> Mystery Scootaloo
>  by thedarktome
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 01 - It Frickin' Begins!...Sort Of
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Alright, Scoots....you got one shot at this," the little orange Pegasus whispered to herself. She squinted her eyes in focus, drowning out the cheering of her friends Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Diamond Tiara, staring down at the ramp in front of her, the stunt that she called......"The Stunt of The Century.

"You got this, Scoots!" Apple Bloom yelled from the platform setup for the group of three.

"You get 'em...it! You get it, Scootaloo!" Diamond Tiara cheered, jumping up and down.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Sweetie Belle asked worriedly, making the two others look at her annoyed. "I mean...that ramp looks pretty rickety."

"What are you talking about, Sweetie, it's fine!" Apple Bloom replied, motioning towards Scootaloo, who was counting down from ten.

"One of the planks is cracked," she retorted nonchalantly, pointing at the supposedly cracked board three feet away from the starting point. "Wait...nevermind, that's just two different boards pushed together. Definitely not safe."

"You're turnin' into ya' sister! Lighten up, this is Scootaloo, she'll make it!"

"I doubt that too! Look, the end point is eight feet away and the beginning ramp is only ten feet long! I really don't think she's gonna-"

"Could you hush, she'll be fine!" Diamond said, poking Sweetie Belle in the side. "You get 'em Scoots!"

"Three....two...one!" The Pegasus pushed her rear hoof back, making herself tilt and roll down the ramp, eventually going over the two boards that were pushed recklessly together.

"See, I told you she would be fine!" Diamond said, not at all ceasing Sweetie Belle's worries as she stared wide-eyed at the fast approaching jump.

"Go! Go! Go!" They started cheering.

Scootaloo's eyes widened along with her smile as she flew off the end, headed for the other side....that was too far away, making her gasp.

"She's not gonna make it," Sweetie said blandly.

"Sweetie, she's going to be fine, see?" Diamond said, pointing towards the filly.

"AHHH-" *CRASH*

"OHHHHHHH!" The three said, looking at the plank the adventurous Pegasus just crashed her head into. They all looked at each other before running off the platform towards the crash site.

"Ugghh....that hurt, man," she muttered, reaching up towards the large gash on her leg, wincing and pulling her hoof back.

"Scootaloo, are you alright?!" Apple Bloom yelled down to her, followed by the rest of them. "Answer me ya' flippy Pegasus!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

"No you're not, you got a gash on ya' leg!"

"I do? AWESOME!"

"Not cool!" Sweetie Belle yelled, picking her up in her magic and throwing her in the wagon with her scooter. After hooking herself up, she began to pull her back to town, the other two right behind her.

"Where am I going in this wagon?!"

"To the hospital!"

"WHAT! NO!"



"Okay, and how did this happen?" Nurse Redheart said, writing on her clipboard.

"I attempted to do a flip high jump with a vertical three sixty and a horizontal three sixty, complete with a grind that could tear the roof off your house!" Scootaloo yelled in excitement, making the four look at her in wonder. Redheart raised an eyebrow before glancing down at the unicorn who sighed in return.

"She did a jump on a Scooter," she translated blandly.

"It wasn't just any jump!" Scootaloo yelled, looking at her friends. "It was the most magnificent jump that-"

"-you banged and broke your leg and, I suspect, your head on," Apple Bloom finished. "We get it Scoots."

"Nuh uh!"

"Alright, well let's take a look at that leg," the nurse called, getting their attention. She walked out from behind the desk, making her to the filly in the wagon. Looking down at the wound, she knew what had to be done.

"It just needs some cleansing and stitching. Which is what I do." She picked up Scootaloo and placed her on the stretcher setup behind her before pushing her towards a room.

"Can we come?" Diamond asked.

"No, you girls stay here. This might get messy."

Ignoring their disappointed fawning, she rolled Scootaloo into a basic examination room with a table in the center, where she placed her on top of. She told her to lay down and get comfortable while rummaging through the drawers, looking for the kit.

Thirty minutes later, the gash was sealed, allowing the nurse to cut the thread.

"Alright, Scootaloo now that that's over, we gotta tell your parents. Can you tell me their names?" Scootaloo stopped admiring her sealed leg, her eyes going wide as she turned her head slowly to Nurse Redheart.

"I uhhh....I can't remember their names right now," she stammered.

"Well you did hit your head too," she sighed. "Let me go check your file." She walked out of the room and down the hall, leaving Scootaloo alone to look for an escape route. Every single time.

"Once again....gotta run out the window," she whispered, hopping onto the ledge where the window sat and pushed it open. After stepping outside, she closed it back as much as she could before jumping down onto the ground, flinching from the pain that shot up her leg. "God, that hurts. I should really stop trying to do tricks."

After looking around, she crawled through some bushes behind the building, making sure to not make a sound that could catch the nurse pony's attention if she looked out the window to find her. After a few more minutes of dodging other ponies she quickly made her way to the outskirts of town towards the whitetail woods, where she walked five minutes in and jumped onto a very large tree.

"Ponies shouldn't be able to do this," she muttered to herself, climbing up the tree and onto a large branch. "Aww who am I kidding, ponies shouldn't be able to use magic either but there they go." She walked into a large hole in the tree, a previous nest for some falcons that lived there before but now served as her primary home ever since she arrived there in the past.

It was so long ago, six years to be exact. Where she lived at before it had gotten violent to the point where they had to leave. But she was the only one who made it. She lost both of her parents, she'll never forget that. The ponies of Ponyville were never going to find out about that. She's kept it a secret for seven years she could keep it that way for more. Unless ponies begin asking questions around mother's and father's day, where she usually avoids everypony. Hopefully, nopony's noticed that.

She sighed and looked out the doorway of her makeshift home, at the leaves blowing off the branches, signalling the start of fall. Another cold winter coming, she thought. Last winter, she was cooped up in the tree for three days straight with it wide open, having only a very small fire to keep her company. Before it would snow and the winter would approach, she would gather up as much food as she can and camp out, waiting for the cold to be done with as much as she could handle before it was time for school. She didn't really care for the school here, going only because of Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Besides that, it would be the last place she ever goes.

And so far, she could feel the cold moving in. The weather ponies were moving the clouds in to block out the sun and have the cold intensify, which was more than likely to happen in the next few days. Of course that was the least of her problems.

The main one was the animals. She had the biggest home out in the woods, so far that she could tell. All the other trees were made to fit the tiny birds. So the hard part was claiming it as hers. She could always dig a hole in the ground, having learned how to do that the hard way after having found no place after the start of winter. As well as keeping a very special place in Ponyville.

She had dug a hole underneath one of the houses in town. Really risky since no one knew about a homeless filly running around. They would probably over react. She was already scared about what would happen if somepony had found her. They'd ask questions, turn it into some giant project to figure her out. They'd look her up, find the Scootaloo of this world, and learn that she's alive and that there's actually two of them. But what all of them didn't know....was that she had magic on her side to help with that.

A few years ago, she had somehow gotten a bit of magic. Okay, a bit was a huge understatement, she had an insane amount of magic. One day, she was by herself walking around deep into the Whitetail Woods when she got a migraine. A big one that had her crying out. Something was telling her to yell to get it out. So she did just that. But it wasn't just any yell. It was the canterlot Royal Voice that only Alicorns get. They use their magic to enhance their voice.

But this was different. This was far louder. She was pretty sure that everyone in Equestria had heard and felt the vibrations. When she opened her eyes from the yelling, the headache was gone, but she was also in a very large crater that had left one third of the white tail woods dead. Nopony was going through there.

Of course she'd never tell them about that, because that'd get the princesses involved. Including Twilight Sparkle who wouldn't give up until she figured it out. She was always the alicorn nosey box. She never left well enough alone. Butt out, princess!

Suddenly, the tree Scootaloo was in shook, making her squeal quietly. Wait....squeal? "Why am I squealing?" She asked herself once the shaking stopped. "What was that?"

Her ears swiveled towards the front of the tree as a round of huffing below and a roar made her jump out of her thoughts. A bear. A freakin' bear was shaking the tree.

"Are ya' sure she's in there, Fluttershy?" A country accent asked below. Wait, Fluttershy? Applejack? What were they doing there.

"Harry's senses are never wrong," A timid voice answered. Yep, Fluttershy.

"I wonder how she got in that tree. I never heard of a pony who can climb before." Twilight?! What?! What are they doing here?! Maybe if she just kept quiet, they'd—

"HEY, SQUIRT!" Rainbow yelled, poking her face into the tree and startling Scootaloo so much that her hidden magic burst out in the form of a bolt, and hit Rainbow square in the face. "OW! WHAT WAS THAT?" She yelled, falling down to the ground.

"Oh my gosh, I have to get out of here," Scootaloo muttered frantically. "I can teleport out, I can teleport out." She closed her eyes and focused on her destination, the beginning of the woods, and sent out the magic. She disappeared in a white flash and reappeared right where she wanted to be.

Looking around, she realized she was all alone, making her sigh in relief. "Phew....that was close. But I'm not safe yet. Gotta get away for awhile. Those ponies just ruined my winter by simply pushing my tree around." She huffed, turned and ran back towards the town, trying her hardest to control her magic.

Whenever she uses her magic, it would burst again at random points out of her control, like a constantly dripping faucet. You can turn it on and turn it back off, but sometimes, water will drip out. For instance, right now she just changed into a bunch of black smoke and flew forward a few yards before going back to her true form right when she ran into the town.

"Don't know what that was," she muttered, trotting past Sugarcube Corner. "But it got me here faster. And undetected."

"SCOOTALOO, STOP!" The filly froze before realization came into her head.

"Why am I stopping?!" She shook her head and began running from the group of ponies after her, weaving in and out of ponies walking past, trying to confuse her pursuers.

"Gosh darn it, she's fast!" Applejack yelled, watching as the filly jumped over a stand and into an alley. "She's goin' in there! Rainbow, stop her!"

Scootaloo huffed as she neared the exit, looking over her shoulder at Princess Twilight who just jumped in. Why did she never have any guards to do something? Don't worry about that, focus on what's in front of you!

She turned back around and gasped before sliding right into Rainbow Dash's hooves. Yelping, she started to push her away, but Rainbow had a strong grip. Come on, magic! Work!

"Ha! Gotcha! Stop squirming, Scoots, we just wanna ask some questions!" She stopped squirming and focused on teleporting again before the others stopped around Rainbow.

"Scootaloo," Princess Twilight huffed, ignoring Scootaloo's grunts. "How come you—"

*Zap* Scootaloo disappeared in a flash again, making the Princess gasp. And look around like the rest of the mane six. "Did she just....tele—" The filly fell on top of Twilight's head after teleporting thirteen feet in the air, then jumped back up and zipped right out of that alleyway, continuing the chase.

"Scootaloo! Stop!" Rainbow yelled, taking to the air again while the others pursued on foot.

"How.....how in Equestria did she teleport?" Princess Twilight asked herself, watching Scootaloo weave through ponies. She suddenly turned into black smoke and split off going farther ahead before coming back together, making Twilight gasp in realization. "BLACK MAGIC! SHE'S SOME TYPE OF ENEMY!"

"Great, wait for it," Scootaloo muttered, looking ahead of her.

"Someone took Scootaloo!"

"There it is. I need my scooter, and I need it now." She adjusted her path turning left onto another street where Twilight teleported in front of her, horn a glow with magic.

"Stop right there, pony!" She ordered, placing a bubble on and around the filly. "Where's Scootaloo?"

"I AM Scootaloo, now let me out!" She started hitting the bubble with her hooves, her magic having stopped for a while.

"Yeah right!" Applejack said, pointing an accusing hoof up at the filly. "I know when a pony lyin' and you lyin' through yo' teeth!"

"Then you're not really good at your job!" Scootaloo retorted, making Applejack gawk. Ignoring that, Scootaloo began to buck the shield. "Let me out of here Princess Twilight! I mean it!"

"Not until you tell us who you are, darling," Rarity said, getting her attention.

"If you would be so kind as to give us—-"

"Buck that, where's Scootaloo?!" Rainbow yelled, flying up to the bubble and cutting off Fluttershy. Scootaloo gasped, doubling back at the intense stare Rainbow was giving her. It was so full of rage.

"L-l-let me out of here!!" She yelled, hitting the bubble harder to get away from that look.

"Not until you tell us where Scootaloo is!" Twilight told her.

"I am Scootaloo!"

"No you're not, Pegasi can't summon spells, where is Scootaloo?!" Applejack yelled.

"I am Scootaloo!"

"WHERE IS SCOOTALOO?!" They all yelled, except Fluttershy.

"AIIIEEEE...." Scootaloo passed out in the bubble in the middle of the yell, confusing the group and more importantly Twilight.

"Why did she.....I'm taking us back to the castle. Hopefully she can give us some answers there."



Scootaloo groaned, batting away the hoof that continued poking her while she slept. The best sleep she's ever...wait....hoof?

She cracked an eye open, looking straight into the curious magenta eyes of Celestia. She gasped and jumped up, banging her head on top of the violet box she was held in.

After recovering from that and checking her head for any bumps, she refocused her attention back on the problem at hand. Being in a box. "Let me out of here! Are you nuts?! Let me out, let me out!"

"Twilight.....why is Scootaloo in a box?" Celestia asked nonchalantly, looking at her student who was staring intently at the filly.

"That's not Scootaloo," she explained, catching the filly's attention. "She was using magic. Light and dark. We were searching for her after the nurse at the hospital told us that whenever she was brought in and asked about her parents, she'd leave. And this was the fifth time. So we decided to track her down and ask her some questions about it before she punched Rainbow in the face and disappeared again."

"I didn't punch her!" Scootaloo denied. "I just got scared when her face took on a Pinkie Pie expression. That's horrifying enough when Pinkie's doing it."

"So we went on a chase," Rainbow said ignoring Scootaloo. "And she started teleporting around, turning into smoke and stuff."

"That ain't Scootaloo your highness!" Applejack stated, pointing a hoof at where Scootaloo was previously, all completely unaware of her teleporting out of the containment and creeping towards the door of the library in the castle. "As the Element of Honesty, I know when a pony lyin' and she lyin' through her teeth."

I wanna prove her wrong so bad right now, Scootaloo thought as she walked out of the room and bumped into Spike.

"Oh hey Scootaloo," He greeted as she walked around him.

"Hey Spike, gotta run!" She greeted quickly and quietly, dashing off down the hall and away from the crazy ponies. He watched her run away in confusion before shaking his head and walking into the library.

"So then we kept asking and asking before she passed out. Then Twilight brought her here," Rarity finished.

"I must admit, this is a strange case," Celestia sighed. "And a Pegasus teleporting? Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, Princess!" Rainbow said before turning back to the box. "Now tell us who.....aw buck, where'd she go now?"

They all turned towards the box and gasped. "How'd she get out? That's an advanced spell that nopony can get out of!" Twilight yelled in disbelief. "This is what I mean, Celestia! That is not Scootaloo!"

"And where'd she go?!" Applejack inquired.


***


"Thanks, Pinkie!" Scootaloo said, handing the excitable baker a few bits while she walked away with her cupcake.

"You're welcome!" The pink pony replied before hopping into the back.

The customer pushed open the door and walked out, taking small bites out of her vanilla cupcake. God, these things were delicious. Back home they were her favorite snack, almost her favorite food. She could eat these all—

"Scootaloo! There you are!" She stopped and opened her eyes to see Diamond Tiara, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle standing in front of her with her scooter. "Where have you been?" Apple Bloom asked in worry.

"Held captive in Twilight's castle, I'm pressing charges. You got my scooter!" She took another bite out of her cupcake and walked over to it, checking for damages.

"Yeah! Princess Twilight was lookin' for ya' after the nurse said you always bolt after they ask about your parents," Sweetie Belle confirmed.

"Yeah, what's up with that?" Diamond Tiara asked suspiciously.

Scootaloo stopped petting her scooter to continue eating her cupcake. Once she was done, she made a little exit scene. "Oh no! It's almost midnight! I have to go, see ya!" She hopped on her scooter and buzzed away, leaving her confused friends behind.

"The second she said midnight at eleven in the day I knew she was hiding something," Apple Bloom commented, shaking her head as they watched her speed off.

"Hear here," Sweetie agreed.

After a few minutes of riding and looking around to make sure no one was watching, Scootaloo hopped off her scooter and rolled it into the alley with her before looking around again, including to the sky. Rainbow Dash could be watching her from anywhere.

After assuming it was safe, she moved aside a wooden box covering a very large hole in the ground that she stepped into with her scooter. Once in, she turned around and pulled the box back over the hole, shrouding her in darkness as she continued her way on down until she entered a very large area.

She grabbed two objects she felt with her front right hoof and struck them together, creating a small spark. A second time. Third. Fourth before the sticks set in the middle of the area caught flame, lighting the room. The smoke went through a vent above that went out into a different alley. No one would ever notice it.

She grabbed her scooter and rolled it towards one side of the area, where there was a blanket and books while on the other side were pictures drawn by her....as well as photographs of her family that she brought with her. They took up the whole wall. There was approximately one hundred twenty one, she could count them all within a second. Thanks to that magic. Or whatever the heck she had contracted.

Sitting down and facing the wall, Scootaloo stared in sadness at the photo of one of the full family pictures, her fourth birthday, from across the room. She felt a sense of nostalgia while she looked on, the light of the orange flames dancing off her stoic expression before she slowly walked over and looked at it closer.

Her young face had vanilla icing on it, after eating half of the cake on her own. She remembered that. She didn't know how, but she did. On top of the desert, the text said Happy Birthday Lareen Carson. She had long magenta hair back then. Long enough to make any girl jealous at the age of four.

Most ponies don't remember what it was like so long ago, only bits and pieces of it. How she could remember everything was confusing to even try and think about. So she just let it happen. Just let it flood her mind.

Sighing, she darted her eyes away from the photographs and towards the blanket and the books which she would use as a makeshift pillow. This was her sanctuary. Her safespot. She didn't really use this place except on mother's and father's day, all holidays, and whenever she needed to hide. It wasn't as accessible like the other homes she had set up around town.

There was a bundle of wood in the corner for more firewood during the winter. And a sandpile in another for her.....waste and stuff.

Nopony else was allowed down here. Nopony. The memories were becoming overwhelming. She sobbed silently, placing a small hoof on one of the pictures. There was a grown woman with orange skin, blue hair, and magenta eyes on the left and a man with yellow skin, blue eyes, and red hair on the right. Along with a twelve year old girl in the middle with orange skin, magenta eyes, and magenta hair in the middle. She was sixteen when she was forced into the portal, which changed her age.

They were all wearing the biggest smiles they could manage, along with light green shirts that read, "The Carsons". Vanessa Carson, William Carson, and Lareen Carson, their daughter.

"I miss you, mom....dad," she whispered, tears falling down her cheeks as she took it down from the wall and walked over to her makeshift bed with it. She settled down with it in her hooves and fell asleep. Dreaming about what could have been.



The embodiments of the Elements of Harmony followed Winona into town, watching as she sniffed the ground leading to an alleyway all the way from the castle.

"So she came through here," Twilight surmised as they walked in, being as quiet as they could. "She tried to out think us by weaving in and out of alleys. This pony's good, but not good enough."

Winona stopped at a box and sniffed around, confusing Applejack before she tried moving it. "Looks like she's underneath that," she whispered.

Twilight used her magic and moved it to the side quietly, revealing the giant burrow.

"She went underground," she whispered, looking in the hole. At the very bottom she could see a light flickering. "And she's in there. Rainbow, you're up."

They looked over to see the Cyan Pegasus rubbing her hooves together before stalking down the hole. It was big enough to fit Celestia so it fit her just fine.

On the way down, she heard light snoring. Perfect, she was asleep. Easy to grab. Once she reached the bottom, she poked her head out and grinned,l. "Scootaloo" was in the midst of sawing logs under a blanket and using books as pillows.

She quietly walked over, preparing to grab her before she took on a confused expression. She had tear streaks on her cheeks and she was holding a white paper that, upon closer expression, was a photograph. She could make that out easily. She couldn't really see what the photo was because it was too close to her coat. Was she crying over the photo? What was on it?

Before she could ponder further, the wall next to her caught her eyes. She glanced over and gasped lightly at all the pictures. There had to be over a hundred of them!

Looking down at the filly for a second to make sure she was still sleeping, she stood up and walked over to the photographs to figure them out. But she didn't understand what she was looking at. It was of....things that looked nothing like ponies. But one of them...bore a strong resemblance to Scootaloo. The bigger ones....must've been parents while the shorter one must've been the filly!

And there were so many. It looked like...like a....shrine. Maybe Twilight knew something about this. Rainbow looked over her shoulder at Scootaloo before grabbing one of them and going back towards the entrance, walking out.

The group looked towards the hole at the sound of shuffling, expecting Rainbow to have the little pegasus, only to see her coming out empty handed with a piece of paper in her mouth.

"What in tar—" Rainbow placed a hoof over Applejack's loud mouth while she turned to Twilight's confused face, motioning for her to block the hole again.

"Why didn't you grab her?" Applejack asked once it was in place. "And what's that in yer' mouth?"

Rainbow turned around and passed the picture to the princess. "Do you know what those are?"

Twilight took it and looked at it before nodding. "Yeah, they're...." She looked around for Lyra before whispering, "Humans. From Earth. I saw them when I went to grab my crown from Sunset Shimmer when she was evil. Why?"

"Well..... there's a whole wall down there with over a hundred of them on it, portraying only these three humans. And this one—" She motioned towards the orange, magenta-haired girl. "Bears a strong resemblance to Scootaloo."

The others gathered around looking at them to see what she was talking about. "She was holding one down there, but I also noticed tear streaks on her face and holding a photo of her own while she was sleeping. She was crying."

Twilight looked from her then back to the photograph while she continued. "I think...I think it was a shrine."
> Chapter 02 - Unknown Restoration
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And Rainbow found this photo," Twilight finished. After Rainbow Dash informed the group of their findings, they all came back to the Castle of Friendship so she could tell Celestia what happened. They were all situated once more in the library, telling everything they could. Well, Rainbow anyway.

"There was a whole wall of them," she said, dramatizing what she saw. "Of birthdays, smiles, and a whole bunch of other stuff that didn't make any sense. There was a photo of them walking in front of a building called Honeycomb Movie Theater, whatever that is. That seemed the happiest."

"I don't know what that is," Twilight commented. "But if it's human stuff, I'm sure Sunset knows."

"So....are you saying that Scootaloo could be a.....human?" Celestia asked. Rainbow nodded her head eagerly.

"That's what it looked like."

"But that doesn't make any sense," Celestia asked. "From what I've been told, Scootaloo's been here long before the mirror to earth was activated. When Sunset came through. There's no other way to Earth except through that portal. It's impossible for her to get through without us noticing."

The group got quiet before Twilight took on a eye-slitted serious expression. "Then we take this to the one pony that has never made sense. They would have an explanation. And possibly records about it."

Rainbow looked at her quizzically before she gasped. "You....you don't mean..... That's insane, Twilight! Her prices alone will drain us all of our sanity!"

"We have no other choice!" Twilight retorted before looking at everypony else in complete focus. "It's time to see......the P.I." A loud thunderous sound filled the room while the others gasped. After that dramatic moment passed, Twilight raised an eyebrow at what that loud noise was a second ago.

"Was that thunder? Why is there thunder?" She asked, looking around.

"Oh, sorry!" They all looked towards the doorway at Spike, who was picking up a metal trash can lid. "I dropped this while I was uhh....walking by."



In a room, on the second floor of a building that made absolutely no sense in a town that was WAY too friendly, there were seven ponies. Including Princess Celestia, all looking at the silhouette of a messy maned pony tossing something from her left hoof to her right hoof on the opposite side of a desk that contained only a lamp, positioned away from the pony and pointed forward slightly, leaving their identity a complete mystery.

There was a clock behind her, the only thing making noise in the room at the moment. Tick......tock......tick......tock.

"So," she said, breaking the silence and taking a bite out of the something that was in her hoof. "You want to know......about strange happenings in Equestria."

"Yes," Twilight said while she took another bite out of the item. "And you're the only pony in all of Equestria that keeps up with this.....Madam P.I."

She nodded, her mane bouncing in the shadows. "My prices aren't cheap, Sparkle." She took another bite out of the item, chewed, and swallowed before continuing. "You know what I want."

"Please, is there any other way, I don't wanna go insane!" Rainbow whined. The mysterious mare chuckled before stuffing the last bit of the item into her mouth.

"My.....prices.....will not make you insane, Rainbow Dash," she replied. "Just curious. I have information on everything that has occured around Equestria. From the Badlands to the Frozen North, all of it. On record. What exactly are you looking for, Princess?"

"Portals."

The mare placed a vanilla folder onto the table titled, "Sightings: Portals Q3E."

"That's everything on Portals in Equestria, Quarter three this year. Fall. There is only two occurrences, so the price is simple. I'll be using the Castle of Friendship for this one, Ms. Sparkle."

Twilight placed her hoof on the folder to drag it towards her before the investigator's hoof stopped it. "Do we have a deal?"

Twilight looked towards the others who sighed and nodded. She turned around and nodded to the mare.

"I want to hear you seal it," she demanded, not letting go. Twilight inhaled sharply, not believing her ears. "Seal it, Ms. Sparkle. And the information is all yours. And do the motions."

Twilight sighed before looking back up at her. "Cross my heart....hope to fly.....stick a cupcake in my eye."

The pony reached up and pulled the cord on a bigger and brighter lamp, revealing herself.

"Thanks, Twilight!" Pinkie Pie said, dropping the act and pushing the folder to her. "The information's all yours! Wanna cupcake? I have soooo many back here! Gummy made them this morning!" She lifted her tail that the reptile was currently biting on, having absolutely no other motion.

"No thanks, Pinkie. When is that massive party?" She responded.

"Tomorrow. It's going to blow your mind!" She dramatized, throwing her hooves out.

"Yeah, I was afraid of that," Rainbow commented before turning to the Princesses. "If I die tomorrow, turn my house into a museum."

"All of our houses are going to be museums, and the castle is going to be the biggest memorial and tourist attraction," Twilight replied, standing up. "Thanks Pinkie."

The group turned around and walked out of Pinkie's closet in her room on the second floor of Sugarcube corner.

"You're welcome, Twilight!"



Scootaloo woke up a few hours later, the fire begining to dwindle and the cold biting at her. She squinted her eyes, and looked around. Nothing was disturbed that she could see. Good.

She checked the gash on her leg, observing the stitching holding it together so it could heal. It still stung, but it didn't hurt. Once again, good riddance. Time for dinner. She slid the blanket off of her and placed the photo on top of the book before the flame went out, shrouding the area in darkness while she made her way to and out the tunnel.

Pushing the box aside, she poked her head out and began shivering. It was a cold night. Stupid fall. Always making her extremely uncomfortable.

Brushing it off, she got out of the burrow and pushed the box over it, keeping it out of sight once more. After that task, Scootaloo walked to the end of the alley, peeking out to check for anypony out there. Luckily, there was not a soul. It was night, which meant everypony was asleep. The moon was out thankfully, which was the only thing actually lighting her path.

Finding it safe, she darted out and towards another alley, keeping herself hidden from pony eyes. Or so she thought.

Twilight looked down from the rooftop of one of the buildings while Rainbow Dash flew out of a nearby cloud, watching her while Rarity peeked out from above a nearby empty vegetable stand. "The Orange has left the basket," she muttered before Pinkie popped out beside her, wearing camouflage and looking through a pair of binoculars.

"I knew she'd wake up eventually," Twilight whispered to Rainbow Dash who landed beside her. Scootaloo ran directly below them, coming out of the town and headed towards the farm.

Twilight lit her horn, sending out a signal to one of the animals nearby that could actually hear it. Winona's ears perked up before she lifted her head from the roadside. She whimpered and stood up, her tail wagging as she began barking towards the road that came to the farm.

Applejack sighed and looked through a pair of binoculars, seeing a small object running up the path to her farm with a few more behind it, two of them high in the air.

"She's headed right for the farm," Twilight presumed, looking at her from the air. "AJ, drop the bag, come on."

The pony in question pushed a bag of fresh apples, three of them, out onto the path Scootaloo was running on before going back into cover with Winona, listening to the tiny pats getting closer and closer.

Scootaloo slowed down, preparing to turn when she saw the little bag. Raising an eyebrow, she looked around, making sure no one was around before she approached it.

"She's going for it," Rainbow whispered, her and Twilight landing on a loose cloud above, watching the area below lit by the full moon. "Take it, Scoots."

The filly stopped at it before looking around again. Finding no ponies around, she sniffed the bag and opened it, seeing three red apples. "Hmmm......why were these randomly in the open? Totally illogical, suspicious.....but tempting at the same time. Especially at this time of night."

Applejack raised an eyebrow from inside the bush right beside Scootaloo. She sounded like a full grown mare! What was with that?

She sniffed one of the apples tentatively, shivering from the cold before she took a bite, examining the taste and status.

"Unblemished," she said. "Non-deficient and good on the taste buds. Satisfactory and can be added to tonight's haul." She closed the bag and grabbed it with her teeth before walking......into the empty apple orchard across from the main farm, confusing the five ponies watching.

"What is she doing?" Rarity asked as they regrouped. "There's nothing in there."

"I don't know, but let's follow her," Twilight said. "It could be dangerous." The group quietly followed the tiny hoofsteps Scootaloo created, taking cover behind trees before the filly stopped in a clearing.

She looked around before planting her hooves in the ground and focusing. The group poked their heads out and turned to Twilight, who shrugged in return, not understanding either before Scootaloo grunted, catching all of their attention.

She got a little louder, making them all look and lean forward in anticipation. Suddenly, she let out a yelp as a silver wave cascaded down from her forehead to her hooves, the ground, and climbed up the surrounding trees before she sat down, doing nothing.

"What did she just do? And was that magic......again?" Twilight whispered to Rarity beside her.

"I don't know, darling," she whispered back. Looking back, she gasped lightly and pointed at one of the trees. "Look."

One of the trees beside Scootaloo began shaking before she grabbed the apple bag and dragged it over to the tree. One of the branches on the tree shook violently before something sprouted from the tip. It was multicolored, round, and made Applejack gasp in disbelief. This only happened once a year!

"A zapapple," she muttered as it grew to full size. Scootaloo walked and jumped onto the tree, climbed it, and plucked the apple off, throwing it down into the open bag.

"Look," Twilight said motioning towards the other trees. They began shaking before growing more of the apples, ten of them. How was this possible?! Zapapples only grew in the Everfree forest!

Scootaloo plucked them all and dropped them into the bag below before jumping back down and taking a bite out of one. "Non-deficient with a high volume of fructose and sucrose, and a medium volume of citric acid. And obviously, natural sugars. No wonder they're good. You're mine now." She tied the bag up while all the observers shared a glance of disbelief.

"What.....the.....buck?" Twilight muttered before they took cover again. Scootaloo walked past them with the bag trailing behind her, pulling it with her teeth.

Twilight and Rainbow flew up, landing on a cloud while everyone else stalked her, trying to see what she was going to do with those apples. They followed her all the way back into town and into the alley, where she jumped back in the hole and placed the cover back over it.

"She.......she created zapapples....like they were nothin'!" Applejack exasperated, confusing the others.

"Are you......offended?" Rarity asked.

"I...I...I-I don't know, should I be? Granny Smith works hard to get them Zapapples to grow and all she does is.....I guess a tiny wave of magic and poof! They're right there and ripe for the pluckin'!"

"Did you hear her vocabulary?" Twilight asked. "Non-deficient? Fructose and Sucrose? Medium volume? Citric acid? Natural sugars?! Does she even know what they mean?! We're going to confront her again tomorrow. We have to ask her questions about all of this. A Pegasus using magic who is seemingly smarter than Rainbow Dash is a red flag. Applejack, we're coming to your farm tomorrow where she always meets her friends on Sunday."



The next morning was a little warm, perfect for a Sunday. There was dew in the air and the ponies were once again beginning to go about their weekly business.

For a local farmer though this business was to investigate this filly. She knew Celestia ordered them not to approach her.....but they needed to know more. Applejack stopped by the gate of her farm, looking at the main road where Scootaloo will no doubt come from. Waiting.

After a few more minutes, she heard the buzzing and saw a tiny dust cloud in the distance headed down the path. She's coming. Scootaloo took another bite out of a Zapapple, the second one that morning, and shivered from the wondrous taste.

"Oh my god, these are great," she moaned. "And I get them for free." She took a few more bites and looked back up to see a pony in the road. Just sitting there. Applejack. What was she up to? She didn't trust these ponies after they literally yelled in her face and chased her all over town.

She screeched to a halt a few feet away, sending dirt flying up, and just stared at her, who stared back in return. "What do you want?"

"Scootaloo, I need ta' have a word with ya," she said nonchalantly, not moving.

"About what?"

"Well for one, that zapapple you're holdin'." The filly's eyes widened before she glanced down at the half eaten fruit. Shrugging, she took another bite.

"What about it? You're gonna kidnap me and start yelling in my face again?" She asked with a chuckle.

"No, but we are gonna ask some questions." She looked behind her to see Twilight approaching with the others. "Some very important questions," Twilight clarified.

"Well, don't expect an answer." She tried to leave again only to find her Scooter immobile, bound by Twilight's magic.

"Scootaloo, this is important! You're a Pegasus that uses Unicorn magic, light AND dark!" Twilight said, trotting in front of her with a smile on her face. "This could revolutionize the Pegasi community! Scootaloo....how did you use magic?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" She jumped off her scooter and began to run before a rope flew over her and tied her legs, making her fall.

"You're not goin' anywhere," Applejack said, walking over to her. "Not until you tell me where you got got that Zapapple from."

"You just put me in a lasso!" Scootaloo yelled. "And before that you cornered me! And before that, you put me in a box in Twilight's castle! And before THAT, you were yelling in my face!!! Take your questions to somepony else, I'm not answering any of your questions!"

"You're not going-" *ZAP* Scootaloo teleported onto the farm, catching their attention and making Twilight groan. She teleported in front of the filly, making her slide to a stop. "Scootaloo, stop!" *ZAP*

She teleported around Twilight and continued running before Rainbow swiped her up. *ZAP* She teleported out of her arms and, unfortunately, all the way behind her on Applejack's back. She jumped off and ran to her Scooter. Twilight was getting a little desperate. She had information that could change the way ponies thought. Acted. Behaved. She needed that knowledge!

"Stop or I'll......I'll have you arrested for trespassing! As well as reveal what you are!"

The filly screeched to a halt and slowly turned her head. "What are you talking about 'trespassing?' And 'what I am?'"

"We saw you come here last night....and make those zapapples." Her eyes widened before she jumped off the scooter, looking at them horrified.

"You......you were following me?" She asked. "Why were you following me?"

"To see what you were doin' at ten o'clock at night," Applejack asked. "And as for who you are......we know you're a human Scootaloo."

It's like her mind just froze. How could they know that?! She left no visible clues about her origins! Everything about her was......they didn't......

"You....you went in my sanctuary," she said in disbelief, her eyes narrowed. "You went inside my......"

"We had no other-" Scootaloo jumped on the farmer with incredible strength, knocking her onto her back.

"YOU HAD NO RIGHT TO GO IN THERE!" She yelled while Rainbow tried to pull her off. "THAT IS A PLACE OF RESPECT AND YOU VIOLATED IT!"

Twilight levitated her off, allowing Applejack to get up. Tears were coming down the filly's face while she tried to reach her, her hooves swiping out at her.

"Scootaloo, we found you a threat to the ponies of Ponyville," Princess Twilight explained, approaching her. "So we tracked you down in the burrow and we sort of......encountered some things."

"You......you invaded my privacy?! What kind of Princess are you?!" Scootaloo yelled in anger, pointing a hoof at her. "I'm telling Celestia about this!!" She teleported out of their sights and Twilight's grip again, getting yards away from them and running back into town. She didn't even care about the scooter. Along the way, she noticed she was getting that headache again that caused that mega scream years ago. But this was much stronger. How she remembered? She didn't know!!!

Panting, she darted around a group of ponies walking past, nearly knocking them off their hooves. No doubt Rainbow and Twilight were in pursuit of her. If only she knew how to properly use this magic she had gotten ahold of years ago, they would have left her alone by now.

The Princess suddenly landed in front of her, causing her to yelp and slide to a stop. "Scootaloo, stop! We just want to-"

"I don't care what you want, you stupid pony!" She tried to run the other way, instead bumping into a pair of Cyan hooves.

"Scootaloo, you need to calm down," Rainbow said

"I'm not calming down until you all leave me alone!" She yelled, pointing an accusing hoof at all of them. The others seemed to have just arrived and were now surrounding her. The headache in her head was getting even stronger, making it hard to think.

"Scootaloo, if you don't take a deep breath I'm going to use a sleeping spell on you," Twilight said, lighting her horn. That did it. Scootaloo's coat started to glow brighter, confusing them.

"Leave me alone," she said through gritted teeth. She was looking down with her hooves planted firmly into the ground. "I'm warning you."

"Scootaloo. All we need are some questions answered," Twilight said firmly, stomping her foot in the ground. "And as a Princess of Equestria, you will answer these questions."

"Twilight," Fluttershy said, poking her shoulder. The Princess had her eyes closed while she took on a regal pose and failed to notice the glowing cyan orbs circling around the filly. "Ummm....you might want to open your eyes." Twilight did, looked down, and gasped. The Elements slowly backed away as the orange coat glowed brighter and brighter, and the orbs orbited faster and faster.

"What....what's goin' on, Twi?" Applejack asked fearfully. The ground underneath their hooves started shaking, eventually becoming far worse than a mere tremble and becoming more like a full on Earthquake. The ponies in Ponyville started shouting, screaming and running into buildings, taking cover under tables and anything else that could fit them.

"I-I don't know!" The Princess yelled. The earthquake caused them to lose their balance and fall. But Scootaloo remained standing, the orbs rotating around her turning into a very bright blur, encasing her body in a white sphere. She started to yell before she screamed loudly, rivaling the royal Canterlot voice, and let loose.

The elements' ears rang from whatever the heck just happened. They saw nothing but white and felt weightless from the giant blast that came from the tiny filly, unknowingly destroying buildings, plant life, and the Friendship castle completely.  And going to a height that had moved the clouds over Equestria away, attracting Celestia's attention.

She turned her head from her throne room, where she was listening to a pony in her day court and gasped at the humongous white sphere that could probably be seen as far as the Crystal empire. "Guard!" A soldier ran inside the room and saluted. "Get me my chariot! And grab Luna! Now!"

The ponies hiding inside the supposedly protective structures in Ponyville were flung back and out of the town, raining down on the train station and the Everfree Forest painfully.

The Elements eyesight returned, finally letting them see that they were soaring into the sky. HIGH into the sky. They had even breached the cloud layer, and went far higher than that. They all glanced at each other, then screamed as they flew higher and higher, going up thousands of feet before gravity took over, causing them to plummet back down towards the ground. Rainbow reacted quickly, flying around and catching them as fast as she could before they hit the ground hard enough to bruise or break something, and slid to a stop. All was silent besides the residual breeze in the air, washing over their coats and staining them with dirt.

The Princess coughed from the large amount of dust in the air, nearly causing her lungs to breach. Thinking quickly, she used a spell to place a bubble over her head. "Everypony!!! Sound off!!!!" A yell of choruses caught her attention. She listened closely, hearing all of her friends and some more ponies, who also seemed to be choking on the dust.

"WHAT THE BUCK WAS THAT?!!" Rainbow yelled, before she started coughing violently. "I can't even see anything, what did Scootaloo do?!!"

"I don't know!" Twilight said worriedly, using a spell to clear out some of the dust, revealing a horrible sight. "Oh...my...Faust..." The entire town was destroyed and anything else around it, including the Everfree Forest. There was nothing left standing and all the green was gone. Everything.....was gone. The trees, the water, the buildings. It was all flat, brown, and lifeless land.

"What..." Rarity muttered, looking in disbelief at what just happened. There was a huge line of ponies beside them, all sharing the same expression. Their home was destroyed. Then they freaked out.

"What do we do?!"

"I need to find my kids!!"

"We're homeless!"

"The Princess will know what to do!" The citizens all looked and walked towards Princess Twilight. It looks like they've all been through war. There was dirt all over their coats, their faces, and hair. They began asking questions, requesting instructions on what to do now.

"Everypony......EVERYPONY!" She yelled, getting them to be quiet. "Rainbow Dash!" The Cyan pony ran forward and saluted. "You're the fastest pony here! Head to Canterlot and get us some help fast!"

"Right!" She took off into the air, flying towards the mountainside to see a large fleet of Royal guards headed their way, with Princess Celestia and Luna. "Never mind, they're coming!"

"Everypony else! Look for anymore survivors! Let's go!"



Scootaloo woke up a few minutes later with a groan, holding her head while she sat up. "Uggh," she moaned, not even registering where she was. "What...what happened?" She opened her eyes and gasped. The ground in front of her was brown and lifeless. "No...no no no." She looked all around her, finding the same result. This was exactly like last time. Only much worse. There was nothing there in front of her that was standing. The land was flattened  with trees knocked over like toothpicks. "Oh my god....what.....whoa." She looked down at her hooves to see them shimmering and glowing. A wave of different colors was washing over them. Orange, green, purple, red, yellow, Magenta. Coming down from what seemed to be her head, which had something protruding from it. She could feel it. Reaching up with her glowing hooves, she felt.....a horn? She traced it down, feeling it to see if it was.....yep. It was attached to her skull. But...THAT MADE ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE!

"I have a bucking horn?!!" She yelled. Her magic accidentally spiked, sending out a light blue spark that hit the ground. A spark of green grew out from it, making her curious. The green spread out before it turned into pink then purple, creating a circle around the glowing filly. She shifted the wings on her back, unaware that they had gotten longer and could more than possibly lift her into the air. The area around her had been changed into a beautiful scenery. How she did it, she didn't even know. But it gave her a brilliant idea.

She looked around, finally realizing she was in a large crater. Just like last time. Deciding that it was time to assess, she climbed out, getting dirt and dust all over her constantly color shifting coat. She didn't even notice her eyes were glowing a bright white too while she turned around to see what she exactly did with that magic. She had created a whole garden of flowers. She looked at it for a moment, tuning out the calls from the other ponies trying to see if there were anypony else out there.

And after all of that, she didn't even blow up? The town looks like an atomic bomb hit it! Yet, here she was, the actual atomic bomb, still fully intact. Along with some extra parts that had somehow appeared. She pushed those thoughts out of her mind and got back to the task at hand. Assessing her situation. Just like she did when she first arrived. The entire town was destroyed and there were over a hundred ponies, fillies, and colts without homes. Because of her. She sighed in despair.

She had to do something about this. Reverse time or something. Right then, when she thought about reversing time, a spark licked her mind. Time.......

She lifted a hoof, which in turn lit her horn, and closed her eyes, trying out an experiment. A slight sound that sounded like sand moving along the ground caught her attention. But she ignored it, keeping her eyes closed. It got louder and faster, causing her to focus harder. A few seconds later it stopped, allowing her to open her eyes and gasp. Right there in front of here was....a building. A brand, spanking, new building that looked like it had never been damaged. Did she just convert matter? "That's....impossible," she muttered. She stared at her hooves and caught a grin. She could help. She could fix everything! She lowered her hooves and did it again. This time with her eyes open. Once again, another building, along with grass and flowers was created. Even a freaking sidewalk. She walked along the ground, lowering her hooves while she did it with her horn instead, effortlessly and far faster. It was like a blur. She went from a walk while she was working, to a trot, then to a full on run.

The buildings were starting to build themselves at this rate as she used her magic that she finally had control over...to help rebuild the town that she destroyed. And it was working. She didn't even have to lift her hooves anymore!



"Twilight!" Celestia yelled as she and Luna made their way over. They were looking at the scene in horror. The entire town was wiped. The purple mare was looking over injuries from ponies that had been thrown against things from the blast when they stopped next to her, catching her attention. "What happened here?!"

Twilight sighed and looked at the dusty landscape in sadness. She could barely see past the dusty barrier that was stinging her eyes. "It was...Scootaloo."

Celestia looked at her confused. "She used magic like I told you, so we decided to ask her questions. I think we overwhelmed her or something because she started glowing. Then some bright blue orbs started to rotate around her. Going faster and faster along with the earthquake. Then....the flash. And now......this." She waved out at the dust. They weren't registering the glowing in the distance, too busy looking at the devastation. "Whatever it was threw us all at least a mile. But it looks like the blast went farther than a mile."

"Try reaching the bottom of the mountain of Canterlot," Luna corrected, shocking Twilight. "Whatever it was took out everything that was in a fifty mile radius of Ponyville. Including most of the Everfree forest."

"But.....h-how? How could a filly like that hold that much power?!"

"Are you absolutely sure she did it?" Celestia asked.

"Yeah, she did it!" Rainbow yelled, coming over and landing next to them. "She literally exploded! I don't know where she is and I don't know if she survived it."

"We all saw it," Rarity inputted as she walked over, backing up Rainbow Dash's story. "The source of that flash was Scootaloo."

"What?!" They looked behind them at Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Diamond Tiara, all of them a dirty mess. It's a wonder Rarity hasn't had a conniption yet. "What are you goin' on about?! Scoots did this?! That's impossible!"

"Believe it, we were there!" Applejack said, looking at all the ponies. "There's nothing left....at all. But-" Something started creaking behind them but they didn't notice it until a guard screamed.

"Get down!" He yelled, pointing behind them. They all fell to the ground by instinct and screamed at a huge piece of metal that flew over their heads, creaking loudly and heading towards the center of the used-to-be-a-town, disappearing into the dust and out of view.

"What...what was THAT?!" Sweetie Belle yelled before two more flew right over. This time they paid more attention to it. It looked like dirt that was morphing into something before they landed on the ground, upright.

"I'm not sure, but I'm going to find out," Twilight said, taking a step forward before she felt movement by her hooves. Looking down, her curiosity piquesd by the odd feeling, she gasped. The dirt around her hooves was crawling towards the center of the town quickly, eager to get wherever it needed to get to. And it was happening all around her. "Look down!" The citizens and guards stared at the dirt as it soared past, turning into whatever before it repeated.

"What....what is this, Celestia?" Luna asked, getting on the defensive.

"I do not know," she replied, lighting her horn. "But we need to clear this dust!" She sent out a spell, moving the dust out of the way to reveal a wondrous sight, making them all stare, breathless at the scene.



Scootaloo danced to a little tune she was playing in her head and waved her horn at another section, turning that plot of land into grass, sidewalk, and a building. Like it was snap of a finger. A shop was there before last time, and it was back once more. Since she remembered what every building was like in Ponyville, she could easily create it. Down to the flower pot in the window. She did the same to the area beside it, the area across it, and so forth. Eventually rebuilding Rarity's boutique, Sugarcube Corner, and the Castle of Friendship. She flapped her wings and laughed, not even realizing that the dusty cloud layer was being pushed to the side, revealing her work of the single-handed rebuilding of Ponyville. Not to mention herself. So far it was looking good. She could do better. Flapping her wings, she flew upwards and sent her magic out with a mind of its own, instructing it to build this building here, and that tree there.

"Scoots....you're flying!" Rainbow yelled, trying to get her attention.

"Is that all you're seeing right now Rainbow?!" Twilight said. She was in total shock and awe, not believing what she was seeing. "She's an...a-an alicorn!" The glowing, white-eyed filly raced right up to them, not even listening to what they were saying, and grabbed a loose piece of metal that had gotten behind the astonished crowd with her magic and threw it towards the city, shocking the ponies. It turned into dirt first before it changed into a wooden door, slowing down and hinging itself into a house that was currently being built by an unknown force.

