It's time for the Friendship Games and CHS is ready to compete against their rival school of Crystal Prep. But the competition isn't enough for some, as certain familiar faces are working to discover the secrets of magic.
It's time for the Friendship Games and CHS is ready to compete against their rival school of Crystal Prep. But the competition isn't enough for some, as certain familiar faces are working to discover the secrets of magic. And with all things at CHS, this is only the beginning of trouble.
The sun was barely above the horizon, now almost completely set, and the streets were completely empty. Well, almost completely empty. One young girl with golden skin and hair that was a mix of red and yellow, was wearing a blue dress that went to her waist, along with blue jeans and a black leather jacket and boots. She was Sunset Shimmer, a former enemy of Twilight Sparkle and newest member of the Rainbooms, and was right now rushing back to school due to an urgent text alert sent by her friend.
It was here that Canterlot High School came into view, the girl now seeing Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie arriving as well. She then spotted Rainbow and Applejack standing at the front of the building, Rainbow with her guitar case on the ground. "I got your text, Rainbow Dash!" She stopped and began to pant, "Did something come through the portal? Is Equestrian magic on the loose? Did Twilight come back with a problem that only we can solve?!"
"Has a giant cake monster covered all the cakes in the world in cake?!" Pinkie asked while stuffing two cupcakes in her mouth. Sunset rolled her eyes at this before turning back to Rainbow, the athletic girl chuckling while pulling out her guitar.
"Um...not exactly."
Sunset raised an eyebrow, "Huh? I don't understand."
Applejack, who had a particular sour look on her face this whole time, now walked up to Rainbow with crossed arms, "Well Sunset, I was just tellin' Rainbow Dash here that a broken guitar string doesn't really qualify as an emergency."
She pulled on the instrument's string in question, Rainbow growling, "Hey! It totally does!"
Fluttershy nodded in agreement while stroking Angel Bunny as he curled up in her arms, "And I was just about to tuck everyone in for the night at the shelter. Now we'll have to start stories all over again."
"Why would you send all of us an emergency text for a guitar string?!" Sunset screamed, but Rainbow just shined a cheeky grin in response.
"Well, I was going to pony up and show our fans some awesome guitar licks." She pointed to the side, every seeing now Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom. The three smiled and waved as Rainbow continued, "But I kinda need all six strings to do it. You all got any extras?"
Everyone let out a groan before Sunset took off her backpack and reached inside, soon pulling out some strings, "Here. But remember, everyone finished practicing for the day. I'm pretty sure all the music rooms are locked."
"No problem. The acoustics in the hallways are perfect for power chords!" She played a quick strum before waving them all over, "Come on! Let's go!" Sunset rolled her eyes as she saw the others go inside, Applejack turning to her at the door.
"You comin', Sunset?"
"I'll catch up in a bit." Applejack nodded and followed inside, Sunset sitting down on the front steps next. Sighing, she took out her magic journal before writing:
Dear Princess Twilight.
How's life treating you in Equestria? You and Flash tie the knot yet?
She laughed at herself, remembering how happy she had been when Twilight had written that she and Flash were now together. Pinkie had wanted to have them come over for a party, though the two declined due to how busy they had gotten.
It's been pretty quiet here at CHS since the Battle of the Bands. We still pony up when we play music, which Rainbow Dash just loves to show off, but I still can't quite grasp what it's all about. I would love to hear what you think about it when you get a sec. Your friend, Sunset Shimmer.
And as Sunset finished her writing, she didn't notice a bus pull up to the station across the street, the vehicle then pulling away to reveal someone in a blue hoodie that covered their head. The figure quickly raced over the street, pulling out a device that kept whizzing as a strange reading appeared on its screen. As this happened, the device began to become more erratic as the person got closer to the school's Wondercolt statue.
This led to the figure circling the statue until they stood in front of the portal to Equestria. Looking closer at their device, they looked at the presumably stone statue before placing a hand on it, now feeling it wobble and spark with magic energy.
As they did this, Sunset looked up from her journal, only to gasp, "Hey!" The figure turned to her in surprise, "What are you doing?!" They didn't answer, instead instantly cutting into a sprint. "Hey, wait!" Sunset put her journal away and started to run after them, "Stop!" Unfortunately, after the figure ran across the road, a car raced passed Sunset, pulling her to a stop. And as this happened, the stranger hopped onto another bus, Sunset soon seeing the vehicle race away into the city in the distance. "Wha...who was that?!"
Inside the bus, the figure moved over to the back and sat down with a flop, sighing before pulling her hood down. It revealed her to be a purple-skinned girl with dark purple and pink hair, the girl also wearing square glasses over her face. The teen remained seated as the bus reached the city, soon passing by her destination: A large building even bigger than CHS with crystal decorations all over it, giving it a more regal look.
She got off the bus next, moving like she was on autopilot, moving without even looking as she went to a small workshop in the far back of the school. The girl smiled at the sight inside, organized chaos everywhere in the room as it was filled with projects and scientific blueprints. But what made her smile the most was the sight of a certain someone fast asleep on a couch in the corner of the room, the person's head covered by an advanced chemistry book. A small purple puppy was sleeping on his stomach, curled up like a ball.
Smirking at the sight, she purposefully shut the door hard enough to cause a loud bang, this leading to the figure jerking up as the book fell off his head, the puppy yelping before seeing the girl and cheering, "I'm awake! I'm up!" The figure yelled, now revealing himself to be a teen the girl's age with yellowish-orange skin and long blue hair. He was wearing a light blue button-up shirt and dark blue pants, a purple blazer behind him that was rolled up and being used as a pillow. He rapidly blinked before glancing at the girl petting the puppy. "Oh...hey Twilight. What time is it?"
Twilight just laughed as she moved over to a nearby board that was covered in pictures and strings of differing colors, all centered at an image of the school she had just been at. "Time for you to head home if you're falling asleep."
"I'm fine," he started to do some waking up stretches, "So uh...since you're in your hoodie, I'm guessing you went back there, didn't you?"
"Yup," Twilight took a picture of the statue out of her pocket and placed it on the board. "And I think I've found what I'm looking for." She then pulled out her device, "But this'll need some tweaking." But before she could get to work, the device was taken out of her hands. "Hey!" she turned to see the teen frowning at her, "Flash!" She leapt up and started reaching out her arms for the device, only for Flash to keep it out of reach, "Give it!"
"Twilight, I'm starting to get worried. Ever since you first found these strange energy readings, you've been acting weird...er, than normal."
Twilight let out a huff before crossing her arms, "I told you Flash, I'm fine! I just want to find out what's going on at that school!"
"Even if it's dangerous?"
"That makes it even more important that I find out! Who else is gonna do it? No one's gonna believe me until I some real proof! Now let me have it." Flash gave her a glare back, making her sigh before reaching down and picking up her dog, "Come on..." She held him up to Flash's face, "Do it for Spike." On cue, he gave the teen the saddest puppy-dog eyes ever.
Flash growled, only to sigh and shake his head, "Fine," he was about to give the device back, only to pull it away from Twilight's hands, "But next time, I'm coming with you. You'll need someone to pull you out of the fire when you inevitably get in over your head."
Twilight did a small nod before taking the device and giving him Spike, quickly zipping over to her workbench as she began to pull the machine apart. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Once I get this completed, I'll not only be able to locate that energy, but trap it for safe study." Flash said nothing as he sat back down with Spike on his lap, picking up his chemistry book and reading it while she worked.
It wasn't long before both the male inhabitants of the room fell asleep, Twilight still awake as she remained focused on her work. The hours passed without her noticing, twerking and transferring parts as she tried to make it into a small easy to transport shell, "Soon...I'm almost there."
The next morning...
CHS was really starting to thrive since the Battle of the Bands. Everyone now completely recovered from the Dazzling's mind control, their friendships between the students had become stronger than ever. It was here that the Rainbooms, minus Rainbow, were now in the library doing some research as Sunset explained what she had seen.
"She was definitely doing something to the statue," she said while pacing back and forth. "Or was going to."
"Do you think she came through the portal from Equestria?" Fluttershy asked, petting Angel as Sunset shook her head.
"No, I'm pretty sure I would have noticed that. I think she was from over here."
"Well that's a relief." Applejack put her book down and kicked her legs up onto the table, leaning back with a big smile, "The last thing we need is another magical so-and-so bent on world domination comin' over from Equestria." She tossed a wink Sunset's way, making the girl smile and roll her eyes.
"Agreed," Rarity added as she turned to them while standing on a step ladder, "I have no interest in another fight against the powers of evil magic. The wear and tear on my wardrobe is just too much to keep up with."
Sunset crossed her arms at this, "Still, a mysterious figure snooping around the portal? Don't you want know what she was up to?"
Fluttershy shuddered as she picked herself up with Angel in her arms, "I don't even wanna guess."
"Well, you don't have to!" Rainbow suddenly said as she appeared around from the bookshelf, a yearbook from four years back in her hands, "Because I've totally figured out who it was!"
"Ooh, ooh!" Pinkie grabbed a pair of books off the pile she was sitting next to, holding them up as she spoke her own guesses, "A nighttime statue cleaner? A magical portal maintenance maintainer? A gardener?!" Rainbow rolled her eyes and pushed Pinkie back.
"Seeing as how they got off a bus from the city and got back on a bus headed to the city, I'll bet they go to-"
"Crystal Prep," the fully human Rainbooms all said in exhausted unison.
"Yep!" Rainbow punched her fist into the side of the book. "With the Friendship Games starting tomorrow, they'd totally try to prank us by defacing the Wondercolts statue!"
"Why would anyone take a bus all the way from the city to do that?!" Sunset asked, her friends all giving her an 'are you serious' vibe.
"Because the Crystal Prep Shadowbolts are our biggest rivals?" Applejack started.
"Because that's just what the students at Crystal Prep would do?" Rarity went on before Rainbow opened the book, showing images of different teams in the same two uniforms in almost the exact same poses.
"Because even though they beat us in everything, soccer, tennis, golf..." She turned the page to show the Wondercolt statue dressed as a clown, "They still gloat every time!"
"Seems kinda silly to me," Sunset deadpanned, only to see five shocked faces.
"SILLY?!" They all screamed, Rainbow crossing her arms. "So I guess you think the Friendship Games are silly too!"
Sunset shrugged her shoulders, "Well it's not like we'll be fighting the powers of evil magic."
"No, we'll be fighting against a school full of meanies," Fluttershy corrected, "Not everything has to be magical to be important."
"If I might interject," the girls all turned to see CHS's janitor walk around another bookcase while carrying a trashcan, Grand grinning at them all, "You girls might be exaggerating our school's rivalry with Crystal Prep a tad."
"No, we're not!" Rainbow almost yelled back, "Remember the time they somehow restitched all our soccer uniforms so they spelled blundercolts?!"
Pinkie raised her hand at this, "Or during out last bake sale, they replaced the glazing sugar with sneezing powder and ruined a whole batch of cupcakes!"
"Or during the autumn musical!" Rarity added with a look of disgust, "Why, they switched the magenta parts of all the outfits with maroon." The girls all turned to her, raising an eyebrow. "It was a complete color clash with the rest of the outfits! We were made into laughing stocks!"
"Alright...so the school isn't perfect. But you shouldn't lump the whole student body in with the bad ones. After all, it wasn't too long ago that our school had its fair share of troubled students." Grand glanced over at Sunset, the girl blushing as she looked away, "Besides, you're forgetting a certain someone's grandson is now attending that school, and he's made quite a few friends there that I think are extremely good influences on him."
Sunset's eyes went wide at this, "Lightning...yeah. He's not...um...he's not coming here, is he?!"
"His whole years coming to watch," Grand told her. "And I do believe he's been selected to take part."
Sunset did a long visible gulp, "Oh..."
"It's probably a good thing darling," Rarity added, "You really should have made things right with him before now."
"I got him expelled Rarity. I suspect he's not gonna want to respond with me."
"Ya'll could still say sorry to his face," Applejack remarked. "Don't hide from yer problems Sunset."
"I...yeah. I know." Sunset slumped down in a chair, "I get it. I'll say sorry to him when he gets here."
"That's good to hear." They all turned to see Iron Core, Heather Bloom and First Aid now walking into the library.
Heather giggled at their exchange, "Bet you girls can't wait to see Lightning as much as we can't."
First nodded in agreement, "Though I hope he is not too unhappy about us replacing him in the band."
"He already knows," Grand replied, "I told him about Flash over the night of the Fall Formal, though I left out the whole 'pony from a different world' thing...in fact, I think the only thing I told him was that you all had gotten a new guitar player."
"Though it's not like he's a permanent member," Iron told him with a shrug, "I mean, Sentry is barely ever here." He then turned to Sunset, "You think he'd be willing to come over to watch me kick butt in the Friendship Games? Maybe the Royal Knights could play at the meet and greet."
"I can send him a message, but I doubt he'll come over. Apparently, the life of a Royal Knight is almost as hectic as the life of a princess. Probably more so since they usually have to fight against whatever dark force tries to take the kingdom over like...every week or so."
"Ah, how much trouble could he be in?" He reached over to give Angel a scratch behind the ear. "Not like him not being there for a day or two would put the whole world in danger."
"You'd be surprised," Sunset replied while pulling out her journal, "But I'll send a message anyway, see if they're both free. I know this is a big deal."
"That's putting it mildly darling," Rarity jumped off the step ladder. "They're still revamping the playing field in preparation."
"I just don't understand why there's this big rivalry. Aren't the Friendship Games supposed to be about our two schools getting along?"
Applejack huffed as she pointed at the book Rainbow was holding. "Well, it's kinda hard to get along with someone who beats you at everything."
"Not anymore!" Rainbow tossed the book away, almost hitting First Aid in the face before Iron caught it. "This time, things are gonna be different!"
"What do you mean?" Sunset asked, only to see Rainbow give her a big smirk. "Oh..."
Grand crossed his arms at this, "This doesn't have anything to do with that big assembly Celestia's putting on, does it?"
"And the extra hard practice I noticed the marching band doing?" Heather continued while Rainbow just kept smiling, giving them all a wink and nothing else. They all just rolled their eyes and went about their business, Grand emptying the last few trashcans while the students all left the library to get to the aforementioned assembly.
"I just hope there isn't another big issue," Grand said to himself as the students left, "If what I overheard from Sunset is right, who know what'll happen." He did a long sigh as he glanced at a nearby window, seeing the statue in the distance, "Flash Sentry, wherever you are, I hope you'll be ready if we need you."
Twilight was still working on her remodelled energy detector, the device now looking like a compass, round in shape with several lights around the edges. It was made to open like a compact mirror, mainly to keep her from looking out of place while still being able to do research.
