> The World Tree: World of the Frozen Moon
>  by Artaelian
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue: The pegasus who floated from the sky
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As he walked in the crystal caves beneath Canterlot, his gold and white armour was upon his body, making the only noise in the caves loud enough to cover the sounds of his hooves.

He diverted from the dirt and stone covered path to another that had taken him many months to create from the stone. It wasn’t very long, just two seconds from the main path where the door to the room he had made too. The room was well lit with torches fueled by a negligible drain on his own inner magic, and a chair and table were all to be found within, the table covered by books and notes.

Princess Maakera was the ruler of the land of Equestria and the only one he, Captain Time Twister, answered to. She trusted him fully and had proven himself as such over her second choice for captain of the guard, Shining Armour. An attempt on Princess Maakera’s life had been carried out, the assassin had expected a shield spell, easily knocking Shining Armour out cold, but hadn’t expected a time freeze spell for which Time Twister was well known for. Had it not been for that one incident, Shining Armour could very well have been talked up to rank of Captain by his alicorn fiancée, Cadance. And yet, not once did she question him on anything he decided to do.

Time Twister stared at his notes, not really taking any in as he thought of his friend Shining Armour. Shining had been so disappointed to not be made Captain, and be left as a lieutenant. But perhaps, Time Twister pondered, maybe that should have been what happened. After all, all he had done was what any guard was trying to do in that moment, and protect the life of the sole ruler of Equestria. How did that suddenly make him better for the job?

He shook his head. These thoughts had bothered him for ten years, and nothing could change the past.

But the things he had learnt as a captain… Wonderful things, things Princess Maakera kept from the public, of news articles and old family stories that spoke of things that would cause such panic, chaos and anarchy if they were widely known that Equestria itself would be torn apart irreversibly. Such as the old fairy tale of Tirek, a powerful and evil creature that had only just been sealed into Tartarus, and finding the tale had been true. Or the tree of harmony, in which sat the fabled elements, she had shown this to him and how important it was the elements remained in the tree, lest the last trick of Discord surface from where it had somehow gotten underneath the tree.

But what really interested him? There were secrets even Princess Maakera herself was unwilling to tell him.

And one day, four years ago, she had slipped up for just a moment, mentioning her daughters. Everypony knew the tale, two sisters who controlled the sun and moon, but both became jealous that the other controlled one celestial object, and desired control over both, and even fought their own mother for control. Princess Maakera had let slip that her daughters were in other worlds, other realities, and wondered how they were. When he tried to press her for more information, Princess Maakera had realised what she had said and spoke no more on the matter. This made life tiring for him quite often.

And hence the room, every scrap of myths, legends and rumours to do with other realities, worlds and dimensions had found their way here. Four years, and no stone had been unturned.

He lit a fire and an illusion spell to make the dull stone seem more like the cozy inside of a sitting room. From the table, Time Twister took a book called The World Tree, sat on the only chair, and began to read.




Thirty five miles from Canterlot stood the town of Ponyville. Not a very large town, which was to be expected when it had been founded just a hundred years earlier. The town focused around the town hall, a circular building, which was the home of the current mayor.

Very few lights were on in the town, only street lights being lit in most places. The town had no active night life aside from some ponies who enjoyed a walk in the cool night air. A certain librarian, however, preferred this, and had set up her telescope on a balcony in the library she called home now. For years she had been a student under Princess Maakera herself, and had fallen in love with the idea she could restore a library to how she wished. And so she had moved here, restored the inside of the library to also include living areas for her, and had never looked back.

At Sugarcube corner, a perpetually happy pink mare hopped away, giggling softly to jokes she told in her head to an audience of what anyone could only hope numbered no more than one, heading towards her home. On one outskirts of the town, a blue pegasus mare with prismatic mane and tail waved goodbye to her yellow with pink mane pegasus friend, before flying as fast as she could to her cloud home.

And, not far away, the farmland of Sweet Apple Acres stood, the trees branches swaying in the wind and their leaves rustled in a relaxing way. A tall red stallion stood outside, eyes closed, listening as the apple trees let the wind blow through them, and all was right with the world.

“APPLEBLOOM!”

At least, it had been, he sighed to himself, turning to look at the farm house. An orange earth pony mare with a yellow mane and tail raced out the front door, closing it quickly behind her. Her green eyes had become like pinpricks and her face was of pure horror.

“Applejack?” Big Mac asked.


“Bloom gone up smashed one o’ Ma’s plates.” Applejack answered the question she knew her brother would ask.

Big Mac shivered, Applebloom was a goner this time for sure.

Inside the farmhouse, the yellow filly named Applebloom was looking rather sorry for herself, under the angry glare from a dusty yellow looking mare.

“Sorry Ma.” Applebloom apologized, sounding sorry.

“That you may be, but you're grounded for tonight,” her mother replied, “what made ya drop the plate?” she inquired.

“Just, bad day at school.” Applebloom answered.

“Diamond Tiara?” her mother asked, getting only a nod in reply.

Gently, she held a foreleg around her youngest daughter.

“I’ll have a word with her father tomorrow. For now, go to your room, do any homework, I’ll call ya when dinner is done.”

Slowly, Applebloom trotted towards the stairs and her room. She slowly worked on her homework, her mind weighing heavily on Diamond Tiara’s latest words, over her father’s death. Not even telling Diamond that it was wrong to talk ill of the dead could make her stop insulting Applebloom’s deceased father.

The first break from homework was for dinner as her mother promised. The talk at the table barely registered to Applebloom, as her sister, brother, mother and grandmother all talked about something on increases in the military.

Returning to her room half an hour later, Applebloom watched as the moon rose, its perfect white surface reminding her of snow. With a sigh, she sat at her desk and begun to work on her homework once more, passing a glance at a photo she kept nearby. In it, a younger Applebloom could be seen, a big grin on her face as she sat on the back on a soft pastel green earth pony wearing a stetson hat, her father. She couldn't recall what had become of him, aside from being told he had died when she was old enough to understand.

With a small smile on her mouth, she begun to work once more.


Two hours later, a drooling Applebloom awoke with a start. The farm house was quiet, but she could have sworn she had just heard the ringing of a small bell and a soft voice calling to any that could hear it. She rubbed her eyes and slowly wandered to her window, looking out at the night sky.

It was a very beautiful night, the moon shone brightly, but not enough to hide the stars, faint traces of nebulae and the galaxy itself. And among it all, a blue star that she hadn't seen before floated in the sky.

What knowledge she could recall from school had taught her that new stars formed all the time, but the light took so long to get to where the world was that the sky seemed to never change. She yawned, thinking to herself how amazing it was that school actually had uses besides giving bullies like Diamond Tiara a playground.

Opening her eyes only half way and realizing how tired she was, Applebloom decided on one more glance towards the night sky before bed. She looked, then turned to face her bed before her eyes opened wide and made herself do a double take.

The new blue star was actually getting bigger!

Or at the least, she observed as she watched it fall, it was getting closer, while staying the same size. Watching it fall for three more seconds, she quickly worked out that it would fall somewhere among the trees, close to the small tree house she now called her own. Without a thought to her safety or being heard by the rest of her family, Applebloom ran out of her room, down the stairs past Granny Smith, through the living room where Big Mac and Applejack were planning the next day’s activities on the farm, and out the kitchen into the farm.

She ran as fast as she could through the trees, watching all the while as the blue dot fell slowly. She arrived to the clearing in front of her tree house long before it had landed, and she watched in shocked awe at the sight before her.

The blue dot that was glowing was attached to the golden band on the front left leg of a pegasus pony, who was surrounded by the blue glow and floating slowly upside down toward the ground. In a minute, the blue glow from the gem on the band gently placed the orange pegasus filly with a purple mane and tail on the soft grass of the clearing. But Applebloom just stood there, her mind unable to fully register what she had seen happen. From somewhere high above, this pegasus had floated down, by some sort of magic in the leg bracelet she wore. 

Behind her, Applejack ran into the clearing

“Landsakes Bloom! What got into,” Applejack paused in her shouting, when she saw the pegasus filly laying on the ground. Having not witnessed what her younger sibling had, she had assumed the pegasus had crashed to the ground, and Applebloom had witnessed it from her bedroom window. Applejack rushed past her sister and gently got the pegasus filly on to her back, “Get back to the house, tell Ma, Mac and Granny we found a pegasus that fell out the sky and I've taken her to the hospital!” She shouted, running towards Ponyville itself.

But Applebloom didn’t move. Instead, she slowly turned her head towards the starry sky, wondering where the pegasus could have come from on a cloudless night.

> Chapter One; Warm Summer Day
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Applebloom awoke in her bed at the cockerel cry at dawn. Her night had been rather fuzzy and dreamlike after Applejack had gone to the hospital with that pegasus filly. She yawned as the first rays of the sun entered her room through the window, wondering if it had actually been a dream. She climbed out of bed and stretched, front legs then back legs, before deciding to get breakfast.

Two minutes later, she found herself in the kitchen, where only her older brother, Big Macintosh and her granny, Granny Smith, sat around a stacked plate of hay pancakes. Seeing her granddaughter awake, Granny stacked three on a plate, pushing them to her designated chair. Applebloom licked her lips and sat down, tucking in to her breakfast.

“So, quite a night last night huh?” Big Mac said to her, making Applebloom look up at him.

“What’d ya mean?” Applebloom asked him, raising an eyebrow.

“AJ and Ma running off to the hospital with that pegasus filly that fell from the clouds, did ya forget?” Granny’s face looked  a little too serious.

“Oh, nah. I just couldn’t remember right away if it were a dream or not. They ain’t back yet?” Applebloom hoped there would be a simple reason for where the pegasus had come from and that would be the end of that.

“Nope,” was the only answer she got from her brother.

Without any further words, the three fell silent and continued to eat. All the while, Applebloom ran many thoughts through her head about the pegasus and her strange glowing leg bracelet.

‘Maybe she was trying to learn to fly, but became too tired? Nah, she’d have fallen closer to Cloudsdale. Oh, maybe somepony or griffon was trying to kidnap her, but something happened and they dropped her! But, then wouldn’t I have seen them too? Ah forget it, it’s too early in the morning.’



An hour later, while Applebloom was upstairs, attempting to finish her homework, Applejack and her mother returned, with the still sleeping pegasus filly. The four family members still downstairs looked at the orange filly as she lay on the couch.

“So nothing wrong with her eh?” Granny Smith asked.

“Nothing, the doctor said she’s strong, almost like a fully grown adult pegasus.” Applejack replied.

“Well, only one thing to do. You three,” Granny pointed at the others with a hoof, “head out and find a pegasus who’s heading to Cloudsdale and see if any fillies are missing. I’ll stay here with her.”

The three other Apple family members nodded their heads and left the house. Granny meanwhile found a blanket which she placed over the back of the sleeping pegasus, and sat down in the rocking chair across the room, where she too fell asleep.

Applebloom finished her homework and put it away ready to hand in roughly fifteen minutes later, and not realising that her sister and mother had been back, slowly made her way downstairs, coming up with plans for the day. The sounds of her hoofsteps echoing slowly awoke the orange pegasus, who blinked her eyes a few times to clear them, while following the yellow shape she could see moving.

Applebloom had gone to the kitchen, oblivious to the pegasus watching her, and poured herself a glass of water, which she drank in one go. She turned her head to look at the rocking chair where her Granny was sleeping, and did a double take when she saw the orange pegasus.

“Oh mah gosh, ya scared me!” Applebloom said, thankful that she hadn’t dropped the glass.

“I am ever so sorry, I did not mean to.” the pegasus replied, standing up off the couch and shaking the blanket from her back.

“I guess mah sister came home then, she ran off with you when you fell from the sky last night, took you to a doctor.” 

“I see, I do not know how to respond to this.” the pegasus, deliberately walking around in circles around Applebloom, examining her.

“Uh, well it was just to make sure you were okay, what are you doing?” Applebloom, becoming a bit nervous.

“Oh, I am sorry, again, it’s just,” slowly and gently, the pegasus reached a hoof out and placed it gently to Applebloom’s shoulder, “I guess first of all, introductions are in order, my name is Scootaloo.”

“Okay, pleased ta meet you Scootaloo. My name is Applebloom, now can ya tell me why you were being weird and walking around me?” Applebloom asked.

“It’s just, you have such a nice well kept coat, your ears are a little strange though. You just have such a nice coat for someone so old.” Scootaloo answered, with a rather happy and pleasant smile.

“Someone so old?” Applebloom repeated, very confused.

“Why, yes! I mean, you look like you’re what, four hundred and fifty?”

“Hey! I’m not a fossil!” Applebloom puffed up her cheeks in annoyance.

“Oh no, you misunderstand, that really is a compliment!” Scootaloo waved a hoof in front of her, smiling a nervous smile.

“How is it a compliment to say I’m four hundred years old? Wait, why do you think ponies can even get that old?”

