and down at the alicorn stallion.  “This is certainly unexpected.  Not only aren’t you supposed to be here, but that shade of color... it’s absolutely tasteless.  I like it.”

“That doth not explain how thou escaped!” snapped Nightmare Moon.

Discord shook his head.  “If you’re going to hang around here any length of time, you’re going to need a diction coach.  Though I’m sure your sister would be more than willing to volunteer.”  He snapped his fingers and the two princesses were suddenly transformed into an artistic mobile, festooned with suns, moons and stars.  It dangled from the top of a nearby window that was still intact.  “Why don’t you take a number and wait your turn.  I have bigger issues to deal with at the moment.”

The chaos lord turned back to Eris.  “Have you figured it out yet my dear?”

“It’s obvious.  Once released from stasis, it only took a few jolts of chaos to weaken and shatter that petrification spell,” the female draconequus said.  There was a puff of magic and a small plushy version of Discord dropped into her hands with a squeak.

“Mares and gentle-colts, our ersatz mistress of chaos wins the Kupe prize!”

Eris angrily threw the doll aside only to have it leap to its feet and run over to bite her on the tail.   She screeched a high pitched yelp of pain. 

“Ah, ah my dear. You shouldn’t look a gift me in the mouth.”

“You... you helot!   You’re going to ruin everything!”

“You know what?” grinned Discord, “I really and truly am.”  He snapped his fingers.  Eris threw her talons to either side of her head and screamed, not in fear or terror, but in frustration and anger.  A moment later, her eyes closed and she dropped to the ground.  “Good bye my dear... enjoy your journey back home.”

The whole world seemed to shudder as Eris’ magical influence was disbursed across the land.  Dry lakes filled with water, green snow melted in an instant.  Winter became summer, then fall.  Night and day struggled for a moment with each other before settling into a soft pre-dusk above the Castle of the Two Sisters.  Spike transformed back into his dragon form.  The sun settled gently towards the horizon, then paused, waiting patiently for Celestia’s final, magical push.  Walls pulled themselves together while others collapsed into a heap.   The only thing that didn’t change was the mobile containing the trapped princesses.  It simply swayed in the soft, evening breeze.

“Just remember, next time you have the urge to travel Napoleon’s road,” Discord admonished.  “This world is MINE!”  

The draconequus looked down on the shell that was Eris’ body.  “No talent for chaos at all.  I mean just look at that.  She took on a form much too symmetrical to effectively use her power... Noobie.” 

“Did ya kill her?” asked Big Mac.

Discord chuckled, turning to face the alicorn.  “No, I just sent her spirit back to her own world where she can brood, though when she arrives, I wouldn’t be too surprised if she doesn’t wind up taking things there for granite.”  He laughed at his own joke.  

Big Mac noticed something that Discord, in his self-absorbed hilarity had apparently missed.  The body of Eris was beginning to stir.  He also saw that the cutie mark, which until now had been dull and colorless had regained almost all of its natural vibrancy.  The draconequus opened its eyes and took in the world around it, then looking at the stallion, put one taloned finger to its lips as if shushing him.  An idea came to the prince and he took a few steps to his left, forcing the draconequus to turn more of his back to Eris to face him.

“So what do ya plan ta do now, seein’ as yer the big honcho here?”

Discord smiled, and it didn’t look pleasant.  “Well, I suppose I should figure out what to do with you next.  After all, you’re as much an interloper as she was, though sending you away might prove a bit harder.  You’re not just some possessive spirit, like Eris or Nightmare over there.  You’re the real deal.  A complete being, physically, mentally, spiritually and magically.  How exactly did you arrive in this world?”

“By makin’ a foalish wish.”  

“Yes... those are the most troublesome.  But you have to know that jumping from one world to another requires more than a little accidental magic.  You somehow tapped into a bit of chaos, or possibly got a boost of it more than likely.”

“Ya might say that, though if Ah understand correctly, the boost of chaos actually kept me from fading from existence completely.”

“And brought you here instead,” Discord said.  “I suppose if you need to thank somepony you can offer that thanks to me, as proxy of course.”

Big Mac continued to meet the draconequus’ gaze, however out of the corner of one eye he saw Eris drag herself over to the other ponies who were still hiding out of sight.  He sensed, more than saw as she touched each on the forehead or horn. Wherever her talon touched, a faint glow remained and each pony’s eyes opened wide.  

“Nope... Ah don’t recon Ah’ve anything ta thank ya for.  Ah’ll wait until I get a chance ta meet the real Discord  again.”

“And who’s to say I’m not the real Discord?” the Lord of Chaos sneered.  “From my perspective, this world is real and yours is the dream, the illusion.”

Big Mac turned and took a few steps to the left before facing the draconequus again, waving a hoof casually in his direction.  “As a matter o’ fact, Ah have a good friend who explained the whole thing ta me.  All the worlds within the branches of harmony are real, which means each o’ us are only as unique as the experiences that make us.  But, y’all already know that, bein’ the spirit o’ chaos and all.  Ah’ve seen the Discord o’ my world call upon duplicates o’ himself and have a rousing debate while other ponies looked on in confusion.  Ah wouldn’t be at all surprised if’n they weren’t duplicates, but doppelgangers from each o’ these worlds, havin’ somethin’ like a pow-wow.”

Discord’s smile grew into a wide grin that actually overstretched the boundaries of his face, then fell free and rocked back and forth on the floor.  “Bravo... Bravo,” he clapped.  “You’re not the hick farmer that one would assume from your countrified manner and speech.  You actually have more than a few brains up there.”  He snapped his tail and the smile returned to his face, but then reversed itself into a frown.

“Sadly, you are a little too smart for your own good, or mine for that matter.  That, and I absolutely loathe the namby-pamby version of myself that lives there.”  There was another snap, this time of his taloned fingers.  Big Mac found himself bound neck to fetlock in iron chains that glowed.  “You know way too much about the nature of our worlds, and me, for you to be allowed to roam free.  So I’m afraid I have to take drastic measures to curtail your influence.”

“Yup... Ah imagined that would be yer solution.  But ya needn’t worry none.  Ah weren’t planning on stayin’ longer than Ah had ta.”

“And exactly how long was that going to be?”

“Long enough ta set things right here abouts, and put Celestia back in charge.”

Discord laughed out loud for several very long seconds.  “And how,” he chuckled, “do you intend to do that?”

“By usin’ the Element o’ Harmony.”

“Oh pa-leese!” the draconequus replied.  “Those trinkets have been missing for centuries, and it’s certain that neither of the princesses can use them, not in their current state of disharmony.”

“Yer right.... but not completely,” the alicorn smirked.  “Now, ladies.  NOW!”

Discord whirled about just in time to see a line of six ponies, all glowing with different colors and wearing the magical vestiges of alicorns fire off six colorful beams of light.  Next to them stood a smiling Eris.  She had Spike firmly grasped in her talons even as he hugged her back, just as tightly, tears in his eyes.  She smiled and waved good-bye to the Lord of Chaos as each beam merged with the others, creating a rainbow that arched high into the air like a tsunami before crashing down to wash over the draconequus.  Discord never had even a chance to teleport away to safety.  

The roar of the magical energies crashed against Big Mac like thunder.  He slammed his eyes shut but he was certain he heard Discord’s last words.  They were something like “...Oh for the love of... Not AGAIN!”

The wave of magic passed and the world went silent.  The alicorn prince opened his eyes to find the chains binding him had vanished like smoke.  He looked in the direction of the Chaos Lord.  There he stood, once again encased in his stone prison, though this time he had his arms akimbo.  The expression on his face was one of sublime frustration with just a hint of resignation.

The others had gathered around Spike and Eris.  Big Mac quietly strode over to them as they watched Spike and the draconequus hug each other.  The stallion smiled.  “Hello Miss Sparkle, nice ta see ya again, after a fashion.”

She looked at Big Mac.  “Hello your highness.  It’s nice to be back in my own head, even if the body’s a bit... different.”

“Wait a second... How come everything else Eris changed was restored to normal, but not Twilight?” asked Rainbow Dash.

The purple draconequus smiled knowingly.  “It’s simple... Eris used my own unicorn magic to change my body into a form she could use to tap into Chaos magic.  The process was slow, but when she finished she sorta moved in and pushed my mind back into the furthest corners of ... well, my own mind.  I could see and hear everything, but couldn’t do anything.”

Rarity smiled in understanding. “That would explain why unlike He who should not be named...”