"Perfect," she chimed while activating it. A loud yawn followed this, making her turn to see Flash getting off the couch, stretching as he rubbed his eyes.
"Morning. I'm guessing you not waking me up to go home meant you didn't go home?"
"Yup," she replied while nodding, "But it was worth it. Now I'm ready to find and capture that energy source and earn me a place in Everton."
"And how much sleep did you manage to get while working on it?"
"Point zero two." She responded, only to see a giant frown on his face, "I'll sleep later."
"Later never comes Twi." Flash grumbled as he went to a nearby wardrobe, pulling out a clean uniform for them both. "I need a shower. I'm assuming you called home?"
"Mom and dad knew we were staying over."
Flash didn't respond, instead opening the door to see a deserted hallway, "Alright. I'll get you a coffee on the way back. You should probably think about getting a shower too, as I suspect you'll be reeking after your little escapade yesterday."
Twilight was about to retort, but Spike took this moment to take a whiff of her and started moaning before covering his nose. Flash let out a laugh until Twilight grabbed one of her many stress toys Flash had given to her a while back before throwing it at him. Quickly shutting the door in response, he continued to laugh as he made his way through the halls to the gym shower room.
But as he made his way, a certain woman stepped around a corner. She was in her early twenties and had blush red skin with dark scarlet hair. The woman was wearing a pink suit and had a pair of silver glasses hanging around her neck.
"Hey Ruby," The woman looked up from her clipboard and growled.
"How many times must I tell you," she bonked him on the head with her pen. "When we're in school, it's Counselor Scarlet."
"Sorry, force of habit." Flash replied while rubbing his head, "I knew you as Ruby long before I started coming here."
Ruby rolled her eyes, "I'm guessing you being here means Ms. Sparkle had another late night science project?"
"You know us too well."
"Yes, I do." Ruby looked down at her clipboard, "However, I'm actually glad I ran into you. Have you given any further thought to what we discussed in your last session?"
Flash looked away, trying to form a smile. "Yeah...and I'm fine as is."
This made Ruby sigh, shaking her head, "Flash, you can't keep putting your life on pause."
"I'm not."
"Just one club, that's all I'm asking. One club, team, any extracurricular activity."
"I told you, I'm not interested."
"No, you just don't want anything that might get in the way of you keeping an eye on Twilight." Flash suddenly seemed very interested in the floor at that moment. "Flash, I'm not saying you can't keep looking out for her, but you can't let it be the only thing you do with your life. Your grades might not be anything to write home about, but you've got more skill than most kids your age would dream of. It's thanks to you that we won the baseball championships this year."
Flash huffed, remembering how a bout of food poisoning had laid out half the team and he had volunteered to step in to help fill the last spot they needed. He then managed to score six home runs, despite never having played the game before. The coach immediately asked to try out for the next season...only to decline the offer.
"Then there's your football skill." Flash sighed again as she continued, "When you hopped in for the student that had twisted their ankle in practice, you helped win that game no problem. If the professional teams saw how good you were, your future would be set."
"Sounds interesting," Flash muttered as he looked away again, "Let me think about it." He then tried to walk passed her, only for her to grab his shoulder.
"I would if you were actually gonna think about it. If you don't want to play sports, there has to be something else Flash. I've seen how good you are with the guitar. Have you thought about putting a band together?"
Flash shook his head, "Nah, playing's more of a hobby. It would suck all the fun out if it was something I had to do work for."
Ruby shook her head, "Fine. But if that's the case...have you thought about police work? Most of your grades are just above average, but your chemistry skills are close to Twilight's. You're always watching those crime shows: Murder in Paradise, Midsummer Slaughter and whatever else. I'm sure you'd love studying forensic science."
For the smallest millisecond, a look of intrigue appeared on his face...only to disappear as he shook his head. "That doesn't really sound like my kind of thing." He then lightly pushed her aside, "Sorry Counselor Scarlet, maybe next time."
"Flash..." She almost growled, making him glance back at her, "Do you think Twilight would like it if she knew you were throwing your life away because of her?" Flash didn't say anything, just looking away as she continued, "You can't always be there for her. There will be a time where she'll need to be able to stand up for herself, and you watching over her isn't going to help that. What do you think will happen if she gets into Everton? You can't be there for her then."
Flash continued to say nothing as he started to walk away, Ruby sighing at the sight. And as this exchange happened, a certain bespectacled girl leaned around a corner, showing herself to be Twilight. She had her hands over her mouth, trying to keep quiet as she had listened to the entire conversation.
But despite listening to it, it wasn't anything she didn't already know. She had always needed Flash to keep her from getting bullied, as it was one of the things she loved about him. However, she could only sigh as she walked away. The girl wanted to walk into the conversation, telling Flash to stop and find his happiness...but she couldn't do it. This was why she had to get into the Everton's Independent Study Program. No one would pick on her there, meaning Flash wouldn't have to watch over her.
"I need to find out what those energy readings are..." She whispered to herself, "I...have to. For me and Flash."
Flash sighed as he walked under the water, letting the liquid hit his body as he stood there. He could feel the water turn cold as memories flowed through his head.
Ten years ago...
Flash had lived in an orphanage for as long as he could remember. He had been dropped there as a baby, now living there for seven years. It was the first snowfall of the season that day, Flash now with the rest of the children at a nearby park. They had just finished a snowball fight, Flash knowing they were about to head back soon.
It was here that Flash made his way to a swing in the park, a fun idea popping into his head. He started to swing back and forth, getting some leverage before leaping as high as he could. "WOOHOO!" he cheered, only to fall into a large pile of snow. "COLD!" he yelped as his head pulled out of the pile, quickly trying to climb out of the clump of snow.
The boy started to shiver, grabbing his sides as he walked out of the snow with a huge smile on his face. But as he turned to go back to the group, his ears spiked as he started to hear the sound of laughter. He then turned around, now seeing a trio of older boys in the distance. There, they were all staring down a bespectacled girl with purple skin and hair.
Blinking at the sight, he tiptoed over to the group, now hearing one of the boys, "What's the matter four-eyes?!"
"Aw, I think she's gonna cry."
"What a baby."
Flash then saw what they were talking about, the girl was now close to tears. "Hey! Cut it out!" he yelled as he started running at the three, only to start slipping on the snowy, icy ground. "Hey!"
"Huh?" one said, all turning to him as he then added, "Hey, look at that shrimp."
"Who are you?" The lead bully continued.
"I'm Flash Sentry," he declared before pointing at the three, "And you better leave her alone if you know what's good for you."
"Oh yeah?" The last one asked, "And what if we don't?" They all stared at Flash with grins, only to see Flash clench his hands into fists.
"Then I'll make you! RAAAHHH!"
One quick and painful fight scene later...
Laughter filled the air as the three boys looked down at the moaning boy, bruises covering his body as he laid on the ground. The girl had watched in frozen fear-filled horror, tears now going down her face as she saw the bullies glance up at her.
That is, till a voice yelled out, "Hey!" The laughing stopped at this, making them turn to see an older boy and girl running up, one having white skin and blue hair while the other had pink skin and hair.
"Oh crap!" One yelped.
"Run!" Another cried before they all ran away, the two teens arriving just as they left.
"Twilight!" The teen girl grabbed the younger one and looked her over, "Are you okay?"
The girl nodded, "I'm fine." She then pointed at Flash, "But he got hurt because of me."
The teen boy glared at the fleeing boys, only to look down at Flash, seeing the injuries on his body. But before they could do anything, Flash's eyes shot open before suddenly sitting up, "Hey, I'm not done!" He started swinging his fists around randomly, "I'll teach you not to mess with me!"
But as he said this, he blinked as he saw that the trio was gone, two teens now staring at him, "Huh? Who are you?" He then clutched his face as he started to register the pain. "Oh..."
"Are you okay?" The teen girl asked, the younger one hiding behind her leg. She saw how badly he had been beaten, surprised he wasn't breaking out into tears.
"Yeah, it's nothing." He picked himself up and started to walk off, patting his sides as he started to stumble. "Ow..."
"Wait!" he looked back, the glasses girl quickly zipping in front of the teens as she stared at the ground.
"Yeah?"
She slowly looked up at him, "I uh...I um...Thank you for helping me. Even though it meant you got hurt."
Flash shined a tiny smile, flinching at the pain, "Eh, it was nothing. Any decent person would do it, right?"
The two teens both shared a glance, nodding as the male stepped up next, "Hang on there kid, we need to thank you. Come on, we'll take you back to your parents. Are you here with your mom or your dad?" But as those words left his mouth, they saw a huge frown grace Flash's face, "What's wrong?"
"I...don't have a mom. Or a dad."
"Oh. Sorry." he replied, gulping at the response before asking, "Um...why don't we start somewhere else then? I'm Shining Armor, and this is Cadance and Twilight. What's your name?"
That was the day Flash Sentry was introduced to Twilight and her family. Afterwards, they would invite him over to play with Twilight, this leading to them asking him to come live with them. Flash would spend the next ten years looking out for Twilight, who seemed to be a magnet for those looking to push someone around...that is, when Flash wasn't there.
The Present...
Sunset let out a long sigh, her eyes glaring at the sheets and graphs she had set up in the library. She kept thinking back to the assembly Celestia had allowed Rainbow to do to get everyone psyched up for the Friendship Games. This involved the marching band playing a huge musical number, which ended up actually helped everyone get pumped up. Sunset was also in this group of being psyched, only to start panicking as Rainbow suddenly ponied up with no explanation.
This made her have nothing but a headache, now remembering an experiment she had set up a few weeks ago. She had set up a test where her friends all played their instruments and ponied up as she recorded the results...only to get the results of being buried by apples, slammed by cannonball balloons, and splatted by a rainbow of color.
In the end, she had only one conclusion: She had zero idea how magic worked in this world.
However, despite this failure, she knew that if they were gonna start ponying up out of the blue, it was going to be a problem. Vice-Principal Luna had asked her to figure this out, fearing the appearance of magic might be seen as cheating by the other team.
Sighing at the memory of the request, she put down the graphs and pulled out her journal. "I can't do this alone. If you need help, you ask a friend, right Twilight?" She said to herself before opening it up and taking a pen to paper:
Hey Twilight, haven't heard back from you yet. I know you must be pretty busy with your role as princess, but I could really use your advice right now. You see, I've been given the job of keeping magic under control here at CHS, even though I still haven't quite wrapped my head around it. And now after seeing Rainbow Dash pony up the way she did, it makes me think her magic might be... changing. Everyone is looking to me to figure things out, and I really don't wanna let them down. I...I don't think I have enough experience with friendship magic to solve this.
Please help me, your friend Sunset.
She shut the book, sighing as she leaned back in her chair. "Oh...I so hope this doesn't turn into a huge deal."
Crystal Prep...
The bell rung to signal the start of the lunch period, multiple doors opening as the students of Crystal Prep ran out into the hallway. Flash was among them, barely even looking where he was going. No one dared to get in his way, as he was well trained in self-defense, something Twilight's brother had taught him to help keep her out of trouble. He had only ever needed it once, and it was when he and Twilight first entered the school. That one time had been enough to make sure almost no one tried to mess with him, almost no one.
"Hey Sentry!" The teen came to a halt at the voice, spinning around to see and sigh at the sight of five certain girls. They were Sour Sweet, Sugarcoat, Sunny Flare, Indigo Zap and Lemon Zest, the top students in both academics and sports at Crystal Prep. The only one who trounced them in academics were Twilight, and not to brag, Flash in sports, with the exception of one student that was nearly his equal in that regard.
The six growled at him, Indigo Zap now walking right up to his face. "What's this about you not competing in the Friendship Games?!"
Flash's face remained stoic as he reached up to poke her in the forehead and push her back to a reasonable distance, "I would have thought it was obvious. I got picked to join the Friendship Games, but then I said no. Nice chat, let's do it again some time. I'm free the January after the next."
He turned to walk away, only for Sour Sweet to zip around him with a big grin. "That's so funny. You're so funny." She growled in a dry tone, "But there's nothing funny about a guy who shirks his responsibilities!"
Flash rolled his eyes at this, "Seriously?! Why do you care?! Haven't you all been going on the last few weeks about how you could win the Friendship Games single-handedly?"
"We can!" Sugarcoat barked while crossing her arms, "But the rules clearly state we need a team to compete against Canterlot High, and it's only logical that the best students are on that team to best ensure the most efficient means of victory."
Flash just shrugged, "Wow...I'm so moved by your awe-inspiring speech. I think I'll go rejoin the team," He said while trying to hold back his laughter.
Sunny Flare then growled at him, stomping in front of the teen, "Don't mock us! Heck, why do you even bother coming here if you're not gonna make use of Crystal Prep's reputation?! I bet if that Twilight girl didn't come here, you wouldn't even show up for school!"
"Eh, I don't know about that," Flash replied, shrugging again.
"Oh please!" Indigo screeched, "All you ever do is nip at her heels. She might as well have two dogs instead of one. What, gotta hard-"
"Don't finish that sentence if you know what's good for you," Flash hissed before turning to Lemon. Out of the five girls, she was the only one he would be willing to call a friend since they shared a similar interest in rock music. "What's your view in this?" Lemon just shrugged, making him shake his head, "Yeah, I thought so. Welp, if we're done here, I suddenly have a craving for a grilled cheese. Later girls."
"Oh no you don't! We're not done here!" Sour Sweet yelled.
"Leave him alone!" ordered a new voice, making them turn to see four new students walking up. Leading the group was a taller teen boy with yellow skin and spiky white hair, a pair of headphones hanging around his neck. Next to him was a shorter boy with red skin and green hair that hung down to cover his right eye, while another was the tallest boy of the group, having blue skin and spiky short black hair. The last one was the only girl of the group, who had green skin and orange hair that was in a ponytail with a pair of thin glasses over her eyes.
Sour huffed, "Lightning Blitz. What do you want?"
"Nothing," the teen replied before pointing to Flash. "I'm just here for him." Flash raised an eyebrow at this as Lightning continued, "Dean Cadance sent me to search for you. Principal Cinch wants to talk to you and Twilight."
"Okay..." Flash replied, walking past the girls, "Later ladies." He then reached Lightning, the five all turning away from the girls as they all growled at the sight. "Thanks man," he said once they were safely out of earshot. "Man, those girls can be seriously annoying."
"I wasn't making it up," Lightning countered.
"Principal Cinch does wish to speak with you," the green hair boy added, "I assume she intends to get you to join the Friendship Games."
"Great..." Flash moaned, shaking his head.
"Come on, its not all bad." the black haired boy continued while slinging an arm around Flash, "I hear CHS has some cool kids over there you could meet at the games. What was that one you said was a wild party animal Lightning?"