Scootaloo’s eyes widened, as she turned to face away from Applebloom. As Applebloom moved to face her again, she heard her mutter something about another world under her breath.

“Answer me Scootaloo, why did you think I’d even be four hundred years old?” Applebloom pressed, her nose touching that of Scootaloo’s

“Uh, could you tell me if there is a library nearby? I may need to look there first before I can answer any questions you might have.” Scootaloo answered, smiling in hopes to remove any hostility from Applebloom.

Applebloom for her part thought for a moment, really wanting to deny the request to look at books and to just answer her questions. But this seemed important to Scootaloo, and she sighed.

“Fine, I’ll take ya to the Golden Oaks library, it’s close to the other side of town though.” Applebloom stated.

“Good, lead the way to the library.” Scootaloo sighed in hope.



Time Twister stood outside the grand doors to the throne room, where Princess Maakera waited for him. It was just another part of his job, daily meetings with the princess, or summons such as this visit today. Each time it was something she wanted done that required him to get done fast, if she wanted something done slowly or never, she asked someone else.

Beside him, Lieutenant Shining Armor smiled. He always smiled. It annoyed Time Twister so much, where was the anger towards him from Shining Armor? Even when he had lost a certain promotion because of a lucky chance on Time Twister’s part, there was Shining, smiling. Shining was the very first to congratulate Time Twister on becoming captain of the guard, smiling as he did so.

Just once, Time Twister wished the smile would crack slightly, and show how Shining Armor really felt towards him.

“Come on now Time, you don’t want to keep her waiting, she sounded worried when she asked for you.” Shining stated, still smiling.

“Of course, she always does,” Time Twister replied, holding back what he really wanted to say about that damned smile, seriously, did Shining have surgery to change his mouth to always be smiling? It was like Shining was hiding something from him, some feeling he really wanted to get across, but didn’t because he worried of causing offence. He coughed, “but if I know her, it isn’t something to worry about, a minute or two more won’t hurt. I haven’t seen you for a few days, everything going alright?” Time Twister inquired.

“Yes thank you sir, Cadance and I are planning our wedding, I was thinking of asking you to be the best stallion.” Shining Armor replied, that smile never fading or revealing true hidden emotions underneath.

“Me? Why me?” Time Twister asked, a little surprised but he was sure he knew the reason.

“I’ll be marrying a princess. It’s going to be an event the whole country will be keeping watch of, and you think I wouldn’t ask my friend to be by my side as I marry the love of my life?” Shining posed to him.

TIme Twister blinked, he hadn’t expected that to be the reason. Shining wanted him there because of their friendship? It was touching, perhaps he was wrong about the guy, that the smile he held was because they were friends.

“And besides, I’d get a lot of abuse if the best stallion wasn’t the guy who saved Princess Maakera’s life and the Captain of the Guard.”

There it was, always with the public image for the royalty and nobles. Oh, how he wanted to hit Shining in his face and yell at him for thinking of a public image over what he really wished for, but it just wouldn’t be worth it, the damned fool would probably continue to smile and still ask him to be the best stallion.

“I see. Well, I better see what the princess wants, we can talk after.”

Shining simply nodded, as the doors opened and Time Twister entered the throne room. 
The throne room was a marvelous sight. Trees were growing indoors, and the walls not only had stained glass in them, depicting various historical events, but also had water fountains which fed small streams which ran under glass towards the trees, making the whole room feel alive.

And sat in the middle on a pure white chair under a pure white gazebo was Princess Maakera. She was taller than any pony in the land, being an alicorn and named after a princess of an old legend, her coat was a leaf green, in contrast, her mane and tail looked like the branches of willow trees, yet still were clearly hair.

“Good morning Time Twister, did you sleep well?” Princess Maakera asked, never looking up from a bird that had somehow found its way into the throne room, and sat on the table he had never seen in the room before.

“As well as can be expected when I could be required at any moment.” Time Twister replied, drawing closer. He didn’t question how she knew it was him, she never did court and had summoned him, to expect anyone else would have been foolish.

“Quite. Tell me, what do you make of this bird?” she asked.

He was about to answer, and ask if she wanted it removed, when he stopped. Most birds in Equestria were pretty standard, a head, beady black eyes, two wings, two legs with clawed feet and a tail. Even the exotic phoenixes followed this. But this bird had four wings and eyes that looked as though they had intelligence behind them instead of natural instinct.

“I,” he paused, shook his head and cleared his throat, “I do not understand your highness.”
Princess Maakera smiled, and held a hoof toward the bird which examined it before hopping on it using all four wings to help.

“It is a most amusing little creature, in all of this world, I have never seen this bird, and none have ever mentioned it before, I wonder where it came from,” she raised her hoof and held still for a moment as the bird examined its surroundings, and then flew towards a sole open window on the north side of the throne room, “but to other matters I suppose.”

“Of course your highness.”

“What do you know of Ponyville?” she questioned, her eyes hiding any thought that may have been in her head.

“A backwater town founded by earth ponies, though home to a mix of all kinds, not far from Canterlot.” Time Twister answered.

“I had hoped you’d know where it was. I sensed strange magic that could be a threat to Equestria spark and fade from my senses last night. I want you and the guard that can be afforded to leave Canterlot to head there. It may be nothing, but better to check and be safe.”

Time Twister deflated a little. Typically she never asked him to do something, not directly. She simply suggested it in a way he knew really meant ‘Do this or you’ll find life suddenly unpleasant’. But she seemed a kind alicorn, and he rather hoped she wouldn't punish him by removing his rank, belongings and home at best, or his life at worst.

“As you wish your highness, I shall make arrangements and we can leave with a full force in a few hours, but as I prepare, I shall send word to the local guard to be on the look out.” he bowed and hastily made his way out of the room.

As the throne room doors closed behind him, he let out a sigh of relief. Oh sure, going to a backwater town wasn't an ideal thing, but this was far easier than his previous tasks, such as accompanying the princess’ own personal protegee and her strange friends to evict a dragon that had settled in the country.

Now he thought of it, it seemed rather strange that Princess Maakera had forgotten this wouldn't be his first trip to Ponyville. But what his mind fell on was the bird. As he hurried around to prepare, and then passed on the task to some of the guard so he could head to his hidden room, Time Twister couldn't help but wonder if his life obsession had finally gained some solid evidence.

> Chapter Two: Mysterious Scootaloo
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time Twister sat in the room with all his books and other various mentions of other worlds. A new piece of parchment sat before him on which he had sketched the four winged bird, and a note stating nothing like it existed in Equestria. He let out a frustrated groan. The first solid evidence of other worlds had been before his very eyes, and yet he was no closer to solving anything, there was a missing piece or two somewhere.

Feeling he’d get nowhere, he stood up and left to see how preparations for the trip to Ponyville were going.



Arriving to the courtyard ten minutes later, Time Twister saw the forces that he was granted were waiting. They amounted into the hundreds easy, and as he approached Shining Armor, he felt taking a hundred stallions would be far too much.

“As you asked for sir, every available guard is here, ready to move out.” Shining parroted, the damned smile back on his face.

“That’s nice,” Time Twister responded drolly, “bit of an overkill. We’ll draw too much attention to look for what the princess wishes us to find.”

Shining spluttered and looked shocked. Time took a bit of joy in the fact his smile had left his face.

“So, what do, I mean, what are your orders sir?” Shining asked.

“Oh its simple, besides us, pick the best ten out of all of these who are good at recon among the populace without alerting them to any dire threat.”

Time Twister sighed and walked toward a bench, where he sat and looked up at the sky. His mind was still too much on the bird than what Princess Maakera had asked him to do. But the whole situation in the throne room, where he saw the bird. It seemed staged. Did she know of his obsession, of his true feelings? Was this just to taunt him? Who knew, but he was falling for it.

A couple of minutes seemed to pass, before he was being shaken awake by Shining Armor.

“Huh?” was all Time could ask as he awoke.

“Sorry it took so long sir, but I’ve found the best ten stallions for the job.” Shining stated, no longer smiling for some reason.

“Oh ok, good, job well done.” Time replied, rubbing his eyes.

“Are you alright sir?” Shining asked.

“Yes, I just don’t recall falling asleep,” he looked up, “though I suppose considering the day and the nights I’ve had recently.”

“Say no more sir, if you’d rather, I can do what the princess asked for, and you can go rest.” Shining offered.

Time Twister smiled. Shining for all the faults he had was a decent guy, always willing to put others before himself.

“No its alright, I want to see what has got the princess all worked up. To the chariots then, you’ll be with me Shining, I bet you can’t wait to see your sister before we head back to Canterlot.” Time said, walking to the city limits where the flying chariots were kept.

“What? You’ll allow me to go see her before we come home?” Shining asked, really surprised at this news.

“Of course, you haven’t seen her for a while now yes? You’ve earnt more than enough time off that you just don’t use, use a couple of minutes to tell her about your wedding.” Time answered.

“I don’t know, I don’t think its the right time to tell her I’m getting married, she may get mad at me.” Shining stated.

“Really? You think telling her a few days before the wedding through a scroll and conveniently late invitation would be a better way?” Time asked, rolling his eyes.

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea, thanks!” Shining replied, picking up his pace.

“I, what? No I didn’t,” Time spluttered, but it was too late, Shining was way ahead of him, “moron, oh well, his problem if his sister blows a fuse on him.”



Scootaloo looked around in wonder at the inside of the Golden Oaks library. A building made from a living tree had been fascinating enough in and of itself, but the inside seemed somehow bigger. Applebloom however seemed uninterested as she stood beside the orange pegasus, and the librarian, a purple unicorn named Twilight Sparkle watched the awe struck Scootaloo with a smile and fond memories.

Soon, Scootaloo’s eyes met those of Twilight.

“Could I see a map of the world please?” she asked.

“Uh,” Twilight found this odd, every foal was shown the map of the world almost as soon as they began school, but it was her job to comply with requests, “sure.” she replied, using her magic to levitate a fold out map, and placed it on a table.

With the map of the world now before her, Scootaloo begun to run her eyes over all the words in the hopes of finding one that seemed familiar, while Applebloom waited impatiently beside her. Twilight however was curious as to what the little pegasus was looking for, but before she could ask, there was a knock at the door, and she quietly left to find who was knocking on the door of a public library.

“No, no, no, no matches so far.” Scootaloo mumbled.

“What’re you looking for?” Applebloom asked, raising an eyebrow at Scootaloo.

“I’ll know it if I see it, just give me time please.” Scootaloo replied, returning her full concentration to the map as she seemed to not find what she was looking for in the borders of Equestria.

Twilight chose that moment to return with another foal in tow, a mix of light blue and light grey coat, with a midnight blue mane and tail.

“Rumble came looking for you Applebloom.” Twilight said, walking away to tend to other matters.

“Hey Applebloom, who’s your new friend?” Rumble inquired, cheerfully.

“Hey Rumble, this is Scootaloo, she fell from the sky into the clearing near the clubhouse late last night, and now she’s trying to find something. How’d you find me anyway?” Applebloom asked back.

“Oh I saw you come in here, I was just on the way to the farm after grabbing a snack in Sugarcube corner.” Rumble replied, his eyes landing on Scootaloo.

The pair of them observed Scootaloo as she finished looking through several other countries for what she was trying to find, but still apparently failing. It didn’t seem important to her however, as she didn’t seem to become worried the longer it went without her finding anything.

Three minutes more was all it took for her to finish looking over the world map, and with a strangely calm and composed attitude, Scootaloo folded the map up, and thanked Twilight for the use of it as she headed to the door.

“Where do ya think you're going?” Applebloom asked, chasing after Scootaloo.

“Please, I want to go somewhere more private where we can speak, a public library is hardly the place for me to answer your questions little Applebloom.” Scootaloo answered, annoyance in her voice.

“Uh, alright, we’ll head to the clubhouse and can talk there, I’ll show ya the way.” Applebloom replied, walking ahead, the feeling in her head was one of a child having been scolded by her mother for doing something wrong.



The chariots carrying Time Twister, Shining Armor and the ten guard landed in the town square of Ponyville, catching some glances from the locals, first and foremost a certain bubblegum pink mare who hopped over to them.

“Hi there! Whatcha doing?” she asked.

“Ah, miss Pinkamena Pie, a pleasure to see you again.” Time Twister greeted her.

“Hey there Timey! So, what are you doing back here? Is there another dragon to fight against?” Pinkie pressed onward.

Time Twister flinched at the name she called him, he didn’t like it, but it was just how this mare was.

“No, no dragon today. I’ve been asked to do something for the princess, and no one else must know, are we understood?” Time replied, his tone starting friendly but throwing in the hint that Pinkie would do well to actually listen, or lose everything if she didn’t.

It was Pinkie’s turn to visibly flinch, as her mane seemed to slightly deflate from the way Time Twister had spoken to her.

“Oh, okay. I’ll stay out of your way.” Pinkie replied, slowly trotting away.