"WHAT?!" Luna yelled in shock. Celestia shared the exact same expression. Mouth wide open and catching flies. "How did she.....did she just..."

"She just converted matter," Twilight whispered, looking at the scene. "That's impossible." Things were getting more and more faster now, the buildings and nature becoming much more abundant. The grass and trees were currently being restored, including every last one of the Apple Trees. Even the Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse her friends were in when the blast happened. After a few more minutes, the environment had gone back to its original state, leaving nothing but stunned silence. Everything, as far as the eye could see, was back to normal. Then Scootaloo flew around at a speed that would have Rainbow Dash grinning in glee if she didn't have an expression of shock, clearing the dusty atmosphere. Once it was all done and clear, Scootaloo flew towards the other ponies and landed in front of the princesses to look at her work, not even registering they were all looking at her.

Twilight was opening and closing her mouth like a fish while Celestia and Luna were looking down at the smiling Pegasus who apparently had turned into an Alicorn very violently. Her coat was still changing colors and her eyes were still a bright white. The only thing that had changed was her wing length and the horn on her head which had finally stopped glowing. What....did she just do?
> Chapter 03 - Small Explanation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two best friends of the previous-pegasus, now an Alicorn, walked up to the glowing Scootaloo who was still admiring her work. It looked like nothing ever happened. These ponies were going to be so happy.

Something nudged her shoulder, catching her so off guard, she shrieked and flapped her wings, sending her twenty feet into the air. She looked down and instantly regretted it. "Aw, crud." She dropped back down and fell face first into the dirt with a crunch.

"Scootaloo!" Rainbow and the other crusaders ran forward and helped her to her hooves.

"Uggh, wha...," She stammered, a little dizzy. Her vision was going in and out, making her squint. "Apple...cider? Is that you?" She put a hoof on Apple Bloom's face and stroked her cheek.

"It's Apple Bloom, ya' silly filly!" She corrected, helping her stand and moved her hoof off her cheek.

Rainbow sighed and turned towards everyone else. "Looks like....we can go home," she said blandly, motioning towards the rebuilt town. "And we have to get Scootaloo to a hospital. She's obviously delirious."

"You there!" Scootaloo pointed a glowing hoof at Twilight. Her eyes were seeing things she knew weren't around, but her mind betrayed her.

"Uhh....yes?" The princess answered.

"You need to get back on that gun right now! Zombies are approaching and you gotta take 'em out! I'll light a flare and signal a helicopter to airlift us! And you!" She pointed a highly disoriented hoof at a nearby daffodil. "I need that communications system up like yesterday! We only have one thousand bullets left and the car's out of gas! And we can't just stop at a gas station! Not in THIS wasteland! So start workin'!"

Everyone had a head cocked to the side, trying to figure out what the little Alicorn was talking about. "Uhh...Scootaloo?" Diamond Tiara approached, carefully nudging her so she didn't have a reaction like earlier. "Are you alright? And what the hay is a car, gas, bullets, helicopter, flare, a gun, and a gas station?"

Scootaloo groaned and held her head, griping in pain before she sighed and passed out, falling on her back. "Everypony go home!" Twilight ordered. "We have to tend to Scootaloo." She walked forward and encased the sleeping filly in a box of violet magic. "I'm taking her to the hospital." She picked her up and walked into town with everyone else behind her.

Twilight was still trying to come to terms with what just happened. First, there was Equestria's biggest explosion that completely obliterated Ponyville. Then Scootaloo comes in and bypassed the hidden barrier that was Fluid Matter Conversion. The Princesses couldn't even do it, let alone herself. And she knew almost every spell in the book! It was impossible! But not for her apparently. All she did was wave her horn and bam! A house with grass, a sidewalk, windows, decor, and probably a whole bunch of couches. Maybe even a refrigerator with food inside!

She looked up at the sleeping Alicorn, trying to get a reading on her. She apparently went through a violent transformation. But all Alicorn transformations were calm. Like her own. All Twilight went through was a small ball of light that gave her wings. But Scootaloo caused a giant bomb that devastated Ponyville and wiped it off the map! She had to do more research on this later.

The group walked through the doors and into the cool air of the hospital, freezing in surprise. Everything looked exactly how it was before. As if there was no explosion. Twilight shook her head and set Scootaloo down on an empty stretcher.

The hospital staff who walked in behind her quickly rushed forward to move her to a room while Twilight spoke. "Get her X-rayed," she ordered. "And don't let her out of your sight this time."

The ponies acknowledged her words while more wounded patients were rushed in, all suffering minor injuries from the...

"Gargantuan explosion," Princess Celestia said, catching Luna and Twilight's ears. She was looking out the windows beside the entrance at the rebuilt town. "The Ponyville Gargantuan Explosion....where a whole town and anything surrounding it was destroyed. The first time this has ever happened.......and the first instance, and live viewing of Fluid Matter Conversion. A spell that has left mages and conjurers alike baffled, all trying to figure out how to do it."

"I'm more worried about that violent transformation," Luna inputted. She walked over and stood beside her sister, sharing her same worried expression. "For an explosion like that, you would need magic that rivals every single pony in Equestria combined. And somehow... she's above that. I could tell just by watching."

"I could as well," Twilight admitted. "Should we be worried? Her magic, wherever she got it, destroyed Ponyville."

"Yes, we should be very worried," her mentor agreed. "But we cannot do anything about it until we figure everything out. We will have to ask her some things."

"Should we crawl through her mind?" Luna asked.

"No, Luna. She is still a filly. But for now she needs her rest. And we need to grab Cadance. That blast was seen all over Equestria and we must answer questions to calm the masses. Not to mention....there is a new Princess of Equestria."



While they were discussing what happened, Scootaloo was placed in a room and covered with a blanket to get some more peaceful sleep. Or so they thought. Scootaloo's dreams were anything but peaceful. A prime example would be of her falling out of a completely blue sky down to a grassy plain with hills, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"AHHHHHH YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING MEEEEE!" She hit the side of a grassy hill and rolled down, screaming obscenities the whole way. A few seconds later, she found her face sliding in the dirt once again. She stayed there for a moment before she sat up, groaning.

"Ugh, blech, yuck!" She cried, protesting from the horrible taste. She took her hand and swiped at her tongue, getting off the taste of soil. Wait...hand?

She stood up and looked at the ten digits held in front of her face, wiggling them, even biting them to make sure they were real. "Am I...back home?"

"Not quite." She turned around and yelped, falling on her back from the grinning feminine face in front of her. "I see you're still that shy and scary girl I raised," the woman commented, chuckling and helping her up. Scootaloo accepted the gesture and pulled herself on her feet, dusting herself off.

"Thanks. Now where and who........" She lost her voice after finally getting a good look at the woman standing in front of her. The orange skin, the blue hair,......the same kind eyes that she had missed so much. "M.....Mom?"

The woman pulled her into a tight hug, burying her face into her daughter's long Magenta hair. "Hello, baby," she whispered. "I'm so proud of you."

"Is it really you?" Lareen pulled herself into her mother's chest harder. She was starting to tear up.

"Yes...and no." They separated, allowing her daughter to get a good look. Eventually, she saw what she meant. It was like her mother was a ghost. Transparent.

"You're a...ghost?"

"Sadly." She walked around her daughter, taking a seat on the grassy plain. "Welcome to, what I like to call, the Communications Plane. Where you can speak with...you know."

"The dead," her daughter finished sadly, laying her head on her mother's shoulder. Vanessa sighed and stroked her daughter's long hair.

"Don't be sad. We moved on to save you. Your majesty."

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow and glanced up at her in confusion. "Majesty?"

Vanessa chuckled and nodded. "You ascended to an Alicorn. That makes you Royalty on all legal counts of Equestria."

"Wait a second." She sat back and looked at her mother oddly. "How do you know about Equestria?"

"Well, for one, I've been watching you."

"Creep," her daughter playfully scolded. She got a flick to the forehead.

"And two.......it was my home. And your father's before Earth." Scootaloo gazed at her in shock. "But you weren't born there."

"Wait, you left Equestria?!" She yelled.

"We were actually tore out by a magical influx that grabbed us, threw us out, shut, and sealed itself. We couldn't get back in."

"So you were trapped on Earth?"

"Yes. I was once a mage of magic. A conjurer. I created spells, medicine, tools. You name it, I've done it. Your father was a scholar. Burying himself in knowledge. This was post-nightmare moon, mind you. Starswirl wasn't around by this time, and Princess Celestia was a little desperate for more magic to help the ponies of Equestria. So your father and I being best friends decided to teach her and help her. I was twenty two, your father twenty five at the time. We were the top mages in all of Equestria. Even the one known as Twilight Sparkle didn't even have a speck of how much knowledge we knew and figured out to use. When we were thrown into the influx, our ages decreased. I was....twelve and your father fifteen. Although it felt good to be that young again, we had bigger matters to tend to. Like getting back in Equestria. And the fact that we were married teenagers. You should've seen the looks we were getting! We were wearing marriage rings and walking around, holding hands!

"Unfortunately, the tools used to create the influx did not exist on earth. Magic in general didn't. So we had to use different methods to even find magic and open a rift. Which took twelve years. During that time, we got acquainted with Earth and learned. And eventually...we created magic. After a little experiment, it went off. I was pregnant with you, Sweet Pea.

"It was an experiment we called 'Sandman'. Named after the legend of a man that used sand to give and influence dreams on Earth. In the midst of the experiment, the item we were using fired unexpectedly, sending an unstable and an insane and very large amount of extremely focused magic into my womb."

The child gasped while she continued. "Your father freaked out more than I did. The bolt of magic was an extremely concentrated amount. We expected to have a miscarriage. But then you were born a perfect baby girl. We were so happy that you were unaffected.....or so we thought."

"What.....what happened?" A strong breeze suddenly blew through the air, making her mother sigh in disappointment.

"Unfortunately, that'll have to wait until we meet again, Sweet Pea. Our time is up and you have to wake up. Let Celestia know that you are the daughter of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus." The wind got much stronger, blowing Lareen's hair straight out and forcing her to cover her eyes. Her mother leaned in and placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead. "I love you, Lareen...Scootaloo." The hand on Scootaloo's cheek receded before the wind blew the girl away screaming.

"Mom!....MOM!"



"MOM!!!!" The four Princesses conversing in the room suddenly yelped and jumped at Scootaloo's loud exclamation. She woke up, her coat once again changing colors and her eyes aglow before diminishing, leaving Scootaloo panting and looking around in confusion. Was that....real? It had to be, it was all fresh in her mind.

"Scootaloo?" She blinked and looked towards the left at the worried faces of Princesses Cadance, Luna, Celestia, and Twilight.

"Are you alright?" Celestia asked, making her way over. Scootaloo looked up at her before sitting on her haunches, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine...just...saw someone I miss very much." The others looked at each other, taking note of her strange speech. Someone?

"Scootaloo? We need to ask some questions about-" Twilight began to ask.

"Ask away," she interrupted, settling back down.

"So no fighting this time?" She walked over and sat down beside the bed with her teacher. "No running?"

"Nope."

"Uhh...alright. Can you tell us where you came from? It's obvious you're not from Equestria."

"Earth. I arrived in Equestria after I was thrown through an influx...saving my life in the process." She stood up, stretched, and popped her joints. "Whoo, that felt good. What else you wanna know?"

"Where did you learn that kind of magic?" Cadance inquired suspiciously. "Nopony anywhere can convert matter, It's just impossible!"

"Apparently it came with the package," Scootaloo answered, feeling her horn. "Am I really an Alicorn?"

"Yes, you are," Twilight answered happily, ruffling her mane. "And apparently a very POWERFUL one."

"You destroyed Ponyville through a historical event that we are calling The Gargantuan Ponyville Explosion," Luna explained taking a place beside Cadance. "How long have you been able to use magic?"

Scootaloo put a hoof up to her chin, deep in thought. The first time she actually noticed she used magic was when she was six in pony years. But her mother said she was affected by that bolt. Which means...

"All my life," she figured looking back up at them. "Ever since I was born. But I didn't know how to use it. Still don't."

Twilight looked at her confusedly. "But...you were a human."

"Yes."

"And you used magic?"

"Yes!" She yelled. "I was a human that used magic! My parents dabbled in it, and I picked it up, catch up Sparkles!"

"I've never heard of humans experimenting in magic," Twilight explained to the others. Something wasn't adding up here. "And I go there to visit the others all the time."

"Scootaloo, who were your parents?" She smiled softly at Cadance's question, losing her unamused expression. About time someone asked.

"Vanessa and William Carson."

Twilight looked at the rest of the Princesses. "I'll ask Sunset about-"

"But they went by a different name before," she continued, interrupting Twilight. "That one of you supposedly know very well."

"And what were they?" Cadance asked.

"Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus."

"WHAT?!!" They all looked towards Princess Celestia who trotted forward and picked up Scootaloo, looking her over before sitting her back down. "ARE YOU ABSOLUTELY SURE?!!!"

"Yeah, I think I would know my parents' names," Scootaloo stated sarcastically

"Your parents.....were the teachers of Celestia?" Twilight asked carefully.

"Yeah, mom did tell me Celestia asked mom and dad to teach her some magic." Scootaloo looked around the room, trying to place it. "Where am I?"

"P-Ponyville hospital, your parents are the most powerful ponies in Equestria, Scootaloo!" Twilight exclaimed. "Are you not psyched?"

"Well, first of all Twilight.....my parents WERE the most powerful ponies in Equestria. WERE. Fill in the blanks." Twilight immediately lost her gleeful smile. "There's a wall full of their pictures in a special, might I mention PRIVATE, place underground."

"Oh.....my dear friends," Celestia said sadly. Luna draped a wing over her shoulder. "Do you know how...."

Scootaloo shook her head, giving her the answer. "Not really. Dad pushed me through the portal and I didn't see what happened. My mom distracted whoever the heck was disturbing the peace so I didn't get to hear or see anything there either. They had guns and stuff. So....I was expecting the worse."

"What's a gun?" Twilight asked. Scootaloo looked at her confused. "I've been to earth plenty of times, but I've never heard of a gun."

"A gun is a large piece of metal with a functionality to send out a much smaller piece of metal in the shape of a cylinder with a sharpened point. It's reason for use?.....To kill, mame, harm, murder, or delay. If it hits you, it's messy. And they come in different sizes. The smaller ones could kill you. But the much bigger ones will literally rip you to shreds. Those crossbows you have are good. But they're not long range. With a sniper, a very good and expensive one, someone could take your head off your shoulders from maybe...." She looked towards the window and pointed towards the woods and Applejack's farm in the very far distance. "....the edge of the Everfree forest and you'll be on Applejack's farm. And you won't even know it."

The Princesses were looking at her appalled. Somepony had weapons like that?! "I think I have pictures in my books down in the sanctuary. But I have to go get them later. Now......why am I still in here? And what time is it?"

"It's two in the afternoon," Cadance answered. Scootaloo got up and walked to the window next to the bed to see what was going on out there in Ponyville. That crater she woke up in was still visible with the ring of flowers., but besides that, everything else was....normal. Ponies walking around doing whatever, foals and more doing whatever, and the Mayor's office was getting a lot of attention. There was even a heavy guard presence by the alleyway that held her...wait.

"What are they doing?" She asked suspiciously, pointing towards said alley. Celestia looked over towards the direction she pointed.

"Probably investigating the large hole that we found-"

"That was my sanctuary!" She yelled. She turned around, jumped off the bed, and darted out of the room, intent on stopping them. If they find all that stuff, it'll be a huge problem. She ducked underneath the legs of nurses who were walking around, accidentally causing one of the doctors to trip and fall on his side. "Sorry!"

"It's okay, Princess," he groaned, not even bothering to get up. He let his hoof fall to the ground while one of the nurses giggled at him.

Finally reaching the front, Scootaloo slid into the waiting room and nearly bumped into her friends and the Elements of Harmony. "Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom asked. The pony in question jumped over her head and teleported on the other side of the doors, making her way towards the alley nearby. Everyone else looked at each other before they ran after her, a little concerned.

"Back away from the alleyway!" She yelled while crawling out from underneath a stand. "Get away, get away!" The guard ponies looked her way before turning to each other. "WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!!" They jumped and quickly backed away from the hole while she went inside to make sure no one else had gone down. She crawled through the dirt, getting herself dirty once more, and came out on the other side. "GET OUT!!"

The two guards inside jumped and looked her way while she grabbed them in her magic and literally threw them into the exit, pushing them out. "Kid, what are you doing?!" One of them protested.

"You are in my personal sanctuary, now get out!" She shot a bolt of her magic at them, sending them shooting out of the hole and into the air, like a fireball. The other four princesses stared at the projectile soldiers open-mouthed. There was even a freaking smoke trail!

Scootaloo quickly counted all the photos, making sure they didn't take anything. But instead of one hundred twenty one, there was only one hundred twenty. She gasped and sighed. She'll deal with that once she got everything. Grabbing her suitcase she had brought here when she first arrived, she opened it and placed the photographs inside, making sure to be extremely gentle. She was down there for a few minutes before someone called down the tunnel. "Scootaloo?" Sweetie Belle yelled. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I'll be up in a few!" she replied. Once she had every photo and book, she looked around the room, checking to make sure she didn't forget anything. She'll have to set up somewhere else because the sanctuary had been discovered. Not to mention to get her last photograph. Once she was sure she had everything, she levitated the books through the tunnel and out into the air while she carried the suitcase behind her. Flapping her wings, and not realizing it, she soared through it and came out the entrance with a breeze, shocking everyone out there. Which included the elements, the Princesses, her friends, and the guards. She landed and set the suitcase next to the stack of books. "No one goes into my stuff!"

"Sorry, Scootaloo, they didn't know," Twilight apologized. Scootaloo brushed it off and sent a bolt of magic into the hole, filling it with stone that was creating itself. It grew and grew, molding itself to fill the underground cavern before it hit the surface. She tapped her hoof against it to make sure it was solid. Satisfied, she turned to Twilight.

"Where is my other photo? I had two hundred twenty one and now I only have two hundred twenty. One of you have it."

"Well...now that you mention it, Rainbow-"

"Where's my photo, Rainbow?" She interrupted, turning to the pegasus. Rainbow sighed and reached underneath her wing, pulling out a familiar square piece of paper.

"Squirt, can I tell you something?" She asked as she took it back. Scootaloo huffed and looked around, the citizens were sneaking glances but everyone else in the alley had their eyes trained on her.

"I guess," she said.

"Twilight told us about...your parents. And we are very sorry for going into your sanctuary."

"We all are," Applejack said, taking off her hat. "We were just really worried about ya'."

"All of us were," Twilight inputted. "You were running away from the hospital each time they asked about your parents. So we thought the worst. But now that we know, we can help you. Okay?" Scootaloo glanced at her nonchalantly before sighing. They only wanted to help. What was she so scared of?

"Fine. I accept your apology. Now what?"

"Well for one, I'm pretty sure you don't have a place to stay," Rainbow responded, swooping her up and ruffling her mane. Scootaloo laughed and pushed her hoof away. "So, you'll be living with me in the Cloudominium."

"What?! Really?!" She asked excitedly.

"Yep! It's the least I could do for my number one fan! Plus, no offense, 'Princess', but your flying needs work." Scootaloo looked at her strangely. Flying?

"What do you mean flying? I can't fly."

"Scoots, you literally just flew out of that hole," Apple bloom pointed out.

"And you were flying while rebuilding Ponyville," one of the guards added.

"Scootaloo," Rainbow said. "You....were flying. Look at your wings." She pointed to her sides at the orange appendages that were at full length instead of their usual small size. The filly turned and gasped, finally spotting the wings. She lifted them up and down repeatedly, eventually flapping them hard enough that she was hovering in the air.

"I'm...I'm flying?" She asked quietly. "I'M FLYING!" She flew out of the alley like a bee. Going here and there, and eventually finding her head stuck into the side of Applejack's Apple stand.

"You know, I hate to say this," Rainbow chuckled, walking over to help pull the young Alicorn out of the wood. "But you were flying much better when you didn't realize you were actually flying."



After successfully getting her head out of the wood, at which Applejack waved off the damage, they helped her pack up and get ready to move to the mansion in the sky that was Rainbow Dash's home. But first, Celestia had to tell her something.

"Scootaloo?" She said, grabbing her attention from in front of the hospital. She looked away from her suitcases that were being placed onto the chariot to the princess. "We will be looking for more relatives that are related to Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. And we will ask you more about the specifics of the influx so we can have some more rules and regulations in place for experimentation with magic."

"Alright!" Scootaloo agreed. She hopped on Rainbow Dash's back since she didn't really know how to fly yet. "So....what happens to me then?"

"Only time will tell. I promise you will be safe. We will also be checking your body for any health issues since I doubt you've ever been to a doctor here in Equestria. Am I right?" Scootaloo nodded. "Alright, we will setup an appointment with the doctor in Ponyville for you. In the meantime, enjoy yourself with Rainbow Dash. I know you want to."

Before she could respond, Rainbow took off, leaving her screaming and the guards to follow after with her things, headed towards the cloudominium. Twilight walked towards the other Princesses as they watched them fly away. "So...what now?" She asked.

"We work, you research," Luna answered, turning to her. "Research that spell. And we will try to find out more information on her parents' death. It could not have been a pretty one." Twilight nodded and made her way back to the Castle of Friendship with the rest of the Elements, except for Rainbow Dash, while the other Princesses discussed.

"It will be easy to find her relatives," Celestia said. "Two of them I know live in the Crystal Empire. Her aunt and cousins."

"You know them personally?" Cadance inquired.

"No, but her aunt is holding onto the possessions of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. I will give you their address so you can give them the message. Saying that their niece is alive and back in Equestria. She will be saddened by her sister's death and will more than likely become even worse when she sees Scootaloo. She resembles her so much. Entirely actually."

"Anything else you need?"

"Not at the moment. But I have a feeling this is even bigger than we think. I want some guards around Scootaloo's place of residence at all times."



Once they reached the home, Scootaloo jumped off Rainbow Dash's back and landed on the cloud. "I can't believe I'm living with you!" She yelled happily. Rainbow chuckled while she grabbed the suitcases and the box of books out the back of the chariot, and made her way to the door. She pushed it open and walked inside the cloud home with Scootaloo right behind her. The home was tall, obviously because Dash loved the heights.

She poked the cloudy surface with a hoof before she just walked and looked around while Rainbow took her things up to her room. "So this is your house?" She said after her.

"Yep! This is where I live, little buddy!" She set her things down on the floor in her room before she turned around and headed back downstairs. "You hungry? I got some food for you if you are." She looked out the door to see the guards gone before she went into the kitchen to make some lunch.

"Yeah, Rainbow Dash!" Rainbow chuckled and got started on lunch while Scootaloo adventured around the home some more. She was more than likely going to enjoy it there. She ran up the stairs and looked out from the balcony, looking at the beautiful scenery. It was so peaceful, she could probably sleep out here. She tore herself away from the view and went into the four rooms on that hallway. One of them was obviously the bathroom, then there was the closet. Another was obviously Rainbow Dash's, based off of the massive amount of Wonderbolt posters and Daring Do books on the bookshelves. She'd never thought she'd see the day that Rainbow dash was reading. She would have to catch her in the act first though to make that come to fruition.

And the last one was her room. Her suitcases and books were on the floor which meant she had to unpack and stack up. So she did just that.

She unbuckled her suitcase and flipped it open, sighing at the photographs staring back at her. She grabbed one of them in her magic, taking note of the fact that her magical aura was orange, and looked at the image closely. It was of her mother and father in the hospital when she was born. She looked so innocent when she was young. A baby. She and her mother shared the exact same looks. Except the hair. It's like her father barely got a word in. Poor guy.

Scootaloo chuckled at the memory before she looked down at the rest of them. She'd need like a piece of wood to pin them on. She wasn't going to take a chance with the pictures being attached to vapor in the air. It would ruin them. These are all she has left of her family and she wasn't going to let this go. She was going to hang onto it as much as she can. And nobody was going to take it away from her.



The second Celestia, Luna, and Cadance touched down in Canterlot, they were swarmed with questions from everyone. Royalty, government officials, and general overall citizens. Celestia held up a hoof quieting the large crowd of ponies. There had to be over two hundred waiting for them. She cleared her voice before speaking in her royal canterlonian tongue.

"Hello, my little ponies!" She yelled. "Yes, there was an explosion of extremely high magnitudes in Equestria. More specifically, in the historic town of Ponyville. It was by a violent transformation of a Pegasus who transformed into an Alicorn!" A lot more questions were swung their way before Luna took the floor.

"We will deliver more details soon on the explosion! Right now, we are busy! So leave us at once!" The large swarm of ponies obeyed her command and left the Equestrian royalty to talk.

"Cadance, I need you to head back to the Crystal Empire and inform a pony named Molten Fire that we have news on her sister and her family." Cadance nodded before she got back in the chariot. The guards took off to deliver her back to the kingdom, leaving Celestia with Luna and Prince Blueblood.

"Aunty Luna and Celestia, what exactly went on to cause that gigantic explosion?" He asked.

"A filly with power that rivals our own has ascended to an alicorn through a very violent stage that we are calling The Ponyville Gargantuan Explosion," Luna informed him. He looked at them in disbelief.

"A child?! You're joking." The Princesses looked at him with no expression making his mouth part open. "You're serious?! A filly caused an explosion of that magnitude?!"

"And wiped out the town in the process," Celestia added. "Then she rebuilt it through a spell that we thought was never possible to create. The Fluid Matter Conversion. The spell that has been deemed impossible. She destroyed the town and rebuilt it like it was a piece of cake." Prince Blueblood was staring at her with his mouth to the ground in shock.

"We have also learned that she is the daughter of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. Two of my many teachers."

"The same ones that went missing?!" He asked, recalling that mystery.

"The very same," Luna confirmed. They made their way into the castle with the Prince right behind them. "We are locating her relatives now so she can meet them. She is a new princess, but a very young one still that has school tomorrow. I wonder how that will go."

"The children will more than likely scoot their desks away from her," Blueblood figured. They walked through the doors and made their way towards the archives. "Foals are mean."

"Yes, they are." Celestia stopped at the door to the archives and put her horn into the hole, sending in her magic and unlocking the door. Once it pushed open slightly, she pulled it open the rest of the way to reveal a large two floor library filled with documents and a table in the middle. They walked forward heading towards the table while Luna lit her horn, scanning all the documents in the room. Eventually, she found what she was looking for. She grabbed the scrolls in her magic and placed them down on the table in front of her, looking at them.

"These are the official missing ponies report for Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus," she said while unrolling the scroll. It displayed two ponies, very young. Young adults. One of them was a pony, a pegasus mare, with orange skin, short blue hair, and Magenta eyes. The other was a pegasus stallion with yellow skin, blue eyes, and short red hair. "These are the legendary ponies, Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. They went missing nearly forty years ago. We have now learned of their location."

"Where?" Blueblood asked, looking at the documents.

"Earth." He glanced up, having no idea where that is. "It is an alternate dimension similar to this one. But instead of ponies, they have humans. Bipedal creatures with fingers and toes."

"They walk on two hooves?"

"Feet, my nephew," Celestia corrected. She reached towards the table and grabbed a pen and inkwell. "Oh, how I hate doing this." Her sister placed a wing over her before she wrote on the scroll: "Update: As of April 12th, 2018, it has been declared that ponies Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus are deceased. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna." She put her signature on a line before she passed it to her sister, allowing her to grab hold and sign her name as well.

"Now that that is over with, we can now focus on the aftermath and documentation of these events," Celestia declared while Luna rolled up the scroll and put it back in place. The three walked back towards the entrance slowly while she spoke. "Such as the Explosion, Scootaloo's appearance and ascension, and the biography of Bright Magnus and Frozen Fire. Her sister will have photos of her and her husband. I just wish I knew how they went."

"We all do, sister," Luna consoled. "We all do." The three walked out the door before Celestia closed it back with a bang, leaving it once more in darkness.



Cadance landed back in the Crystal Empire, spotting her husband with Flurry heart on his back talking to his sergeant out front. The second they landed, he glanced her way and dismissed the guard to go and check her out.

"So what happened? What was that big explosion?" He asked once they were walking up into the castle. Flurry jumped off his back and latched herself onto her mother's neck.

"Oh! Hello, sweetie!" She greeted, giving her daughter a nuzzle. Flurry gave a happy fawn before she positioned herself on her back. "As for your question, it was a filly." Shining stared at her confusedly. "A filly went through a violent ascension in Ponyville that wiped out the entire town."

"WHAT?! IS TWILIGHT-"

"She and everypony else is alive and well, Shining." The stallion calmed down before they walked into the throne room and she continued. "But the filly is the descendant of the two most powerful ponies in Equestria that Celestia knew personally. Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. And apparently one of the top unsolved cases of disappearances in Equestria." She stopped and turned to him. "Celestia wants me to track down a pony by the name of Molten Fire-"

"I know who that is!" Shining exclaimed, shocking her and Flurry so much she almost fell off her mother's back, and would've if she didn't grab her neck in time. "Oh, sorry. But Molten Fire is a librarian here in the Empire. Her and her family moved here from Canterlot years ago. Her brother's actually a friend of mine."

"Do you know where they live?"

"Yep, not even that far from here. There's a residential district right around the corner."

"Could you grab them for me? The whole family. This is a family deal. They are going to need each other."



A bunch of laughter came from the back yard of a two story home a little ways from the Castle of the Crystal Empire, along with music, splashing, and water flying everywhere. A mare with a golden coat, golden eyes, and a white mane and tail was speaking to her twin sister, a mare with a dark blue coat, golden eyes and a white mane and tail. Golden Flutter and Blue Wave, two twins who help out in the library whenever they can where their mother, a pony by the name of Molten Fire, works. The head of the library actually. At this moment she was relaxing in a beach chair, looking up at the sky with sunglasses. Her red coat was lathered in sunscreen, her magenta hair slicked back with moisturizer. The sun would dry out her hair for some reason, it never made any sense.

Right next to her was an older mare. Her mother who had a white coat, and a light red mane and tail. She was in the same position as her daughter. Leaning in a beach chair with her sunscreen on, along with some sunglasses, trying to drown out the splashing of the only stallion in the pool. He was currently just relaxing on the edge. A Pegasus with a dark blue coat and magenta eyes and tail.

"Dense Seas!" He opened his magenta eyes and looked behind him at his mother. "Go and get me a drink, will ya'?" He sighed, flew out of the water, and shook his coat, spraying water all over the mares there.

"Uncle Seas!" The twins yelled in protest. He chuckled and made his way into the home.

"Sorry girls, you got in the way of the crossfire!" He laughed. He walked through the patio doors and opened the cooler, grabbing a soda can with his wing before he started to make his way back towards the "beach". Before he walked through the patio doors, someone knocked at the front door. Loudly. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked towards the patio doors. He turned before he set down the coke and made his way towards the door with a grin. Gotta impress the masses.

He pulled the door open and lost his grin. "Uhh... Hello, Captain."

"Hello, Dense Seas," Shining Armor greeted. He was flanked by two Royal Guards beside him. "Equestrian Royalty is requesting you and your family's presence at the castle at once."

"Sure. Come in. I'll go and grab them." The three guards walked into the house and sat by the door while he went and did just that. A few minutes later the ponies were ready. They all walked out the door and got into the chariots where they were then pulled towards the castle.

"Excuse me, Captain," Molten Fire said, catching his attention. "But why exactly were we requested?"

"I'm not entirely sure myself, Ms. Fire," he responded. "But I know it has to do with The Gargantuan Explosion that everypony in Equestria has seen." That got their attention. They glanced at each other before the chariot stopped in front of the castle doors, letting them out.

They walked through the halls, eventually coming to a stop at the throne room doors, where there was some commotion behind it. "OW! Flurry Heart! You sit down right now, young lady! No, not on my face!" Shining chuckled before he pushed the doors open, revealing the chaotic scene. Cadance was running around, trying to catch the little alicorn flying through the air the guards by her throne was just standing there with stoic expressions, like it was an everyday thing.

"You know, Twilight could have grabbed her by now," Shining commented. Flurry Heart stopped and stared at her father before squealing and flying towards him. "Nonononono-!" She latched onto his face, sending him flying back and crashing into the other guards. The twins were trying their hardest not to laugh before the Princess got their attention.

"I am so sorry about that," she apologized, taking a seat on her throne. They looked forward and gave her their attention before Shining walked back inside and closed the doors behind him, Flurry still on his face. "I am glad that you are here."

"Well your summons were quite sudden," the grandmother, Lava Heart, commented.

"Yes, how can we help you, your highness?" Molten Fire asked. Princess Cadance sighed.

"Earlier today, there was an explosion in the historic town of Ponyville which completely wiped it off the map and a few neighboring areas like the Everfree Forest," she said, making them all gasp. "There were no deaths, but there were scrapes and bruises. And some other health issues. The explosion sent ponies that couldn't fly thousands of feet into the air where they plummeted back down onto completely dead and dried land."

"How?! What happened?!" Blue Wave, one of the twins, asked.

"The explosion was actually an extremely violent...ascension." They all got a confused look on their face. "A filly by the name of Scootaloo unexpectedly went from a pegasus with a wing deformity to a young Alicorn. We have no idea how or why."

"So a filly, a child, somehow destroyed and totaled an entire town?" Dense Seas inquired, making sure he wasn't going crazy.

"Yes, but not only did she destroy it. But she also rebuilt it within a matter of thirty minutes through a spell that we thought was impossible. Called Fluid Matter Conversion. She changed the lifeless dirt on the ground into buildings, grass, and other things, completely rebuilding the town."

"Wait a second, I know that spell!" Molten Fire said. "Nopony has been able to do it! It's impossible!"

"Not for her. Do you know who created that spell?"

"Yes, my sister. Ponies have said that is was useless."

Princess Cadance nodded. "Okay. Well the reason we have all called you here is because that filly is actually.....the daughter of your sister." Everyone got quiet while they tried to process that information.

"Are you....are you sure about that, your highness?" Dense Seas asked.

"She has told us herself that she was the daughter of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. We have no way of verifying it except, according to Celestia, that she looks exactly like Frozen Fire. Her name is Scootaloo. Resident pony in Ponyville and the only pony able to actually start and finish the Fluid Matter Conversion."

"Where is she now?" Lava Heart asked. The others, especially the twins, were also interested in who the child was.

"She is currently resting at the home of Rainbow Dash. The only pony to complete the Sonic Rainboom. Residing above Ponyville."

"Are we allowed to see her?" Both of the twins asked.

"I am not entirely sure, but i will ask Celestia about it. Now about your sister and her husband..." They all listened closely. "They have been declared deceased by Celestia, as well as Scootaloo herself, who said they gave up their lives to save hers. We do not know the specifics of what happened, and I do not think she does either. She said she was pushed through a portal and sent here I believe six or seven years ago, I'm not sure. And that was the last time she saw her parents. She has apparently been living alone and underneath our noses this whole time. Until the explosion." They all got a little sad before Lava took over for her daughter.

"Where did she come from?"

"A place called Earth. Celestia will more than likely fill you in on the details when you are allowed to see her. Until then, I wish you all have a good day."
> Chapter 04 - Getting Ready To Meet The Family
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash were currently on the balcony that Scootaloo saw earlier, looking at the stars. It was a clear night and you could see Luna's night perfectly. And even if you couldn't, they could since they lived ABOVE the clouds.

Scootaloo looked on in amazement, more specifically the moon. There was no other noise except the common breeze that would ruffle their manes and tails. "Do you see this every night?" She asked.

"I could but not really," Rainbow replied, wrapping a wing around the child. "I usually come out here if I'm feeling....."

"Cheesy, emotional, and romantic?" Rainbow shrugged in response and offered an innocent smile.

"Hey I get emotional too!"

Scootaloo giggled and went back to watching the sky. She had school tomorrow but that bed could wait. "Scoots?" She looked back up at Rainbow who was giving her a small smile. "What was Earth like?" She asked.

"More ahead than Equestria," she responded, looking back towards the sky. "They had electronics, everyone is not as nice, and...money is important. I had friends and.....a family. Maybe one day I'll see my friends again. And one day they'll see me. I miss them very much." They continued watching the stars for a moment before she spoke again. "You know....my age isn't exactly six.... it's older than that."

".......what?" Rainbow looked to her in confusion.

"When I was pushed through the rift my age decreased and my body changed. So I pretty much made up my age. I don't really know my age anymore. And that's okay."

"Why?" Rainbow asked. Scootaloo looked up at her and gave a small smile.

"Because I'm confortable with actually remembering that I am still alive. My birthday doesn't even matter anymore. I got a cutie mark, my friends, a home, and you, Rainbow Dash."

The pegasus smiled before she leaned down and nuzzled her. "I love you, Scootaloo."

"I love you too, Rainbow."

"But I need to ask you a favor." Scootaloo pulled away and nodded. "Could you please, please, PLEASE not blow up again? We still have ponies waiting for their legs to heal and to get out of those nasty concussions."



The next morning Scootaloo woke up with a bang, literally jumping out of the bed with a body glowing with energy. And she was ready to show it off.

"Good morning, Rainbow!" She greeted, running past her and for the bathroom. Rainbow quickly jumped out of the way when she sped past as fast as her little legs could carry her.

"Good morning, squirt! Hurry up, you got school today!" She made her way to the kitchen to get her some to-go breakfast since she woke up a little later. After twenty minutes, she came back downstairs..... glowing. Rainbow "eeped" and jumped behind the couch, startling her.

"Uhhh.....what?" Scootaloo asked, pointing her bright-white eyes to the couch in confusion.

"Scoots, you're glowing again! " She yelled from behind the furniture. "I don't know what that means! It could either mean explosion or get-ready-to-rebuild!"

Scootaloo chuckled and shook her head. "No, Rainbow. I already figured it out. When I start glowing it means I used a lot of magic, I have a deep emotion, or I just wanted to freak you out because I can turn it on and off."

Rainbow peeked at her from over the couch, watching as she somehow turned it off and on, over and over. Sighing, she came out of her hiding place.

"Well, I guess that's safer," Rainbow muttered, ignoring the filly's laughter. She grabbed Scootaloo's breakfast and put it in her saddlebags which she then placed on Scoot's back. "Let's get goin'!"

The two walked out the door and over to the ledge of the guarded cloud home. Looks like the Princesses weren't taking any chances. Scootaloo peeked over and seethed through her teeth at the height. "Oooohh, ummm..."

"Don't worry, you don't have to fly this morning," Rainbow reassured her. She scooped her up and set her down between her wings before she jumped off the cloud and made her way to the ground with two guards behind her.

Scootaloo looked at the sights around her. At the Pegasi pushing the clouds into place, the birds flying around,.....everything. It brought back a hint of nostalgia of moments she had of earth. When she would sit on the rooftop with her friends and look around, talk, and poke fun at people walking by, minding their own business. She was so mean back then. Humans were mean in general.

In the past it never bothered her enough that she was missing on Earth. But now? It was hitting her. Hard. Was everyone still looking for her there? It's no doubt one of the most mind boggling cases considering the victims have absolutely no family on Earth, along with no official registered name. If she goes back, a lot of things could happen. Good... And bad. She's still missing there....for seven years. And there is also a danger concerning age. If she goes through the rift, she risks decreasing her age by ten years. Maybe there's another way. A way that doesn't turn her into a baby.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Rainbow landed in the town square and began trotting towards the school where everyone could be seen outside. Including her friends. The town was actually busy this morning. Overflowing with ponies all trying to get that good deal from the sellers. Once they crossed past Sugarcube Corner, Scootaloo noticed four figures in front of the school.

"Princess Celestia? Princess Cadance? Princess Luna? Princess Twilight? What are they doing here?" She asked aloud.

"Dunno, squirt," Rainbow replied. "Probably wanna talk about something."

They made their way up to the school to meet the Princesses, deep in conversation with Twilight who was looking over some notes.

"....so Sunset said there was indeed a very strange and unsolved case on Earth where a family, the Carsons, were murdered. But what had made it the front page was the fact that there were no other family members. At all. And the daughter had went missing. Sunset said there was only three people who knew the Carsons because they were best friends of the daughter, and decided to give a statement to help. But the case hasn't been solved and is still going on."

"And I know exactly who gave those statements." They looked up and smiled at the filly jumping off Rainbow's back. "Good morning. What are you doing here?"

"We came to inform you that we have located your family in Equestria, who are very excited to meet you," Cadance answered. "They want to meet you in Canterlot immediately after school, so we have scheduled it."

"Umm....okay. Do I need special attire or something? I'd like to think I'm important enough to actually look like a Princess than to just be called one."

Twilight chuckled. "Rarity's already on it. She said she has a special dress with your name on it."

"Okay. Is there anything else?"

"Not at this moment," Celestia responded. Scootaloo nodded and went around them, heading towards her friends who were watching nearby.

"Hello, Princess!" Apple Bloom greeted, bumping her flank against Scootaloo's.

"Apple Bloom, it's Scootaloo," she corrected. "Just... Scootaloo. I'm not a Princess....yet, anyway." The bell rang, signalling the start of the day, which meant they all had to head inside. They walked past the other foals who moved out of their way and into the building, making Rainbow laugh.

"Oh she is DEFINITELY going to enjoy this," she commented. "What's the schedule when school lets out?"

Twilight smiled. "Fitting at Rarity's then straight to Canterlot."

When Scootaloo walked into the doorway that led into the classroom, all the other foals stopped their talking and just stared at her. She froze in mid-step and looked back at them, her friends doing the same and sending the room into complete silence. Of course they all knew by now that she was the one who single-handedly destroyed the town and rebuilt it. News travels incredibly, and impressively, fast in Ponyville. No doubt ponies all over Equestria knew as well.

They continued the staring contest before the alicorn decided she had enough and just walked to her desk, ignoring the stares sent her way. One of them actually jumped out of their seat and shifted away from her, making her stop. She stifled her laughter by pulling in her lips and continued on to her seat. This was definitely going to be an interesting day.



The train ride to Canterlot was a long one. The Princesses could get there far faster since they knew spells that could shield their chariots from the cold weather. Unfortunately for Molten Fire and the family, they were all Pegasi and knew absolutely no magic. But apparently Frozen Fire did.

They've been riding for around three hours now. It was obvious the twins were becoming irked.

"Uggghhh!" Golden Flutter and Blue Wave groaned. Molten Fire looked over nonchalantly at her daughters.

"I know this is a long train ride," she told them. "But it will all be over soon." The two mares glanced at each other, recognizing their mother's tone of voice, and sighed. It was way too familiar.

They shuffled out of their seats and made their way over to her. She was grieving. She was grieving over her sister. They took seats on both sides of her and wrapped her in a hug with their wings. Molten grabbed them both in her arms and pulled them close, afraid she'll lose them too.

"We won't be going anywhere, mom," Blue Wave whispered, giving her mother a nuzzle.

"We promise," Golden Flutter added.

"It's just like when your father passed," she whispered, tears brimming her eyes. "It hurt so much."

"I understand how you feel," Dense Seas added softly as he walked over. "She was my sister as well. We all miss her."

"We never got the chance to actually meet her," Blue Wave announced.

"You would have loved her, girls. She was incredibly smart, funny, and an overall good person. Her daughter may be the same."

"We're here, yunguns!" Lava Heart announced from the front. They looked out the windows at the city of Canterlot in the distance. The castle was in plain view, as well as the ponies occupying it. The population must've increased the last few years.

"You know we've actually never been here before," Blue Wave commented. She walked back over to her seat to grab her things since they'll be staying overnight and leaving in the morning. The train pulled to a stop at the busy train station, allowing the family members time to get up and get off. They piled off the train and looked around in wonder. The city was beautiful, just like how Molten remembered it nearly fifteen years ago.

"Excuse me." They looked to the right at three Royal Guards. "Are you Molten Fire?" One asked before the mentioned Pegasus nodded. "We're here to escort you and your family to the castle and get you settled in."

"Why thank you very much," she said, passing her bag to the guards to carry while they followed along.

Outside the train station, there was a two row chariot waiting for them with two more guards at the front of it. "We're going to take you by chariot to have you registered as visitors at the gates. Then we'll leave you to meet with Princesses Celestia, Luna, Cadance, and Twilight Sparkle," the head guard said. They all climbed into the seats and their bags thrown in the back before they departed the station, heading for the giant castle in the distance.

"You know....I just realized something," Golden Flutter said a few minutes later, catching their attention. "If our cousin's an Alicorn...."

"....that makes her a princess," Blue Wave finished. "So...."

".....are we Royalty?" They both asked. The older ponies looked at each other, a little stumped at that revelation.

"I....uhhh....maybe?" Molten figured. "I mean probably not royalty. Probably more like nobility."

"So, like, in-between commoner."

"Hey, we're here," Dense Seas pointed out. They looked towards where he was pointing, which were the tall steel gates in front of them that were currently being pushed open by some more guards. Once they were fully opened, the chariot moved through, heading towards the guarded entrance of the castle. Dense Waves raised an eyebrow and looked around him, just now realizing something.

The Royal Guard were everywhere. The rooftops, the sidewalks, even in front of every building!

"Why is it so guarded here?" He asked, getting out of the chariot with everyone else. His sister looked around, noticing the same thing.

"The Princesses have commanded that we lockdown whatever City Princess Scootaloo goes in case she...blows again," one of the guards informed them. The guard grabbed their bags and walked towards the open doors, leading the family inside.

They gasped, looking at all the decorations, ornate items, and color. It was so...

"Beautiful," the twins whispered. They walked down the hall, heading towards wherever the guards were taking them. Which was apparently a tour. They showed them the grand dining hall, the living area, the gardens, and their rooms. Which was where they dropped off their stuff.

"So what do you think?" Molten asked her daughters. Her room was right across from theirs. The twins decided to share one, said it was far better to be together.

"It's awesome here!" They both yelled. Molten chuckled at the two. The way they talked at the same time was so strange in the past, but now she was glad it was there to actually amuse her.

"I am glad you enjoy it," she said, walking into the room. "Have you checked the view from here? It's wonderful." The two looked at each other before they briskly made their way to the windows, gasping. They could see all of Canterlot. The library, malls, the shops, the homes, everything!

"This is amazing!" Blue Wave yelled. "How did we miss this?!" Even at the age of twenty seven their youthful curiosity has never left them, Molten thought. She trotted over and took a seat next to them, looking at the wondrous sights. It was pretty beautiful.

"If only Frozen could be here to see this," she muttered unheard. They continued looking until something in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She looked towards the left past her daughters and pointed. "What's that?" Golden Flutter glanced at her then directed her attention to where she was pointing.

"More guards and chariots. I think she's arrived," Golden assumed. Blue Wave looked closer, and sure enough, she could make out the Princesses and some more ponies.




One Hour Before


"Scootaloo, hold still,please!" Rarity scolded while she tried to fit the dress over her head.

"Ack! This is torture! Why are you doing this to me?" Scootaloo whined, shedding fake tears.

"Oh, stop that squirt!" Rainbow scolded.

They were all in Rarity's Boutique, watching her fit Scootaloo into the dress that was conveniently colored purple and orange to match her coat, mane, and tail. After school let out, which was at twelve, all the elements, the Princesses, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and even Diamond Tiara accompanied her to the boutique. And now they were having trouble actually putting her in the dress.

"But it itches!" Scootaloo argued after Rarity successfully had her head through the hole.

"You will get used to it darling, now hold still." Rarity put some pins in place before she stepped back and looked at her work.

"I think it looks good, Rarity," Twilight said. "Especially the purple."