"That's Pinkie Pie," Lightning replied, "She might just be the only person in the world more insane than you."
"Nice. That should be fun."
"Ah, that's right," the girl added as she pushed her glasses up, "You used to attend CHS, didn't you Lightning?"
"Not till they kicked me out," Lightning responded while shrugging, "Even though I was framed, they decided to give me the boot. Not that I mind though..." he shined a grin at the three. "I mean, I got to meet you guys."
They were all about to give happy replies back, only for Flash to see Twilight coming down the opposite side of the hallway. "Hey Twi, did you get told about this to?"
"Yes," Twilight replied, nodding as they both turned to the door, the frame giving off a vibe that made it look three times the size it really was. Twilight gulped as she turned to see Flash's accompaniment begin to head off.
"Good luck," Lightning told him.
"You're gonna need it," the girl added as they headed off. Once they were gone, the two turned back to the door.
"Well, might as well get this over with." Flash pushed the door open, the piece of polished wood giving off a creak as they looked into the room.
The room was almost in pure darkness, the place being illuminated by a single overhead light and several small lamps stationed around the room. At the far end was a large wooden desk with a large chair behind it and two small stools at the front. They then stepped inside, spotting a woman they both knew as Dean Cadance standing next to the door. She gave them a big grin, both shining nervous smiles back before sitting down on the stools. And as they did this, the two heard the door slam shut, making them turn to see that the door had been hiding a white-skinned man with blue hair wearing a purple jumper with a shield insignia on it.
"Shining Armor?" Twilight asked.
"What are you doing here?" Flash finished before Cadance walked up to them.
"As an alumni, Principal Cinch thought he could provide an unique perspective."
"Perspective on what?"
"Why the Friendship Games, of course." The teens spun around at the voice as the large chair did the same, revealing a late aged woman with blue skin, multi-purple shades of hair, half-moon glasses on her face while wearing a blue suit. This was the woman in charge of Crystal Prep, Principal Cinch, who was now staring at Shining, "You competed in the games, did you not, Shining Armor?"
Flash looked back around and smirked as he saw Shining dreamly stare at Cadance, only to clear his throat and nod, "I did."
"And do you happen to recall who won?" This question was met with a chuckle from Shining, who crossed his arms and leaned his back against the wall.
"Crystal Prep did. We always win."
Cinch nodded before turning back to Twilight and Flash, "We always win."
Flash rolled his eyes as Twilight did a small gulp, both now seeing Cinch move over to a trophy case as Twilight asked, "Why did you ask to see us?"
"Well Twilight, I'll be honest." she started polishing a trophy, "It doesn't matter whether or not Crystal Prep wins or loses." She glared into the trophy, seeing her own rotten reflection. "The important thing is we are expected to win because Crystal Prep has a reputation." She turned back around, glaring at the two, "And it is that reputation...my reputation, that is responsible for everything we have here. For everything you've done here. And you've done quite a lot, haven't you?
"I don't know," Twilight replied, slightly shrinking back at the principal's glare, "I guess."
"Oh, don't be so modest. You're the best academic student this school has ever seen." Cinch sat back down and turned to Flash, "And you Mr. Sentry, have competed in at least one game for each sports team and has been the reason for victory in each of them."
Flash just shrugged in response, "Eh, I was just helping when they needed someone to fill in for a missing player. It's not like I've done anything too groundbreaking."
"Don't sell yourself short," Shining chimed in. "Some of those games were recorded, and I got to see them. You've got mad skills. You could go pro if you just applied yourself."
"Exactly," Cinch added while snapping her fingers, "That's the whole reason I allowed you to attend this school despite your average test scores. But what I can't understand is why my best students wouldn't want to compete in the Friendship Games."
Twilight tilted her head with a frown, "But...me and Flash aren't competing."
"Hold on there Twily," they turned to Shining again. "I know it's not really your thing, but representing the school is kind of a big deal. Plus, they could really use your help."
Cinch nodded as she reached into a drawer and pulled out a sheet. "It seems Canterlot High is undergoing something of a renaissance. Test scores are up, grades, even athletics are on the rise. You see, they are developing somewhat of a reputation. This can not happen!"
"Why not?" Flash asked, "Who cares if we lose? Heck, who's bright idea was the name of these games anyway? If the whole point is to try and improve relations between the school, then wouldn't pitting them against one another be kinda..."
"Counterproductive?" Twilight finished for him.
"Exactly."
"How the games came about is none of our concern. What is our concern is claiming absolute victory in them. And with you two working together, that victory is absolutely assured."
Twilight took this moment to speak up. "Principal Cinch, I can't possibly participate in the games. My work here is very-"
"Ah yes, your work." she almost hissed, her tone making a shiver go down both Flash and Twilight's spines. "Cadance, could you and Shining Armor find my contact sheet for the Everton Independent Study program?"
"Of course," the dean nodded before the pair left the room.
"And you Mr. Sentry, can you please go get Counselor Scarlet. I'd like to hear her opinion on the Friendship Games." Flash frowned at this, not wanting to move, only for her to look up and glare at him, "Now, Mr. Sentry." He let out a growl before sighing, him and Twilight sharing nervous glance as he left.
As the door to the office closed, Cinch began to smile again as she spoke up, "Twilight, I understand you've applied for the Study Program." She pulled out a folder. "You see, one of the advantages of having a reputation is the ability to have a certain amount of influence in such things." She placed the folder in front of Twilight, "So let me offer you a deal. In return for contributing your agile mind to these games, I will use my influence to guarantee your application is approved. Though, I suppose I could also have it...denied."
Twilight's eyes shrunk, now seeing where Cinch was going with this, "Wait, that's...that's blackmail."
"Is it?" Cinch replied as her grin began to grow, "Or is it just a simple business proposal?"
"You shouldn't be making deals," Twilight responded, shaking her head, "As a teacher...you should be doing your best to make sure every student has the best possible chance to succeed."
Cinch shook her head, hiding a frown before leaning back in her chair, "You're right. I should be making sure my students have the best possible chance. But you know, sometimes that requires...sacrifice."
"What?"
"Well, if Crystal Prep were to lose, some of our sponsors could decide to transfer their funding to Canterlot High. If that happens, there will need to be cutbacks to ensure the school stays afloat. One of those cutbacks would be to expel a small number of students." Twilight gasped at the suggestion, only for Cinch to open another folder, "Let's see...if I was forced to expel someone, who would be the student at the top of that list? The one whose grades are below the normal standard and isn't part of any school team...." Twilight started to shrink in her seat as she heard this, Cinch shining a big grin as she took a file out of the folder, "Ah, that's right." She placed the file and pushed it over with a slight nudge, "One Flash Sentry."
Twilight's eyes slowly grew larger at the sight, making her stutter out, "B-B-But..."
"Ms. Sparkle, let me ask you this. What do you think I should do?" Twilight looked up into the principal's eyes, now seeing the look of a viper now glaring at her.
Twilight knew only one thing at that moment. She knew Cinch was serious with her threat. If Crystal Prep lost, Flash would be expelled.
"So..." Flash said in a rather skeptical tone as he watched Twilight setup her backpack, "Tell me again why you suddenly decided to enter the friendship games?"
"Oh, you know." Twilight grabbed a notebook and placed it in her bag, "I just figured I could help the school one last time as a...going away present."
"Usually the going away present is given to the one going away."
"Very funny. Besides, I'm sure competing would also be a good subject to add to my Everton resume."
"You already need to make the font on that resume microscopic just to fit it on one page! What else could you possibly need to add to it?" Twilight just shrugged as she reached for her jumper, only for Spike to grab it in his teeth and pull.
"Ugh! Spike, stop it!" she groaned while pulling back, "I was always gonna go to Canterlot High for the Friendship Games." The puppy then let the jumper go, "The only difference now is that I have to compete."
Flash huffed while picking up Twilight's new scanner, leaning against a wall and throwing it up in the air. "Guess this means you won't be able to do any studying on that weird energy."
"I'll admit, I probably won't be able to collect anywhere near as much data as I thought," she stood up and caught the midair scanner, "But maybe I can still get some." She then pulled out some string and looped it through a hole in the device, tying it off around her neck to give it a necklace appearance.
They then both heard Spike whimper as he brushed up against Twilight's leg, his owner smiling as she pulled him into a hug. "Spike, I wouldn't leave without you." She lowered him into her bag, "Just remember to be quiet....and try not to shed."
"There are worse things he could do in your bag than shed," Flash told her as she put the bag on, only to turn and glare at him, "What?! Remember when you took him to the museum and you were worried on how he would react in the dinosaur exhibit?"
"Yeah well, him doing that won't set off Cinch's fun allergy. Now come on."
She headed for the door, but Flash blocked the door, "Twilight, tell me honestly...is there something you're not telling me?"
The two stared at one another for several seconds, only for Twilight to shine a big smile, "You worry too much. I promise there's nothing going on. Let's just get these games over with and everything can go back to normal."
Flash just glared at her, only to let out a long sigh, "Alright...if you're sure everything's alright."
"I am." It was here that they headed through the school, reaching the front to see two large buses waiting to transport everyone to CHS. "Which bus do we get on?" Flash was about to reply, but Twilight then went over to Cadance as the woman checked something off her clipboard. "Dean Cadance, I'm not really sure where to go."
"One second, Twilight." Cadance walked off, leaving the two as Sour spoke up in a dark tone.
"You could try the end of the line!"
Flash and Twilight turned to her, Flash giving her a hard glare, "Excuse me?!"
Sour's face switched to a bright yet obviously fake smile, "Just that, you know, someone as smart as your friend should definitely go first."
Twilight yelped as she now realized she and Flash were both standing at the front of the bus line, having accidentally cut in when they spoke to Cadance. "I...I didn't mean to. I was just asking-"
"This is the right bus, Twilight." They turned to Cadance as she gestured to the bus, "Go on ahead."
"But...I didn't mean to cut-"
"Well it's too late now!" Sour Sweet scoffed, Flash spinning around to glare at her, only to see a giant innocent grin.
"You ever considering getting tested for multiple personality disorder?!"
"Do you ever consider not being annoying?!"
Flash just rolled his eyes at this as they boarded the bus, only to find Indigo scream out, "ARE WE GONNA WIN?!"
Spit flew into Twilight's face, Spike whining while covering his ears in the bag as Twilight replied, "I...I don't know."
"Wrong answer!!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, "Try again! Are...we gonna...WIN?!?!"
"Not if you deafen us before we get there," Flash grumbled as he stuck his pinky in his ear.
"Oh, don't be such a drama queen," Indigo growled as she slumped over in a chair.
Flash just rolled his eyes before seeing Lightning and his friends sitting near the back, gesturing Twilight to move over there. The other members of the Shadowbolts all moved their bags so that the two couldn't sit down, making the duo even more want to go to the back, where Flash sat near a window with Twilight next to him. Twilight then saw a certain girl sitting opposite seat to them. "Hi Sugarcoat, are you looking forward to the games?"
"The games are not something to look forward too," she replied in a monotone voice. "If we lose, we'll go down in school history as the only Crystal Prep team to lose to Canterlot High. That shame will follow us right up until we graduate and possibly to any future schooling and job opportunitys."
"So I'm guessing that's a no," Flash chuckled, getting a glare from the girl.
"Just ignore her Flash," Gorgenia told him while applying her eyeshadow. "Losing a silly little game won't change how our future turns out."
"It might..." Twilight whispered as she reached into her bag to stroke Spike's ear.
"What was that?" Flash asked, Twilight looking away before he could see her face.
"Nothing," she responded as Lemon Zest took the seat next to Sugarcoat.
She was rocking out, dancing before turning to Twilight, "DUDE!" She took her headphones off, "YOU HAVE GOTTA HEAR THIS!" She quickly placed them over Twilight's ears, the girl suddenly bombarded with loud rock music as the bus pulled away.
And as the bus started to move, Flash glanced out the window and watched the city fly past them, only to then turn to Lightning, "Hey Lightning," The teen and his friends looked back, Twilight taking the headphones off as well. "You used to go to this school, so our competitors will your old classmates."
"Obviously."
"Do you have any idea who they'll be? If we know that, we'll know what we're up against."
"Good idea," Script added, "Information is the foundation of victory. The stronger the foundation, the more assured it'll be."
Twilight nodded in agreement. "That is true. Knowing our opponent's strengths and weaknesses will allow us to strategize against them."
"We already got a strategy," Wild replied while leaning back against the window. "Win."
Lightning laughed as he slumped back in his chair, "Well, if I had to take a guess...my old bandmate Iron will probably be competing. If we're lucky, Heather and First won't have entered. Those two are never ones to stand in the spotlight."
"And they're supposed to be in a band?" Gorgenia asked.
"Yeah, but Iron loves to compete in physical stuff. He and Rainbow Dash will be our biggest physical opponents."
"Rainbow Dash?" Twilight asked, that name striking a chord.
"I've heard of her," Flash added, "She's supposed to be one of the best players in soccer, baseball and a few other sports. If the school had more players like that, they might have made the playoffs this year."
"Exactly. She and Iron will be tough to deal with on the field. Applejack might also be a problem, being so strong."
"Well that's the physical side of the games," Script hummed. "But what about the academic aspects?"
"Eh, dunno about that. There were a lot of smart students at CHS, at least by their standards. Rarity, Bright Idea, Fluttershy and Micro Chips...at least, I think those were their names." Lighting started to rub his chin as a new memory popped into his head, "Then again, gramps told me that CHS got some new students in the fall. One of 'em was supposed to be really smart and the other was a tough customer. At least, that's what gramps said."
Script did a small gulp, "Well if Grand Hoof thinks they're good, we should make sure we keep our guard up. Any idea what their names are?"
"No, I wasn't really listening."
Flash sighed as he stared out the window, "Guess we'll have to wait til we get there. But whoever this smart new student is," he then elbowed Twilight, "They can't be as smart as this girl."
"Flash..." Twilight blushed while the others chuckled, the four now starting to small talk as Twilight only spoke up whenever she was asked something, trying to stay focused on her research more than anything else.
Meanwhile...
As the bus drew closer to the school, CHS was now finishing preparations for the games. Inside one of the rooms, the Rainbooms were all practicing their music while in full ponied up mode. The girls then finished their song with an epic pose, smirking as their wings, ears and tails disappeared. Rainbow cheered as she said, "I hope the Friendship Games have a music competition, because we would totally rock it!" She strung a chord with that last statement, Sunset shaking her head at the statement.
"We're supposed to keep magic out of the Friendship Games Rainbow, remember?" Rainbow scoffed at this, Rarity sighing as she powdered her nose.
"Easier said than done, darling. I'm sure in Equestria, magic does whatever you want. But..."