“Youse mean Discord, don’t ya,” interrupted Babs.

“Is it really safe to use his name now?” asked Fluttershy cautiously.

Big Mac smiled and nodded.  “Eeeyup!”

“Very well, why, uh, unlike..... Discord..... Twilight’s body was much more symmetrical and balanced.  Like all unicorn magic, it’s based on Harmony, not Chaos,” finished Rarity.

“You haven’t answered the question,” grumbled Rainbow.

Twilight smiled.  “Oh, yes!  It’s because this form wasn’t created with chaos magic, it didn’t change when she was kicked out of it.”

“I don’t care what she looks like,” sniffled Spike, “just as long as I have my sister back!”  He tightened his hug even as she reached her long neck down and nuzzled the adolescent dragon.  Unable to resist, the six ponies drew in to hug both Twilight and Spike.  Between them, the Elements sparkled like diamonds.

Spike’s comments reminded Big Mac of something.  He turned to see the small force field he had created was still in place.  Slowly walking over to where it shimmered, he took a deep breath and dispelled it.  A small groan emanated from the pony there as she opened her eyes for the first time in days and stood, or tried to.  Rising to her hooves, Applejack wobbled for a moment, then started to fall before she was caught by the stallion who gently helped support her as the strength returned to her limbs.  

For the first time in days the physical pain she’d endured had vanished.  It did not, however, helped the emotional ache that throbbed at the very depth of her soul.  Looking up, she saw the alicorn prince as he helped support her and for the first time in many a year she began to softly cry.

“Oh Faust... What have Ah done?”

Big Mac looked at her, his gaze stern, but compassionate.  “Ah think y’all know the answer ta that,” he rumbled.

“Ah’ve been a complete and total foal.” (True.)

“Eeeyup!”

“Ah was greedy...” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”

“And callous.” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”

“And Ah betrayed ma friends.” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”[/pre]

“And the princesses.” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”

“As well as every good pony in Equestria.” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”

“Ah’m so very... very... sorry Ah did all that.” (True.)

“Eeeyup.”

“Ah’m a worthless, stupid pony who don’t deserve any pony’s forgiveness.” (True.)

“Nnnope.”

Applejack abruptly stopped and looked up at the stallion, a mixture of disbelief and fear and tears in her eyes.  “Y’all don’t understand.  Ah betrayed everything.”

The alicorn stallion simply looked down at her for a moment before reaching up and wiping away several tears with his hoof.  “The way Ah figure, y’all have had a pretty hard life here in this world, with no family ta help ya, no parents or granny ta help ya stay on track, and no siblings ta give ya somepony ta care about.”  He removed his hoof from around her barrel and brought it to her chin, lifting it so he could look her in the eyes.  “Ah wish ah could have been here ta help ya, like a big brother should.  Yer so very much like ma own sister, stubborn, mulish, thick headed at times, and determined, just a little more lost and with no center ta guide ya.  That ain’t completely yer fault.  And what’s happened on this world ain’t completely any other pony’s fault except them which has caused this mess in the first place.”  He paused to take a breath.  “With all that’s happened here, ya ain’t the only one who made a poor decision.  It’s just somethin’ yer gonna have ta live with while ya work through makin’ things right again fer everypony.”

“Do ya really think I can... make things up ta everypony?”

“Eeeyup,” Big Mac nodded.  “Ah know ya have the strength and heart ta do it.  All ya have ta do is find it in yerself.  It’s there, waitin’ fer ya.”

“Ah....Ah never had no big brother ta look up to, but if’n Ah did, Ah’d want him ta be just like y’all.”  The stallion nodded, smiling.  

“Ah may not exactly be yer brother, but if it’s somepony you need to help ya focus and find yer center, there ain’t no better passel o’ ponies then them what’s right here.”

Applejack looked towards the others who were now slowly ambling up to the two Apples.  She looked them each in the eyes, then lowered her head.  “Ah... Ah... Ah’m powerful sorry Ah did what Ah did.  Ah hope someday y’all can see yer way clear ta forgive...”

Rarity interrupted her with a stomp of her forehoof.  “We all heard, darling, and we understand.  Considering how much Equestria itself has gone through, then I suppose it’s only right we give you a chance.  It won’t be easy, but bridges can be rebuilt.”  The fashionista took a step forward and wrapped one foreleg around Applejack.  The former cow pony leaned into her, letting tears of gratitude and hope flow freely.  The others formed a circle around them, one that included both Twilight the draconequus and Spike.  

Moments later, they were all knocked off their hooves as the castle floor literally exploded under them. 

To Be Continued....
> Chapter 22
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took several very long seconds for the dust to clear.  Big Mac was the first to recover, pushing aside a relatively thin layer of debris as he spread his wings and shook himself off.  He turned and saw the statue of Discord lying on its side, the petrification spell intact.  Hearing several groans, he began digging at the debris with both his magic and his hooves, trying to uncover as many of the other ponies as he could.  It did not take him long to uncover Rarity, Trixie, and Babs.  Bruised and disoriented, it took them several minutes to get themselves together.  None had been seriously injured.  

Spike was also safe, having been snatched up by Twilight who had leapt into the air as the floor began collapsing.  Both Rainbow and Fluttershy had managed to avoid the collapse in a similar manner.  They had both grabbed Pinkie and were holding her several dozen feet above the ground.  The only one missing was Applejack.  

It only took the alicorn a few moments to locate and clear the debris off her.  She was unconscious and her right rear leg was bent the wrong way.  Years of working the farm told Big Mac it was a serious, but not life threatening fracture.  Her unconsciousness came from a large lump just behind her ear.  

“Here,” came a voice from behind him, “let us help you with her.”  The stallion turned to see Twilight land behind him.  She gently lifted his “sister” out of the rubble and set her on a soft cloud of magic.  Spike stepped in and gave her a quick once over, and began washing the dirt and blood away from Applejack’s head wound.  He gently pried open one eye and looked at it, then nodded.

“No sign of a concussion, at least not a serious one,” Muttered the dragon.  The castle shook slightly causing everypony to look up.

“You’d better go out there and take care of that, before they bring the whole place down,” observed Twilight, glancing back towards Big Mac.  

“They?”

“Celestia and Nightmare Moon.  As soon as Discord was defeated, his transformation spell on them broke.  The first jolt we felt was Nightmare attacking Princess Celestia.”

A bolt of dark energy split the sky and the moon rose, eclipsing the sun.  Ponies who were still gathered on the castle grounds cried out in panic and began running around, desperately seeking someplace safe to hide.  

Big Mac spread his wings and leapt skyward, soaring through a large hole in the throne room roof.  He quickly saw the two alicorn princesses, each trying to maneuver into an advantageous position.  They dove at each other, then rolled away in opposite directions, each firing bursts of magic at the other.  

The stallion was reminded of a battle he’d once witnessed between two hawks as they fought for the same dead rabbit.  Celestia had the advantage in altitude, firing down at her opponent.  Nightmare though had a definite edge in speed and maneuverability. The Princess of the Night fired another bolt of dark energy in her sister’s direction.  Instead of striking Celestia, it bounced off a shield she had formed around herself.  The beam sliced through the upper half of a tree.  One very heavy branch broke off and fell straight for a mare and her two foals.  There was no doubt it would have crushed them if its fall hadn’t been stopped by a green field of energy that surrounded it.  

Prince Macintosh set aside the deadly tree limb then climbed, beating his wings hard against the autumn air.  He interposed himself between the two princesses, calling out as he faced Nightmare Moon.  “Luna!  Stop!  This ain’t what yer about!”

“LUNA?” mocked the Nightmare.  “I TOLD THEE BEFORE, I AM NOT THAT WEAK, SIMPLE-MINDED PRINCESS.  I AM THE NIGHT, TERRIBLE AND GLORIOUS.  THE SHADOW WITHIN WHICH ALL THAT IS HIDDEN FROM THE LIGHT RESIDES.”  She sent a beam of energy towards Big Mac, stomping at the air in front of her to create a magical shockwave that sent the stallion flying.

Realizing he was about to crash into the rampart of the castle, the alicorn prince focused his magic and suddenly vanished, teleporting to a point behind Nightmare Moon.  When he reappeared, his momentum carried him straight into her, stunning her.  Both alicorns tumbled out of the sky and skidded, muzzle first, across the grass in front of the castle.  

Big Mac, being physically stronger, recovered more quickly that the Nightmare.  He again used his magic to trap her in a cage, powerful enough to contain even the most skilled unicorn magic-user.  The dark-furred alicorn shook her head clear and rose to her hooves.

