Princess Celestia throws a Hearth's Warming party, inviting Amethyst and her friends - along with others. But when ponies suddenly go missing, something has to be done before they all disappear.
Princess Celestia throws a Hearth's Warming party, inviting Amethyst and her friends - along with others. But when ponies suddenly go missing, something has to be done before they all disappear. With only three remaining, it's up to them to figure out where everypony is.
Starlight danced down from the sky and reflected off of the shining snow, making everything appear to sparkle. The moon shone brightly in the sky, not a single cloud to block it from illuminating Canterlot Castle. Inside was glowing with joyful chatter and music. Ponies danced, ate, and spoke to their heart's content, while the thought of Hearth's Warming laid at the bottom of their minds. Though the Grand Galloping Gala was the largest social event in Equestria, the Hearth's Warming Celebration was a close second. It did have the luxury of not being notoriously dull yet simultaneously chaotic.
Being a formal event, everypony was dressed up in fine attire. The outfits were better suited for colder weather than those meant for the Gala, and many had a festive theme to them. A spring of mistletoe instead of a flower, a fluffy white hem on a red dress, or candy stripes. But others just wore what they would always wear to such an event. A tuxedo or dress. Both types of outfits applied to the seven new ponies who had just arrived, six of whom looked around at the castle interior in awe from having never seen it before.
"Eh, it lossess it charm after the third Gala," said Fleetfoot, who was wearing a dark blue dress with golden ribbons adorning the front clasp and back. "Esspecially when it conssantly getss desstroyed."
"Oh, but et'z juzt lovely," cooed Lotus, who was wearing a two-skirted lilac and fuscia dress and a headband of fuscia lotuses. "I've never even been in Canterlot until now, let alone in ze castle."
The others agreed without even needing to speak, their expressions - sans Limestone's - doing it for them. Princess Luna, her mane partially light blue from when she was changed back from Nightmare Moon and part starry and wispy as Princess Celestia's was, looked over at who had come in, and her eyes lit up at seeing them. She eagerly trotted over to the seven ponies, her black dress sparkling like the night sky.
"'Tis Our most wondrous pleasure to greet thou!" said Luna happily. "We have not graced thy presence from lasteth at the Summer Sun Celebration! For which We must giveth Our humble thanks in favor of such the rejuvenating day it 'twas!"
"Oh, hello, Princess Luna," said Amethyst, who was wearing a simple orange and cream dress with a bejeweled bow in her hair. "It's a pleasure to see you, too. Any reason for the eloquent manner of speaking?"
"Ah, yes. We have been questioned heavily as to wherefore We art conversing in such a way. We understand that We speaketh from an older era, but art having rather a difficult timeth coming to terms with the ways of the new era. Our current way of speaking grants Us more comfort than as Our sister doest, yet We still tryeth to change Our mind to fit the new world."
"That's how ponies used to talk?" asked Flitter, who was wearing a pink dress with a fluffy white hem and had replaced her usual bow with a matching Santa Hooves hat. "Mare, I'm glad I didn't live back then!"
Luna shook her head. "Not quite so, Laughter. Our speech was used by only royals, and such the reason t'is not used now as Celestia explained. The way We spoketh with thee when We were revived from the Nightmare 'twas how most common folk spoketh, as We were not worthy enough to speaketh with thou as We do now. If this mannerism 'twas still used in this era, thou would be entitled to speaketh as We."
Flitter was about to respond, when the lights in the golden chandeliers unexpectedly flickered for a few seconds, before returning to a steady illumination. Luna looked up at the chandeliers in curiosity, and tapped her hoof against her chin.
"We still do not understand how the utaliage of 'electricity' works, yet it still appears to match flaws with those of candles," she commented. "Do these 'lightbulbs' often attract more attention than those traditionally used?"
"Electric lights don't normally flicker unless they're running out of power," explained Amethyst. "Hopefully they don't go out, but the moon is providing plenty of light if they do." She noticed Luna's smile at her mention of the moon. "Are you back to raising the moon and stars?"
She nodded happily. "Indeed! We do not yet have our full strength back, but We have the most wonderful pleasure of controlling the moon once more! Celestia is kindly assisting with the stars until We are back to Our true power." She looked over at three new ponies as they entered, and her eyes lit up once more. "Please excuse Us, Unity. We must greet Our dear niece!"
Luna gleefully trotted over, and Amethyst turned around to see that only Lotus and Saffron were still standing behind her. "Where did the others go?" she asked.
Saffron, who was wearing a silver dress with a golden hem adorned with turquoise - the same gems on her earrings - responded with the answer. "Twirly and Flitter went to get some food, and Fleetfoot dragged Limestone off to meet some of her teammates."
"Ah." She nodded, but then paused to think. "So... what exactly do you do at formal party?" she asked.
"Wouldn't Twirly be more interested in meeting your teammates?" asked Limestone, carefully adjusting the cuff of her standard black tuxedo as she walked beside Fleetfoot. "Or maybe Flitter?"
"But they really want to meet you!" said Fleetfoot, her wings twitching with excitement.
"For what particular reason?"
"Well, uh..." She blushed sheepishly. "I might have told them all about how you dove off the edge of a cliff to ssave Amethysst'ss life and held down a brainwasshed Royal Guard without any asssisstance."
Limestone sighed and rolled her eyes. "I'm just a rock farmer. It's part of the job to be tough."
Fleetfoot playfully punched her shoulder (which was a bad idea in hindsight considering that Limestone's shoulders were basically just rock-hard muscles). "Don't ssell yourself sshort, Limesstone! You've got to be the sstrongest pony I've ever met!"
"Not if you met my sister."
She tilted her head in confusion. "Pinkie?"
"Maud," she corrected. "She's the second-oldest. Her cutie mark talent is just complete raw strength. My strength is nowhere near as close as hers."
But the Wonderbolt grinned anyways. "But that doessn't sstop you from being the sstrongest pony I know! Pluss my buddy Ssoarin' just lovess piess!" she teased.
Limestone sighed once again. "Alright. But don't expect me be self-indulgent and act as if I'm the only one who did anything in Everfree."
"Knowing you, I wassn't planning on it."
Twilight, who was wearing a starry blue dress and matching headband, exhaled sharply in frustration as she entered into the grandiose room standing beside her brother's marefriend and her old foalsitter. It wasn't that she didn't want to be spending time with them, but fancy parties just weren't her forte. She would much rather be working on trying to add a twentieth construct (a tenth spear) to her weapons roster, but her brother had insisted she come.
"Come on, Twily!" said Shining Armour, who was wearing his usual red tuxedo, encouragingly. "You're going to have fun!"
"And your friend is here, too," added on Princess Cadence, who was wearing a simple gold dress, pointing at Amethyst. "I bet that you two can talk about all sorts of magic-related things together."
"Cadenza!" said Luna, trotting up to the young Princess. "Wonderful to see you once more!"
"Hello, Auntie!" she said with a smile. "It's great to see you, too!"
"We also wish to formally greet thee, Captain Armour," she said with a light bow of respect. "The capabilities of the Royal Guards are far greater than t'were they a thousand years ago."
"I'm just doing my job to the best of my extent, Princess." said Shining with a smile.
"And We are pleasured to meet thee, First Lieutenant Sparkle, in a setting that is far more relaxed than as before." She had already bowed to Twilight before, the courtesy that Luna went by, but she gave the unicorn a second one as an apology symbol.
"The same with you, Princess." replied Twilight, returning the bow.
"Did Auntie Celestia tell you who else was coming?" asked Cadence with a knowing smiling of who it was.
"We believe that Celestia did mention such." said Luna. "A nephew she said, as the same way thou art her niece. Pray tell, how many doth she refer to in such a manner?"
"Just three. Blueblood, him, and me."
She nodded in understanding. "We see... This new era 'tis all so perplexing to Us."
"Oh, well, Shining and I would be glad to help teach you about some things!" she said with a smile. "Twilight might be able to help, but she's already going to chat with her friend."
Twilight objected with, "But I never said-"
Cadence pushed her towards Amethyst, and Shining smirked at the Princess of Love's interference in such social matters. Twilight sighed, and headed towards Amethyst. This was going to be a rather long night.
The air was cold enough that when one exhaled, a foggy whiteness would float up a few inches into the air before dissipating, but fortunately the weather wasn't scheduled to be snow. Still, the wind chill was almost as bad if it was snowing.