“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings, but the princess wouldn’t even tell me how dangerous the thing I am looking for is, I’d rather no one be hurt but myself should things go wrong. Tell you what, once I’ve found it, how about I treat you to something? Anything you like.” Time Twister said, catching Pinkie’s attention.

His words alone changed her attitude completely, as she smiled.

“Anything?” she almost squeaked.

“Within my budget of course, and as long as it doesn’t take too long, though I could arrange another trip here if it is something that will take long.” Time answered.

“Oki Doki Loki! Speak to you later Timezers!” Pinkie laughed, hopping away.

Time Twister flinched as behind him the guard laughed. He shot them a look that told them they would be running laps around Canterlot for a few hours when they returned, and then got on with the task at hand.

There were no signs of anything out of the ordinary, indeed, Ponyville looked like it always did. And the princess being vague on what he was to look for certainly didn’t help either.

“You know,” Shining spoke up, “Pinkie Pie is probably going to take you on a date right?”

“What? How could you possibly come up with that thought?” Time Twister asked, reading a spell the princess had been kind enough at least to provide him before the chariots left to locate anything unnatural.

“She has a bet with a certain Rainbow Dash for when you next came into the town, whoever gets to go on a date with you first owes the other ten ciders at the Apple family’s annual cider week.” Shining informed him.
“Oh, well if its for a bet, then that’s fine. I was worried then she would ask for such a shallow reason.” Time responded, halfway through reading the spell.
“And going on a date to win a bet and get ten ciders isn’t shallow?”
“Not as shallow as arranging a date with me just to get the media’s attention to how she’s dating the Captain of the royal guard and the stallion that saved Princess Maakera from assassination.” Time answered, folding the parchment up.
“Wait, has that happened to you?” Shining asked.
“Yes actually. Though Fleur De Lis is now pretty happy with that Fancy Pants guy. You should meet him sometime, always willing to help anyone. He’s just like you, except rich.”

Time Twister begun casting the spell that would show to him the location of whatever unnatural energy the princess was looking for. In seconds it took hold, and showed him a purple colour set of hoofprints which led towards the public library, then away towards the farm.
“Did the spell work sir?” Shining asked.
“It did, Shining Armor, I would recommend you check on your sister. Whatever it is we’re after was in the library, and its now heading towards the local farm. I’ll take the others and meet with you after. Under no circumstances should you give away what we’re up to, though your sister is smart, I’m sure she’ll work it out.”
And that was that, as Shining ran towards the library, meeting a very shocked little sister at the door, and Time Twister and the ten guard marched towards the farm.


Scootaloo admired briefly the inside of the clubhouse that belonged to Applebloom. In a town where all seemed to live in buildings made of wood, it was a little funny to see a building made of wood had been built in a tree, as though it was a rather poor imitation of the library inside a living tree.
But it had now become time to explain herself to Applebloom and her friend Rumble, who both watched her carefully, waiting for her to start speaking.
“So, where do you want me to start?” Scootaloo asked, sitting on her haunches.
“How about starting with how old you think I am?” Applebloom asked back, the issue still clearly sore.
“Oh right, well you're only just older than me, how can you not be four hundred and fifty years old?” Scootaloo inquired. This earned a laugh from Rumble, who was shot a glare by Applebloom.
“Then how old do you think you are, and how old do you think Rumble here is?”
“I’m only three hundred and seventy-nine, and he looks to be on the verge of four hundred himself.” Scootaloo answered.
“Now see, I’m only nine, and Rumble here is also nine. We’re not hundreds of years old, we’ll be lucky to even reach a hundred.” Applebloom stated.
Scootaloo looked shocked and spluttered as she tried to make sense of what Applebloom had told her.
“How can that be? You have to be lying!” Scootaloo protested.
“We ain’t lying, those are our actual ages.” Applebloom stated again.
“Then with the map earlier and now this, I can only conclude I’m not even in my world.” Scootaloo said dejectedly.

Before Applebloom could press on and find out what she meant, a pegasus royal guard burst in through one of the windows.
“Stay where you are, nopony move!” he yelled.
This however had the opposite effect on the three foals, who were now scared and bolted to the door, Rumble reaching it first. His head impacted the stomach of another royal guard who fell backwards, knocking several others down.
Standing nearby, Time Twister rolled his eyes. Always the same, tell them to go get whatever, and they had to make a big show of it and scare foals. As they ran past him, he began to walk to the clubhouse to safely retrieve the unnatural, only to stop as he looked at the floor. The spell was now showing him whatever had walked inside had just left in a hurry past him.
His head snapped around to look at the foals in the distance, and the spell activated once more, highlighting the orange pegasus as what he was looking for.
With a low growl of annoyance, he gave chase after them.

Up ahead, Applebloom took the chance to look back in the direction they had ran from.
“Their leader is gaining on us!” She cried out.
“Applebloom, Rumble, do you both trust me?” Scootaloo shouted. 
“Yes!” the other two replied.
“Then get beside me and try not to be sick!” Scootaloo told them. In seconds, Applebloom was beside Scootaloo on the left, and Rumble to her right.
Concentrating hard, the small gem in the ankle bracelet glowed, and the trio vanished just as Time Twister lept at Scootaloo. His face impacted the ground and he was rather glad that no one else was around to see him bury his face in the dirt.
As he stood up and look at the ground where the three foals had been just a second before, he knew right away that the princess really was toying with him today. First the bird and now a pegasus that could do unicorn magic, Princess Maakera was hiding the most important piece of the puzzle he had long sought, and he was now sure she was tempting him to make a move.
He yawned. Several sleepless nights were catching up to him. He could pursue the three foals without moving anyway, he thought as he stood up and headed to see if the other guard had woken up yet. After all, what was a couple of wanted posters? Especially for lost foals that were desperately missed by their families? And more importantly, getting the orange pegasus and the strange magic she held, the power would probably be enough to revolutionize the whole of the world.


Scootaloo was rather relaxed after the teleportation spell, in utter contrast to Applebloom and Rumble who looked rather ill, and fighting not to lose whatever food they had in their stomachs. More importantly, the pair were trying to recover and fast, while Scootaloo once again admired her surroundings.
She shouldn’t have been so relaxed, with the twisted and frightening trees all around, and the sounds of predatory animals lurking somewhere in the distance, but clearly she was just as unaware of the perils of the Everfree Forest as she had been of the layout of Ponyville.
“We need to get movin’” Applebloom stated, heading in a direction away from Ponyville.
“Woah, wait, why away from Ponyville?” Rumble protested.
“Because they’re after her,” Applebloom pointed a hoof at Scootaloo, “and they’ll just wait for us in Ponyville.”
“Oh come on, don’t tell me you believe her crap! Saying we’re over a few hundred years old, that she isn’t from this world? Its clear they’re just trying to capture an escaped mental patient and we just helped her get away!” Rumble tried to yell, without actually yelling.
“You saw that bracelet of her’s! If that don’t make her story believable so far, then nothin’ will.” Applebloom replied, trying her best to stay calm.
“Okay, whatever, I don’t believe any of it. I’m going home, later Applebloom.” Rumble snapped, trotting away at a brisk pace.
“Fine, be like that.” Applebloom muttered, walking over to Scootaloo.
“I am sorry for causing you to have a fight with your friend.” Scootaloo said softly.
“Don’t worry ‘bout it, ain’t a real friend if he ditches the first sign of danger anyway. C’mon, this forest is dangerous, we better get to the other side fast.” Applebloom said sadly, leading the way.
Scootaloo thought for a moment about making Applebloom go with her friend, about going to the strange ponies that attacked them and finding what they really wanted, but decided against it, since Applebloom seemed too upset to convince to do any other action. Together, the pair wandered through the Everfree, being careful for any dangerous creatures that lived inside it.

> Chapter Three: The Town of Featherfall
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Applebloom dreamt of a warm summer day, relaxing with her friends Rumble and Sweetie Belle under the apple trees on the family farm. She always enjoyed those days, the smell of the leaves and grass filling her nose.
But soon, she stirred and examined her surroundings. She and Scootaloo had stopped in a forest grove, some distance from the Everfree, and had slept there because it was quiet and protected from the wind. Nearby, Scootaloo awoke from her sleep too.
“Slept well friend?” Scootaloo questioned, rubbing sleep from her eyes.
“Yeah, just,” Applebloom paused, “I sort of wish Rumble was here, I don’t like how he wasn’t willing to help me because of you.”
If Scootaloo felt hurt, she didn’t show it.
“I guess now is the time to find breakfast and maybe continue on our way.” Scootaloo stated.
“About that, I think it might be best if we make our way toward Manehatten, I’ve family there, we can work out what to do from there, problem is, I don’t know where we are now.” Applebloom replied, looking discouraged.
“Then we shall have to find a town and the distance and direction to this Manehatten.” Scootaloo answered, eating a nearby flower.
“I guess, we’ll just keep going the direction we were walking in last night.” Applebloom muttered, looking for breakfast herself.


Things for Rumble however had not gone right since the clubhouse the day before. He had returned to Ponyville, only to have walked right into the royal guard and their leader. He was taken for questioning of the location of the other missing foals, while the family of Applebloom were informed when Rumble had accidentally wished he had stayed with her instead of returning to the town.
Time Twister, despite his own confidence issues, was good at interrogations. It had always been his favourite part of his job even before his promotion, it gave him a warm feeling to see the one being questioned squirm.
“Now, you mentioned the name Applebloom as being one of the foals that got away from us yesterday, did you want to make things easier for me and give me the name of the orange pegasus?” Time Twister asked calmly, his voice suggesting it would be in the best interest of Rumble to give the name.
“This isn’t how to interrogate a foal, sir.” Shining Armor stated.
Time Twister rolled his eyes. Always a buzzkill to the fun wasn’t there?
“How would you suggest I do this then, Lieutenant?”
Instead of answering, Shining Armor sat down on the chair next to Rumble, and with his magic, brought a soda drink to the table, placing it before Rumble.
“Thirsty?” he asked. Rumble took a sip and smiled, while Time Twister rolled his eyes.
“Now,” Shining Armor spoke softly and in a comforting tone, “we need the last missing foal’s name, it could help us get them home safe, after all, I’m sure you three only ran because you had been scared, who can blame you? You are only young after all.”
“Oh please! This is the slow approach, Shining, I can tell you,” Time Twister began to yell.
“Scootaloo. That’s her name.” Rumble answered.
Time Twister blinked once, then twice, slowly turning his head to face Rumble and away from the smug look Shining Armor now wore.
“Shining, a word privately if you please.”
Together, the two left the room, and Rumble enjoyed the silence and the drink.

Outside, Time looked annoyed, but what Shining didn’t know was that this annoyance was towards himself, and not others.
“Can I trust you with a secret? Friend to friend.” Time Twister asked.
“Of course, what is it?”
“That third foal, the orange pegasus we know is named Scootaloo, I believe she is tied to a little obsession of mine.” Time Twister stated.
“Woah, dude, that’s not okay! Look for someone your own age!” Shining stumbled back.
“Not like that fool! For years I’ve been looking for any evidence of other dimensions. The magic that this Scootaloo held, it’s not from our world, and you know we were trained to know of all the magic in this world,” Time watched as Shining realised he wasn’t a foal-fiddler and got closer again, but still held a look of concern, “how many pegasi do you know that could cast an advanced teleportation spell? We need to get her, find how she did it. If it turns out to be a spell holding stone, I know that maybe all my efforts these last few years were for nothing.”
Time Twister turned to go back into the interrogation room.
“Sir, what if it wasn’t a spell holding stone?”
Time Twister only replied with a grin.