"This isn't Equestria," Sunset sighed before Applejack patted her shoulder.
"Well, when it comes to magic, I'm sure ya'll figure it out."
Rarity nodded in agreement, "And while Sunset works on keeping the magic out of the games, I've been working on what to put in!"
She let out a giggle, making everyone turn to her as Applejack moaned, "Rarity...what'd you go an' do?" She got her answer as Rarity pulled a rack of different outfits out from nowhere, followed by several more racks.
"Well, I had a little time on my hands, and since we don't know what the Friendship Games' events are-" She leapt out of Rainbow's rack while holding a sports uniform, which she quickly threw on Rainbow. "I made a few options for uniforms!"
"You really didn't have to do that," Rainbow told her while looking over the clothes.
"I know," Rarity sighed with a huge smile.
"No," Applejack showed off a bunch of frilly dresses, "You really didn't have to."
"I know!" Rarity giggled again before she started dressing each girl in different costumes, taking measurements while looking like she was having the time of her life.
"Hey girls!" They heard Heather's voice as the Royal Knights walked into the room. "The Crystal Prep kids just arrived. Might be a good idea to-" She stopped when she saw Rarity was in a frenzy, the rest of the Rainbooms giving them a look that screamed 'save yourselves.' "You're...busy," the three started to slowly back away, "We'll...catch you later." They then broke into a run before Rarity could catch them, racing through the halls as fast as they could.
Outside...
The Crystal Prep bus had now arrived, everyone disembarking as Flash and Twilight were at the back of the line. Flash had pulled Twilight back since most of the girls tended to rush off the bus stampede style. And as they waited to step off, Celestia was talking to Cinch with a bright smile on her face. "Vice-Principal Luna can help your students get settled if you would like me to show you around, Principal Cinch. There have been quite a few changes since your last visit."
"Oh yes, Principal Celestia." Cinch muttered out, "I'm sure that would be...fascinating."
Luna then squeed as she spotted Cadance and Ruby, the dark-skinned women pulling the counselor in for a hug. "Ruby! Oh, you being here is always the best bit of the games.!"
"Agreed!" Ruby laughed as she embraced her back. She and Luna had been roommates in college, Luna studying education while Ruby had original been studying law with a minor in psychology. "After the games, we should go out for drinks. Maybe your sister and Cadance can join us."
"Hopefully...though Celestia can be a bit of a bummer about that." Luna added before pulling Cadance into a hug as well. "It's always such a pleasure to see you Dean Cadance, even if it means another defeat."
Cadance giggled as she slung an arm around Luna, "Thank you Vice Principal Luna, but I hear it's not going to be so easy this time." The three women continued to talk and walk, Flash and Twilight now stepping off the bus and staring up at the school.
"So this is CHS..." Flash commented as he stared at the building, "I gotta admit, I was expecting more."
"The good stuff is inside," Lightning responded as he leaned against the bus, only to raise an eyebrow, "Though uh, did they redo the front of the building?"
"I'm sure it's just because you haven't seen the place in a while," Script added.
"It does look nice," Flash continued as he saw a few students walk by with big grins on their faces, "Seems like a friendly place."
"Hey!" they turned to Sour Sweet, the girl growling at them, "We're not here to be friendly, we're here to crush this school!"
Flash rolled his eyes at this, but then Twilight grabbed and pulled him away as she said, "You're right Sour," she pushed her glasses up her nose, "Why don't you go ahead?"
Sour's face swapped to a cheerful one. "You are such a sweetie!" She then walked by, whispering into Twilight's ear, "I am watching you!"
And as they glared back at her, Lemon Zest followed her while playing air guitar. Sugarcoat was next, glancing at Twilight as she stepped by. "You are kind of being a doormat right now."
"It's called being nice," Flash told her as she walked off. "You girls might want to try it sometime."
"Forget them," Twilight added before her scanner started beeping. A giant smile appearing on her face, she began to walk away, Flash following her.
"Hey, uh...is it a good idea to wander from the group?"
"We'll be fine," she answered as she walked up to the school's statue, "Hmmm....there doesn't seem to be any readings from this thing anymore."
"Maybe they moved whatever was causing it inside," Flash commented as he put his hand on the statue, "You said they spotted-YOW!" He pulled his hand away, Twilight and Spike turning to him with worry on their faces.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I think so." he stared at his hand while feeling a weird tingle run through it. "It felt like...I don't know, static shock?"
"From stone?" Twilight asked, Flash just shrugging. She rolled her eyes and turned to the school, following her device with intense focus, Flash following as he didn't notice some small golden sparks absorbed into his fingers.
They both then reached the front doors, now seeing two girls as both turned to them and shined a smile that you would only share with someone you know. "Hi, Twilight." They heard the cream skinned girl say with a wave.
"What's up Flash?" The aquamarine girl added.
"Err..." was all he could say at first, "Not...much?" The two walked off as both blinked at what had just happened.
"Hey, Twilight!" They turned to see another girl wave at them, both now exchanging glances as they kept walking. As they did this, more people kept waving and greeting them as they passed through the hallways.
"Hi, Twilight."
"Hi, Flash.
"Hey you two, lookin' good!"
"Great to see you both again."
"Um..." Twilight scratched her head as she tried to respond, "Hi?"
"Nice to...meet you?" Flash meeped out as they kept looking at each other with pure confusion on their faces.
"Hey," another girl cheered, "What's happenin'?"
"Uh...total strangers are treating us like they know who we are, that's what's happening....I guess?" Flash muttered out, but the girl was already gone. He then leaned down and whispered, "What is going on?!"
"I have no idea." Twilight squeaked out as another few walked by.
"Really nice to see you."
"Flash, my man!"
"Twilight, how ya doin'?"
"Flash!"
"Twilight, yo!"
"Oookay," Flash bit his lip as they turned a corner, "I'm gonna freak out if-oof!" He yelped as a trio of students crashed into the pair, all of them falling over with a loud groan as they formed a five-person one puppy dogpile on the floor.
They moaned while trying to pull themselves free. "Hey!" A gruff voice yelled as Flash was pushed off the owner, the teen turning to see Iron Core getting up, "Why don't you watch where you're-" He stopped before going wide-eyed, "Sentry?"
"Uh..." was all Flash could say as they stood themselves up, "Can I...help you?" The next thing he knew, he was being tackled by Heather and pulled into a tight hug as she let out a squeal.
"I can't believe you're back! It's so great to see you!"
"And...you?" Flash gingerly patted her on the back, looking down to see Twilight still on the floor, now trying to find her glasses as they fell off. But before he could pry the girl hugging him off, First Aid picked up the girl's glasses and slowly put them on.
"Did something happen to you Twilight?" He asked once the glasses were safely on her face, "Some kind of accident back home that made you need glasses?"
"What?" Twilight yelped as she started to adjust her glasses, "What are you-"
Iron let out a laugh, "HA! You would have thought they'd have some way of fixing eyesight. I mean, do you even have any diseases back where you come from?"
Flash and Twilight just stared at them, their eyes twitching as they unable to even respond. But as this happened, Twilight's scanner started to brighten, making her grab Flash's arm with a yank, "Um...we gotta go!"
With that, she zipped away with a confused Flash, both quickly going past another corner of the hallway. As this happened, Heather turned to her bandmates, "What's up with them?"
"Not sure." First replied before tilting his head, "They acted like they did not know us."
It was here that Heather's eyes shrunk as she said, "Wait...were they wearing Crystal Prep uniforms?"
The boys went wide-eyed at her comment, Iron now whispering, "They can't be."
"Could they?" First added.
Back with the Rainbooms, they were still suffering Rarity's elongated dressing fittings. Currently, Fluttershy was dressed like a hokey play, Rainbow a stereotypical cop, Pinkie as a cowgirl, the normal cowgirl as a racquetball player and Sunset was in a welder's uniform, complete with a protective mask. All the while, Rarity was zipping around the place taking more measurements and making quick changes to them.
It was here that Applejack spoke up, "Uh Rarity, these outfits are great, but why would you put so much time and effort into clothes we might not even wear? Ya'll gonna exhaust yerself before the games even start."
"Oh, pff. Kch. Fff. Ts!" She announced with a small wave, "Don't be silly, darling!" She then squeed as she saw the others in the clothes she had worked on. "Putting effort into clothes is what I live for, and spending time on my friends fills me with so much energy!"
As soon as she said those words, her entire body exploded with purple magic before she ponied up, everyone gasping at this as Sunset lifted her mask to stare at her, "And magic too, I guess."
And as this happened, Twilight and Flash were still following the device. But as they did this, Flash kept asking, "How?! How can they know us when we've never been here before?!"
"I don't know," Twilight replied, "Maybe-" She didn't finish as her scanner went haywire, gasping as she saw the device pick up a big surge of energy. Before they could say anything, the device opened and pointed itself toward a cracked open door. As it did this, a kind of purple mist flowed out of the door and into Twilight's scanner, collecting it before slamming shut.
Both teens just blankly stared at it, the beeping now going non-existent, "That was...weird. Was it supposed to do that?"
"No idea." Twilight responded before looking up at the door, "But I know one thing. The source of this energy has got to be in there!"
She quickly slammed the door open, only for the room occupants to turn and gasp, "TWILIGHT!"
"Huh?" Twilight yelped as she heard her name as Flash leaned into the room.
"FLASH!" They yelled before running up to them.
"Well ah'll be," Applejack put an arm around Twilight's neck. "Ya'll shoulda told us you were comin'!"
"Why would we?" Flash grabbed her arm and pulled it off Twilight.
As he did this, Rarity narrowed her eyes at both, "Darling, why are you wearing those glasses? In fact, what are you two wearing?! It's so...severe."
The two looked down at their clothes, blinking as Twilight muttered out, "Uh...our uniforms?"
"Your uniform for what?" Fluttershy asked, Flash rolling his eyes.
"Well, let's think," Flash barked back, "Why would two teenagers be wearing uniforms at a school? Maybe...for school?"
"But...those are Crystal Prep uniforms."
"Nothing gets past you, does it?" Flash countered while crossing his arms, "Now, can someone please tell us what the heck is going on?!"
Twilight nodded in agreement, "Right. Why does everyone at this school think they know who we are?!" As she asked this, a certain puppy shot his head out her bag with a bark.
"SPIKE!" Rarity and Fluttershy cheered, Fluttershy reaching up to pet him until Twilight pulled away.
"Wha...you know my dog's name too?!"
"What's with this place?! Who are you people?!" Flash yelled as he stepped in front of Twilight as if to shield her, "Have you been spying on us?! Know thy enemy kind of thing?!"
"Enemy?!" The girls all gasped, going wide-eyed as they all exchanged glances. As they did this, a pair of principals walked by the room, one of them noticing the two.
"Flash? Twilight?"
The two sighed as Twilight growled, "This is getting ridiculous!"
Principal Cinch took this moment to move over and place an arm on Twilight's shoulder. "I must apologize for the curiosity of my prized students."
"Your students?" Celestia yelped, just now noticing their attire.
"The smart ones are always curious," she began to push Twilight away with Flash following. "I'll return them to check in with the rest of there classmates."
Before anyone could say anything, they disappeared around a corner, Celestia turning to the Rainbooms with wide eyes, "Oookay...I can buy one of them having an identical twin, but not two. Any idea what's going on girls?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Pinkie answered, "That Flash and Twilight are obviously the Flash and Twilight from this world since it couldn't possibly be the Flash and Twilight from the pony world since the Flash and Twilight from the pony world don't go to Crystal Prep and Pony Twilight doesn't wear glasses."
Celestia just stared at her, only for the others to now stare at her before Celestia turned away, "Nevermind. Just...get ready for the games."
Cinch was now in full marching mode, grumbling as Twilight spoke up, "I'm sorry Principal Cinch, I was just following these strange readings." She then looked down at her device, "It...for some reason, it led me to those girls and-"
"Twilight," she flinched as Cinch spun around and glared at her, "What you do in your free time is of little interest to me. But while you're here, I...all of Crystal Prep in fact, require your complete focus."
Flash raised an eyebrow at this, "Why? As long as Twilight is fine during the actual games, why should you care what else she's up too?"
"It's easier to remain focused one hundred percent of the time rather than needing to keep getting back into it. One slip up is all Canterlot High needs to beat us."
She rebegan her walk off, Flash huffing at her uptight attitude as Twilight asked, "But...why does everyone at this school seem to know us?"
Cinch glared back at her again, "Well...maybe they're trying to confuse you? Perhaps they're trying to lure you both away."
Twilight and Flash looked at each other before Twilight shook her head, "It didn't feel like anyone was trying to lure us."
Flash nodded in agreement, "Yeah. They actually seemed to care about us. Like they thought we were...friends."
Cinch gave them a death glare back, "That's nonsense. I don't know what they're planning, but I can guarantee, it isn't to help us win." She gestured for them to head back to the bus, Flash and Twilight sighing as they went back outside.
And as they did this, the pair leaned against the bus as Flash commented, "Well, this is definitely weird. You were right, this is one strange school Twilight."
Twilight started rubbing her chin in thought, "No kidding. Now I know that I definitely need to find out that energy source."
Back inside the school...
"I can't believe our world's Flash and Twilight go to Crystal Prep!" Rarity almost screamed as they headed down the hallway.
Rainbow let out a huff, "And you're saying that they're gonna play against us?! They'd never do that!"
Fluttershy turned to her, "our Flash and Twilight wouldn't."
Sunset, her stress now reaching its boiling point, snapped as she yelled. "Our Flash and Twilight are a knight and princess in Equestria and experts in friendship magic! And if they was here, we'd have already figured out why magic is randomly popping up during pep rallies and costume changes!" She started to pant, now seeing her friends all looking at her with a mix of fear and worry. "Sorry. I'm just frustrated that I haven't heard back from Twilight."
"She's a princess in Equestria," Applejack replied with a small shrug, "Probably got problems of her own to deal with."
Rarity nodded in agreement, "I agree. We certainly can't expect them to drop everything and pop through the portal whenever. Especially if it's to deal with something as minor as a few random pony-ups."
"But they aren't minor! Magic came into this world when I stole Twilight's crown, meaning this is my fault!" Sunset barked back, "Its...its taken a lot for me to earn everyone's trust. If we have to forfeit the games because I can't think of a way to keep the magic under control..."
"Oh Sunset," Fluttershy put her hand on her shoulder, "I'm sure you'll be able to figure things out."
Applejack patted her other shoulder, "She's right. You're the one who helped us understand what was goin' on with the sirens, remember?"
"I guess..." Sunset leaned against a locker as her hair fell in front of her face. "But Twilight was the one who really figured out what we needed to defeat them."