"You only like it because it's your color, but I like it because it fits Scootaloo perfectly," Rainbow agreed, making Twilight groan.

"Thank you girls." Rarity grabbed a mirror and positioned it in front of Scootaloo's emotionless face. "Now what do YOU think, Princess?"

"Uggggghhhh!" Scootaloo groaned. "I really don't think......" She lost her voice as she saw herself in the mirror. After a few seconds she got the biggest grin on her face that anyone has seen her have before. "I look like a princess."

"I take it the fight against the dress is now completely drained from her system," Cadance chuckled. "You look really beautiful, Scootaloo."

"I know," she responded, stroking her hair. "Isn't it wonderful."

"Don't get too cocky," Apple Bloom warned. "You'll turn into Diamond Tiara before she became our friend. No offense, Diamond."

The filly in question groaned and rolled her eyes. "None taken."

"Okay, now time for your hair." Rarity grabbed a brush and started on that while Twilight took over.

"Okay, Scootaloo," she said, making the filly glance her way. Twilight conjured a quill and notepad into her magical grip and gave the pony a smile. "I need to ask you some questions involving....your life on Earth. Who were your friends there?"

"Hmmmm.....," She hummed in though, tapping her chin. "It's been so long....."

Twilight looked at her curiously. "Actually, did we ask how old you are?"

"Uhh...not that I can remember, but I'll tell yah'. Last night while we were watching the stars, I told Rainbow that I really don't care about my age." Rainbow bit her bottom lip in embarrassment while Applejack, Rarity, Twilight, basically everyone in there gave her a grin.

"You were watching the stars?" Luna teased.

"I never took Rainbow Dash, the Rainbow Dash, to be all mushy," Twilight added.

"Wh-what else were you going to say, Scoots?" Rainbow quickly inquired in an attempt to disperse this awkward conversation.

"Oh, right. Well I seem to have forgot my age." They all looked at her confused before she continued. "When I left Earth, I was sixteen. But when I arrived here, I was....what you all call a newborn foal."

"WHAT?!" Scootaloo nearly jumped at their exclamation.

"You were a baby when you arrived in Equestria?!" Celestia asked.

"Yeah, the rift somehow changes our ages when you go through it," she clarified. Rarity moved from in front of her to behind her to brush her tail. "I have to ask mom more about it when I see her again. I didn't tell you this either, but remember when I was in the hospital and I woke up screaming, 'MOM!!!'?" Rarity yelped at the loud exclamation, along with everyone else in there. Payback's great, Scootaloo thought.

"Yeah....yeah, I don't think that would be easy to forget considering that my ears are still ringing from that," Luna responded, rubbing her head and sighing. "Which has now gotten worse."

"Yeah, well I saw her again. I somehow met her in a place that she calls 'The Communication Plane'. Where you can speak with....you know." Celestia sighed. "That's actually how I knew they came from Equestria. I was born on Earth. My homeworld is actually Earth, but my family line is Equestria. Wow, that sounds so strange. 'Take me to my homeworld called Erf,' wow. But yeah, I was a baby when I arrived in Equestria. I could still walk and talk, I was just...small. The rift was in, what we call here, the Whitetail Woods. I stayed in there for maybe.......uhhh...."

Twilight leaned forward, intent to write down her second page of notes. "I stayed in there for over two years before-"

"How did we not notice you?!" Applejack and Rainbow asked loudly.

"We ran and raced through there all the time!" The wonderbolt added.

"I know! That's why I'm always jumping if someone says something out of the blue that hasn't spoke in a while, because you would always run by out of nowhere and yell."

"LIKE THIS?!"

"AHHHH!" Scootaloo jumped into the air and banged her head on the ceiling from Pinkie Pie's sudden entrance. She fell back on her face and groaned into the floor. "Yes," she responded, her voice muffled by the floor. "Just like that, Pinkie."

She got back to her feet and allowed Rarity to finish up her form. "Anyway, yeah, I was in the woods. You already know where I lived at. Remember your bear hitting my tree? I lived UNDER that tree when I was a foal and actually started climbing into it when I was maybe....I guess four? Oh man, we went way off track. Anyway, when I left earth, I was sixteen. But I stayed here for six years apparently. So that means I'm......" She started counting with her hoof, trying to figure it out. "I would be twenty two right now."

"So that's how you knew all that advanced terminology when we followed you into the farm," Twilight asked. "Do you even know what Sucrose is?"

Scootaloo chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, Princess Twilight, I was a scholar back on Earth. My dad was Bright Magnus. All 'A's in school. 'A' honor roll. That's the top of the list. I could've got into the biggest and most prominent school if I wanted to and made history...on Earth, that is. Sucrose is the prime component in cane or beet sugar." Twilight was staring at her with her mouth wide open before she closed it back and cleared her throat.

"Well.....that's surprising. Okay, so where did you live?"

"In a neighborhood in....buck me, Canterlot." Twilight raised an eyebrow at her language but decided to forget about it. "The Canterlot on Earth. There was a high school nearby that I attended in the past called Canterlot High."

"That was presided over by Principal Celestia?" She asked, making sure to write down everything.

"Oh no, it was by some guy named Green Grass. You know, I was like the only oddly named person in that school, if you consider everyone else. You have Double Diamond, Spitfire, Soarin, Celestia...then you have me. Lareen Carson." She cleared her throat and took on the voice of a teacher doing attendance. "'Double Diamond? Spitfire?.....Lareen Carson?' I was like the only one there with a 'weird name'. Apparently weirder than a guy named Dusty Saddles. Come on, seriously?! This guy is named Dusty Saddles and I'M the weird one? Well back on subject I have to give you my friends' names, right? For some reason, some odd freakin' reason, they are all named after sweets."

While Twilight was trying to stifle down her laughter, she nodded her head, giving the her the cue. "Okay, the first one is named Black Licorice. She's.......dark. She lives in a neighborhood called First Ivory. Black hair that's braided, brown eyes, and black skin. The second one is Pink Bubblegum. When I heard her name I laughed, I'm not going to lie. I was rolling on the ground and she chased me around with three bricks. Not one, three. She lives next door to Licorice. Actually all three live next to her. One on the right, one on the left. No doubt they still live there because they just got out of school, what, two years ago? She's described exactly how you would think. Pink. Pink skin, pink eyes, pink hair. Pink Bubblegum.

"And finally! You have my best friend besides the crusaders here named....Maud." Pinkie spit out the cupcake she was eating and stared at her in shock, along with everyone else. Rarity set down the comb and gestured for her to get down from the stand.

"Are you talking about Pinkie Pie's Maud?" Applejack asked carefully.

"Oh no! No no no, not her, it's another one! One more energetic, I promise," she responded, appeasing them. "The reason she's called Maud? I don't know. She's better than that. Light blue skin, light blue hair, and light blue eyes. Those are my friends. They always hang around each other, you can never catch them alone. The only time they are not around is if their sleeping. But after that, it's like a pillow fight everyday. At every hour."

"Okay," Twilight responded, writing all that down.

Scootaloo made her way to her friends before she stopped and turned to Twilight. "I probably should've asked what exactly you plan to do with that information before I told you everything." Twilight placed the notepad in her saddlebags nearby before she responded.

"Don't worry Scootaloo....er....Lareen."

"Scootaloo sounds so much better, please. Speaking of which, where is my scooter? I want to see what awesome tricks I can do with these-" She pointed to her unfolded wings. "-on it!"

"Okay, well Scootaloo we're just going to ask them a few questions about the case. Since they knew you, they could know a few things about the case that Earth indubitably has on you and your family."

Scootaloo scoffed. "Case? Try international investigation! What you just said is an understatement! My parents had no jobs, but they somehow got a lot of money! I have no idea how! I mean each week I would get maybe one thousand dollars just to go out and buy clothes, get a new phone or something, which in Equestria would be an overly sum of bits! Then they're murdered, the police comes into the house to investigate and sees tables with giant machines, lab coats, gloves, documents on 'Equestrian Properties', and glowing items. Most of those documents will have terms like Equestrian Properties, Doorway, Rifts, Project 2985 or something like that, and family photos of a child that they can't find. Anywhere! Absolutely nowhere on Earth! This 'case' is undoubtedly one of the world's strangest cases. I've looked through my mother's documents, which I'm pretty sure she's going to yell at me about later when I see her again, and saw things I never thought were possible until she actually did it. She made ten copies of herself and they cleaned the house while we just laid back doing nothing! Going out, eating pizza, and taking pictures. I'm sure there's some more at the house, that is more than likely condemned for an investigation and for holding 'Radioactive Materials'. I'm super positive they have something like that in that area. This isn't just any case, this is everything on the federal level."

They were all just staring at her wide-eyed after she finished her little rant, trying to come to terms with that. "And I still don't know who got my parents. Anyway, I approve. Just be careful. The police there, or guards in Equestrian terms, have guns and they really don't know what an Equestria is...at all. So, if you're going, try to blend in and act like an Earthling. Try not to say anything about magic unless you really have to."

"Okay, and what's a police officer look like?"

"The men in blue, you'll know them when you see them. You will DEFINITELY know them when you see them. Are you going?"

"Yeah, I'm the one leading the investigation. I'm going through my own portal in the Castle of Friendship. Now let's get you going so you can see your family, I'm sure you're psyched!" Everyone got up and grabbed their things before they filed out of the door, heading towards the chariots in the center of town.

"I'm not sure psyched is the correct word," Scootaloo mumbled. She hopped into one of the chariots with Rainbow Dash and her friends, while everyone else got into the ones behind her. Looks like they were just going to take off into the air in the middle of the street like how Twilight first arrived in Equestria. She just landed and there was absolutely no drag time. Just instantly stopped. Looks like it was going to be reversed.

"Alright, Scoots!" Rainbow said, wrapping a wing around her. For a moment she held it there before she realized this pony was actually twenty two years old. So she pulled it back swiftly.

Scootaloo looked at her oddly. "What are you doing?"

"It's just that...you're twenty two, so I thought..." Rainbow scratched behind her neck and got a nervous facial expression.

"Rainbow?" She looked at her while Scootaloo chuckled. "You're still my idol, you know. And to be honest...it's comforting right now." Rainbow lost her nervous look and wrapped her wing back around her before the chariot suddenly lurched and drove into the air.

"Eep!" Scootaloo yelped, along with the other Crusaders, as they ascended quickly. Rainbow laughed when she grabbed hold of her wing.

"Never flown royalty, princess?" She teased.

"No, the only way I've flown is by falling out of trees and riding my scooter!" She replied loudly. After awhile of hanging on tightly, she loosened her grip and slowed her breathing before finally finding the courage to look around. She hasn't exactly been to Canterlot except that one time when Discord broke free, but she has noticed the Elements go there all the time. "So....what should I be expecting?"

"Well for one?" Cadance yelled to her from beside their chariot. Everyone's was in a straight horizontal line with Celestia and Luna in the front, leading the charge. "A lot of guards. You single-handedly took out a historic town in the blink of an eye so we've put them in place in case of another.....'blink'."

"Blink?"

"A surge," Twilight clarified. "Your magic, that we've seen so far, both light and dark, are unstable. So Celestia and myself are going to teach you how to use your magic effectively. However, we don't exactly know what we're dealing with, considering you have both light and dark magic in your possession, and that you have the power to do the Fluid Matter Conversion spell effortlessly." Scootaloo raised an eyebrow and looked at one one of the clouds nearby and flying over her. Grabbing one in her magic she brought it into the chariot and looked at it, interested. Cadance and Twilight shared a glance before she lit her horn and somehow molded the cloud into....golden hoofshoes?!

She placed the four shoes in front of her and stepped into them, nodding in satisfaction. She lifted her hooves and moved them around, making sure they fit perfectly. "Uh, I'm so jealous," Diamond Tiara whispered.

"Oh, yeah! Now I'm official! I just need my crown! Rainbow! Where's my crown?" The pegasus raised an eyebrow before she turned to Twilight who was biting her bottom lip in laughter.

"Uhh....I don't know Scoots, the factory I guess?" She answered, shrugging in confusion.

"I need it before I meet my people's people! Actually, does my dad HAVE any people? I should hope he does, right?"

"Cadance, does Bright Magnus have any family members in Equestria?" Twilight asked her.

"Yes he does, and they are meeting you with everyone else, Scootaloo."

"Okay," she responded, watching the city come into view. She looked around the escort, seeing the copious amount of guards around them. There had to be like twenty flying around them alone, not at all counting the four pulling each chariot. "Wow you guys weren't playing any games when you said you were going to have some guards. There's like forty here in this escort team alone."

"And there are over a hundred in Canterlot at the ready," Twilight added. "Looks like we're coming in, hold on!" Scootaloo looked confused before they dipped, making her yelp and grab hold of Rainbow's wing again, causing Rainbow Dash to laugh and stroke her mane.

A few seconds later, they landed behind the Canterlot Castle, allowing Scootaloo to relax and let go of Rainbow's throbbing wing after she held onto it like a lifeline, stopping the bloodflow. "Thank god that horrendous torture is over!" Scootaloo yelled, teleporting off the chariot and onto the grass around it. She was about to start rolling around in it before Rarity grabbed her in her magic and lifted her up off the ground.

"Don't you DARE ruin my marvelous work!" She scolded. "This dress took two days to make and I will not have you ruining it by rolling around in the dirty grass!" Scootaloo groaned and crossed her hooves before Rarity set her back down.

"Fine," she huffed out before Apple Bloom came over and gave her a side-hug.

"It's okay, Scoots!" She encouraged her. "I'm sure you can roll around, or do whatever the heck you were goin' to do, when we get inside or somethin'!"

"Yeah!" Sweetie Belle agreed coming out on her other side before Diamond clattered in front of her.

"Now come on and let's meet your family!" Scootaloo held up a hoof before they went anywhere. "What is it?"

"I want to try this out real quick," she responded. "I was always curious about how I did this." The other four princesses nearby shared a nervous glance before gasping when Scootaloo's body broke off into three black clouds, zipping around and flying all over the place.

"Uhhhhh......" Twilight said, looking at the scene in shock with her mouth wide open. "Should we grab her?" Before they could respond, the clouds went past the doorway and into the castle, making everyone gasp.

"Well that ain't good," Applejack muttered before they all ran in after her. Princess Celestia and Luna shared a glance before Luna decided to break the silence.

"I'm hungry, should we just leave it up to them? We did skip lunch, after all."

Celestia put a hoof to her chin then shrugged. "Well we have to meet her family as well before she actually walks in. I guess it's okay to let them deal with the flying clouds of madness this one time." The two chuckled before they walked in and the guards closed the doors.



While they were running around chasing the unstable alicorn that can use dark magic, the visitors were currently being escorted towards the Throne Room, where Celestia and Luna were currently having lunch. "We really need to eat out more often, sister," Luna informed her from her throne before biting into a doughnut. "Doughnuts in the daytime is the best time to have a doughnut."

"Whatever you say," Celestia responded before someone knocked on the room doors. "ENTER!" The guards outside pushed them open, allowing the group of eight to enter. "Hello, everypony," Celestia greeted.

"Oh, uh...H-hello, Princess Celestia," Red Matter greeted timidly before she bowed with everyone else. She was a unicorn that resembled much of Fluttershy, down to the timidity. She had a red coat, and a red mane and tail. Her son, Dark Matter, was standing by her side with a completely black coat, black mane and tail, and dark blue eyes. He had a sister, Earth Flower, on the other side of her who looked pretty much like Fluttershy. Much like her mother. She had a light pink coat and a light yellow mane, the opposite of the Element of Kindness but still the same colors.

"Rise, my little ponies," Celestia ordered. They did as asked before she briefed them. "We have called you here today so you may greet your niece in your lost family line. And the new Princess of Equestria if she decides to take up that role."

"So it's true?" Dark Matter asked, attracting everyone's attention. "She exploded and became an Alicorn?"

"Yes, and her magic actually surpasses ours," Luna added, surprising them before scarfing down another doughnut. "Excuse me, but we have had a very tiring day, so far, and have not had lunch."

"It's okay, your highness, we can't expect you to run the country on empty fuel," Dark Seas guaranteed, chuckling.

"Thank you. Now back on the subject. Scootaloo is currently, and literally, flying around the castle and is in pursuit by her friends, the Elements of Harmony, Princess Cadance, and Princess Twilight herself."

"We decided to let them handle it considering that we haven't eaten lunch yet," Celestia added with a giggle. "It was Luna's idea. I just went along with it. Have you all met each other?"

"Yes, we met each other a few years ago when Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus first got married," Red Matter answered. "And then again during a family reunion nearly twenty years ago."

"Well, you can have another Family Reunion when Scootaloo decides to quit flying around. Which I really hope is in a few minutes, or seconds at least."

"So we wait until then?"

"I am afraid so, unless-" She was interrupted by a bunch of commotion going on outside. Something was banging along the walls with a bunch of yelling.

"Twilight, catch her!" Rainbow yelled.

"YOU catch her, you're the fastest one here!"

"Can someone please catch the black floating cloud?!" Fluttershy yelled in frustration.

"Did Fluttershy just yell?!" A filly asked. "Scootaloo, stop flyin' around!"

"No no no, don't go in-" The doors swung open with a bang shocking everyone when three black clouds sped into the room, headed straight for Celestia, who gasped and teleported away just in time for them to slam into and bounce upwards. Twilight sped into the room and slid on her flanks at the scene. "Aww, come on!!" She cried, thrusting out her hooves.

The clouds flew into the air, forming into a vortex before finally coming together and turning into a young orange pony with 
magenta hair. Scootaloo looked around in shock before falling before and landing on her golden hoof shoes with a clang, the sound reverberating around the room.

They all looked at her with their mouths wide open while she was looking at her shoes. She looked back up and wore the biggest grin. She stood up on two hooves and thrust her hooves out. "BAM!" She yelled, making them all jump. "What do ya' call THAT, huh?! Was that awesome or what?!"

Everyone dragged their tired bodies into the room, completely exhausted. "Yeah, Scoots...you....you rock....yeah...." Rainbow Dash said tiredly before she fell over, completely tired like everyone else that chased her around.

"Scootaloo?" Twilight huffed. "You...you really....need to....need ta' be in control of your magic...seriously..." She let herself drop to the ground with everyone else. The guests were just looking at them before they refocused their sights on Scootaloo, who was fiddling with her dress.

"Scootaloo," Princess Celestia called sternly grabbing her attention. She turned around at the royal who was settling back down into her seat. "Thanks for that....entrance. But now it is time to meet your family." She raised a hoof and motioned towards the eight ponies standing behind her.

Scootaloo turned around in confusion and gasped at the eight faces looking at her. "EEP!" She yelled, jumping into the air.

Molten looked up at her in wonder, seeing the resemblance between her sister and herself. They both had the same coat color and magenta eyes. But besides her being an Alicorn, she looked exactly like Frozen Fire.

Scootaloo dropped back down in front of them, nearly falling on her face before she regained her footing. "Heh," she said, giving them a nervous smile. "Uhhh.....hi."
> Chapter 05 - Reminisce
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The family members all just stared at the little Alicorn in shock while she did the same, feeling very awkward underneath their heavy gazes. She rubbed the back of her neck and seethed through her teeth before she got an idea. This'll get everypony moving. She turned on her magical glow, making everyone gasp, especially Twilight.

"OH MY GOSH NOT HERE NOT HERE!" She yelled, putting up a strong shield around her. The family blinked before they backed away. Figuring she got her point across Scootaloo turned it off, making everyone stop. Twilight gently lowered her shield, sighing in relief.

"Good. Now that I got your attention....can we please say something now?" She asked. "This is so strange."

"You look just like my sister," Molten whispered with tears in her eyes. She trotted forward and looked her over. "I really see it....you look just like her when we were younger...besides the Alicorn thing."

"Yeah....yeah, I got a headache and then boom. Town destroyed and me rebuilding it," Scootaloo commented before she was pulled swiftly into a hug from behind.

"Hello, Scootaloo. I'm your aunt, Molten Fire," the pony greeted, squeezing her tightly.

"Nice to meet you," she wheezed. "Now umm....Aunt Molten? Could ya'....could ya' please let me breath?" Molten let her go, allowing her to use her wings to lower herself gently to the ground. "Thank you. You have mom's grip."

"It's a family thing. Come meet the rest of your family." She walked forward towards the other nine watching the scene with smiles on their faces, all eager to meet the orange filly.

"By the way, I'm not a kid," she announced. "I'm twenty two." The family laughed, finding it cute while Rainbow snickered from the side. "Don't laugh, Rainbow, or I'm comin' over there."

Rainbow Dash scoffed, crossed her hooves and narrowed her eyes with a smirk. "You would have to catch me first. And nopony has ever been able to catch me."

"Exactly. NoPONY. Originally, I was a human. So I'm both. Double trouble, Rainbow. And seriously, I'm actually twenty two, no joke."

The twins looked at her in confusion before Rainbow decided to back her up.

"It's true," she said, catching their gaze. "Squirt here was sixteen when she came to Equestria and has lived here for six years. So technically....she's an adult." They all looked down at the orange filly grinning and waving a hoof at them.

"Well that doesn't change anything," Blue Wave commented, shrugging. "You're still a cousin of ours. I'm Blue Wave. Nice to meet you, Scootaloo." She reached down to her and shook her much smaller hoof.

"And I'm her twin sister, Golden Flutter," the golden pegasus mare beside her greeted, shaking her hoof.

"Nice to meet you," Scootaloo greeted.

"And I'm your uncle, Dense Seas," the blue stallion beside them stated, reaching down and shaking her hoof. "You really do look alot like my sister."

"Yeah, I get that a lot," Scootaloo agreed with a chuckle.

"We were in the middle of a little party when we received the news that Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus had passed, and that they had a daughter," a red version of Fluttershy said on her right. Scootaloo looked over and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm guessing you knew my father?"

"Yes, I was his sister," she said as Scootaloo approached. "My name is, um, Red Matter. It's so great to meet you." Scootaloo shook her hoof before she introduced the others. "This is Earth Flower and Dark Matter." The unicorns strode forward and shook her hoof.

"You two look like Fluttershy," Scootaloo commented, motioning towards the animal caretaker in the corner, trying to keep from view. When everyone turned to her, she said, "eep!" and ducked behind a drape from the window. When everyone else turned to Red Matter and Earth Flower, they did the same and tried to hide somewhere. Red matter hid behind Rainbow Dash while Earth Flower just hid behind her brother.

"And they act just alike," Twilight commented.

"Yeah, this is going to be good," Scootaloo muttered. She walked over to an elderly mare in the back who had a stern look on her face. "Uhhh-"

"Stand up straight!" Scootaloo locked her wings and stood on two hooves out of instinct, making everyone look to her in confusion. "On four hooves, youngun! We're ponies, not....whatever the hay you were before." Scootaloo dropped back down to her hooves.

"Sorry. Instinct. When I was going to school on Earth, whenever someone said that, it meant use two legs, not...four."

"Well, here it's four. Hopefully you'll get used to it pretty quickly. Unless you're going to be that one princess that stands on two hooves. Now come and give your grandma a hug." Scootaloo strode forward and hugged the elderly woman. "And I don't care if you're twenty two or eighty six. You still look like a filly. Therefore you are a filly."

Scootaloo sighed through her nose in annoyance. She was not going to like this lady....mare. After a few more seconds, she let her go and breath fresh air. Why did she smell like cookies?

"Well we're glad you got to meet everypony," Celestia said from the front. Everyone turned to her, giving her their attention. "But I am pretty sure they want to see the photos you have of your family?" They all looked towards Scootaloo, who was trying to remember where she put it.

"Oh yeah. Ummm....There at Rainbow's, so-"

"I'll get it!" Rainbow Dash zoomed out of the room and out of the castle before anyone could say a word, leaving only a rainbow trail behind that faded away. Red Matter was standing out in the open with her eyes wide before she darted behind Twilight.

"-so she's going to go get it, apparently," Scootaloo finished. "Sooo......where do you guys live?"

"Well we live in Canterlot," Red Matter said, stalking out from behind the Princess of Friendship.

"And my family lives in the Crystal Empire," Molten told her. "We used to live in Canterlot. But when my sister and Bright Magnus went missing, we decided to leave."

"Didn't want any scenery to bring up bad memories, huh?" Scootaloo asked, patting her hoof.

"Yeah....yeah, we didn't want that." Before Scootaloo could respond, a Rainbow blur sped into the room, kicking up wind. Rainbow Dash landed right beside her and placed the Saddlebags right next to Scootaloo.

"Wow, no wonder she's the fastest," Dark Matter muttered.

"Got all one hundred twenty one, squirt!" She yelled. "I don't know why, but I'm more excited than Pinkie Pie when she sees Maud."

"Thanks, Rainbow! You're the best!"

"Yeah, I know," Rainbow boasted while Scootaloo lit her horn and pulled out the pictures in a line. They formed into a giant square that almost reached the ceiling of the room in front of her.

"Come over, everypony! Let me show you my parents....as humans." Everyone in the room walked forward and stood behind her as she told them the photos.

"This was mom," she said, pointing at an orange skinned blue haired woman with magenta eyes, holding her hand out in front of the lense while grinning. "She obviously didn't want to take a picture."

"That's her! That's our sister, Dense!" Molten cheered, pulling her brother into a hug.

"I don't know when they took that photograph, but I think it may have been when they realized they might as well enjoy their time on Earth." She flipped that photo and pulled down another one, telling what it was.

They went through about one hundred photos, Scootaloo remembering exactly what they were all for. Then they came to some that held a very important part in Scootaloo's heart. "This...was me." She pointed towards the pregnant stomach of her mother who was busy throwing a vase at the camera. "Now that I realize it, dad was in a very bad position at this certain moment. Mom was obviously in a mood swing and he was trying to take a perfect photo. That vase must not have felt good."

Rainbow chuckled before Scootaloo pulled down another photograph. Of all three of them. In the hospital. "And that was me in the flesh," she pointed out, motioning towards the orange skinned baby with a bit of magenta hair on her head wrapped in a blanket. The parents were smiling and had tears of joy. As well as a face of relief. "They were relieved because I still survived despite the accident that happened."

"Wait, what accident?"

"This is another photograph of me riding a tricycle," Scootaloo continued, ignoring Molten's question. "I had never ridden one before, so they decided to ease me into it. This was the tricycle, then the bicycle with training wheels..." She pulled down a photo of a two wheeled metal object with her on the top holding onto the handlebars. Her face was definitely unsure of it. "...I fell off after this picture. And this was me on a full bicycle." She pulled down another photograph with her having a face of fear on another bicycle, this one with only two wheels instead of four. "And yeah, I fell off after that too. It hurt, man!"

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Diamond Tiara laughed a little before she went to the next one. "This was when they brought me home, put me in a crib, and let me go to sleep. My life was really weird, seriously. They told me I would not stop crying until I was asleep. Even when I was breastfed. I would suck, pop it out, and then go right back to crying. Eventually, they got tired and put me in bed, where I instantly shut up and fell asleep. They were so irked."

"Yeah, that sounds like Bright Magnus," Red Matter commented. "He was always the one who had no patience."

After a few more, Scootaloo moved the photographs to get to the other one. "And this.....was the last one we ever took." It was the photo of the Carson family, where Scootaloo was in the middle wearing a shirt that read the Carsons. Frozen Fire was on the left with a smile that could brighten all of Equestria, and on the left was Bright Magnus with a grin that could outdo all of theirs. "That was....a month before the incident. Where I was thrown threw the portal, arrived in the Whitetail Woods as a baby with only books and pictures to remember them by. However, they still live on with me...as long as I got these photographs."

"I'm sure they're proud of you," Molten said, wrapping a wing around her.

"I know mom is, I just spoke to her last night." Molten looked at her confused before she looked up at her and started to explain. "I don't know how, but mom has somehow linked me to a place she calls 'The Communications Plane', where I can speak to her when I sleep. I was surprised when I saw her in my sleep. She somehow knew I became an Alicorn and contacted me. She said she's always watching and I do NOT doubt that. She's probably watching right now in this room." She looked around, making sure she's not being watched before leaning down into Apple Bloom's ear.

"Between you and me....I think she's using Sweetie Belle to watch me."

"No I'm not."

"See? Wait what?" They all looked around trying to place that oh so familiar voice.

"I'm always watching sweetheart," a voice said from all over. "Hey, sis! You still look like a 'hot red' mess."

Scootaloo sighed at the very bad pun before she turned around trying to spot her mom. "Mom, where are you?!"

"You have a really nice throne, Celestia." They all turned around to see an orange skinned and blue shoulder length haired pony that was very...wispy. It was like she was a burning fire that was shaped like a pony. She sat down on the throne and got comfortable, sighing in pleasure. "Oh, yeah! This feels good on the flank, now I know why you sit on your butt doing nothing all day!"

"What? You take that back, right now," Celestia playfully scolded while walking up to the throne. Frozen Fire blew raspberries at her before she jumped out of the seat, chuckling.  She pulled Celestia into a hug before she quickly trotted over to her daughter and pulled her into one as well. But instead of a motherly warmth, it was cold and distant.

Scootaloo shivered. "What? Are you too old to accept your mother's hugs? Gotten too mature, 'Cutie Mark Crusader'?"

"Mom, you're freezing my flank off."

"Love you too, sweetheart."

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!" Twilight yelled rushing over and looking over the spirit. "How are you here? Where did you come from? How did you manage to-" Frozen Fire stuffed a hoof into her mouth nonchalantly. Twilight shivered from the very cold feeling.

"Calm yourself, Ms. Sparkle. I must speak to my family first before I answer your questions." She removed her hoof and walked over to her crying sister. "There there, you hot mess. Stop crying."

Molten Fire sobbed before she pulled her sister's cold soul into a hug. Everyone else in the room except the elements and the others stood to the side and watched the coincidental family reunion. After a few minutes they broke apart.

"How? How are you here right now?" Dense Seas asked.

"An old spell I cast on myself before I was murdered," she answered. "I'm going to explain what's going on. It was a mix of Dark Magic and Light Magic that we created on Earth using crystals and a lot of chemicals. The people who were after us were looking for my daughter. Which is why we threw you through the portal. Bright and I knew they were coming. So we developed another spell that was able to give the host the ability to open a portal back to Equestria. I gave it to Bright Magnus and he took Lareen to a place where they would not be disturbed. But we did not know they were coming that early. So I stayed behind and destroyed everything we had created with magic. Destroying the molecules and everything else before they burst into our apartment and killed me. But I had completed the mission. And so had Bright Magnus. He got our daughter safely to Equestria where they will never get her."

"But why were they after her in the first place?" Dense Seas asked.

"Her magic. Which was going to be used by a crime boss and his cell that had somehow found out about us. He was going to use it to take out his enemies. He already had weapons. Guns, cars, and other things. But he wanted more. He wanted something that could torture his enemies and keep them alive so he could do more harm and send out a message. Not to mention give him longevity. He was going to be a human version of, sorry Luna, Nightmare Moon." The said princess waved it off, completely use to it by now. Frozen Fire looked behind her at the lavender alicorn. "And Princess Twilight?"

"Yes, Frozen Fire?" she asked, stalking forward.

"When you go to earth...be armed. I'd prefer it if you didn't go at all, because it is very dangerous. But your investigation has already begun, it would be futile. So when you go...be prepared and watch your back. Stay on your toes. This group does not kid around and they will do unspeakable things to you if they catch you. They, as well as the police, are still looking for Lareen....Scootaloo......Princess Scootaloo..."

"Mom..."

"I promise to be safe, ma'am," Twilight responded.

"Good. And Celestia?"

"Yes?" She responded walking into her view. The mare rushed forward and gave her a hug.

"I miss you. Watch over my daughter. Please."

"I promise to keep a close eye on her. As well as everypony else in here," she whispered back, a small tear leaking from her eye.

"Thank you. Scootaloo, I'll be seeing you tonight." Before Scootaloo could respond, she disappeared in Blue Flames that left as fast as they came. They looked at the spot they were at before Rarity decided to break the silence.

"Well....that was...unexpected....but welcome nonetheless."
> Chapter 06 - Journey To Earth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

After the arrival and news flash from "Frozen Fire From The Dead", everyone decided to walk around the castle and take a look around. Trying to get to know their new cousin. Their lost family member. Rainbow opened the doors to the throne room and the group filed out. The Princesses decided to stay behind to discuss Twilight's mission, leaving Scootaloo and everyone else to talk.

Once they were out, Twilight closed them back and looked towards the thrones where...they were all eating. "Really?" She asked, chuckling. "I thought you just ate."

"They ate," Cadance corrected, motioning towards her aunts. "I am just getting started. Have you eaten? If you're going to Earth, you need some food to have energy to run, fight, and overall move. Not to mention use your head."

"I will in a minute."

"You will now, Twilight," Luna corrected. She levitated two doughnuts to her which she took in her hooves. "Prove to my sister that Doughnuts are much more better in the daytime than in the morning."

"I don't care what time it is, they're still good," Twilight corrected, taking a bite into one. "Now about this mission....how do we approach?"

"I suggest you go during the daytime or in the afternoon," Celestia answered. "If these girls are twenty two, or twenty four, like Scootaloo said, then they would have jobs by now and would have to be getting off of work at around five on their world."

"I figured that. Should I bring in the others? They'll want to help anyway." She finished one doughnut while they answered.

"I think you should. Sunset Shimmer is on par with your own magic, but just a little bit beneath," Luna responded. "As for the others...they could probably just provide a look out. They have the magical diodes like you said, correct?"

"Yes."

Celestia hummed in thought. "Then they should come in handy during a time like this," she responded. "However, based on Frozen Fire's warning, these...humans are really desperate to get their hands on magic. So they should hide the diodes in a place where only they know its location. Because they are magic. Also, while you are there, I want you to stay in contact with me as much as possible. Here." Celestia teleported a book from her room to in front of Twilight. "Sunset Shimmer had something similar to this and you have one for her."

Twilight took it in her hooves and looked at it closely. It was a communication journal from Twilight to Celestia. And vice versa. "A communication journal to you," she responded.

"That's right. Each day and whenever you feel you need to, tell us everything that happens. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Princess."

"Good. Now....are you going to stay here and-"

"I think I'd rather get started on it right away," Twilight interrupted. She turned around and started to make her way back towards the door. "Scootaloo's well being and her parents' justice depends on it."

"Twilight?" Cadance called out, stopping her. She turned around and looked towards the Princess of Love. "Please. Be careful."

"I promise." She turned back around and made her way towards the doors. Once it was closed, Celestia turned to the others.

"I don't have a bad feeling about this," she commented carefully. "But we all know Twilight could be in danger, based on Frozen Fire's warning. I would have ordered her to stay, but...we all know that our ponies needed justice. And there is no other pony that has gone to Earth before."

"Yes," Luna agreed. She took a bite out of her fifth doughnut, shocking the other two before she continued. "Twilight and her friends are the only hope we have right now of a successful mission."

"And Scootaloo?" Cadance asked, snatching the last doughnut from Luna's grip. "She knows Earth well, I suppose. She is from there." She took a bite out of the doughnut while remaining eye contact with Luna. She knew this was just killing her.

"We would have to get Frozen Fire's permission for that," Luna responded glaring at Cadance. Celestia was watching and trying her hardest not to laugh behind her hoof. "And you are going to pay me five bits for that doughnut."

"Oh stop, Aunt Luna. We all know that these cost zero bits for you. Since you like to use your royal status to get them for free." Celestia laughed, doubling over at Luna's face.

"I have done no such thing!" She denied, trying to hide the blush on her cheeks.

"You're right, wearing your crown and walking in with guards into Doughnut Joes in a threatening manner is not intimidation indeed. Now....I want more doughnuts."



"Twilight?" The Princess stopped and turned around towards Scootaloo who had teleported behind her. The two were standing in the hall that led towards the back of the castle. "I just want to tell you something. If I randomly show up, just be happy I did." Twilight looked at her confused. "It's just......they may not believe you if you decide to tell them I exist. So.....I'll probably show up sometime."

"Scootaloo-"

"Twilight, you and I both know that Earth does not fully believe in magic," Scootaloo interrupted. "So you coming in and saying I'm alive, or if you just want to get information on me....they're going to ask how, who, where, and most of all, why. They'll want proof. Either I go there, or they come here. And there is no telling what will happen if you choose that last choice. So technically.....there is no way out of this. So....just watch your back, I might show up, and mom may bring me to the grave with her as punishment, yell in my ear while I'm sleeping, or something else. And, if it makes you feel better, you can teach me how to do magic or something in return. I REALLY need to learn how to do some basic spells. I mean flying around as a black cloud is great, but I need something more simple."

Twilight sighed through her nose and thought hard about it. "Fine," she relented. "I'll.....I'll just be looking up in case you fall from the sky or something." Twilight turned around and walked back towards the castle doors.

"And try not to peeve off a police officer! They will hurt you!"



"Are you sure about this?" Starlight asked her teacher as they walked into the Castle of Friendship's library. "From the way Scootaloo described those guns I'm pretty sure they will not hesitate to hurt you if you try to fight back."

"All I'm looking for Starlight is a name for the crime boss," Twilight said. They stopped and turned to each other in front of the portal. "Right now, it's....three fifteen in the afternoon. Hopefully it's the same time on Earth. My friends there are already waiting for me by the portal."

"Even the other.....you?" Starlight asked, pointing a hoof at her.

"Yes. Her knowledge on technology is what we may need to find these people. So everyone is joining in. She actually volunteered. I don't know why but she did."

"Because YOU would do the same."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Look. I promise to be careful. Okay?" Twilight placed a hoof on her student's shoulder, catching Starlight's downtrodden gaze. "This is part of being a Princess. Whenever there is an injustice against one of our ponies we have to set things right. No matter the cost. I hope you understand." Starlight sighed and nodded before she adjusted Twilight's saddlebags and other things on her back.

"I do, just....watch your back and listen for any noises. I used to be a villain. And so did Sunset. You have to villains on your side. One smarter than the other. Two resources in case you need some advice on how they would think. Just ask us if you need help."

"Thanks, Starlight. Let Spike know I'll return soon."

"Gotcha. Good luck, Princess." The Princess of Friendship nodded before she ran forward and jumped into the portal with a flash. Starlight watched it for a minute before she sighed and turned around to deliver Twilight's message. Hopefully she would fulfill that promise.



A summer breeze crept past the stone statue of a horse in front of a school. Canterlot High. Where there were seven girls relaxing at its base. Trying to pass the time. Princess Twilight was supposed to have arrived a few minutes ago and everyone was anxious to get started. Even Pinkie pie who was so excited she was creating balloons just to make them.

Sunset Shimmer passed the ball back to Rainbow before a balloon hat was placed on her head. She raised an eyebrow and looked up at the grinning face of Pinkie, who was dangling down from the head of the horse. "Are you really making me hats, Pinkie?" She asked blandly.

"Yeperoonie!" She answered, waving down to her. "I've been making hats for the last few minutes, and you ALL get one! Yay!" She reached up and grabbed four more hats before throwing them out towards the others. They all landed on everybody's head. Rainbow reached up and plucked the one that looked like a palm tree off hers before a ripple appeared at the base of the statue.

"I'm so sorry I'm late, everypony.....everyone!" Princess Twilight apologized once she was out. She placed the saddlebags-turned-bookbag off of her back and onto the ground to stretch. Her back gave an audible pop, along with a sigh in relief from her. Sunset Shimmer smirked at her while the Princess shook her head. "I sort of...packed a lot. Mostly information." She stretched and cracked her back. "Phew! That's better. They're mostly scrolls and such from Equestria."

"Do you think it was a good idea to bring all of that information when we're....'crossing behind enemy lines'?" Rainbow inquired. She strode forward and picked up Twilight's bag. "Whoa, yeah that's heavy. Twilight, while you're here, I suggest you hide that information. Or at least use a spell to shrink it or something. Because if we get caught by the police, or worse, that gang, they've got information and we're in trouble. Because we know where Scootaloo is, and they want her."

"Silly Rainbow, it's already hidden." They all shared a confused look before she unzipped the bag and pulled out a.....metal box with no seams. "THIS is the information." Twilight looked around for a moment before she waved for them to come closer.

"This is a magical box that I, and only I, can open. Nopony-" She cleared her throat. "Nobody else can open it. But me. If they do...they literally get the shock of their lives."

They pulled back and looked at the box before Twilight cast another spell on it, sending purple lights to dance around on the surface before they dissipated a few seconds later. "I just put a tracking spell on it. As well as reinforced runes. Just in case. Can never be too careful. Right, Twilight?"

"That's right!" Sci-Twi agreed. They both shared a thumbs up while Rainbow put her face in her palms.

"This is going to be the most nerdiest thing I've ever-"

"Let's get started!" Sunset said, cutting off Rainbow's annoyed groaning. "So. What do we do first?"

"Well what time is it?" Twilight asked

Pinkie Pie pulled out a kid's watch and checked the time. "It is now...four forty eight!" She answered happily.

"Four forty eight?! Oh no! We don't have much time! Quick, Sunset! I need you to look up the location of a...uhh..." She reached behind her and pulled out a notepad to check out her notes. "First Ivory! It's a neighborhood that's-"

"Right around the corner, I know where it is," Sunset cut her off. She turned around and pointed towards the soccer field. "It's over there on that side of the field. Right past and across the fence."

"Then let's get going." She put her notepad back in her pocket and picked up her bag before they started walking along the sidewalk. After a few seconds of walking, they decided on a conversation.

"So.....what exactly happened to start an investigation, Twilight?" Rarity asked her while looking at her nails.

"Well before I answer that question, you girls need to hide your diodes. They're still magical items which apparently cost a hefty price here." They all put it underneath their shirts before she continued. "And....a few days ago, there was a foal that went by the name of Scootaloo, who we were told had hurt herself by doing a trick on her scooter. So her friends took her to the hospital. However, I was informed by a staff member that whenever they would ask about her parents, she would run away. So my friends and I tracked her down to a tree that she was living in."

"So she didn't have parents then I guess," Rainbow inquired as they rounded the corner to the neighborhood.

"Right. So we tracked her down and I think we scared her or something because....she teleported away. A pegasus...teleported." Sunset stopped walking, making Twilight bump into her back.

"A Pegasus used magic?" She asked in confusion.

"Trust me. I was just as in shock. So we chased her all over town, eventually finding her in what she called 'Her Sanctuary'. But in reality...it was a shrine. For her parents. Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus."

"WHAT?! Her parents are the missing teachers of-"

"Yep, the missing teachers of Princess Celestia. Anyway, skip forward a day later, we're chasing her around, we corner her, and.....she blows up."

"She...blows up?" Fluttershy whispered.

"Yep. An explosion so big that it leveled Ponyville, half of the Everfree Forest, and anything between Ponyville and the bottom of Canterlot. After Celestia arrived on the scene, we discovered that after the desolation Scootaloo had turned into an Alicorn. And was busy rebuilding everything through a spell that has left mages and studious individuals like me baffled for years. You know what I'm talking about Sunset." The group stopped in front of a well kept neighborhood that looked like it belonged in Los Angeles instead of behind a school. Sunset turned around and gave her friend a smirk.

"Uh...Twilight? I haven't been to Equestria in years. I don't recall a lot of rare spells."

"Well the spell was called Fluid Matter Conversion. Where you can turn anything you want into anything."

"Ohhh, that spell. Wait.....SHE DID IT?!" The others were just sharing confused looks as they went back and forth.

"Yep. The land around us was a total wasteland. There was absolutely no way life was coming back. And she rebuilt the entire town without breaking a sweat. Unlike all the other unicorns that were trying their hardest to do that spell who were sweating buckets. At that moment, we realized that this filly was of special interest. So after some questioning, she told us she was the daughter of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. We found out what happened, then I meet Frozen Fire from the dead. She tells me to be extra careful during this investigation, and here I am. This is the neighborhood?"

"Yep," Sunset answered, nodding her head. "They always keep this neighborhood spic and span. It's for pretty, well-off families."

"Oh it is marvelous!" Rarity cheered while looking around the neighborhood in awe. Her eyes were shimmering in envy. She ran forward while the other girls just walked.

"Okay, we're here," Rainbow groaned as they looked around. There had to be twenty houses on one side of this street alone. "Now what?"

"Now we look for three individuals. Black Licorice, Pink Bubblegum, and....Maud." The group stopped and turned to Pinkie's confused face before Twilight corrected them. "Not Pinkie's Maud. It's a woman by the name of Maud. She's blue themed. Completely blue themed. Then you have Pink Bubblegum. Who's completely Pink themed. Then...Black Licorice."

"I'm guessing she's dark themed?" Applejack pointed out with a chuckle.

"Yes. Black hair, brown eyes, and dark gray skin. Scootaloo said we'll know them when we see them." She put the notes back in her pocket while they continued looking around. After awhile, Pinkie had to ask.

"So.....did she say WHERE in this neighborhood exactly? I see more streets."

"I think it's right there," Fluttershy answered, pointing down the street at three girls getting out of a car and walking towards a dark themed home. From a distance you couldn't really make them out except the blue one bouncing up and down.

"Yep! That must be them," Princess Twilight responded. They walked a little faster to catch the house. The girls walked inside where there was older women waiting for them. "It looks like we have double trouble."

"Do we wait until tomorrow?" Sunset asked.

"I wouldn't wait," Sci-Twi answered.

"Neither would I," Twilight agreed. The door to the house shut once the girls were inside. "It's now or never. Besides. They'll want to know.....what happened. So believe it or not, they're a part of this investigation as well. Let's go." They looked both ways before crossing the street quickly. So far, there wasn't anyone else outside which gave them a bad feeling. They were already taking some big risks walking around with magical items. Especially with a backpack filled with information that only Twilight could open.

Once they were on the other side, Sci-Twi spoke. "What if they don't believe us? If we say something like we need to ask you some questions about Lareen Carson, they will probably shut the door in our face."

"Then we say something else," Princess Twilight answered as they stopped in front of the sidewalk leading up to the door of the home. She turned around and faced the group. "We obviously can't bring up past wounds. So we'll just...show them some things using a spell I know."

Before they could question it, she turned around and made her way to the door. The rest of them looked at each other before they followed after her. She stopped at the door and took a deep breath before she lifted her fist, prepared to knock. Before she could do so, it swung open and a blue face with a grin popped out.

"Hi!" She yelled, making the Princess jump.

"Gah!" Twilight yelled, nearly jumping a foot into the air. "Uh...hi."

"Can I help you?" She asked. Twilight was just staring at her before Sunset groaned.

"We need to ask you some questions, as well as deliver some information on a certain individual that you may know." Princess Twilight was just looking at her appalled before turning back to the blue faced girl.

"Oh! Okay! Come in!" She widened the door and gestured inside. The princess was taken back. How in Equestria...... She shook her head and walked inside with the others, keeping her backpack close to her in case of an attack. Once they were in the house, the blue girl closed the door.



The interior was great. In Rarity's envy-filled eyes. Applejack groaned before she elbowed her in the ribs, trying to get her to stop making googly eyes at everything in the building. Like the curtains at the window.

"How can we help you?" An older version of the blue haired girl asked. She was taller than her and was obviously her mother. There also seemed to be an older version of all the girls in the house.

"Well actually....we can help each other," Princess Twilight said, catching all of their attention. The TV in the living room was muted and the dark skinned girl turned around with her friends. The princess reached into her back pocket and pulled out the notepad, flipping it to a specific page. "But first, I need to verify some names. Is your name Black Licorice, Pink Bubblegum, and Maud?" They all looked to her in surprise before they narrowed their eyes in suspicion.

"Who wants to know?" The older version of the black themed girl asked, approaching slowly towards Twilight. She stopped in front of her, as well as the pink one, glaring at them.