Heavy wing beats interrupted the smooth airflow along the side of the Canterlot Mountains, thick trails of whiteness followed each of the flier wherever they went. An inconsistent clinking sound emanated from an emerald necklace that they were wearing.
As the majestic city came into their view, they dipped their wings down to the side, and approached the purple and gold buildings. They remained at an altitude of just above the buildings, the plethora of moonlight making them clear to see.
I haven't been here in ages! they thought. I wonder how everybody's doing...
They came to a gentle landing in front of Canterlot Castle, folding in their wings. They tore a red and green ticket off their necklace to show to the guards, and then entered into the Hearth's Warming Celebration. Ponies paused from their activities to stare, but they were ignored as the newcomer ran right up to Princess Celestia with a broad smile.
Celestia's eyes lit up just as Luna's had early when seeing who it was. "Spike!" she said with a smile, walking over and nuzzling the dragon. "I'm so glad you could make it."
"I'd never miss a chance to see you, Mom," he replied.
At that statement, though she was across the room, Luna looked up in surprise at the dragon, and then back at Cadence questioningly. "We recall thee speaking of thine sister's nephew."
Cadence just giggled. "Oh, did I say that he was Auntie's nephew? I meant that he was your's."
"But We do not understand this!" said Luna. "How can one such as a dragon feel as Celestia is his mother?"
"She hatched him. He stayed in the castle for several years, but Auntie was worried that he wasn't going to stay happy for long, so she brought him to the Dragonlands, and that's where he lives now."
"Quite interesting... However, thou had spoketh of these 'video games'. Pray tell, what art those?"
Spike gave an excited grin to Celestia as the two spoke together. "I have an Aunt?" he asked. "That's so cool! Is she an alicorn, too?"
"Indeed," replied Celestia. "She's my sister, Luna. She controls the moon and stars."
"Is there anybody else new here? Ooh, is Cadence here?"
She gave a small laugh at his excitement. "Yes, and yes."
"Who is it?" he looked around the room. "Oh, there's Twilight! I'll go say hi to her!" He gleefully ran off towards the unicorn, leaving Celestia laughing to herself once again.
Oblivious to what else was going around her, Twilight was speaking with Amethyst about defensive spells. "-and just making a disk requires fewer ley lines," she explained. "Once you start practicing, you have to start out other only making one around the size of tennis ball to get the feel of it. Then you can get progressively larger over time."
Twilight!" Spike called out. Both unicorns looked up to see him, and grabbed Twilight in a form of a hug as soon as he came close enough. "I haven't seen you in ages!"
"Glad to see you're doing well, Spike," she replied, trying to break out of his grip. "Er, do you want to greet Amethyst, too?"
He smiled in excitement. "You made a friend?!? That's great, Twi!" Spike exclaimed, gripping Twilight harder.
"Spike, I still need to breathe!" Twilight squeaked, gasping for air.
"Oh, sorry!" he let go of her, and excitedly turned towards Amethyst. "Hiya! I'm..." But he trailed off, and stared at her in surprise. "Oh, wow..."
Amethyst stared at the lavender dragon in front of her in shock. He was on all fours, and was almost exactly the size of an average mare. His long tail came to a standstill, and his emerald necklace stopped clinking.
"Uh, are you two okay?" asked Twillight, unsure of what was going on.
"D-dragon..." squeaked out Amethyst in surprise.
"Uh..." Blood rushed to Spike's cheeks. "Yeah, of course!" He awkwardly stuck out his claw towards Amethyst, who shyed away. "Nice to meet you!"
She bit her lip, and Twilight frowned in concern. "How much are dragons like-" Her voice cracked. "-wyverns?"
Twilight tilted her head in confusion, but then her eyes widened. "You're from Manehattan, aren't you?" She recieved a nervous nod. "Don't worry, dragons aren't like wyverns at all. Especially not Spike! He's practically part pony!"
"What's wrong with wyverns?" asked Spike, the pink on his cheeks starting to fade away. "They don't bother anyone."
"Storm wyverns do," said Amethyst, her eyes glazed over and stared up at the ceiling. "When they get mad." Her voice sounded distant. "So much lightning..."
Twilight quietly walked up beside her, and put a hoof around her neck. "It's okay, Amethyst. Think about your friends. You're perfectly safe."
There was a loud echo of glass shattering, and Amethyst snapped out of her daze. Twilight's eyes narrowed, and her horn lit up. There was a second shatter, and conversations began to die down as ponies looked around in confusion as to what had happened.
"Beside me," hissed Twilight to Spike and Amethyst. "Something's not right."
The dragon and unicorn cautiously stepped closer to her, and the lights flickered once again. There was a loud snapping noise, and the lights unexpectedly went out. It was pitch black dark, and everything appeared to be muted.
"What's going on?" whispered Amethyst to Twilight, but was surprised when she didn't hear her voice.
She lit up her horn, but not a speck of light showed. She drew closer to Twilight, the sound of her heartbeat in her ears adding more tension. Several painfully long minutes passed with nothing happening. And then, ever so slowly, sounds began to return. There was breathing beside her, and a soft trill from Twilight's horn, meaning that it was at a double corona. Soft hoofsteps quickly disappeared, and her eyes were hit with all of the lights as they came back on.
"Ugh..." she moaned, rubbing her eyes. "What happened?"
"I... don't know..." replied Twilight nervously.
Amethyst opened her eyes, and was greeted with a shocking sight. Twilight had a small magenta shield surrounding the three of them, but besides them, there was nopony else in sight.
The glow on Twilight's horn wavered slightly, but the shield maintained. Amethyst's horn lit up, and a layer of magic washed over her eyes as she started using her signature. Her eyes flicked around the large room for any sort of signs as to what had just happened, and she paused at one of the hallways. She spotted the tiniest glimpse of something shiny that was in pink-purple.
"Twilight, I think there's somepony over there," she hissed quietly, not taking her eyes off the now seemingly empty spot.
"An ally or an enemy?" she whispered back.
"I don't know." Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What kinds of gemstones are pink-purple?" she asked. "I thought I saw something like that, but I don't know why somepony would have a pink sapphire on them..."
Twilight inhaled sharply, and Spike looked at her in confusion. "That would be how the Princesses are gone too!" Amethyst tilted her head and opened her mouth to ask for clarification. "Orichalcum absorbs magic, and it's one of the few things that can kill an alicorn!"
"Kill an alicorn?" repeated Amethyst, her eyes widening in horror. "I didn't even know that was possible!"
"But nopony is dead!" said Spike nervously. "So that couldn't be what happened!"
Twilight shook her head. "Orichalcum isn't just used for that. It absorbs magical output when connected to the source, which is why it's used as a fillament in magic-nullifying rings. If the wearer attempts to use magic, they instead receive a shock of pain. But if there's too much orichalcum for their magic to handle, the shock can be much more drastic, and even life-threatening. A ring made fully out of orichalcum as opposed to it being used as a fillament will knock out a unicorn if they try to use any magic, and four can knock out an alicorn. I'm not sure what the possibilities for usage on Earth ponies and pegasi, but the results would likely be the same."
"You think that everypony got an orichalcum ring put on them?" asked Amethyst.
"Or their magic output was hit with something made of orichalcum."
"But orichalcum is really hard to find!" said Spike. "It would take ages to make enough rings or weapons to take out an entire room full of ponies! Besides, who would even do something like that?"
Twilight horn flickered more, until her aura finally snapped and the shield dissipated. She flinched from the overuse of her magic, and put a hoof to her head in pain. Amethyst heard some sort of elastic sound, and she whipped over to look at where she saw the orichalcum. Barely a moment later, something small came streaking through the air towards Twilight, and hit the tip of her horn. She stumbled back, and then collapsed on the ground, pink-purple gem shards on the ground around her, as well as a broken arrow shaft.
Spike's wing sprang open, and quickly wrapped around Amethyst's waist and pulled her close. He adjusted his stance to shield her from any more arrows, and she bit her lip nervously.
"Won't it knock you out, too?" she asked nervously.
"I can eat orichalcum," said Spike, who sounded more nervous than she. "So I don't think that it can affect me."
"But an arrow is still an arrow!"
"I've got tough enough scales."
Yet again, there was a tense silence as they waited for something to happen. Amethyst was still using her signature, looking for any signs of movement. Nothing happened.