Rarity shook her head before pushing her hair away from her eyes. "But don't you remember, darling? What we needed to defeat them...was you."
Sunset saw a big smile on Rarity's face, making her chuckle as she replied, "Oh...alright."
Everyone cheered at this, Rainbow now speaking up, "Alright! Come on girls, let's see if we can find any info about the events and come up with a strategy." The others nodded and followed, Rainbow smirking until she heard only four sets of footsteps echoing with hers. She turned to see the red and yellow-haired girl still standing by the locker, "You comin' Sunset?"
"I'll...catch up with you girls in a bit." Rainbow nodded and they left, Sunset sighing as she pulled out her journal, "Darn it...still no reply."
Back outside...
Flash and Twilight were now talking about the possibility of them being brainwashed and possibly coming to CHS without realizing it, only for their wild ideas to be halted when Twilight's scanner started beeping. She quickly followed, Flash now a little hesitant as he saw it was going back to the statue. He made sure to keep his hands in his pocket to protect against static shocks as the duo saw the device beep loudly before opening.
As that happened, Sunset walked up to the other side of the statue, "Maybe there's another way I could reach her." But as she pressed her hand on the portal, it suddenly flashed yellow, only for it to pull her hand, "What the-let go!" She started to yell as she kept trying to pull her hand out, not noticing a red mist flow out of her hand and into the portal.
On the opposite side, Flash and Twilight both gasped as they saw the red mist fly into the teen's scanner. Twilight quickly tried to close the device, but it refused to close. "What's happening?" Flash asked, only for Twilight to slam the scanner shut.
The motion knocked Twilight flying back, slamming into Flash as both Sunset and Twilight let out a cry. Flash and Twilight got up first, now seeing the scanner sparking with blue lightning. But before he could ask what happened, Sunset stood up and glared at them, "What did you do?!"
Twilight shrunk back at the glare, snagging and holding her scanner protectively as Flash jumped in front of her. As he did this, Dean Cadance suddenly spoke up, "Flash, Twilight, you have to check in with the others." The two glanced at her before looking at Sunset one last time, only for both to run away as Sunset just glared at them.
Sunset turned back to the portal and reached out at the statue, only to feel solid rock. She gasped before patting the area of the stone sculpture, "Where's the portal?! WHERE'S THE PORTAL?!"
The bell soon rang, signaling the end of the school day. A barrage of students began to head for home, the rest remaining for a meet and greet between CHS's and Crystal Prep's Friendship Game participants. Ruby and Cadance were the ones leading the students through the halls, soon arriving at the gym where Ruby told them to stay there as she and Cadance went to check on something.
Seeing this, Flash and Twilight were now staying in the hallway corner, both showing glum frowns on her face. They were both thinking about the past few hours, mainly due to the energy they had seen at the statue...and those strange girls. Flash then glared at the Twilight's scanner, the girl fiddling with it as he asked, "Hey uh...think that thing is okay?"
"I...don't know." Twilight replied, watching the scanner stay silent despite the amount of energy it had just absorbed, "I just wish I was at my lab right now so I could examine this."
"No kidding. I got a real bad feeling about this."
"Hey," the two teens turned to see Lightning and his friends, "You two okay? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."
"It's...or something," Flash replied, scratching the back of his head at the time, "This school's starting to...creep us out. At least, I think that's the best word for it."
"Why?" Gorgenia asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Well-"
"Lightning!" yelled a sudden voice, making them turn to see Grand as he walked up and patted Lightning's shoulder, "Good to see you lad."
"Hey gramps," he replied before gesturing to his friends. "You've met Script, Wild and Gorgenia, right?"
"Yes," the man held out his hand, "Good to see you all again. Thanks again for keeping him out of trouble."
"The honor is all ours," Script replied while shaking his hand, "Though I don't understand what you mean by that."
"Agreed. He hasn't really gotten into any trouble," Gorgenia added.
Wild nodded in agreement, "Though that doesn't mean he doesn't know how to have a blast!"
Grand laughed at this, only to see Lightning gesture to two others. And as he turned to them, his eyes went wide in shock. The expression immediately made Flash sigh and shake his head as he asked, "Let me guess: you know our names without anyone telling you them, right?"
"Err..." was all Grand could say, gulping as he glanced between Lightning and his friends. Lightning was almost as shocked, knowing he had never seen his grandfather speechless before.
"Thought so," Flash grumbled with crossed arms.
"How...how are you..."
"Gramps? You okay?" Lightning asked as he put a hand on his shoulder, "What's wrong?" Grand didn't get an answer as in that moment, the doors opened to reveal Cadance and Ruby.
"Alright everyone, time to...Grand?" He turned to her as Ruby shined a big smile, "Grand, it's so nice to see you again." She then started to blink as she saw the shock on his face, "Are you alright?"
"I'm..." he did one last glance at Flash, "Fine. I...I gotta get going. Work to do, you know."
"Of course. We won't keep you." Grand nodded and ran off, the rest of Crystal Prep students now staring at the fleeing janitor.
"Wow. Your grandfather is obviously senile," Sunny Flare told Lightning. "Is it even safe for him to be working in that condition?"
"Gramps is perfectly fine," Lightning barked back before looking back, "But something's spooked him. It's like he saw a ghost." He then turned to Flash and Twilight, "Are you sure you've never met him before?"
"Definitely," Flash replied.
"And he's not the only person here who seems to know Flash and me," Twilight added as she twiddled with the scanner in her fingers, "Everyone here seems to know us, and I don't just mean they know our names. They're acting like they've met us before and spent time with us."
"That is strange," Script commented, "Why would they act like that? You've never been here, right?"
"No. We've never been here before-"
"Everyone, please come along! Its time for the meet and great." Cadance interrupted, the students turning before walking into the gym. It was here they saw that it was well decorated, a banner reading the words 'Welcome Crystal Prep' hanging above the stage.
And as they walked inside, Flash and Twilight quickly saw some teens to the side, Lightning zipping over to them with a smile on his face, "Iron!"
The teen turned to smile at him, the two bumping fists before pulling each other into a guy hug. "Lightning! About time you showed your ugly mug!"
"Oh ha ha," he replied while rolling his eyes, "So First and Heather didn't enter, did they? Figured they wouldn't. Though I'm a little hurt they didn't join just to see me."
"You'll get to see plenty of them later."
"True." Lightning laughed before staring out at the gym, "Say, any of the guys in here that new guitar player that took my spot?"
Iron's eyes shrunk at this, "Well uh..." He stopped as he saw Flash walk up, Lightning following his gaze and raising an eyebrow.
"What is it with you guys? First gramps and now you. What, did Flash run over your puppy or something?"
Iron quickly shook his head, "NO! It's...complicated. Like...really complicated." Iron then began to backpedal, Lightning and Flash sharing a glance before glaring at the slowly moving teen.
Meanwhile...
"What do ya mean the portal's gone?!" Applejack yelped as the Rainbooms walked through the halls to the gym, most having changed into some fancy wear Rarity had prepared for them. They were running late due to running into First and Heather, talking about the Flash and Twilight counterparts.
"I mean it's gone," Sunset answered with a slight growl, "It's closed. It's not there anymore!"
"How'd that happen?"
Sunset let out a long sigh, "I...I don't know. But it has something to do with the Flash and Twilight from this world."
"Girls!" They turned to see Grand running up, "We got a problem!"
"Flash and Twilight?" they all responded in unison, making Grand come to a stop.
"You know?"
"We ran into them earlier, but they're not the Flash and Twilight we know."
"They're the ones from our world!" Pinkie cheered, making Grand blink before his brain caught up.
"I see...and they're students at Crystal Prep, aren't they?" he got a volley of nods in response, "Alright...I'll accept that since you the whole, magic thing, though you girls will want to be careful. This Flash seems to be suspicious of everyone here, not that I blame him. If I suddenly showed up somewhere and found everyone knew my name, I'd be suspicious too."
"I'm more worried about what the Twilight's doing," Sunset added, soon explaining what had happened to Grand. But before he could reply, they arrived at the gym, now spotting Twilight wondering around with her scanner in hand. As she did this, Flash reached out and caught her by the back of her shirt, pulling her away from running into a bunch of balloons.
"What in tarnation is she up to?" Applejack asked, watching Flash now stopping her from backing into Indigo Zap.
"Leave this to me." Sunset responded before strutting across the gym floor, quickly getting in front of Twilight, Flash tensing up at the slight glare on her face, "Twilight?" the girl spun around, now seeing her as she continued, "What have you two been up to?"
"Me?" Twilight asked while pointing at herself, Flash about to step as she stuttered out, "Oh, I was just uh-"
"Who wants to know?!" Indigo yelled as she suddenly appeared, glaring at Sunset before Rainbow joined her. "You think you can just spy on our teammates."
"We weren't doing that, we were just-"
"You were!" Indigo interrupted, Applejack now getting between them.
"Now hang on there ya'll. Let's not get too competitive before da games even start."
"The games aren't really competitive since we've never lost," Sugarcoat added as her and the rest of the Crystal Prep girls appeared.
"That's not a very nice thing to say," Fluttershy muttered out.
"Sorry dearie," Sunny Flare growled, "But these games aren't about being nice."
"Well, you could at least use a little tact." Rarity added as Flash kept turning his head from one group to the other, trying to keep up as they glared at each other.
As that happened, Twilight started backpedal, only to feel herself bump into something behind her. She slowly turned around, now seeing a grinning cotton candy haired girl, "Hi there, I'm Pinkie Pie!" She held out a hand.
"Oh uh...hi." She shook said hand, "I'm um...Twilight." The next thing she knew, Pinkie was shaking her hand up and down so fast that she was scared it would be pulled out of its socket.
"I know!" The force of her shaking made Twilight's hair fall out of its bun, her glasses now hanging off one of her ears. "You look just like my friend! Her name is Twilight too!"
"That's er…" Twilight repositioned her glasses and fixed her fair as she stuttered out, "Um uh...weird." As she pulled her hair back into a bun, Pinkie leaned over and pointed at Twilight's scanner around her neck.
"What's that?"
Twilight looked down at her scanner, Flash noticing their conversation as she explained, "It's uh...sort of a spectrometer. I built it to track EM frequencies, but it can also contain anomalies." She glanced back up at Pinkie, now seeing a blank expression on her face, "It measures things."
"Like the party?"
Twilight raised an eyebrow, only to slightly nod, "Yeah, let's go with that. Though uh...it doesn't look like much of a party to me."
"Tell me about it," Flash added, "I saw more happy faces at your great aunt Vivian's funeral, though that might just have been because everyone was happy that grumpy old bat was finally gone." Twilight laughed at that while Pinkie looked around, now seeing all the grumpy faces in the gym.
"Something is definitely missing." She then snapped her fingers before grabbing Twilight's arm, "Come on!"
"Eep!" Twilight yelped as she was dragged off, Flash running after them. As that happened, Sunset broke away from the argument, trying to go after Twilight.
But as she did this, the sound of a cough could be heard behind her. "Hello Sunset." She spun around, now coming face to face with her ex-boyfriend, her heart completely stopping at the sight.
"Oh...Lightning..." Sunset's face turned the same shade of red as her hair, "Uh...hi. How....how you been?"
"Good," Lightning said with a straight face and crossed arms, "You?"
"I um-uh...er...I-I-I am...okay?" she squeaked out, doing a long gulp before standing in silence. And as a minute passed, Sunset started to speak normally, "Listen Lightning, I'm...I'm sorry about what I-"
"Stop." Lightning interrupted, flashing a palm, "I'm not mad."
"You...you're not?" Sunset gasped, her eyes going wide before saying, "But-"
"Its fine." Lightning looked slightly away as he continued, "To be honest, getting kicked out of school was the best thing that ever happened to me. It made me think about how I'd been acting, always skiving off class or playing pranks. I realized I wasn't acting like the band I tried to remake."
"Yeah...I guess that's true," Sunset muttered out, letting out a small hum, "I mean, they were known as one of the pillars of the school back then."
"Eh, don't worry about it. Besides," Lightning pointed to his friends as they talked to Iron and some other Wondercolts, "I got to meet them. That's something I'm grateful for."
"Well, I'm glad things turned out good for you. Though I uh...I really am sorry for what I did. I'd like to make it up to you sometime," she then spotted Twilight and Flash following Pinkie out of the hallway. "But that'll have to wait," she turned back to him. "Do you have any idea what a pair of students named Flash Sentry and Twilight Sparkle are up too?"
Lightning raised an eyebrow, "You wanna tell me why everyone at this school seems to know them?"
"It's-"
"Complicated? Iron already said that." He replied, giving her a deadpan stare before sighing, "Well...I do know Twilight's been detecting some strange energy readings coming from this school."
This made Sunset's eyes shrink, Lightning seeing this as she asked, "When...did she start detecting it?"
"A while back-"
"Around the time of the Fall Formal?"
Lightning paused, only to hum, "Um...I think so? She then picked up another a few weeks later."
"The Battle of the Bands..." Sunset whispered.
"What was that?"
"Uh..." Sunset stuttered out, only for Celestia to walk up to the stage as everyone turned to her.
"Hello, everyone! I'd like to take this opportunity to greet all of our visitors from Crystal Prep Academy and welcome them to CHS."
As she said this, Pinkie, Twilight and Flash came back to the gym while pushing a pair of large birthday presents, the girls pushing one while Flash pushed another. Flash got his in first, panting as he turned to see the girls just behind him. Twilight grunted, "what in the world is in these?"
Pinkie shined a huge grin, "Party cannons of course!"
"Party...cannons?" Flash yelped before jumping away from the box he had just pushed, "Are they...legal?"
"I have permits," Pinkie replied before walking away, "I gotta get something else, be right back!"
"And lastly," they heard Celestia say. "I would like to recognize the twelve students that CHS has elected to compete. I don't think we could have chosen a better group to represent the excellence, sportsmanship, and friendship the games stand for."
As she said this, Pinkie zipped around the gym, Flash watching the act in pure surprise while Twilight was still panting in exhaustion. Pinkie quickly replaced the salad plates and cheese dishes with hundreds of brightly colored cupcakes, then ran over to a large switch on the wall, pulling it so the ceiling lights would go off before a disco ball came down. Flash could only blink at the sight, "What the-where did she get all this stuff?!" He then heard new music begin to play, Pinkie suddenly appearing in front of them before opening the boxes to reveal the cannons.
"Um...are you sure that's a good idea?"
The look on Pinkie's face said the same thing she was about to say, "Absolutely!" With that, she pulled the cannon's cords, firing confetti over the gym. The force sent Twilight flying back, Flash catching her before she hit the ground. They both stared out at the gym, now seeing everyone from both schools now all suddenly beginning to dance and sing along to the music.