"Well, if you don't want to know some very important information involving the whereabouts of a certain individual that went missing six years ago you don't have to tell us. But if you do, I suggest you to." Sunset just looked at Twilight in shock. Did she just threaten them?!

"Wait..." Pink Bubblegum got up from the couch and walked over to her. "We don't even know who you are. Or any of you. Are you her twin sister?" She pointed to the Twilight wearing glasses. Sci-Twi shook her head.

"Oh no, not even close," she chuckled.

"Well, sorry but you............." The people next to her looked over and gasped. Her mouth was moving, but no words were coming out!

"Sorry, but your voice was getting very aggravating," Princess Twilight replied before she lowered her glowing hand. The family looked back at her in shock. "Don't worry, she'll talk again once I lower the spell. Now, your names?"

The family looked at each other before they told her their names. She nodded in confirmation before she lifted her hand, taking the spell off of Pink Bubblegum. "What did you just do to me?!" She asked loudly.

"I put a spell on you. Now, can everyone go have a seat? I have a lot to ask and a lot to tell. By the way, Lareen Carson is safe, I know where she is." They froze and looked to her in shock

"How do you know-"

"Orange girl, magenta hair, can become a quick smart alec when she wants?" Twilight interrupted. They were all just staring at her. "Yes. I know where she is, lives, and has been living for a few years now. Now can everyone please have a seat?'

"Uhh....s-sure," the black parent said before she ushered everyone over to the couch. The Equestria girls looked to Twilight for instructions.

"Sunset? Stand by the door. Rainbow, you're the fastest one here so just stay on your shoes. Fluttershy and Rarity stand by the windows. And Applejack? Stick with Sunset. Twilight? You're with me." They all took positions around the house, confusing the occupants while the Princess and her counterpart in front of them.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle. Oh! Also, turn off your phones and take out the batteries if you can." They took a moment to do as asked before she continued. "Like I said, my name is Princess Twilight Sparkle. And this is Twilight Sparkle from here."

She gestured to Twilight beside her, who waved in response. Black Licorice was about to say something before the Princess beat her to it. "Now. I know what you're thinking, 'There's two of them?' that's right. Because I'm not from here."

"This town?" Black Licorice asked blandly.

"Nope, try again."

"This state?" Maud continued. The Princess shook her head.

"State?"

"I just said no to that."

"Nation?"

"Try world. I come from a land called Equestria. Where magic exists and is the number one source of energy and tool there." The group was staring at her unamused.

"Yeah, that's great and all but we-ooohh, shiny!" Maud grinned at the glowing ball of blue light Princess Twilight was juggling in her hands. They were all staring at it in wonder before she tossed it to them.

Before it landed in Bubblegum's hands, it dissipated into the air. "That's not even a pinch of what I can do. What WE can do." She gestured to the Equestria girls. "Now. The reason I'm here. Lareen Carson, also known as Scootaloo, is safe and sound there. AFTER she blew up the town. We want to know if there was anything odd that happened while she was here in Canterlot City."

"Wait how do you know even know about Lareen if you're not from here?" Black Licorice asked her. "There's something fishy going on."

"I agree," her mother said. "We don't like being lied to about these things. How can you know about this if no one on Earth can find her?"

"Because she's not on Earth," Sunset explained. "She's in Equestria."

"And where is this Equestria?"

"Another Universe," Twilight answered.

"So you came here by a spaceship?" Maud asked.

"No, we just walked through a portal."

"Unless we see this Equestria, or Lareen, we will not believing you."

"If you do see her you'll be in danger," Twilight explained with a groan. "Scootaloo is in trouble and if you know about her, whoever is after her will come after you."

"They don't care, they just want to know I'm good." They all looked towards the stairwell where an orange skinned girl was walking down. She had on dark green cargo pants and a long sleeved orange shirt. "I told you something like this was going to happen, Princess. Black, you really have to clean your room. Seriously? I'm gone for six years and THEN you decide to get nasty? That's just....not you." She jumped the rest of the way down and landed in front of Twilight. Then grinned and poked her eye.

"Ow! Why'd you do that?!" She asked, rubbing her eye.

"To be honest, it's because I have never seen you upset and I really wanted to see that. I don't think anypony here has seen it either. Right....uhhh.....you? Twilight why are there two of you?" Sci-Twi was just waving at her before Lareen smiled and waved back.

"She's Twilight from here. Aren't you going to say hi to...your friends?" Lareen looked over at the others who were just staring with their mouths open.

"Hey, guys. Look, Twilight. Mom said you could probably use some help with this. She was really really really......realy really ........like really really..........REALLY against the idea. And so were my aunts, cousins and definitely Rainbow Dash. But mom taught me some 'magic tricks' and now I'm on par with you. How about that?" She nudged Twilight in the arm before looking at the frozen people. Their eyes were wide and mouths were practically on the floor. An awkward silence followed, along with the ever so casual cough. Lareen patted her thighs and popped her lips before she sighed.

"So.....are any of you going to say something? I'm back."
> Chapter 07 - I'm Back(On The Run)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everyone in the room was just staring at the orange skinned Magenta haired girl, thus making her groan in annoyance. "This is the third time somepony has been gawking at me for two days. If somepony doesn't say something, I am going to blow up." Scootaloo's body began to glow, causing Princess Twilight to gasp.

"No no no no no!" The Princess yelled, desperately waving her hands. "Please don't, pleeease don't!" Scootaloo laughed and stopped her glowing with a knowing grin.

"I wasn't going to!" She laughed.

"Lareen?!" She looked over right when three older people jumped on her, sending her down onto the ground.

"Where have you been?!" Maud yelled. She had tears streaming down her face while her hands were placed on her cheeks. Obviously distraught. "I thought you were dead, you jerk!!"

"All three of us were!" Pink Bubblegun added.

"I'm sorry, Maud, girls," she said sadly. "I didn't mean to get you upset. I was in hiding for my safety. But I'm fine now...sort of. Okay?"

Black Licorice huffed before she pulled her into a tight hug. The other two joined in, making it a group thing. But after a few seconds, Scootaloo had to ask.

"So....is my house up for sale?" Her friends chuckled and allowed her some space.

"It's been abandoned," Black Licorice's mother answered. She walked over and helped her up before pulling her into a hug of her own. "I'm really sorry about your parents."

"Six years too late, Ms. Flash," Scootaloo responded with a small chuckle. She rubbed the older woman's back before she slowly pulled away. "But I appreciate the concern. And I took it as best as I could when they didn't follow."

"Well you're okay now right?" Pink Apple, Pink Bubblegum's mother asked while she delivered her own hug. "It must not have been a good experience."

"No, it was fun, you know. It's your average child-gets-tossed-through-a-portal thing that happens every hour. Not to mention a bunch of guys speeding in a car to get to you. With guns. Shotguns and rifles."

"At least you survived it!" Maud commented loudly. "But I have a question."

"Ask away." Scootaloo walked over and took a seat on the couch. Her friends walked over and sat down beside her before Maud did. Exceptionally loud.

"Why in the world were they chasing you anyway?! It's not everyday someone around here starts chasing you with a gun, you know. Now what. Did. You. Do."

"Why is it my fault?" Scootaloo asked with a nervous chuckle. She looked around the room nervously and bit her lip while twiddling with her fingers.

"Because in our clique you were the one that made bad choices and always got in trouble."

"You're a very mean bully," Pink Bubblegum clarified before she took a closer look at her. "And why do you look so young?"

"Yeah, sixteen year old!" Black Flash agreed. She looked Scootaloo up and down with interest. "You look exactly how you did when you went missing. What's up with that?"

Scootaloo shrugged in response. "I don't know! Everything is weird!"

While they were having their talk, Twilight waved for her friends to come over in a huddle. Once they were in a group circle and she had all of their attention, she asked, "What should we ask? The status of the case here on Earth?"

"Yeah," Sunset agreed. "If Scootaloo here is tagging along we have to be real careful when we're outside. Someone might see something then tell someone."

"And we don't need attention," Applejack added. "Scootaloo is pretty much a wanted citizen. When you told Sunset about what happened in Equestria, I took the liberty of looking up 'Lareen Carson'. Every city around the country has a handful of eyes out looking for her. FBI, SBI, Police, Detectives...they're calling it the worst crime in decades."

"Why?" The Princess asked in fear.

"They say it's unsolved parricide." Twilight was looking at her with her mouth open in shock. She glanced over at Scootaloo who was busy talking with her friends, then refocused back on them.

"They think Scootaloo killed her own parents?" She whispered in disbelief. Applejack nodded solemnly in confirmation.

"Yep. So everyone has an eye out. Speaking of which, how did she get here?"

"Uhh..." Twilight looked over at the laughing girls, catching up on life. "Scootaloo?" She looked over and widened her eyes. "How'd you get here?"

"Your portal in the castle. Then I walked over after I recognized the school. It has not changed at all."

"Was there anyone outside giving you strange looks?" Twilight asked in worry.

Scootaloo looked up to the ceiling to recall anything. "Well there was this one guy I was a little wary of. He could barely keep his eyes to himself, I tell ya'. I'm sure he took a photo of me since he was looking so hard. I was about to kick his flank but then I was like, 'I'm just really paranoid.' I have magic, what's the worst that could happen?"

"Someone is charging you for parricide," Black Licorice told her. Scootaloo slowly turned to her with her eyes wide.

"........what?"

"Yeah, the police and FBI are looking for you," Applejack confirmed. "If someone took a photo we need to leave right now."

"Wait," Princess Twilight said. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a notepad and a pen. "Do you know anything about her parents?"

Scootaloo jumped up and ran towards the door. "We don't have time for that! Be safe girls and remember! You don't know anything, or have even seen me in years!" Scootaloo's body glowed for a second before there was a crack and a flash. Once the light faded away, the group was gone.



A crack and a flash deposited the group of nine in an alleyway downtown. After getting her bearings, Princess Twilight brushed through everyone in the tight brick alley and peeked out. They were in downtown Canterlot that was slightly congested. It was a little past five so everyone was still heading home. She groaned and turned around to face her friends.

"Scootaloo, you dropped us downtown," she whispered in frustration. "It's swarming down here!"

"Crap!" She yelled. "Well this is where I would go in case I wanted to relax and hide." Rainbow looked at her in amusement.

"You relax in an alleyway?" She asked her.

"Well, in the summer." Scootaloo looked Rainbow over before she let out a soft chuckle. "Can I just say you look really strange as a human?"

"Scootaloo dear, we need to focus here," Rarity whispered. Scootaloo sighed, rolled her eyes, and nodded her head in begrudged acknowledgement. Rarity turned to everyone else and asked, "How are we supposed to get around with her without being seen?"

"I don't know," Sci-Twi answered. "No doubt the police are out if they saw that photo. It would be complete chaos."

"Well the only thing we can really do is wait for nightfall to sneak around like the suspicious people we are," Scootaloo figured. She walked towards the edge of the street and peeked out cautiously. She didn't see a lot of people. But there were still people. And people have phones. Information spreads quickly through the world wide web. "But we're still not safe here."

She pulled back and looked at the girls behind her. "If the police know I'm back in town, they will search every nook and cranny of this place until they find me. Which includes alleyways."

"Buck," Sunset muttered. She sighed and moved her hair out of her face, blowing out a puff of hot air. "So what do we do?"

"Easy. Run." They all turned to Scootaloo like she was crazy. "Look, if the police are looking for me, they'll have a better chance of finding me if I am in one place and not moving. We'll I don't know about you, but I'm not giving them that chance. Right now, I am at war with two parties. Whoever the hay killed my parents, and the feds. And both of them don't know what they're dealing with. I have a handful of magic." She put her hand out, palm up and shot a bolt of lightning into the air, scaring anyone walking nearby and causing her companions to cover their ears. "And I know how to use it...a little. Right now the ball is in my court and I am aiming to score."

"And what happens if you miss?" Sci-Twi asked.

"Then I am going to punch somepony and run."

"I'm not sure Frozen Fire would appreciate you running from the police," Princess Twilight commented.

"Mom isn't here. This is the plan....run. Run straight for that alleyway." She pointed across the street at an alleyway that was connected.

"That's the plan?" Rainbow asked in confusion. "Can't you just teleport us over there?"

"Yeah but I don't want to attract attention."

"You just shot a bolt of lightning into the air, we're past the point of no return," Fluttershy clarified. Everyone turned to her in shock. Did she just say something sarcastic?! Scootaloo shook her head for a moment and sighed before she teleported them to the alleyway. After getting the dizziness out of her head, along with groaning, Sci-Twi looked out of the alley to see three police cars headed down the street.

"Police," She whispered. "We gotta go, we gotta go!" She pushed them in the opposite direction and got out of the alley right when the officers passed by. They slowed and looked down the passage for a moment before they continued on their way. Scootaloo breathed a sigh in relief before she turned to the others who were checking their phones for more information on the side of an empty street, in front of a closed restaurant.

"Alright, Scootaloo," Princess Twilight said, catching her attention. "Rarity said the police is combing all of Canterlot right now. Someone posted the picture of you walking down the sidewalk and asked, 'Isn't this that girl who killed her parents?' on The Haystack. So now we....what?" Scootaloo was looking past her with her eyes focused on a car turning down the street they were on. It was moving way too slow.

"In the alley," she ordered. "Now." The girls all went back into the alley to get out of sight temporarily before the car sped up a little. Once again, it was a police car. The same one from a few seconds ago in the front. You couldn't really tell from far away because the shadow of the buildings were casting it in black. But Scootaloo knew the movement of a police cruiser when she saw it.

The car slowed down and stopped in front of the alley before an officer got out and looked into it with suspicion. "Do you see anyone?" Her partner asked. The officer squinted her eyes before she held up a hand and started walking down it. The invisible group of friends quietly backed up at her movement before she stopped and looked around. She sighed through her nose and adjusted her belt before she walked back to the car.

"No, but I'm sure I saw her come through here," she responded as she got back in the car. She picked up a radio and barked into it. "Cruiser four one six to all vehicles. She's somewhere downtown. Monitor all streets." The police cruiser pulled away with a screech of its tires, leaving the group to relax for a moment. After five more seconds, Princess Twilight dropped the spell.

"That was way too close," she whispered. The princess took the bag off her back and put it down on the ground. She quickly unzipped it and reached inside, pulling out the notebook Princess Celestia gave to her and began writing into it. After a few more minutes she put it back in her bag. "I just sent Celestia a report of what's going on. Your charges on parricide, the fact that the entire city is on lockdown, and that we're stuck. Already."

"Then I'm going to have to rush it," Scootaloo argued. "We can't stay here anymore. Well....right now anyway."

"So we're going back to Equestria," Princess Twilight agreed. "There are absolutely no leads on the mystery right now. What we need is a contact for when there is a lead. How about one of your friends?" Scootaloo looked at her in confusion. "The blue one. Maud. She could send you messages like how me and Sunset do almost everyday. All we need is a way to contact them. Let me ask Celestia." She reached into her bag again and pulled out the book, sending her a message. A few minutes later after a bunch of paranoid lookouts, she got a response back.

"'Come back to Equestria. Earth is too heavily condensed and obviously on edge if the entire city has been put on lockdown from a mere photograph. Grab Scootaloo and bring her home. As for the contact information. I believe it should be an idea in waiting. We will speak on it more once you return.' So how exactly do we get back to Equestria?"

"We run to the portal," Scootaloo answered quickly. "Everyone else? Get home. Don't stay out on the streets. Just get home. Right now."

"No need to tell me twice," Sci-Twi responded. "See ya', girls." The group of Equestria Girls quickly walked out of the alleyway, leaving the Princesses to themselves.

"Do you know where we are?" Princess Twilight asked. Scootaloo shook her head. "Well...since we're going home, we can take our time and look around to figure it out. Let's go." Princess Twilight walked to the other entrance and peeked out. Seeing it clear, she waved behind her for Scootaloo to follow and then ran out. The streets were empty. How they were going to get out unseen was obviously not in their minds. They were going to be seen. Both of them. Scootaloo quickly dashed out and followed the princess to another corner. They looked around it to get  a handle on their location. It looked like they were on the outskirts of the city and nearing the school. But once they were out there, there was no chance of hiding. They would have to make a break for the statue.

"Scootaloo? Do you know how to turn into your clouds?" Twilight asked her. Scootaloo nodded her head while keeping a lookout. "Well we're going to need that soon. You barely know how to control it after a few feet. So it'll be a last resort. Try not to hurt any officers on the way. Ready?" Scootaloo got into a running position. "Set....go!" The two quickly rushed out from behind their last cover and made their way towards the sidewalk on the other side. To get to the statue they'd have to go around the school. They were behind it and the school was closed. So they couldn't take a shortcut. Once they reached the sidewalk, they turned and continued running down it. It was going to be a lot of yards before they made it to the corner of the school. And that was a lot of exposure.

"Well....this is...going good...so far," Princess Twilight panted as they ran. Scootaloo was about to nod before the oh so familiar siren behind them caught her attention. "What's that noise?"

"Police, we've been spotted! Keep running and put up a shield! They may try to detain me for something!" Twilight looked over her shoulder at the police car speeding up to them. Another siren whooped before a voice was put out.

"Freeze, and get on the ground now!!!"

"I'm really tempted to get on the ground!" Twilight yelled. Scootaloo shook her head before the vehicle sped up in front of them and slid to a stop. Two officers stepped out and took chase right towards them.

"Get on the ground now!" One of them shouted. "Stop running!"

"Scootaloo, teleport!" Twilight ordered. The orange girl quickly summoned her magic and turned into three clouds, zooming right around and through the three police officers before she reformed behind them. The officers slid to a stop and gasped before turning around. Twilight had teleported standarly to Scootaloo's side, leaving them to wonder what the hay that was before they called for backup.

"Uh oh, they're bringing the calvary!" Scootaloo commented. "They'll be here within ten seconds since they're flooding the city!" Twilight smiled at the statue that they were coming up on.

"It's right there! I have to put up a smoke spell so they don't know where we went!"

"You mean like Trixie's smoke bombs?"

"Yes! Don't tell her, but I copied them and turned it into a spell."

"My lips are sealed!" Scootaloo looked over her shoulder at the Police Cruisers that were gaining on them. There were ten of them. "Buck, do it Twilight!" The Princess of Friendship turned around and put her hands out, summoning a spell. A loud blast shook the ground a little before they were hidden by a huge wall of smoke. The cruisers screeched to a halt before they got out of their cars and looked around.

"Go, go, go," Twilight whispered. Scootaloo jumped into the portal before Twilight followed along right after. Right when the police ran through the smoke. They had their weapons out and were looking around cautiously, being as quiet as possible. They took a few hesitant steps forward and looked around. They looked all over the statue and the school grounds before they came up empty handed.

"Where'd they go?" One of them asked. "You can't just...disappear that fast."

"I don't know," the sergeant responded. He reached up and grabbed his radio to send an intercom. "Sergeant to Captain. We lost them. More details on the way, standby." He released the radio and looked around the area. The smoke had cleared by this time, leaving the police to finally get a good view of the area. There was not a soul in sight. "There's not even a trace of her. She came back, then disappeared. We need to call in the big guns. This case just took a far more weirder turn."
> Chapter 08 - Yeaaah, It Didn't Work Out On Earth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo and Twilight were flown back out of the portal into the library of the Friendship Castle, and slid across the floor, eventually hitting the first seats in front of them. All was silent until Twilight groaned and sat up, fixing her mane. "We really should think about our plans if you're going to be around, Princess," she groaned before standing up and shaking.

"That's right! You should get to learn about places first before you start visiting it," Scootaloo said in mock agreement. She sat up and looked at herself. She was still a filly, that much was obvious. As well as an Alicorn. "What happens if they go through that portal?"

Twilight looked at her, then to the portal. "Well...since they are in our jurisdiction and attempting to arrest a princess of Equestria for Parricide, on the grounds of no evidence, they will be arrested and sent right back out. And if they try to bring in more security, we will do the same thing."

"Oh...okay."

"Why?"

"Because humans are nosy. They'll stick their nose where it doesn't belong and end up bringing trouble with them. A perfect example will be what just happened a second ago. A police stuck their nose into where it doesn't belong, and now we are on the lamb."

"YOU are on the lamb, i was just an investigator." The two began to walk out of the room while continuing their conversation.

"But you decided to show around your magic and run with me. You are now an 'accomplice' to a 'Parricidal Maniac.'"

"Is that what they call it?"

"That's what I'm calling it. Got any food in this joint and some runnin' juice, Princess? I'm starved after all that running and making the police look stupid." Twilight nodded and showed her towards the kitchen to get some "Runnin' juice."

"Is that what humans call water?" Twilight chuckled, opening up the fridge. She pulled out some premade food and set it on the table, warming it up with her magic.

"That's what I call water. Thanks." She grabbed the hot plate of hay fries and started eating. Twilight sat down across from her and started on her own food while continuing the conversation.

"You sure have your own way of words."

Scootaloo nodded in agreement without looking up from her warmed up food. "Well, when I first arrived here, I was making things more fun and enjoyable by doing hobbies. Scooting I always did on Earth, I just happened to find one here too. One of those hobbies was creating my own slang. I used the words I created a lot here."

"So what are some of them?" Twilight asked in interest.

Scootaloo cleared her throat before she started."Running Juice is obviously water, Mini Board is Scooter, Boosters are my wings, Air Horn is my mouth, Satellite are my ears, and Cameras are my eyes. There's more and I'm making even more for my Alicorn status."

Twilight was just staring at her stoically before responding. "Oh. Well don't tell them to me because I'm gonna be confused in the future like I am now, I can see it already." Scootaloo chuckled before a new voice made itself known from the doorway.

"You're back?" Starlight asked in surprise while walking inside the room. "That was less than three hours."

"Yeah," Twilight responded with a chuckle. "Turns out Scootaloo here is one the Wanted list for a framed Parricide."

"Oh okay." Starlight grabbed an apple from the fridge and took a bite. "The others are looking for you upstairs."

"Why, the portal's down here." Starlight just shrugged in response before turning to Scootaloo. 

"So...killed your parents huh?" She asked.

"No. The Police THINK I did," Scootaloo responded before turning to Twilight in worry. "And Twilight, we have to do something about that portal. If I know anything about humans, they'll poke around at anything and have backup with them. And if somepony comes through, they'll bring twenty more, look around for a moment, go back, and then bring everyone."

"Scootaloo, I really doubt anypony's going to start investigating the statue," Twilight stated matter-of-factly.

"No offense, Princess. But you obviously don't know human standards. If there is something weird going on, like say two girls who go missing three seconds after a puff of smoke is created when there are no doors around, they start poking around. And considering that one of those girls is pretty much a convicted felon, they won't stop poking around until they find something. ANYTHING. And eventually, between maybe an hour from now or a day from now, somepony's gonna touch that statue, fall straight inside, and see......everything."

"Then the sword's in our hooves!" Starlight announced happily. "If they come here, we can have your name cleared, since you are legally a citizen of Equestria. If you've committed a crime it'd have to go through Equestrian court."

"That's not how humans think. If you've committed an act on Earth, they'll want to try you on Earth."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Well unfortunately that's not how it works here," Twilight responded before taking a sip of her drink.

A canter of footsteps sounded by the doorway, catching the three's attention. "There you are!" Princess Cadance announced as she walked in, heading for Twilight. "What happened?"

"Well. Scootaloo's being charged for Parricide-"

"Which I did not do, let me make that clear right now," Scootaloo interrupted. "And they may soon find out about that portal. Please convince Twilight to unplug it."

Cadance looked at her confused. "Why?"

"Because those haystacks will come right through. Either fall in or walk in. We disappeared behind a smoke spell right in front of that statue. Humans don't give up so easily after somepony disappears, let alone a wanted criminal of the United States in one of the most craziest cases on Earth. They'll investigate. Start pokin' around and such. If somepony pokes that statue, they'll fall in, go back out, yell out, 'I think I found something', somepony else comes in and says, 'buck yeah, you did. They came right through here.' Then they both leave. And within two days, you have forty police officers, or in the worst case, sixty Marines walking right through with guns. And possibly some eggheads. They're scared, and they have guns. If a pony just walks up and says 'Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie', they'll fiddle with their guns after finding out their hands changed to hooves and pop her right in the head. And she WILL be gone. And that's the calm case scenario. If things get worse, like a fight, the ponies who don't know about humans drop like flies."

They were just staring at her with a frozen look of skepticism. "Scootaloo, that Portal is our only clue as to what has happened to Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus," Twilight responded.

"Well that project has to be paused! It wouldn't even matter if they're dead, we'll be next up! We have to shut off that portal, no ifs, ands, or buts. Shut it. Off."



Back on Earth, in front of Canterlot High School, there were a group of sixty Canterlot stationed USMC soldiers ready to storm into the statue after one of the investigators fell inside and reported of a weird room made out of crystal and stored with books. As well as a body change. After calling it in, the Marines were tasked by the FBI and CIA to march inside and investigate since that is more than likely where they went.

The man leading the charge was Sergeant Looper, found to be very intimidating. And his second in command, Lieutenant Mayweather. She's just as tough.

Sergeant Looper sighed and spit a toothpick out of his mouth while poking his hand through the statue. There was definitely something there. "That guy must've been traumatized when he fell through," he commented quietly before turning around to face everyone else. There was a group of scientists and more standing to the side, observing everything and taking notes.

"Alright wannabes!" He shouted, catching their attention. "We're going on a little field trip today! There is a girl who has committed Parricide behind this portal, and we need to bring her here. I was told that there will be a slight body change. So adapt and adapt quickly. We don't know what else is behind this thing. If there is something, keep your weapon on hand and finger on the trigger. They may or may not be hostile. Just stay on your toes. Let's go!"

The Sergeant turned around, took a deep breath, and marched through with the sixty right behind him.



"So there could be ponies coming here," Celestia concluded after Scootaloo told them about what happened on Earth. And the possibility of a forced entry into Equestria.

"Yes," Scootaloo said worriedly. "If those puke cans come walking through that thing, it will turn violent, I'm telling you we have to unplug that thing." She pointed to the portal across from them.

"Scootaloo even if we did unplug it we'd still have a problem," Cadance responded from her left. "There's another entryway in the Crystal Empire."

"Why do you have so many?!"

"We only have two."

"That's one too many! Unplug it before-" Something suddenly flew out of the portal and skidded across the floor, stopping right in front of Scootaloo. They all looked down at the pony dressed in camouflage. With a gun on his back. Scootaloo groaned and quickly teleported all of his weapons off of him, tossing them out into the hall before he could wake up.

The others gasped when four more flew out. Then five. Eight. Seven more!

"This is what the buck I was talking about! We have to evacuate Ponyville, there's a lot more than that!" Scootaloo turned around and ran out the door quickly with the other four princesses right behind her, leaving those shooting out alone. Meanwhile, the Marines were quickly filling the room and recognizing their situation.



"Spike!" Twilight yelled down the hall as she ran. "SPIIIIIKE!"

"Hey, Twilight!" The Baby dragon said as he walked into the foyer. "What do-"

"Get everypony that is IN the castle...OUT of the castle! And out of the town! Right now! Go go go go go!"

"Okay, okay!" He replied back before running as fast as his little legs can carry him. While they were doing that, Celestia and Luna were busy evacuating Ponyville.

"Everypony!" Celestia yelled from above. The citizens all stopped their movement and looked up at her. "I need you all to calmly grab your children and evacuate the town immediately!"

They stared in confusion before shrugging and reluctantly grabbing their foals to leave town. Luna was looking at them from the top of building while also glancing towards the Castle of Friendship in the distance, where Scootaloo and Cadance were standing in front waiting for everyone to come out.

Pinkie came bouncing out first, annoying Scootaloo with her giddiness. She bounced right up to the young Princess and ruffled her mane before bouncing towards Ponyville. Scootaloo groaned and fixed her hair before the others came rushing out, a little worried. Including her family members.

"What's going on?" Golden Flutter and Blue Wave asked at the same time.

"Just follow everypony else, girls," Cadance ordered gently, pointing towards Ponyville. "Go on. Go." They and everyone else, including Spike quickly ran out before Twilight took her place on the other side of Scootaloo.

"Can you speak with them?" She whispered to Scootaloo hopefully.

"I can try. But those were a lot of ponies. And they were growing. Worse case scenario? They start breaking things and demanding to 'Speak to our leader.'"

Celestia trotted up in the middle of the group and sat down facing the Castle with the other Princesses. "And all five of us are the leaders," she said. "Even if Scootaloo doesn't want to be."

"You pushed me into this Twilight," Scootaloo accused. "With your reluctance to close that portal." Twilight sighed and focused on the castle once more.



The Sergeant tried to pick up his weapon in the large hallway filled with ponified soldiers looking around in wonder, muttering about the crystal walls. Some were more entranced at themselves, who were looking at their ponified bodies.

"Sir? I have concluded that we are horses," Lieutenant Mayweather stated, slowly trotting up to her superior who was still struggling to pick up his weapon.

"I know we are horses," he groaned in frustration. Mayweather sighed and rolled her eyes before picking up the weapon with one hoof and holding it out to him. He shyly took it and strapped it on before grabbing his radio on the floor and placing it on his vest. As well as his helmet on his head, which fit perfectly.

"Thank you. Okay, wannabes!" They all stopped talking and grabbed hold of their weapons with one hoof. "I have no idea where we are. But there could be others. So check everywhere and bring anymore to me so we can ask some questions and find out where we are. Let's move! Commanding Officers, grab your group and split off."



Around thirty minutes later of just silence, and the ever so random bird landing on their horns, Scootaloo clicked her tongue impatiently. "Maybe they went back," Luna guessed.

"No they didn't," Scootaloo guaranteed. "If I know anything about them, they just don't leave empty hoofed."



Five of the ponified soldiers peeked around the corner that led to the library before rushing out and looking around.

"It looks clear," one of them said while peeking into another room.

"I doubt a place this big is empty," another responded while looking down another hall. "There's absolutely no way."

"Wait...there's something in here." They all looked towards one soldier walking into a very large room that had a table sitting in the middle with 3D buildings on it. The soldiers looked at each other before walking inside, interested. One picked up his radio and quickly relayed their find and location before looking around the room.

"What is this thing?" One pony whispered, looking at the table. One guy was busy looking at the chairs while the others were looking at the Cutie Map.

"Think these chairs mean something?" They looked over at the chairs all around the table, having symbols on the tops of them. There was one in the very middle that had a purple star with a much smaller seat beside it.

"I think this could be the leader," a zoldier said while motioning towards the middle chair. "The ruler."

"Maybe."

"Okay, whatchu got?" They looked behind them and saluted to the Sergeant walking inside with ten more soldiers.

"A table, sir. With futuristic 3D imaging that actually stick out." Sergeant Looper walked towards the table and looked over it.

"It looks like a map," he concluded. "Could be a war room?"

"We never thought of it that way, sir."

The sergeant hummed before reaching out and touching it. The second he did, the images turned red and the table turned off, displaying technically a crystal table. "What happened?" he asked.



Twilight's cutie mark began to pulse, gaining attention. They looked at it before turning back to the castle in worry. Scootaloo groaned and just walked towards the door.

"I can't wait any longer!" She yelled in frustration. "They're just looking around and interrupting everypony's day! Come on, we're going in and talking. Probably have some tea too."

The others followed in briskly after her before Twilight closed the door behind her. "Okay. They're probably at the Map Room," she suggested. "We teleport?"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and turned into her clouds, flying down the hallway, making the Princesses sigh. "She is so IMPATIENT!" Luna yelled.



"Impatient!" The soldiers stopped and looked around at the insanely loud voice reverberating and echoing around the building. Sergeant Looper picked up his radio while keeping his eyes on the door. "Keep your hands...er...hooves on your weapons! Line the halls!"

The soldiers took up their positions and stayed silent, albeit a little paranoid as well. Lieutenant Mayweather was breathing hard while looking around at the same time.

"She is going to get us all hurt, Celestia!" Someone yelled down the hallway.

Lieutenant Mayweather waved a hoof above her head while all the soldiers on that hall hid behind something. "Mayweather to Looper. We got voices coming this way."

Sergeant Looper made gestures with his hooves, pointing towards different areas of the room for the soldiers to take positions. Once they were all set, they pointed towards the entry.

Scootaloo's spell stopped behind the corner of the hallway that led up to the map room and stayed still, listening in. There was some very fast breathing going on down there. A lot of them. This castle was big enough for that.

Twilight trotted up to her and listened as well. "Sounds full," she whispered. "Now what?"

"Well we can't send in Celestia or Luna," she whispered back. "They're REALLY intimidating. Cadance is....eh. While you? Your title they will not take seriously. I dunno. But me? I'm a sweet little filly walking around trying to figure out why they touched the table. So I'm going in first. I'll call if I need any of you. Remember. These are MY people." Scootaloo shadow teleported to a higher up hallway while the princesses were sharing looks of confusion.

"I'm intimidating?" Celestia whispered.



The soldiers had their guns trained on the web of hallways. Waiting and watching for movement. "This is taking too long," one whispered to Mayweather. She looked over at him before going back to the hallway. "We really need to-"

"Wait," she whispered. She squinted her eyes and listened. "Something's coming." They all listened to the clopping sounds echoing around the halls, as well as the ruffling of feathers. "Could it be a-" Something orange flew quickly across the halls from a few ways up. "I saw something! Come out now, don't make any sudden movements!"

Scootaloo groaned and rolled her eyes. She was going to come out. But not on this hall. She only darted across to get a quick see through of everything so she knew where to go. Now she knew her plan. She put up her shield, took a deep breath, and spoke.



Sweat was pouring off of the soldiers' muzzles as they listened to the small clopping of something up the halls, making their way to them. Especially Mayweather. She was shaking lightly and trying not to make a lot of noise at the same time.

"Drop your weapons," a small voice reverberated around the halls, making them all jump a little. "Drop all of your weapons immediately. This is a peaceful land and you will not be bringing them here." Mayweather picked up her radio and spoke to her superior.

"Sir, did you hear that?" She asked. The Sergeant walked out of the Map Room and listened to the voice again.

"Drop your weapons, no harm will come to you if no harm will come to us. And I will harm you if you do not drop them." The Sergeant picked up his radio, continuing to look around, clearly uneasy.

"Everyone drop your rifles, keep the pistols," he said. The soldiers did as asked while keeping their pistols out of sight. Once the last one was dropped the Sergeant listened some more, waiting.

"Thank you for participating," a little voice said inside the room right behind him. The group turned around to see an orange filly in Twilight's seat. But she looked a lot different than them. She had a horn on her forehead. She offered them a smile and dumped some sand on the table that she gathered from the floor, forming it into a pile before lighting her horn and turning it into a six cups of tea that she put around the table. "Have a seat, leader guy. We have a lot to talk about."

The sergeant picked up his radio and relayed his men to come to the room immediately before he slowly trotted in. "Stop walking so slow, I'm not going to bite you," Scootaloo chuckled. "The worst I could do is throw scalding hot tea at your mouth." The sergeant cleared his throat before taking a seat next to her, observing her. She was just like them, but had wings and a horn. They only had hooves.

"You are wondering who I am," she said, taking a sip of her tea. "My name is Princess Scootaloo of Equestria." She tapped the table turning the Cutie Map back on. "I actually just rose to the throne maybe...tuesday? I dunno. Anyway, you have crossed into a portal of our world and must go back immediately. Unless you have a reason for being here that well justifies your current presence."

He, as well as a few more soldiers in the room were looking at the filly in shock. "H-How old are you?" Sergeant Looper asked.

"Eight," she lied. "Now tell me why you're here."

"We're looking for a girl we believe may have jumped in through your portal," he said before reaching into his vest and pulling out a photo. "She has been charged with Parricide in Canterlot of...Earth. Are we still on Earth?"

"No. Now this girl you are looking for did not commit Parricide." Scootaloo sighed in mock relief at the taste of tea dancing over her taste buds while he just stared at her.

"I believe the law of Earth will be the judge of that," he replied.

"I am afraid that is not an option, Sergeant." He looked at her confused before she pointed to the ranking on his vest. "I know those signs and symbols very well."

"You have those here?"

"No, but Twilight likes to share things with someponies I know, and I think of how awesome it is that they're shaped like that," she lied. "Now. About the girl. She did not commit Parricide on Earth because her parents put her through that portal to save her life. And they gave their lives up to save hers."

"What?"

"Yep. Your whole case is wrong. Ms. Carson was sent back here to save her life, not to run. Yes, I know her name. She recently went back there to try and find out who exactly did it when she had the chance, and discovered that the law there was going to try her for Parricide. So she came back. I'm sure if she did stay, she was not going to be coming back at all. And you would have a big problem on your hands with the Equestrians."

"Let me get this straight-"

"WHAT IS TAKING SO LONG?!!" The two jumped when Luna walked out of the dark corner of the room and sat in the seat beside Scootaloo. "Celestia and I are becoming impatient while Cadance and Twilight are playing a game of hoofsies! What is happening?!"

"Oh, hey Luna. We were having tea." The Princess looked at her in a frozen state of anger. "I was actually waiting for you guys to show up when I gave the command for them to lower their weapons."

"You could have sent a sign of some sort," Luna replied before disappearing in a flash to grab the others, shocking the others.

Scootaloo sighed and continued. "What were you asking?"

"S-s-so...so the girl we are chasing on Earth is here," the sergeant started slowly. Scootaloo nodded, giving him the sign to continue. "And you won't tell us where she is?"

"That's not up to me to tell you."

"Then who do we speak to about it?"

"You'll see her in a moment." A second later it got a little hotter in the room. Noticeably. Scootaloo sighed and rolled her eyes before the other Princesses arrived in a flash by Celestia, all staring daggers at the filly drinking her tea. She set down the saucer and looked at them with a smirk. "What?"

Celestia sighed and shook her head before turning to the pony next to her. "Is this the commander?" She asked.

"Yep," Scootaloo responded before pointing at the other seats. "Sit down and let's have this meeting, I made some tea through Matter Conversion. Just to irk Twilight because she can't do it." The alicorn in question hummed loudly in annoyance while Scootaloo just laughed.

"I need that spell!" Twilight said as she picked up Scootaloo out of her throne and set her in another one. Sighing she took a seat beside the captain and gave him a smile. "Nice to meet you! My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle! I am the Princess of friendship!"

She held a hoof out to his, which he shook tentatively. Across the table, there was a pink one looking at him too with a smile. "I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, the Princess of Love." He nodded to her before he turned to the dark blue one.

"I am Princess Luna of Equestria, Princess of the Moon." He nodded to her before he turned to the much taller pony in the room with an alabaster white coat and a sun on her flank.

"And I am Princess Celestia. Primary ruler of the Land of Equestria and Princess of the Sun. Princess Luna is my sister, Cadance is my niece, and Twilight is my student. I understand that you are looking for a girl that you believe has slipped through here. What is YOUR name?"

"I'm Sergeant Looper," he answered quietly. Celestia nodded and drank her tea before moving on.

"Sergeant Looper. We know of this girl you speak of. We all do." The Princesses nodded their heads in agreement. Especially Scootaloo who was pouting her bottom lip with her eyes closed while doing it.

"Okay," Looper said, getting a little comfortable. "Well I was told that we were not able to bring her."

"That is correct."

"May I ask why?" Celestia sighed and put her tea on the table before turning to the Sergeant with her hoof stretched out over the table, gesturing to the map.

"Let me explain. All of this is Equestria. We use this map whenever we have to complete missions."

Looper looked at it for a moment before turning back to Celestia. "Military?"

"Not even close. We use it to establish relationships between two ponies or even countries, cities, and homes, helping them to create a small but permanent non-intimate bond with each other."

"Friendship," one of the soldiers guessed. Celestia nodded.

"Yes. Friendship. Princess Twilight here-" she motioned towards he alicorn sitting in the seat in the middle. "-oversees all of the operations happening here with five others. Sometimes, the map may call on other ponies all over Equestria to come here, get their mission, and are sent on their way to forge the bond. Once complete, we will know. Come with me, please." She stood up from her seat and walked towards the door. The others walked with her, leaving the sergeant sitting there for a moment. He looked towards his men before he got up and carefully followed behind them.

They walked out of the room and past the other soldiers, who were looking up, and down, at them in awe and wonder. Especially Celestia who was the tallest one there. "Equestria runs on Magic and Friendship," she continued as they walked. "The sixty men you have brought here have disrupted the daily exercise and harmony of my ponies, and has put them behind their daily schedule." They walked towards the front of the castle in earnest while one of the ponies sighed.

"So this was where the front was," he whispered. Celestia lit her horn and pulled the doors open, letting in the nice summer air and the views of the outside world. One of the soldiers had an action camera on him, getting everything on the feed as they all poured out of the building, looking at everything in wonder. One of them spotted cloudsdale and poked the guy next to him, motioning towards the cloud city. The soldier looked over and his mouth dropped.

"This is Equestria," Celestia announced before turning around to face them all. "We have laws, we have customs, and we have traditions. As well as consequences. The girl you are looking for will soon be helping out in the creation of this world. If she accepts the role." The Princesses, looked towards Scootaloo who was waving at Rainbow Dash in the distance.

"Yo' Rainbow!"

"Yo, Scoots!" She yelled back, before Scootaloo turned back around and looked at them.

"What?" Scootaloo asked.

"Are you accepting the position as Princess of Equestria, Scootaloo?" Twilight asked her. Scootaloo looked up to the sky in thought for a moment.

"But you guys pretty much have everything handled," she replied in confusion. "I doubt I could help out with anything else."

"Princess of Magic, Scootaloo." She looked up to the sky again before shrugging.

"Give me a few more days to figure it out. Now where were we again?" Celestia looked back up to the soldiers before continuing.

"The girl you are looking for, Lareen Carson, is actually an inhabitant, and an actual direct descendant and firstborn of Equestrian legend. She, as well as her parents, are all natives to Equestria. We have heard about what happened on Earth surrounding the mystery of the Carson family. And the Royalty of Equestria is looking into the case personally. Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus were very close friends of mine, as well as my teachers, and Lareen Carson, as well as Princess Twilight, were on Earth to look for clues as to her family's death."

"Wait, are you saying the girl we're looking for is right there?" Mayweather asked, pointing a hoof dangerously close to Scootaloo's forehead. Scootaloo backed up a little before moving the hoof to the side and away from her face.

"Yes," Luna answered, seeing where her sister was going with this. "Scootaloo is Lareen Carson. Her parents were killed by a group of humans we have yet to learn more about it. We are hoping we discover that really soon. Now you are not allowed to take Scootaloo back to Earth. For one? Her safety. Those who killed her parents were after Scootaloo, and Scootaloo alone. If they learn that she has been spotted, they will go after her."

"We'll just keep her in containment," Sergeant Looper stated matter-of-factly.

"I SAID NO!" Celestia yelled in her Royal Canterlot Voice. The soldiers yelped before the sun got a little hotter, burning their coats a little. "Scootaloo is not going back to Earth. And those who try to take her will be held on Equestrian soil until your leaders come and get them personally. If you wish to continue the investigation as well as get in contact with us, get in touch with Sunset Shimmer on Earth and she will help you. Twilight?"

Twilight nodded happily. "I'll let her know tonight."

Celestia sighed and turned her focus back to the soldiers. "Like I said, Scootaloo, also known amongst your people as Lareen Carson, will not be going back to Earth. Nor will she be imprisoned. If you attempt, I will personally blow you all away. You are messing with forces you cannot control here. There are no buttons, no knobs you can push. And none of you can use magic."

"Is that a rule?" Mayweather asked in suspicion.

"Nope," Twilight answered before pointing to her horn. "You can't use magic. Literally and factly."

"Now, I am afraid it is time for you to go," Celestia told them as she flapped her wings at them, motioning for them to go back into the castle. "And the next time you decide to visit, please announce yourself through Sunset Shimmer and wait for a scheduled appointment. And leave all items at home or at the gate. We do not bring weapons past the portal."

"We will have to tell our superiors about this," Sergeant Looper stated before they could leave. "They aren't going to like it."

Celestia frowned and narrowed her eyes before she bent down and got close to his face. "Then they will have to come here and tell me. And I will tell them the same thing I told you. Should they try to start hostilities, they will have to go against all of Equestria. The legends...as well as our enemies. Reformed and current. I understand Queen Chrysallis is hungry. And her drones are as well. Shall you encounter them, you will literally never see them coming until it's too late. And Discord has been looking to cause a little chaos. Good day, gentlecolts."
> Chapter 09 - Sunset and Consideration
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunset Shimmer was sitting in a tree in the backyard of her home, reading a book since everything else got boring. The book was about spells she had yet to learn about while she was in Equestria in the past, so she brought this book with. Never actually opening it, she's never used it. It's been in her room collecting dust. Most of the time, books from Equestria held great defensive promise. This was no exception.

Without taking her eyes off the book, she put her hand out and shot out a stream of fire from her like a flamethrower, nearly touching the fence yards away. A few seconds later, she lowered her hand and stopped the stream, smiling.

"Not really a fan of battle magic," she muttered. "But I may need it." A vibrating noise from down below caught her attention, forcing her to look down at her communication journal that was vibrating along the grass on the ground. She held out her hand and levitated the book up to her, flipping it open and checking the pages. After reading, she nodded and responded quickly.

"'Hey, Princess Twilight. Thanks for letting me know. Tell Celestia I said hi. As well as Scootaloo and Luna. Should I expect trouble?'"

She closed the book and let it drop down below, nearly hitting a squirrel that happened to scurry by before going back to her battle book. She was trying to figure out how Scootaloo, or Lareen—such a weird name—had actually completed Fluid Matter Conversion. That spell was impossible! Every unicorn in Equestria can only wish to make anything they wated. Yet Scootaloo could actually do it. Sunset had to admit she was a little jealous. Must be nice.

She zipped the book from the ground into her hand and flipped it open. After reading it she responded, "'Gotcha. Be safe, Princess. These guys are serious and hate to take no for an answer. I'll watch over the portal from this end and hope they don't start trotting through to take control. If they try I'll just put up a shield.'"

She let the book drop again and looked towards the Sunset in the distance with a smirk. It reminded her of her name. It reminds her actually of a lot more than Earth too. Reminded her of Equestria when she was there last at Sunset. She pulled out her phone and texted her friends that she'll be spending the night at school before jumping down and slowly lowering to the ground. Then grabbed her book and stuffed it in her bag that had food and a blanket before walking towards the entrance of the fence. She knew Twilight was going to ask for protection of the portal from her. The others didn't really know Equestrian like herself and Princess Twilight. And those military had actually abused the "Friendship Portal" with violent intentions.

She sighed and shook her head while walking down the sidewalk, spotting the school in the distance that had white vans and tents set up around it. "Labbies," she muttered before looking around. Seeing no one watching she teleported to the corner of the school and cloaked herself with another spell, keeping herself out of sight as she spied on what they were doing. There were a few CIA and FBI there, more than likely for Scootaloo, while there was also standard Marines. Probably just for protection. Or to attack Equestria. Either way, Sunset didn't like it.

"Party's over gentlemen," she muttered before pointing out her glowing hands towards the statue.



In one of the tents by the statue, five minutes before Sunset arrived, Sergeant Looper was showing a group of people the camera feed of the filly. He stopped the video and pointed to her in the middle of her Matter Conversion, making tea out of dirt.

"THAT!...should be impossible," he yelled. "I have no idea how she did it! But they said something about magic. So I'm betting on that. And this horse? That's the girl we're looking for. That is Lareen Carson."

The guy dressed in all black nodded and motioned for the video to cintinue. While he sat down, she pressed on the table, turning it back on. "THAT!" Looper pointed out. "Is a map." Scootaloo and Looper talked for a moment. Then she said they couldn't take Ms. Carson.