"What do we do now?" she whispered to Spike. "If we move at all, we could get hit with anything!"
"Can't you teleport us or something?" asked Spike.
"I've never tried to bring anyone with me, let alone two others! And I don't think I have enough energy to teleport even just myself!"
"Then what other spells do you know? There's got to be something that could help!"
She bit her lip even harder, thinking over the possibilities. She couldn't form a moonbeam for any purpose, since they were too far away from any of the window. She had just started learning any kind of defensive spells, so those wouldn't even work. Maybe some of the charms she knew could help.
Obviously the one she used to block a cockatrice's stare would be useless, ignoring the fact that they didn't even have any goggles or anything on them. The fastening charm that she used to use wouldn't be of any help either, as she would have to be in close range for it to work. The only other one she could think of was the wind charm that she occasionally used to provide small breezes for Twirly, the strength of the wind aided by her being part pegasus.
Maybe I can make a funnel of air around my horn to deflect any orichalcum away from it, but if I get shot at anywhere else... She glanced over at the unconscious Twilight. "Spike, can you carry Twilight? I can shield my horn, and if we move fast we can get to some place safer."
"Where?" asked Spike. "Do we try and find the other Royal Guards or look for where everybody was taken?"
"Let's just get outside first. We'll have more space to move around and avoid things." The glow around her eyes faded away, and a funnel of wind began to spin around her horn. "Let's head towards the window over there-" she titled her head towards one of them, "-since I saw that it was unlatched."
Spike nodded, and the two of them moved as quickly as they could. Amethyst remained as close to Spike as she could while he tried to place Twilight on his back. The dress she was wearing made it harder, but they managed to pick her up. The two sprinted towards the window, and halfway there a second arrow came flying towards them, but it just barely missed Amethyst's horn thanks to her wind charm. She caught the shaft in her magic, and winced it pain when her aura tried to surround the orichalcum head. She simply pulled the arrow over and grabbed it tightly in her teeth, simultaneously opening the window with her magic. Just a moment later, she and Spike jumped out into the snowy night.
"Don't think that you can outrun me..." hissed an angry voice from the corner, notching another orichalcum arrow onto their bow. "I've always hit my targets in the end..."
Spike and Amethyst walked silently through the empty streets of Canterlot, both looking around nervously in fear of being ambused at any second. Twilight was still unconscious, and there was a small nick on her horn where the arrow had hit her, but was breathing just fine. Amethyst was still holding the arrow in her teeth, and was still continuing to use the wind charm around her horn.
"Where exactly are we going?" asked Spike quietly. "Or are we just trying to avoid being cornered?"
"I have an old friend who lives here," said Amethyst, speaking around the arrow. "We can go to her place while we come up with a plan."
After a few more minutes of walking, they stopped in front of a building with brown swirls decorating the exterior, and pictures of teacups and cake platters on the windows. Amethyst walked up to the door, but her lip for the third time that day, and knocked four times.
"Cinnamon?" she called out. "You awake?"
After several seconds of silence, a tired voice finally replied. "Yeah, yeah... I'm coming..."
Amethyst took a step back from the door as then nob was enveloped in a violet aura, and then swung open. A unicorn with a cream coat, and two-toned mane of light and dark brown. She rubbed her violet eyes in exhaustion, but paused at seeing the bizarre group standing outside.
"Cinnamon, I'm really sorry for-" started Amethyst, before she was interrupted by the unicorn grabbing her in a tight hug.
"I haven't seen you in ages!" she said happily. "Guess it was because somepony was busy saving all of Equestria!"
"I- What-" she stammered. "How do you know about that?"
Cinnamon broke the embrace and laughed. "It was in the Canterlot Scroll, of course! You think something like that wouldn't make headlines?" She looked over at Spike and Twilight, and then at the arrow Amethyst had. "And considering that, you're probably here because of something along those lines, huh?"
"Yeah..." admitted Amethyst. "I would have preferred to visit you under calmer circumstances, but-"
"Just come on in and tell me what's up instead of feeling all guilty!" She grabbed Amethyst's hoof with her magic and dragged her inside, with Spike following. "And you can lay your friend down somewhere while you wait for her to wake up."
They walked through the store to a set of stairs, and then headed up into Cinnamon's living space. The whole time Spike didn't say a word, and just made sure that he didn't accidentally knock Twilight into something. They reached the top, and all three carefully eased Twilight onto a plain brown couch.
"Alright," said Cinnamon afterwards. "So now you can tell me what in Celestia's mane is going on!"
Amethyst nodded, and began to explain what had taken place at the celebration, including the details on what orichalcum did. While she spoke, Spike had pulled off his emerald necklace, and carefully unzipped Twilight's dress so she could have more breathing space. And also because he knew without even looking that she was wearing her armour, since she almost never took it off.
"-and we still don't know exactly what happened to the others," finished Amethyst, who had absentmindedly pulled her bow out with her magic. "Honestly, I don't know what to do. With Nightmare Moon, there was a clear indication for who was the one who needed to be stopped, and it was the Elements that could stop her. I don't even know who could have done something on this large of a scale!"
"It could be a group," offered Cinnamon. "Not everypony loves Princess Celestia, after all. There are plenty of secret organizations around here that could have planned it."
Amethyst nodded. "That could very well be the answer. But how would they be able to get their hooves on so much orichalcum? I hadn't even heard of it until today!"
"Time," said Spike, finally joining into the conversation. "If someone is determined enough, they all they need is time. My dad told me that a group of dragon tried to overthrow him a couple hundred years ago by stockpiling up on fire rubies to try and hex him, but they were found out before their plan could fall through."
"You think that this could just be one step of a coup?" asked Amethyst.
"Maybe. You never know when it comes to positions of power."
Cinnamon gave a nervous smile. "What if the Princesses just take off the orichalcum rings they have off once they wake up? Then they can just-"
"Gemstones." They turned around to see that Twilight had finally woken up. She sounded like she was in pain, but simply sat up on the couch and put a hoof on her horn. "The only way to take an orichalcum ring off is with some kind of gemstone. They can counteract the magic absorption."
Amethyst looked over at the orange sapphire in her bow, and then at Spike's necklace of emeralds. "Do we need to fill them with magic?"
She nodded. "If we get back to the castle, we can have the Night Guard help us to fill them."
"You mean the ponies with bat wings?" asked Cinnamon.
"Thestrals. But we can have the unicorns in the Night Guard help us to- What are you doing?"
"What?" Amethyst was standing by the window, having dipped her head down so that her glowing horn was in the moonlight. "I'm making a moonbeam to fill my sapphire."
Twilight blinked in confusion. "A moonbeam? What in Equestria is that?"
Now Amethyst was confused. "You don't know? You just gather moonlight or sunlight on your horn to make a beam of magic. I thought that it was a normal attacking spell."
"No, I've never heard of it before."
"Not the main concern right now!" interrupted Cinnamon.
"Sorry," she said awkwardly. "Anyways, the Night Guards would in the Lunar section of the castle. We just need to get to them to help will the gems, and then we all can search for where everypony was taken, while also having plenty of backup."
Amethyst nodded in agreement, just as she noticed a sparkle in the corner of her eye. She automatically jumped back just as another orichalcum arrow smashed through the window, barely missing her horn once again.
"You didn't cover your tracks in the snow, did you?" asked Twilight, quickly getting to her hooves. "Let's move before we're shot at again!" She glanced over at the broken window. "I'll get that fixed for you."
Amethyst nodded, her wind charm starting up around her horn. The party of four hurried down the stairs, Twilight leading them with her horn ablaze.
The arrow waiting on the bow glinted in the night, the orichalcum tip aimed right at the door to the shop. The archer waited silently in the shadows, ready to hit the Royal Guard's horn for a second time. She was resilient, having shaken off the effects of the orichalcum in just over ten minutes. This time it would all go to plan.
It was the dragon that had ruined it. They hadn't been expecting that someone immune to orichalcum was going to be at the celebration. Had it not been for that, the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony would have been captured along with all three Princesses.
The door burst open, and a blinding light shine out. The archer winced as they were forced to cover their eyes, several hoofsteps in the snow indicating that the group was heading towards the castle.
The light on Twilight's horn died down as they ran towards the castle. Amethyst's horn had a light aura around it as she covered up their tracks behind them.