“FOOL!  DOST THOU THINK TO CONTAIN MY POWER IN SUCH A WEAK FASHON?”  Nightmare grinned wickedly at the stallion, then abruptly turned herself to mist, flowing out through the bars like water.  

“Oh... Snap!” muttered Big Mac as the mist suddenly surged forward and enveloped him. 

“DON’T INHALE!” yelled Celestia.  “If she gets inside you she can possess your mind!”  The stallion clamped both forehooves over his muzzle and held his breath.  The sun princess cast a spell and a sudden wind whipped around him, lifting him partially off the ground.  Nightmare screamed in frustration as she was carried up and away from Big Mac.  The miniature whirlwind lifted the cloud high into the sky even as Celestia touched down next to the stallion.

“A cage... seriously?” she muttered, glancing at him as she readied another spell set.  

“Ah’m kinda new ta this magic fighting.  It’s a bit hard ta figure-out.”

“In that case, go with your instinct, not your mind.  Let the magic do the thinking for you.”  Celestia gathered herself and leapt skyward, following close on the whirlwind even as Nightmare broke free of the spell and reformed into an alicorn.  

Big Mac nodded to himself.  “Let the magic do the thinkin’.... got it!”  As he completed the thought, something tickled the back of his mind.  He threw himself to the side just in time to avoid a searing bolt of energy that had been aimed at him.  It charred the ground where it struck, exposing the bedrock several layers beneath the soil.  

The stallion’s first instinct was to grab a rock and throw it at the offender for having ruined a perfectly nice piece of fertile ground.  He went with the though, magically ripping out a bolder sized chuck of bedrock and hurling it at the offending party.  

Nightmare Moon smirked seeing the bolder flying her way.  She braced herself, then blasted the bolder to dust and rubble, only to discover that instead of releasing his magic upon throwing it, Big Mac was essentially guiding the debris towards her.  The dark princess threw up a shield, blocking much of the rubble.  The dust particles were another matter.  They enveloped her like a cloud and magically stayed in place, obscuring her sight. 

Celestia seized the opportunity to encase Nightmare in a sphere of fire, trying to counter her darkness with light.  The sphere cut off Big Mac’s magic, causing the dust cloud to collapse.  The nightmare responded by diving towards the ground, dragging the sun princess’ sphere with her.  At the last instant, she transformed once more into a vapor.  The sphere exploded against the ground even as the dark mist dove into a tiny rabbit hole.  More than a dozen small, white rabbits burst out of the ground, using various back doors to the warren.  

The mist poured out of one hole and coalesced into Nightmare Moon.  One of the more aggressive rabbits tried biting her on the hoof.  She brutally kicked it to one side causing it to screech in pain.  This was followed by a blur of yellow and pink that slammed into the dark princess hard enough to knock her helmet off.

The nightmare was momentarily surprised as she skidded about ten feet back on her rump.  Shaking her head, she was astonished to see a small, pegasus mare with an ethereal horn on her forehead, bending over the injured lapin. “Oh, you poor bunny,” she cooed, cradling it in a soft cloud of magic. 

“THOU DARES TO STRIKE ME?!!” screamed Nightmare Moon. 

Instead of cowering, Fluttershy turned and faced the dark princess, glaring at her.  “What kind of monster are you, to harm an innocent bunny.  You’re no princess!  You’re nothing but a BIG, DUMB MEANIE!!!”  

For an instant, Nightmare Moon locked eyes with the mare.  The stare she gave tore straight into the nightmare’s mind, stunning her for about three seconds.  The princess threw a forehoof over her muzzle, blocking out the image of Fluttershy’s eyes.  This was followed by a rainbow explosion of air as a cyan figure zoomed past. The controlled and shaped pressure wave of the expanding sonic rainboom sent the princess of the night tumbling across the paddock in front of the castle.  

“HA!” laughed Rainbow Dash, “I thought that would get your attention!”  

Nightmare Moon threw herself back onto her hooves, fury ringing in her voice.  “INDEED, IT HAS, THOU MISCREANT.” 

“EEEP!”  An instant later the multi-hued pegasus was knocked out of the sky by a bolt of black lightning.  

Rainbow fell, barely conscious of the singe marks and burns on her body.  Just before crashing into the ground she was caught in the coils of a lavender, serpentine figure that snaked through the air.  She dreamily looked up into the long, lost face of a friend.  “Hi Twilight.  Long time no see....” she muttered before passing out.  

The draconequus gently set her friend down next to Fluttershy who immediately began using her magic element to soothe the cyan pegasus’ injuries.  Twilight whirled angrily on the alicorn princess.  “How dare you hurt my friend!”  She raised both her taloned hands.  Magic flared between them as she hurled two bolts of magical energy at the nightmare.  

Big Mac watched, open mouthed, as they both converged on and struck the princess.  An instant later, she vanished.  “What just happened?”

“I teleported her exactly one minute into the future,” the draconequus replied.  “Everypony... quick!  Gather in a circle right here.  When she reappears, let her have it!”  The others, including Celestia and Big Mac complied.  They all readied themselves as Twilight gave them a countdown.  “Seven, six, five, four, three, two... and NOW!”

Nothing happened!  For several long seconds they stood in a circle looking at each other.  Celestia turned to face the draconequus.  “Where’s my sister?”

“I don’t understand.  That spell should have put her exactly one minute into the future.  She should have reappeared right there,” muttered Twilight, staring at the center of their circle.  

“Time ain’t exactly stable hereabouts,” said Big Mac, taking a few steps back out of the circle and looking around.  “Ya might have sent her farther than ya figured.”  

The air was suddenly filled with a sinister, disembodied laugh. “OR, THOU MIGHT HAVE FORGOTTEN TO BIND THE SPELL TO ONE SPOT.  JUST THE KIND OF MISTAKE I WOULD HAVE EXPECTED FROM MY SISTER’S APPRENTICE!”  

A black pentagram burned its way into the grass, encompassing all of the circled figures.  In an instant they were all sucked into it without even a chance for a last gasp.  All save Big Mac who leap free even as the glyph burned its way beneath his hooves.  Moments later, the pentagram vanished, leaving behind the taunting laugh of Nightmare Moon.  

Big Mac looked around him.  Celestia was gone, as were the Elements of Harmony, including Rainbow who a moment before had lay unconscious next to the castle.  Scattered about the now empty clearing were the chrystal necklaces that had been bound to each of the Elements.  The moon princess reappeared, still laughing, standing not twenty hoof-sprints in front of the stallion.  

“What’d ya do with ma friends?” he demanded. 

The nightmare smiled wickedly, lowering her voice for the first time.  “Why... I have sent them all to Tartarus, where even now a certain ancient enemy of Celestia’s and mine is, no doubt, draining them of their magic.  The fight is over,” she chuckled, “I am triumphant at last.”

“Nnnope!”

Big Mac stamped his forehooves into the ground before him.  A wave of magic shot out and vanished into the surrounding grass which began to sprout at an incredible rate of growth.  Within a second it enveloped Nightmare Moon’s hooves, binding them to the ground even as it climbed her withers.

Snarling angrily, the black-furred alicorn burst into a silvery flame. It froze the grass, making it brittle enough to shatter at the slightest movement.  The mare easily freed herself then whirled on the stallion.  “THOU SEEK TO BIND ME WITH SIMPLE EARTH MAGIC?  TRULY, THOU HAVE NOT YET MASTERED THINE OWN MAGIC AS I HAVE MINE!”  

She hurled a ball of silver energy at Big Mac.  He instinctively ducked under it, though a bit of his tail was caught in the blast.  Like the grass, the ends of his tail froze and dropped free, leaving it feeling like cold fire.  

Focusing, the stallion’s body suddenly became as thin and insubstantial as mist, though it did retain his form.  He sank into the ground, vanishing from sight.  The nightmare scowled, dropping her shield before blasting at the turf and opening a crater at least ten feet deep.  Big Mac could not be seen anywhere.  

“WE CANS’T SEE THY WEAKNESS.  YOU HIDE, SCURRYING LIKE SOME FRIGHTENED SHREW UNDERGROUND.  SO LIKE A PEASANT FARMER.  THINKING THERE IS SUCCORE WITHIN THE EARTH.”  