Two hours passed after they had a small breakfast consisting of whatever flowers they could find to eat, when at last the open plains beyond the forest turn into a seaside town. Both Applebloom and Scootaloo breathed a sigh of relief and wandered into the town, the local townsponies barely glancing at them. The buildings were all made of wood, which was constantly repainted over the damage of the salty sea air.
“Alright, now we’re here, we just need to find a place of local information.” Scootaloo stated, looking around at the buildings.
The ones she could see right away were simple shops, fishmongers for the meat eating creatures that passed by, a fruit and veg stall for ponies, a pawnbrokers and a bookseller to name a few, but nowhere could she see a sign of the name of the town.
“Well, I don’t think we should go into such a place, but we ain’t going to drink, every town’s bar is the place to go for information, come on!” Applebloom said, heading in a random direction in search of a bar.
Wandering behind her, Scootaloo ran the word through her head.
“A bar. I don’t know this word in the context you are using it.”
They soon came upon a street, mostly empty save for homes. In the middle of this street was a bar, the wood exterior made it look homely and inviting, and a few patrons were either entering or leaving. Above the doorway, a sign creaked, a picture of three mares at the foot of a tree, but the name of the bar was faded, the paint chipping away.
The door to the bar creaked as the two fillies entered, all the ponies inside had ceased whatever they were doing or saying to look at them. The bartender, an old stallion wearing dusty old glasses actually lowered them with a disapproving stare directed at them.
“A social gathering place, intriguing.” Scootaloo mumbled.
“We don’t serve youngsters here.” The bartender flatly stated, returning to cleaning that one pint glass that bartenders always seemed to have that would never get clean.
“Sorry, it's just, we got lost in the countryside, and we don’t know where we are, what’s the name of the town?” Applebloom asked.
Before the bartender could reply that he wouldn’t answer them and make them leave, and hoof struck the table it’s owner was sat at, clinking every pint glass on it loudly. The bartender looked in the direction of the sudden noise and seemed to become incredibly timid. Looking where the bartender had, Applebloom and Scootaloo saw a table crowded by stallions, all of various colours, but they seemed to be wearing very tattered clothes, and had pistols and swords attached to belts strapped around their barrels. The hoof that had struck the table however belonged to an icy blue earth pony stallion, who had a long red coat with gold trim and buttons. His green eyes seemed to study the fillies as he held his black hat on his head.
“Very unusual for fillies to enter me bar, but I suppose I can be your hero since your lost, get your flanks over here.” he said softly.
“Now I must protest! Fillies in the bar is one thing but,” the bartender had quickly forgot who he was talking to was the same stallion that had scared him badly just a moment before, and he quickly reminded himself.
“Ah calm yourself, I ain’t going to do anything bad to them. They’re young and looking for home, despite my reputation, I can be honourable.”

As the conversation between the bartender and the stallion continued, Applebloom tried to push Scootaloo back out of the bar.
“What is the matter friend?” Scootaloo asked.
“They’re mercenaries, we got to get out of here.” Applebloom whispered.
“But he is offering help, can we really afford to turn it down?”
“If it’ll keep me and get me safe, yes.” Applebloom snapped.
“Come now Applebloom, I am a good judge of character, no harm will come to us.” Scootaloo answered, trotting around Applebloom and over to the pirates. Applebloom groaned and reluctantly followed.
As they arrived, the stallion had finished his conversation with the bartender and smiled at the two fillies. The others with him made space, but at the same time kept some distance while staying as close to the stallion as possible.
“So  little lasses, your lost?”
“That is correct. We just need to know where we are and where Manehatten is so we can be on our way.” Scootaloo answered.
“Manehatten? Well your not far, this here is the town of Featherfall, about twenty miles down the coast from Manehatten.” the stallion answered, his smile held no malice or ill intent towards the two fillies he was talking to.
“Thank you, mr?” Scootaloo asked.
“Name’s High Wind.” High Wind offered a hoof to shake to Scootaloo, which she did.
“Hey boss! Before they go, why not share a story with them? Something for them to think about ‘fore going to sleep tonight back in Manehatten?” one of the stallions said. It was meant as a jest at the expense of the boss, and swiftly met with an empty bottle flung at the crew member’s head.
“Not really a bad idea, now listen to me fillies, for this is a tale of mystical ponies, who live far longer than we can ever hope to live,” High Wind smiled, moving from leaning back to nursing his latest pint glass. While the rest of the crew reeked of alcohol, High Wind seemed unphased by all the drinks he had drunk, “beautiful creatures, and wise, their lives span millennia, not decades. The elven ponies. To look at them, they seem no different aside from the slender bodies, thinner legs and barrels, graceful necks, and long pointed ears.”
“Now I’ve described them, this here is a tale of the elven pony who sought to save his true love from death. She was dying of an unknown curse, and he travelled far, slaying fearsome dragons for their blood, which was said to be able to counter curses.”
High Wind sighed as he stared into the amber liquid in the glass at his hooves.
“But alas, on his return, the curse had taken his love. Full of sorrow, he buried his lost love and poured the blood upon her grave, but imagine his shock when it turned into a crystal tree! He one day found a new mare to love, and took his first born to the tree, where the crystal tree bloomed a single flower for the foal,” High Wind laughed, “a silly little story of course, since elven ponies don’t exist.”
Scootaloo was smiling, contrasting Applebloom who seemed to now be very nervous as she noted the crew were focused on Scootaloo.
“I remember that one, I was only,” Scootaloo was stopped suddenly by Applebloom, who jabbed her ribs lightly with the tip of a hoof.
At first annoyed, Scootaloo soon noticed what had made Applebloom nervous and even make her stop talking. The crew had the look in their eyes that they had all become richer than kings, and looking at High Wind, he too had a different look on his face, no longer the kind stallion that wanted to help two lost fillies.
“I only had a slight suspicion at first,” he said menacingly, “but you react as if it weren’t a silly story. I suspect you lasses are elven ponies, and are going to make me very rich.”
“RUN!” Applebloom screamed.

The crew in their intoxicated state all jumped as one at the spot both Applebloom and Scootaloo were sat at, collapsing in a pile as the two fillies wriggled out at the edge of the pile and ran for the door. The bartender gained more courage as he drew a shotgun from somewhere behind the bar, but ducked for cover as High Wind fired a warning shot at him.
“Can’t trust you lads for anything can I? After them! We’re going to be richer than Maakera herself, or if any of you can’t get them, it’ll be the wet sleep for all of you!” High Wind yelled, firing more shots above the bartender’s head to ensure that the old stallion didn’t react too hastily.
Rushing for the door, the crew actually managed to escape in their drunken states, and flowed out into the streets.
Running everywhere in search of the fillies, the crew quickly caught the attention of the locally stationed royal guards, who apprehended some of the mercenaries, quickly learning that they were chasing two fillies, a yellow earth pony and orange pegasus, on the orders of their boss. They quickly rallied in search of the fillies themselves to protect them from the mercenaries.
Meanwhile, Applebloom and Scootaloo had ran into an alley, finding refuge in an empty box, while around them, gun battles between mercenaries and royal guard began to break out. At one point, a stray shot broke into the box and hit Scootaloo in her wing, and she gave an involuntary yelp of pain.
“We need ta get you to a doctor, but only when its safe. You’ll just have to bear it for now.” Applebloom whispered to the crying Scootaloo, as she tried to apply pressure and stop the bleeding.
Without warning, the side of the box they were hiding in was thrown open, and both fillies were staring at the barrel of the gun held by High Wind.
“Now you two are causing me to lose crew, they ain’t cheap, so you better be worth the money you’ll make me.” he grinned, only to be hit by a blue blur the next second.
“Perfect! Featherfall station captain Soarin is the first to find the mercenary boss. Now, will you come quietly? I’ll make sure the trap door of the gallows will work fast so you won’t feel a thing if you do!” Soarin gloated.
High Wind stood up, grabbing his gun and with one shot, grazed Soarin’s wing.
“Not a chance in Tartarus! I’ll gut ya like the pig that you are!”

As High Wind fought the local royal captain Soarin, Applebloom and Scootaloo took the distraction as a chance to escape. They quickly made it to the town limits, where Applebloom took the chance to ensure Scootaloo’s wing would be fine for the twenty mile trip to Manehatten. High Wind meanwhile knocked Soarin unconscious, deciding it would waste more time to kill him than it would be to grab the fillies and get to his ship. But he yelled in anger when he saw they had used the fight as the distraction they needed to get away. He whistled and ran towards the coast where his dual sea-air ship was docked. The fillies weren’t going to get away that easily...

> Chapter Four: To Manehatten
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was not going to be a good morning for Time Twister. Two missing foals, both the cause of a far too enthusiastic guard, and on his watch no less, and it had somehow made the papers, right on the front page. Maakera had made it clear how angry she was in her message to him. Delivered by magic to his quarters, it had simply read;
Throne room, alone, 9 am.

She had never written a note so short before. Normally she wrote them like letters, but three words, the place, by himself and what time. To say he was in big trouble was probably an understatement, but, as he stood outside the doors at 8:59 am, the question now was how much in trouble was he?

Somewhere far away, clocks chimed and bells rang, sounding the arrival of 9 am. The doors before him glowed in Maakera’s golden magical glow, and opened. With a gulp, he entered.
The throne room was the same as it had been, trees, water features, gazebo. But the room was utterly silent, and Maakera sat in the gazebo. Her back towards the doors, and, this time, there was no table or tea set.

His steps were shaky. The silence in the room only added to his dread, but slowly he approached. When he got to the gazebo, he didn’t even attempt to sit down.

“Two foals missing, scared into running away by the guard under your command,” Maakera stated, “and the only question I’ve been asked was how and why I let this happen. Explain yourself, Captain.”

He shivered. Maakera was always informal, she did call him Captain, but the cold commanding voice demanded answers for his mistakes.

“I used the spell you gave me to track what you said I should seek, it led us to a tree house. I can’t explain why my orders to approach with caution and not scare anyone went so horribly wrong, your highness. No sooner did I say that what we sought was inside, than the guard simply went charging in as if the tree house was filled with hardened criminals.”

“I see,” Maakera went silent for a second, “so the guard you took did not follow your direct command?”

“The magic I sensed was strong, it may have clouded their judgement. In response, I gave chase to catch the foals and explain the misunderstanding. But the magic itself was gone when I couldn’t get them and keep them from running into the Everfree forest.”

For the first time in the conversation, Maakera turned around, her initial glare softened.

“I can explain this as youthful guard acting too rash at a senior’s command. I take it the guard you took were fairly new?”

Time nodded.

“Most recently joined from the outlying edges of Equestria. Perhaps I should have taken a new recruit from Appleloosa, named Braeburn. He is a cousin to one of the missing foals, I could have sent him in, had him take the foals outside to safety.”

“Do not focus so much on the past, it will consume you,” Maakera sighed, using her magic to restart the water features and brought her table and tea set into the room. She offered Time a chance to sit as she boiled the teapot, “you have done the right thing at least, issuing missing foal posters. It won’t be long until they are safe.”

“I am just sorry I didn’t find what I was sent to get.” Time replied.

Maakera studied Time Twister as the pot reached a boil. She poured them two cups of her favourite herbal tea, and took a sip from her own cup.

“It doesn’t matter, but I believe the magic you sensed intrigues you? After all, is it not related to those books you had Twilight Sparkle help you find?”

Time slightly choked. He knew it was no big secret that he had researched other dimensions, but Maakera had never brought up his obsession before. Now suddenly she was being so blunt and open about it.

“Uh, I, indeed, how did?”

“How did I know? Come now Captain Time, is it not clear? The bird, the mysterious magic I sent you to find? Keep this a secret, other dimensions do exist, thousands, perhaps billions, all sitting like branches on a tree. But something is going wrong, the barriers between them are open, searching. Your obsession is going to help us here, because whatever is going wrong, it could threaten Equestria and a past I’d rather stay locked away.”

Maakera sipped more of her tea, looking directly at Time over the brim of the cup. It troubled him slightly she was now using his own desires to her benefit, but he couldn’t really argue. She was essentially giving him the missing piece of his jigsaw, it could lead to the world…
He smiled.
“I shall do my best your highness, how will I proceed?”

“It is already arriving to Canterlot. The airship I mean. Special guard trained for far distance travel and any enemy threats you may face. And you will be travelling further than anypony has ever travelled before.”


Rumble had told his parents he believed he knew where Applebloom was, and that he would find her in Manehatten and travel back with her to Ponyville. His father, proud of his son’s initiative, decided he could go alone. Applebloom would probably be more willing to return if it was just Rumble telling her to come back, than if his father and mother were there too.

He had just arrived to the street where Applebloom’s aunt and uncle Orange lived, to his surprise, Applebloom and Scootaloo were there, high up on a metal boardwalk outside the building, climbing in.

With a sigh, he approached the door and knocked. A mare who Rumble could only guess was Aunt Orange answered.

“Oh hello?” she said.

“Hi, I’m a friend of Applebloom’s.” Rumble replied with a smile.

“Oh, oh my yes, she’s gone missing thanks to those awful guard. How can I help?”

“Can I come in? Last I spoke to her before being found, she was trying to get here. I’ve been told to convince her to come home, it's safe now.”

Before Aunt Orange replied, there was a thud somewhere in the house on the upper floor. Aunt Orange turned around and walked towards the stairs, Rumble following after closing the front door behind him.

Up on the next floor when he climbed up, Aunt Orange and Applebloom were in a panic, a first aid kit had been hastily thrown to the floor and the pair were tending to the collapsed Scootaloo. Among blood on a towel was a shard of a bullet. Rumble could only watch as the pair stopped the bleeding and bandaged Scootaloo’s wing.

“Applebloom, what happened?” Rumble asked.

“We got jumped by mercenaries twenty miles back, he took a shot at us I think, she’s lucky it didn’t hit her body, just her wing, though I thought it had.” Applebloom answered.
“This was why we shouldn’t have run! Look how much trouble you two got into!” Rumble said, wishing he now hadn’t returned when his friend had continued on.

“Look, what’s happened has happened, we can do nothing now. We just need to wait for her to wake up.”