"Spike, take Cinnamon and fly ahead to the castle," ordered Twilight. "Try and contact those in the Night Guard to inform them of what's happened. If they don't believe you, just say that Lieutenant Sparkle sent you."
Spike nodded, and he and Cinnamon split from Twilight and Amethyst, running into an alleyway so that Cinnamon could mount him. Twilight and Amethyst continued running, weaving back and forth to avoid an incoming arrows.
"What makes you so sure that the Night Guard wouldn't have been targeted, too?" asked Amethyst.
"A majority of the Night Guard is composed of thestrals," replied Twilight. "They can see in the dark, and have a heightened sense of hearing. Even if they were targeted, they would most likely be safe."
"Thestrals? You mean ponies with bat wings?"
She nodded, and made a sudden sharp turn down a different pathway. Amethyst skidded in the snow as she tried to turn as quickly, falling behind Twilight. She still continued running behind her, trying to make note of any other times the guardspony was about to change direction again. Sure enough, just about a minute later, Twilight made another sharp turn, which Amethyst managed to react to much quicker than before.
"Keep up!" called back Twilight, sounding like she had forgotten that Amethyst wasn't a Royal Guard member.
Amethyst didn't respond, and instead saved her breath to continue running after her. It was clear that Twilight was trained far better for this than she. The two moved closer to the castle, having covered just over a third of the distance in just about two minutes.
Another sparkle caught her eye, and she looked up to see an arrow flying toward's Twilight horn. She quickly grabbed Twilight's tail in her magic, which pulled her to an abrupt stop, and the arrow landed harmlessly in the snow.
"They already caught up to us?" Twilight quickly got to her hooves, and defensively stood in front of Amethyst. "That means that the shooter is likely a pegasus..."
Amethyst let out a huff of air in frustration as they had to wait in another bout of silence. The wind charm was still going around her horn, but Twilight's was an open target.
Why am I so weak? she thought. I can only do things with the aid of someone or something else... Her eyes narrowed angrily. But I'll never get anywhere unless I try.
The most notable advantage to being outside rather than inside was that she could gather moonlight (or sunlight) on her horn. Granted, the raw energy had to be let out in a single burst due to how unstable it was, but maybe that burst was all she needed.
Amethyst began to gather moonlight on her horn, while Twilight continued to look around for the attacker. After more painful waiting, Amethyst heard another elastic sound, being that of a bow, and quickly put her hasty idea into fruition.
She stepped beside Twilight, and dipped her head down so that her horn was pointed at the ground. She grabbed Twilight's forehoof in her own, and released the moonbeam she had been making. She felt a sharp blow of pain from having her head so close to where the beam had hit, but she also felt her hooves leave the ground as she and Twilight spiraled backwards through the air.
With the night sky sparkling above them, for just a moment, Amethyst felt as if she was flying. Sure, she could ride on a pegasus as she had done when first meeting Fleetfoot, just that never held the same thrill as being in the air without the aid of others. Unlike Twirly, she didn't want speed, but instead, just simple lift.
The landing was rather painful as the two unicorns unceremoniously slammed onto the ground and tumbled across the street. Had it not been snowy out, they could have sustained far more serious injuries than some aches and bruises. Amethyst nearly crashed into a streetlight, but Twilight conjured up a spear construct that, though it knocked the wind out of her, preventing her from slamming into it.
"Are you alright?" asked Twilight, running over and pulling Amethyst to her hooves.
"Just sore," she replied, being careful not to touch any painful areas as to not increase the pain.
"You sure you're good to keep moving?"
"Of course!" She started walking towards the castle, and immediately tried not to wince as a bolt of pain zipped up her thigh. "We can take a breather once we reach the castle!"
Twilight smiled. "That's some nice determination you've got. Let's go."
They continued running towards the castle, with Amethyst trying her best to keep her pain hidden as to not concern Twilight. But back where they had been standing before Amethyst's moonbeam, the archer angrily stomped out to grab yet another arrow that they had avoided.
"It's easier to hit a pegasus in a windstorm than these two!" they sniped in irritation, shoving the arrow in their quiver. "And now they're trying for the Night Guard's assistance..."
"Need me to go fly ahead?" asked someone who's presence was unknown to Twilight and Amethyst.
"I need to find the arrow that she dropped, so yes," replied the archer. "Even if this plans falls through, we have to leave no trace behind. We can't have everything ruined by being tracked."
The second nodded, and took to the skies towards the castle. The archer wordlessly hunted through the snow for the arrow that Amethyst had dropped.
"I know that we're in a tense situation and all, but you mind if I ask you a question?"
Spike and Cinnamon were flying as quietly as possible towards Canterlot Castle, both keeping an eye out for any incoming arrows. The snow didn't particularly bother Spike, but he could feel that Cinnamon was shivering from the cold. Thinking of that, he also wondered how cold Twilight and Amethyst were.
"Go ahead," he replied, blowing out a small puff of flames to warm the air.
"What's got you so infatuated with Starshine? You were looking at her like you'd never seen a mare in your life!"
Blood rushed to Spike's cheeks. "W-what?!? I wasn't looking at her weird or anything!"
Cinnamon laughed. "I see ponies fawning over others every single day at my shop. I know the look you had on your face. So what's got you into her?"
He looked up at the stars. "Well... She's really nice looking, and from what's happened I can tell that she's really smart..." He sighed. "But I barely know anything about pony culture, and I don't see how a pony could love a dragon..."
"Hey, I don't know much about relationships, I do know that love works in mysterious ways." She paused. "Does she still go by Starshine? I know I've been calling her that his whole time, but that girl has over ten nicknames."
"Twilight said that her name was Amethyst."
"Amethyst? That's a new one to me. Well, once this whole situation is solved, if you want to take her out on a date, you should take her for a flight. She loves being as high up as possible."
"I thought that most ponies were afraid of heights."
"Yeah. Most ponies. Starshine isn't like most ponies." Cinnamon frowned. "For better or for worse..."
Amethyst and Twilight bolted across the bridge spanning the moat of the castle, with Twilight grabbing the crank in her magic and yanking the bridge up.
"Better to have one blockade over none..." she muttered.
"Lieutenant Sparkle!"
Both unicorns turned to see a thestral with a gray coat and dark orange mane wearing lavender armor run out from around the corner, with Spike following behind her.
"Private Pumpkin, report in," ordered Twilight, the two saluting each other.
"Ma'am, currently no attackers have been discovered. Captain Blue has sent out a squad in search of those who have disappeared, with no replies yet. The whereabouts of Corporal Meteor, Private Ice, and Private Nebula are currently unknown."
"Did you find anything in the ballroom?"
"Ma'am, I was not disclosed that information. You would need to speak with Captain Blue."
She nodded. "Then I need to see her."
Pumpkin nodded in return, and gestured for her to follow. "Right this way, ma'am."
The group of four ran down the hall, with Spike slipping back so he was beside Amethyst. "Are you alright? Did you get hurt at all?"
"I'm fine," she replied, continuing to try and not very visibly limp on her hoof. "Where's Cinnamon?"
"One of the guards said something about not letting civilians get injured, so I'm not sure why they let me come with Pumpkin."
"I suppose that you are from another region, so maybe you don't fall under their jurisdiction?" Spike blinked in confusion. "They can't enforce certain rules on you." She clarified quickly.
He nodded in understanding, and the two fell silent. They followed after Pumpkin and Twilight until reaching an area where the white marble walls were now a deep purple, and an abundance of moonlight shone through thick windows with huge curtains. There were several Night Guard members standing at ease, the majority being thestrals, while there were still some pegasi, unicorns, and Earth ponies all wearing lavender armor.
Pumpkin looked up at the ceiling, and saluted. "Captain, the Day Lieutenant would like to speak with you."
A moment later, a thestral with a dark blue mane and matching wings and eyes descended from the ceiling where, Amethyst realized, she had been hanging from. Her armor, while still lavender, had a full blue moon on the front of it, similar to the magenta star that Twilight had.
"Ma'am, what the current status?" asked Twilight with a salute. "Have you found anything in the ballroom?"
"The squad we sent is yet to report back." replied Blue calmly. "And we have yet to determine a cause of the blackout."
While the two conferred, Amethyst quietly took a step back as to not disturb them. Spike's tail was flicking back and forth nervously, but he was being careful not to hit anyone.