"Wow. She just-" He tried to say, only for a blast of pink light to appear, interrupting his attention. They now turned to see Pinkie ponying up, a pink aura covering her as she began to lift off the ground.
"Ooh, floaty!" she cheered, quickly dancing in midair.
"What in the-" Flash muttered out, only to hear a buzzing sound, making him look down at Twilight's scanner. The device suddenly started floating, pulling Twilight before opening and sucking the aura right out of Pinkie.
As it did this, Pinkie felt herself fall like a rock, "Ow!" She moaned as she hit the floor, the aura now completely drained as her hair limped over, "Oh wow...I am party pooped."
While this happened, Flash and Twilight were more focused on the device, the energy it had drained out of Pinkie now mixing with the others. As it did this, a single spark shot off the device and flew through the bleachers, the duo looking through the gap before gasping, "Whoa!" he yelped as the spark exploded before morphing into a pink spiral, slowly opening up to show a floating midair hole. Inside was what could only be described as oddly shaped trees, the sight making Flash turn and glare at Twilight, "Twi, what the heck did you just do?!"
Twilight just stared at her scanner before trying to push the scanner shut. Flash quickly tried to help, only for a sudden burst of orange sparks to fly out of the portal, striking Flash's hand. He hissed at the pain, staring at his hand as he saw the energy flow into his body and make his arm go numb. It was here that Twilight got the device closed, which also closed the portal. The girl began to pant, now turning to see Flash rolling up his sleeve to survey the damage done to his arm. Surprisingly, his arm was completely fine, the numbness now fading while also not showing a single burn or scar anywhere.
"Are you okay?" Twilight asked.
"I'm fine," Flash replied as he shook his hand, "Say uh...what the heck was that?!"
"I um...I don't know," Twilight responded as she looked back down at her scanner, now seeing that it was completely silent. She would have said more, only for the screeching feedback of a microphone to echo through the halls as both the music stopped and the lights came on.
Everyone turned to the stage, seeing Principal Cinch, "I'd like to thank Principal Celestia for her unconventional welcome." She took off her glasses to clean them, "It's been four years since the last Friendship Games, but it feels as though nothing has changed. Canterlot High continues to pick its competitors in a popularity contest and Crystal Prep continues to field its top twelve students. It is a comfort to know that even after so many years of losses, your school remains committed to its ideals, however misguided they may be. I wish you all the best of luck, regardless of the inevitable outcome."
The whole time she'd been saying this, the Crystal Prep students had put down their party food and moved away from the CHS students. All of them had a downcast look as they parted, the speech ending with the two schools standing on opposite sides of the gym. The Rainbooms all frowned at this, Pinkie walking over to Applejack with an exhausted look on her face.
Applejack, mistaking this for sadness, put an arm around her. "Ah'm sorry, Pinkie. Ah thought your party additions were really swell."
Fluttershy did a small nod, "They definitely broke the ice."
"Yes," Rarity added, "If only that Principal Cinch hadn't frozen it again."
"Yeah...she's awful." Pinkie moaned as she slumped over, Sunset walking up and patting her shoulder.
"Pinkie, are you okay? What happened to you?"
"I don't know." Pinkie replied as she sat down, "Everyone started having fun after Flash, Twilight and I fired the party cannons and I ponied up."
"Of course you did," Sunset sighed, rolling her eyes with a smile.
Pinkie let out a sigh, "But then the magic just drained right out of me."
Sunset went stiff at her words, "Wait, what do you mean drained out of you?!"
"Hey, uh..." Applejack tapped Sunset's side as she asked, "Does anybody see that other Flash and Twilight?"
"Oh, they're right..." Pinkie pointed to a now empty part of the gym, "Uh...well, they were right there."
Just outside of the school...
Twilight and Flash were now panting again, having rushed out of the gym before anything else could happen. Spike's head was now popping out of Twilight's bag as they both turned to each other and began to yell.
"We have to start studying this energy/we have to get rid of that energy!" The two raised an eyebrow at the other's words.
"Twilight, this thing is way more than some weird energy readings! This is...I don't know what it is, but its obviously very dangerous!"
"How can you say that?!" Twilight yelped while clutching the scanner, taking the necklace part off while staring at it, "You saw what happened in there! I need to figure this thing out now! I have too!"
Flash pointed at her hands, "No, you don't! You saw what that thing did! You looked like you were about to drain the life out of that girl!"
"I wasn't hurting her!"
"You were!" Flash barked back, this time swiping his hand and snatching the scanner with one quick motion. "We gotta get rid of this thing!"
"No we don't!" Twilight yelled as she tried to grab it from him, Flash keeping it out of her reach, "I need to know what that energy is! I need it for my research!"
"Twilight, this thing is dangerous!" He then held out to her, only to yank it away as she tried to grab it again, "Twilight...I know I'm an idiot compared to you, but you've got to admit I'm right here!"
"Well you're not!" Twilight replied as she was able to grab the scanner this time, "This energy needs to be studied. If its dangerous, I'll figure out how to make it safe. You know I'm smart enough to be able too."
Flash was about to yell, only to take a deep breath, "I know you're smart Twilight, but I really don't like this. You need to get rid of that thing. Its not worth it."
Hearing these words made Twilight's heart sink, now remembering Cinch's earlier words before she let out a sigh. As she did this, she replaced her face with a calm stare, "Flash...I can handle it. I'll be careful when I study it, I promise."
"Twilight-"
"I've got this!" Twilight interrupted as she put the scanner necklace back on. Flash just glared at her, Twilight putting a hand on his shoulder, "Please...just trust me." She walked off, Flash following after her.
The next morning...
Flash couldn't convince her. He had tried everything, but nothing got Twilight to give up her research, him knowing it was impossible as she had rushed into her shed lab and locked the door as soon as they got home. She even changed the digital locks to make sure he didn't sneak in, quickly keeping her distance in any way she could.
A few hours later, they found themselves back at CHS with the rest of their class as Vice Principal Luna's voice echoed over the P.A. system, "Good morning students, I'm sure you're all thrilled to start the first day of the Friendship Games. Our competitors will face off in every aspect of the CHS curriculum, culminating in the elimination equation finale."
The twenty-four students then met in the hallway, Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Cinch and many other students all waiting for them. Both teams stood on opposite sides, staring each other down as Cadance spoke up, "Welcome to the first event, the Academic Decathlon! You'll be scored on chemistry, home-ec and everything in between. But remember, only the six students from each team with the most points will move on to event number two. Good luck!"
And with that, the games began.
Flash swore he could hear battle music begin to play while competitors and teachers headed to the science lab, ready to show off their skills. Flash was the first one to go up for chemistry, the judges telling him what they wanted. Now remembering the unending lectures from Twilight, he quickly mixed the liquids, making a purple chemical for the judges. Celestia, Luna, Cadance and Ruby nodded as they wrote down the results, Flash getting the second-best score with how fast he managed to make it. The only one that did better was Rarity, though that result was quickly beaten by Twilight, and Flash was pushed into third.
Those three remained the top three as everyone else worked on their concoctions. Surprisingly, one of the CHS girls caused an explosion with the mixture despite there being no explosive materials. After this was the cooking event, Flash knowing he was no cook. Twilight teamed up with him for this one, though they were only able to get through it because she realized that Flash had opened the book to the wrong recipe.
Their final product wasn't anything that good, though it was edible. The judges gave passing scores, only to turn to Gorgenia and Wild as they showed off a cake that had their school's colors along with an S logo. The look on the judge's faces showed they considered it the best cake so far, Gorgenia and Wild high fiving at the sight before they turned to Pinkie and Fluttershy's cake.
When they cut it in half, the exact image of the Mona Lisa could be seen inside. Everyone from Crystal Prep froze at the sight, the judges quickly declaring them the round's winner as Cinch glare at all her students for losing.
Next up was carpentry, something Flash and Twilight could easily do. The duo had experience in making rooms for Twilight to do her research, Flash doing the heavy work while Twilight did the measurements and outlined the wood. Flash quickly cut up the lumber, Twilight guiding him to make a small basic birdhouse due to her slow perfectionist nature despite Flash wanting to do something fancier. The house was covered in blue lightning bolts while the roof had Twilight's highlights running around the edges. They then added a tiny birdbath to the bottom, Twilight helping Flash carve it out so it looked natural.
But their work paled in comparison to Sugarcoat and Indigo's double-decker house, complete with flame patterns and a balcony. The sight of it made the judges drop their clipboards.
Flash sighed as he watched the two give the CHS students mocking looks, especially a pair who's birdhouse had collapsed. He saw the glasses wearer look depressed, but his partner threw an arm around him, saying something that made him smile. The sight made Flash smile, getting a small feeling he would be friends with them if he went to this school.
Math, history, geography, spelling...these were all tested next, the CHS students doing surprising well, most on the same level with the Crystal Prep students. The scores were tied, meaning the winner of the next event would win the first round. It all hinged on the elimination equation finale.
The top-scoring student from both teams would be the one to compete, that turning out to be Twilight and Sunset. Flash watched as his best friend walked up onto the gym stage, Sunset going up the other side. A pair of blackboards stood side by side, both having the exact same equation that the girls needed to solve.
Flash watched her calculate, Spike popping his head out of her bag that was currently on his lap. Both schools were there, watching them with prying eyes as they wrote out their formulas. It might have been his imagination, but he swore he could hear everyone in the gym whispering the exact same thing, "Can she do it? Will she make it? Who will win it? Who will take it? Can she do it? Who will take it? Did she win it? Did she make it?" Both girls finished their calculations and stepped back from the board, Cinch walking up next, "Who's the winner? Who's the reject? How did she answer?"
Then, Cinch pointed to Sunset and announced, "Incorrect!" Sunset's eyes went wide before the sound of a camera snap made them turn to a CHS student that was carrying a camera.
On the judge's table, Luna tallied the score and nodded. "That means the winner of the Friendship Games first event is Twilight Sparkle and Crystal Prep!"
Twilight turned back to her school's section of the gym, expecting a large round of applause...only to get claps from Flash, Lightning, Script, Gorgenia and Wild. The rest of Crystal Prep all cheered half-heartedly, many sighing as they did. Twilight could barely smile as she saw this, only to hear someone speak up.
"That was awesome!" She turned to see the Rainbooms gathering around Sunset, Rainbow throwing an arm around her.
"Truly amazing!" Rarity told Sunset, who seemed just as surprised by this treatment as Twilight was.
"But we didn't win!"
Applejack patted her shoulder, "Eh, that was as close to winnin' as Canterlot's ever been." The others all nodded in agreement as Cadance walked onto the stage, Flash, Sour Sweet, Sugarcoat, Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest following her. Flash then turned to see Indigo Zap glare at him, remembering that his chemistry score allowed him to just edge her out of the top six Crystal Prep students.
He stood next to Twilight and patted her shoulder before handing her bag, Cadance speaking up next, "After a careful tally of the points, we'd like to present the students moving on to the Friendship Games' second event." The Rainbooms all cheered at this, Twilight sighing as Flash showed her off stage.
"Hey," they then looked up to see Iron, Heather and First waiting for them at the bottom of the stage. Heather gave Twilight a kind smile as she said, "Great work out there. No wonder they picked you for this."
"Um...thanks."
First turned to Flash and reached out his hand, "We have yet to be formally introduced. My name is First Aid."
"Uh...name's Flash," he replied, weakly shaking it.
"Charmed," he gestured to his friends, "You know Heather and Iron, of course."
"Hello,"
"Sup."
"Hey there," Flash responded, barely waving back, "It's er...nice to meet you all."
They all nodded before Heather asked, "So, how are you liking CHS so far?"
"It's...nice?" Twilight added.
"It sure is different from Crystal Prep," Flash finished.
"Is different good?" Iron asked with a raised eyebrow, only for his answer to be dashed as Twilight's device starting buzzing, drawing her attention.
"I'm sorry, excuse me," Twilight replied as she suddenly ran away, the others staring at her before looking back at Flash.
He let out a low nervous laugh as he slowly backpedalled, "Sorry about her. She's very...laser-focused." He then turned around, "See you later."
The teen quickly sprinted down the hallway he thought Twilight had gone down, only to find nothing. "Twilight? Where did you-" he said to himself as he walked down a corridor...only to come to a halt. His eyes went wide as he saw a new sight. On a hallway wall was a case filled with photos of CHS's previous events.
But it was one image that made him freeze up entirely. It was a photo of himself, or at least someone who looked just like him. The person had shorter hair, but it was definitely him, standing on stage while playing the guitar alongside the students he had just been talking to.
"What in the-" He muttered as he turned to another image, this one showing him dancing beside a girl that looked just like Twilight. This one had her hair down and wasn't wearing her glasses, but the sight made his blood chill as he began to look at the other photos. There were ones of him, Twilight and those six girls from before. There was even one with him, the band, and Lightning's grandfather together.
"What is...I don't..." he began to hyperventilate as his eyes shifted over all the photos, "What the...who is..."
"Flash?" He turned to see Grand staring at him, a boiling point now striking. Before Grand could react, Flash grabbed him and slammed him into some nearby lockers, "Gah!"
"That's it! Something is happening at this school, and somehow me and Twilight are involved, so you're gonna start giving me some answers!" Flash roared, his eyes red in anger, "Tell me! Why am I in those photos?! Why?!"
"Flash...calm down lad."
"Don't talk to me like you know me! I don't know you!" Flash screamed as steam flared from his nostrils, "This school...why is it so blasted crazy?!"
"You're right. I'm sorry."
"I don't want your apology! I want answers!" He pulled him over to the photos and pointed at them, "Who are those two?! Why do they look so much like me and Twilight?!"
Grand then pulled himself free, putting his hand on Flash's shoulder, which the teen swatted away, "Flash...you need to calm down. Then I'll try to explain."
"Alright...alright...I'm sorry. I just...I'm really freaking out right now." Flash took a long deep breath, closing his eyes before glaring at Grand, "Now explain. Please. Mainly before I freak out again."
"Well it's...complicated."
Flash leaned over with a growl, "Tell...me...now."
"Lad, its very complicated."
"I'm smarter than I look, so don't patronize me. There's something going on here, and me and Twilight are somehow at the center of it."
Grand sighed again, shaking his head, "I'm not really the best one to explain it. Sunset and the girls are the ones you want to talk too."
"They don't seem to care about giving us answers." Flash grumbled while crossing his arms, "Talk."
"Alright..." Grand started to fumble as he tried to think of the right words, "Well uh, do you know anything about...I guess you would call it parallel worlds."
Flash raised an eyebrow, "That's a weird start, but go on."
"Well, they're not just a theory or something made up for movies and tv. They're real, and there's one world that's connected to ours by the statue outside. The Flash and Twilight in those photos are from that world."