The two friends sat down, Applebloom held Scootaloo up carefully at one point when Aunt Orange cleaned up and put clean towels under the pegasus, but otherwise, they both stayed silent. Unknown to them, Aunt Orange went downstairs and called the local Guard office, reporting the two missing foals had been found sneaking into her home, and one was seriously injured. It was a scandal, not only had the guard made them run away, but it had led to them being attacked by mercenaries. It’d be front page news again, and she could be in the story!

Rumble cleared his throat.
“We really should go home now. Your family is worried, they don’t need you missing on top of Big Mac being drafted.”

“Wait, drafted? What for? We’re not at war!” Applebloom stated, panic in her voice.

“A lot of stallions are being drafted recently, my dad would have been too, if he didn’t have a permanent injury. My brother got drafted last month.” Rumble sighed.

“I don’t like this. Equestria is gearing up for war, but why? And on top of it, mysterious Scootaloo. She claims to not be from here, she reacted to a fairy tale as if it were fact, and she keeps insisting I’m over four hundred.”

Silence fell between them again, as Scootaloo stirred. She seemed to know something was wrong, as she didn’t try to get up or speak. She lay there, looking at the friends.

“Your aunt has been downstairs for a while, could you ask if she has water for Scootaloo?” Rumble asked.

Applebloom sighed, and left the room. At the top of the stairs, she paused. There were voices downstairs, and her aunt’s was among them. Turning her head slightly, she listened.

“Yes, they came in through the window upstairs, Applebloom is a relative of mine from Ponyville, her friend, the pegasus, had a bullet fragment in her wing, she said they were attacked by mercenaries twenty miles from here.” Aunt Orange informed whoever she was speaking to.

“I see ma’am, we’ve had reports the mercenary band of High Wind arriving to Featherfall, that’s twenty miles away. If we may, we’d like to go upstairs and take the foals in to safety until their families can collect them?” one of the new voices said.

“Of course, upstairs, first door on the left.”

Applebloom hurried back into the room, Rumble looking at her confused.

“She called the guard! We got to go!”

“Really? Applebloom, I’m trying to get you home!” Rumble protested.

“But they’ll keep her until her family come get her, we may never see her again or get answers as to who or what she is! Please Rumble, help me!”

Rumble groaned and stood up.

“Fine, Scootaloo, we have to hurry out of here.”

Scootaloo simply nodded as Rumble and Applebloom worked to get her out the window. They managed to get out of sight just as the guard opened the door and spotted the open window.
“They’ve escaped! Call for backup!” the guard shouted.

The three foals meanwhile headed down an alley, and towards the city’s outskirts, trying not to be seen. Stopping many time the wait for Guard to disappear, they made it to a small forest by sunset.

“Thank you friends, I know you risk much.” Scootaloo said, slowly stumbling to a small flowing river and taking a drink.

“We’re only helping to get answers, I think after everything, we deserve them.” Applebloom stated.

“And you are correct. Why should you risk everything further if you do not know the truth? Sit, please, it may be difficult to take in.”

As they sat, hoofsteps filled the air around them. Looking around, the three foals saw they were surrounded by mercenaries, and High Wind among them.

“Your not be the only one seeking answers. Now, you three better come peacefully to my ship.”

Scootaloo looked at Applebloom and Rumble, dejected. The mercenaries had caught them, and now she would not be able to tell her new friends the truth.

> Chapter Five: Aboard the Serpent's Revenge
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo had not slept during the night the strange mercenary and his crew had taken them aboard a flying ship. Across from the cell she was kept in were Rumble and Applebloom, both of whom had slept and now were slowly waking up.
The pirates had been quick to take them aboard the ship, she was sure she had heard the fire of weapons and a few later complaining how close they had come to being captured. Through the night, one of the mercenaries made to watch them had a device which emitted voices. It repeated the same information through the night, but one of the voices had simply said aloud.
“Three foals abducted by mercenaries in forest near Manehatten, taken aboard their ship Serpent’s Revenge, reward of four million bits for capture of its captain, and further rewards for safe return of the taken foals.”

Applebloom yawned, smacking her lips, she looked half asleep at Scootaloo.
“Ya still awake?” she questioned.
“How could I not friend? I tried to not land you in trouble, yet this seems to be the biggest trouble of all for the three of us.” Scootaloo replied.
Rumble said nothing as he woke up. Applebloom seemed to be in thought.
“I wonder why there’s no guard now?” she questioned.
“Who knows? At least the device one of them used emitted voices, the voice has told them that we have been taken and a reward set for our return and their capture.” Scootaloo informed the other two.
“All the more reason we need to escape. They’re not likely to keep us alive if we’re a liability.” Rumble stated, examining his cell.
“Regardless, for the moment, they’re on the move. This seems a good time to answer your questions at last, Applebloom.”
Applebloom nodded her head. She had so many questions, so many places to start.
“What’d you mean another world?” she picked.
Scootaloo sighed, and trotted to a window in her cell. She looked out, the view was breathtaking, green fields, so full of life, and little villages dotted about. So very unlike home.
“The mercenary leader told us a story when we first met him, do you remember? The two elven ponies.”
Applebloom nodded, even Rumble looked genuinely curious.
“They say for one world’s stories, another world lived it. It is so very true. The elven ponies, the couple cursed, it happened. Somewhere, in a world like this, yet so very different.”
“So what you’re saying is,” Rumble spoke up, “like that story which happened in another world somewhere, you too come from a world like ours, but different?”
Scootaloo nodded.
“The truth is, while I don’t look it now, I came from the world where that story was recent history. I’m an elven pony, somehow I’ve ended up here.”
Applebloom looked shocked, but Rumble looked sceptical.
“I know it is hard to believe, since I look like you, but I believe the walls around your world changed me to give me a chance to seek help. Something is wrong with my world. The moon, it has replaced the sun, the fields are frozen, we are cold. I am sure if someone, anyone can help us, they would be rewarded far more than they realise. A king’s ransom would pale in comparison, they would be our saviours from the frozen moon.”

The sound of slow moving hoofsteps filled the air. From around a corner, High Wind appeared, and slowly he walked towards the cell where Scootaloo was. He came to a stop and studied her.
“So, I was right, lass. An elven pony. A real, breathing elven pony.”
Scootaloo didn’t waver, though she very much wished she could hide at that minute. The mercenary had clearly been there long enough to hear the whole story. High Wind however sighed.
“Me daughter, bless her soul, loved the stories of elven ponies. Her mama died in birth, and she was never the best in health. But her smile,” his eyes glistened, “she loved the stories. On her deathbed, I shall never forget. Her last words, I see them papa. The elven ponies. They look cold, but so happy.”
He rubbed his eyes with a forehoof.
“I became angry, at the world. I had to lie to my only flesh and blood to the end, and not a damned foal could care at her passing! I became a mercenary, t’get me revenge. But it wasn’t a lie, was it lass? Me daughter did see your kind, cold.”
He turned around and walked towards the stairs where he paused. He took a set of keys from a coat pocket, turned back, and unlocked each of the cell doors.
“I, don’t understand?” Applebloom questioned.
“Yer friend, the elven pony, said we’d be her kind’s saviour. To warm up the elven ponies, to maybe give me daughter the chance to rest knowing her papa warmed them from the cold, that’d make me happy enough to retire on what I have.”
“Oh come on! You don’t believe her too do you?” Rumble shouted.
“Ah, sceptic are ye lad? Well, how can you know what she be saying ain’t true until we exhausted all options?”
“Its bucking simple! The band, the gem, they’re clearly a tracking ward meant for an asylum, she got out, we need to find it and get her back, then get home!”
High Wind studied Rumble with calm eyes. Then he chuckled and walked away.
“Fine, if ye wish, stay in the cell lad, no skin off me muzzle. Come lasses, we’ll figure things out now yer guests.”
Rumble groaned and sat to the floor, annoyed.

Up on the deck of the Serpent’s Revenge, Applebloom and Scootaloo looked around as High Wind led them to the helm. Around, low lying clouds floated past, and the ground was far below that.  Both fillies looked in awe at the sight. From the deck, they were indeed led to the helm, and looked around.
The crew worked the ship, making sure that it and they stayed afloat. High Wind smiled.
“We get a bad rep, I feel,” he said, “we live outside society, yet have our own, and do what we do for money to keep it going. Is it wrong?” he asked, mostly to Scootaloo.
“That depends I think, on which side of what you do someone is on.” she replied.
High Wind nodded.
“So, where do we head?” he wondered.  
Scootaloo had no answer.

Time Twister stood on the unnamed ship, as it departed Canterlot.  He looked like a foal in a candy store, as he stood on the command bridge. Just hours ago, Maakera had confirmed other worlds existed, and now he was getting to see the way there.
Of course there was still the fact of the missing foals, lost under his guard, but he had ordered his men to look out for the ship, Serpent’s Revenge. The foals, now including the colt again, but he wasn’t sure how that had happened.
“Sir,” Shining Armor spoke up, “we’ve left Canterlot behind, can you give us a bearing?”
“Of course, head on bearing two-two-nine by six-four. Full power for six hours, then steady pace.” Time Twister replied, taking a seat.
“I needed to ask sir, what are we looking for?”
“Really? Going to keep calling me sir? Come on Shining, we’re still friends right?” Time Twister asked, with a grin.
“Alright, I guess. I was just trying to keep appearance and stick to ranks. So what’s made you look like you found the love of your life?”
“She told me what I always wanted to find was real,” Time Twister stared ahead at nothing in particular, “other worlds, Shining. Worlds like ours, where something went different. Just imagine it, a world where we could all be griffons instead, or our genders are reversed. We’re heading to secure the way there, the Princess fears something is trying to get to our world, using it.”
“You mean,” Shining Armor trailed off.
“That’s right, Yggdrasil.  The world tree that grew when, in legend, Maakera had to banish her own flesh and blood from our world, lest they destroy it. And the tree took the Elements of Harmony to secure our world. But now she thinks someone has taken them, or the world tree has just stopped using their power. Even she doesn’t know, and that’s frightening.”
The words made them both shiver. Princess Maakera always knew everything, for her to not know was unheard of.
“Ship sighted ahead! Identified as Serpent’s Revenge!” one of the crew shouted.
Time Twister stood up. Looking ahead, he saw the infamous ship.
“Any sign of the foals?” he asked.
“Heat sensors show two at the helm, one under the deck.”
He looked to the ship, and begun to think of what he should do.

High Wind had fallen silent for a few hours, as they travelled.  Scootaloo was annoyed by this, but soon, he cleared his throat.
“I know a way back to your world, lass. Yggdrasil, the world tree. We’re heading there, should arrive in a few more hours.” he replied.
“Sir, unidentified ship following behind us.”
High Wind turned, followed by Scootaloo and Applebloom. They stared in awe at the airship that was trailing behind the Serpent’s Revenge. The ship, which held no name on the side, was easily triple the size of the ship they were aboard, with cannons lining the side in three rows. There was only one thing about the ship that made Scootaloo and Applebloom think they were in trouble. Nothing good came from a ship that had to be overloaded with weaponry, and it looked as if it could handle an entire enemy fleet by itself.
“Well lads, seems the Princess herself is fed up o’us.” High Wind grinned. He pushed Scootaloo and Applebloom together, and led them back under the deck, even forcing Rumble to join them.
They were half way down another set of stairs when the cannons of the bigger ship began to fire.
“What’s going on?” Rumble shouted, as explosions rattled the Serpent’s Revenge.
“The Princess of the land is fed up it seems of me, and having you three was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Now you three, in here.”
High Wind pointed to a metal walled room that looked out of place. Scootaloo, Applebloom and Rumble looked at him with suspicion.
“Its clear we can’t survive this battle. That thing had enough weapons to blow a fleet out of the sky, but, this room is designed to fall and survive the landing. I want you three to stay inside it until all the noise outside goes away.” he said, as he pushed Scootaloo inside.
“But what about you?” Scootaloo asked him, as Applebloom and Rumble wasted no time in going inside. High Wind turned around. He was shaking, but they were unable to see the fate accepting grin on his face.
“I’m gonna go see my daughter, tell her the elven ponies are warm again. Just make sure I ain’t lying to her, ya hear?”