"What?" The CIA Director, Blue Navy, asked. "Did she just say we can't take Lareen?"

"Yes," Serveant Mayweather answered.

"On what grounds?"

"On ALL of their rulers, and their rulers ruler." Looper sped the video where all of the Princesses came into view and introduced themselves. "This is Princess Twilight Sparkle, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, Princess Luna, and finally..." The camera panned to the left. And then up to the face of— "Princess Celestia. Twilight's teacher, Cadenza's aunt, Luna's sister, and she calls herself the 'Princess of the Sun'."

"Horse radish," one of the people responded.

"I thought so too...until she yelled and it got REALLY hot outside. You won't believe this." He played the video again as the princess began to make their way out of the room.

"Wait! Pause it!" Looper did as asked before the CIA Director motioned towards their flanks. "What are those?" He was pointing at their cutie marks.

"I'm...not sure," Looper answered. "But all of them seem to have them."

"Their called cutie marks." They looked towards the entrance where an orange skinned  teenage girl with red and yellow hair was currently standing, wearing a black yellow jacket and purple skirt. She was currently looking at a journal that she was writing in before she snapped it shut.

"I'm sorry, but you have to go ma'am," Mayweather said while making her way towards Sunset to guide her out.

"It's actually the opposite." Sunset raised her hand towards Mayweather and shot out a medium sized flame, scaring her a bit. "You poking the portal? That's over. No one is touching it except the Equestrians."

"Who are you?" The Director asked while standing up.

"Sunset Shimmer. Former protege of Princess Celestia. Now the key of you getting to Equestria. Now you guys have to leave. You can continue your review, but not here. Per orders of Equestrian Royalty."

"You have no jurisdiction here," Looper argued.

"It's the other way around actually. That portal outside? That's actually a door to the castle that you walked into without permission. That's trespassing and can land you a few months in an Equestrian cell. Unlike Earth cells, there is no Air Conditioning, no bed, and everything is stone and metal gating. Not to mention, from what I've heard, you were messing with the cutie map. Which is a big no-no. Were it up to me, I'd throw you, Looper, back into Equestria in a shield you'll never escape from. Now. Get out."

"No." Sunset rolled her eyes, raised her fingers and waved at them before snapping them, sending everything that belonged to the Government, including the workers, cars, and everyone twenty miles away in a grassy field she looked up earlier.

Sunset looked around at the ground and everything else that looked like nothing was ever touched. "The government's gonna have my flank," she muttered before taking down the wall of fire shielding the statue, and spent the next few minutes creating runes all over the campus in case they came back. If someone walks on that land, she'd know.



The crickets chirped in the land of Equestria, filled with fireflies and the ever so often nocturnal creature that would make noise. Most ponies find those noises soothing at night. Most ponies. The other majority usually slams a pillow over their heads to drown out the cricket chirping on their windowsill. Thankfully, Scootaloo, or Lareen, didn't have to worry about that issue since she was sleeping up on the clouds with Rainbow Dash, her idol. The super fast pegasus was currently on her back, sawing logs in the next room over across from Scootaloo. Who was sleeping and dreaming. Actually...it was more like talking. Sort of.

"So you want to know what happened," Frozen Fire asked her daughter sitting on the grass next to her. Lareen stroked her hand across the strands, feeling them and trying to figure out how she could actually feel them.

"Yeah," she responded sheepishly. "If it's not too much trouble."

"Not at all sweetheart. You were sixteen years old at this time. On a day that will be disclosed, you and I were going to the mall in Canterlot. Your father was at the house making dinner and wanted us to have a girls day out. So we did. We were in the food court, of course, eating. When someone shouted loudly randomly." Lareen looked at her mother in confusion. "I don't know either. I think they were doing it as a joke. But it completely backfired when you jumped and...sent a shockwave through half the whole mall. It flung people out of seats, threw out tables, completely decimated some stores nearby, busted windows, and....sort of started a few fires. It was chaos after that. It was like a bomb went off in that mall."

"Wait, I jumped from someone yelling and nearly destroyed the mall?" Frozen chuckled and stroked her hair with glee.

"Yes. Yes, you did. But anyway, back to the story. After that moment, and I realized what was going on, I quickly made a decision. To get you and get you out of that mall. While I was running with you beside me, a thought crossed my mind. That magical bolt DID do something. It just didn't give you something immediately. Like more life, Ms. Alicorn." Scootaloo groaned. "But it gave you magical abilities. As a human."

"So what happened next?"

"Well I got you home and the mall made the news of course. Your father, like usual, was freaking out. I remember you standing by my side and asking, 'What's wrong with him?'" The two let out a chuckle before she continued. "We thought you were in the clear. That you were safe. Unaware that the news had seen the video of where that shockwave started. The next day, you and I were put on the screen. A close up shot. They believed we were terrorists. But what made it even worse was the fact that we had no official Identification with the United States. We were called illegal aliens that were a threat to the US. They wanted to arrest us."

"So I take it the Government stepped in and..."

"Yes, it was an operation that they wanted to get us for. Unfortunately, your father and I knew magic. Which made it worse. One day, the police stopped us. We were heading to the movies when they pulled us over and tried to arrest us. They asked us who our names were and we told them our aliases. Well they didn't buy that. So they attempted to arrest us and take you specifically away in handcuffs. That was NOT happening. So your father shot the man who had touched you with a spell, knocking him out while I took care of the other one. Then we grabbed you and ran back home. After that moment we were on the run. We stayed inside and locked the doors, cut off the lights, and put runes up all over the residence building and a few areas around it. Maybe a mile and a half in a giant circle.

"But soon, we noticed things had gotten more intense than just people wanting to take you. They wanted to take us all out of the picture. They wanted to take you away and study you to find out how you did that blast that caused over five million dollars in damages at the mall, and hurt some people. They wanted to study you."

Scootaloo looked at her horrified before she continued. "After we learned about it we knew what we had to do. I quickly created a spell that let me live in case something went wrong while your father quickly retrieved the archived portal spell for Equestria we were going to use when we told you about our origins. Soon, we heard the massive amount of car doors closing outside, and I told your father I loved him, and he me. He teleported away with the things you have now and ran down the street. I don't know what happened with him and I doubt you remember. But I was busy inside the apartment destroying everything inside, ripping apart the molecules and cells of everything that held even the word Equestria on it. After I did, the door was kicked open. But something was wrong."

Scootaloo turned her whole body to her, definitely giving her mother her full attention. "I was expecting, 'Police! Get on the ground, get on the ground, don't move!' But instead, these guys looked nothing like police. Instead of the task force wear, they had on military uniforms that had the words 'Society For Canterlot' on it. I didn't get it and I never got the chance to think about it before they shot me in the head. I was gone. And I knew your father was next. But in the end we saved you."

"So..." Frozen Fire looked towards her daughter with focus as she gave her a theory.

"Those people, the Society for Canterlot, they somehow learned about us and wanted to take the magic. I don't know why, and I'm not sure how they were going to do it. But they got there before the police did, killed us, and set you up so you could be arrested for Parricide. They were probably going to grab you when the police decided to lock you away. Start a heist or something. These people have some things that you should be wary of. Cars and guns. Maybe more, I didn't exactly look out the window."

"So...they want to take me by going through the government?" Scootaloo asked carefully, making sure she was hearing things right. Frozen Fire nodded in confirmation.

"Thankfully you came right back to Equestria when the police located you last. It looks like the battle for magic is beginning. I don't have any names, and I doubt the police will in the future if no one saw these people coming. But they are dangerous. Please be careful." She pulled her daughter into a hug and kissed the top of her forehead, humming in satisfaction.

"I promise to be careful," she whispered back.

"Good." Frozen Fire sighed and pulled back before looking up for a moment. "It's morning, nearly nine o'clock. Time to wake up Princess. Now, I think you should take on the role of being the Princess of Magic."

"Why?"

"Because you will soon become a mage like your father and I sweetheart." She stroked Scootaloo's cheek and gave her a loving smile while her daughter closed her eyes at the feeling. "Be the princess everypony wants you to be."

"How?" Scootaloo asked, placing her hand on her mother's. "How am I supposed to live up to everypony's expectations?"

"By growing up. Listen, be smart, and everything else will follow. When you're off the throne, then you can be yourself. But while you're on that throne, it's time to play that game you used to play so much while on Earth. Think first before you make any decisions. And if you want, ask Celestia for help. She will not chastise you, I promise. She will help you instead. Promise me that you will consider being the Princess of Magic. Even if you're young."

Scootaloo sighed and looked down at the grass. If she did take up the throne, there will be a lot of duties in her life. That and Earth will be trying to establish relationships with the ponies of Equestria. Whether it be hostile or peaceful. Either way, they now know about it. And they want to know more. And those were her people. Only she knew what they were really like. "Okay," she finally said to the ground before looking up to her mother with a smile. "I promise to think more on it. Maybe even get some advice."

Frozen leaned down and gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead before the wind started. "That's all I ask for. Until we meet again." The wind blew Scootaloo back up into the sky, but she didn't take her eyes off her mother. Not until the darkness overtook her and the feeling of wind was replaced by comfortable sheets.
> Chapter 10 - Yes
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo blinked her eyes, getting the drowsiness out of her head and focusing on the purple pair of eyes in front of her face. Wait...eyes? "Gah!" She yelped in surprise, flapping her wings and shooting backwards out of the bed. She hit the wall and fell on the floor face first while Rainbow just laughed.

"Oh my Celestia, that was too funny!!" She bawled, flapping her wings and falling on her own back. Scootaloo groaned and lifted her head from the cloud, glaring at the wall in front of her. After a few more seconds of laughter, Rainbow's cackles died down and she trotted over to see what was holding Scootaloo up. "So what'd you dream about?"

Scootaloo sighed and finally righted herself, looking at Rainbow Dash with uncertainty. Rainbow Dash returned the look and sat down in front of her, then used her wing to pull her into a side hug. "I...I saw mom again," Scootaloo whispered.

"Did you talk to her?" Rainbow asked quietly and calmly. "Don't you like talking to her?"

Scootaloo shot her a look of disbelief. "Of course," Scootaloo replied, as if it were a stupid question before turning her gaze back to the ground. "It's just...she wants me to become a princess of Equestria. And I don't know what to do about it. I don't want to disappoint her and let her down. But I'm not sure I can be what everypony wants me to be. I'm not Twilight, Celestia, Cadance, OR Luna. I don't know anything about magic. Everything that I do know was what Celestia taught me and even that was really confusing. So many symbols and words. Mom wants me to become the Princess of Magic. But...I know nothing about magic."

"Well your parents do. You'll be a great Princess. Wait a second." Rainbow reached up and tapped her chin with her hoof, deep in thought while Scootaloo gazed at her curiously. After a few more seconds, Rainbow pointed a hoof at her. "Hey...your mom and dad went missing in the midst of an experiment, right?" Scootaloo nodded her head. "Well if I know experiments—and I do because Twilight is always conducting one at least once a week—there were materials out at the time. Notes, papers. When Celestia discovered they went missing, she more than likely retrieved the research.. But knowing her, she didn't just toss them out."

"She put them somewhere," Scootaloo finished.

"Yep. I'm super positive that if you asked her, she can give them to you. Or at least let you have access. They were your parents' materials. Their property. And you can have the egghead be your tutor. I'm super positive that she'll say yes to that, she would never turn down an opportunity to be somepony's teacher. Not to mention, your parents' family probably got some more of their materials. all you need to do is ask, and I'm super positive they'll help you out to fulfill your mother's last wish."

Scootaloo blinked and raised an eyebrow at her idol. Rainbow scoffed and rolled her eyes at her expression. "What, I can't be smart sometimes?" Scootaloo shook her head slowly. "What do you mean I can't be smart?"

"It's just...weird sometimes. But I get what you're saying. I'll ask Celestia if she can let me have access to my parents' notebooks...and stuff. Now...can you stop hugging me?" Rainbow pulled her in tighter and gave her a nuzzle to the head.

"You know," she whispered. "I'm proud of you squirt. More proud than when you got your cutie mark."

Scootaloo widened her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

Rainbow pulled away and looked Scootaloo in the eye. "Well for one, you have matured overnight." Scootaloo shot her a nonchalant look. "Don't give me that. And you're actually considering being a princess of Equestria. That says a lot about your personality. That you are willing to try and take this huge step. A lot of ponies would've flunked out on the spot, but you, Cutie Mark Crusader, are willing. I'm proud to call you my friend...and number one fan. Closer than my sister." Scootaloo smiled and hugged her back.

"Thanks, Rainbow Dash!" She squealed.

"Your welcome, squirt. Now it's time for school."

"It's Saturday."

"It's time to head to the castle then."



"This is actually a nice place to visit every now and then," the twins said at the same time while they walked down the center of Canterlot. Blue Wave suggested she and Golden Flutter go and check out this doughnut shop Luna was obsessing over recently while everyone else was talking with the Princesses. Celestia and Luna closed their courts for three days while they were there, giving them as much attention as they needed. The twins decided to get away from all the craziness and mourning to venture out and explore. They had never been to Canterlot before and were anxious to see what was there. Let alone any other city in Equestria.

"Now where is this Doughnut Joes?" Golden Flutter muttered to herself. She looked around the area closely to locate the building before she stared straight into a pair of faded magenta eyes. "Gah!" She backed up instantly as Scootaloo laughed and floated back to the ground.

"That WAS hilarious!" She cheered, pointing a hoof at the surprised twins. Rainbow Dash landed next to her and chuckled.

"Hey, ladies," she greeted. "I was just teaching squirt here about surprise and she went all...out of control. Doing it to anypony available. You just happened to be caught in the crossfire."

Blue Wave and Golden Flutter shared a glance before taking a deep breath at the same time. Scootaloo wondered how in Equestria were they always in sync. It was a little freaky. "It's alright," Golden Flutter responded. "We just didn't expect you back so soon after everything that happened."

"Cool. Wanna hang out?" Scootaloo offered then pointed to the castle. "I was on my way to the castle and noticed you walking so...wanna hang out?"

"Eh, sure why not?" Blue Wave responded. "Maybe you can tell us where this Doughnut Joes is."

Scootaloo chuckled and pointed back towards the castle. "You passed it. It's in front of the castle. Directly in front of the castle. Hold on, I'll take us there." She lit her horn and teleported them in front of the designated location, although with three dizzy ponies in tow. Rainbow groaned and fell on her side while the twins were just still, trying to get their own bearings without moving. Rainbow moaned from the ground and gave her wings a little flutter. But she didn't move in the slightest besides just that.

"Scootaloo," Golden Flutter muttered, grabbing her attention away from poking Rainbow Dash's buzzing form. "The next time you decide to teleport...warn us."

"Please," Blue Wave added.

"Yeah, sure. We're here!" She pointed her hoof at the building behind the twins. it was obvious she didn't pay any attention to their request, so they just went along with the moment. "I don't know how you girls could have missed the smell of Doughnuts wafting out of here!" She commented in disbelief. "Come in!" She walked into the restaurant with the twins in tow, stepping into the cool atmosphere scented with sugar, dough, chocolate, and so much more. While Rainbow Dash was still outside groaning and buzzing her wings.



While Scootaloo and the twins were out and about, the princesses were in the Castle's Royal Throne Room, discussing everything that had happened in Ponyville. Celestia was troubled greatly by it, evident by her loud voice. "These...humans came to Equestria to try and take one of my ponies!" She announced. "And brought weapons nonetheless."

"Humans are really strict when it comes to laws," Twilight clarified from beside Cadance in front of the thrones. "They do exactly what Equestria does actually. It's just that they don't know their limit. They walk into a place and declare it theirs immediately. Especially when they have better weapons. However in this round they were clearly outnumbered and outmatched. They had absolutely no say so on the matter. And I have a feeling they will be back for a second round. Sunset will more than likely let me know when, how, and why."

Luna sighed and nodded in agreement. "I believe that Scootaloo is in for a rough time with these humans if they do not get their minds on straight. We must place guards inside your castle Twilight. EUP to be precise. They have the skills needed to stop them shall they ever come back out, more so than the standard Royal Guard."

Celestia hummed and nodded her head. "I agree. Same thing with you Cadance. You have a portal in your castle too that could very much be used to infiltrate from the other side. We do not want that. Especially in the Crystal Empire."

"I understand," Cadance agreed. "Have you heard from Scootaloo since the event?"

"No. Although I am sure she is doing some deep thinking about some things. Particularly the Equestrian Princess role."

About that," Twilight spoke up. She took some closer steps to stand beside Celestia. "Are you absolutely sure about Scootaloo, Scootaloo, being a princess?"

"It wouldn't matter if I wasn't. By law, an Alicorn that is fit to be a princess is...a princess. Even a foal. Your niece is prime example. She has no health issues, therefore she is fit to lead. In the future of course."

"But......it's Scootaloo."

Celestia chuckled and nodded her head. "And she bears a lot of relations to her mother and father. Those two ponies have influenced many of Equestria's scholars at the same amount as Starswirl the Bearded. I am sure Scootaloo has picked up on a few things. The door to the throne room suddenly opened. The group turned and witnessed Scootaloo walk in with the other Cutie Mark Crusaders, having a conversation.

"Are you sure about this?" Apple Bloom asked her. "That's a lot of responsibility."

"Definitely," Sweetie Belle agreed.

"Mom would want me to do it," Scootaloo responded. "She does want me to do it. But I need to learn first. Wait here please." They stopped and waited while she took a few more steps and stopped at the foot of the throne. "Princess Celestia? I need to talk with you." Celestia looked towards the other ponies with confusion. They gave her the exact same look.

She got off her throne and made her way down to her. "Yes, Scootaloo?"

"Umm...I-I was speaking with Rainbow Dash this morning. And I told her about the dream I had. Mom.....she wants me to take this role. As the Princess of Magic. But I don't know a single thing about magic! So Rainbow thought that you may have some of my parents' possessions."

"Of course you can have access to them," Celestia interrupted. "Did you take the role?"

Scootaloo bit her lip and glanced at the ground in thought. Just like her mom said, while on the throne she had to be serious. But off, she could continue to be herself. But question was...will she lose herself in the process? She decided to take a gamble. If Scootaloo tha adventurous filly who hurt herself trying to pull of Rainbow inspired tricks disappeared, than so be it. This was for her parents.

"...yes." Twilight nearly blanched. "I...I want to make my mom proud. And...the ponies of Equestria." Celestia smiled at her then pulled her into a hug. Which she happily returned.

"You......are indubitably Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus' daughter," she whispered into her ear. "If there was any doubt before...then there is definitely none now."

"Thanks...Aunt Celestia."
> Chapter 11 - It's All Yours
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight looked around the room and asked since no one else would. "Scootaloo, are you absolutely sure about being a princess?"

Scootaloo and Celestia broke the hug and looked up towards Twilight. "Yes. I promised mom I would do it. That and I know I can do it." She made her way towards Twilight who met her halfway and sat down. Scootaloo sat down with her then sighed and added, "I don't know what'll happen. I don't know what the future holds. But...I do know that I can do this, Princess Twilight." Twilight sighed with her then looked up at Celestia who was giving her a warm smile.

"Well..." She looked back down to Scootaloo and graced her with a smile of her own. "If you believe you can do it, then I'll help you."

Scootaloo gasped excitedly. "What?! Really?!"

Twilight nodded and chuckled. "Yep. I am super positive you could use the help. First thing's first, let's go grab these learning materials. Celestia?" The Princess of the Sun motioned for the two to follow her out of the throne room towards a different destination that only she knew. The other Princesses in the room followed after her into the hallway while she explained some things.

"This path is a hard journey, Scootaloo," she reminded her. "The ponies of Equestria will be coming to you for guidance once you finish the lessons Twilight will teach you. She is an excellent teacher and has taught me a thing or two in the past."

"What else should I know, Princess?" Scootaloo responded. They turned down another extremely guarded hallway—the guards being for Scootaloo in case she blew again—that looked a lot darker than the rest of the castle.

"Well...for one we still have that problem to solve with your parents death. Even though this may be a tough road, just remember." She stopped at a certain wall and pressed her hoof against it, pushing in the whole wall that slid to the right, revealing a black staircase. "This was for your parents. Along with Equestria. I fear that the humans are becoming aggressive. I can feel it." Twilight nodded in agreement while Celestia began to descend the staircase. Torches automatically caught flame the second she stepped on the first step. The rest of the group followed after, making their way towards the very very bottom, which was a five minute trek in the dimly lit atmosphere.

"Bright Magnus was a conjurer as well, Scootaloo," Twilight informed her. "He was the slight brains behind it while your mother was the one who did all the action. Together they made a joint team and influenced Equestria through their spells. Your mother created more noticeable spells because she was highly creative where your father innovated spells. Which means made current known spells a lot easier and more effective to use. Whereas ponies would take a minute or two to teleport a mile or two away, it would now only take them within three seconds. Thanks to Bright Magnus."

"Your mother," Cadance added. "She created the Fluid Matter Conversion that everypony deemed impossible to even attempt. it required a lot of magic and was kept under wraps by the Royal Canterlot Gallery. A nobility that held power over which spells can and cannot be used in Equestria."

"So congress over Unicorns then," Scootaloo assumed. Cadance looked to her for clarification. "Congress is a legislative body beyond the portal."

"Ah. Well then yes. There are three Galleries. The Royal Canterlot Gallery for Unicorns. The Royal Cloudsdale Gallery for Pegasi, and the Royal Manehattan Gallery for Earth Pony. Each gallery sends their bills and decisions to us for a veto or an agreement. Then we make it into a law. The Princesses meet to discuss these bills during these times. And I have a feeling that the Royal Canterlot Gallery will be busy these next few weeks. For each new spell discovered, they are reviewed by the Gallery they apply to. Which includes the forgotten Fluid Matter Conversion that only one pony can do."

Scootaloo looked at Celestia in confusion when they stopped at a doorway at the bottom of the stairs. It was a ornate wood with the symbol of Equestria on it. "Wait, the Gallery doesn't know about the event yet?" Scootaloo asked.

Celestia shook her head and responded with, "No. We kept it under wraps because we did not think that you would be able to do it over and over again at free will. Not to mention you are morphed together with dark magic. So they may assume that to be a factor to the spell casting. Which will mean—"

"—they'll trash it immediately."

Celestia hummed and smiled in agreement. "Correct. I see you are learning already, young princess. And we didn't even open the door yet." She turned back around and inserted her horn into a slot on the wall by the door. She pushed in her magic gently, unlocking the door with a few clicks. Afterwards, she withdrew her horn and turned back to the door which had cracked open. Scootaloo spotted an electric blue light seeping out through the middle of it while Celestia moved it to the side, revealing the world behind it, stunning everyone except Celestia at what they saw.

"Welcome...to your parents' playground, Scootaloo," Celestia announced while holding her hoof out into the area. Scootaloo walked inside first into the giant cave-like facility underneath the castle with her mouth open in wonder. There were a lot of tables, documents, cabinets, two desks opposite each other on the left and right side of the room, and a bunch of devices that looked like they belonged on Earth inside a top secret military compound. Especially the giant metal ring at the far end that had the words "Experiment 2562" on the very top of it, arching down with the rest of the device. It was still lit up as if it had never been touched. And probably wasn't based off of all the cobwebs around the room.

Twilight gasped and trotted in quickly to look at everything at once. "The original portal!" She yelled in shock. Then stopped in front of it and timidly touched the metal that made up the portal while looking around the rest of the room. "How...how did you get this here, Princess?"

Celestia rolled her eyes when Twilight forgot her name but answered the question anyway. "We never moved it." Everyone stopped and looked to her for an explanation. "After the battle of Nightmare Moon, your parents—" She pointed a hoof at Scootaloo. "—actually asked me to build this castle over their laboratory, or 'Playground' they called it. The land here was actually a lot of dirt before, but underneath it was a cave with an unknown origin that they used. They would enter in through there." she motioned with her head towards a pair of double doors on the other side of the portal. "A sort of...railway system. How they got all the bits to actually create an entire railway system in the mountain I will never know. This is not the only laboratory in this mountain either. This is just the one for Experiment...er...2562. The Portal Experiment they were sucked into. We never activated it because we do not know what'll happen if we did."

Celestia made her way towards the doors on the other side of the portal with the group behind her as she explained some more. "The Railway system runs through most of the mountain's unimportant places. The area around the heart, the far right, a hill...basically places you would not expect a lab to be. In truth, Canterlot was the source of every single advanced spell in Equestria. But it all started down here. Underneath the Castle." She pushed the doors open revealing a large railway system with a two car train right in front of them. Celestia motioned towards it and added, "These trains were used to move everything Bright Magnus and Frozen Fire deemed were important. Although I am aware they may have created something very similar to what they have here somewhere on Earth. I just remembered."

Scootaloo looked up at her for an explanation. "This was not their first laboratory. Their first was in dodge junction. Once again underground. The second was here. But they both had the same design. Transportation and large caverns. I fear Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus may have a few more hidden on Earth somewhere, filled with Equestrian technology."

"Wait, why are you telling me this now out of all this time?" Scootaloo asked.

"Because I did not realize they were experimenting on Earth. The only way for you to experiment is by having a large laboratory. All their laboratories in Equestria are big. You just cannot fit that—" She motioned towards the portal ring behind them. "—inside a small home. It goes up at least three stories since it was a prototype. And who knows what else big they may have had stashed away in here. We still have not combed through this whole facility, even after nearly thirty years. Because we all hoped they would return soon. My point is..." She directed her serious attention to Scootaloo. "Your parents may have a facility on Earth that is in danger of being raided by that world's law enforcement. Filled to the brim with thirty tears worth of Equestrian technology. Before they disappeared, this facility was running for twenty years with around two hundred new spells and items created. Who knows how many they have after thirty years. And if the humans find it, they could possibly bring destruction to both worlds."



Sunset sighed and leaned back against the tree, folding her arms behind her neck, her legs propped on the branch she had occupied. Thankfully school was out, so they had nothing to worry about in that regard. Her and her friends who were underneath the tree talking about something.

"I'm just saying, Shimmer!" rainbow Dash repeated while balancing a ball on the top of her head. The other girls were on the grass doing their own thing. "If the military were to trot right into Equestria with weapons, they may have to bring in a freaking bomb because Twilight just won't have it. She. Will. Throttle 'em." She caught the ball in her hand and looked up at Sunset, who was looking down at her from a branch. "And something tells me that you would have no problem doing the same thing."

"That's right," she confirmed. "Equestria raised me, so...humans going after it would be like someone stepped on Spike." They all looked towards the dog Rarity was grooming who had a content look on his face.

"Wait...say what now—oh yeah. Right there," he responded but too distracted by Rarity's ministrations. Sunset chuckled and shook her head before looking up at the road. Rainbow followed her gaze, then groaned and rolled her eyes just like everyone else. Five black vans with police lights had shown up and had parked right on the sidewalk of the school by the statue. It was plainly obvious who was in it. Blue Navy, a CIA agent stepped out the first car while Sergeant Looper and Lieutenant Mayweather stepped out the back of the second one. Followed by ten military police officers. They had some more officials with them, but either way, sunset was not taking any chances. She opened her hand and pointed it towards the statue, making the flame a lot more hotter. Just in case.

"Go home, kids," Blue Navy instructed to her friends when they stopped in front of the tree. "You don't want to see this."

"Yeah, they stay," Sunset responded back. "They're not going anywhere."

"Alright." Blue Navy reached behind him and pulled out a gun that he pointed at Sunset Shimmer, shocking them all. The other guys also did it too. "By all accounts, you are an official alien of the United States that has—"

"—absolutely no physical contact with any government of any kind," she interrupted while slowly holding up her hands in fear. "So what, you're going to shoot an illegal immigrant?"

"No. We're going to do a trade. Sunset Shimmer...for Lareen Carson."

Rarity gasped and yelled, "That is absolutely unlawful! What gives you the right to hold Sunset Shimmer hostage like that?!"

"By the order of the Secretary of Defense after he saw the tape recorded of Equestria that has threatened the United States. So here's the deal. You bring us Lareen Carson, we return Sunset Shimmer. There is absolutely no other way."

Sunset Shimmer scoffed and said, "Actually that is unlawful. Lareen Carson is an Equestrian."

"Not according to our records. She was born in the United States, and from what we can tell from the conversation with Celestia that they had absolutely no idea she even existed before recently. That means, by all accounts, that Lareen Carson is a United States citizen."

"But she is a Princess of Equestria!" Sunset yelled, fed up. "Are you dumb or just stupid?! You are literally attempting to grab a Princess of Equestria on a lie! Royalty! Have you no shame, what is wrong with you?"

"She commited parricide—"

"No she didn't, you dolt! They literally told you she was framed."

"Well we don't know that. Get down from the tree or we will have to take you in by force." Sunset stared at them for a moment before she sighed and responded.

"I have to write a letter."

Rainbow Dash gasped and looked up at her in horror. "Sunset you can't—"

"I know, I know," she interrupted. "But technically, they're right. I'm actually not supposed to be here. And since Scootaloo was born here, then that makes her a suspected international felon. She's officially an original citizen of the US while also a citizen of Equestria. She's not guilty, but these guys don't know that.  Besides. If they shoot me, then Equestria will come here and literally disintegrate anybody who had a hoof in violence. Celestia will probably burn you alive. Personally. And the royal guard will put you all on sticks. But we're not monsters. What these guys are doing right now...makes them the monsters. Give me my journal and I'll willingly come with you." Applejack sighed and grabbed the notebook on the ground by the tree and passed it to her while the military guys were still holding weapons at her.

"You're making a huge mistake!" Twilight told them. "You can't arrest Sunset Shimmer."

"We can and we will," Blue Navy responded coldly before he glared at them. "And legally we are required to arrest all of you as well for keeping her a secret. But we only want her not a bunch of people that can confuse this investigation." He turned back to Sunset who passed her notebook back to Rainbow and instructed her to respond to Twilight's responses while she was gone, then began to slink out of the tree. She touched the ground and held her hands up, allowing the military police to walk forward with their weapons still pointed at her. They immediately grabbed her hands and pulled them down behind her back to arrest her with zip ties. Rainbow Dash groaned and threw up her hands in protest. Once secured they roughly led her towards the black vehicles, still held at gunpoint.

"So...I don't get to hear the Miranda Rights?" Sunset joked.

"No, you do not," Lieutenant Mayweather snarled. "Since you're literally not a human, you get no rights. Which mean no Miranda Rights, no Human Rights, and no right to an attorney. Those are for humans."

"What?!" Sunset yelled in protest as they pushed her roughly in the car. The military police sat inside with her. "What the hay are you talking about?! What do I look like to you?!"

"Obviously an alien." She slammed the door shut and made her way back to her car with Sergeant Looper while speaking into the radio. "If she tries anything, you have the right to use excessive force."

"Ten four," the military police responded back through the radio. They all turned to her, who immediately shrunk down into her seat. "Don't even move!" One of them grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back up into her seat.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"Don't even say anything!"

"Put a bag over her head or something. Like they said, she's an alien. She has absolutely no rights here."



After Scootaloo had gotten a load of all the records of spells and such from her parents' Playground, the group ascended the stairs and came out on the top. Celestia closed it back then pointed to it with her hoof. "This is officially your property now, Scootaloo. If you ever need anything, all you have to do is do what I did. The horn lock for the door is only accustomed to you and I, and can reach down to your level. Try not to get lost, okay?"

Scootaloo chuckled and nodded once they began to make their way back to the throne room, and answered, "I don't think I can." They turned back towards the hallway of the throne room and cocked their heads at the large amount of ponies in the hallway yelling and looking around. Even starlight who didn't come with them, confusing Twilight for the time being.

"Twilight!" Starlight yelled desperately. Then teleported in front of her with the journal in her hooves. "We have a problem! Earth's Police took Sunset Shimmer! They arrested her!"

"WHAT?!" Twilight yelled before ripping the journal out of her hooves. They all looked towards the notebook in shock while Twilight flipped to the page and read it out loud. "Dear Princess Twilight. Today was not a good day. I was speaking with my friends by the tree at my outpost when five black SUVs pulled onto the property. They were all military and pointed their weapons at me, telling me to come with them because I was an alien of the United States. And that they want to do a trade. Lareen Carson for Sunset Shimmer. They said the Secretary of Defense gave the order because Equestria has threatened the United States. I told them that Lareen Carson was actually an Equestrian, but they corrected me when they said that she was born in the US and is actually a citizen of the States. And by what Princess Celestia said in the video or whatever, that Equestria had no records of Scootaloo's existence until recently. Which is partly true. So I agreed to go with them as a peaceful offering. Please help. The portal is unguarded. Sunset Shimmer.'"

"These humans have crossed the line!!" Celestia yelled before taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Okay. let's assess the situation. Sunset Shimmer has been captured and they want to do a trade for Scootaloo. How the hay is that lawful? I don't know. But apparently it is there."

"Well we can't give them Scootaloo!" Princess Twilight exclaimed. "And they can't keep Sunset Shimmer. That is absolutely wrong! Who knows what type of Tartarus they are putting her in right now! Any idea, Scootaloo?!"

"They called her an illegal alien of the US," Scootaloo muttered to herself.  "Probably are treating her like she's some type of lab rat since she can use magic. Like I said, humans are desperate for magic and they'll do anything for power. They know Sunset has it. And they want it. We need to do something fast."

"But then we'll be on their domain," Cadance argued from the side.

Luna nodded in agreement. "Yes. If we go there, they may not be as lenient as we were. All we said was that we would hold them here if they responded with hostilities in Equestria until their commander came to retrieve them. Sunset has committed no violent offenses on Earth except arriving there and trying to take over it. And I doubt they know about that. Princess Twilight would've told us and she would have been  arrested way before now."

Celestia nodded and added, "If we go to Earth to try and retrieve Sunset Shimmer, we may as well be shouting a battle cry. Technically, we have one of theirs, and they have one of ours. We would have to do an even trade. These humans are monsters."

Twilight sighed and nodded. Then muttered, "There are good ones. But apparently the bad ones run everything."

"Wait!" Starlight announced while snatching the book back out of Twilight's annoyed hooves. "Somepony's writing!" Twilight glanced down and gasped at the familiar light blue scratching quickly across the pages. "It says.....'They said Sunset has no rights as a citizen. She has no human rights, no legal rights, no rights whatsoever. And the lady named Mayweather said that if she tried anything that they could use excessive force. Rainbow Dash.'"

"THEY'RE GOING TO HURT HER?!!" Celestia yelled in her canterlot voice. Everypony within a mile long radius stopped what they were doing and looked towards the castle for a moment before going back about their day. "That is it. Princesses, hold on." Celestia threw all caution to the wind when she lit her horn and teleported all the way back to Twilight's castle, landing straight in front of the portal. Then grabbed Twilight's journal  and put in place to activate the portal. Celestia pointed at it and growled, "We are all going to Earth and putting an end to this at once!" Not waiting for an answer, Celestia turned around and jumped into the portal followed closely by Twilight, Luna, and Cadance.

Scootaloo shook her head and muttered, "Ohhh, theses guys are in so much trouble." Then jumped in behind them. Heading back to Earth.
> Chapter 12 - What?!!(Dark Chapters Ahead)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rainbow Dash continued to pace in front of the statue, anger steaming from her nostrils as she blew out hot air. Twilight was also obviously peeved, based off of the muttering coming from her. The others were trying to be calm about it but Pinkie was eating Cupcake after Cupcake, Applejack was tapping her foot impatiently, and Rarity was holding a crying Fluttershy.

Rainbow grunted and threw up her hands. "Where the heck did they even take her?! They literally drove up, threatened her with a gun, threw her in the car and drove off! Taking her to who knows where!"

Twilight stood up from the sidewalk and dusted off her jeans. "I don't know, Rainbow. But it was obvious these guys have ill intentions for Sunset."

Rarity scoffed and said, "That is putting it mild! I am sure they have thrown her in a cold cell all alone by now. Or in a hot one."

"Or something worse, like a cage outside!!" Fluttershy cried hysterically. Rainbow walked over and sat down to pull her out of Rarity's hold and into her own, letting her cry in her shoulder. "Why would they do something like this?!"

Rainbow calmly stroked her hair and said, "I don't know, Fluttershy. People are just mean. Very mean."



Sunset admits. She was scared. Held in the back of an SUV now passing outside of Manehattan, nearly fifty miles away from her original location. And she couldn't do a thing. Yeah she could set the SUV on fire with a spell effortlessly. But there were four more SUVs with her. Why did they need four SUVs for just her? Something didn't seem right. And not because of the fact that they just turned right into a pair of woods and past a pair of prison gates like she thought she was going to jail. She would ask, but...something was telling her she was about to find out. The trucks drove for a few more minutes inside before they got into a large clearing, holding something that made Sunset gasp.

A facility. With lights, gates, and guard posts. It looked like a prison. But she couldn't see any windows on the building. It was just a white block. The trucks drove past the second pair of guarded gates and into what looked like a garage connected to the block building. The doors behind them were closed and the vehicles were parked. The people that were in the front of theirs got out first and barked orders into radios not to do anything until the others arrived. Sunset didn't feel like meeting anyone else. A few minutes later a large steel door that Sunset hadn't noticed before opened on the right side of the garage and five people walked through. But what made her eyes widen were the facts that they were all wearing white coats, one was holding a cattle prod, and three more had brought out a tall steel cage.

She couldn't hear much because the doors of the SUV were thick, but she could tell they were talking about her. Then they started walking closer towards her door. They stopped a few feet away from the car and those inside of her car opened their doors to get out. After they did and had their guns in a good grip, they pointed their pistols at her and roughly pulled her out. After nearly failing to stand up straight they held her still in front of the white coats, who were all looking at her eagerly.

Sergeant Looper strode forward and gestured to her bound form with a hand. "This is Sunset Shimmer and she's from the world of Equestria. We believe she's been here for a very long time. Apparently long enough that she could go to school and make friends. Secretary of Defense and the military need to know everything they can about the Equestrians. So everything is on the table. We actually wanted to go after Lareen Carson and see what type of 'Magic' is able to create whatever the hay she wants out of dirt, but this was as close as we could get."

Lieutenant Mayweather made a motion to one of the lab coats who strode forward with the cattle prod and poked Sunset with it. She screamed and fell to the ground while they held it for two more seconds, leaving her shaking as the military police grabbed her arms and pulled her back up to face them, gritting her teeth in pain.

Lieutenant Mayweather strode forward and yanked her head back by her hair to look into her light blue eyes. "Don't. Even. Think about trying to escape. That area out there? Nothing but straight and sunny exposure. The fences are electric and you will be hurt beyond repair. And if you so much as fight back..." She grabbed the cattle prod from the scientist and poked her with it again, holding it for three seconds. She screamed and writhed around in the policemens' grip before she pulled it back, leaving her quivering. "Then you get the prod. THIS is your home now. And you won't be leaving."

Sunset gasped, "What?! But you offered a trade!" She screamed once more when Mayweather poked her again with the cattle prod.

"You don't speak unless asked to speak!" She yelled to her. "And we will get Lareen Carson. But we need to get you too. This magic? The ability to create whatever you want with a wave of your hand? The US wants that. And they'll do whatever they have to to get it. By three days time...you will be as obedient to these guys as a service dog." Mayweather motioned towards the cage. One of the lab coats unlocked and opened it so the police could carry push her towards it.

"No! You're monsters! Freaking monst—AHHHH!" Mayweather jammed her in the back with the prod, leaving her convulsing before she was shoved inside and the cage was locked. Sunset looked to Mayweather who had a smirk on her face and snarled at her, small tears streaming down her face. The lab coats led the cage towards the thick steel door, but she kept her eyes on her. Even before the door closed back, shielding her out of view. Sunset turned around to see the large brightly lit hallway with multiple rooms. With no windows. Just numbers. EX0001, EX0002, and so forth.

One of the lab coats banged another cattle prod against the cage getting her attention. "From here on out you are only known as EX006."

"I was born as Sunset Shimmer." He poked her with the cattle prod, electrocuting her once more. She flew back into the other side of the cage before another hit her leg from behind. She yelled and fell to the floor.

"From here on out your name is EX006," the lab coat repeated. "The only words you will use are 'Yes', and 'No'. Do you understand?"

"Go to Tartarus! AHHH!" She writhed on the floor when she was poked again. The military police in front of her led her into some type of lab that had steel tables, sinks, vials, wires, lights, and what looked like a bed that would be used for prisoners who go through lethal injection. Complete with leather straps.

On the far side there was a large steel door, once again no windows with an electronic lock on it. There was a space on the side that they pushed her cage into while she was still on the bottom of it. "The only words you will speak are Yes and No," the lab coat repeated once more. "We go by a strike system. Each time you ignore a rule or disobey, you get the prod and a strike. If you get three strikes, you get the electrical box." He pointed the prod towards the vault with the electronic lock on it. "It works like this cage you're in and is the exact same size. Except the whole thing inside is electrified. You will stay and stand inside for an hour if you disobey or say anything other than yes and no. Do you understand, EX006?"

Sunset grit her teeth but reluctantly said, "Yes." He lowered the cattle prod then motioned to the team behind him to prepare the bed.

"We're going to let you out for blood and skin samples. Will you cooperate?" Sunset bit her tongue. She wanted to say no. She wanted to say it so bad. She yelled when he poked her with the prod again. Then asked the same question.

"Yes," she answered quickly. He nodded then unlocked the cage. Then motioned towards a spot on the floor. She timidly walked over then stood absolutely still, fearful of the cattle prods in their coats. The lab coats grabbed clip boards and stared at her, obviously waiting for something that she had a feeling she was definitely not going to enjoy.

"Arms apart." She raised her arms away from her body before they started taking off her leather jacket. They set it to the side then instructed, "Arms up." She hesitated at first, but quickly did it when they poked her lightly with the prod. The lab coats stepped forward and took off her shirt, leaving her in only a bra. "Keep your arms up."

She did as asked and closed her eyes when they decided to unsnap her bra and put it with her shirt and jacket. "Arms down." She did as asked but kept her eyes closed, listening instead to the scribble scrabble of their writing utensils. "Alright. Take off your bottoms."

"No, I am not—AHHH!" She fell on her back when they hit her with the cattle prod again in the stomach, lightly convulsing on the floor. She took rapid breaths before she was ordered to stand up. She did so slowly and resumed her previous position albeit with tears streaming down her eyes.

"That's one strike," the man informed her. "Two more, and it's the box." Sunset glanced towards the large steel door on the other side of the room. "Now take. Off. Your bottoms." Sunset whimpered but slowly unbuckled her belt and let her pants fall. They took some more notes before another order was given. "Take off your panties."

Sunset cried a little but did as asked, standing before them completely naked. They took a few more notes for a couple seconds while looking at her body. Even poked her for a second. One of them had snapped their fingers by her right ear and it twitched. A lot of notes were taken after that, she could hear it. "Open your eyes."

Her eyes slowly fluttered open before one of them shined a light into them, and instructed her to follow the moving finger. She did as asked before they moved to the other eye. Then stepped aside to look at their notes. "Alright. Now get on the bed." She took hesitant steps towards and up to the bed that looked like it belonged to a prisoner. But she wasn't a prisoner...right? She sat down on it then laid on her back, getting as comfortable as she could while being under the eyes of five people in lab coats two female, three male, naked and afraid. They grabbed her arms, legs, and ankles then tied her to the bed with the leather straps. They even strapped her head in so she couldn't move it, making her a lot more afraid then she already was.

Once secured, she felt someone rub her forearm then upper arm with alcohol. Then the next arm. Legs. Feet. Breasts. Heart area. And forehead. "We're going to take some skin samples first. They're going to hurt. Try not to squirm, it'll make it worse." A cart was rolled into her peripheral vision that contained a few small containers. One of the lab coats by her feet reached over and grabbed a container, then something else that looked like...a scalpel.

Sunset started to breath faster when she saw them prepare the scalpel right over her foot. "No," she said loudly, tears streaming down her face. "No, please don't." They didn't listen. The woman placed the scalpel on the top of her foot. Then started to dig, ignoring her painful shouts.



Celestia ran out the portal first and immediately tripped and fell on her face, not realizing that she had feet and startling the Equestria Girls in the process. Luna was second and had the exact same result. As well as Cadance. They all piled on top of each other, groaning in pain while Twilight and Scootaloo calmly stepped out, looking down at them in humor.

"Wow," Scootaloo laughed. "First step out on Earth and—wait, wait! Serious face!" She shook herself like she was getting ready for a boxing match and punched the air a few times, then gave herself a few slaps, trying to give the impression of being in business. "Act like a Princess, Scootaloo! Alright. Now what...Celestia, Cadance, Luna? You guys have got to get up before I lose control. Like, seriously. I am about to start rolling on the ground crying."

The princesses groaned and got up on shaky feet, trying to keep their balance on two legs besides four. The group across from them were wearing patient expressions while they got settled. Rainbow Dash motioned to the three with her finger and said, "You look just like the Principals. Now come on already, Sunset got taken!"

Twilight strode forward with Scootaloo to get the scoop. "Okay. Tell me everything that happened," she asked.

"We already did!" Rarity exclaimed, clearly upset. "They came in, pointed guns, grabbed Sunset, and asked for a trade. However, they didn't tell us where to trade! We have no idea where Sunset is. They couldn't have taken her to a prison, they think she's an alien for crying out loud! Probably put her in some military installation!"

"Probably Area 51!" Rainbow added. "No one knows where she is."

Scootaloo threw up her arms in disbelief and yelled, "They ask for a trade, but don't tell us where to trade? That sounds...like a trap!" The five Princesses gasped and looked around, magic on the tips of their fingers. But Scootaloo's was different. One hand had white magic and the other black, taking the others by surprise. She looked around and whispered, "We walked right into it. I have a feeling this is a lot more than wanting me and putting me on trial for something I definitely would never do. I think they're after magic."

Princess Twilight nodded in agreement while Celestia added, "They ask for Scootaloo, but do not come to get her. Because they already have what they need."

The Princesses all looked at each other and said the same thing. "Magic."

"They just want magic," Scootaloo repeated irately. Then asked sadly, "What if these are the same guys who...killed my parents because they were after me?"

Applejack sighed and said, "Only one way to find out. We need to track down Sunset Shimmer. And we need to find her fast before they make a huge mistake, or if they are able to figure out how you're able to use magic and harness it for themselves."

"Do you know where to go to...track down a bunch of guys with guns who kidnapped a child?" Cadance asked, finally figuring out how to walk. "If these guys are that desperate for magic, then Sunset is going through pain right now."

Fluttershy raised her hand and said, "The only thing you can really do...is ask the woman looking into Scootaloo's case. I remember reading about it online." They all turned to her so she explained. "All of this revolves around Scootaloo. Including this trade. She would have written down every single thing to present to the courts. Including what else they found here. It's a long shot, but it might work."

Twilight nodded in agreement. "Then we have to find her. Do you know who it is, Fluttershy?"

She shook her head sadly. "No. But I know she's an investigator working from downtown Canterlot."

"Then we go there," Celestia declared. "We need to find Sunset as fast as possible."



Sunset moaned from each breath she took after they grabbed the last "skin sample" from off the center of her forehead and placed it in its container titled "Forehead". They quickly put another bandage on the bleeding pierced area then shined a light into her eyes. "She's fine," one of the lab coats announced. The man from earlier poked his head into her heavily breathing face. "Now. Here's what's going to happen. Each day we'll put you through three tests to find out how you use magic. And if we can't recreate it, then we'll harness it from you."

Sunset looked at him in disbelief, then scolded, "You can't just take magic—AHHHNNNN!"