A clod of earth suddenly smacked her on the cutie mark.  Nightmare Moon whirled, angry at the insult to her dignity.  She spotted the stallion’s head protruding from the ground, a playful smile framed across his face.  He ducked back underground, even as she let loose another blast at him.  Again she missed, and again she felt another dirt clod slap against her rump.  She whirled once more, firing on the turn but again missed the taunting equine as he vanished once more into the ground.  Three more times he popped up, pelting her with bits of earth.  Three more times she blasted away, only to have him vanish.

Frustrated, she yelled at Big Mac.  “SHOW THYSELF, COWARD.”  Even as she screamed her wrath, yet another clot of earth caught her, not on the flank, but directly under her tail.  Unlike the others, it was particularly thick, wet and odiferous, as if it had been dredged up from the bottom of some ancient lake.  

Nightmare spun in time to see the grinning form of the stallion as he vanished once more into the ground.  “BASTARD!!!!!!” she screamed, blasting at the turf below her without thought or reason.  

Holding his breath, Big Mac moved through the earth like a swimmer, pushing himself forward with rapid strokes and focusing on keeping himself as insubstantial as possible.  He didn’t want to think of what would happen if he materialized while still underground.  He could feel the vibrations above as the ebon furred alicorn struck the earth time and time again.  

The stallion looked around for something, anything he could use.  He found it about fifty feet to his left and thirty feet down.  He smiled thinking about the mud bath he and Luna had taken, not so very long ago.  Reaching out with his magic, he pushed up on the mass of water and muck that was trapped underground.  It flowed through cracks he provide it in the earth until it was directly under the Nightmare.  

Using his horn he gave the earth a sharp, magical jolt, causing it to crumble beneath Luna’s hooves into a deep, wide sink hole.  The Princess of the Moon crouched intending to leap skyward only to find four, thick paws made of muck pulling her down into the hole.  She yelped once in surprise, then vanished as the sides of the sink hole collapsed in on her.  

Big Mac pulled himself free of the ground and took a deep breath.  He knew the trap wouldn’t hold Luna for long so he whirled and galloped back in the direction of the castle.  Reaching the entrance, he turned back towards the pit even as tongues of ebony lightning began surging from its depth.  He focused on the Element of Courage hidden beneath his yoke, slowing drawing its energy into himself.  He wasn’t certain if what he had in mind would work, but it seemed his best chance of ending this fight, here and now.  

A black mist roiled out of the hole, reforming into a very angry Nightmare Moon.  She hovered about a hundred feet in the air and glared down on the alicorn prince.  “THOU ART NOT A TRUE PRINCE OF MAGIC.... YOUR SPELLS ARE WEAK AND PATHETIC, AND I TIRE OF THY GAMES!  SUBMIT TO MY POWER YOU BUFFOON.... OR DIE!”  

Big Mac felt his element’s power coalesce deep within his chest, then spread outward as thin, invisible tendrils; each reaching.... searching for a kindred power, latching firmly onto something beyond his sight.  He relaxed, determined not to force the magic to his will, but to let it shift and dance within him as it chose.  The red-furred alicorn shifted his stance, standing firm and unyielding against the Nightmare’s threat.

“Nnnope!” 

“THEN DIE!” the Princess of Dreams screamed.  A dark sphere of red energy suffused her form even as a bolt of black lightning stabbed downward at Macintosh.  An instant before it struck, a multicolored shield of energy formed in front of the stallion, blocking the lightning strike and reflecting it to the side.  Embedded within the shield were six gems, each radiating with their own power and linked by a green, six pointed star embossed on the front of the shield.  

The Nightmare stared unbelieving.  “NO!  THIS CANNOT BE!  TIS IMPOSSIBLE!”  She hurled a series of bolts at the shield, each one glancing off without leaving even a mark.  “THOU CANNOT WIELD THE ELEMENTS.  THEY HAVE ALREADY CHOSEN THEIR BEARERS.  THY WILL IS NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO FORCE THEM TO YOUR BIDDING.” 

“Y’all got it wrong,” Big Mac responded quietly.  “They ain’t bound by ma will.  They’re bound by somethin’ that ties all the elements tagether... Courage!”  The element beneath the work collar flared brightly, surrounding the stallion in an emerald glow.  

Nightmare Moon screamed, her voice trembling with both rage and fear.  A solid beam of black energy burst forth from her horn, slamming into the alicorn prince, or more precisely, his shield.  The dark energy flare split into its component parts.  Streams of red, blue, green, violet, yellow, orange and indigo separated and pin-wheeled off in different directions, spinning themselves into a vortex of color, not unlike the clouds of a hurricane.  Pushing back along the beam of ebony power they began to draw more and more spinning colors from it, adding them to the counter-spell.  

“NO! NO! NO!  THOU CANNOT OVER COME MY POWER.  THOU ARE NOTHING...NOTHING!” the nightmare yelled.  “NNNOOOTTTHHHIIINNNGGGGGGG!”  Her voice was abruptly cut off as the rainbow hued vortex enveloped the sphere of dark energy she had surrounded herself with. 

The same colors flared within Big Mac’s own mind, threatening to overwhelm his senses.  The magic danced back and forth, making it difficult for the stallion to think.  Vague ideas begin to seep into the alicorn’s head, each with its own plea and imperative.  REVENGE, JUSTICE, PUNISH, BANISH, DESTROY, END, REPLACE, DOMINATE, COMMAND... Each thought seemed to push itself into Macintosh’s thoughts from outside, as if the elements themselves were seeking guidance, a direction in which to push their power.  The longer it lasted, the harder it became for him to focus.  

Big Mac shook his head.  This must have been what it was like for Celestia, when with a half formed thought she’d banished her sister to the moon, using the power of the elements to separate the threat from the world.  But what was needed here was more....  The stallion’s head felt as if it were about to explode.  White light filled his mind and burned its way into his world.  He focused, gasping as he spoke in a voice that rolled across the world like thunder...  HEAL!  HEAL IT ALL!!!  The elements flared and expanded outward, enveloping Big Mac.
 
  The world went white and faded out.
> Chapter 23
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hot air filled her lungs as Celestia struggled to put some distance between herself and Tirek, but she was so weakened that all she could do was crawl.  The flames of Tartarus were intended to drain any who were imprisoned here, but in the case of Tirek it served to fuel his hunger for magic.  He had already drained her of all her alicorn magic, as well as the magic belonging to the others, but as when she had first confronted him, it wasn’t enough.  It would never be enough.  Her world now was one of pain.  Pain from fire and the pain of loss, enhanced by the mad laughter of the devourer.

“How deliciously ironic, princess.  After trapping me in this prison for an eternity, you and your friends have provided me with the magic I need to finally free myself.”  The horned centaur had already grown to twice Celestia’s size.  “I am touched by your generosity, but there is so much more your ponies can give me.”  He waved his hand in a sweeping gesture.  A ribbon of basalt materialized before him, bridging the gap between the outcropping on which his cage stood and the pathway to the gate.

“If you are going to kill me, then do so and be done with it.” Celestia challenged weakly.  The centaur only laughed.  

“Oh no!  I’m not so foolish as to play your game.  If I kill you, your magic will fade, leaving me as powerless as before, but then, you knew that.”  Grabbing the princess by the back of her mane he dragged her over to his cage and tossed her inside with the other ponies.  “You will live... as will your pony friends.  You will know despair, and horror.  You will know all that I suffered, and you will know it forever.  No one, no pony, dies in Tartarus, and as I drain your kingdom one pony at time I will send each here until the land is empty, cleared of your people. All their magic will live through me.” 

Tirek reached for the cage door, intending to slam it closed, but as he did the world itself began to tremble.  A rainbow hued wave of sorcery more powerful than anything he had felt before washed across the centaur.  It stripped him of his magic and returning it to his victims.  Before he could react Babs, Trixie and Rainbow Dash hurled themselves on the demon, pinning him to the ground.  The others, alongside a fully restored Celestia, quickly vacated the cage.  Screaming in frustration, Tirek was tossed once more into the cage and the door was locked shut.  

“You have not heard the last of me!” he yelled weakly.  “I will escape, and when I do, your world will end!”

“Follow me,” called the princess as she led everypony across the bridge the horned centaur had created.  Reaching the other side, Celestia collapsed it behind them, isolating Tirek once more in Tartarus.  They trotted calmly towards the gateway, past Cerberus its guardian, whom the alicorn calmed with a simple wave of her horn and a nod.  Another wave of her horn, and the gates opened before them.  They found themselves standing in the small paddock in front of an ancient castle.  