"Elemental Amethyst?" a voice called out.
Amethyst turned in confusion to see a thestral with a pink mane and eyes looking at her with interest. "Uh, yes?"
"Private Strawberry, ma'am. It's a pleasure to meet you." She spoke with an air of formality that confused Amethyst even more. "Captain Blue said that you needed some armor."
"Um, okay..."
Strawberry turned and started walking towards a door, and Amethyst followed, looking back at Spike questioningly. He just shrugged in response, while Amethyst stepped into what appeared to be a supply area filled with extra armor and weapons. Strawberry casually searched through the armor until pulling out a galaxy blue set with a white crescent moon from the abundance of lavender and black.
"Princess Luna said that this was her old armor," said Strawberry. "But she outgrew it before she could use it very often. It's enchanted to survive many years, which is how it's still in good condition." She looked at it longingly. "Alas, we are not worthy to wear that which belongs to our Princess. Whereas you are most certainly."
"I am?" questioned Amethyst. "Why?"
"You are one of the six who defeated the Nightmare! You control an artifact that can cleanse the corruption within and purify it! You are an Elemental, and outrank even Captain Blue. Only five others are worthy to wear this armor, and so it is bestowed to at least one of you."
Blood rushed to Amethyst's cheeks at the unexpected praise, and she shyly took the armor in her magic. "How do you put it on?"
"I can assist you if you require," said Strawberry proudly. "It would be a great honor to help one of the Elementals."
Amethyst nodded, but still she was confused by the formality. Having some armor would be excellent protection, so she didn't question any further.
Amethyst and Strawberry exited out of the supply area, where Twilight and Blue were now speaking with a group of five Night Guard members. Spike tilted his head in confusion at seeing Amethyst in armor, and this time she shrugged in return.
Amethyst stepped beside Spike, analyzing Luna's old armor. There were scratches and dents adorning it in various locations, more appearing to have been buffered out. Since the armor had been designed for an alicorn, there were wing-holes on the sides, exposing tiny patches of her fur. The inside of the armor was lined with something (or perhaps a spell that made it) very soft, while the outer part was still properly rigid. The crescent moon on the front appeared to be made of some sort of gemstone, but she couldn't tell what type it was.
"That's a moonstone," said Spike, causing her to look up in surprise. "You had a questioning look, so I thought-"
"Yeah," she interrupted. "I was wondering."
They stared awkwardly at each other for a few seconds, before looking away in embarrassment. Spike was far more embarrassed, as emphasized by how red his face was.
I'm looking like a complete weirdo in front of somepony that I just met and might have a crush on! he thought. And she was scared of me just a bit earlier, and probably still is!
Twilight caught the attention of two as she called out, "Amethyst?" Who then automatically looked up at her. "How do the Elements of Harmony work?"
"The Elements of Harmony use the magic within the Bearers to help contain or purify those who have been influenced of taken over by corrupt magic, and well as replicate-" She cut off abruptly, and slowly blinked.
Oblivious to her confusion, Twilight just nodded. "Thanks." She then turned back towards Blue, and continued talking. "So you think that we should treat this as a critical case?"
Amethyst tasted something bizarrely sweet and sticky in her mouth, and swallowed it without thinking. She felt a wave of heat wash over her, and for a moment sensed a burst of mana near the tip of her horn before it faded away. And while it was all something she had never experienced before, she already knew what it was.
"Nectar..." she muttered softly, seeing sparkles in the air for a brief moment. "A taste of Eos..." A distinct glint of light from outside a nearby window caught her attention, and she dove to the side as a sparkling pink-purple knife smashed through the window and slammed into the wall. "Cirrus drops!" she swore loudly.
"Secure the perimeter!" barked Blue immediately. "Alpha fliers, outside now! Locate whomever threw that knife!"
Several thestrals and pegasi quickly spread their wings wide, as the knife was yanked back out due to it having a thin string wrapped around the handle. They quickly flew outside through the broken window, their armor protecting them from the shards of glass.
"Spike, we need to get moving!" said Twilight, grabbing his wing in her magic. "Amethyst, you're with Blue and Pumpkin!"
As the two sprinted off with several other guards following after them, Blue quickly ran over to Amethyst and expertly dipped her wing down and pulled her up off the ground. "Grab on. It will be faster if we fly."
Amethyst obediently wrapped her hooves around Blue's neck, her armor oddly enough not clinking as it collided with Blue's. Her leathery wings flared out, and she bounded into the air. Pumpkin sprang into the air, and zipped to Blue's side as they streaked though the castle. Amethyst kept her gaze focused behind where they were flying, ready to launch off whatever spell first came to her mind as necessary.
You don't need to add extra wind.
But I want to practice! If I can use the charm for long enough and can lift enough, I'll be able to fly on my own eventually!
What am I not fun enough? I'm just pulling your tail! You're a smart one, y'know? I'm sure one day that you'll be able to-
Accept that it's your fault.
Amethyst snapped out of her thoughts with a wince, a single tear being whisked off of her cheek as they flew along silently. Her mind wandered to her explanation of how the Elements of Harmony worked, and tried to figure out how she knew the answer, to no avail. The answer had just come to her with no hesitation, and then she had tasted nectar...
"Landing now," stated Blue, coming to an immediately halt that nearly flung Amethyst forward. "Pumpkin, secure the area. Elemental, you need to open this."
Amethyst carefully unlatched her hooves from each other, and looked at what Blue was directing her to in confusion. It was two large purple doors, yet neither had a handle. There was a slot in the middle of a star that overlapped the doors, and she would have to go up on her hindlegs to reach it.
Blue sighed. "Nopony told you that this is where the Elements are stored, huh? Well, Princess Celestia sealed them in using the Unity Element to keep them safe, so you can open it." She pointed at the slot in the center of the star. "You have to connect your magic directly to unlock it."
Amethyst silently stepped up to the doors, and put her forehooves against them so that she could reach the slot. She was just barely talk enough, but she managed to slide her horn into it and feel for the locking spell.
She could sense that the locking spell used was a very strong one, and there was a magic barrier embedded within to prevent teleportation as a means of an entrance. Her horn lit up as she weaved through the ley lines, her magic being given free access to move about. She located the core of the spell, and carefully began to pull it open.
"Captain, was there a thunderstorm scheduled for tonight?" asked Pumpkin.
"Why do you ask?" asked Blue suspiciously.
"There's a lightning striker outside," she replied. "You think it might be the attacker trying to hide?"
Before Blue could respond, there was a large crack of thunder, and a burst of lightning. Amethyst lost all of her concentration in an instant, and her blue glow spiked to white as she yelped in a panic. She accidentally tore the core open, and was knocked backwards by a painful backlash of magic, and slammed down onto the ground as she horn flickered in a frenzy of blue and white.
It's your fault. It's your fault. It's your fault, and you know it!
"Private, get down!" barked out Blue quickly. "She needs a controlled output source, and other ponies qualify for that!"
"Yes, ma'am!" squeaked out Pumpkin nervously, as she dove over to the corner of the room.
Amethyst was curled up on the ground, her hooves on the side of her head as more bolts launched uncontrollably into the air. Her horn felt like it was on fire, and the tears rolling down her cheeks evaporated before they reached her chin.
It's not my fault!
You're lying to yourself again!
I'm not!
You know that it's your fault!
Blue eyed the moonstone on Amethyst's armor, and nodded to herself. She sprung into the air, immediately spiraling to the side to avoid a bolt. She sharply turned to fly up, and immediately dove back down to avoid another one. As if going though a maze at top speed, Blue weaved through the air until finally reaching Amethyst.
Shut up!
It's true and you know it!
No, it's-
"-NOT!" yelled Amethyst, her aura snapping back to blue just before Blue grabbed the moonstone. The lightning bolts fizzled away, and she sat up with tears in her eyes.
"Sweet Luna, are you alright?!" asked Blue, pressing her wing up against Amethyst's horn and instantly drawing it back. "You're lucky that you didn't get knocked out from that! Your horn is completely overheated!"
"Astraphobia," she muttered. "I have major astraphobia. Fear of lightning."
"That was all caused from a panic attack?" Her eyes widened in disbelief. "No wonder you were able to defend against the Nightmare!"
"That bolt was deliberate..." Amethyst frowned. "They didn't want me to get the Elements..."