Flash blinked at his words, his eyes turning to the photos again before lookin back at Grand. He could tell he wasn't lying, especially at his tone. "So...that statue leads to another world?" Grand did a small nod, "And those girls we met earlier, they're from this uh...other world?"
Grand shook his head, "No. Well, one of them is, but the others are all humans from this world."
Flash gave him a deadpan stare in response, "Last I checked, humans don't suddenly sprout extra-long ears and start floating for no reason."
"That's why I want you to talk to them. They understand this more than I do."
"Right..." Flash looked back at the photo again, "So you want me to talk to that Sunset girl, right? I'm guessing that since what she did in the gym earlier, she's super smart like Twilight." He glared back at Grand, "But why them? Why can they do that...weird stuff?"
"That's uh...even more complicated. All I know is a while back, an item from that world fell into ours. It had great magical power, and would have been dangerous if it stayed here. That's why the Flash and Twilight from that world came here, to retrieve it before it caused any trouble. But despite getting it back, some of the magic was left behind and those girls were all...affected by it." Grand looked away for a second before continuing, "And if that sounds crazy, I understand...but I've seen way too much of it to deny it. Trust me on that."
Flash's brain was now working on overtime, most of it already fried as he tried to reply, "So...magic's real?"
"Err...I haven't really asked much, but according to Sunset, there is magic in the other world. As for our world, its really...strange. As in, the girls only transformed like that when they played music." Flash raised an eyebrow at this, "I don't get it either, but I do know that they're now transforming at random."
The teen gave him the longest stare, "You do realize what you're saying, right?"
"I do. And I don't like accepting it, but its the truth." Grand replied, now placing a hand on his shoulder. However, Flash didn't swat it away this time, Grand's calm voice now fully going into his ears, "Flash, please listen to me. Whatever you and Twilight are doing, stop. You're messing with forces you don't understand. I've seen what magic can do when used recklessly and it's not pretty. You could end up doing some serious damage and hurting someone, possibly even yourselves."
Those words sank into Flash's brain, the mental image of Twilight sucking up more magic before her scanner exploding now popping into his head. His eyes went wide, "Oh no..." Flash spun around before running off and yelling, "Thank you!"
"No problem." Grand said back before shaking his head and whispering to himself, "Oh boy...I hope this doesn't turn into a mess. I don't know if this school can take much more."
It wasn't long till Flash found himself outside, looking around for Twilight. As he did this, he walked up to the school statue, patting the stone pillar, "Is this really a portal? Sure doesn't feel like it..."
His question didn't get an answer as a bright yellow light appeared in the corner of his eye. Turning to it, he saw it was coming from some nearby bushes. He then walked over, his eyes going wide as he saw Twilight, Spike and Fluttershy. Fluttershy was the source of the yellow light, the girl floating in the air like Pinkie. Her hair began to lengthen as her ears grew pointed before suddenly sprouting a pair of wings.
He gasped at the sight, only for his eyes to pull away when he heard Twilight's scanner buzz. Turning to the other teen, she was dumbfounded by the sight of Fluttershy as the device lit up and sucked the yellow energy away from Fluttershy. And as this happened, a bunch of sparks shot off the scanner, morphing spirals that opened up into a portal, surprising everyone. It was here that a creature that looked like a brown rabbit with horns came out, Spike growling at the bunny.
He then leapt out of Twilight's arms, scaring the rabbit thing as he tried to chase it. The creature quickly hopped into the portal, Twilight yelping as she tried to catch her pet as Flash went through the bushes to help her. But as he did this, Spike leaped into the portal as the gateway shot out a bolt of energy, hitting Flash in the chest, making him fall back while his body starting glowing.
"FLASH!" Twilight screamed as she saw him suddenly collapse, only for another bolt to fly out. Spike then flew out the portal, following Twilight's voice as he tried to go back to Twilight...only to run into the stream connecting Fluttershy to Twilight's scanner. This seemed to electrocute him as Fluttershy fell over, the puppy now falling into her arms while also being enveloped by the yellow light. "SPIKE!"
It was here that Flash tried to get up, groaning as he then saw Twilight pushing the scanner shut again. "Come on...stop that!" she yelled as she kept pushing on the device, Flash blinking turning to Fluttershy and Spike. A click happened next, Twilight shutting the scanner, which made the portals disappear.
"What in the-" Flash tried to say before shaking his head, this time going over to Fluttershy as she slowly lifted herself up with Spike, "You okay?"
She did a small nod before giving Spike to Twilight, only to fall over a second later. Flash quickly caught her, the girl gasping as she said, "Thank you."
"Sure." Flash replied as he helped her sit up, "Are you okay?"
"I'm...okay..." she moaned, panting as he turned to see Twilight hugging her puppy.
"Are you okay Spike?"
"Um, I think so." Spike replied, Flash and Twilight's eyes going wide as their brains just processed what just happened. That is, till Spike then asked, "Are you okay Twilight?"
"AAAAH!!!" They both screamed, Twilight dropping Spike before shuffling back, only to jump up and sprint off, screaming the entire time.
"Twilight, wait!" Spike yelled as he began to chase after her, leaving Flash and Fluttershy.
"What the heck?!" Flash yelped, turning back to Fluttershy as she continued to stay slumped over. He kneeled down and helped her over to the school wall, laying her near the brick surface, "You okay?"
She shook her head, making him shut up as she said, "Go...help her. Don't worry...I understand."
Flash bit his lip at this, only to sigh before saying, "Thanks." He then spun around and ran off, reentering the school as he heard Spike's new voice.
"Twilight, come on! Wait for me!" He followed the voice until he arrived at a dead-end corridor, finding Twilight with her back to him saying something to Spike.
"Or my talking dog!" He heard her say as he got in earshot.
"Yeah," Spike replied while scratching his ear. "Weird, right?"
"More than a little weird." They both turned to Flash, Twilight holding a hand over her scanner as he got closer. "I knew something like this would happen. I told you this was dangerous Twilight, and now it's affecting Spike!"
"Now's not the time for the 'I told you so' dance," Twilight barked back before turning to Spike and crouching down. "Are you okay? How do you feel? What happened? Where did you go?" She stopped when Spike licked her nose.
"Hey, one question at a time! This is pretty new to me too."
"Sorry."
Spike put a paw to his chin as he answered, "All I know is I chased that pointy rabbit through the glowy thing and then I was somewhere else. Next thing I knew, I was back in that nice girl's arms and I could talk! I don't really understand why I couldn't before. I mean, it's so easy."
"The magic must have affected you," Flash added as he leaned down, Spike and Twilight turning to him with raised eyebrows.
"Magic?!" Twilight asked, "What are you talking about?!"
"I had a little talk with Lightning's grampa. Turns out that weird energy you've been tracking is actually magic from another world. I'm starting to think that's where these portals are leading too."
"Don't be ridiculous," Twilight stood up and adjusted her glasses, "Magic doesn't exist Flash. Surely I've taught you enough science to teach you that."
Flash crossed his arms, glaring at the teen, "The two glowing girls, portals and Spike beg to differ. Twilight, you know this all makes sense."
"But it can't!" Twilight barked back, "There has to be a scientific explanation for this, as that's why I'm studying it. A long time ago, people thought that fire was magic and the moon was magic. Whatever this is, it'll have a scientific explanation."
"Really?! Well didn't you also teach me that scientists thought the world was flat and that the sun revolved around the earth? You guys got that wrong big time, didn't you?"
"That's different. Magic...it goes against the laws of physics."
"Maybe in our world, but this magic's from somewhere very different." He then pointed at the scanner, "And you just saw how dangerous it is! You hurt that girl!"
Twilight held down tightly on the scanner, almost backpedaling as she tried to reply, "But that's-"
"Twilight?!" said a new voice, both recognizing it as Cinch's voice. "Are you over there?!"
"Oh no, not her right now!" Twilight yelped as she opened a nearby locker. "Quick, hide in here Spike! We'll be in big trouble if she sees you!" Flash nodded in agreement before helping her put Spike inside, Twilight then going around Flash as Cinch turned the corner to see them both. "Hello Principal Cinch....you were looking for me?"
"Indeed." Cinch nodded as she started to pace around, "Quite a coincidence that the CHS students moving onto the next event are the same nice girls who were so interested in you, don't you think?"
Twilight rubbed her arm, "I'm uh...not sure."
Cinch spun around to give her a sly smile, "Perhaps you should get to know them after all.
This made Twilight and Flash exchange glances, Twilight replying, "But I thought you didn't want me to do that."
Flash did a small nod of agreement, "Yeah, why the sudden change in heart? Don't tell me you're starting to get worried."
"I never worry," Cinch hissed, glaring at him, "Let's just say I'm covering my bases."
"You mean you saw how close CHS was to take the first round and are getting scared." Flash replied, only to feel Twilight elbow him, the look on her face telling him not to insult her.
"I have no fear of losing to this school Sentry. I simply wish to understand how it was able to change from a hopeless institution, to actually being able to challenge us. If we learn the secret to Canterlot High's newfound success, it's possible we can implement it into our own education and allow Crystal Prep to soar to new heights."
"She's obviously never heard the story of Icarus," Flash whispered to Twilight.
Twilight elbowed him again before doing a small gulp, "Um...I dunno Principal Cinch. Spying feels kind of...wrong."
Cinch nodded and turned away, "Well, it's your decision Twilight." She then glanced back at them, "Just remember everything that's on the line if we should lose." Both her and Twilight's gaze shifted over to Flash for a millisecond, Twilight understanding instantly what she meant.
With that, Cinch walked off, leaving Twilight as she just stood there and shook the scanner in her hands. Flash turned to ask what she mean, only for another voice to speak up, "Man, she's awful." They looked back to see Spike somehow walk out of the locker, "What are you gonna do Twilight?"
"She's gonna do nothing," Flash replied, "We don't need to spy on these girls to win. We'll just keep doing what we've been doing. Besides," he turned back to point at Twilight's scanner again, "We have more important things to worry about, like figuring out what to do with that magic."
Twilight did a long sigh as Spike leapt into her arms, barely responding as she said, "Okay...you might be right Flash. I'm sorry."
"Its fine, I forgive you." Flash the patted her shoulder, "Come on, let's look like we're doing Cinch's bidding by asking those girls about that magic. Shall we?"
Twilight did a small nod, the trio soon leaving the corridor as they began their journey for the truth.
The Rainbooms had just found Fluttershy, the girl almost completely passed out against the outside school wall. Pinkie soon perked her up with fifty C.Cs of sugar, putting her back on her feet. After this, they started going back to the playing field as Fluttershy explained her encounter with Flash and Twilight.
"All I did was hand Twilight a bunny, and then I ponied up."
Sunset sighed with a huge frown, "I just don't get it. Rarity's magic came out when she made us outfits, Pinkie's did when she fixed the party, and now Fluttershy…"
"And then Twilight's pendant thingy just pulled the magic right out of me." Fluttershy added while shivering, "I...I couldn't even stand up."
"That was just like me at the party!" Pinkie gasped.
"Or me right before we met this new Twilight!" Rarity finished, everyone now going wide-eyed as they started to see where this was going.
"So she's stealing magic? Why?" The pony turned human asked, rubbing her chin in thought, "Did she do that to the portal as well?"
"Ah don't know," Applejack responded while scratching her head, "She doesn't seem like the magic-stealin' type."
"Yeah...I would agree, but she had something to do with closing the portal." Sunset replied as she grit her teeth, "If her pendant can pull in magic, maybe it stole the portal's magic too. That's why those openings appeared. Its the portal magic mixing with the pony magic."
"But why would she be doing that?" Fluttershy asked, "I mean, when I talked to her, her and Flash didn't look like they were...wait, Flash got hit by the magic too!"
Sunset jerked her head, "He did?!"
Fluttershy nodded in response, "As soon as he got to close to the portal, it started zapping him. But he didn't seem hurt though..."
"Strange." Steam went out of Sunset's nostrils as her brain went over the events, "If Twilight's device stole the portal and pony magic...is the magic mistaking Flash and Twilight for their pony counterparts?!"
"But why would it attack Flash?" Rainbow asked.
"I don't think it is." She turned to Fluttershy, "You said Flash didn't look hurt afterwards, right?" Fluttershy nodded. "Then maybe it's not attacking him, and instead it's...charging him."
"Charging him?" Rarity asked with a raised eyebrow, "You mean, like it does with our magic?"
Sunset nodded in response, "The magic must think Flash is the same Flash from before, but then it's sensing a difference. When Flash and Twilight came here, they still had their magic, but weren't able to access it. Since this Flash and Twilight don't have magic, the portal must think something's wrong and is trying to correct what it thinks is the issue."
"So it's giving Flash magic...that's something." Applejack finished with a hum, "But what about Twilight? Why isn't it giving her magic?"
"It probably tried, but her pendant's been sucking up whatever magic it's been trying to give her. But that's not worrying me." Everyone turned to her with frowns as Sunset replied, "What worries me is that if this keeps up, Flash might end up ponying up like us."
The girls gulped at this, Rarity adding, "That's bad. What do we do Sunset?"
Sunset let out a long sigh, "I don't know. And the pony or person or princess who could help me figure this out is completely unreachable now."
"Which is too bad," Pinkie said as she pulled Sunset and Applejack into a hug before dancing around, "Because Twilight knows everything about magic and portals and magical portals and portable magics!" As she said that last bit, she leaned against the doors leading out to the playing fired. Doing so caused the door to open, making Pinkie fall face-first into the ground with a thud, Rainbow coming out to help her.
"For now, let's just focus on beating the Shadowbolts." Rainbow chimed in as the rest of the Rainbooms walked outside, "And as long as this event puts me in the playing field, I don't think we've got anything to worry about."
"Oh, it puts you on a playin' field alright." Rainbow and Pinkie turned to look at the field, now seeing it had been completely overhauled. In the center was a small obstacle course with hay bails and a pair of mud swings. Around that was a rally track along with some kind of dirt bike track with ramps made of wood and dirt, alongside tire bumps and pools of water.
The Rainbooms were all slack-jawed at the sight, Sunset speaking up, "Am I the only one who thinks this is overkill?"
Applejack moved over to a dirt mound and gave it a swift kick, seeing it was quite sturdy before turning to Rarity, "Ah don't suppose you made some motocross outfits?"
Rarity looked insulted. "Oh, don't be ridiculous." She then shined a grin as she pulled out a pair of outfits, "Of course I did!"
Meanwhile...
Twilight and Flash were now on the hunt for the girls, the duo on the other side of the playing field. "Any idea where they might be?" Flash asked Twilight, only to get a shrug in response.
"How should I know?" She looked down at her scanner, "This thing's not giving me any answers either."