More than a hundred creatures from ponies, to griffins, to hippogryphs and small dragons were standing in a circle, staring solemnly down at the red-furred alicorn who lay before them.  “Is he still alive?” a young pegasus whispered to an earth pony next to her.

Celestia quietly came up behind them, examining Big Mac with a simple spell.  “Fear not, my little pony.  Our protector lives, though undoubtedly he has exhausted his magic with his effort.” 

Every pony turned upon hearing the proclamation and gasped at the sight of the Sun Princess.  A murmur swept through the crowd.  “Celestia!  Look, look!  Celestia has returned to us!  The princess has returned!  We are SAVED!  EQUESTRIA IS SAVED!”  As they turned and beheld her the entire assembly went down on one knee and bowed.  

The princess smiled and nodded to all before her.  “Please, all of you... Rise and embrace the day, the world that now shines before you is one of hope and promise.”  As she spoke her wings spread wide and the sun above grew brighter than many could remember, clearing away the dim half-light of the world.  

A group of ponies trotted over to Celestia.  Their leader bowed and pointed to a nearby tree.  “Your highness... we have the usurper trapped in the upper branches of that tree.  What do you want us to do with her?  She won’t come down and I think she is too weak to fly away, let alone fight.” 
“Allow me to speak with her,” the princess said quietly.  She strode majestically over to the tree and looked up, seeing the figure of a very young, very frightened Princess Luna clinging to the upper branches.  There was no trace of Nightmare Moon to be seen.

“Please.... go away.  Leave me alone.”

“No Luna,” the sun princess replied.  “No, I won’t.  We’ve both been alone for far too long.”

“But I’ve hurt others.... I’ve hurt....you.  I betrayed the trust placed in me and punished others for my own failings.  I failed you.... I failed you all.”

“As I have failed you.  I did nothing to help you when others ignored you and your gifts.  I did not heed your tears as you slowly sank into misery and despair.  Nor did I comfort you as you needed, driving you to cast that foolish spell that freed the Nightmare and forced you straight into the trap she set.  When she seized your mind I sought not to save you but to defeat her, foolishly misusing the Elements and corrupting their purpose.”  

Tears began trickling from her eyes.  “I lost you, and it was all my fault.  I have been so lonely without you beside me; but that’s all over now.  The nightmare is ended and we have been freed of her evil influence.”  Celestia sat on her haunches hand held out her forelegs.  “Please.... please Luna... won’t you come down?  Won’t you return to me.... my sister?”

There was a moment of silence, then a long, ragged sob as Luna half flew, half fell into Celestia’s hug.  Tears flowed freely,  

“I’m so sorry,” wept the princess of the moon.  “I’m sorry.... I’m sorry.”

Celestia wrapped her wings around her sister.  “Shush.  Just hold me.... I’ve been alone for so long.  Just hold me.”  The two princess cried in each other’s embrace for several minutes before standing and facing the crowd.  “Rejoice, one and all!  Nightmare Moon has been banished and my sister Luna freed from the demon’s influence!  Spread the word to all Equestria.  The ancient Diarchy is restored.  A new age of peace and prosperity begins.”  

The sun princess gazed across the world, seeing with sight beyond sight.  Ponies could feel the returning warmth of the sun as it spread throughout the land.  Here and there she listened to the sound of bells as they began to ring, first in confusion, then in growing confidence that the sun’s return was their salvation.  

Smiling, Celestia and Luna both made their way over to Big Macintosh.  Both the base of his horn and the fur on his chest were singed black.  Sweat dampened his body and his breath, though regular, came in explosive bursts that could be nothing else but exhaustion.  The Elements of Harmony lay in a circle around him, almost as if placed there as a tribute. 

The sun princess looked at several nearby ponies.  “Fashion a stretcher for him,” she commanded.  They quickly trotted off to see to her wishes.

Luna gazed down upon the stallion.  She could see the strength within him that his physical form only hinted at.  “He sleeps, she whispered... I can almost feel his dream.”

“I do not think he will awaken anytime soon, let alone be able to get about under his own power.  Not for several days at best,” Celestia observed.  

“He need shelter.  Where shall we take him?” Luna asked.

The sun princess nodded towards the ancient palace.  “Here, I think.  There is more than enough room to shelter all present.  The walls and most of the roof are still strong, and we need someplace from which to plan how we shall reunite Equestria,” she said, looking across at the large number of ponies and others standing nearby.  “And it seems we have subjects who need to be guided and organized.”  

“Indeed,” replied Luna.  

**********

The first thing Big Mac became aware of was the sound of birds singing and chirping from somewhere nearby.  Slowly, this was joined by a warm, soft, pleasant breeze touched with the scent of lilac.  Voices began to echo in the distance.  Some laughing and some singing the way a pony would while doing work they loved.  Plates rattled from somewhere down a long hallway and foals ran along stone floors, clip-clopping nosily until brought up short by a hushed voice warning them not to wake the prince.  

“Prince?” the stallion muttered to himself in confusion.  He cracked one eye open and looked around.  He discovered he was in a room, lying in a very comfortable bed between freshly washed sheets; his head resting on a stack of cool pillows.  His eye tracked over to the window through which he could see the bright blue sky beyond.  Judging from the light, it had to be almost mid-morning....  morning???  MORNING!!!??

Instincts honed by years of living on a farm suddenly kicked in.  If he didn’t get out to the fields now, Applejack would work herself to exhaustion, the way she had trying to bring in an entire apple crop single hoofed!  He exploded from the bed, rolling so all four of his hooves hit the floor together.  That was as far as he got.  A wave of dizziness suddenly overcame Big Mac and instead of striding towards the door he found himself staggering, then rolling onto his left side, the hard, cool stones of the floor slapping him solidly in the barrel. 

THUD!  “OOPHFFF!” 

The noise attracted the attention of somepony standing just outside the door to the room.  It was flung open and a call for aid followed, echoing down the passageway.  Head still spinning, the alicorn prince found himself surrounded by several burley ponies who helped lift him to his hooves.  

“No, no!” a voice suddenly cut in.  “Put him back in bed.  He needs to rest.”  Moments later Big Mac found himself lying once more between crisp, fresh sheets.  A clawed hand held a glass of water up to the stallion’s mouth, allowing him to sip lightly until his dry throat loosened up enough to take a few larger, and more satisfying gulps.  “That’s better,” the voice observed.  “How are you feeling?”

Macintosh looked up and found himself gazing into the face of a lavender colored draconequus.  “A might dizzy, though that’s fadin’ fast.  Ah do feel a might tired and maybe even a tad hungry.” 

“Hunger’s good,” Twilight replied, gesturing to a nearby pony who immediately trotted out the door.  “Though you’re going to be feeling tired for at least a couple days.  No pony uses as much magic as you did without there being a backlash.”  

“Ah thought ah was using the magic o’ the elements?”

“You were... but you had to use your own magic to control and guide them.”

Big Mac frowned.  “Didn’t feel like ah had much control... They was doing what they wanted.  Ah was just along fer the ride.”

Twilight nodded.  “You’re right.  Perhaps control isn’t the right word.  You did however give the Elements a purpose and a focus for their magic.  That’s what overstrained your own powers.”

“Kinda feels like ah took a healthy swig from the wrong bottle.”  The pony who had trotted away now approached with a small tray on which sat some crackers, cheese and a bowl of hot carrot and spinach noodle soup.  The stallion tried to sit up in bed, but the draconequus gently pushed him back down, then levitated a spoonful of the broth to his mouth. 

“Sorry... Doctor’s orders,” Twilight directed.  “You’re to stay in bed and rest for at least a day or two, and above all... NO MAGIC!”

Mac felt slightly embarrassed to have somepony spoon feed him.  “Ain’t ah allowed ta even feed mah-self?” he asked plaintively.  

Twilight smiled, gently getting him to down the first bit of soup before handing him the spoon.  “You’re welcome to try.”

The alicorn returned her smile and gripped the utensil in his hoof.  The smile quickly turned to a frown as he discovered he couldn’t stop his foreleg from trembling.  Feeding himself was obviously out of the question.

“It’s part of the backlash effect of over-stressing your magic.  Your horn is tied in with your entire nervous system.  You won’t be able to hold anything until a more natural flow of magic is restored throughout your body.”  She levitated the spoon away from him and once more dipped it into the soup, holding it out for him.  He took a good, long, loud, rebellious slurp on the broth, then smacked his lips, causing Twilight to chuckle.  “Better?” she asked.