"Private, try and locate who put the lightning striker there!" ordered Blue firmly. "We can't let the last Elemental be incapacitated!"
"It. Was. Deliberate," she snapped, looking over at the window where the cloud had been with her eyes narrowed. "You think that you can just fly away after doing that?" She abruptly stood up, and started walking towards the window.
"Elemental, be careful!" said Blue, running over to her. "If they have another striker-"
Amethyst shoved her to the side, and unlatched the window using her magic. A winged figure quickly flew back when she opened it, and her eyes narrowed.
"You can't run away like that!" yelled Amethyst, before blindly jumping out of the window, much to Blue and Pumpkin's horror. "It's your fault I almost cracked my skull open!"
Twilight came to a halt in the doorway of the ballroom, and tuned towards the Night Guards that had come with her and Spike.
"Secure the perimeter," she ordered, receiving nods in unison. "Spike, see if you can find any orichalcum or anything made of it in here."
"There's tons of it dusting the room," said Spike as he looked around. "And I think there's some shards on the table over there."
Twilight hurried over to where he had pointed, her horn gently glowing. There was a spot covered in a heavy layer of orichalcum dust, and she quickly and careful brushed it way to reveal Twirly lying half-unconscious on the table.
"Twirly!" cried Twilight. "Are you okay!?"
"Sparkle?" muttered Twirly in a daze. "Jat you?" Her wings twitched, and she winced in pain. "OW!"
"What is it?"
"My wings are burning!" she whimpered. "They really huuuuuuuurt!"
Twilight cautiously put her hoof to one of Twirly's wings, and felt that they were at room temperature. She blew off as much of the dust as she could, and carefully lifted Twirly to her hooves. Her wings stayed flopped down at her sides, with the ends lying on the table. Her antennae sagged down over her ears, and her eyes were bloodshot from the dust.
"What's the pink stuff?" she asked, blowing some more off her left antenna.
"A magic inhibiting mineral," replied Twilight. "Do your wings feel better now?"
"Yeah..." She shifted around uncomfortably. "Where's Amy?"
"She went to get the Elements of Harmony with two Night Guard members."
"Twilight!" Spike called out suddenly. "Get over here, quick!"
Twirly grabbed onto the corner of Twilight's mane as she sprinted over to Spike, who was staring out a window in shock. "What is- Oh my Celestia!"
"What? What is it?" Twirly carefully floated up to stand on Twilight's head, and then gasped loudly. "AMY!"
High up in the air, Amethyst was holding on tightly to a winged figure flying erratically through the air. He horn was glowing brightly, showing that the figure was wearing all black (even over their wings), likely to hide their identity. Amethyst was barely keeping her hooves latched around the flier's neck, and she kept getting whipped around in the air.
Twilight whipped the window open with her magic, and quickly wrapped her hooves around Spike's neck. "Come on, we need to move! Twirly, you stay here!"
"Just help Amy!" cried Twirly, jumping off of Twilight's head, and secretly grabbing onto her armor.
Spike jumped into the sky, flying as fast as he could towards Amethyst. But the flier ahead was far faster (plus Spike wasn't used to having to fly whilst carrying something as heavy as Twilight's armor and a pony at the same time), and then stopped their rough flying pattern and instead started going straight up into the air.
"Move it, Private!" snapped Blue from somewhere in the air. "This is no time for going slow!"
"Yes, ma'am!" Pumpkin squeaked out in the exact same manner as she had prior.
The flier, still struggling to release Amethyst's hold on them, dug their chin down into their hooves. From the pain that Amethhst could now feel scraping at her hooves, the flier was wearing some sort of metal mask. But her grip didn't waver, her strength fueled by a building anger.
"Tell me where my friends are!" yelled Amethyst, her horn sparking erratically. "Tell me what you did with them!" There was no response, as they passed higher than the top of the castle. "I said for you to tell me!"
The flier suddenly spiraled around in the air, just as Amethyst's hooves had begun to tighten in to nearly a choke-hold. Amethyst remained in the same position, and her anger faded away as fear took ahold. The knife was in their hoof, the string still tied around it. Glowing yellow eyes met her purple ones, and she heard a near-silent whisper. Though the voice was garbled through the mask, the words were clear.
"Don't think that you've won, Starshine Swirl."
The knife connected with the tip of her horn just before she released her grip.
Spike was not a pegasus by any means. He could fly, and that was where the biological similarities ended. He was a dragon, and dragons, simply put, could not in any way mimic the speed and agility of pegasi. He couldn't turn fast enough to react to Amethyst's fall, and she plummeted before even Twilight could even light up her horn.
Likewise, Twirly was not a pegasus by any means. She had wings, yet could not truly fly. The wind controlled her with no constraints, whilst a pegasus at least had minimal control. Yet she had an advantage that Twilight and Spike didn't have: a close understanding. She could see Amethyst's fear before the knife even came into view, and she acted as if she were capable of catching the unicorn, forgetting for a moment that she was in fact a breezie.
So within mere seconds, Amethyst was falling towards the earth with Twirly clutching onto her mane. Her horn was stinging in agony, a dangerously thick chip taken out of the tip. Had she a moment for self-analysis, she would have been relieved to see that the damage was no where near permanent.
"Amy, use your magic!" shrieked Twirly.
"Can't..." whispered Amethyst, sounding like she was going to faint at any moment.
"Amy, please! I can't catch you! I'm not strong enough!"
"Strength...? But you've got that..." Amethyst's eyes closed peacefully. Her horn lit up with an oddly controlled aura, with Twirly being surrounded in her magic. "I think... There's a reason you're called a breezie..." Twirly's antennae lit up, and her eyes widened. "So why would a pegasi need you give you wind when you can make it?"
A small burst of wind spiraled around Amethyst's mane, and Twirly's eyes narrowed in concentration. While Amethyst held her close in her magic, her wings twitched, and the wind spiraled down further. Her wings twitched even more, and glittering wisps of aquamarine magic marked out the path of the wind. Time seemed to have slowed down for the two, giving Twirly less to think about as the wind she created began to completely surround Amethyst. Their speed of descent lessened, and Amethyst's eyes opened, appearing blue for a moment. For a moment, she was held in place by the wind, and she and Twirly locked eyes. She was just about at half the height of one of the shorter castle towers, when the aura around her horn finally snapped due to the chip.
Amethyst continued on her fall, but this time she wasn't nearly as scared. She gave a comforting smile to Twirly, who remained hovering in the air above her, eyes still wide in surprise. Amethyst saw Pumpkin and Spike all still frantically diving down towards her, just before slamming down on the ground that was just slightly cushioned by the snow. She had landed on her side, being greeted with a bruised ear as opposed to a likely concussion. The weight of the armor had actually helped, as it had absorbed the bulk of the force exerted.
Pumpkin reached her first, quickly rolling Amethyst onto her back to relieve the pressure on her side. Twilight was beside her in a moment, her horn glowing brightly as she looked for any major visible injuries.
"Hey, Twilight?" asked Amethyst softly. "What if I had been wrong?"
Twilight paused from her analysis in confusion. "Wrong? About what?"
"Breezie magic." Her eyes glazed up towards the sky, the snow being blocked by Pumpkin's wing. Twirly had already glided down, and was standing dazed on Spike's head. "I've always wondered about it. After all, everypony's got magic. I mean, why wouldn't breezie magic have something to do with wind? So I took a chance and tied to pull Twirly's magic out myself. It worked, but what if it hadn't?" She frowned, and stared straight up at the stars. "How much would it have hurt everypony if I wasn't here?"
Nopony answered.
Blue landed roughly, her hooves smashing into the ground. "They got away," she snarled, her fangs glistening dangerously. "Couldn't even tell if they were a pegasus or a griffon with all that covering." She paced around angrily, seemingly oblivious to Amethyst being injured. "We've got no tracks other than 'has wings', and even then we don't even know if they were real wings! So help me Luna, I-"
"Yellow." She looked over at Amethyst for the first time since landing. "Their eyes were bright yellow." Amethyst thought back to the knife drawing near to her horn. "And they had hooves."
Blue sighed. "Better than nothing, I suppose. Are you okay? It looks like you were hit by a brick of marble." Pumpkin looked away nervously. "Private, is there something you're not telling me?"
"None..." Pumpkin looked down at the ground. "None of us caught the Elemental, ma'am. She managed to levitate herself for long enough to reduce the impact force, ma'am."