He pulled back the cattle prod from her shaking form, gritting her teeth in agony. "Strike two. One more and you get the room. As I was saying, each day you'll be put through three tests to see how, and where your magic comes from. Because the government could really use it. If you try to fight against it, you'll quickly regret it. Do you understand?"

"Yes," she replied, wincing from the large tear off on her forehead.

"Good. Now, your first test today is a blood drain." Sunset's eyes widened once more in fear. What the buck is a blood drain?! "We'll be keeping a few large packets of your blood for three reasons. One is in case you try to run away. You'll tire out really quickly. Two is in case you start to flat line. And third is for study. Apparently you had an original body of a quadruped. A small horse, or a pony with a horn. A unicorn. A legendary creature heard of only in myths and legends. And we want to be able to use the magic that your kind have."

Sunset snarled, "No."

"Strike three." He poked her with the cattle prod again, putting in more power that caused her body to convulse and shake the bed, but not to scream. Her mouth was open in utter pain, but no sound came out. "Now you get the room. Prepare it." One of the lab coats set down their clipboard and walked towards the large steel door while the others unhooked her from the chair. She didn't move, it was too painful until the head guy put the cattle prod into her side. She flinched when it touched her, but thankfully he didn't shock her. Obviously a warning. "Get out the chair." She slowly sat up and threw her legs over the side, taking deep breaths before she got out the seat and stood up. The door was opened, revealing a small cell with only standing room. All of the sides were stainless steel. Including the door. The only thing that wasn't was the concrete floor. The two women grabbed her arms and started to pull her towards it while pressing two cattle prods against her back in case she resisted. She started breathing quickly, filled with fear which she had a feeling would be a common emotion in here. She wished she could use her magic to get out. But she was too weak. And they would then see that her magic is focused from her hands, which they didn't take a sample of. They placed her in the middle of the room and turned her around to face the door and the man in charge.

"Try not to fall asleep, EX006," he warned. "It'll burn. You have sixty minutes." They closed the door back slowly with a clang. Then locked it. A loud hum hit both of her ears letting her know that there were generators. Powering the sides and sending in a current. But besides that, there was nothing else. No sound, no wind, no lights. And unknowingly, nothing to stop the pain she would feel if she allowed this drowsiness she was feeling all of a sudden take over. She had to stay awake. No matter how dark it is. She lifted a hand in front of her face. She couldn't even tell it was there.



The group of eleven were quickly making their way downtown, looking left and right with determination on their faces. Except Fluttershy who was crying tears. Rainbow Dash lightly pulled her into a hug. But she was still fuming.

"We have to keep Scootaloo out of sight," Twilight reminded them. "They want magic, but they initially wanted her. We have to put her in a disguise before we go out and start searching for this lady."

"And I have just the disguise," Pinkie announced. They all looked towards the party girl to see her rubbing her hands together, giving Scootaloo an uneasy feeling.


***


Scootaloo shook her head. "No." Pinkie slowly nodded while the others were giving her confused looks. "Pinkie I am not wearing this... pink 'party dress.' It's literally a short skirt with a tiny shirt that shows my belly button. I know I'm actually twenty two, but...in this body I look like I'm fifteen!"

Rainbow Dash nodded and said, "Yeah, Pinkie. That has to go. Besides it's too much...pink. Even the Scootaloo here doesn't wear pink."

Pinkie deflated while Rarity grabbed Scootaloo and pulled her into the bathroom, ignoring her protests. "Now it's my turn!" She sung out. The bathroom door closed and the group could hear Scootaloo's cries of help.

"No! No, not there! Ow, stop pulling! Why do you have a brush down there, what is wrong with you?! Why are you brushing me down there?!! Stop grooming me! No, no! Get that—what are you—" The door opened back up and Rarity pushed Scootaloo back out into the open. Her hair had been changed into a dark green color and she was wearing a pair of dark green skinny jeans. "Rarity, this absolutely does not match with my skin!!"

"Exactly, no one will recognize you!" Rarity clarified after she walked out the bathroom and holding a white bristled brush that had straight purple strands in it.

"Uh...why are....never mind," Rainbow asked. She didn't even want to know why Scootaloo was screaming "Stop brushing down there."

"Okay. Let's continue," Twilight declared as they stepped outside and continued their way back downtown.


***


Scootaloo was hugging herself while trying to blow back the straight green hair from in front of her face. Her hair always stayed up, not down. While she was shivering, Applejack pulled out her phone and looked up the article Fluttershy was talking about. They were all downtown standing in front of the movie theater, waiting anxiously.

"Found it!" Fluttershy announced. The group looked over and quickly crowded around as she read the article aloud. "'In the summer of August third, two thousand eight, two bodies were discovered in two different locations with a relation. Vanessa and William Carson, age unknown were murdered by, what police believed, to be their daughter, Lareen Carson. The altercation was believed to have begun at their three bedroom apartment in Canterlot City, where police found a flipped table, broken dishes and bullet shells, as well as the body of Vanessa Carson. A few blocks away, the father was found with a bullet wound to the head. The neighbors at the apartment testified that they heard shouts, things crashing, and two gunshots, which forced them to take cover and call nine-one-one. On the way, the police discovered the body of William Carson lying in the middle of the street. It was later discovered that they had a daughter who had been declared missing, but reported to have been seen two days later walking out of an ice cream shop a few blocks away from the crime scene. She was apprehended, but escaped out of custody a few hours later. A federal investigation was initiated, led by Detective Beauty Fire of the Canterlot City Police Department.'"

"How could they have possibly seen...!" Scootaloo looked around and then lowered her voice since she was hiding. "How could they have possibly seen me? I was in Equestria living underneath a tree?"

"I don't know," Twilight answered. "But I believe everything has gotten bigger. Someone could have impersonated you—"

"Or it could have been this world's Scootaloo," Rainbow interrupted. "Remember, you're not supposed to be here, Scoots. There are actively two of you around here somewhere. The other one is probably hiding in fear because I haven't seen her in so long now that I think about it, or..." Rainbow looked up and widened her eyes. Then pointed her finger at Twilight. "Or someone covered up for her and said that it wasn't her. And it was another. Guys? I think I may have an idea on what's going on."

Celestia quickly looked around and took notice that the streets were emptying out. "Then hurry and tell us."

"Okay. Scoots, I remember Twilight sending Sunset a message about how your mother found out you were affected by that beam of magic." Scootaloo widened her eyes and turned to Twilight who was blushing and rubbing the back of her head. "Well...that explosion in that mall was discovered by someone. And they probably knew something the police didn't. That it wasn't a bomb that took out that cafeteria. It was you. You blew somehow and made everything go boom. Someone saw that, and wanted it for themselves. Someone thirsty for power."

"Yeah, my mom said something like that," Scootaloo confirmed. "What's your point?"

Rainbow Dash nudged Fluttershy and said, "Go on YouHoof and search up 'two thousand eight Canterlot City mall explosion.'" She did as asked a few seconds later. But nothing came up. It said no results. "Just like I thought. Someone took it all down. Every last thing about it. An explosion that set the mall on fire, wouldn't that have been caught on video and uploaded for like news stations? Someone saw the footage and immediately took down all evidence of you blowing up. Because they didn't want you to be seen. They didn't want you to know that you were seen. So, I bet you immediately after that explosion, they started searching your faces and discovered your names. Along with your parents, who could not be found online or in public record. They discovered that you weren't natural and that you could blow up without being hurt. A walking bomb. The government, or someone, discovered that you were something else entirely. And that you were able to do something that no one else literally on this planet can. And they wanted to know how. So they made you a secret." The princesses all shared a nervous look. "They erased all evidence of the event, everything. So much that the search term alone was taken down. And probably hundreds more that were close to it. Fluttershy, search on the internet 'YouHoof temporary shut down two thousand eight.'" Fluttershy did as asked and they all gasped at their findings. Rainbow pointed to the search results volume. "There are over eight billion records of it. Click one, a random one." Fluttershy did and waited for it to load up. After it did, Rainbow reached over and scrolled down, stopping at a certain point. "There's the proof. It says right here that YouHoof was temporarily shut down for a data overload on . Which is basically an egghead's term for overheating servers. When did the explosion happen?"

"July 28th, never forget it," Scootaloo responded quickly. Rainbow looked back at the article and calmly pointed towards a date.

"YouHoof went offline on July 29th. The next day." They all gathered around and looked towards where she was pointing. Sure enough, it said the event happened at 10:53 AM that same day. "The government shut it down and took you off. And possibly every record of you. They wanted no one to know about you, except them and are chasing you. Which means they are using everything and everyone."

"Rainbow...what are you saying?" Sci-Twi asked fearfully.

"What I'm saying is that if the police find you...you will follow right after Sunset Shimmer. They covered up for this world's Scootaloo and said, 'She's not it. She doesn't have that explosion thing.' So they used her to make you wanted. So now everyone is on the lookout for you. And if they find you, they'll send you to these guys who got sunset Shimmer. They made up a story, put up a record that you took a flight somewhere, then said you escaped and are now an international wanted felon all because whoever these people are want you and what you, as well as all the Unicorns and Alicorns can do. And they probably want you even more because you can create whatever the heck you want with like a flick of your hand." Scootaloo looked around and flicked her hand towards an Anthill on the ground, and slowly turned it into a small jewelry box, complete with a diamond necklace. "Like that. Do you know how much the government would kill for that, or anyone really would kill for that? I bet you that whoever it is has infiltrated the government and bribed them to help them search for you. Along with YouHoof, security companies, and possibly a small amount of citizens. And even... the detective on your case."

"So...what, we can't use her?!" Celestia asked in disbelief.

"Unless you want her to report that a bunch of people are onto the case and could interrupt everything, as well as think that we know where Scootaloo is, I recommend we don't. We have to figure this out on our own. And possibly someone who may know that we can trust. But I think we should do it on our own." The group got quiet then they all turned towards the phone.

"So...Sunset could be anywhere!" Cadance shouted. "We don't have time to go and just search through every single piece of information in this country to try and track her down, we have to risk something to get information fast!"

Princess Twilight sighed and solemnly said, "I agree, Cadance. But if they get Scootaloo, it won't even matter. Sunset Shimmer has magic, but it is nowhere as powerful as Scootaloo's, which rivals all of ours combined."

"Wait!" Scootaloo shouted, catching their attention. She was shaking her finger. "I remember something. It's really important. Celestia, didn't you say that my parents could have had a lab hidden here somewhere?"

"Yes, but why are you asking?"

"My mom and dad were looking for magic when they first arrived here, I remember mom telling me that. But they couldn't really do it themselves. So they had—"

"—to create something!" Both Twilights yelled at the same time in excitement. Sci-Twi placed a hand over her counterpart's mouth and said, "Your parents had to have created something to be able to find a source of magic somewhere here."

"Exactly," Scootaloo confirmed. "Now in order to track a magical signature you need to grab as much as you can and focus it on one area to pinpoint it. So they would have likely used...a dish or something. A satellite dish because it can pick up signals and decode them. But in order for them to find it, the experiment would have to be big. So big that you couldn't miss it even if you tried. We're talking small amounts of magic that is spreading hundreds of miles long. And this single dish has to pick it up. I have to go back to my old apartment and look through the attic where my mom and dad stored old experiments."

"Okay we got a plan," Princess Twilight whispered after pushing Sci-Twi's hand off her mouth. "Now we gotta find your old apartment and hope that it's still there. Second, we locate the experiment among the hundred something experiments in there I bet, locate the dish, find the magic, and hope it's Sunset Shimmer which will lead us straight to those who are trying to harness the magic, all in one go. Good job, Princess." Scootaloo smiled proudly.

Celestia raised her hand, quieting them for a moment. Then glanced around. something was off. "Does anyone else hear that?" She whispered.

They all listened closely. "Uhh...no, I don't hear anything," Applejack answered.

"Exactly. Even the birds have stopped chirping. It's really silent." They all froze and listened closely before Scootaloo gasped and raised her hand, putting up a bubble shield just in time when a rain of needles hit it. "We've been spotted!" Celestia immediately teleported them all away from the scene, leaving only the needles behind on the concrete ground. Lieutenant Mayweather held up her fist from the rooftop of an apartment building, halting all the marines behind her from roping down to the ground. All the rooftops to the nearby buildings that were around the Equestrians were occupied with military and police, pointing weapons and more at them.

"She's smarter than she looks," she whispered to herself before lifting up a radio to her mouth. "She...teleported out. We lost them." Captain Looper sighed and lifted up his own radio, barking commands.

"Alright. Everyone get back on those eyes. We need to follow them and get that girl. The US depends on it."



After the loud buzzer went off, the electronic lock on the laboratory door buzzed and the doctors walked back inside the room Sunset would be living in. The main doctor walked right up to the steel door and typed in the electronic key, unlocking it. Then he pulled it open, revealing Sunset's naked form standing straight up with her head down and arms folded over her breasts. She had multiple burn marks over her body after falling asleep fourteen times and being jolted awake with a loud scream that the doctors had left the room because of. "Hello, EX006," he greeted. "I hope you learned your lesson. Did you?"

"....yes," Sunset replied coldly.

"Now we're going to do a blood drain. Step out." Sunset calmly walked out of the room dark room and stopped in the middle of the lab in the exact same position with her head down, looking at the holes on the top of her feet, legs, thighs, over her heart, and naked breasts. One of the lab coats grabbed her arm, pulled it out effortlessly and rubbed a spot with alcohol. A few seconds later, a needle was stuck in. But she didn't even flinch. "Look up." She picked up her head and focused her lifeless light teal eyes on the lab coat in front of her as she looked into her eyes. The technician taking her blood stopped the flow for a moment to remove the full bag, then attached another bag before resuming. She only stared at the space in front of her, completely lost in her thoughts and remembering only a few words that seemed important to her. Yes, no, and Anything for Equestria.

"Anything for Equestria," she whispered slowly, catching the head lab coat's attention.

"EX006?" She turned his way with a expressionless face. "Do you know where you are? This is Equestria. Everything here is Equestria. You have always been here. And this is where you belong and where you will stay. You are no longer Sunset Shimmer. Do you understand?"

"......yes."

"What is your name?"

"......EX006."

"Where are you?"

"......Equestria."
> Chapter 13 - Unknown Questions Answered
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A bright flash appeared in a nearby neighborhood by Canterlot High once Team Equestria came back into view. They all immediately looked around before Celestia declared it clear, allowing them all to relax and take a breather. Luna huffed in relief, then lifted a hand and placed it on Scootaloo's shoulder to give her a much appreciated rub. "Good job, Princess," she praised. "None of us saw them coming."

"Oh I didn't either," she replied, confusing the group once more. "I just know people because I've been living with them all my life. They were watching us, possibly recording with audio and video equipment to see if anyone else can use magic. They know Celestia and I can, and possibly the wannabe twins." Everyone turned towards the two Twilights who blushed and looked at something else. Princess Twilight muttered something about being her own twin. "Now. We have to get back to my house—"

"—WHICH could now be occupied my a new tenant," Rarity reminded her. "And everything else that was found inside could be thrown away."

Scootaloo chuckled and shook her head in disagreement, swinging around her straight dark green hair. "Oh no. Uh uh. You have to have some magic to even pull down the stairs. Let alone open the door to get inside. We live on the top floor and had the luxury of having an attic. I'll tell you all about that later."

Twilight lit her hands and prepared to teleport. "Well let's go!... But where?" She asked.

Scootaloo looked around and motioned towards the street. "Well first we have to get out of here. We're really exposed right now. I want to try and teleport." She closed her eyes and prepared the spell, ignoring Princess Twilight's protests. Then they all disappeared in a black shadow. A few seconds later, the group reappeared in a column of black smoke, frozen in fear and shivering. Scootaloo looked around for anyone, then pointed towards the five story apartment building.

"We're here," she whispered. "Sunlight Apartments. Now...oh, come on guys it wasn't that bad." Everyone was shivering and hugging themselves with a face of surprise.

Rarity stuttered and commented, "I-it was...i-it was s-so c-c-cold. W-What was that?"

"My magic," Scootaloo answered with a straight face. "I used Dark Magic because I'm more used to it than regular magic."

Celestia waved her hand and said, "P-Please use regular magic."

"Yeah, whatever. Now come on, it's getting dark." The group looked around to see that it was indeed past Sunset, evident by the sky's purple glow.

Pinkie gasped and pointed at the sky, then the girls in front of her. "Hey, it's twilight, Twilight, and Princess Twilight. Three TWILIGHTS!"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes, already used to Pinkie's antics before she pointed towards a certain window at the apartment building. "That's the apartment. I can't remember the layout of the apartment, so we'll have to walk up there. No more wasting time." Princess Twilight nodded and ran towards the open stairwell in the middle of the apartments, followed by everyone else. They cautiously tip toed and walked along carefully while keeping a close eye out for any movement. The wooden boards creaked underneath their feet as they moved, attempting to be as quiet as possible. They stopped and backed down into the stairwell when someone's door opened. A small dog walked out to use the bathroom on a nearby plant on the third floor. He lifted up his leg and let it rip.

Applejack and Rarity looked at each other with the same look and question. On the third floor? The dog finished up and walked back through the doorway, which closed a second later. Princess Twilight rolled her eyes as they crept out the stairwell they were in and made their way towards the last one. "I'm not going to ask," she mouthed behind her.

Luna shook her finger and commented, "Wise choice." They all walked up the last stairwell and Twilight peeked her head over the top. It was clear, so she made a hand signal to those behind her. Scootaloo crept out first and tip toed over to the door.

"It doesn't seem occupied," she whispered to the others as they tip toed over. "There's a note right here that says government property. It's closed off. But the door's locked. Hopefully there's a spare key in the light." Celestia shot her a confused glance before Scootaloo reached up into the lamp by the door and began to dig under the shade. Eventually she smiled and nodded.  "Yeah, the key's right here." She pulled back her hand, holding a small silver key attached to some elastic string that pulled with Scootaloo's hand as she pulled it down. Once in position, she inserted it in the door's key hole. Twisting and unlocking it. She let the key go to fly and slide back into the lamp. Then pushed the rest of the door open. Revealing her past life.



Sunset had her feet spread to keep her balance after they took away the last packet of blood to keep herself from falling over. After the intense electrocution inside "The Box", it was like her mind changed. Before, she stood strong. Keeping her and the real Equestria safe by enduring what she could. But after being inside that cold, dark, completely lifeless and silent space, she knew she was never leaving. That they would keep her there until they got what they wanted, and used her for another experiment. As EX006. Alone. She was branded earlier by a sharpie on the back in between her shoulders. No one knew where she was she realized. You can't find someone who wasn't supposed to be here in the first place. So she gave up. Sunset Shimmer no longer existed. The vibrant yellow skin, teal eyes, and curly bouncy hair had all changed. Her skin was a sickly pale yellow, her teal eyes nearly gray, and her hair every which way from the electrocution. Not to mention the large bites of flesh all over her body, sticking out like black paint on a white T-shirt. Especially the one on her forehead which was bigger that the rest. Since she had a horn, they believed her magic came from there. So they took a much larger sample.

The main lab coat strode forward and gave her a smile. "Good job, EX006," he praised. "It's nearly dark. So you'll have to go to sleep. Understand?"

"Yes," Sunset replied in a monophonic tone.

"Okay. Arms to the side." Sunset let both of her arms drop down before one of the lab coats led her back towards the cage on the side. They placed her softly inside and locked it behind her. Her stomach growled, but she didn't even flinch or move. "Try to get some good night's sleep, EX006. We'll be back in the morning." He stuffed the keys to the lock in his pocket while she took a seat on the hard floor and leaned against the metal in the small cell. The lab coats had cleaned up the room and sanitized everything before they cut off the lights. Then opened the door, stepped out, and locked it back. The only source of light was the light seeping in from the bottom of the door in the hallway. Sunset focused on that for awhile, a few small thoughts plaguing her mind. Like Yes, No, Yes, No, Yes, No, anything for Equestria.

"Anything...for...Equestria," she whispered. "Anything for...this room." She blinked, trying to stay awake for a little while longer. Then smiled weakly at one of the small empty containers sitting on the counter. She started giggling at it. "Anything for you. I can't wait for tommorow.....so I learn more about friendship."

She kept silent again, listening to the clock ticking by on the wall. "Dear...Princess...Twilight...today I learned.....," she whispered before clocking out against the metal bars.



Scootaloo's old home was a crime scene. Yellow tape lined the kitchen. Number cards lined broken glass in the kitchen, the smashed television in the living room, the multiple bullet holes, and the massive dark brown spot on the carpet. Rarity softly shut and locked the door back after everyone walked in, and then looked around in shock with them.

Scootaloo stared at the brown space with no expression for a while, realizing what it was before. It was unmistakable. Even after all these years. She swallowed hard and ignored the arm Rainbow Dash wrapped around her. She quickly brushed it off and motioned towards the hallway. "Let's..L-Let's just..." She chose just to walk past the blood stain and get it done, ignoring the looks of sympathy she could feel hitting her back. Flicking on the hall light, she looked up at a large steel door in the ceiling. There was a small hole in the front of it, but she couldn't reach it. Evident by her pitiful jumping. She needed a chair. Looking around, she opened up a wooden door that led into her old room and walked over to her desk while the others gathered around to look at the ceiling.

"Definitely something about that door," Princess Twilight whispered.

"Move." They looked towards the room where Scootaloo was standing, holding a metal chair with tears coming down her face. They did and allowed her through so she could set down the chair and then climb on top of it.

"Scootaloo—"

"Shut up, Twilight," Scootaloo interrupted while feeling the door.

"Scootaloo, I know—"

"Shut up!" She yelled down to her with an icy glare, taking them all by surprise. Scootaloo blinked away the tears then focused back on the door. She stuck her index finger into the shall hole and put in some light magic, flowing over the lines embedded on the door, invisible to the naked eye. A mess of bright moving lines crawled away from the point and hit the sides of the steel door while Scootaloo got down. Then grabbed the chair and took it back into her room.  The steel door lowered slowly and quietly to reveal a thick pair of metal stairs.

Scootaloo walked over and stood in her bedroom doorway, observing the action with everyone else. Once it hit, they all looked towards her. Scootaloo motioned with her head towards the top of the stairs, then turned back and walked into her room, shutting the door behind her. Sighing in sadness, she walked forward and stopped in the middle of the room to look around. The entire area was dug through, that much was obvious. The closet door's open, drawers out, clothes thrown out, bed and pillow cut open. All of this...because of her. She ran forward, pulled her foot back and kicked a large hole in the wall by the window. "Stupid...just stupid!" She yelled. Then grabbed the desk and put a slight mix of dark magic into it. It broke down into a bunch of weak splinters and chips. Then picked the chair up with one hand and tossed it to the side. It hit the carpet and rolled over a few feet. Scootaloo walked over to the bed and leaned on it, sobs wracking her body. She wanted to scream. She wanted to scream so bad.

But she settled down for falling on her knees and burying her face into her bed sheets, sobbing. "Mom....dad....I'm home," she whispered.


***


Princess Twilight gasped in wonder and joy at all the bookshelves filled with notebooks, labeled Experiment with a four digit number. "Oh. My. Celestia!" The others all shared a knowing smirk as the Princess of Friendship ran eagerly into the room and flipped on a switch, filling the dimly lit room with a bright light and revealing the one hundred something experiments. Twilight grabbed a random one and flipped it open. "Double Spectrum Enhancer?! What the hay is that?! I have to know, I have to know!!"

Celestia chuckled and looked around with her, along with everyone else. "I know you'd love to sightsee Twilight, but we're on a mission here," Cadance reminded her before grabbing another notebook.

"Read! Right! Magical Detector, Magical Detector!" She grabbed a whole bunch of the works and pulled them off the shelf. Then sat them down into a pile on the floor to get started. The others did the same thing and created a circle with the experiments beside them, all reading for something similar to Magical Detector. The atmosphere serene and quiet like a library.

After around twenty minutes, Applejack asked quietly, "How do you think she's doin'?"

Rainbow sighed and placed another finished notebook in the middle of the circle. "Sunset or Scootaloo?"

"Both."

Before she could answer, they all heard a glass plate or something shatter downstairs. "Stupid bucking people! Selfish!"

Rainbow picked up another notebook. "That answers that question. And Sunset? There is absolutely no way to tell. She said she would go with them because she didn't want Equestria to look like monsters. From what I understand Equestria was peaceful during the talks. But these guys had ill intentions all along. Sort of like the Native Americans versus the US. So they could be doing anything to her right now. 'She has no human rights.'"

They all tightened their lips, trying to get horrible, but still possible images out of their minds before a black shadow appeared behind Twilight. Rainbow yelped and fell back while everyone just stared at Scootaloo. She was holding a belt of some sort in one hand and a large bag in the other. "What'd you find?" She whispered down to them.

"Err..." Twilight cleared her throat and then adjusted her glasses. "Nothing just yet. We just got started nearly thirty minutes ago. Uhhh...what did you find?"

Scootaloo just glanced up from the belt but didn't respond. Instead she set down the bag and made her way over to a specific shelf while clicking the belt around her waist. Rainbow happened to look down and widen her eyes at the adornments on it. "Scootaloo—"

"Don't even, Rainbow. They want to use Equestria's power against me? Well I'm going to do the same thing."

"Where did you even get an automatic pistol?!" Applejack exclaimed.

"Dad's room. For emergencies only. This is definitely an emergency. Found what we were looking for." She opened one of the notebooks wider and gave it to Princess Twilight. "Go nerd for me, will ya'? You guys were going all over the place and didn't even look at the color system over there." She motioned towards a large banner on the far side of the room that Cadance immediately recognized as a legend. Blue for Spells, Red for Battle Magic, Yellow For Detectors and so much more.

Princess Twilight looked at the pages while Scootaloo made her way back downstairs with the large bag. Rainbow could only guess what was inside of that. "This is it!" Princess Twilight announced. "Okay! It's called an EED, an Equestrian Energy Detector. Experiment 2439. Bright Magnus wrote some notes down." She cleared her throat and read aloud, "'After four months of no success, my wife and I have decided to recreate magic. However, before we do, we will try and detect magic by detecting the Energy output the same way doctors and mages alike would measure the magic from a unicorn's horn. Pulse waves. After reading and understanding technology on this world, we believe the sure way of detecting magic would be a large disc.' Scootaloo is sooo smart when she wants to be," she commented before continuing. "'All we need is a very sensitive sensor. However we do not have the needed materials to create a high powered sensor here on Earth. So it would be very difficult to find any energy signatures even within a five hundred mile radius. The farthest we could reach was ten miles. Until we get these materials, the project has been declared to be in hiatus: 1) Yellow Diamond. 2) Red quarts.'"

Twilight grabbed the notebook out of the Princess' hands and flipped through it anxiously. "So...they never finished it?!"

"Apparently not," Celestia answered. "What does it look like? Any pictures?" Twilight nodded and turned it around so the group could see the photographs attached. It was of a small disk with a pole in the middle that looked to be attached to a bunch of wires and display screens. "That definitely took them awhile to make."

"Months," Luna agreed. "However, we don't have months. We only have hours. We need to find it. Is there a note for its location?"

Twilight flipped around and stopped at the back. "Yeah. Location. 0973736778? Where in Canterlot is that?"

Rainbow Dash stood up and brushed off her blue jeans. "Maybe Scootaloo knows?" She slowly made her way back towards and down the stairs, already dreading this. But she knew someone had to ask. The second she walked into Scootaloo's room she gasped and ran forward to grab the shotgun out of Scootaloo's surprised hands.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" She asked angrily.

"Scoots, I know you're upset, but shooting someone is not going to bring them back," Rainbow said sternly. Scootaloo growled and pulled back her arm, preparing to punch the girl in the face. But she hesitated and just stared at her. She couldn't hit Rainbow Dash. She wasn't Equestria's but she was a twin sister of it.

"Squirt, look." Rainbow softly and calmly set the gun on the floor and bent down to unbuckle the belt holding the pistol on her waist. "I know you're angry. We're all angry. Every last person in this room, inside this building we're not supposed to be in. But we're doing it to save someone, not take someone's life." She dropped the belt and holster next to the shotgun. "What would your mother say if she saw you pointing a weapon, like that shotgun, in someone's face? She would not be happy. At all. Scootaloo? Sunset is in wherever the heck she is because she wanted Equestria to not look like monsters. We're not. Don't let your anger make you do something you'll regret."

Scootaloo stared at her for a moment before she walked back and sat down on the bed, looking at the guns. "I just...each time I walk out there...I see everything that...." She stuttered quietly. "I get...angry. Look." She stood up and walked out the room and past the others who were standing in the hall watching the altercation. She stopped in the living room and pointed towards a small photograph sitting right by the door they hadn't noticed before. It was of the Carson family picnic with Scootaloo being held around the waist by both of her parents at the age of sixteen with her parents on both sides of her, all wearing gleaming smiles. Princess Cadance could tell the love was immense between that family.

Scootaloo walked towards it and picked it up, staring at the image like it was the most beautiful thing she's ever seen. "This was a picnic or reunion...something that happened days before...this." She gestured to everything around her. "How did something that involve a peaceful atmosphere at a lake, a park, and more go to...to this? The reason I'm crying..." She sniffed and wiped a stray tear from her eye. "Is because......I remember. I remember every single thing that happened that night. It changed my life forever. Dad didn't open the rift...I did."

Celestia looked at her in surprise. "What?"

Scootaloo made her way towards the couch and took a seat, recalling everything that happened while staring at the floor. "The moment I saw everything in here it all flooded back to me. I was sitting in my room watching TV when dad burst in and said, 'Come on, Lareen. We have to go.' I looked at him confused. Go where? I didn't ask him because he was in a serious state of mind. I never mess with him during those times. So I just grabbed my jacket and shoes.

"He told me to hurry up and grab my scooter. I was definitely confused then because I don't do sports at ten at night. But I did that night. After I got everything we left my room and into the living room. Mom instantly scooped me into the tightest hug that I'm so...oh so happy I remember. She kissed me on the forehead, looked me in the eyes, and told me we'll meet again some day. I started to ask what she was talking about, but dad was pulling me out the door. We ran out that door and down these wooden steps as fast as we could. I ended up just trying to catch up with dad while holding onto my scooter." Scootaloo got up and walked towards the windows. So Rarity cut off the lamp. She opened the blinds and motioned towards an alley right across. "We ran through there and continued to run. Not stopping for a second. At that moment, my magic began acting up. I teleported a few feet in front of dad and reappeared in the path of a car.

"Well whoever was in it stepped out and told me to freeze and pointed something at me that I now realize was a gun. Well dad told me to use that Scooter. I chose the option two. I unfolded it and rushed through another alley with dad right behind me, ignoring the gunshots. He was running right next to me at full speed—I could ride really fast—and placed the duffel bag of pictures and books over my shoulders. Then he told me raise my hand and do something, I can't remember his words exactly. Anyway a bunch of light shot out of my hand and formed into a rift in the middle of the street after another alley. But by some unnatural force, the scooter hit something and I went flying off.

"So Dad turned into Super Dad and immediately picked me up, told me he loved me, and threw me straight through the rift. I saw the smile on his face before I only saw the mix of colors in the wormhole. Then I felt everything about me change when I landed in the Whitetail Woods. I sat up and looked at myself and noticed that I was a foal. Like Cup Cake and Carrot Cake. I could walk, think, and everything. And I was thinking...what happened?

"I walked around while pulling the bag of books and pictures behind me with my teeth. Then...I spotted Ponyville. And all of you ponies. I still had no idea what was going on, so I just...laid down and watched the town, the pegasi flying around, the Unicorns using magic that made me realize I could do what they could. But a lot differently. I noticed I had wings but I couldn't use them. I think it was because of my magic. It was incomplete. I stayed and I waited. Waiting for mom and dad. They would never show up. During the day, I would stay in Whitetail underneath a tree and in the evening I'd sneak into town to get food. It wasn't until years later through many bitter colds and steaming summers that I my magic reactivated. One day I was walking through the woods eating one of Applejack's Apples when I had a huge migraine and yelled. It took out half of those woods, leaving it gray and lifeless. A few years later, I meet Rainbow Dash. And everyone else, including Sweetie Belle and Applebloom. Then...I start my life over in Equestria as a flightless pegasus. Then an Alicorn. The rest you already know.

"My life was changed forever...from a person with a family and love, to an orphan without a home for eleven years because those people want power. And they killed my parents for it. And possibly doing something worse to Sunset Shimmer. All for something they more than likely can never use."

"Which makes it even more imperative that we find her," Celestia whispered as she walked over and stood next to her. "I am very sorry Scootaloo that you had to go through all of that and we did not know. We could have helped you."

Scootaloo looked back out the window and shrugged. "Well...I turned out alright. I survived, right?"

"Heck yeah, you did!" Rainbow reached over and ruffled Scootaloo's straight green hair. "You look like a weird orange, by the way!"

Scootaloo reached up and knocked her arm away. "What are you talking about? I look great! I didn't like it before, but it grew on me within, like, two hours."

"You're welcome," Rarity muttered.

"Scootaloo, I promise that when we get Sunset back," Princess Twilight said, catching her attention. "We're going to get justice for your parents. Because what they're doing is completely unlawful, immoral, and wrong on so many accounts. And they have absolutely no say so. You have my word."

Scootaloo smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Twilight."

"You're welcome. We could use your help right now." She grabbed and put the book in front of Scootaloo's face and pointed to the weird numbers. "It's a location, but we can't figure it out." Scootaloo grabbed the book and looked it over, then back at the numbers. "I guess you can't either huh?"

"Oh no, I know what it is. It's just...it's been so long. Hold on." Scootaloo walked away with the book in her hand and made her way behind the broken living room TV. She grabbed it and tilted it over, looking underneath it. The dresser it was on contained small patch on top with another small steel door with a hole on it. She put in her finger and sent in a pinch of her magic, popping it open. Next she reached inside and pulled out a steel box with another small hole in the top and set it to the side to place the TV back. She walked back over with the book in one hand, and the box in the other. "Okay. So the system was this. At night, after my parents had created something new, they would need a place to store all of their experiments. However, they couldn't store it here in this apartment. Some were really big while others were as small as Pinkie's...pinkie. Anyway." She set the book down on the couch and held out the steel box on her hand for them to see. She stuck her finger in and it popped open while she continued. "They needed an outside place to store them. So, they would create codes using...phone numbers. The location of that phone number would be where that experiment was stored in a five yard radius of the location. The size of the item decreed whether it got a secure box or not. If so, the secure box would need a key."

She flipped the box over, letting over fifty small keys fall to the carpet. Small enough to be for a locker. "At first they only wanted it to be unlocked with magic. But mom recommended keys too just in case they made some friends or something. The reason I know all of this was...because I made the system."

Everyone looked at her in disbelief. "You made this system?!" They all asked.

"How?" Princess Celestia asked. "how could you make something so...specific?"

"Well I initially made the idea of using the phone numbers and placing the item by the number's location. My parents were the ones that added all the security. Another secret I never told you, but that Twilight probably realized, is that here on Earth my parents didn't have magic. They had to recreate it. But almost everything in here is spelled. Which means..." She gestured with her hand for them to try and figure it out. Instead they all just stared at her. "Okay, fine! I'll explain it! My mom and dad came here with no magic. Why, I don't know. I didn't want to hurt my head trying to figure it out. I think the rift did it—UGGGH, I don't wanna hurt my head, stop it! Okay, so they came here with no magic. But while in the midst of creating another experiment, the Sandman experiment that allows me to successfully complete the Fluid Matter conversion, it went off and hit me while I was in my mom's womb. Now answer this question. What happens when you do...'bad things' when pregnant?"

"Oh, the child can become disabled," Applejack answered. "Permanently, more than likely."

"Right. Well, I think that spell did something to my body that allows me to recreate magic constantly like it's nothing and also gave me a lot of magic at the same time. For example. At this moment, I am building up magic like Rainbow Dash is slowly filling up a water balloon. And it goes on, and on, and on, and on. Now that means I can create magic like I want to. I didn't know I could back then, but my parents did. So, they used me for their experiments. Including creating items that none of you have questioned. The doors." She motioned towards the steel door that led up to the attic. "This box." She motioned towards the small box in her hand that was holding the keys before. "And these keys." She reached down and picked up three of the keys, which looked exactly the same. "These are copies of the same keys. But they can only open one thing each. And that's the assigned box. One thing per key. All of this, I helped create. They just came up with the ideas. I didn't realize it until just now. When I was a kid and my parents made a new experiment, they would always ask me to come and try it out. I would have to do a motion with my hand or something, and something would happen. I was really young at the time and thought I was a superhero, so...they rode on that. But in reality, I was the only one in this family that could do magic at will and not have to rely on a bunch of juice or something. Because—"

"You can create as much as you want whenever you want," Princess Celestia interrupted. "Because of that malfunction."

"Yep!" Scootaloo confirmed. "I didn't realize it at the time, but I was using magic everyday. Like if I couldn't reach something, I would flick my wrist and the object would get 'pulled down by the wind'. If I needed to fly fast on my scooter, I would put magic in my feet and give myself 'a lot of wind to push me along'. And when I walked outside, 'it would be the wind that let me walk on air'—dad used a lot of wind lies I just realized."

"So you have been using magic your whole life," Princess Twilight asked. "Your parents just kept you in the dark about it."

"Probably to keep you safe," Rainbow Dash responded.

Scootaloo nodded. Then chuckled. "They kept me from going to school and pantsing someone yards away. I was a really bad kid. Not awesome."

Rainbow nodded and gestured to the floor. "Yeah, absolutely awful. Now about these keys?"

Scootaloo shot Rainbow Dash's impatient face a scowl before responding. "I already told you. We just have to find the destination to this number, 0973736778. Fluttershy? Can we borrow your phone?" Fluttershy reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled out her smartphone, which she handed to Scootaloo. She instantly handed it to Rainbow Dash. "You do it. I never had a phone like this, so I don't know what to do. The phones I used were like flip phones."

Twilight chuckled and commented, "Wow! So you're all nineties in a kid's body?"

Scootaloo shrugged and nodded. "Yep, pretty much. I remember a lot of important things from my past life, but it was all reset to fit Equestria's timeline I guess."

"Okay," Rainbow Dash announced. "So I tracked the number to a location in....oh my Celestia." Celestia groaned while Luna chuckled. It looks like the humans picked up the Equestrian's exclamations somehow. "It's...in Manehattan."

"What?" Princess Twilight asked incredulously. She reached up and calmly plucked the phone out of Rainbow's hands to see for herself, completely downtrodden at her find. "She's right. The number belongs to a jewelry shop near the edge of Manehattan. We can't just walk over there. In Equestria, Manehattan is seventy eight miles away from ponyville, and thirty three from Canterlot."

"Just like here," Rarity sighed. "And we can't just get there overnight. And without a car nonetheless it would take weeks to get there. Even if we did teleport, I'm sure."

"Or~," Princess Twilight said slowly. "We could use a rift." They all turned towards Scootaloo who was looking at Fluttershy's phone, trying to figure it out. Feeling their stares and hearing absolutely nothing, she looked up into their eyes.

"What?"

"Scootaloo, we need a favor," Luna requested. "We need you to create a rift."
> Chapter 14 - Saving the Sunset
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The night was rough on Sunset Shimmer. She was constantly woke by nightmares and the bite of a bug from inside the cage that she couldn't see. It was driving her insane. More than she felt she already was. Soon she just let the bug bite her so she could just get some sleep. Finally, after a restless night, she heard the door being unlocked, waking her up from the small amount of comfort the bars of the cage provided. She cracked her eyes open and watched the electronic door buzz open and one of the lab coats walk into the room, carrying a black bag with him. After setting it down, he glanced over to the cage but made his way over to the tables on the side. "Good morning, EX006," he greeted while washing his hands.

"Yes," Sunset replied.

"How are you?"

"Yes."

He looked up at her then grabbed a towel to dry his hands. "Today we have a few tests planned. A few that are close and personal, and another few that just measure your magic. Are you going to be cooperative today?"

"Yes," she repeated without moving from her cell. The lab coat nodded and made his way towards one section of the room to grab something.

"Do you like Equestria?" He asked while grabbing some food out of a cabinet. It looked like it was cereal or something. Sunset couldn't really tell.

"Anything for Equestria," she responded happily. He walked over to the cage and kneeled down to her level, getting close to her face.

"This is Equestria," he reminded her. "Anything for Equestria?"

"Yes," she responded with a smile. "I can't wait to learn more about friendship."

"That's sweet. We're your friends, okay?" Sunset nodded. "Alright. I'm going to let you out so I can put you in some clothes and give you some food before the others arrive. Behave, and you won't get the pony killer, okay?" He raised up the cattle prod and pressed the button, creating a snap from the electricity. Sunset nodded quickly. So he stood back up and unlocked the electronic cage to let her out. She grunted and stood up, then made her way painfully out of the small cage, body aching from the previously tight confinement. He motioned for her to stop in the middle of the room while he walked to the side and reached into the bag he brought in earlier. Just like he instructed, Sunset stood still and kept her eyes on the wall while he pulled out what looked like a few oddities. One of them was a outfit made out of black leather. On the back of it was her name. EX006. But what made it so strange were the cuffs. They were metal, thick and had some flashing lights on them. On both of the ankles and the wrists. He handed them to her, and she took them with trepidation.

"Put them on," he instructed. "That metal on the cuffs is steel and is used to track your movement. And we have another thing for you." While she was putting on the clothes, he pulled out something else that gave her pause. Was that a collar? It was metal and thin enough to possibly choke her. There was an orange pulsing light on the front of it, confusing Sunset.

She looked up to the Lab coat and asked, "Yes?"

"This is a special kind of shock collar," he explained as he pulled out a strange looking key that had three parts to it. He put it in a hidden keyhole she didn't see before. Then pushed it in deeper and twisted it. It made a beep then clicked open. "It's made out of chromium, the hardest metal on this planet. The only way to take it off is with a key that only we have. We also use it to track you during the exercises and tests today. Hold still." She did as asked and let him place the collar around her neck. Then close it. It fit comfortably, besides the two prongs digging into her neck that she felt inside of it. The lab coat put the key back in, then twisted it, locking it in place. It beeped twice, glowing a pulsing red. Then he stepped back to look her over. She was wearing the black sort-of prison outfit that had metal on the end that had locked around her wrists and ankles once she put it on, and the collar that was pulsing orange in the front. She only stared at the wall in a helpless state-of-mind.

The lab coat nodded and then smiled at her. "There. Now, are you ready for breakfast?"

Sunset nodded eagerly and then said, "Yes."



After Celestia told Scootaloo what they needed from her, Scootaloo nearly passed out in surprise. And was very indignant to even respond to the question. Instead, she said, "I'm going to sleep." Then walked out the living area and into her room, jumped on her old bed. And did just that.

Celestia and the others shared a look. Then looked around the home. Rainbow decided to volunteer herself, stood up, and walked towards Scootaloo's room. Poking her head inside, she asked, "Hey, uhh...where do we sleep?" Scootaloo sat back up from underneath her old covers and looked towards the door.

"Well, uhh...I'm not too fond of you guys sleeping in my parents' room, so...I guess you can take the couch and the floor. Just leave my parents' room alone. Let me get you guys some blankets." She reluctantly tossed aside the covers and jumped out the bed. Then made her way towards the dark hallway inside the dark apartment. She walked back into the living room opened a closet door, filled with blankets and other things. "Actually, you know what? The princesses can share my room, I'm sleeping in my parents'. Everyone else, grab a blanket from here and a pillow from the couches. Then get as comfortable as you can. I have a feeling we're going to find Sunset tomorrow, then we can all go home."

"That'd be a relief," Cadance agreed as she grabbed a blanket from the closet. Scootaloo looked at her confused. "You were sleeping in a child sized bed, the best we can do is sleep on the floor in your room."

"Oh, right. Try to be quiet. Luna, stay outta my dreams. Go into Sunset Shimmer's." At that, Scootaloo walked towards her parents' room and made her way towards the large queen sized bed that looked completely different without her parents in it. Especially mom, who would curl herself up in the cutest way possible, then invite Scootaloo in with her. It was a girls thing that dad never understood. Sighing, she closed the door behind her and then walked towards the queen sized bed. She felt along the large dark blue comforter before she pulled it back and placed them back over her. Then settled her head back down onto the pillow, falling asleep a few minutes later. Hopefully somepony wouldn't kick the door in. They'd all be underground right after.

As soon as Scootaloo opened her eyes, she saw the familiar grassy plains and nearly cloudless skies. She placed her hands in her pockets and basked in the silence. It was so peaceful. So inviting. Sometimes she wished why Equestria, or Earth never stayed like this for long. Why couldn't it? "Sweetheart, you need to get out of my bed." Scootaloo chuckled and turned around to face her upset mother. Frozen Fire wagged a finger back and forth in her direction with a frown. "You know how I feel when you go in my room when I'm not home."

"And when will you be back?" Scootaloo asked.

"Get out of my bed, Lareen." Scootaloo laughed and ran into her mother's open arms, giving her a warm hug. Frozen Fire leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "You know... You could do the rift spell to get to the experiment."

"I know," she replied. Pulling away, she gave her mother worried eyes. "But I don't want to risk turning everypony into foals and then we lose Sunset because of it."

"I promise you will not turn into a foal Scootaloo. The reason it didn't work the way it was meant to work the first time was because your magic was leaking out in small bits. Not the full capacity it is now. So basically, that was a premature rift you flew through when you were young and arrived in Equestria. It had plenty of problems with it, turning into a foal was just one of the few. But now, it'll work just fine."

"Are you sure?" Scootaloo asked carefully. "And why did dad lie to me all the time about 'the wind'? I can't believe I fell for those."

Frozen reached over and ruffled her daughter's green straight hair. "Well it was just to protect you. I'm sure that if we told you beforehand you would've told somebody and things could be so much worse. And you would be going through the pain Sunset Shimmer is enduring." Frozen sighed and turned to the hills in the distance, avoiding Scootaloo's worried eyes.

"...do you know what's happening to her?" Scootaloo whispered.

Frozen Fire shook her head and replied, "No. But....I can feel her emotions. They are as follows: Serious pain, confusion, and for some odd reason, a mix of happiness and sadness. Deep sadness." Frozen Fire turned to Scootaloo and added urgently, "You have to find Sunset Shimmer as quick as possible and get her back to Equestria. Because she is currently going through more pain right now. Time to wake up, sweetheart and take on this mission." She pulled Scootaloo into another hug then let her go as the wind picked up speed. "One more thing. Remember this phrase. It's the key to get in. 'Infinity mortata cacada.'"

Scootaloo looked at her confused and asked, "What?!" Before the wind came and blew her back into her mind. She opened her eyes and immediately covered them from the sunlight hitting her face. Sighing, she lowered her arms and sat up, looking around the room. This was the only thing in the home that was untouched. Mom and Dad's room. It was in perfect condition. Something was telling her that mom did something to it. Based off of her situation, nothing was really what it looked like. Lareen stood and stretched her arms, then changed her clothes since the police seem to recognize her by face, and made her way to the door to grab the others and hope they didn't burn down the house. Well Celestia, Princess Twilight, Cadance, and Luna anyway. Maybe the others were keeping things in check. She unlocked then opened the door and walked out. The hallway was bright with the morning sun reflecting off the white paint, creating a great morning. It was anything but to some people, she suspected.

Lareen stepped out into the living room and saw both the Twilight's going through what looked like a photo album that contained her parents and herself. Everyone else was asleep and, in Luna's case, mumbling. Scootaloo rolled her eyes and lifted a fist, loudly clearing her throat. The Twilights yelped and dropped the book, creating a loud thud that startled Rainbow Dash awake. She jolted up and looked around quickly, yelling, "HUH?! HUH?! What happened to who?!"