The next few minutes were a blur for the trio of friends as they waited inside the safe room. Explosions could be heard outside, and some even hit just outside the room itself, but nothing ever blew into the room, just as High Wind had said.
At some point, the gravity disappeared and they were floating just above the soft floor of the room, which became the wall, and then the ceiling, and rolled. This bit didn’t last long, and it was more by chance they landed back on the soft floor again.
The explosions outside eventually died down, and it was Rumble who opened the door first. Around them lay the bodies of the mercenaries and the fragments of the Serpent’s Revenge, and further in the sky, hovering ominously, was the unnamed ship.
“They killed them all,” Scootaloo whispered, “not a single one of them was spared.”
Fires of the Serpent’s Revenge crackled and popped. She was, in a way, thankful that High Wind’s body couldn’t be seen, that allowed her at least to believe he had survived, despite all the evidence.
And then there was the footsteps. In the crash, all wildlife nearby had fallen deathly silent, and had left their words and the fires the only sound. All three looked around for the source of the footsteps, and it became clear quickly it was multiple footsteps, from all around them. Scootaloo gasped as she saw the stallion from Ponyville, the one who had chased them days before, leading a lot of soldiers in a slowly closing circle around them.
“Well now, I’m overjoyed to see that you three survived. Perhaps my reputation as Captain of the Guard can be salvaged. I can see the headlines now, Royal Captain slays notorious High Wind, saves foals,” Time Twister was grinning, “and the best bit, you’ll lead me to the source of your power, not only will I be praised for saving you, I can bring about a new age for Equestria not seen in a thousand years!”
“No! I won’t help you! Not after what you did to High Wind, he was just trying to find elven ponies and show his daughter that he never lied to her!” Scootaloo yelled.
The circle of soldiers drew closer.
“Really? His deceased daughter? I suppose you’ll believe she died a young filly, believing such tales,” Time Twister’s grin was almost big enough to make even a sane pony believe that he was far beyond insanity, “he never told you that she grew to adulthood, and was executed for attempting to assassinate the griffon ambassador? I should know, I was there to pull the lever and watch his own sanity break! I made him the mercenary he was, and I’m now the one who ended his life!”
Time Twister’s horn glowed and the burnt coat of High Wind dropped to Scootaloo’s hooves. She could only stare at the blood soaked and burnt coat lay there, as the soldiers shackled her hooves and wings.

> Chapter Six: Yggdrasil
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The trio didn’t see much of this unnamed ship once they were brought aboard. Indeed, they saw there were a lot of soldiers, presumably drafted in. Applebloom was even sure at one point she had seen her cousin Braeburn, but she had barely seen a stallion she had seen that passed a resemblance, than he was out of sight once more.
Time Twister, as Rumble later revealed his name to be, had ordered them to the brig, where they would be kept on the trip. None of them knew where they were headed, and the soldiers sure weren’t answering.
Scootaloo had become lethargic at seeing the waste of life that Time Twister had commanded. So many lives destroyed, and for what? So he could get her? What justified it? She sat in a corner of the cell, thinking over what she could have done, and despite coming up with no answer, she continued to think on it, and if she could have done more.
They were alone, with only a guard now and then bringing them food and water. For all they knew, days had passed, but there were no windows to tell the passage of time. They ate, they slept, but if this was just in the span of hours or weeks only the soldiers knew.
And the soldiers weren’t answering that either.

Some unknown time later, they were led away from the brig, eventually outside. The ship had weighed anchor above a forest, and with a unicorn powering a device on a platform, they were brought to the ground, where a camp had been set before the largest tree any of the foals had ever seen.
The size of the tree was such that the top could only be seen, barely, as they were above the forest canopy. Below, the top was not visible, but the trunk was, and here, Applebloom noted, something wasn’t right about it. Lines of glowing light ran up and down the tree, as if pulsing and powering it. The base of the trunk had an opening to the inside that was easily large enough to house Canterlot, and still have space for every airship, even the unnamed one above them.
In the camp, Time Twister stood next to Shining Armor, smiling as he saw the tree, and as they got closer, a city. He barely glanced at the trio as they arrived at last.
“Well now, I imagine you three must be glad to be outside again,” Shining Armor spoke up, “it has been four days after all.”
“Four days?” Applebloom and Rumble shouted together.
“Yes, calm down alright? I’m doing important work here.” Time Twister snapped, his horn glowing.
While it looked like he was standing still, he was in fact, levitating a stone from the city inside the tree, bringing it slowly closer. Scootaloo looked up as it finally got close enough.
“Amazing, isn’t it? We’ve not got close enough but we think this is an amber stone from the tree itself,” he held it up for them to see, as its own glow outshone his own magical glow surrounding it, “they say, in myths that you really have to look for, that the tree makes them for every time someone comes to the world it is in. And look how fresh it appears, it's hardly solidified, I think it's not even been a week yet.”
He was in awe, but Applebloom, who believed Scootaloo’s story, bit her lower lip. Scootaloo herself had hardly been in the world for a week yet. Time Twister glanced to the orange pegasus.
“Now, as for you. I know you can’t teleport around like a unicorn, but I saw you, that means somewhere here, your real home lies, and this,” he began to hover the amber closer, “being fresh, I figure it was formed when you got here. I have a theory that it records who you were when you arrive, so that you can collect it on heading home and return to your true form.”
Time Twister brought some string towards himself, and using his magic, he pushed it through the glowing amber. It resumed its course towards Scootaloo.
“Uh, Time? What are you doing?” Shining Armor asked.
“Relax, I’m not going to harm her. I’m just going to see if my theory is correct, that if she comes into contact with it, while here, she will appear as she was in her own world.”
Scootaloo didn’t resist as the string was put around her head and onto her neck. The amber, which glowed enough to look as though it should burn her, came into contact with her fur.
She begun to glow.

The glowing lasted what felt like hours, and perhaps it was, Scootaloo never thought to ask. But when it ended, she stood taller than Applebloom and Rumble, and just below chin height of Time Twister and Shining Armor. Time Twister was grinning again, but the others, and soldiers gathered, stared in awe.
“Scootaloo, ya look,” Applebloom couldn’t speak further.
She had indeed changed after coming into contact with the amber. Her legs were now far more slender, and her ears were longer and more pointed at the tip, even curved slightly. Though the only thing that hadn’t changed, much, were her wings. They still seemed small, at least to her, even though they were now the same size as the average adult's wings.
“You weren’t lying, you really are an elven pony.” Rumble muttered, as if he was expecting to wake from a dream at any second.
Time Twister turned to the tree. He fell silent for a while, as on the horizon, the sun begun to set.
“Tomorrow, we will be led by you, elven pony, to your world. And I expect, in return for taking you back safely, to be given the source of your magic. If not the whole thing then enough to improve Equestria.”
“No! I will not do that, the source froze our world, and our moon hangs forever over snowy fields, and the sun never will rise again.” she replied.
Time Twister used his magic, the various body parts of Rumble and Applebloom became enveloped in the glow.
“You will do it, or I will break any bone in their body that will still allow me to return them alive but injured. You have until dawn to think about it.”

Scootaloo found she couldn’t sleep that night, the threat levelled to her friends by Time Twister hadn’t sat well. As they hovered in and out of sleep, she looked towards the tree, having worked out that it was the Yggdrasil.
Time Twister probably thought it was unique to this world, but the truth was, this Yggdrasil was actually just sprouted from the tip of a root of the real one, which existed beyond all worlds. She had never seen it before of course, but her kind knew where it was, and had even explored the other worlds. Perhaps that was how this world had heard the Elven pony tales.
There were worlds where the Yggdrasil was small and in a cave, and some where it took other forms such as a stone tower, it changed to fit the world it was in.
If you remained quiet and listened you could hear faint voices of those who lived in the other worlds.
‘I don’t get why it has to be so hot, can’t she just lower the sun a little?’
‘No, you can’t do that, think of how bad things could be if you alter the past even slightly.’
Of course, without the context behind them, it was useless listening to the voices. But they were there, and gave even the slightest glimpse into the world the voice had come from.
Behind her, Applebloom and Rumble were barely sleeping themselves, the faint voices were disturbing to say the least to them. The soldiers otherwise were heading to the airship when they wanted to sleep, and they were fortunate to not be near the voices of the worlds.
Shining Armor slowly approached them, which Scootaloo found odd. He stood as if he needn’t speak about why he was there, as the dawn approached. Standing with a sigh, the trio followed him, but it quickly became apparent that he wasn’t leading them to Time Twister. Before they got near the tent, Shining Armor led them to one side, making them stand near to him, and then casting a teleport spell on all four of them.

The teleport took them to the city inside Yggdrasil itself. Scootaloo, Applebloom and Rumble stared in awe as they finally saw the sight, which should have been maddening, and yet it wasn’t. The inside of Yggdrasil were more branches, which reached towards the external ones, but disappeared in glowing discs. There were also ramps, naturally formed from Yggdrasil itself.
“What are you doing?” Applebloom asked.
“What’s right.” Shining Armor tapped his hoof down.
From around the city, the mercenaries appeared, including High Wind. They converged on the trio and Shining Armor.
“But how? We saw some of you lying dead!” Rumble questioned.
“Ah, very convincing ponyquinns right?” High Wind winked.
Scootaloo was beaming, but looked to Shining Armor.
“You better leave before you get into trouble.” she said.
“Oh don’t worry, I know exactly where I’m going, and it's not back to Time Twister or that ship.” he said, once more teleporting, though only himself this time.
“Now he’s gone to deal with that plan,” High Wind looked around, “we can save our reunion when we’re safer. C’mon lass, show us where we have to go.”
“Wait not even a question as to why she looks so different?” Rumble looked dumbstruck.
“When. We. Are. Safe.” High Wind growled.
Scootaloo held up the ankle brace with the stone in it. It glowed softly and moved her hoof in a direction of a high up branch. Trusting it, she wandered in its direction.

The walk in total took them an hour, each movement near the entrance was careful, so no one was seen by random soldiers, or worse, Time Twister. The branch indeed led to a different world, though like all others, what lay beyond was a mystery. The only hint was the sound of wind.
“What can we expect?” Applebloom was the one to ask now, as the mercenaries handed warm clothes and hoof wrappings around.
“When High Wind’s daughter said she saw us cold? She wasn’t lying.” Scootaloo replied.
“But what if Time Twister, oh who am I kidding? He told us his daughter was a traitor to the princess to try and break us.” Rumble shook his head.
“Wait, a traitor? Anyone can go see her grave, it's just outside Ponyville. She were only six.” High Wind replied.
“Regardless,” Scootaloo looked back, now she was in warm clothing, “picture the worst winter you’ve ever seen, then take away the sunshine.”
She held her breath and stepped through, followed quickly by Applebloom, Rumble and the Mercenaries.
On another branch, unseen by them the entire time, Time Twister grinned.
“Got it.”

The first thing Applebloom noticed was the snow. If it hadn’t been for some Mercenaries having a quick think and putting tennis rackets to her hooves, she would be buried under six foot of snow. It was difficult for anyone to keep their head above it, and the unicorns quickly worked a modified cloudwalking spell for anyone too heavy to use the tennis rackets, so they could walk above the snow.
“You weren’t kidding.” High Wind said, as he looked around.
In the distance was a city on a cliff, which they could only assume was this world’s Canterlot. In the snow, it was the only thing that looked as if it had remained above it. Closer, there were the tops of homes, long buried.
“This is sad, this was your home?” Applebloom asked.
“Was, we ran out of food, the water from the snow was too impure to drink, this is how my world died.” Scootaloo replied as she walked above the snow. The problems presented to the others was missing with her, as she stood atop the snow without tennis rackets or any spell.
“But what happened?” she was asked, as they walked towards the city.
Scootaloo sighed and took a deep breath, as she begun to explain.
“It began, we can’t tell when, just, the day we Asgellians call, the day of the final sunset. It was a normal day by all means, foals went to school, parents worked to earn their family meals, and then the sunset came, and with it, the scream of an angry goddess denied their vengeance. We call her the cold-night lurker. As soon as she arrived, she forced the sunset to happen an hour early, and brought the moon the middle of the sky, and chained it in place.”
Looking up, they saw the moon hung overhead, its surface was different to the one that rose and set in Equestria.
“Anyway, for months we were fine, we appealed to her to bring the sun back, but she wouldn’t have it. As our food and water begun to dwindle, and famine set in, she realized her mistake, and could not undo it to save us. She lamented and cried into the eternal night at what she had done to us, lives that had nothing to do with her anger that were now going to pay the ultimate price for it.”
“Just before I recall waking in your world, my parents told me they were sending me away. I was not dumb, I knew we were in trouble, and I felt happy, they were going to spare me the suffering so many were already. All I can remember is the crying of the goddess, at what she had done to us. Then, I woke in your world.”
The tale of how she had come to Equestria had kept the band together and focused, and they now stood near the cliffs of the city.
“Welcome to my home, Oriel.” Scootaloo looked sadly at the frozen city.