"Twirly caught me," corrected Amethyst. "Using her magic."
Blue arched an eyebrow. "Twirly?"
"Eh?" Twirly snapped out of her daze at hearing her name. "Somepony say my name?"
Her eyebrow somehow arched even higher, and she glanced over at Twilight. "Know anything about breezie magic, Sparkle?"
"They're studied about as often as dragons," responded Twilight.
Twirly muttered under her breath. "Like we haven't got one of each right here..."
"Then I'll just a take the Elemental's word. We've got more pressing matters, anyways." Something small suddenly hit Blue's head, and she winced lightly from the impact. "The hay?"
Spike picked up the object from where it laid in the snow, revealing it to be a large, rusty key. There was a tiny "D" etched onto the shaft, with an etching of a key below it, which seemed unnecessary. Blue grabbed it and looked at the etching on the shaft, and her eyes narrowed.
"This is the skeleton key for the dungeons," she said. "Which is supposed to be in the storage area." Her fangs glistened dangerously. "Meaning that everypony is in the dungeons, or we're being led on."
"Do we take the risk, Captain?" asked Pumpkin, while Twilight helped Amethyst back onto her hooves.
"This is the only clue we have, so yes." She then turned towards Spike (and Twirly). "We'll go check the dungeons, while you and the Elemental to obtain the Elements." Spike nodded. "Sparkle, Private, let's move."
Amethyst, Spike, and Twirly flew back in through the window that Amethyst had originally jumped out of, with her latching it shut with her magic. She dismounted Spike, with Twirly on her back, and the three approached the vault where the Elements were held.
Amethyst didn't hesitate, and immediately jumped up on her hindlegs so that her horn could reach the slot. Her muscles tenses in paranoid anticipation of her astraphobia being set off, but her cheek being nuzzled by a concern Twirly soothed her nerves.
One more she weaved through the ley lines, but the pathway was no where near as smooth as the first time. She had broken the core of the spell, meaning that, though it was still active, it was very unstable. That and the chip on her horn made it extremely hard to concentrate, yet she managed to reach the broken core and unlock the door.
The aura on her horn snapped once more, and she winced in pain. But Amethyst simply stepped back as the door swung open, revealing a violet chest decorated with gemstones. She walked up to the chest, not taking any more chances with the chip, and opened it with her hooves. The inside was lined with pink velvet, and the Elements of Harmony lay neatly inside.
She pulled out the Unity Element, the gemstone in the shape of her cutie mark radiating with magical energy. She passed the tiara to Twirly, who silently placed it on her. Amethyst then took out the other Elements, looping one around her neck and putting the other four on convenient notches on Luna's armor.
"What are those things?" asked Spike from outside the vault, breaking the silence. "They look really tasty..."
"These are the Elements of Harmony," she replied, walking out beside Spike. "Honesty, Laughter, Loyalty, Kindness, Generosity, and Unity."
"Why did you just list a bunch of positive characteristics?"
Amethyst actually laughed at that. The first time Spike had even seen her happy. "That's what the magic is the Elements is powered by. That's why they're called the Elements of Harmony."
She started to walk down the hall, but paused and looked behind. The Loyalty Element had fallen off, and was lying next to the chest. Still unwilling to do more magic than necessary, she walked back over and picked it up.
Barely a moment later another arrow streaked through the air, but this one wasn't aimed towards Amethyst. The door unprecedentedly swung shut, and Amethyst got the smallest glimpse of the arrow landing perfectly in the slot for her horn. Then everything was pitch black, as there were no lights.
"Twirly!" yelled Amethyst. "Spike!" But there was no reply.
Of course the vault is soundproof, she though in both irritation and anxiety. Can't let there be even the most unlikely way for anypony else to get in.
There was no inner slot for her to open the door, as she had observed so when the door had opened. It wasn't as if she were completely trapped, though. If Princess Celestia had woven her magic into the locking spell using her Element, then her magic was applicable for getting in and out. She and the Princess could unlock the vault, and the Princess's magic blocked out other kinds of magic. If her horn wasn't chipped and she wasn't utterly exhausted from overwhelming magic output, Amethyst could have teleported out. Granted, her teleportation was painfully rusty and she could only go the tiniest of distances (one body length to be precise), but she could have done so.
A tiny source of light began to provide minimal illumination, and Amethyst looked down to see that the moonstone was glowing. The timing seemed far too convenient for it to just be good luck, so there was likely some sort of enchantment embedded within. She glanced around the tiny room, the lack of any activity or sound making her acutely aware of how much her bruised ear hurt. With a sigh, Amethyst leaned up against the wall, and did the only thing she could: think and wait.
My aura fractures around the chip due to the lack of a complete base. But an aura is intended to cover around something, not wrap it, meaning that I can't bend it to compensate for the chip. Unless I bent the ley lines enough... Or would I have to reposition them? She groaned at her own lack of the in-depth knowledge required to figure out how to solve the situation she was in. What was it that Twilight was saying earlier? Something about defensive spells, but those really aren't helpful right now...
She leaned her head back, causing her Element to hit the wall and fall onto her lap. Staring at it for a moment, Amethyst then grabbed it in her hooves and held it so that the gemstone was covering over the chip. Her horn glowed in a weak aura, washing over her Element and not snapping. She smiled, and began concentrating on teleporting. The other five Elements began to glow softly, and then suddenly flared up brightly.
YouthinkthatyoucanbeartheElementsalone?
Amethyst's eyes widened in shock, and she looked around to try and find the source of the voice. More, more precisely, the chorus of voices, speaking as one.
You lack the heart within you to care for others. You are rude towards others. You cannot use the Kindness Element.
You lack the heart within you to give to others. You are selfish and keep all you desire. You cannot use the Generosity Element.
You lack the heart within you to stay with others. You flee for the sake of yourself. You cannot use the Loyalty Element.
"Stop it!" she yelled. "I don't care who you are, just stop!"
You lack the heart within you to be truthful to others. You lie to protect what you hide. You cannot use the Honesty Element.
"Stop, please!"
You lack the heart within you to have happiness be free. Your magic is based upon sadness. You cannot use the Joy Element.
Spike, with Twirly tucked under his wing, regretfully ran. They just had to get to Twilight. They had to.
The dungeons of Canterlot Castle had been built before standardized jails, and hadn't been used in decades. The abundant amounts of dust and grime were still cleared out reguarly, for the possible necessity of them. There were individual keys for each cell, all marked accordingly, and a single skeleton key that was stored away for safekeeping.
Well, it was supposed to be. Something that Blue continuously muttered under her breath as she, Pumpkin, Twilight, and several other Night Guard members approached the entry to the dungeons. All were at the ready for a possible trap or attack, with everypony equipped with weapons. Naturally, Twilight was equipped with her construct spears and swords.
At Blue's non-verbal command, they walked through the entrance into the poorly-lit caverns where the dungeons had been built. With all ears alert, the group walked down the hall towards the cells.
"Be prepared for anything," hissed Blue. "We don't know what we're-"
A rusty cell door suddenly flew forwards and smashed into the wall. Blue quickly looked around the corner to where the cell of the door was, just in time to see Limestone drop back down onto all fours. She had just kicked the door.
Limestone turned around, and noticed Blue staring at her in shock. "What?" she asked roughly. "I wanted out." Twilight peeked around the corner, and her eyes lit up at seeing Limestone. "Oh, hey, Twilight. 'Bout time you guys found us."
"Do you mean that everypony is here?" asked Twilight excitedly.
"Pretty sure." Limestone casually leaned up against the gaping hole where the door had once been, poking her hooves at the ground. "I don't think Sparkler is, but I assume that she was with you." She pointed down the hall. "Princesses are at the end."
Twilight grabbed the skeleton key from Blue, who was still staring wordlessly at Limestone. She went from cell to cell, each with various different ponies from the party lying unconscious, unlocking all of them.
"Those doors are magically reinforced!" Blue finally managed to sputter out. "They're practically welded to the cave! There is no possible way you could have-"
Limestone covered Blue's mouth with her hoof, with Blue observing a burnt ring of fur where one would wear a bracelet. "Don't trap a rock farmer in a cave of stone." Her eyes narrowed dangerous. "Especially not me." Blue took a step back.