“Eeeyup, though it could use a dash o’ pepper.”

As he ate, the draconequus filled him in on what had happened since defeating Nightmare Moon.  Mac found out that the elements, along with Twilight and Applejack had been taking turns sitting with him.  The princesses had set up shop in their old castle, at least for now, and were in communication with many of the cities in and around Equestria.  Repairs to the castle were proceeding slowly, with most of the work focused on providing shelter for the victims of Chrysalis’ trophy cabinet.  Spike had gone to check on Zecora.  If the effects of the Elements were anything to judge, then almost everypony who’d suffered under the magical curses of Eris, Discord, Nightmare Moon and others were all cured, all save Twilight since her new form was the result of her own magic and not a curse.  

Pinky was working in the kitchen, preparing food and making sure everypony was not only fed, but had a smile on their face.  Rainbow Dash was busy delivering messages and instructions for the princesses as they worked to reestablish their authority over Equestria.  Babs, being the only experience police pony present had formed an impromptu “Royal” guard to help keep order.  Rarity and Fluttershy were working to spruce up the castle in anticipation of its possible role as Royal Capital.  Trixie was galloping all over, helping whenever and wherever needed.  No longer bound by the heavy leg braces, she had become a literal ball of energy. 

“She even offered to pass the Element of Magic on to me,” Twilight said.  But the Element decided otherwise and remains bound to her.”

“The Element decided... Now thar’s a nice bit o’confustication fer ya,” Big Mac said, slurping up the last of the soup.  “How do ya suppose the Elements was able ta work fer me even when bound ta their new hosts?”

The draconequus shrugged.  “I don’t know.  I talked about it with the princesses and they both think it had something to do with the Elements being separated from their hosts when we were all sent to Tartarus.”

“Sounds as good as any explanation.  Personally, ah think maybe ma own Element made some sort o’ connection with the others.  Ah thought ah could feel them working through it.”  

“Maybe,” Twilight replied.  “But how could an Element from another world connect with the Elements of this one?”  Big Mac looked at her with a quizzical expression, both eyebrows raised.  She picked up on his thoughts instantly.  “OH!  Yeah, I sort of got to know all about you, or at least everything you told the girls.  We’ve been bonding while you were asleep.”

The stallion chuckled.  “The more things change... the more they stay the same.”

“Such is the way of all things,” replied a new voice.  Twilight and Big Mac looked up as the door swung open to reveal both Princesses Celestia and Luna.  The draconequus immediately bowed to the diarchs who both smiled in return.  

“We were informed thou had awakened,” Luna added, “and were much curious as to how thou were feeling.”  

As Big Mac gazed upon the Moon Princess a heavy feeling of loneliness pulled at his heart, combined with more than a little guilt.  He’d been so focused on trying to set things right in this world, he had ignored the thoughts and fears he had for his own love, his own world.

“Ah’m doing a might better than ah was a few days ago.  Twilight tells me ah should be able ta get up and about with a couple days more rest.”  

Celestia immediately picked up on Big Mac tone.  “You sound unhappy,” she observed.  “Not something that I would have expected from a hero who saved our world.”

“Just a bit homesick is all, and it t’wern’t just me... Ah had a lotta help from ma new friends here.” 

“Of that, we are well aware,” Luna replied.  “They are as much in our hearts as thou, and will be praised and rewarded as befits their station.”

“What she said,” Celestia finished.  The two sisters looked at each other and laughed, filling the room with a glow of optimism and hope that could not be denied.  Big Mac smiled seeing this.  The sun princess looked at the alicorn prince.  “But what of you?  Is there any favor we might grant you for your courageous deeds?”

“Well... Ah’d be appreciative if’n you and the Elements would come with me ta visit the Tree o’ Harmony.  Once Ah’m back on ma hooves.”

Celestia’s eyebrows rose ever so slightly.  “Oh?  For what purpose.”

“Aural would like to have a word with you.”  

TO BE CONCLUDED.....
> Chapter 24
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Four days, eleven hours, twenty-three minutes and eight seconds later a small group of ponies had assembled in front of the cavern wherein grew the Tree of Harmony.  They were led by three alicorns and consisted of one draconequus, two pegasi, three earth ponies, one adolescent dragon, one zebra and two unicorns.  

Celestia glanced over at Big Mac.  “Are you certain it was necessary to assemble this many ponies?  The secrets of this cave are known to but a few.  To show it to so many might not be wise.”

The alicorn prince nickered softly.  “The secret could be known by half o’ Equestria and none would successfully overcome the tree.”  

“How can thou be so sure?” asked Luna.

“Because Aural knows what Aural knows,” he replied. 

“Darling, you’ve been talking about this Aural person since breakfast this morning,” Rarity observed.  

“Who exactly is he or she and when will we meet them?” 

“Soon,” said Big Mac.  Turning he took the lead and trotted into the cave, the others followed.  

“Seems a bit different than last time,” muttered Rainbow.  

Fluttershy tremored with nervousness.  “It looks and feels darker.  Has something happened to the tree?”

“A lot of magic was used to defeat our foes and break the curses they placed upon our world,” Trixie observed.  I would be surprised if it didn’t have an effect on the tree.”  

As they went deeper into the cave a nimbus of light gently surrounded the Element Bearers.  At Big Mac’s insistence they each wore their elements.  Even the stallion had reversed his collar so that his Element of Courage shown as brightly as the others. 

Pinkie Pie laughed infectiously.  “What a great place to throw a party,” she pronounced.  “It’s all dark and echoie....echoie....echoie....echoie....echoie.”

Applejack glanced over to Babs.  “So’s how come Pinkie’s the only one ta make an echo in here?”

The police pony just smiled.  “Youse got as good an idea as Ay do.  She’s Pinkie and that’s enough an explanation as any.”

“The others being here I can understand, but I was not a part of your heroic band.”

Big Mac looked back at a youthful and energetic Zecora.  Her stone curse, now cured, had, like Trixie, left her with a bit more energy than one would normally expect.  “You, Spike, Applejack and Twilight all had parts ta play in what happened, and now yer here as witnesses ta what will follow.”

“Sounds epic,” Spike replied.  He looked around the cave.  “It’s not dangerous, is it?”

“No worse than a stroll through the Everfree,” Twilight joked.

“You are so not helping my confidence,” the dragon muttered, causing the others around him to giggle nervously.  

“Hey guys?  I know these glowy chrystal things are part of the tree’s roots,” said Pinkie Pie as she edged over towards the wall of the passage.  “But what are these other black vine thingies?”  She paused and reached out a hoof, brushing it lightly against the strange, dark tendril.  Without warning the vine suddenly snapped out, wrapping itself around the party pony’s barrel.  “Ouch, this thing has thorns... Definitely not a party favor.”

Twilight was the first to react, hurling herself across the passageway to grab the vine below where it had ensnared Pinkie.  Her clawed hands glowed for an instant severing the vine and releasing her friend.  The vine twisted itself into a loop and ensnared the draconequus’ hands even as it wrapped itself around her serpentine body and slammed her to the floor.  

“OOOFF!”

Applejack raced over and grabbed a mouthful of vine, biting down hard enough to snap it in two.  Twilight used the opportunity to slither out of range, snatching up the farmer so they were both clear of the wall.  

“Blech!  That there’s the foulest tastin’ plant Ah ever did see.”

Zecora called towards Big Mac.  “These vines appear to be a lot of trouble.  Our need to find your tree I think is double.”

The stallion nodded and picked up the pace some.  “Everypony stay away from the cave walls so them vines won’t be able ta grab ya.” As he said this, a pair of black tendrils ripped themselves from the ground and completely enveloped Luna and Celestia.  Before anyone could react they were dragged down the passageway and into a distant chamber. 

Big Mac and the others galloped after them.  A solid curtain of vines dropped down in front of them, blocking access to the chamber beyond.  Without missing a stride the alicorn prince galloped forward and blasted them with his horn, turning them into burnt vegetation before physically crashing his way through the charred remains and into the chamber beyond.  

The stallion slid to a stop even as the others joined him.  He stared, not believing what he saw.  Less than eight days ago, Aural had stood vibrant with magic.  Now the tree’s glow was only a third of what it had been.  Black, thorny vines hung everywhere, choking off the tree’s magic.  Large parts of the tree were ashen gray.   At the base of the tree sat a pair of thorn encrusted cocoons containing the princesses.  