The other three princesses were next and jumped up with magic ready at their fingertips, looking around nervously. Spotting nothing, they groaned and rubbed their eyes. Then turned to Rainbow Dash. "And why were you yelling?" Celestia asked blandly.

Rainbow flopped back down onto the floor by her back and sighed. "I heard a bang so...."

"Sorry!" Both of the Twilight's apologized quickly. Princess Twilight clapped a hand over Twilight's mouth and said, "Scootaloo scared us." They all followed her gaze towards Scootaloo, who was standing in the hallway. She had her arms crossed and was leaning against the edge of the wall, staring at them nonchalantly.

They stared back at her for a moment, a little intimidated before she sighed and said, "We have to move fast. No time to waste."

"What's wrong?" Celestia asked.

"Sunset." She quickly walked into the kitchen and bent out of view. "I spoke to mom during the night. Mom can't actually see Sunset, but she can feel her." She opened a cabinet door and started digging, looking for something.

"I'm afraid to ask but—"

"Sunset's in a lot of pain," Scootaloo interrupted as she dug around, making thumbs and bumps. "She's in pain, confused, and for some odd reason both happy and sad." Scootaloo stood back up and hefted up another experiment. It looked like a small wrist watch that she slapped on and strapped tight. "We have to save her and get her back to Equestria. Then we're coming back and kicking some flank."

Princess Twilight pointed and asked, "And what is that?"

Scootaloo lifted up her hand and said, "A watch. Nothing more. Now we have to get moving, even if it is eight in the morning. Rarity? Do you have any gems that—"

"Of course I do," she interrupted. Rarity stood up and dusted off her blouse. Dress. Scootaloo couldn't figure it out. "I just need to get there."

Scootaloo walked back from behind the kitchen counter, doing something to the watch. It beeped and made a small ascending whine before she stopped and motioned for everyone to get up. Rainbow Dash quickly bounced up and allowed Scootaloo to grab it in her magic, fold it up, and toss it in the closet. She did the same to the others. Then turned to Rarity. "What's your address?"

Rarity quickly told her the location. A shop in downtown Canterlot across from the park. "I know exactly where that is," Scootaloo responded. She lifted her right arm, which was glowing white and shot out a small bolt. It shot forward and snapped in the air, creating a straight blue glowing line in the space of reality. They all stared at it for a moment, then turned back to Scootaloo. She was staring at it, a faint sense of nostalgia on her mind. The last time she opened it up, she was running away from the people that were trying to kidnap her and experiment on her. Years ago. Now, she was going to be the one chasing them. Karma's a kick in the flank.

She pointed at the line and said, "Here's your rift. Just pull it open like a curtain and walk through. Princess, do you have the book?" Princess Twilight lifted up the bag that held the books in it that she got from somewhere. Scootaloo wasn't going to dwell on it. Instead, she took a deep breath, pulled aside part of the rift, and walked right through. She stepped out into Rarity's boutique, which looked pretty similar to the one in Equestria with her eyes closed, frozen. Cracking one open, she looked around and froze. There was someone in there that she was definitely not expecting to see. Celestia jumped through the other side next followed by the other princesses and the Equestria girls. Celestia looked at Scootaloo's face. Then followed her gaze towards what she was looking at. The other girls noticed and turned in the same direction.

Scootaloo was staring at...Scootaloo, who was looking exactly like her, save for the green hair. They were both open-mouthed and frozen in surprise. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were sitting at the table with her in the kitchen, eating what looked like breakfast, also in a frozen state. Sweetie Belle had a full spoon of sugar stopped in front of her open mouth. And Scootaloo was holding a breakfast biscuit in front of hers. Until Sweetie dropped the spoon.

Both of the Scootaloo's screamed and started running around, confusing both sides of the group. The Equestrian Scootaloo grabbed Rarity by the collar of her shirt and pulled her down to her face. Since she was stuck in a teenager's body, she was unfortunately smaller than her. "Get the gems now so we can get out of this nightmare!!" Then she grabbed her and pushed her up the stairs, following along.

Applebloom grabbed Scootaloo by the arms and looked her in her freaked out magenta eyes. "DID YOU JUST SEE WHAT I SAW?!" She yelled into her face. Then started shaking her. "There's two of you!!"

"I know!" She responded loudly, not exactly yelling but a close call. She shrugged off Applebloom's hands and took a deep, calming breath. "Okay!" She huffed. "I just saw another me."

"And she ran upstairs with my sister," Sweetie Belle added. Then gasped. "What if there's another Rarity?!" She was about to scream again before someone pressed a hand against her mouth. Scootaloo teleported back downstairs after she heard what Sweetie Belle said and quickly toned her down.

She gave Sweetie Belle a pleading look and whispered, "Please....no more screaming." She removed her hand at the same time Rarity flew back down the stairs with the mentioned gems, yellow diamond and red quartz. It looked like she just washed them since her hands were wet.

"Found them!" She declared. Scootaloo turned around and quickly walked back over to the group who had gathered around when Twilight pulled out her notes from inside the bag.

"Okay!" She said happily. Once reaching a certain page, she stopped flipping. "Our next step is to get to the store in Manehattan and start digging. But that's the hard part, we can't exactly dig in Manehattan without being seen."

"We won't have to dig in the street," Scootaloo informed her. They turned to her for more information. "We always had a backup plan for searching for experiments. Echolocation. Or Equestrian Echolocation. When we get there, I'll use my magic. Now, let's go! We have to save Sunset!" She raised her arm and created another rift then rushed right through it, followed by everyone else. Once it closed back, the building was quiet. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were staring in shock once more. After awhile, Sweetie Belle swooned a little, then fell off the chair and onto the floor.



After breakfast, the other lab coats had arrived, prepped and ready. After hearing the way she spoke, the head Lab Coat assumed The Box had done some damage to her brain after shocking her thirteen or fourteen times, possibly sealing the Facility's rules in her head. Either temporarily or permanently. Only time could tell. She could only say four known things: Yes, No, I can't wait to learn more about friendship, and Anything for Equestria.

After Sunset had her cereal, the Lab Coats quickly put her through a test. It was a stamina test that involved a treadmill. After getting on, they attached some cords to the metal cuffs on her wrists into slots she didn't see before. Then instructed her to run with the treadmill. After they got their reading, they did a strength test to see how much she could carry. She could carry a good one forty, impressing the lab coats even more.

While they were testing her, Scootaloo's group arrived in an alley behind the designated jewelry store through another rift. Scootaloo jumped out first and flattened herself against the brick wall. She slowly slid down the alley and listened to the sounds of the city. It was crowded alright. There were so many sounds.

"Okay," she whispered to herself while the others followed her example. "So one of us was correct when you said it'd be really crowded."

Twilight checked her watch and said, "It's twelve twenty-four. Lunch time. We'd have to wait."

Scootaloo looked over her shoulder with narrowed eyes and shook her head. "Uhhh, I don't think so! Sunset Shimmer's in pain and we're not going to be sitting here in an alley waiting for these humans to move so we can save her!" Scootaloo turned back around and took a knee. Then placed her right palm on the ground to send in some of her magic. The Princesses could feel it pulsing through the ground.

Princess Twilight stepped around Scootaloo and looked around the corner at the town. They were in what looked like an expensive shopping center, complete with buildings that had supportive columns and outside eating areas. Just like Twilight said, it was lunchtime. And it was crowded.

"Found ya'," Scootaloo anounced. She stood up and peeked out the alley again. Then motioned with her head towards an empty sidewalk. "It's a few feet under there."

Celestia looked out with her and asked, "What exactly will you do to retrieve it? And why do I feel I will not like the answer?"

"Because you won't. I'm going out there right now, breaking that ground open, and pulling it out. Princess Luna? You're coming with me to shield us with a spell. Everyone else? Stand to the side and keep a watchful eye out. Windows, cars, rooftops, you name it. The enemy could be anywhere waiting for us. Let's go."

Scootaloo lit both her hands with light and dark magic and walked out the alley with a face of determination. Luna followed along quickly while looking up and down the street. It was a busy shopping area, that much she could tell. A group of people had stopped and were talking on top of the area Scootaloo was going to dig through, laughing and such.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and stopped beside one. She tapped his shoulder, ceasing his laughter and getting his attention. "Hi, can I help you?" He asked kindly.

"Yes, I need you and your group to step to the side," she responded blandly. He raised one eyebrow and looked behind him to the others who were sharing his confused expression.

Then turned back and said, "There's more room you know."

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and yelled, "Fine! Stay there! You're holding me up and annoying! Arggghh! Luna, make me a shield! I'm getting dirty." Scootaloo took a knee and put her dark magic hand to the ground in front of the guys while Luna turned. She put out both of her hands, connecting her thumbs and gradually created a light blue orb around them.

"Oh dude, back up back up!" One of the guys said. They quickly ran to another area while black tendrils seeped out of Scootaloo's hands and spread over the concrete, creating a cobweb of the magic.

Everyone else was starting to take notice, dropping their food and standing up to get a better look. "Celestia!" Luna yelled. "Eyes and ears! Anything?"

Celestia, Cadance, and Princess Twilight stepped out of the crowd of people and looked around, trying to get a good look. "I don't see anything yet," Princess Twilight yelled.

"Good!" Scootaloo yelled before stopping the magical flow. "I'm tossing this in the street! Shisld yourselves!" She stood back up then stepped back and started using light magic. The black webs in the gradually turned white. Then the concrete began to lift. The part in front of Scootaloo soon broke off from the rest of the ground and lifted up higher in the air, revealing rocks, then a lot of soil with something silver inside sticking out partly.

Scootaloo then put all caution to the wind and tossed it over her head behind her. The Princesses on the other side quickly put up a shield while everyone else ran away screaming. It hit the street and combusted, shooting out dirt and soil that flew around everywhere. Once the dust cleared, the only thing left of that explosion were a bunch of soil and concrete in the street, and a large steel box with handles on the sides.

Scootaloo stood up and dusted off her hands while the others dropped the shields. Scootaloo jogged into the street and looked it over, placing her hand on the very large steel lock. "Yeah, this is mine!" She concluded.

"Of course it is, who else just puts big blocks of steel in the street?" Rainbow asked sarcastically.

Scootaloo glanced this way and that before she answered, "A pirate."

"Are you a pirate?"

Scootaloo shrugged and said, "Well I just did what pirates do. Came out of the blue, pushed a guy out of my way, yelled 'arrrghhh', broke something, stole something, and now—" She lifted her finger and pointed at an incoming police car. Shocking the air with another bolt, she opened another rift. "—I'm about to leave. Let's go."

Princess Celestia used her magic to pick up the giant steel box then walked slowly into the rift, followed closely by everyone else. It closed once the police cars screeched to a halt. Sergeant Looper and Lieutenant Mayweather hopped out of one and stared at the space they were just at a second ago. Looper growled and banged his fist on the top of the car.

"Buck!" He yelled. "They got away again!" Lieutenant Mayweather closed her door and walked over towards the hole. "They're just way too fast!"

Mayweather hummed and looked down into the twelve foot deep hole. It was cut into a perfect cynlinder. "They're looking for something," she muttered. "But...what?"



The Equestrians stepped out onto the roof of a building far away from the crime scene that overlooked the city. Scootaloo ran over to the edge and looked down onto a slow street. They were a good distance away from the scene. Celestia softly placed the large steel container down onto the rooftop before the rift closed behind Princess Cadance. It soundlessly touched the ground, and Celestia let it go. Scootaloo walked back over to them and reached in her pocket, pulling out the key. Meanwhile, Rarity reached in her own purse and pulled out the gems.

Princess Twilight looked around with her hands on her hips and huffed, "Okay! We got the container." She turned around towards the group and asked, "Now what?"

Celestia stepped back while Scootaloo kneeled in front of the large lock. Holding up the key she answered, "We unlock the box, take out the device, get you geeks to complete it, track down Sunset, break her out and break someone's face in the process, then get back to Equestria to do damage control. Of course I have to grab all of my parents' stuff from the apartment though. These guys aren't going near anything that's Equestrian."

"We'll have to connect a portal to the apartment to get back into Equestria from there," Celestia suggested. Scootaloo nodded and lifted the heavy lock. She put the key in through the bottom and twisted it. The lock popped open immediately. She took off the lock and then quickly pulled back the lid.

Everyone looked inside at the strange giant device. In the middle, it looked like a silver propane tank with a black screen attached by screws. There were a bunch of colorful wires connected to the side of the screen that led back inside the propane tank and at the top of the device were four large steel dishes with receivers in the middle of each. At the bottom were four long silver legs, currently folded in to preserve space. And on the sides od the propane tank were solar panels. Not jutting out, but stuck on.

"This looks like a satellite," Twilight commented. Princess Celestia shrugged and motioned for everyone to step back a safe distance. Once they were she used her magic to slowly levitate it out. It creaked and groaned a little, giving both of the Twilights a sense that the device was heavy. Scootaloo strode forward and grabbed the legs. Then extended them while Celestia righted it. It creaked a little once it hit the ground and Celestia relinquished her hold on it. She took a few deep breaths while they all looked it over.

Twilight started feeling it in wonder. The identical Princess sharing her exact same reaction. "This is a marvel," both of the Twilights whispered.

Cadance turned to Scootaloo who was looking through the book. "How do we power it?" She asked.

Scootaloo held up a finger while she searched, eventually finding what she needed a few seconds later. She pushed her way through the group then knelt down at the base of it. She pressed in on what looked like a separated block, which pushed back out on a pivot. It had two spaces inside of it that had tiny caps on the top and bottom made out of aluminun foil. Scootaloo presented her hand behind her and yelled, "Gems!"

Rarity quickly handed her the gems. Scootaloo placed them in the designated spaces, then folded the Aluminum foil over the tops and bottoms of the jewels completely. Then pushed back in the port. The screen on the machine blinked a light blue, catching their eyes. Then glowed again with a rotating black star in the middle. Celestia turned to Scootaloo who was reading the details about it in the book. The machine beeped three times, getting her to look up. It had what looked like a radar screen on it, complete with gridlines and numbers.

"Okay, it's up and running!" Princess Twilight cheered. "But... it's not showing anything."

"Yeah," Scootaloo agreed. She turned around and pointed two fingers at both of their faces. "That's why you geeks need to fix it. One Twilight is a genius in magic and can build a portal in twenty seconds, while the other is the equivalent in science. This is a mix of both."

The two girls glanced at each other, a little irked at being referred to as "geeks" but shrugged nonetheless. Twilight raised two fingers and said, "Give us two hours."

"Well get to it!"



After two hours of some more simple testing, the lab coats were ready for the main event. They had cleared out the center of the room a little for space and placed some more cords on Sunset's cuffs. Then instructed her to stand in the center of one of one end while they placed a steel table on the other. The lab coats also had a high definition camera setup and trained on her body.

"Okay, Sunset." She looked from table to the group of five lab coats holding clipboards. The camera was blinking red, actively recording her. The main Lab Coat pointed towards the table and declared, "Equestria wants to see what you can do with your magic! Care to show them?"

Sunset nodded and said, "Yes!"

"Alright! On the count of three show us your best trick! One...two...three!"

Sunset closed her eyes, pulled her arm back, then swung a ball of fire at the table. It hit and shattered it like glass. Along with melting the pieces. The lab coats quickly looked at the readings on their instruments, taking note of all the muscle, heart, and brain activity.



Princess Twilight screwed on the last metal slab on the machine and then stepped back, smiling proudly. She patted the side of the machine and announced, "Done! Everyone can stop complaining now!"

Scootaloo and the other Princesses were deep in a conversation, planning a retrieval while the others were on the side talking about other things. Rainbow Dash grunting every now and then about how long it was taking the "Egghead Twins" to repair a satellite. Scootaloo turned around and quickly abandoned their conversation. Reaching in her pocket, she took a knee and popped open the open the gem dock. Everyone else came around while she placed them inside and then shut it back. Then turned her attention back to the screen.

It displayed the loading cycle then the radar screen. This time, there were actual points in the middle. And a smaller one away from it. Scootaloo jumped up and proudly slapped both of the Twilights on the shoulders. "Good job, geeks! Dunno know how but ya' did it!"

"You're welcome," Princess Twilight replied. The two rubbed their sore shoulders and pointed towards the small lonely dot. "I believe that is Sunset Shimmer. If so, she's over fifty miles away."

"I can easily get us there," Scootaloo commented as if it were no big deal. She really wanted to make Princess Twilight jealous. "But I need to make sure it's really her." The dot suddenly pulsed, catching her eye. "Hey..." It pulsed two more times then held a steady glow. "It's a magical signature! Someone's using magic!"

Celestia took a closer look. "It has to be Sunset," she confirmed before turning to Scootaloo. "How far is she?"

"It looks like....over fifty miles out," she responded. Twilight shook her head. Didn't she just tell her that? "I can get us there, but it would take us time because I've never been fifty miles outside of Canterlot City before. That and we'll need to bring this with us." She patted the side of the machine. "So I'll be taking a few stops every now and then to get a view of the land from the air, and then continue from there."

"Then let's go," Cadance responded eagerly. "We need to save Sunset."

"Okay. It looks like she's in the western area of this state. So we'll head that way. We're heading into the belly of the beast. It's good to be paranoid. Celestia grab the experiment please. And follow me." Scootaloo opened another rift and stepped through while Celestia lifted the experiment with her magic. The group quickly ran through, Celestia taking the rear before the portal closed. Starting the pursuit for Sunset Shimmer.



One of the lab coats handed Sunset a bottle of water, then said, "Equestria's proud of you! You've been a good little pony!"

"Yes?" Sunset asked. The lead technician was beginning to wonder if Sunset had suffered some brain damage. The electricity in that Box was a little more than they planned. And based off the red bruising on her body, she had gotten electrocuted fourteen times. It could have possibly hurt her a lot more than estimated. Possibly permanently.

"Yeah!" The lab coat responded enthusiastically. "But we want to see it one more time. And this time we want to see you at your greatest, okay?"

"Yes!" Sunset responded happily.

"Make Princess Celestia proud." The lab coat stood up and made his way back to the group to discuss their findings before Sunset stood up and readied herself.


***


After a few minutes of "Space jumping", the group landed once more outside of a wooded area. Celestia set down the experiment and looked at the readings. The blip just spiked again, this time a lot bigger than last time. Twilight adjusted her glasses and said, "She's two miles up! We can get there right?"

Scootaloo looked at her as if she were joking and opened another rift. Then jumped right through with the others. They arrived on the other side, across from what looked like another patch of woods with a lot of bushes on their right. Once Celestia was out, she set down the experiment and looked at the readings once more. Gasping she pointed right at where they were on the experiment. "We're right on top of her!" she said.

"In that case, keep your voices down," Scootaloo whispered. "They wouldn't just leave Sunset Shimmer alone in the woods like this." The group quieted down and looked around, trying to find a clue. Princess Twilight looked over at the bushes then turned to a different area and froze. Something was a little off about what she just saw. She pivoted on her heel and turned back to the bushes. They were awfully big.

"Guys," she whispered. The others turned to her and walked over. Princess Twilight pointed to the bushes and said, "Something's off."

"I'll say, they are way too big," Scootaloo agreed.

"And too symmetrical," Princess Twilight added. The two glanced at each other then darted forward. They pushed some of the bushes to the side and looked inside. Straight through a steel gate.

"Gotha," Scootaloo whispered before she backed out and opened another rift to get on the other side. "Everyone who is originally from Earth, stay here and watch out. We'll be back with the package and then we're heading back to Canterlot City. Princesses, we're going through and kicking some sorry flank because they kidnapped Sunset." Princess Celestia gave her an unamused look. "And~ save Sunset," Scootaloo added.

"Thank you," Celestia agreed before they walked through. The rift closed leaving the Equestria girls on the other side hoping, and the Princesses on the other side looking around, exposed on the gravel road. The day was beginning to set, leaving the environment dark and scary. The Princesses were paranoid, taking caution with every breath they took.

Scootaloo moved her eyes and trained them on the noticeable light in the distance across from them. As well as another gate with some figures moving around. She ran to the side into some shrubbery and kneeled in the grass. Then motioned for the other four to follow along. Once they were all situated, she whispered, "They may have night vision. So they can see in the dark. This is obviously a facility. There are two steel gates, possibly cameras, guys with guns, and a lot of armory. And plenty of lights."

Celestia peeked out and looked towards the fence down the road. She spotted a group of five down there talking and doing other things before looking back at Scootaloo. "How do we get inside?"

Scootaloo hummed and rubbed her chin. Deep in thought. After a few seconds she grinned and nodded. "That could work," she muttered to herself.

"What could work?" Princess Luna asked.

"Remember what I did at the castle back in Equestria?"

"The wild clouds of—oh no," Princess Twilight groaned.

"Oh yes. It has a lot more violent properties. I'm going to bust open the gates and clear a path. I'm going to attract some attention. The rest of you find a way inside behind and keep up your shields. Because if one of those bullets hit you, you're done. Game over. Just go when you have the chance." Scootaloo stood up and raced out of the hiding place, rushing straight for the guarded gates and the oblivious men talking smack.



"So I told her, 'Get lost, I have work in the morning," one of the guards said while adjusting his night shades.

One of the guys took a drag on his cigarette from a chair and asked, "What'd she say?"

"She was all, 'Where do you work?'I was all, "The government of the United States.' She asked, 'What Department?' I said, 'Check out my badge, it's on the dresser'. So she reached over, grabbed it, looked at it then said—WHAT THE BUSCK IS—" The guards were suddenly thrown back against the gate, which blew into a bunch of scrap metal when four black clouds flew right inside. The guards stationed inside turned over and cocked their weapons before the clouds somehow grabbed them and threw them into one another. Some into the metal building that was painted in nothing but lights, reflecting the silver. One of the clouds layered over it for a moment before resuming. A tiny black spot on the top of it began to spread, eating away at the metal. Scootaloo needed all the help she could get.

One of the guards picked up his radio after being thrown into a metal pole and relayed, "SHUT DOWN THE FACILITY! WE'RE UNDER AT—AHHH!" Scootaloo picked him back up and threw him into the woods. But the message had already been sent.



"Keep at it sunset, almost there," the lead lab coat cheered while reading the instruments. The device was currently pinpointing the source of the magic in her body. Sunset was levitating a heavy piece of metal that looked like it belonged on a tank in front of her. The percentage was at ninety-five percent. Ninety-six. Ninety-seven.

A sudden alarm started blaring through the room, causing Sunset to lose focus and drop the metal on the floor. The lab coats groaned at the display on the screen, which read signal lost before they looked around, finally hearing all the screams and the crashing going on outside. "What's happening?" One of the women asked.

The lead lab coat listened closely before something blew up outside, shaking the facility. Sunset screamed and dove to the floor before one of the tools from the ceiling fell on the ground. "Get her in the box and keep her in there for safety."

Two of the lab coats calmly stepped forward and helped her to her feet. Then led her to the box. She started to cry and protest, but it was useless. They unlocked the box and told her to sit down on the floor, pull her knees up to her chest, and stay still to avoid any damage. Then they closed and locked the door back. Sealing her once again in darkness.



While the guards were all distracted, the princesses quickly ran inside past the fence and out into the line of fire with their shields up. One of the guys were thrown over Twilight before three cars followed suit. The facility in front of them was being slowly ate away by what looked like black acid on the sides. And the guards towers were falling to the ground, filled with screaming soldiers. "She is trashing this place!" Celestia yelled while she looked around. "So much for 'Clearing a path!' Where's the door?"

"I'm looking for it!" Twilight responded before a truck rolled across her path, filled with a lot of guys. She stopped before the black clouds joined together in front of her. Scootaloo jogged to a stop and wiped her brow, smiling.

Placing her hands on her hips, she said, "Whoo! That was fun! Now let's find Sunset." She turned around and ran towards the building with a shield up. The Princesses stared at her in disbelief before Twilight shook her head and followed along. Along the way, they passed by moaning and groaning guards on the ground, all in pain from the quick attack they suffered within two and three minutes. Soon, they entered into a busted up garage that Scootaloo must have destroyed, currently being ate away by the dark magic spell that Scootaloo applied somehow. She slowed to a quiet tip-toe on the concrete and looked around. The emergency lights were flashing inside. A dark red that lit their path every few feet, each time it pulsed.

Twilight tapped her shoulder and pointed towards an elevated door on the far wall made of steel. Then whispered, "The way inside." Twilight took the lead and ran up to it. She was disappointed when she realized it had a lock on it. Until Scootaloo lifted up her foot and kicked it in. Then ran inside.

"Sunset, sound off!" She yelled.



The guards cut off the lights in the lab and hid in a corner, weapons ready. They were breathing hard with racing hearts.

"Sunset sound off!" a child's voice yelled out, making them even more tense.

"Scoots, I don't think it'd be wise to—"

"Forget being quiet! I just ripped this place to shreds within three minutes. The least I could do is let them know I'm coming first, SUNSET! Twilight, check that room! Just kick the door open. They took something from us, we're taking something from them. No mercy." Something suddenly kicked the door open, taking the guys off guard. Twilight poked her head in and looked around. One of the guys slowly pointed their gun at her head, preparing to shoot before a hand tore through the wall and knocked the weapon out of his hand.

He screamed, and made Twilight jump. She turned her head and noticed them watching her from the side. Scootaloo pulled back her hand while Twilight reached over and turned on the light switch. The five technicians were standing there with weapons, ready for a fight before Scootaloo ran in and pushed one of them into another, knocking the two to the ground before zapping the other three with magic, knocking them out cold. She walked forward and zapped the other two, knocking them out before taking the chance to look around. Twilight glanced with her while Celestia walked inside with Cadance.

"We must hurry," Luna responded as she stopped at the door. "They will bring reinforcements soon. and the others are still by the gates." Scootaloo looked around the room and took note of the cage stuffed in the corner.

"A lab," she assumed before spotting the giant metal door at the end. "Hey. What's that?" She asked, pointing to it. Twilight shrugged and walked over to it to assess. Then stopped in front of it and felt the surface.

"It's warm," she responded. "Why is that?"

"Chemicals?" Celestia guesses as she walked over. Luna looked out the door with her bubble shield up, keeping an eye and ear out.

"Doubt it," Cadance responded. She looked it over and motioned towards the voice box on the side. "It looks like a voice activated vault. Why though?"

"Wait..." Celestia interrupted. "Quiet. listen." The group got quiet and listened closely. Trying to hear what Celestia hears. "Do you hear that?" Scootaloo listened intently. It was barely recognizable. But every now and then she could hear a change of pitch. But it was muffled.

She walked closer to the vault and pushed her ear against it. Then she heard it plain and clear as it could get through a seemingly hollow metal door. A sniffle. She pulled back and turned her head to face it with shock. "There's someone in here! I heard a sniffle! Sunset, is that you?!" She placed her ear back against it and listened closely.

"....yes."

Scootaloo gasped and backed away. "She's in here, we need to get this door opened." The princesses looked it over, but the only way inside was the voice lock.

"Should we wake one of the—"

"No, they could stall and we'd be sitting ducks," Scootaloo interrupted Cadance. She placed her chin in her hand and thought quickly. What did all the guys in the movies she watched years ago do when.....

Scootaloo blinked when she remembered something. Then threw up her hands and said, "Mom? You're a genius." She could just feel her mother gloating. Scootaloo walked up to the voice box and said, "Infinity Mortata Cacada." The red light above the box changed from red to green. Then the gears inside of the door started working, unlocking and pulling the heavy door open. The Princesses could hear the sniffling now, plain as day. Scootaloo grunted impatiently and forcefully pulled the door the rest of the way open, revealing Sunset's cowering form. She had her knees pulled up to her chest and her face buried between her knees. She was wearing the cuff-fitted black leather outfit with EX006 on the back, and her feet had large black holes on them. They couldn't see the metal band around her neck though.

"Sunset!" Princess Twilight cheered. She ran inside before Scootaloo grabbed her arm and pulled her back out.

"Are you nuts?!!" She scolded. "This box is warm! There's something inside of it!"

"Yeah, Sunset!" Celestia responded. Scootaloo looked down at Sunset, sho was shivering and shaking in fear. Celestia walked around Scootaloo and leaned down to her, offering a concerned look. "Sunset? Can you hear me?"

Sunset slowly lifted her her head, revealing the large skin laceration in the middle of her forehead and the chromium band around her neck, slowly pulsing red every now and again. She had a scared look in her eye that made Celestia shiver. Princess Twilight leaned down next to Celestia and accidentally brushed the wall. "AHH!" She yelled when it shocked her. Scootaloo quickly pulled her back out and looked her over.

"What happened?" She asked urgently while Twilight rubbed the burn.

Princess Twilight blinked at her in horror then turned to the box Sunset was in. The walls were made out of steel, as well as the ceiling. The only thing that wasn't steel was the floor which was concrete that Sunset was sitting on. Scootaloo followed her gaze and noticed the same thing. Then turned around and pulled Celestia out of there, who groaned and turned back to Scootaloo with the most irate look she could manage.

"What is your problem?!" She yelled. "Can't you see—"

"That box is electrified!" She interrupted. Scootaloo walked in and put up a light body shield. Then touched the side. It started sparking and turning like crazy, creating a light show in the dim lighting. Sunset screamed and Scootaloo immediately stopped. "If you touched this wall you would have been electrocuted! And that hurts! That door is probably electrified too! That's why it was so warm! The only thing that isn't is the floor which is concrete. Which is why Sunset is curled up like this!" Scootaloo kept her shield up and then kneeled down to look Sunset in the eyes. "Sunset, we're going to get you out of here, okay?"

Sunset shook her head and said, "No."

Scootaloo gawked and said, "No? What do you mean no, you're in an electric box that can kill you!"

She shook her head again and said, "No."

Scootaloo shared a worried look with the others before turning back. "What's your name?" She asked her.

"Dear Princess Twilight..." Sunset responded.

"......what?"

"Something's obviously wrong with Sunset," Luna said from the door. "And let's go already!"

Scootaloo turned back to Sunset Shimmer. "Sunset, we're leaving and taking you back to Equestria!"

Sunset gasped and smiled sweetly. And yelled, "Anything for Equestria!"

"That's the spirit!" Scootaloo gripped both of her hands and pulled her to her feet, then calmly led her outside the box. Princess Twilight closed the box back before Scootaloo opened a light blue rift. Sunset squinted at it then got a quizzical look on her face before she was pulled through. The other Princesses soon followed after before the rift closed, leaving nothing but destruction and pain in their wake.



Twilight and Rainbow Dash were pacing outside the gates of the facility while the others were sitting by the road, keeping an eye out. "I just realized..." They all turned to Rarity, who hand a finger to her chin. "If someone did arrive, how would we get in contact with the five inside?" Twilight and Rainbow Dash blinked. Then glanced at each other before a crack of light sparked in front of them. There was a straight bright blue line in front of them, getting everyone's attention enough to stand up and wait.

Scootaloo walked out first, still holding Sunset's hands who was looking nonchalant before the princesses walked out behind her. "Sunset!" Rainbow cried before darting forward and pulling her into a hug, still holding Scootaloo's hands.

Sunset smiled and said, "I can't wait to learn more about friendship!"

Rainbow pulled back and looked her up and down, directing her sights at the metal cuff around her neck pulsing red. She pointed a finger and asked, "What the buck is that? What did they do to you in that—"

"No time!" Scootaloo interrupted before opening another rift. "Let's move!" She jumped through the portal with Sunset before everyone else followed after, leaving the scene of the event. After the rift closed, all was quiet, save for the helicopters coming towards the facility with lights. Along with the Canterlot City Sheriff's Department. The Marine Corps were riding in the helicopters, looking down at the scene of the facility. Some of the building had somehow been torn off and was lying on the ground. Multiple vehicles were tossed around, and a few guards were tending to each others' injuries. The helicopters stopped overhead and the Marine's lowered a rope to lower down. Once on the ground, they lifted their guns and proceeded to scout the area.

Captain Looper landed with the Lieutenant and looked around the scene. He put his hand over his eyes and stroked his face while the other was on his hip. "Well...I guess they were looking for our test subject," he commented.

"She was looking for our test subject," Lieutenant Mayweather corrected. She walked towards some of the vehicles, which looked like they weren't hit by explosives, bullets, or anything else. Turning to a guard being looked over by a bunch of medics, she pointed and asked, "How did this get lopsided like this?"

The guard made an arch with his arm and said, "She threw it. The wanted subject threw the vehicles around with clouds of black smoke. Then ripped one whole wall of the building off, based off of what I heard from the radios."

"Captain!" The two commanders looked towards a soldier who was running towards them holding something with rubber gloves. "You may want to read this."

The captain took the letter and read it over to himself. "If you ever attempt to attack or take over Equestria, its citizens, its property, or anything else Equestrian by force, it will be the last and final move you ever make. You have earned my ire, humans. Test my patience, and the City of Canterlot will be mere rubble in a matter of seconds. And I will stand in the middle of it, alive to tell the tale. You kidnapped my friend and possibly tortured her for knowledge on how to use magic. You want magic that badly, I will show you my power. Which is infinite. Test me.

"'Lareen Carson. Aka, Princess Scootaloo.'" The Captain and Mayweather shared a glance before looking back at the scene. It definitely didn't look like they were joking. The facility was still falling apart by what looked like black acid, eating away at the steel. It seems the humans had crossed a line. And the ponies were angry.
> Chapter 15 - Scoota-Threat
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The night was quiet in front of Canterlot High School, empty with noise, animals, bugs, anything at all. The school itself lit with only a few lights inside, and all the lamps outside for the parking lots and sidewalks. There were no cars, no pedestrians to witness the rip in reality that was a bright blue light. Scootaloo slowly backed out with Sunset Shimmer holding her hands. Followed by the rest of the group. Once everyone was situated, they all looked towards Sunset, who was looking at Scootaloo like she grew a second head. Rainbow took a deep breath and began to ask, "What the buck were they—"

"She can't speak right," Celestia interrupted before turning to Sunset Shimmer who was starting to breathe deeply. "Sunset? What happened in there? Are you okay?"

Sunset glanced at Celestia and answered slowly, "Anything for Equestria." Cadance and Luna sighed in dismay. Scootaloo turned and punched the stone statue in frustration.

"Buck my life, okay," she groaned while shaking her hand. That hurt a lot. "We need to get—" Sunset suddenly slumped to the ground, breathing heavily, making everyone gasp in alarm. "Sunset!" Scootaloo kneeled down with Celestia to help her back up while Fluttershy checked her pulse.

"It's slow," she announced.

Scootaloo turned to Princess Twilight and ordered, "Get some stretchers ready in Equestria! Along with a doctor! No more time!"



Starlight Glimmer paced around the castle floors of the library in Twilight's castle impatiently. It's been nearly two whole days and nopony's heard back from the others. Rainbow Dash was really worried for Scootaloo's safety. She may be twenty-two, but she was still her little buddy. Always has been and always will be. It was mid afternoon back in Equestria while it was night in Canterlot City.

The portal in front of them suddenly flashed when Princess Twilight ran out worriedly. Everyone looked up then stood up with expectant smiles, which instantly turned to worry when they saw her expression. Ignoring them for a moment, Twilight ran out of the library and out into the castle halls.

"Who whoa whoa, where's the fire?" Rainbow Dash yelled when she caught up to her.

"No time, Rainbow! Sunset needs immediate medical attention right now!" Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and zoomed past Twilight. The princess slid to a stop before she returned with Nurse Redheart, who was frozen and holding a stethoscope seemingly on a pony's chest. She gasped and looked around for a moment. Then focused her sights on Princess Twilight. "Uhhh..." Twilight stammered. "Thanks, Rainbow. Nurse Redheart. We need your help right now!"

"Okay... I guess my last pony's exam for the day that was booked two weeks ago can wait," she muttered sarcastically before Twilight teleported her back to the library. She motioned for her to wait there and for the others to stand ready before she jumped right through the portal once again. The rest of the mane six stood in front of the portal with worry.

"What do you think's going on?" Rarity asked. Applejack shrugged before the portal flashed again. This time Scootaloo jumped out with... Green hair? "Oh my goodness that is a horrible hairstyle!" Rarity yelled in horror.

Ignoring her, Scootaloo waited before someone else flew out, this time an orange unicorn. She flew out and landed in Scootaloo's magic, hefted in midair before Scootaloo slowly lowered her back down to the ground. The other Princesses and the others quickly ran out afterwards and started looking Sunset Shimmer over. The first thing everyone saw was that the leather outfit didn't leave her body. And the metal cuffs were still attached to her.

"Where is she?!" Scootaloo screamed.

"Nurse Redheart!" Princess Twilight yelled, getting the Nurse's attention. She strode forward and looked down at Sunset Shimmer's body, gasping at what she found. Sunset still had the large lacerations on her. But her face was pale, and her coat had lost its original luster. She looked really sick.

"Oh my goodness, what happened?" She exclaimed.

"Humans happened, that's what!" Scootaloo yelled before the nurse kneeled down with her stethoscope, glad that she actually brought it with her. She placed it through the top of the shirt and over what would be Sunset's heart, listening for a heartbeat.

"It's weak," she announced. Then urgently put away her stethoscope. "She needs to go to the hospital immediately. Let's—" The group disappeared in a flash when Twilight teleported them all to the hospital waiting room. "—go." She looked around and shrugged. Then quickly levitated Sunset Shimmer onto a gurney. "Doctor! We need help here now!" She yelled. Sunset Shimmer moaned and tried to sit up before Celestia put a hoof on her back.

"No, stay down, Sunset," she told her before the doctor ran into the room.

He trotted forward and stopped in front of the gurney with two more nurses. "What's going on?"

"Low heart rate," Nurse Redheart informed him quickly. "She needs an assessment. Quickly." He nodded and motioned for the nurses to grab the gurney. They grabbed hold of the handles and proceeded to push her into a hallway, moaning and groaning. Everyone else could only wait in the lobby, watching as she was pushed away.

Once out of view, Scootaloo sighed and walked out of the lobby, heading for the afternoon air outside. She needed it. While she was breathing, Rainbow turned to the other Princesses and asked, "What the buck happened over there?"

"They were holding Sunset," Celestia responded. "In a facility that was away from the public deep in the woods. They were not going to give her to us, so we decided to do a retrieval. She was in a laboratory, in some type of box with electrified walls. She was curled up in a ball and still. I have a feeling she's been through something terrible."



While they were talking, Scootaloo was outside looking at Twilight's castle in the distance, and the castle in Canterlot. She had a feeling those castles would be seeing a lot of her in the next few days. A whole lot. But before anything, she had to get the Equestrian stuff off of Earth. Those people weren't getting anything. They'd have to come here for it. Right into the fire.

Taking one last look at the hospital, she ran away towards the Castle of Friendship and shadow teleported inside. Scootaloo reformed back into her pony body and ran towards the library, where the portal was setup. Then pushed the doors open, and trotted across the floor, right up to the violet glowing spinning portal. She turned and looked behind her, just in case she was followed. Then turned back and jumped right into the portal. This wormhole is too colorful, she thought to herself before running out and immediately activating her shield spell. It was still night when she arrived. The crickets were chirping, the wind was blowing hard, and Scootaloo was cautious.

She looked around, then turned into black clouds, flying towards the apartment complex she lived in before. And the building the group slept in last night. If anyone were on the ground, they wouldn't even know she was flying over you. Good thing too, because there were a lot of police at the apartment complex. Nothing but red, white, and blue at her place. It's too late for this, she thought to herself while flying low. Then reformed and landed on the other side of the complex with the other agitated and tired tenants without being seen. Yet, anyway.

"Lareen," someone whispered. She looked over and saw Maud looking at her confusedly, obviously trying to figure out where she came from. She as well as Pink Bubblegum and Black Licorice were looking at the apartment complex.

"What's going on?" Scootaloo asked.

"They're in your apartment."

"Buck no." She started walking and pushing past the tenants, much to earn their ire, and giving her friends a bad feeling. This was about to get ugly fast. Scootaloo breached the crowd and boldly—not to mention angrily—walked across the street. She could see a bunch of police, detectives, and probably FBI based off the suits in the parking lot talking while others were walking up and down the stairs. She looked up towards her bedroom window. Sure enough, her light was on and she could make out movement through the curtain. They had crossed another line. While walking she lifted the watch on her wrist that she got from underneath her home's kitchen sink earlier that morning and twisted it. The apartment she grew up in flashed a light blue aura for a moment, then diminished without being seen. Activating a magical security measure. Sorry, Twilight, she thought. This is an experiment too.


***


One of the detectives outside, caught movement from the corner of his left eye, forcing him to stop writing on his clipboard and discussing with the other officers. A girl wearing an orange shirt and army green cargo shorts with dark green hair were headed their way.

He tapped one of the officers and motioned to her with his head. "Take her back to the others please," he requested. The officer sighed and walked over.

"Ma'am," he said. "This area is off limits—"

"Yada yada yada, I want you—"Scootaloo pointed at him then at the others by the cars. "—them, and those—" She pointed towards her room. "—away from this complex within two minutes. If not, none of you are leaving this complex until I start my own investigation."

"Ma'am, I'm—"

"Nevermind, I'm tired, I'm just doing this right now." Scootaloo lifted her hand and shot a bolt of dark magic behind him.

He looked over his shoulder before Scootaloo pushed him into the rift she just created. He fell through screaming and into her apartment on his back with the investigators. They stopped and looked at him as he got up and looked around.

"What? How the buck did I get in here?" He asked before turning and making his way out the open door. Reaching it, he slammed face first into something he couldn't see and fell again.

The detectives looked down at him before three more fell into the room in front of the broken living room television on top of each other.

"What's going on?" A woman asked from the hallway. Lieutenant Mayweather poked her head into the room with Captain Looper.

One of the detectives helped up one of his colleagues and said, "Not sure. These guys just keep—" The lights in the entire complex suddenly went off, the electrical current shutting down with a loud descending hum. Including the police cruisers and anything else with electricity in the area. One of the officers pulled out a flashlight and flipped the switch. It didn't turn on. He did it a few more times, then started to walk out of the room before he slammed into something and fell flat on his back.

"What the heck?" Captain Looper asked to no one in particular. He stepped around the officer and put his hand out. It touched something solid, but he couldn't see what it was. He pulled out his gun and pointed it at the spot he touched.

"I wouldn't do that." They all turned towards the hallway where the girl with the green hair was standing with her arms crossed. "Those bullets will bounce back and hit you straight in the face. I've tested it plenty of times. It'd make me really happy if you tried though."

"Lareen Carson," Captain Looper said. He smiled and stepped forward. "We found you."

"Not even close, you broke into my house when I wasn't home and I happened to stop by. Now let's get down to business. Equestria has every reason to come here and destroy everything you've worked hard for. Undo it all at the snap of a finger." Scootaloo lifted her hand and snapped her finger, turning their weapons into... Candles? Lieutenant Mayweather held it with two fingers then dropped it on the carpet as if it were diseased. "I'm giving you a second curveball. Drop this stupid and pathetic investigation that involves breaking and entering, kidnapping, and possibly torture, and I won't come back, grab you, take you back to Equestria and straight to Queen Chrysalis. I think she'd enjoy turning you into a bug. And I'd like to see that happen for myself, actually."

"Are you blackmailing us?" One of the detectives asked.

"Oh no, see you're mistaken," Scootaloo responded. She chuckled and added with a smile, "I'm not threatening you, I'm threatening whoever killed my parents. There's a difference." She lost her smile and gave them an angry look. "Unless you're an accomplice. Then yeah, I'm threatening you too."

"i don't think you're in a position to threaten anyone," Lieutenant Mayweather chided.

Scootaloo chuckled again and stepped out of the hallway, walking forward casually with her arms crossed. "Apparently I didn't make myself clear when we rescued my friend from your stupid compound. So I'll just make myself more clear. Have a seat." She thrust her arm out and pushed them all back into the plain metal chairs she created with her magic earlier as if she had the force. The lieutenant grunted when she nearly fell over in hers. "I also think you don't know who I am. I am Scootaloo, the Princess of Magic in Equestria. I can do everything you wish you could. My parents were legends in Equestria and still are considered the primary founders of many of the spells cast in Equestria, and have created all of the spells I used by my Dark magic. Unlike any and all Equestrians, I use both light and dark. Which is considered a taboo in Equestria, but I am given permission to use considering who my parents are. Now, what you guys want is this." Scootaloo walked into the living room and grabbed what looked like a snow globe that they had taken out of her parents' room for some reason and presented it out in front of her. It started to move and glide into a different shape, grabbing the eyes of the intruders. It changed color, shape, and density, turning into...a gun. She held the pistol at arms length with two fingers. "Ugh, too modern. For me, anyway. Here you can have it." She tossed it onto the lap of the Captain, who stared at it like it was gold.

Scootaloo walked into the kitchen and stopped at one of the cabinets. "No other creature—human, pony, Changeling, or any creature I know of—can do that. I am the only one. Because I posses the magic and skill."

"Uhhh..." The captain ripped his gaze away from the gun and towards Lareen, who was in the cabinets out of sight going through the pocket spell placed in there years ago. A portal that went absolutely nowhere but in a single area. "But you're still in the US. You're on our property and what we say goes."

"Be that as it may," Scootaloo said from inside the cabinets. "I don't think my friends, or friend—" she suddenly popped back over the counter aiming a weapon of some sort straight at his head. It was steel and had vents on both sides of the barrel that had something light blue glowing inside of it. Extremely similar to a gun that looked really futuristic. "—agrees. Do you know what this is? No? Let me show you."

She levitated the weapon off of the captain's lap that he was about to grab and held it in front of the weapon. Then pulled the trigger. A light blue beam shot out of the barrel almost silently and hit the pistol. But instead of it flying across the room, the gun began to quiver and shake. It bent in many unnatural ways and shrunk, metal bending and shaking uncontrollably in a sphere of blue light that was practically disintegrating until it disappeared in a flash. The captain had to admit. He was scared.

Scootaloo lifted the gun up and leaned it against her shoulder, keeping her calm and collected gaze on the officers who were staring at her like she was nuts. She grinned and patted the side of it. "Another experiment," she explained. "My parents made the design and I supplied the magic. It takes matter and violently rips it apart by compressing the molecules it's made out of. Imagine every single bone, organ, and everything else in you being broken, ripped apart, and disappearing. Everything has to go somewhere though, right?" She calmly and tauntingly walked out from behind the counter. "Thing is... I don't know where it's target goes. It could be limbo, Equestria, or even Chaosville where Discord resides. Maybe even the Badlands where you'll be nothing but a bunch of twisted meat for THE HUNGRY CHANGELINGS TO GRAB AND TORTURE FOR FUN IF YOU DON'T START TALKING!"

She lifted the gun and pointed it straight into Lieutenant Mayweather's freaked out face. Scootaloo narrowed her constantly color-changing eyes and said, "You're in no position to threaten me! The tables have turned and YOU, as well as the rest of you stuck in those chairs in this room are all at MY mercy! You're going to talk! What do you want from Equestria?!"

"Magic!" Mayweather admitted, not wanting to test the girl pointing a highly destructive weapon at her face. She could literally see a neon blue light inside barrel.

"Why?!"

"For power!"

"Tell the truth!"

"That's all I know, I swear!" The weapon whined up into a high pitch tone when Scootaloo pulled the trigger back halfway, then turned to Captain Looper, aiming at him now. He started shaking and slowly raised his hands.

"What did you do to Sunaet Shimmer?!"

"We wanted to see how she gets her magic!" He admitted.

"Why? Who do you work for?!"

"The US!" Scootaloo raised the weapon and pointed it at a random detective, who quickly raised his hands, eyes wide as coffee saucers.