> Chapter Seven: The Frozen City of Oriel
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time Twister wasn’t bothered by the sudden absence of Shining Armor the next morning. It had been a ploy after all, he needed Shining to be true to himself, even if it meant working against Time. He still saw him as a friend, and the fact the mercenaries had faked their deaths likewise wasn’t shocking. He knew from reports they had done that at least once before.
Right now, he knew the princess and Shining Armor were preparing to make their way here, this was important after all, though none of them knew what was about to happen, it was best not to risk anything.
Princess Maakera would come, she would deal with the threat, and he, well, he would find the source of Scootaloo’s gem, and bring its power to Equestria. The technology that could be possible outweighed the risks in his mind.
So he marched two platoons of soldiers towards the branch he watched the elven pony lead the mercenaries into, pausing at the entrance.
“Someone go through, tell us what’s beyond.” he ordered.
Gingerly, a single stallion walked to the portal, and had the presence of mind to only put their head through. He quickly pulled back, his face and helmet covered in a very thin layer of snow. 
“Thick snow sir, looks like someone fell through it before us, it's easily six to ten feet deep.”
Time Twister sighed.
“Alright, unicorns, cloudwalking spell, pegasi take flight, we’re equipped for anything, the gems in the armor should kick in shortly and keep us warm, move out.” he shouted so all could here him.
With the cloudwalking spell cast, he made a show of being the first to go through the portal.
And indeed saw the tops of homes covered in snow so deep and thick, that anyone who may still be alive in them, well, they were long deceased.
As the platoons joined him, he looked around.
“Shovelling it aside won’t help, it would be like trying to stop a leaky sailboat with a cup. Throw it back through the portal, get a base camp set here as deep as the ground, and make any fires you can to prevent fresh settling once down. Ten stallions with me, we follow the hoofprints.”
He turned to the hoofprints that wandered out into the snow towards a city that stood upon a cliff.

The city, which Scootaloo had told them was called Oriel, was apparently a marvel of the world. Not only did the buildings look to be made of precious gems, reminicant of the Crystal Empire in Equestria, but apparently when the world was more lively, Oriel itself could take to the air. She never elaborated however why this was required for the city, in fact, aside from a few details, Scootaloo didn’t feel much like talking.
And just two minutes into the city, neither was anyone else. Around them, both in the houses and the street, were elven ponies. Not deceased bodies, but they were encased in gems, as though to spare themselves a slow, cold death, they had become one with the buildings and took the quicker choice.
“Scootaloo,” Applebloom spoke eventually, as they begun to split up to find the path to the center of the city, “why are they all in crystals?”
Scootaloo sighed.
“It was decided, a month out from my last memory here, that we would rather be suspended in time, just before the end of the world as we knew it, than to die. But something went wrong. At that point, the crying goddess had been asleep for some time, we felt safe to prepare for the end. But she awoke, crying ever louder how the eye of mother nature had seen her. This destroyed any work underway to make crystals to encase everyone, and not all had yet had one, myself included.”
Applebloom regretted asking now. Had Scootaloo not somehow ended up in Equestria, she would be among the many elven ponies who had not survived, presumably those who didn’t get a crystal were under the snow.

On and on Scootaloo led Applebloom and Rumble, as the mercenaries could be heard in the distance, making notes of the crystal locations. The last they had spoken to him, High Wind had decided this world was unsalvegable, and the logical choice, over an instant reward, was to honor his promise to his daughter. He was going to take the crystals back to Equestria and find a way to free the occupants, so they could be warm.
Scootaloo however led her friends to a house, the door was the first Applebloom and Rumble had seen open, any they had tried simply remained closed. As they followed her in, Scootaloo set about lighting candles.
“This was my home, right until the end.” she took a deep breath.
“Scootaloo, I’m sorry.” Rumble said softly. Scootaloo held a hoof up.
“I know you never believed, until you saw me for what I really am. But I need to find my parents.” she said, starting the search of the house.
With nothing else to do, Applebloom and Rumble joined the search.

Time Twister smiled smuggly as the last mercenaries were rounded up, bound and gagged like the red. High Wind glared at him.
“Well now, you thought you could have these?” he placed a hoof on a crystal.
“Such an interesting punishment they had here, criminals bound inside a crystal to power the city, clearly. Ingenious! We could make the most of that I feel, a revolution in technology like we have never seen. Take them and the crystal back to base!” he snapped to some soldiers.
High Wind fought as best he could, the magic inhibitor placed on him didn’t help, but he quickly knocked the mouth gag free.
“You’re not understanding, and only seeing what you want to see! They’re not sources of power or criminals! They were ponies who did a desperate thing to avoid a slow and painful death!”
High Wind was gagged a bit tighter this time, along with having a solid right hoof to the jaw for his trouble.
“A likely story,” Time Twister sneered, “trying to make us feel bad so you can take it and be sent on your way and what a good stallion he turned out to be.”
He put his face close to High Wind’s.
“Pull the other leg, I got three others. I’ll personally see to your execution, and I’ll take such delight in giving you the most painful death I can dream up.”
Time Twister turned away, and looked around the nearby streets he could see, now alone in this otherworldly city. He spotted lights in one house and his heart skipped a beat.
“There you three are.”

The search had ended badly, Applebloom was the first to locate Scootaloo’s parent’s bedroom. Inside was a letter, written in her native language, and Scootaloo had quickly dropped it, rushing to the garden a moment later.  When Applebloom and Rumble joined her, they saw her sitting, looking at two graves where no snow formed, despite falling upon them.
“They died,” Scootaloo whispered, “we were one of many families to never get crystals to be spared a grim fate, and they did only one thing. They used their bracelets to throw me into another world, where they hoped I’d wake with no memories and just live on. And on what little power they had left, they enchanted themselves so when they finally did die, their bodies would be burried.”
She was crying now, and Applebloom knew there were no words that could help. The biggest mystery had been solved, and at a terrible cost. But likewise, Scootaloo couldn’t be left outside, or she would freeze to death herself. With much effort, Applebloom and Rumble took her back indoors.
It was another ten minute before Scootaloo stood up and wandered to a shelf, where she took a music box down, and wound it up. Lifting the lid, a tune begun to play, and Scootaloo herself begun to sing, in a very sad tone of voice, the song.
“Ar i adenydd-o cuil min gwil;
so nin hen, nifred u-i cysgodion a du;
gwil-na i dawn, na i galad
Ennas cin bydd gweld, i dyfodol i aros am
Cymryd ha a cherish ha, guin-an i wawr
I ber-o yfory, nin hen.”
Applebloom and Rumble decided at this point it was best to just wait for her. Slowly they left the house and begun to search for any scraps of food and drink in the city that were, well, still edible. They figured when she was more up for it, the three could at least eat before heading back to Equestria and deciding what they would do next.
It was just seconds after they left that Time Twister approached the house. He walked in and found Scootaloo alone, her back to him. Quietly he picked up a book, and hit her on the back of the head, knocking her out.
“I didn’t need the other two, just you. I can feel a powerful magic at the center of the city, and you will help me,” he lifted her up, leaving the house, “and then for all I care, you three foals can freeze to death here.”

> Chapter Eight: The Crying Goddess
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Applebloom and Rumble quickly found the rounded up mercenaries, and the soldiers taking them and some crystals holding elven ponies away from the city. Realizing that Scootaloo was in danger, they quickly turned and ran back towards her home, hoping they could get to her before Time Twister could.
They were too late of course, the open door and fresh hoofprints in the snow leading away made it clear, Time Twister had been and gone, and Scootaloo was not where she had been left. 
“Great, now he’s got her, what do we do now?” Rumble questioned.
“I’m thinking,” Applebloom replied. How was Scootaloo important to whatever it was Time Twister was doing? That was the only part that made no sense. He must have got what he wanted, there just was something they weren’t getting, “for now, we need to follow him, we have to save Scootaloo.”
As Applebloom turned and tried to leave, Rumble grabbed her.
“But Applebloom, it's Time Twister, you know, the captain of the Royal Guard, who can freeze time and did so to save Princess Maakera herself from an assassin? How can we hope to stop him.”
“Ah don’t know, but we have to try something, do you want to give up on her?”

It didn’t take too long to follow where Time Twister had gone. He followed the path to the center of Oriel, and as Applebloom and Rumble arrived, he stood looking at what appeared to be a statue, with the unconcious Scootaloo beside him. Of course, they were heard as they drew closer, but he didn’t look at them.
“So, you still desire friendship with this pony of another world? You realize, of course, that soon you will have to part ways. And you will never see her again.” Time Twister said, slowly turning around.
“It don’t matter! We’ll know, and we’ll always be friends, ya don’t stop bein’ friends just because you can’t see each other anymore!” Applebloom replied.
“Of course, you think I don’t understand that? Why, Canterlot’s own Twilight Sparkle believes there is a basic core magic at the heart of friendship, and is researching it. It is my duty to understand our world and our way of life, so I can defend it.”
Time Twister turned again to the statue, which Applebloom now saw looked like an alicorn, and if it hadn’t been a statue, it would have passed for a living pony. The mane was blue and frozen in a wave pattern, the stone painted the shade of the night sky, with a black smudge spot upon the flank with a moon.
“The Crying Goddess.” Rumble whispered.
“Is that what they called her? How interesting,” Time Twister smirked, “she is a myth in our world, though some believe our Princess is ancient, and this pony was one of her daughters. Luna, the goddess of the moon and stars.”
“Ah know this one, it’s said she and her sister, Celestia, became hungry for power, and saw the other as a threat. Sun and Moon fought, and only the Earth could stop such a war, Maakera forced to banish her daughters to places far beyond our imagining.”

Time Twister slowly walked around the statue, even as Scootaloo stirred. He wasn’t dumb, she would try to escape but found her bracelet was pinned to the ground.
“Maakera, Celestia and Luna. Earth, Sun and Moon. Interesting right? But not why I am here. This is the source of the Princess’s worries, and the power that will push Equestria into a new age. All countries will bow before us, all who oppose will fall.”
Applebloom watched him carefully, a hoof on Scootaloo to stop her struggling and injuring himself. What was he looking for?
“We can’t be here! We’ll wake the Crying Goddess!” Scootaloo hissed at Applebloom.
“It’s just a statue!” Rumble protested.
“Ah ha! Here we go,” Time Twister used his magic, pulling Scootaloo towards him. It refocused and removed the gem in her bracelet, “funny, this gem is, as I expected, a tiny fragment of this power source. I can put it back and the new age for Equestria will begin.”

Slowly the fragment was pushed back into place. The trio and Time Twister watched as the statue flashed. And then there was nothing.
“What? I-I don’t understand! I was so sure.” Time Twister looked dejected.
There was another flash, so bright all ponies had to look away. At the portal to Equestria, Princess Maakera had arrived just in time to see the flash.
Applebloom, Rumble and Scootaloo covered their ears and winced in pain as a loud wailing cry filled the air. Time Twister backed up a little, his ears hurt from the sound too, but he was in shock. The statue had become a real alicorn!
“W-who broke me out?” the blue alicorn looked at each pony in turn.
“You don’t understand! I killed this world! In my anger, my fury, I killed it! And I can’t save it! And now you free me, when I imprisoned myself in stone forever as punishment? How could you?”
Her crying got louder, and the city of Oriel shook. Nearby buildings started to crumble, and all four ponies begun to run away.
“The only safe place is outside the city.” Time Twister shouted over the wailing cries and collapsing buildings.
“Why are you helping us now?” Scootaloo asked him.
“I made a mistake okay? No one should have to die for it!”
As they ran down another street, a building collapsed, seperating Applebloom and Rumble from Scootaloo and Time Twister.
“Now what do we do?” Applebloom shouted.
“Just keep running that way, find the entrance to the city and stop for nothing!” Time Twister replied.
Scootaloo turned back the way they had come, and as fast as she could ran back towards the alicorn. The only way to be safe, was to either get the alicorn to stop crying, or to turn her to stone again. Time Twister, with little to do, followed.

Applebloom and Rumble soon made it to the city edge, just in time to see Princess Maakera arrive. The Princess stared down at them, not because it was her attitude, but such is the way of an adult looking at a child. Slowly, she lowered until she lay upon her barrel.
“Tell me what that idiot has done now.” she said, in a surprisingly warm voice.

Time Twister and Scootaloo were just a single street away from the alicorn now, and the shaking of the city was getting worse. It was only Time Twister who looked around watching for any buildings falling. A rumble in the ground made him crawl to a stop.
“Can you fly?” he asked Scootaloo.
“What? No! I have a rare condition where I have wings but the density of an earth type.” she replied.
“Alright, well, what I’m going to do next will hopefully help and eventually save you, but for everything else, I’m sorry. I only wanted to do good. I just, went about it wrong.”
Before Scootaloo could ask him what he was rambling about, she was surrounded by his magic, and thrown far. She groaned as she stood and went to yell at him, only to watch as the street, and the ground beneath him, caved.
There had been some parts of the city, which had sat above open spaces, with enough air to keep them warmer than the snow. This had melted some snow into them, which eroded more of the surface. Finally, the weight of the street had been too much, and simply it had caved in. Scootaloo could only watch as Time Twister fell into the cave, and into the darkness. It was unlikely he could survive. Even if he did, there were pieces of falling building and street paving. At some point, he would be hit and go out cold, and meet his fate.
“Thank you. I wish you could have redeemed yourself.”