Twilight made it to the final cell, and quickly unlocked it. Celestia, Luna, and Cadence were all there, all of them half-unconscious. Unlike everypony else, who seemed as if they had been knocked unconscious with orichalcum, the alicorns all were completely covered in the mineral. Their horns had four rings each (though Cadence actually had three), their wings were bound with even larger rings, and their hooves all had rings on them. Twilight quickly ran over, and began to pull the various rings off of them using one of the emeralds from Spike's necklace.
"Princess, -es!" she quickly added on. "Are you okay?"
"We art most certainly not!" yelled Luna, trying to not sound dazed. "We have been brought down to Our defeat by the merest contact of thine wretched weakness! Whomever shalt have done this to Us shalt be emprisoned by Our greatest of-"
Celestia very calmly placed her hoof over Luna's mouth, interrupting her rant. "We are fine, Twilight. More importantly, is everypony else unharmed?"
"Every-" started Twilight, before she was interrupted by Luna.
"Wherest be Unity?" she inquired. "We saw her talking with thee prior to the darkness."
"She went to get the Elements of Harmony, just in case. So every-"
"Then We shalt goeth to inform she of your success." Her wings opened broadly, and Luna flew out of the dungeons before Twilight could say another word.
Luna landed gracefully in the room where the Elements of Harmony were stored, having flown through the castle to reach it. She hadn't seen Amethyst anywhere, which was unexpected. The Elements of Harmony radiated such great power, so she should have been able to sense it, even in her weakened state.
She noted the slot in the door, and stepped forwards to see the arrow embedded in it. "What hast been interfering here?" She very carefully grabbed the arrowhead in her teeth, a rather difficult task due to the size of the slot, and tossed it on the ground. "More of the infernal substance! Quite an interesting location for such." She could feel the energy locked behind the door. "Ah... A clever scheme... Locking in the one needed with said artifacts and negating the exit. T'were thou meaning to entrap or to merely inconvenience? It matters not, as we know the key to entry."
Flying into the air as to be at the right height, Luna slid her horn into place, and began to feel the spell. It wasn't stable, had been been completely ripped apart, needing to be recast for stability. This made it far easier to break through the blockades she had requested that put in place, and she opened the door within seconds.
The Elements were scattered haphazardly across the ground, with the chest they were supposed to be in pushed over into the back corner. She recognized her old armor in the other back corner, until she finally saw Amethyst.
"Unity, art thou alright?" asked Luna, walking up to the crying unicorn and sitting down next to her. "Art thou injured?"
"It's fine," replied Amethyst, quickly wiping away her tears. "I mean- I'm fine."
Luna frowned in concern. "Thou can most certainly tellest-" She paused. "You can tell me." Amethyst looked down at the ground, and Luna took in a deep breath, and began to sing.
"Little one, why do you fear? Little one, why do you cry? You are strong. You are brave. There is a reason why... You bear that crown. There is a reason why... You bear that crown."
Amethyst finally looked up at the alicorn, her eyes red from crying. "I... needed that." She sniffled. "Did you just come up with it?"
"T'was a song that Tia used to sing to me. She first sang it to me when I was trying to raise the sun, as she had hay fever at the time."
She leaned up against Luna's side, staring up at the ceiling. "... Luna?"
Physically, magically, and emotionally exhausted, Amethyst had fallen asleep under Luna's comforting wing. Yet her sleep was not peaceful, as Luna could sense that something was amiss. With her dampened magic, it was hard to be sure of the problem until Amethyst started tossing back and forth in unrest.
T'would be a nightmare... thought Luna in concern. And whilst We hast gained control of our Moon once more, Our realm of dreams continues to elude Us... Yet We must still give Our greatest attempt and hope that the infernal lock thine Elements have placed upon Our powers can be breached. After all, wouldn't the Elements want to allow protection of one of the Bearers?
She took in a deep breath, and closed her eyes. A glowing spiral began to slowly ravel around the grooves of her horn, forming to an orb at the tip. Luna gritted her teeth as she struggled to form the necessary Connection Line, sparks jumping about from her attempt.
We art thine Princess of the Night! We protect the realm of dreams! We are not the Nightmare, We are Luna; and shall do that which We should be able to!
A thin stream of light traveled off from the orb at the tip of her horn, and slowly twisted through the air before touching Amethyst's forehead and completing the Connection Line. Luna's energy use waned as she relaxed, and entered into the unicorn's nightmare. Since she was still not at full strength, not every bit of Amethyst's mindscape was visible to her. However, the main setting, where the nightmare was taking place, could be seen enough as to comprehend what was occurring.
The location was Ponyville, and there was a deluge of rain pouring down. The sky was thick with dark clouds, lightning flashing menacingly. Amethyst was running around in a panic, wincing every time there was a crack of thunder and flash of lightning.
"Twirly!" she yelled out fearfully, completely drenched from the rain. "Twirly, where are you?" A lightning bolt hit the ground dead in front of her, and she shrieked and jumped backwards. "Twirly!"
Luna couldn't speak with Amethyst, as her magic was still too weak for such. Doing what she could, she reined in the storm as much as she possibly could, until it had been lowered down to regular rain with gray clouds. Amethyst's panic decreased as the intensity of the weather did, and she continued searching for her breezie friend. Luna pulled herself back into reality, and the Connection Line vanished.
Unity, why doth thou fear a storm so greatly? We can sense the heritage of Pegisan with that of Unicece... What could have occurred for something so simple to effect thee so that t'would become a nightmare?
Pushing the thought aside for the time being, Luna gently lifted Amethyst to her hooves using her wing, while also using her magic as to not wake her up. Amethyst slumped up against the alicorn's side, kept standing by her large wing. With a light nudge, the two started off to meet up with the others.
Amethyst was unceremoniously jolted awake as she tumbled down onto the floor of the Friendship Express, hearing the squealing of brakes outside answer as to how she had fallen. She was carefully helped to her hooves by Flitter within mere seconds, and moments later surrounded by the rest of her concerned friends.
"Are you okay?" asked Saffron.
"Y-yeah," replied Amethyst uneasily. "Wait, what happened? Last I remember was Luna getting me out of the Element vault..."
Fleetfoot frowned. "Aw mare, Twilight wass right..."
"Huh?"
Lotus began clarifying. "You got hit vith vun of ze orchid calcium arrows-"
"Orichalcum," corrected Limestone quickly.
"-and got knocked out by et. Twilight vas worried zat et might have cauzed some short-term memory loss since et hit ze base of your horn."
"Oh..." Amethyst's ears flattened down, her ignoring how much the bruises were aching.
"You feeling okay?" asked Flitter.
"I'm... good enough." Her gaze shifted to the window, the clouds in the sky appearing far darker than they really were. "I guess..."
"If you need ssupport, we're all here for you," said Fleetfoot.
Twirly gently placed her hoof against Amethyst's cheek, and whispered softly in her ear. "Jag är här."
Breezan for I'm here. Amethyst showed the faintest smile for a moment, before it faded away. "I know." Lotus began gently rubbing her back, smoothing out all of the stressful knots. "You girls are the greatest friends anypony could have."
The door to the Golden Oaks Library silently swung open, and Amethyst stepped into the peaceful darkness. Her dress was tossed carelessly over her back, with Twirly nestled in it, fast asleep. Luna's armor was held weakly in her fading and flickering magic, which she quietly placed down on the floor.
She climbed upstairs to her and Twirly's room, and walked over to the birdhouse that she had modified to be a bed. She levitated Twirly into her bed, and simply dropped her dress in front of her closet in exhaustion. She then walked back downstairs, grabbed Luna's armor in her magic once more, and headed down into the basement.
The basement was an area of the library that she rarely used. A thin layer of dust coated the plain floor, and she walked over to a loose floorboard in the corner. Amethyst grabbed it in her magic, and easily pulled it loose, revealing a wooden chest hidden beneath.
She wordlessly opened it, the chest having many various objects in it. Picture frames, a locket, a hooded cloak, a headband adorned with amethysts, and the blue chest that Twilight had brought her. She placed the armor in the wooden chest, and pulled out the blue one. She placed her hoof on the lock, hesitated, and then shook her head.
I'm not ready... Not for this... Sugar first... And then... A single tear slid down Amethyst's cheek. Then you. I promise.
Amethyst tucked the chests away, and placed the floorboard back down. She lingered for a moment, staring at the loose board, and then walked towards the stairs.