"Why were you in here rummaging?!"

"We were looking for information on you and your family in case we missed something!" Scootaloo let go of the trigger and pulled the gun back up on her shoulder, letting them relax.

"Here's the deal," she sighed calmly. "You're coming with me back to Equestria, and you're going to explain what you did to Sunset. And you're going to fix it."

"We only dropped her off," Lieutenant Mayweather informed her. "We don't know what they did to her."

"Uh huh," Scootaloo responded sarcastically. "I heard something else." Scootaloo reached out and grabbed her by the neck. Then lifted her and the chair she was glued to into the air. "You're going to find those responsible. And you're going to bring them to the portal. Because if you don't, I'm going to find them myself, then bring you all to Equestria to hear the verdict on what you have done to an Equestrian! Every last one of you!"

"But we have nothing to do with this!" The Detective responded.

"You broke into my home on illegal grounds on both Equestrian and US law! Guilty by association!" She threw Mayweather back onto the ground so she could lift her wrist and switch off the experiment. The power in the building came back on, and the police lights outside were once again flashing. Mayweather stood up from her chair and backed away fearfully from the girl holding a gun while they were defenseless.

"You have thirty seconds to leave this complex in your cars before I start throwing you through windows. Twenty-nine—" The group immediately turned and ran out of the room, making Scootaloo chuckle.

Once they reached their cars, they jumped inside, switched gears, and sped out of parking lot, nearly hitting each other. Tires screeching. The tenants backed away when they turned and sped down the street. "REMEMBER MY WARNING, CAPTAIN! BRING THEM TO ME AND YOU AND YOUR MEN GET TO SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY AGAIN!" Soon, they zoomed out of sight, leaving the tenants with questions. Many questions.

Someone tapped Maud on her back, getting her to turn around. Scootaloo was standing there levitating at least fifty boxes and crates behind her, filled with Equestrian information and experiments. "Tell the people they can go back to sleep now. They won't come back. See ya' later girls." Scootaloo teleported away from view, taking Maud by surprise. She looked at the spot she was just at, then at the apartments behind her, scratching her head.



Princess Twilight was pacing impatiently across the waiting room floor, the tension causing her more pain than Celestia's voice when she yells. No one else was better, all making subtle motions that displayed their current uncomfortable attitudes. The princesses had lowered the sun and moon earlier, and were now sleeping. Twilight couldn't.

A doctor walked out of a hallway with a clipboard and announced, "Sunset Shim—"

"Is she okay?!" Twilight asked. She trotted up to him with a concerned expression, followed by everyone else once the Princesses woke up.

"Erm... Depends on what you mean by okay," the doctor answered. He shifted through his notes and sighed. "There are multiple bruises on her body and she's suffered a fifty-two percent blood loss. That was why she was so tired when she came here. Her heart wasn't beating enough blood. She can barely walk without becoming winded. There are also many cutouts on certain parts of her body that have grown back in different shades of black, apart from her natural color. Next, we have her mental state."

"How bad is it?" Luna asked.

"Well, everything inside her head's been jumbled," he explained. "So much so that she can only remember a few words: 'Yes, No, Anything for Equestria, I can’t wait to learn more about friendship, and Dear Princess Twilight.' That's all she's been saying ever since we refilled her blood flow. But the worst part of all of this is those metal bands on her body. We can't get them off."

Twilight stuck her neck out. "What? Wh-what do you mean?"

"We can't get them off. We tried lazers, magic, and more to cut it. But it won't even bend."

"Can we see her?" Princess Celestia asked.

He shook his head and said, "It's best if Sunset gets her rest. What happened to her, if you don't mind?"

"She was held against her will," Celestia snarled. "By a race that I am going to track down and—"

"No need to track them." They turned towards the door that Scootaloo was walking through, yawning. She had the equestrian gun on her back, attached to her by a strap. "They'll be waiting on the other side of the portal with those who did this probably in a few hours. If not, I can go back and destroy everything they know and love. How's Sunset?"

Twilight shook her head and said, "Not well. Where'd you go?"

"Back to my old home and grabbed everything inside that house. I brought it here. It's in the library in your castle. Read your heart out, Twilight."

Twilight blinked and whispered, "Everything?"

"Everything. Even the books, notes, and anything else. I'm storing them in my parents' facility in Canterlot tomorrow."

Twilight blinked then slowly pulled Scootaloo into a hug. "Thank you."

Rainbow rolled her eyes and stepped forward. "Alright, squirt. Time for bed."

Scootaloo pulled back and gave Rainbow Dash an incredulous look. "What? You're joking." Rainbow smirked and scooped Scootaloo onto her back.

"Nope! Time to hit the sack."

Scootaloo turned back into a foal for a moment. "Aww, come on Rainbow! Let me stay up a little longer. I don't wanna go to bed, I don't wanna!" Rainbow chuckled and walked through the door. Then took off towards the moonlit cloudominium.

"All little fillies need to sleep," Rainbow told her.

"Awww!" Scootaloo groaned. She crossed her hooves and then blew her green mane out of her face. She had to get rid of that.
> Chapter 16 - Sunset's Tragic Tale
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The lights, the dreams, the colors, the cutouts. The dark cell. Everything that Sunset Shimmer woke up screaming as loud as she could from. She sat straight up the next morning and threw the covers off of her, looking around in distress. The sunlight was coming through the windows and lighting the hospital room she was in, calming her down. She took a few deep breaths and looked at herself. There was an IV in her right hoof above the metal cuff that she poked at before a nurse burst into the room, obviously anxious at her loud scream. "What's wrong, dear? Are you okay?" She asked. Sunset looked around and then focused back on the nurse, confused. The nurse took a deep breath then walked over and patted her hoof. It seemed Sunset was alright in that regard. "You're in the hospital back in Equestria."

Sunset looked around. Then focused back on the nurse. "Anything for Equestria?" She asked in curiosity. Where was she?

"Yes, you're back in Equestria," the nurse repeated. She looked at her chart and notes to see the things she could say. "With your friends and family. Do you remember your name?"

Sunset Shimmer nodded and said in a determined voice, "I can't wait to learn more about Friendship."

The nurse grinned and nodded her head. "Okay. Well the doctor wants to try a few things with you. Okay?"

"Yes."

"Great. I'll go grab him. Be back in a minute with food and beverages." She turned and made her way out the door, to the lobby where everyone else was waiting. Princess Celestia, Twilight, Starlight, Scootaloo, and Sunset Shimmer's parents and sister were already there, discussing a few things with the doctor once again. Luna and Cadance were on Earth, waiting for the prisoners to arrive so they can bring them to Equestria. Everyone else was doing their own thing. After hearing about the situation, Sunset Shimmer's family quickly took to the air to see her, staying at the castle overnight with Celestia and quickly leaving in the morning to see her first thing.

Hot Blaze, Sunset Shimmer's sister was a light blue unicorn with an orange and red mane, much like Sunset's, along with dark blue eyes. They look really similar to each other and would be twins if it weren't for the fact that Hot Blaze was five years younger than Sunset. Sunset's mother, Cool Oceans, was a light blue unicorn mare with a gray and white mane in a bun and tail. She had light blue eyes that had a few tears leaking down from it. And her father, Mighty Fire was an orange unicorn with a short red and orange mane that resembled fire, much like his daughters. He had a rocky build to him that let ponies know that he was a tough one to take down. He also had hard dark brown eyes that made Scootaloo shiver a little. She had her disintegration weapon on her back once more that Twilight was glancing at in curiosity. Trying to figure it out.

The doctor stood in front of all of them, pointing to a notepad that had the alphabet, numbers, and special characters on it. "We're going to try and get her to communicate with us through spelling," he said. "Words, numbers, this board is hers. Hopefully we can get some answers."

Cool Oceans sniffed and asked worriedly, "What exactly is going on?"

"Someone was... Experimenting on Sunset Shimmer through force," Scootaloo answered. "They're coming here so I can get a good lashing at them. A-And you too, let's not forget that," she quickly added, pointing to Mighty Fire. The father looked over at the young alicorn then raised an eyebrow at Celestia.

"This is Princess Scootaloo," she explained. Scootaloo smiled and waved at them. "She hasn't been coronated yet and will take a while to do so. But her parents, Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus—"

"Wait, the legends?" Sunset's sister asked. She looked at Scootaloo in disbelief. "I thought they went missing." Scootaloo took note of her knowledge. May come in handy for a friendship.

"They did," Celestia responded. "And they couldn't return with her. But Scootaloo is the only pony, only creature, to ever complete and master the Fluid Matter Conversion spell." They gawked and then turned to Scootaloo with shock and awe. Scootaloo was looking at her hooves, trying to avoid their gazes.

"She destroyed Ponyville and then rebuilt it within ten and fifteen minutes," Twilight added. "And also has a few more tricks up her sleeve."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Scootaloo waved off. "I get it, I'm more awesome than Rainbow Dash. Can we get back to Sunset Shimmer?"

"Ah, right," the doctor agreed. "We were hoping you could use the Fluid Matter Conversion to remove the impossibly hard metal around her neck and hooves. They are extremely hard and we're hoping you can make it much softer."

"Does it have a lot of contact with her body?" Scootaloo asked.

"Ehhh...so so," he responded, rotating his hoof around. "It's just enough to grip her and not let go, but loose enough that you can rotate it."

"Okay. The reason I ask is because the physical contact can counteract with the spell, changing whatever the spell's target is to what I want it to be along with what it's connected to. So if I wanted to change the metal bands to, say, a band of roses, then Sunset Shimmer would be turned to roses too if it were touching her. Which of course we don't want."

"Oh yeah, no. No, we don't want that," Cool Oceans responded.

"I could change the bands and try to avoid changing Sunset Shimmer. But it requires a lot of focus. More focus than Twilight when she reads and other egghead stuff." Twilight bumped her with her wing. "If Sunset Shimmer began to change, I would have to start changing her back at the same time I'm changing the bands. I can try to cut through the bands too. But that'd still be a big effort."

"We'll figure something out," The doctor sighed. "Because those bands have a reason for being on her neck. And I don't want to see them in action."



Sunset Shimmer picked at her food as she laid across the bed with her magic, still in her black leather outfit. The room was silent, mainly because the door was closed and she had privacy so Sunset could eat her meal in peace. She had gotten used to the rings wrapped around different parts of her body, lightly choking her. The one on her neck was anyway. It had two pin pricks on the inside sticking into her flesh. What they were for, she had absolutely no idea. She glanced up and froze when she looked inside the bathroom. It was dark, it was alone. It was compressed. Just like that box. How did she not notice that before?!

Sunset dropped her spoon noisily inside her bowl and slowly backed away, much further on her bed. She was not fond of that box. It had electric walls, a super tight space, and barely any elbow room. So Sunset only stared at the bathroom fiercely in fear. She didn't even hear her room door open when the nurse walked in with the Princesses, her family, and Starlight. Her sister walked up to the bed and whispered, "Hey, Sunset." Sunset yelped and looked over at her in surprise. Her sister was about to give her a tight hug, but realized she was really tense. So instead, she reached up and tapped her hoof. "Are you okay?" She asked tenderly.

Sunset blinked at her then looked back at the door to the bathroom in fear. They followed her sights and then turned back to Sunset. "Do you have to use the bathroom?" Starlight asked.

Sunset looked at her then backed away a few more inches away from the bathroom door. "No," she replied. The Princesses shared a look before Scootaloo walked towards the bathroom door and closed it. Sunset relaxed and laid back down to nuzzle her little sister lovingly. Then giggled and said, "Yes."

The doctor walked towards the bed and started speaking while taking notes on the instruments attached to her. "Good morning," he greeted. "We're going to try and get a few things started with you today while this issue involving 'humans' and such is solved." He set down his clipboard and smiled at her. "First off, we're going to try and get you to speak. Do you remember any other words instead of the ones you have been saying yesterday?"

"Yes," Sunset responded.

"Can you speak them?"

Sunset closed her eyes and shook her head. "No," she whimpered.

"It's okay," he appeased while her sister got on the bed and pulled her into a hug. "We're going to try and fix that, okay?" Sunset nodded in her little sister's hair. "Alright. First off, we're going to see what you know." He placed the clipboard with the text on it on the bed in front of her. "We're going to use this to help you communicate whenever you need to use big words for longer sentences. It was Princess Scootaloo's idea." Sunset removed herself from her sister's hair and looked down at the clipboard. "Can you remember your name?"

Sunset nodded and said, "Yes."

"Alright, can you point out the letters and spell it for me?" Sunset lifted her hoof and pointed it at the letters E and X. Then the numbers zero twice and six once. "Umm...."

"Sis, your name is Sunset Shimmer," Hot Blaze corrected. Then added slowly, "Sunset. Shimmer."

"Yes?" Sunset replied before looking back at the board in confusion. She pointed at the letters for her name, successfully spelling it out while the doctor walked over to the group on the other side of the room.

"What did she say?" Cool Oceans asked worriedly.

"She said EX006," he responded. "The same number that's on the back of the outfit she's wearing that we can't get off either."

Scootaloo nudged Mighty Fire, getting his attention. Then took the weapon off her back and presented it, whispering, "If you want to get a good shot at those guys when they walk through that portal, I have just the tool that they are absolutely terrified of."

"What's it do?" He asked, looking at the weapon oddly.

Scootaloo sighed in reminiscence and rubbed the barrel like a newborn foal. "It rips, breaks, compresses, then disappears. I haven't tested it on a living thing though. So it could be very messy."

He nodded slowly and whispered, "I'll keep it in mind, Princess."

Cool Oceans walked up to the bed and stroked Sunset's mane. "Oh my little filly!" she cried, pulling her into a hug. "Everything's gonna be okay, you hear me? Everything is going to be a-okay!"

Sunset breathed in her mother's familiar shampoo and nodded into her mane. Her sister joined in the hug, followed by Mighty Fire, creating a family moment. The Princesses smiled, save for Scootaloo who was just plain furious. Their daughter and sister shouldn't even be in this situation. None of this should be happening!

Scootaloo casually strode towards a drawer on the side and pulled it open, apparently looking for something. Unsatisfied, she moved on to the next one. The doctor glanced at the Princesses who were just as clueless. Then back to Scootaloo and asked, "What are you looking for Princess?"

Scootaloo closed the drawer she was peering into then turned back to the doctor. "Anything. Give me something. Any something."

The doctor looked around and grabbed a random object in his magic. A mirror. Scootaloo gripped it in her magic and prepared the spell. But stopped after witnessing her reflection. Scootaloo smiled and dimmed her eyes. Then lifted a hoof and ran it through her green mane. Twilight blanched and scratched her head while Starlight and Celestia shared a look. Since when did Scootaloo care about her feminine beauty? "I need eyeshadow," she muttered to herself. "Some lipstick and—wait, h-huh?! What am I doing?!" She turned around and saw everyone looking at her. Raising a hoof, Scootaloo yelled, "Nopony tell anypony about this!" Twilight chuckled behind her hoof and waved at her.

"You got it," she cackled. "Nopony will ever know."

Scootaloo nodded then levitated the mirror, activating the spell. The mirror began to break down into black dust, taking on a fluid like state. Sunset's family and the doctor watched in awe. It began to reshape and take form of something similar to a very very very thin stick. Then the last particle went into the object which turned out to be... an insanely thin silver knife. She levitated it around and listened to the high-pitched whistle it made when it sliced through the air. "Alright!" She cheered. "We're in business. I know you're all wondering, what is she doing with a knife? Well I'm going to focus my magic into the blade and try to weaken the bonds around Sunset's restraints. Then the doc can take them off with something else that probably won't cut off a hoof. Secondly, I'm going to use this for my own personal uses at.... the Castle of Friendship. Now hold still Sunset. I'm gonna get those off of ya'." Scootaloo trotted up to Sunset, who backed away instinctively, nearly falling off the bed before her sister caught her. Scootaloo froze and turned to the doctor. "Actually, why don't you do it? I have a feeling Sunset responds better to you than myself."

Scootaloo held the knife out to him in her magic. The Doctor eyed it cautiously, then grabbed it in his own. He looked at Sunset and smiled. "Alright. So I'm—"

"EEEEEEE!" Sunset shrieked before scrambling back and diving underneath the covers. Starlight, Twilight, and Celestia jumped out of reflex while Sunset's sister flailed her hooves and fell off the bed.

The doctor yelped and then held a hoof over his heart. He took a few deep breaths and sighed, "Yeah, I was expecting something like that." Sunset peeked out from underneath the covers while Scootaloo dematerialized the knife, changing it back into the harmless mirror.

"What was that?" Cool Oceans asked in concern. She looked into the blanket, meeting her daughter's fearful gaze and asked, "Why did my daughter react like that?" She calmly lifted the blanket and cooed Sunset out.

"Well apart from it being a normal reaction when witnessing a pony walk towards you with a large and extremely sharp knife, my team and I theorized that these marks on Sunset's skin..." He walked forward and calmly pointed to one of the large black spots on Sunset's skin. "Are actually lacerations."

"Lacerations?!" Starlight and Twilight yelled.

Starlight glanced at Sunset and asked, "She was cut? Er....poked?"

"No—well... in a way. She wasn't exactly cut, more like.... You know what, yes. She was cut into. But what troubles me the most is that these marks were in patterns. And were in a fixed size. They were using a tool to get into her skin. Which means..."

"They were taking samples of Sunset Shimmer's skin," Celestia finished. She walked forward and lightly grabbed Sunset Shimmer's hoof, looking at the dark and ugly mark. "But why is it dark like this?"

"Something's wrong with the cells in her flesh," the doctor explained. "Too much stimulation. The cells underneath her coat were....fried to say the least. Burned out. Some of the cells in her body had died during....a possible event that could have also hurt her mental state."

"That box." They all turned to Scootaloo. She raised her hoof slightly and clarified further. "That extremely small room she was in when we found her. The one filled with electricity."

"What is electricity?" Mighty Fire asked.

"Electricity is too humans how magic is to ponies. They use it to make everything they use, create lights, machines, moving doors, engines, microphones, phones, televisions, refrigerators, and so much more. It's easy to create under the right conditions and tools. However, it's also extremely dangerous in large amounts. Do you have a rug or something? I can show you an example. Actually never mind. Celestia, I'll use your coat as an example." Scootaloo walked over to the taller alicorn and placed her hoof on her coat. Then quickly moved it up and down. "This may take a second or....ninety." Celestia giggled at the sensation. "Now electricity is sometimes stable. Sometimes unstable. When that happens, humans use something called transformers. They attach them to the cables that carry all of the electricity. The large amount of electricity will then go through the transformer which takes some out and makes it stable again so it continues along harmlessly. However, some things rely on large amounts of electricity. Such as cars, homes, and definitely hospitals. The electricity is measured in Amps. Short for Amperes. A safe amount but still slightly harmful is zero point zero zero one amps. A noticeable effect is zero point zero one and zero point one. Which is what this feels like."

Scootaloo moved her hoof away from Celestia's body for a moment. Then turned to Starlight and touched her with the same hoof on the leg. It snapped loudly, taking everyone off guard and making Starlight yell, "OWW, what the buck?!"

"Oh! Sorry, I thought that was around zero point zero one," Scootaloo apologized. "Did you feel your muscles clench up?"

"I can't feel my body," Starlight groaned. She stared straight ahead at the window, unmoving. Everyone looked at her oddly. Then back at Scootaloo, who made her way over to Sunset.

"Now based off of these burns," she wondered aloud. "I'd say she was shocked a few times by the walls of that room. Oh, I forgot to mention. Electricity travels through metal and is highly conductive to water. Like fire is to wood and clothing materials, electricity is to water and metal. That room we found Sunset in was made entirely out of metal, save for the floor that Sunset was sitting on which was concrete. It had no lights, no vents, and was tightly compact. That bathroom across from her right now resembles it well." They all looked towards the bathroom that had a metal door. "That's why she was scared of it. For some reason, Sunset Shimmer was placed in there. But what for?"

Sunset raised her hoof, getting their attention. She grabbed the clipboard and started pointing at the letters. Everyone, including Starlight who had gotten control of her hooves again, walked over and looked at the letters she pointed at. The doctor wrote down every single character she made a gesture to. It took around five minutes to explain. Once Sunset pointed to the final period, the doctor cleared his throat and read off his clipboard. "'Scootaloo's absolutely correct. When I first arrived at the building, I was shocked by a cattle prod repeatedly for obedience. Then they placed me in a cage and shocked me again before they rolled me away to the room you found me at. They made me strip down and took notes on me. Then they told me the rules about the box. Electricity is really strong. But inside of that box was the worst. It had been turned on at full voltage. They had a strike system. I wasn't allowed to say anything else other than yes or no. And answer questions when asked them. If I disobeyed or resisted. I got a strike and a touch with the 'Pony Killer'. The Cattle Prod. Once I hit three, I was touched then forcefully pushed and locked into the box. The darkness and the silence put together made me sleepy. So....I had dozed off, fell over, and you can tell the rest. After that my mind changed and my body's choreographic track with my brain I guess shut down. I can remember words and do this right now. But then I would end up doing something I didn't want to do in the real world. So if I wanted to go outside and want to walk to the door, my body would probably roll over and I'll stay on my back. But I didn't want to do that. I wanted to walk to the door. But the worst part of all of this is that I can only speak the words you know.'"

"Yes," Sunset clarified sadly. "No, Anything for Equestria, I can't wait to learn more about friendship, Dear, Princess Twilight."

Celestia sighed and rubbed her face with a hoof. "This is tragic," she responded. "Sunset Shimmer may never be normal again. Because of those humans' greed for magic. Twilight?" The protege saluted. "I want you to—Scootaloo's gone." Everyone looked around the room and took notice that the orange haired filly had disappeared from their view.

"Uh oh," Starlight groaned. "This is about to get ugly."



Scootaloo flashed into view once again inside Twilight's castle. Then ran for the portal room, anger written all over her face. She had her weapon on her back which clattered as she ran. She couldn't believe this. She knew it was bad. But that was murderous and awful. Sunset did not have to go through all of that. Not at all! She trotted through the doorway and up to the the portal that Luna and Cadance were standing at with twenty more guards. When she walked in, everyone turned to her in surprise. "Oh! Scootaloo, what—" Scootaloo ignored Cadance and jumped straight through the portal, taking them all by surprise. Cadance sighed and followed after her with Luna and the guards.

Once on the other side Scootaloo righted herself and looked around. The area was empty, save for the people walking around, starting their day. It was still morning after all. Luna and Cadance followed out after her with the twenty something guards who created a half open circle around the three. Luna sighed and asked, "Did you give them a timeframe?"

"I didn't," Scootaloo realized. She gasped and grabbed her weapon from her back. "Thay could be trying to escape or something. I think not! These ponies are going to get their just deserts for handicapping Sunset Shimmer! Even if I have to watch and hear them scream in pain after I crush their bones!" Scootaloo teleported away once more before the princesses could gasp.

Cadance glanced at Luna, who glanced back, both thinking the same thing. Scootaloo has ill intentions.
> Chapter 17 - Scoota-Trap
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scootaloo's threat had law enforcement shaken. To say the least. The most? Absolutely terrified. But they knew they had some backup. A lot of backup. After they left the complex last night, Captain Looper quickly got on the phone and called his superiors. He told them about the infiltration into the compound, the destruction caused, and the unimaginable abilities the "Equestrians" have.

Lieutenant Mayweather breathed rapidly as she looked out the window, nervous eyes peeking around every corner and obstacle. The military, police, and the FBI were on the roads in Canterlot City, keeping a close lookout for the girl that may still be there shooting magic out of her hands. Taking a deep breath, she muttered, "This case just got a lot bigger."

Captain Looper sighed and looked at his gun. Everyone was dressed up in light FBI gear, heavy weaponry inside the doors and on their laps, hands on the trigger with the safety on just in case. He turned to her and whispered, "I know. We were called in to do an arrest. Not a full on war. This is just terrific." The radio on the dash beeped, grabbing all ears in the vehicle.

"All please be advised, black clouds flying around the city. Captain, we've told everyone to stay indoors and lock down schools. This is a city-wide alert."

The captain grabbed the radio and placed it by his mouth as he looked around in paranoia. "Ten-four. All units be advised, target has incredible strength and will rip you to shreds if you're not careful. Make sure you—" The car suddenly stopped and screeched to a stop. The captain nearly hit his head on the dash before he froze at the sight in front of him. Keeping his eyes on the window, he slowly raised the radio to his mouth. "Sixty-fourth to all units....we found her."

Scootaloo stood in the middle of the street with one hand ablaze with dark magic, the other with light. She had a definitely murderous snarl on her face. Not to mention everyone in the four cars in the street could see the weapon on her back. The captain gripped his gun and slowly unlocked the door. Then stepped out with everyone else with him and behind him. They all immediately put their weapons up and slowly stalked towards her. A few more cars zoomed onto the same street behind her. Along with a few helicopters monitoring the scene with machine guns and a close eye. The captain was breathing heavily as he and his group, along with five more in the surrounding streets all stood their ground and pointed their weapons at her. Then everything was silent, save for the rotors of the helicopters.

"Drop. The. Weapon," Captain Looper ordered. "I'm only going to tell you one time. Drop the weapon and place your hands in the air."

"That was two times," Scootaloo corrected. "And I'm going to ask you only one time. "You and your group are highly outnumbered. So you drop your weapons and put your hands in the air." A loud whine pierced the air. Along with many, many, many more. The FBI slowly turned their heads to the rooftops, the windows of the buildings, and the alleyways behind even more FBI. There were copies of this girl all over the place, holding the exact same weapon she held in her hands. And they were all pointed at them. Scootaloo raised her own and said, "If you pull one trigger...if one of my clones go down....all of your people are going down. I'll immediately know if one of my clones go down. What's your decision, Captain?"

"It was a trap," Lieutenant Mayweather commented, her weapon and eyes still trained on Scootaloo. "She knew we were looking for her. And we walked right into it."

"What do we do Captain?" Someone pinged his radio. The captain grit his teeth and thought of his options.

"Not much to think about, Captain," Scootaloo commented from a little ways away. "Lower your weapons...or all of your men and people lose their lives in a very terrible death. A gruesome one. You've seen what this weapon can do. And I'm not doing this for me. I'm here to make sure my people stay safe in Equestria. I don't want to do it. But you have done a very dangerous crime to an Equestrian. Not to mention lied to us about the deal and took Sunset Shimmer hostage, ran experiments on her—don't try to deny it, she told us herself and showed us herself. And have been trying to put me in a prison for a crime I did not commit. I want answers just as much as you do. This is your only shot, Captain. Better have good aim."

The Captain grit his teeth and shivered. He knew that both of those choices had a bad ending. One a lot worse than the other. But he still had a mission. If he went against it, he would then be arrested for treason against the US and disobeying orders.

"Captain, you won't be in trouble for looking out for the safety of your men after being surrounded by pretty much an army of me...and Luna and Cadance." Cadance and Luna looked at each other from the rooftop, watching as Scootaloo worked. It was impressive to say the least. There were one hundred Scootaloo's around them. The FBI had around forty. Like a fly in a hive of bees. And those stingers apparently hurt a lot.

The Captain grunted and dropped his weapon. Then reached up to his ear and pressed on a button on his earpiece. "All units...drop your weapons. We're surrounded." One by one, their weapons dropped to the ground and the units all put their hands behind their heads. The Scoota-Copies let the copies of their weapons drape over their backs before they reached into their pockets and pulled out zip ties, tightening prisoners' wrists to the point that they couldn't even shift their hands. Once situated, they left a few of the officers behind on the sidewalk and grabbed around maybe twenty. Cadance teleported herself and Luna down to the ground beside Scootaloo.

The Princess of Love rubbed the back of her neck and commented, "Well....that was....mighty mature of you."

Scootaloo shrugged and shot a bolt in front of her, opening a light blue rift to the statue. She sighed and lowered her hand, then responded with, "Yeah, I know. I thought about what my mom told me in the Communication Plane about being a princess when I needed to be. And being me when I can. Right now? I need to be a Princess." She turned back to the other Scootaloo's and barked orders. Take them to Equestria. Except one. I need to know where those lab rats are."

They saluted and started marching the group through the rift, taking them into the portal directly after. After they had walked through, Scootaloo turned to one of the FBI agents left behind. "I need to know who did the experimentation on an...'EX006'. Right. Now."
> Chapter 18 - Take 'Em To The Prison!...Dungeon!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Captain Looper walked through the portal that led back to the Canterlot High School portal. There were guards standing around with swords, bows and arrows, and knives. Pointed and trained on the large group of Police Officers and FBI. The large army of Scootaloo's were with them, weapons pointed at their backs with a nonchalant expression, followed closely by Cadance and Luna. "Send them on through," Luna ordered. "We have to go see Sunset at the hospital and get these guys to the Dungeons in Canterlot. We're not going to hurt you." Luna stopped and motioned between herself and Cadance. "We're not going to hurt you. Sunset's father and former teacher, Princess Celestia, Sunset's sister, her mother, and Princess Twilight, the mage of light magic herself may not be so nice. Let's go." The first Scootaloo pushed the first CIA officer into the wormhole after he began to protest about them not having any role in this.

Cadance tapped Luna's shoulder and asked, "Do you think it's really fair that we pretty much kidnapped alot of this country's law enforcement after they kidnapped only one of our own?"

"Oh, we are not going to do anything to these men," Luna responded. One of the guys was kicked inside. "Well...save for the Scootaloos, she's apparently an exception. We're just keeping them here for leverage. Once we get the real culprits, we'll send them right back out. I'll tell Celestia about this plan. We are not monsters, unlike these men who kidnapped one of our own and did whatever they did to her that required her to be kept inside of an electrified box. They will be put on trial either here. Or either in Equestria. But either way, this investigation revolving around Scootaloo and the death of her parents has gotten way out of hand. We need to speak to this nation's head of law and get this investigation started." One of the Scootaloo's suddenly whacked the last officer in the knee with her weapon and pushed him in. "STOP THAT!"



The hallway of the hospital was void of any ponies save for Celestia and Twilight, who were both discussing a plan of action. "We may have to get your brother involved," Celestia informed her. "If Scootaloo is doing what I think she is doing, than we need a pony in charge to handle the guard shall we need them."

Twilight watched a Guard run into the building at the front of the hospital and asked, "What do you think Scootaloo is doing?"

"Bringing over those who hurt Sunset," Celestia replied as the guard made her way over to them. Once at a good distance, she stopped and saluted. "At ease. What is it?"

The guard lowered her hoof and answered, "Princesses Luna and Cadance are back."

"Good."

"With forty-six more ponies as Prisoners. They wish to escort them."

"Scootaloo," Twilight groaned. She turned to Celestia and added, "It looks like she wants to have the upper hand in getting what she wants. And we still haven't gotten anywhere in knowing what happened to Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus. I say we have a trial and sort all of this mess out. The more civil way that does not involve weaponry. And we need to get Justice for sunset Shimmer."

"Yes, but how?" Celestia inquired.

Twilight hummed and rubbed a hoof against her chin. "We could always hold a news conference with that world, expose them of their wrong doings and force them to listen to our grievances. Since their land is similar to Equestria's, then they will more than likely have Equestrian laws, just in a different format. We can always request a deal."

Celestia hummed. It seemed reasonable enough. Equestria has always been known to be peaceful with other countries, not hostile. But these humans have become hostile the second Scootaloo walked back onto their land. Equestria was not the enemy. "I agree we should take diplomatic action," Celestia admitted. She turned to the guard and asked, "Where are they keeping the prisoners?"

"They are taking them to the dungeons in Canterlot via chariots," she responded.

"Very well. I wish to question them—"

"I'd like to have a word with them too," Twilight interrupted.

"Princess Twilight and I would like to have a word with them tonight," Celestia corrected. "Let me know as soon as they are settled."

"Yes, ma'am."



Once the last prisoner walked out the portal with a Scoota-Guard that Luna and Cadance called them, the two Princesses themselves followed along into the Library of Princess Twilight Sparkle, grand and bright. As the Prisoners held still with long zip ties on their hooves, some Unicorn and some Earth Pony, the Princesses walked past.

"I couldn't locate their names!" They stopped and turned back to the portal as the real Scootaloo bounded through. She was upset. Definitely upset. "They weren't in the Government database! Which means it was an unauthorized government building with an unauthorized governmental task with FBI and military that was all illegal!" She walked angrily past the princess, who watched her in interest. "It looks like I'm getting closer and closer to whoever killed my parents. And it starts with the Government. Looks like Rainbow was right. Those ponyfeathers did indeed partner with somepony who is not Government but holds power over them."

Scootaloo walked out of the room, followed by the Princesses, who were followed by the Prisoners, who were still trying to get adjusted to their new pony bodies. "So there is in fact somepony on Earth," Cadance repeated. "Who wants magic badly enough that they would possibly bribe the Government enough to arrest an Equestrian at gunpoint, do whatever they did to her that she could only speak five or six phrases, and possibly more. All for magic? Why?"

"I don't know," Luna responded. "But it has upset me a great deal. Celestia is upset, her parents are upset, everypony else will be upset once this is released to the nation. I want to take these ponies, or whatever down." The Princesses turned towards the entrance, leading the group towards the guarded front doors. The guards glanced at the large group headed their way down the wide hallway, but stayed stoic. "Guard!" A female guard ran forward and saluted. "I want twenty prison chariots here in front of the castle and the dungeons in the castles armed and ready for intake."

"Yes, your highness!" The guard quickly ran out the doors to fulfill the orders while the others held them open for the Royalty and Prisoners to walk through. Once outside, Scootaloo spotted her favorite pony soaring through the sky.

She looked up and gasped. Then raised a hoof and yelled, "Rainbow Dash!" The Rainbow blur that shot past turned around and landed in front of Scootaloo almost immediately, spooking the Prisoners.

"Yo, Scoots!" She and Scootaloo hoof bumped before Rainbow bopped her muzzle. "Next time you decide to fly off from Equestria, let me know. I'm your caretaker, I have to know this stuff."

"Yeah, sure. Speaking of flying, when are we flying together?" Scootaloo inquired.

"Probably whenever you have time, Princess," she teased.

Scootaloo sighed and shook her head. "When you say it, it sounds wrong. Where's Twilight and Celestia? We need to see them, we got the leverage." Rainbow looked up and smirked. Then zipped over one of the prisoners. Lieutenant Mayweather yelped and fell back from her way too happy grin.

"Awww yeah!!" Rainbow cheered as she hovered above her. "You ponies are in for it now!! Because you have to deal with the real ones!! The big hooves!!"

"What are you—"

"SHUT UP!!" Rainbow yelled in her face. "Or I'll make you run two hundred in and out of the Everfree forest! I've heard that the Everfree forest in your world is nice and dandy after reading Twilight's communication journal behind her back. And let me tell ya'." She grabbed Mayweather's head and looked deep into her eyes. "You stay in the Everfree Forest here for ten minutes without anypony else? You will never been seen again."

Luna rolled her eyes and said, "Loyalty, that is quite enough." Rainbow let her go and then flew back to Scootaloo. "We do not need shaken up prisoners." A violet purple flash later, Captain Looper was lifted into the air and into the eyes of a fire maned and sun white Alicorn.

"WHERE ARE THE ONES WHO HURT SUNSET SHIMMER?!!" Twilight yelled in his face.

"Ah, fu—"

"Twilight, put him down!" Celestia ordered after teleporting in behind her. Twilight took a deep breath and changed back into her less angry form. Then dropped the Captain without any care back to the ground.

"Jeez, you ponies are nuts," Mayweather muttered before one of the Scoota-Guards placed their weapon to the back of her head.

Scootaloo teleported beside her and deadpanned, "You are very expendable right now. I'd watch what I'd say or Rainbow may just fly you out to the badlands and come back empty hooved in three seconds flat."

Mayweather scoffed and responded boldly, "You ponies don't frighten me! I've faced many things in my career in the United States Marines and lived to tell the tale! There is absolutely nothing you can do to make me talk!"

"Oh you don't really have to talk," Twilight responded. She stalked forward and got into Mayweather's fearless face. "In fact, you don't even have to open your mouth, breath, or even move. All of us—" She gestured to Cadance, Celestia, Luna, and Scootaloo. "—know how to go in your head and get what you know. All in different ways. Apparently you know something. So you'll be our main target. Try not to sleep tonight. Luna's a dreamwalker." Twilight turned around walked away as the Prison chariots began to land.

"I don't believe you!" Mayweather yelled. "I don't believe any of this!!"

"Say that to Spitfire? She'll beat you to a pulp," Rainbow commented. The Scoota-Guards pushed the Prisoners towards the cages in the chariots and closed the gates, locking them tightly.

Mayweather turned around and yelled, "You're making a huge mistake keeping us here! They'll come after you and bring Hell with them!!"

"Somepony shut her up!!" Scootaloo yelled. The chariots took off into the air, heading towards the castle in the mountain, with Mayweather screaming obscenities. Scootaloo sighed and turned back to the Princesses. "If we're going to talk to these people, we need to do it soon. Because the US is obviously not patient."
> Chapter 19 - Plan In Place
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The light from the morning sun shone through the hospital windows, hitting the orange fur of Sunset Shimmer, the light blue of her sister, the orange of her father, and the light blue of her mother all sitting around Sunset in case she needed something. Unfortunately, Sunset would be under the status of handicapped. She had trying to go the restroom earlier, but just like she told everyone else earlier, when she would try to do something, she'd end up doing something entirely different. When she tried to walk to the bathroom, she ended up just falling on her face. It was tearing her sister to pieces seeing her like this.

At this moment, Sunset was eating a small snack while enjoying her sister's warm body snuggled up against her. It brought back fond memories of years long past. Every now and then, whenever she'd move around or sigh, Sunset would stop eating and nuzzle her lovingly. Wishing in her mind that she could at least tell her that it'd be okay. It was a futile effort. So she just settled for a hum. But besides those noises, the room was bathed in silence. Until Hot Blaze rose up and jumped off the bed to pace, clearly agitated.

"When I get my hooves on those things," she snarled. "They're going to ask for Discord instead "

"Sweetheart..." Cool Oceans sighed. "Leave this in the Princesses and Royal Guard's hooves. They're the Professionals in this."

"Except that descendant of Frozen Fire and Bright Magnus! I bet she's the root to all of this! Everything was fine until she showed up!"

"No!" They all jumped at Sunset Shimmer's loud and commanding bark. Sunset sighed and motioned with her hoof for her sister to come back to the bed when she used her magic to grab her clipboard. Her father grabbed his own with a pen to decipher what she says. She pointed to the letters and icons, taking up two minutes before she got it done.

The father read aloud, "Even though Princess Scootaloo has issues, which I can see, she has a goal in mind to stop those people on Earth from reaching the people in Equestria. Unfortunately, they discovered I had no record on Earth and guessed I was Equestrian. Then lied, saying they'll hand me back over when Scootaloo stepped in. Instead, they just wanted her in handcuffs and me as an experiment. Scootaloo turned the tables and saved me, although too late. Hopefully we can settle peaceful negotiations and I can get back to normal."



Even before daybreak, all the Princesses were situated inside the throne room in Canterlot, discussing plans and other things to get these people to cooperate. At the moment, they were discussing the prisoners down below. Luna was certain that it would get the attention of the Government of Earth, but Celestia and Cadance were worried about the type of attention. "If I had known that my guards were held hostage," Cadance stated in a stern tone. "Then I would prepare an army to go straight for them."

"But Cadance is peaceful," Celestia added. "These....humans are not. Evident by what became of Sunset Shimmer when we returned."

"They are going to pay for that," Twilight declared. "Because if they don't, I am going right back over there and making them."

"That'd be interesting," Scootaloo muttered. Then huffed and said, "Well I'm tired of them attempting to arrest me and going to obvious extreme lengths to do it. How about this? I go over—"

"No," Celestia shot down. "Your mother wants me to watch over you, not send you flying through portals."

"Hear me out. I'll agree to a questioning with Princess Twilight by my side. With a detective, Police Officer, FBI, whoever. Freakin' CIA if they want. Court, I don't care. In return, after the questioning, we will return the Operatives, regardless of the decision. Of course we're setting ground rules. For one? Fair bucking treatment. They put Sunset Shimmer in a cage and an electric box. They're not putting me in one of those. I'll rip their skin off their bodies."

"Please don't," Luna deadpanned.

Celestia sighed and rubbed her horn with a hoof. "But these people want magic," she argued. "What will stop them from trying to take it and study you if we go this path?"

"A truce. A documented truce that they will all sign and that we will as well. I know for a fact that none of this that is happening is public knowledge. All of this is secret, based on Rainbow's find. So it should be no problem."

"Do you really want to do this?" Cadance asked her. "Those people could have possibly killed your parents. And we're walking right into their hands....oh." Scootaloo smiled and nodded. The rest of the Princesses caught on to her plan. Then stared at Scootaloo in surprise.

"What? Did you really think I would just give myself up without getting something in return? Knowledge is what I want, and knowledge is what I'm going to get. If this works, I'll let you know of my discovery. The ring leader and the one pulling the strings will want to see this for themselves. They'll come right to me. And I'll have them. My excuse? To keep Equestria safe, which is actually true. So far, they know nothing about Equestria or where I've been. Or the fact that my mom can cross between both worlds without the portal. And I can still talk to her."

"That...is a pretty solid plan," Twilight admitted proudly. "Have to say, I'm impressed. Question is...will it work? This is a huge stake, Scootaloo."

"Only one way to find out."
> Chapter 20 - Plan In Action
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The wind blew the hair of Lareen as she stared at the wet concrete road in front of Canterlot High School. The rain streamed a cold feeling down her spine as she waited, staring towards the city with a feeling of nonchalant, hair wet and lining her face. Those officers would get her message. She was willing to cooperate. Only time would tell if they were. Time was all she had here. Including her mother who was talking to her in her mind. How she managed to do that was beyond Scootaloo's understanding.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Frozen Fire asked.

"We're not getting anywhere if we're just going back and forth," Lareen responded. "They've been trying to arrest me for I-don't-know how long and have tortured an Equestrian just to learn how to get magic. No one's talking we're just...fighting." Lareen flipped open the communication journal to Twilight and wrote something when she spotted a lot of flashing lights headed her way.

"And if this plan doesn't work?"

"It will," she responded. Then shut the book and waited. Adding quietly, "It has to." The cars drove up on the sidewalk, parked on the side of the street, and the truck made a quick turn to cut the street off. The police opened the doors, hopped out, and immediately pointed their weapons at her, taking cover behind their car doors. Guns cocked without orders.

The task force guys had their rifles trained on her. And she just stared at them nonchalantly. They held a standoff in the rain, waiting to see who would make the first move. Tired of it already, Lareen sighed and yelled, "I thought I said no weapons!"

"You are a walking weapon!" An officer yelled back. Must've been the chief or something. "Where are they?"

Scootaloo flipped open her book and wrote something in it. Then shut it. "On their way! Where's the agreement?!" The guy she was yelling to reached behind him to grab something. Then held up a portfolio.

"Right here!" The portal flashed when Princess Twilight ran out with a bubble shield. The police quickly directed half their weapons to her, cocking and aiming.

"If you shoot her, then this agreement has already been expunged before we even reviewed it!" Scootaloo quickly yelled to them. They kept their weapons trained but didn't dare pull the trigger. They needed those guys back. Twilight stood by and watched as the prisoners filed out of the portal, locked in chains. Captain Looper and Lieutenant Mayweather looked pretty shaken after their minds were violated by Princess Luna in their sleep. The Princess herself walking out after the prisoners with Cadance and Celestia. Once they were all presented, Lareen yelled, "The deal is this! You get your people back after a fair questioning and trial! Along with a truce that declares fair treatment for me! I'll participate if you participate! The land of Equestria is peaceful! Not violent!"

"Then why'd you take our men?"

"Because you lied and tortured our own! Sunset Shimmer can barely walk and talk now! Her motor skills are completely screwed up because of you people! And I'm tired of it! We have done nothing wrong here, yet you respond with violence! We have played nice, yet you have played dirty! I have given you warnings, yet you kidnap one of our own for a science experiment after we agreed to a deal that I come with you to get all this straightened out! So this is your last chance! I am being extremely nice right now! Either agree, or you finally see my worst side, and these men go straight back to Equestria!" The police kept their weapons trained on her, more tense than steel. "So are we going to go over this or not?!" She yelled.

"We'll go over it!" The Chief yelled. Then lowered his weapon and pointed to her. "But you have to participate too!"

Scootaloo nodded. Then raised her hands and walked over with Princess Celestia. She was more adept to dealing with legal situations than any other Princess in Equestria. The best. Luna, Cadance, and Twilight kept a firm eye on the police while they moved towards the front of the Chief's cruiser, stopping directly in front of it with their hands still raised. The chief raised his hand, motioning to his men to lower their weapons. Then walked around towards the front of the vehicle, eyes on Scootaloo.

"I don't take too kindly to you kidnapping our men," he stated through gritted teeth.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and retorted, "And I don't take too kindly to you kidnapping a teenager, putting her in a cage, shocking her with a 'pony killer', locking her in a box surging with electricity, and taking samples out of her skin. Your men are still alive to tell them what we did to them. Sunset Shimmer can only say five things and we had to guess the rest. What I did to your men wasn't even child's play to what I could really do to vent my anger. And let me tell you..." She leaned up into his face and snarled, "I am holding back a lot of anger. Don't test me. Or Equestria. We will run you over once, twice, and thrice. Let's make sure that it never happens. Understand?"

The Chief grunted but slapped the agreement down onto the hood of the car. Eyes still on hers, he stated, "Under the rights of the United States, everything was clarified as Human Rights. However, since you're not human, we had to modify things a little."

"How 'modified'?" Celestia asked. She and Scootaloo lowered their hands to gaze at the sheets. Celestia used her magic to lift it to her face and stare at it. Then lowered it down to Scootaloo so she could check it out with her.

"Well you're not human, so we had to take off a few things—"

"You will treat Scootaloo just like you treat everyone else," Celestia interrupted.

The Chief widened his eyes and yelled, "We will treat her how the US feels she needs to be treated—"

"YOU WILL TREAT HER JUST LIKE YOU TREAT A REGULAR BEING IN YOUR JUSTICE SYSTEM OR THIS AGREEMENT IS VOID AND WE ARE TAKING YOUR MEN BACK TO EQUESTRIA UNTIL YOU COME TO YOUR SENSES!!" Celestia interrupted in her Royal Canterlot voice, which rang through everyone's minds...in a one mile radius. Backing down, Celestia asked sternly, "There will be no 'modifications' to Human Rights as it were a template."

The Chief sighed but nodded his head. "Fine. But we do have one request. No magic. Lareen Carson will not use magic while in the hands of the Federal Law under any circumstance."

"Any circumstance is too far," Lareen responded. "Because if someone tries to kill me, I am going to use magic to defend myself."

"Then you can do it in self-defense, which is clarified further in the agreement. Forceful hitting, pulling, or any type of aggressive physical contact against other inmates will allow you to use magic. Other than that, you cannot use magic."

Celestia and Scootaloo shared a look. No magic would make things a little difficult. But Scootaloo's nod nearly assured Celestia she could handle it. Nearly. Turning back, Scootaloo replied, "I motion not to use magic against other inmates..."

"Very well—"

"AND law enforcement, and other government officials unless the situations call for it. The Government literally just tortured a pony that wasn't nearly as powerful as I am. But even I know their main target was me. If I agree to this agreement, then they'll have me. They lied once, who's to say it won't happen again? I'm not taking that chance. So that's the best I can do. Take it or leave it."

The glow of lightning flashed for a second that bounced off the angry face of the Chief. They held a standoff, one pair of eyes glaring into another.