“Oh Great Celestia!” exclaimed Rarity.  “They’re everywhere.  What do we do?

“Everypony!” Big Mac called.  “Ah need ya ta take off the Elements and pass ‘em ta me.”

“What?  Are you CRAZY?” Rainbow responded.  “We NEED the Elements to clear these vines out of here!”  Even as she spoke, a vine whipped out and snagged one of her back hooves.  The cyan pegasus leapt upward, trying to get above the attack.  Other tendrils began reaching out to every pony present.

“LISTEN TA ME!” commanded the stallion.  “WE don’t need the Elements!  Aural does!” 

“Aural?” asked Babs, jumping over a vine that was reaching for her.  

“The Tree of Harmony...  Only she can fight off this attack.  If we don’t give her back the elements, Aural will die!”  

With little hesitation, save for Rainbow, the bearers removed the gemstones from their necks and held them aloft.  Big Mac focused his magic and telekinetically brought each Element forward to himself.  When a second vine reached out and snagged Rainbow’s barrel, she tore the Element of Loyalty from around her throat and hurled it to the alicorn prince.  He snagged it with his magic, then began levitating each gem towards its place on the tree.  

Almost as if aware of its danger, the vines began ignoring the other ponies and reaching for Big Mac.  He was quickly finding himself as thoroughly ensnared as the two princesses, but he kept struggling.  Pinkie, Rarity and the rest charged forward and attacked the thorny tendrils, slowing down their efforts to capture the stallion.  

Cursing himself silently, Big Mac fought to lay each Element in its proper place on the tree.  He’d allowed his exhaustion from the fight with Nightmare Moon to delay his return to Aural.  He’d thought having removed the vines before, the urgency to return had been itself removed.  Unfortunately, not only did they prove to be more virulent then he first believed, the use of the Elements to set things right had obviously weakened the tree even more.  If it died, harmony across the eleven realms of Equestria might itself die.  

As he levitated the Element of Honesty toward the top branch, the vines finished just cocooned him, sealing his magic off.  The Element, unsecured in its branch, dropped toward the ground, threatening to fall among the thorn encrusted shoots.  This did not happen.  Instead there was the rapid clop of hooves.  An orange mare hurled herself forward as she leapt and grabbed the Element between her teeth.  Twisting, she flung it straight at the branch it was intended for even as one of the vines slapped her hard and sent her tumbling across the cavern floor.  The element locked itself into place on the tree.

Everything went silent in the cave for several seconds, then there was a sudden explosion of light.  The tree became a brilliant white, tinged around each limb with the rainbow colors of the Elements.  A high pitched whine seemed to fill the air, causing every pony to slap their hooves over their ears.  Long moments passed, then both the sound and light faded.  

Blinking desperately, Twilight looked around to see what had happened.  The vines had all been charred black and the Tree now glowed with a brilliance to rival the sun.  The three cocoons entrapping Luna, Celestia and Big Mac crumbled away into dust, followed by every vine in the cavern. 

The stallion looked up to see a completely restored Tree of Harmony standing tall and proud before him.  “Aural?  Can you hear me?  Are you all right?”  

The princesses looked curiously at him then each other.  “Is he talking to... the tree?” Luna asked.

“It looks like it,” Celestia observed.  The watched in silence as the alicorn prince waited for a response.  To everypony’s amazement a soft, harmonious voice seemed to whisper through the chamber.

“I am whole once more, thanks to you and your friends.” 

“He’s talking to the tree,” muttered Twilight in incredulity.  “And it’s actually talking back!” 

“Is that so hard to believe?  After all, does not your friend Fluttershy speak with her animal friends?  Why should this be so different?”  

Celestia stepped forward.  “Why did you not speak to my sister and I when we first found you all those centuries ago?”

“I did speak to thee.  But you forgot, as you also forgot your promise to return the Elements to me once you had defeated chaos.”  

"The sun princess bowed her head.  “Yes... I forgot...”

“We forgot...” Luna interrupted

Smiling at her sister Celestia continued.  “We forgot.  We were confronted with so many threats to our kingdom in those day that though we intended to return them to you, we felt it was necessary to keep the Elements a while longer.”

“I understand,” said Aural, “but the consequence was that you eventually took their power for granted and then mis-used them.  You lost your connection to them, and to me, and the world suffered more than it would have had I the power to defend it.”

“We are sorry and ask forgiveness,” Celestia replied humbly.

“Forgiveness is easy to grant... Trust, not so much.  You are forgiven, but neither you nor you sister shall ever be allowed to tap their power.  Instead, you shall seek champions, such as those you have gathered here and they shall, when necessary, wield the power of the Elements.”

Babs stepped forward.  “So, if Ay understands youse correctly, My friends and Ay have to come to yew to borrow the Elements if there’s an emergency.”
  
“Though not spoken directly, you make a valid point, but it is essential that I never again be separated from the Elements.  I can, though, offer an alternative.”  As Aural spoke she delicately removed a small sliver of each chrystal and floated it down toward the six bearers.  Her magic touched each pony delicately on the throat, embedding the tiny shards which glowed briefly then faded.

“When the need arises, you shall, collectively, each be able to draw upon the power of the Elements to face down that which threatens your world.  Be aware though, the time you are allowed to draw this power will be limited, so you must wait until absolute need guides your actions.”  

“Wait,” said Trixie.  “Why is the magic you gave me green and not the purple color I had before?”

“In saving those ponies so long ago from chaos, and bravely continuing to live your life despite your own fears and pain, I grant you my element of Courage.  It is a better fit for you than Magic.”

“But who then will wield...”  Trixie paused, her eyes straying across to the others.  “Oh... Never mind.”  She was looking at a shocked Twilight who, in turn, was staring at the tiny shard representing Magic as it floated in front of her.

“Me?” she muttered.  “But why?  I hardly did anything to defeat Discord or Nightmare Moon.  I’m not even a pony anymore.  How can I become a Bearer?”

“You know more of magic than anyone else here.  It is a better fit for you, not only because of your skill, but you’re ability to set an example.  As to not being a pony, the outside form does not reflect the inside truth.  Stay true to who you are, and the imagined issue of your form shall one day resolve itself.”

Aural touched Twilight on the throat which briefly glowed purple, then faded.  “That tickles,” muttered the draconequus.

Watching, Big Mac could not help feel that Aural was smiling.  He turned and faced the tree.  “Is there anythin’ more that we need ta do ta help?”

“There is much, much more that must be done,” Aural replied.  “But your part of it has been completed.  You came here unto chaos and because of chaos, and have helped restore the balance.  You have learned much... more than almost any pony knows about the worlds beyond.  You may have once believed the wish you made was a foolish mistake.  Fate has proved otherwise.”

Big Mac turned and faced Celestia and the others.  “Ah think it’s time fer me ta go home.”  He instantly found himself enfolded in a massive group hug.

“We’re gonna miss youse cousin.”

“You’ve help us all.  You will always be my prince charming.”

“Yer the best big brother any gal could have asked fer.”

“If anypony here is the great and powerful... you are.” 

“Dragons don’t cry... But they can hug.”

“We’re gonna have the BIGGEST PARTY EVER, and it will have a piñata shaped just like you!”

“I’m going to miss you.  Thank-you and please be safe.”

“So long, big guy.  You’re twenty-one percent cooler than any other stallion I know.” 

“Always know that you will be our friend...forever.” 

The ponies separated and Big Mac looked at Zecora, Celestia and Luna who were standing to one side.  The zebra shaman bowed deeply before him.  “We won’t forget you’ve saved our home.  Remember us where ere you roam.”

“Ah don’t think Ah’ll ever forget any of this, or you,” the stallion replied.

“I wish there was more we could do for you,” Celestia said, bowing to Big Mac.  “Know that you will be remembered now and forever.”  Her horn flared to life as she approached the stallion, touching it once upon each shoulder.  “I hereby dub thee Lord Prince Macintosh, First Knight of Harmony.”  The others cheered and shouted briefly.

“Thank you yer majesty.”

Big Mac turned to look at Luna who was also bowing before him.  When she raised her head to speak she was surprised to find he had taken a step forward and briefly kissed her on the lips.  

“Always remember that yer loved,” he said smiling.  Luna briefly put a hoof to her lips, then returned his smile.

“As you are, by all of us,” she replied. 

One side of the chamber began to fill with a swirling nimbus of light.  “It is time,” commanded Aural.  The light coalesced into a portal that looked out onto a gazebo resting atop an orchard hill.  