The Crying Goddess was still there as the city of Oriel fell around her. Scootaloo dodged falling buildings and shards of glass as she ran closer. She thought for a moment, what could she do to save her home, even though there was no future? Her mind wandered back to what she had heard as she woke up, of course after Time Twister had knocked her out. He had been talking about friendship, and how it could be a magic as yet not understood. Slowly and calmly, Scootaloo took a breath, friendship. It was worth a try, she had nothing to lose after all. Once she drew close, Scootaloo held her, and the crying slowed.
“It wasn’t your fault. You’re just a hurt child, really? You broke something and it isn’t your place to fix it. We’re not angry, we’re upset for you that your mother isn’t here to comfort you. So just let me instead.” Scootaloo said.
The alicorn was shocked, but returned the hug, her crying turned to sniffing and taking deep breaths, and the collapse of Oriel was finished.
“Thank you, dear child.” the alicorn replied.
“What’s your name?” Scootaloo smiled, staring at the eternal night sky.
“I’m Luna. And I’m sorry I don’t have the ability to lower the moon here.” Luna sniffed again.
The pair remained like that for a while, as around them, the snow finally stopped falling.

> Chapter Nine: The Pony Who Returned Home
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo and Luna were still holding each other, as the mercenaries, Applebloom and Rumble found them. They were a little confused at first, at the sight. Scootaloo soon looked up and smiled.
“Hey everyone.” she said, as Luna let her go.
“Scootaloo, you made her stop crying?” Applebloom asked, approaching cautiously.
“Yeah, she just needed someone to be a friend and tell her, what she did wasn’t her fault.” Scootaloo replied.
High Wind grinned, as the mercenaries cheered. They hadn’t enjoyed the shaking, as it quickly became clear to Scootaloo that the shaking had gone further than the city of Oriel. They were also glad that the snow had stopped, though the sky was still night.
“So what now?” Rumble asked.
“I don’t know. I’m home, but well,” Scootaloo looked around, “there’s nothing. It may not be Luna’s fault, but its pretty clear, I can’t stay anymore.” she sighed. Luna held a leg around her.
“I am sure you will find a home in Equestria. I will help if you need it too.” she replied.
There was silence for a moment, as everyone realized that events had led to that moment Luna was freed, and calmed. They were now in that moment after an adventure, where those who went on it now knew it was over, and that things likely wouldn’t be as exciting anymore.

Scootaloo at least, set about trying to clean up her home city. Even if she wouldn’t live there anymore, and the world had to stay empty from now on, it could at least look clean. Luna likewise was helping, though the mercenaries, Applebloom and Rumble just watched and talked.
“We should head back to Equestria, its, well, strange looking up at the sky and knowing it isn’t the one we were born under.” Rumble said softly.
“Yeah, though it is cool right? Think about it, we’re the first Equestrians to look at this world, to see it. Sure its dead, but at least we got to see it before its all gone.” Applebloom smiled.
Any further conversation was cut off by the sound of a pair of hoofsteps. Looking towards them, Applebloom held her breath as she saw Shining Armor and Princess Maakera approached the center of the city. Luna had also heard them, as she dropped down, laying as flat as she could and shivering in pure terror.
Princess Maakera walked right up to her, and seemed to check Luna for a moment. 
“Well, I can’t say I’m surprised what you did after I banished you here,” Princess Maakera’s voice wasn’t angry or disappointed, at least, not towards Luna, it was the tone of a parent understanding they had failed their child and not the other way around, “but to hear your regret, it hurt me.”
Slowly Luna stood up, with tear filled eyes, she looked at Princess Maakera, as if trying to understand something.
“No apology?” Luna asked after a moment.
“You know, I was never really good at saying the words,” Maakera took a deep breath, “because words hold no real meaning. I can say sorry from now until all worlds die, and it would just be a word.”
“A fair point, dear mother.”
A few minutes would pass before slowly, Princess Maakera walked closer to Luna, pulling her daughter gently into a hug. Luna began to cry again, which caused Scootaloo to dive for cover, but when the city and world didn’t shake, she came back out.

“So, that’s all to it?” High Wind looked at Shining Armor. Several hours had passed since Maakera and Luna had reunited. Shining Armor nodded.
“Yes. To be forgiven for your, transgressions,” Shining Armor left the word hang by itself for a moment, “you and your men will be the first of a new task force. Yggdrasil is open to us now, and we don’t know what waits in every world the tree links itself to. We were lucky this time, but the stories of the banished sisters are true, and the worst could still be out there and now aware of the way home.”
“Celestia, the sun’s rage.” High Wind muttered.
“If she hasn’t followed Luna, then our world could burn if Celestia is angry and out for revenge. And that’s not all.” 
Scootaloo, Applebloom and Rumble, who had sat nearby and only partially interested, now looked up.
“What else is there?” Scootaloo asked.
“Other dark creatures from our world that the Princess banished over a thousand years ago. Tirek, King Sombra, Crysalis and Discord. Each of them is out there, just waiting for a chance to get back at her for what she did a thousand years ago.” Shining Armor replied.
Applebloom and Rumble sighed. Was this what they would do next? They had had enough adventuring, at least for now.
“You two, however, should go home. I thank you friends, for helping me, but you have families to go home to. If anyone should help with this, it is me. I have nothing left.” Scootaloo replied.
“I wouldn’t say nothing.” Shining Armor pointed to the horizon.
Nearby, Maakera glowed. And for the first time in many year, Asgell saw its first sunrise, as the moon fell below the horizon. The princess didn’t cease glowing however, as quickly the snow that covered the ground melted, and the elven ponies in the crystals were released from them. They stumbled around confused, especially at the sight of small, stocky ponies. Scootaloo smiled. It was bittersweet in the end. Her world was saved, but she was still alone aside from the friends she made.
“High Wind, your daughter can rest knowing we’re warm again.”
High Wind nodded.

Time Twister’s body was found a few hours later, and buried in the ground near the world tree on Equestria’s side. Scootaloo had followed the Equestrians as they returned, retaining her true form this time. 
The grounds around Yggdrasil were full of activity as Equestrians set about restoring the city in the tree, and barriers were erected at the entrance and maintained by unicorns. Maakera was fearful of Celestia’s return now Luna had come back. Luna was younger and quicker to realize her mistake, but Celestia had been older, her rage would not be as easily left in the past.
Applebloom, Rumble and Scootaloo milled about, watching the activity and the formation of the Yggdrasil defence force and base.
“One thing Ah still don’t understand,” Applebloom spoke up, “if Luna were banished a thousand years ago, how come only recently were you sent to our world? Shouldn’t all this have happened back then?”
Scootaloo tilted her head, smiling.
“I think there’s something interesting about the worlds. Your world recorded Luna being banished to mine a thousand years ago, but in my world, she turned up only ten years ago. Time seems to move faster in this world.”
“But then, wouldn’t that mean the next time you come here, we’ll be older?” Rumble asked.
“Maybe, if I intended to stay on the Asgell side of the portal.” Scootaloo smiled.
“So this isn’t going to be a permanent goodbye?” Appleboom was grinning.
“No, it is like, well, friends going to their own homes for the night, I’ll see you again, it won’t be tomorrow, and likely not the day after, but it won’t be years from now either.”
The trio hugged each other, and in moments, Scootaloo watched as they boarded a small airship, and returned to Ponyville.

Applejack had every right to be angry at Applebloom. She had run off into the unknown, and into danger, been taken by mercenaries and got into a lot of trouble. But she, Big Mac and Granny Smith didn’t ground her.
How could they? Applebloom was responsible for saving another world. News had spread fast, by authority of Princess Maakera. Celebrations were upcoming to celebrate the return of Princess Luna.
Applebloom hurried however, to Carousel Boutique. Sweetie Belle had returned home while she was gone. Knocking on the door, she was let in by Rarity, and hurried to Sweetie Belle’s guest bedroom.
“Hey Sweetie Belle! Have ah got a story to tell you!” Applebloom said as she opened the door.
Applebloom’s jaw dropped, as she took in the room. Sweetie Belle was having a tea party, but rather than with dolls and empty cups and a kettle, there was real chamomile tea and china cups. And a white alicorn with rainbow hair. The Alicorn and Sweetie Belle smiled at their newest guest.
“Okay! And wait until I tell you what I did while I was away!” Sweetie Belle replied.

> Bonus: Behind the Story
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTE: This "chapter" doesn't contain any additional story, it was written simply to explain how this story came about and evolved.

So that's it, all done. The World Tree: World of the Frozen Moon is wrapped up. Real life got in the way at one point, leading to a long delay, and a lack of an editor means it was likely shorter than it could have been. So what's this bit about then? I've never really got to talk to anyone about all this, about my thoughts and why the story went like it did.

My editor was around when I came up with an early script for the story, back when the mercenaries were written as "pirates", and he drew parallels to the Studio Ghibli classic; Laputa Castle in the Sky. In a way, he was right, it was thanks to that very movie that I thought of something. Namely, most alternate world stories for MLP revolve around either a nightmare Celestia, a world when Nightmare Moon won, or something else. They don't stray too far from the norm honestly, that isn't to say they aren't interesting, when you find one that is, it is really worth reading.
So I had the idea, namely, what if BOTH Celestia and Luna became mad with power? Who would stop them? It wouldn't have been Discord, he'd have like it, King Sombra would have likely slipped under their radar to take Equestria and then deal with them, and there is no certainty Queen Crysalis was even around at the time (you must remember, I have only seen five seasons as of writing this, so no spoilers if there's any information).
This required me to delve into the tricky side of writing a fanfic, the realm of OCs. This story has three named OCs; Princess Maakera, Time Twister and High Wind. I'm not new to making OCs, another story of mine has a few. That story is Ruining Harmony, where I created Sunshine Blaze, Ulysses, Captain, Fireshot, Forest Breeze and Cloudswirl to name a few. Most were seen once or twice, they didn't need to be used much, but the main focus were the first three. In World of the Frozen Moon however, the only OCs were up front, this is tricky as you need to get their personalities and behavior right. There is a term for getting it wrong; Mary Sue.

How did I try to avoid this stories OCs falling into the Mary Sue category? I always kept in mind, for one good thing about them, balance it out with a flaw. Princess Maakera as an example is a great leader, she took control of Equestria to lead it out of troubled times into a thousand years of peace. But she is too controlling, she thinks of everyone as chess pieces, and this is seen with Time Twister. She is fully aware before he knows she is, that he is obsessed with finding other worlds. When it suits her, she drops a hint, then outright tells him what he has long sought. In the end, it works to her advantage, but as Luna also makes clear in her words, Maakera is a very bad parent. We don't see an awful lot of Maakera in the story aside from these interactions. As a note, Maakera is an Estonian word, and translated, means Earth. This of course was on purpose. Celestia is the Sun, Luna is the Moon, Maakera is the Earth, or Mother Earth.
Time Twister was always going to be the tragic figure in the story, while he is dutiful to his job and Equestria as a whole, he never once stood around in my mind as the character who was perfect. He got his position by chance because he noticed something a second earlier than Shining Armor and got the promotion that SHOULD have gone to Shining Armor. He doubts himself, even when his actions suggest otherwise, and he seeks another world where he didn't get the promotion, though getting anything that will help Equestria was also something he wanted. He has only one redeeming quality, at the end, when he gives Scootaloo the chance she needs to save her world, at the cost of his own life. In early drafts and plans, he never died at the end, though I made note I debated about it being the case. I ultimately went for it, because I felt after his self doubt, and then his later actions, he needed that moment to redeem himself, he didn't have a lot going for him otherwise.
High Wind however was the only character to only be noted as Captain in early versions. As in Pirate Captain and Mercenary Captain. He's about as simple and straightforward as it gets, he wants money, but he is obsessed with his deceased daughter and her final words, and jumps at the chance that he may give his daughter true peace in death. Of the three, he's the one I worked on the least because I'd got to a point where Scootaloo, Applebloom and Rumble just couldn't get to Asgell without some help.

The Other Stuff
The story of course, before it even got there, was about the World Tree, Yggdrasil. This should need no explaining, and if it does, just google search, its a very famous myth. Its the stuff once the story gets to the other world that is interesting. Elven ponies aren't a real thing, I made them up as a species for the story, but Asgell and Oriel, the world and city found in the branch, are welsh words. Asgell translates to Wing, while Oriel translates to Loft. There may have been something I intended originally for these words, but I never wrote it down. I only now, as I write this realize, put the other way and its a nod to The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, which has the species called Loftwing. I digress though.

Where will this story be going in future?
As it is, World of the Frozen Moon is done. It may have taken a few years with real life getting in the way, but as it is, its finished.
But wouldn't it be very interesting to see what Sweetie Belle got up to that led to that ending? While I have nothing currently written out, I do intend to come back to this ending, and write a story about it.

I do hope you all enjoyed the story very much, I will be working on my next story soon, and announcing it in a blog post when I have something more solid worked out.