“Be safe, be well, and be happy.”

“Thank ya fer what y’all taught me.  Perhaps we’ll talk again one day.”

“Perhaps.  If you ever wish to do so, all you have to do is stand quietly and listen, no matter where you are.”

With that, Big Mac nodded and stepped through the portal which closed after him.

Every pony looked at each other quietly until Applejack broke the silence.

“Well... What now?”

“We wait.”

“Wait,” asked Twilight.  “Wait for what?”

“For the final player in our story,” replied Aural.  As she spoke a soft combination thrumming and grinding sound began to fill the chamber, growing louder with each passing second.  “I believe that he is arriving even now.” 

Moments later a large, rectangular, blue box with a flashing light atop it materialized in front of them.  The sound stopped with a distinctive thump.  A few seconds later the door opened and a chestnut colored pony wearing a collar with a red bow tie and a fez appeared.  He held up a large picture of Prince Big Mac with the word MISSING printed on top.

“Excuse me... but have any of you chanced to see this pony?"
> Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Epilogue

Big Mac slowly trotted down the hill toward towards the Apple family farmhouse.  Not much had changed except the bunk house for the new farm hands was finished, as was the chuck house.  Additionally, the new acreage he’d been preparing just before his unintended trip was finished and had been planted with saplings, all laid out in nice, neat rows.  The stallion briefly changed direction to check out the new orchard, only to discover that instead of apples, Applejack had planted pears.  He remembered that she and he had discussed something like this.  Pears were popular and if the trees took well they might have a nice, very profitable cash crop, the proceeds of which they could put aside for Applebloom’s college education.  The only hitch was who would try running the idea past Granny Smith.  His sister had apparently taken the initative.  

Turning, he continued trotting toward the farm house.  The sun was just above the horizon and several ponies were relaxing on the bunkhouse porch waiting for supper.  They waived cheerfully at Big Mac.  The alicorn never missed a beat as he waved back and continued on to the farmhouse.  

He had it all planned out in his head.  A quick family reunion with assurances that he was back and whole, perhaps he’d even a rustle up a cup of coffee.  The stallion hadn’t had a descent cup or bite to eat since beginning his adventure, which seemed almost like forever.  Hugs and kisses all around, then a quick trip to Canterlot via Discord’s mirror and a passionate welcome home from Luna.... after she finished throwing things at him for vanishing in the first place.  He wasn’t quite sure of that last bit, but having lived most of his life with three mares he understood the possibility existed. 

He peeked in the window, his hoof poised on the door and looked inside.  Granny Smith and Funnel Cake were putting the finishing touches on supper while Applebloom set the table.  Big Mac counted six places, then scratched his head wondering who the other two place settings were meant for.  Applejack was at the desk working on the farm ledger, closing it out for the day.  It looked like a typical end of day on Sweet Apple Acres.  

Grasping the door handle he pushed it open and trotted in, closing the door behind him.  Granny was in the middle of scooping scalloped apples from her frying pan onto a serving plate.  She looked up and squinted.  “Big Mac?  It that you?”

The stallion smiled and trotted up to her intending to give her a kiss on the cheek.  “Eyeeup!”

WHAAMM!  The alicorn prince dropped to the floor, seeing more stars than he thought rightly belonged in his head.  The frying pan continued to sound with a resonant tone for several seconds.  

“Ah done told ya once, ya dad gum doodle dragon.  Don’t come inta ma house wearing ma grand-colt like a suit of clothes.  Ah don’t care who yer friend’s with or what ya thought ya was doin... Ah told ya what would happen and now ya knows Ah wasn’t foolin’.”

Applejack’s face appeared just beyond the stallion’s muzzle, looking to see what was going on.  “Discord?  Didn’t Fluttershy have that talk with you?  Ah’m surprised to see ya didn’t listen to what she said.” 

“Howdy AJ.  How come there are five o’ ya?” Big Mac mumbled as he tried to refocus his eyes.

WHAAMM.  

“Granny would y’all put away the skillet?” the orange mare asked.  She got her brother back on his hooves and led him, staggering, over to the couch.  “Ah’d recommend either ya change back right now or Ah’m gonna have ta get ma own frying pan and knock some sense inta y’all.”

There was a sudden pop of air behind her along with an easily recognizable voice.  “Change back to what?  I spent hours sprucing up this body just to spend supper with you and your family.”

Applejack turned around to see both Discord and Fluttershy standing next to Granny Smith.  The buttercup yellow pegasus was wearing a wide smile on her face.

“Applejack... Just before coming here we got the most wonderful news from Doctor Whooves...”  Fluttershy stopped and stared at the figure lying on the couch.  “Oh... It looks like you already know.”

A couple icepacks, some aspirin and a bag of frozen peas later the stallion was beginning to feel a bit more like himself and less like a piñata.  

“Sorry Ah clocked ya on the head, boy,” Granny Smith said, “But this here snake’s been running around playin’ dress up in yer body fer the last month.”

“Snake?” asked Discord.

“Month?” asked Big Mac.

“Actually, it was a little more than five weeks now since you teleported off to that other Equestria,” said Applejack. 

“Ya know?”

“Uh Huh.  Discord here knew you was in another world, like Twilight’s human friends, but he couldn’t pick out exactly where y’all was.”

“Sadly, the temporal distortion between there and here got worse the longer you were gone,” explained the draconequus.  “Interdimensional physics are so chaotic even I have a rough time understanding all the threads.”

“So that’s why y’all stopped talking ta me over there?”

“Indeed.  And before you ask, the only reason I was impersonating you was because it was a royal command from Princess Sun Butt.  They didn’t want more than a few ponies to know you were gone.”

Big Mac put a hoof to his forehead.  The thought of what Discord might have done while looking like him would have been enough to give him a headache, if he didn’t already have one.  “So, uh, no one’s told the Princesses Ah’m back?”  

“Well,” replied Discord, “I did send that mad pony with the blue box over to pass the word to Celestia and Luna, but I can’t guarantee how long it will take him, relatively speaking.”

The stallion moved, intending to push himself up off the couch.  “In that case, Ah’d better get on over ta the castle...”

He was stopped when the draconequus put out a paw.  “If I were you, I’d wait a little while before charging off.”  

“Wait?  Wait for what?”

Almost as if on cue there were a series of crashing noises coming from upstairs, followed by the scrabbling of claws over polished hardwood.  

“For that,” replied Discord.

Something small and black tore down the stairs, making an Olympian leap from the floor onto Big Mac and began desperately licking him all over the face.  

The stallion looked over at Applejack.  “When did y’all get a cat?”

The animal paused in mid lick and looked at the alicorn.  “Cat?” it muttered, looking down at itself.  “DISCORD!!!” it yelled in a Royal Canterlot that sounded suspiciously like Luna.  There was a sudden burst of magic and the echoing laugh of a draconequus coming from somewhere upstairs.  Big Mac suddenly found himself with Princess Luna lying atop of him.  The extra weight of the moon princess caused him to slide off the couch and onto the floor.  Luna ignored this as she locked lips with the stallion.  The two held each other so tightly it was hard to see where one alicorn started and the other ended.

Discord looked at Fluttershy who was blushing hard enough to be mistaken for a stop light.  “Let’s let them have a little privacy, shall we?”  He snapped his fingers and in a flash Prince, Princess and couch vanished into the ether. 

“Discord!  What in tarnation did ya do ta them?” Applejack demanded.

“Don’t get your hairbands in a twist.  I just sent them up to the gazebo.  I figured having things wrap up where they started would be a nice touch.”

It took both Big Mac and Luna nearly twenty minutes to notice they were no longer in the farmhouse.  “Now this is a right good idea.  Just wish Ah’d thought of it..

“Thought of what, darling.”

“Puttin’ a couch out here in the gazebo.  Then we could sleep under yer night sky any time we wanted... After y’all finish with night court of course.”

“Don’t forget, I get most of my sleeping done during the day.”

“Ah don’t think sleepin’ out here during the day would be a good idea.  Too much of a chance some farm hand might stumble on us while we were.... otherwise occupied.”

“I don’t see how that’s a problem.  You can just tell them you were doing some plowing.”

“Plowin’?” the stallion asked.  “Ah don’t quite get what ya mean.”

Luna looked at Big Mac with half slitted eyes.  “Want me to show you what I mean?” she asked seductively.

It took him only a moment to catch on and when he did he looked down at the Moon Princess and smiled.

“Eeeyup!”

THE END (fer now?)