"Let's just hope we can find them before the next event, or-"
"SENTRY! SPARKLE!" The two spun around to see Indigo and the rest of their remaining teammates walking up, "About time you showed up! The next event's about to start!"
"Not now," Flash told Indigo, waving her off, "We've got bigger issues to deal with than you."
"Nothing's bigger than winning the next event!" Indigo barked back, walking up and grabbing his collar, "If you're gonna go and take my spot from me, the least you can do it put your all into the match!"
Flash rolled his eyes while swatting her hand away, "Look, it's not my fault you didn't get a higher score than me. I mean, come on. Who spells artichoke with an H?"
"That's actually a common misspelling," Sugarcoat added while adjusting her glasses, "You were just lucky."
"She could have still studied better," Flash replied, shrugging at the same time.
"We don't have time for an argument!" Sunny Flare added, "The second event is about to begin!"
"That's right." Sour gave Flash a giant smile, "And your physical skills are just what we need to put it in the bag." Her grin quickly switched to a frown, "So you're gonna be on that field, even if I have to drag you there!"
Flash felt his muscles tense, ready to argue back, only to feel Twilight grab his arm. Turning to her, he saw a deep stare from her eyes, "Let's just go Flash. Those girls are gonna be there, so it could be the best chance to talk to them all."
Flash opened his mouth, but his brain told him that the logic worked, making him glare back at the Shadowbolts, "Fine...lead the way."
On the field's stands...
The other students were now waiting for the second event, both on two stands separating the schools. Most had taken their seats, including Lightning and his friends, who had met up with the Royal Knights.
"So..." Lightning asked with crossed arms, "You gonna finally explain what the heck is going on?!"
"And why Flash and Twilight seem so nervous," Script pointed to the group moving over to Cinch, Flash and Twilight both shifting their eyes around like a child watching out for their parents before trying to steal a cookie.
Heather let out a long sigh, "Lightning...it's not like we want to keep things from you."
First nodded in agreement, "But it is not our story to tell. Besides, you would not believe us even if we did tell you. It is...complicated."
Lightning growled at this, his foot tapping impatiently, "What the heck happened to this school after I left?! I wasn't a hodgepodge of secrets back then!"
"We can hardly believe it half of the time either buddy," Iron replied, shrugging. "For now, just wait until after the games, then talk to Sunset. If she doesn't tell you, then we can't either."
Cinch was showing a particular disgruntled face as she stared at the Shadowbolts, tapping her foot in impatience as she pointed at the first group, "You will race in pairs, with Sentry and Sugarcoat handling the motocross."
"Aye aye," Flash replying with a salute.
Cinch glared at him before turning to two other girls, "Lemon Zest and Sunny Flare have requested the short track." The two girls high fived, Cinch then pointing at the final part of the group, "Since archery is a standard requirement at our school, any of you should be able to do it. Twilight and Sour Sweet will start us off."
Twilight's eyes shrunk at this, knowing she was not good at the sport, her need for glasses for her vision not helping. The rest of the Shadowbolts all rolled their eyes at her, Sour Sweet speaking up in her happy demeanor, "Well, that's just marvellous!" Her tone then shifted into a growl, "If you wanna lose before we even start!"
Cinch patted Twilight's shoulder, "Given that Twilight won the last event single-handedly, I have every confidence that she will be able to pull her weight here." She turned to Twilight, "Won't you?"
Twilight did a long gulp before nodding, Flash clenching his fist as he wanted to intervene. But before anything could happen, Cinch walked away, telling them to go get changed. They all headed to the changing rooms, Twilight letting Spike out of the bag and telling him to hide since he said he wanted to watch the match.
Flash was the only boy in the changing room, picking a full-body dark blue leather suit with orange trim and black gloves and boots. In his hands was a blue helmet with an orange visor. And as he walked out, he saw the rest of the girls in gear, particularly smiling with a slight blush as he saw Twilight in her gear.
Twilight turned to him, seeing the red on his face as she asked, "Flash? You okay?"
"Huh? Oh uh..." Flash looked away, the heat burning his face, "I'm okay. Its just...daydreams."
"Well get your head out of the clouds," Sunny barked, Flash's blush now vanishing as he glared back at her. The bolts then made their way to the field, Flash noticing something still hanging off Twilight's neck.
"Uh...Twilight? Are you sure it's a good idea to be wearing that right now? What if something happens and it gets broken?"
Twilight turned to him with a long sigh, "I um...I thought about leaving it, but who knows what might happen while I'm away from it. Not the first time someone's snuck into my gym locker and taken my things." That statement made Flash gulp, remembering the time got a text from her, asking him to bring a spare set of clothes to the girl's locker room because somebody had nabbed hers while she was in the shower. What followed was the...king of awkward exchanges. "I know I might not know much about this...energy."
"Magic."
"Energy!" Twilight countered while rolling her eyes, "But I wouldn't want it falling into the wrong hands, not that mine seems to be the right one so far."
Flash let out a low hum, "Okay, I can see that. But when this event is over, we're giving that thing to that Sunset girl, no arguments." Twilight did a slow nod, Flash registering how downtrodden she was about losing her project. And as she did this, the groups started to divide to their individual sections. "Twilight," she turned back to him, "Good luck, and be careful."
Twilight weakly smiled back, "You too." They then turned and went their separate ways, Flash and Sugarcoat climbing up to where their bikes were waiting, now seeing that Sunset and Rainbow were already there.
Sugarcoat began to get on her bike as Flash turned to the two girls, "Hey uh...I know we've had some problems, but...after the race, we need to talk about...the M."
Rainbow and Sunset went wide-eyed, Rainbow saying, "How did-"
"I had a chat with Lightning's grandfather. He told me...pretty much everything." Flash showed a small grimace, "And I still don't get any of it."
"I see..." Sunset gave him a low glare as Sugarcoat stared at the three in confusion, "Your friend has caused a lot of problems. She's messing with something best left alone."
"I know. Trust me on that one." Flash replied with a low sigh, "I just...can't stop her. When there's something she doesn't understand, she won't stop until she's figured out every little thing about it."
Rainbow chuckled at this, "Reminds me of someone else we know."
"By any chance does she look a lot like the girl currently cleaning her glasses for the fourth time in the last minute?" They all turned to Twilight, now seeing her nervously doing just that before looking back at Flash, "Grand told me about that little detail too."
"What are you three talking about?" Sugarcoat asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Nothing that concerns you," Sunset told her before refocusing on Flash. "She needs to give us that pendant of hers. If she keeps taking-"
"As soon as the race is over. Just as long as you promise to explain everything about all this crazy stuff. Grand uh...he didn't know much else except this stuff is bad."
Sunset was now growling, about to raise her voice to tell him he had no right to that knowledge, only for Cadance to speak up in a microphone, "Welcome everyone, to the Friendship Games Tricross Relay!" This got a loud cheer from the CHS students while the Crystal Preppers remained their usual stoic selves. "In this event, our qualifying competitors will face off in archery, speed skating, and finally, motocross." Flash couldn't help but rev his engine at this. "So if the competitors are ready..." They all nodded as Ruby help up an airhorn.
HONK!
That loud sound signaled the event, Sour and Fluttershy running ahead as Twilight and Applejack got into position. Cadance explained the rules as the girls leapt over some hay bails and caught the arrow quivers. "Each competitor must hit a bullseye before their teammates can start the next leg of the relay."
As she finished this, Sour reached the mud swing and used it to jump over the pool. Landing onto the other side, she grabbed the bow off the ground and drew a trio of arrows that she fired all at once. Everyone watched them fly at the moving target and land, the central arrow hitting the red bullseye. The audience let out a cheer as Twilight then started her run, right as Fluttershy arrived and began firing her arrows. The first didn't even make it a few inches, Sour laughing until she looked back at Twilight.
"Ooh," Flash flinched as Twilight tripped over the hay bail and landed face first. "Walk it off Twilight!" He then saw the frustrated look on Sour's face, knowing she wasn't gonna make this any easier. Twilight grabbed her quiver and tried to swing over the mud, only for the barely get her toe to grip the side.
"Be careful Twilight!" Gorgenia yelled from the side.
"Don't worry about what your opponent's doing!" Script added just as Fluttershy managed to get an arrow to hit the bullseye. The CHS students all cheered, the girl now smiling as Applejack began her leg of the race. With Applejack's speed and Twilight's issues, the two reached the shooting location at the same time. Both grabbing the bow and firing, neither were able to hit the bullseye the first time. But while Applejack managed to hit the target in the second shot, getting a clap from Fluttershy, Twilight's was nowhere near it and got a growl from Sour Sweet.
"Relax Twilight," Flash whispered, wishing he was down there to coach her through it.
But it wasn't good. Applejack hit a bullseye next, allowing Rarity and Pinkie to begin the speed skating. "And Canterlot is off to an early lead!" Cadance announced as Twilight missed the target again.
As Rarity and Pinkie raced across the field, Twilight missed again and again. She felt her body shake more as her entire student body began to glare at her. Sour Sweet facepalmed as Twilight missed again, watching as Pinkie and Rarity were now starting their second lap. "Well, that's just fantastic! Would you hit the target already?!"
Her yell made the girl flinch, both Applejack and Fluttershy frowning at the sight as Fluttershy said, "I'm sure glad I don't go to Crystal Prep."
"You said it," Applejack added. At that moment, Pinkie let out a cry of joy as she and Rarity shot past the finish line, the score changing to show it was now two laps to zero.
Up in the box, Cadance sighed before making an announcement, "If CPA can't hit another bullseye soon, they'll be out of this race." This statement didn't help Twilight, making her accidentally drop her arrow with tears in her eyes.
Up atop the motocross ramp, Flash's heart ached to see her in distress. It didn't help that Sugarcoat decided to give her overly honest brand of support, "You're really bad at this!"
Flash turned to her, almost going red in anger, "DO YOU HAVE AN OFF SWITCH?!" Sugarcoat just shrugged, about to tell him she was right, only for Sunset to grab Flash's shoulder.
"Relax. I think your friend will be just fine." Flash turned to her, only see her pointing at Twilight as Applejack made her way over to her, "She's about to get some great advice."
"Huh?" Flash now noticed Applejack, raising an eyebrow at the sight, "Why would she do that?"
"Because that's who Applejack is," Rainbow added.
True to Sunset and Rainbow's word, Applejack was now patting Twilight's shoulder as she said, "Ya'll have to stop aimin' at the target."
Twilight blinked at her, Sour now commenting, "Oh, that makes perfect sense! Don't aim at the target! Thanks so much!"
Applejack glared at her before looking back at Twilight, "Don't listen to her. All ya'll have to do is stop aimin' at where the target is, and aim at where the target's gonna be."
Sour just growled at this, her voice dripping in sarcasm, "Yeah! Definitely take advice from the person you're competing against!" That last part was screamed at the top of her voice, making Twilight panic as she felt she was attached to another object by an inclined plane, wrapped helically around an axis.
Applejack rolled her eyes before looking back at Twilight, "Do you wanna hit the bullseye or not?" Twilight whipped her eyes at her and nodded, "Then trust me." She helped her steady the bow, "Take a deep breath." Twilight did as instructed, "And let the arrow go...riiiiight...." They watched as they target spun around the board, "NOW!" Twilight fired, the world seeming to shift into slow motion as the arrow flew into the board, time shifting back as it hit dead center.
The crowd began to cheer as Sunny and Lemon shot ahead, Spike coming out of his hiding place to cheer, "Yeah!" He jumped into her arms, "That's my girl!"
Applejack chuckled at this, turning to Sour as she slowly backed away. She spun back to Twilight as she came over, expecting a high-five, but getting a hug instead, "See?" She patted her shoulder, "Ah was tellin' ya the truth."
And as soon as those words came out of her mouth, a bright green aura appeared around her. Twilight gasped at the sight, now seeing Applejack's ears and tail begin to grow. But as this happened, her scanner began to beep, making Twilight look down and see the device open, "NO!"
But it was too late. The green light began to be sucked inside the scanner, causing Applejack to slump over, "Huh?" She began to moan as she looked at Twilight, "What...are you...doing?!"
"I don't know!" Twilight cried before the last of the magic was sucked out, making Applejack fall to her knees. While that happened, Twilight was still trying to close the scanner, backpedaling as she managed to shut it...and then trip over Spike. "Ah!" she yelped, falling off the stage as the scanner fell out of her hands. The device hit the raceway dirt, making it open up and fire a bolt of purple energy out, making a portal appear before a tentacle suddenly shot out of the wormhole.
Back at the race...
Flash was sighing as he saw the race still going, now looking away from Applejack and Twilight due to knowing that he would have to get his bike going soon. He glanced back once, but he saw nothing, figuring Twilight had run off to hide Spike, not knowing what she had done.
Looking down below now, Rarity and Pinkie passed the finish line again, "Canterlot only has two laps to go!" Cadance announced, "But it looks like Crystal Prep is making up for lost time!" Flash saw this happening, now seeing the Shadowbolts quickly closing the gap as Rarity and Pinkie began their sixth lap.
The CPA students were all cheering as they watched their school getting closer, soon flying past the girls as they started to get a little winded. As this happened, Lemon unknowingly kicked Twilight's scanner, knocking it over to the motocross track. As it did this, several sparks flew out of the device, bolts zapping across the area as it began to summon more portals, large vines now rushing out of them. Twilight tried to run over to the scanner, only for one of those vines to wrap around it, pulling the device away.
As this happened, the Shadowbolts took the lead as Rarity looked back at Pinkie, "Come on!" She held out her leg, Pinkie getting the idea and grabbing hold of it. As soon as she had a grip, Rarity swung her leg around, catapulting the cotton candy girl forward.
Pinkie balled herself up for greater speed, managing to shoot past the Shadowbolts and fly right into the finish line before them. This got the Wondercolt fans cheering as Cadance yelled, "What a finish!"
The lights for both teams went green, bikes now kicking into first gear as they shot off the ramp. As this happened, Twilight was now pulling at the vines to get her scanner, only to feel something wrap around her ankle. She looked down and gasped, now seeing an entire plant come out of a portal, a snake-like flower with a bulb that had a giant mouth on it. "AAH!" She screamed, clawing at the ground to try and get away.
Back at the race, Rainbow had taken the lead with Flash not far behind, Sugarcoat next while Sunset brought up the rear. "Awesome!" The athlete cheered as she raced up a ramp, flying over a pool of water before landing on the other side. She continued to race ahead, only to see a portal open up in front of her. Gasping at the sight, she tried to hit the brakes as another plant shot out while making a mighty roar.
"What the heck?!" Flash yelped as the plant thrust its mouth forward, Flash pulling his bike to the side before sliding under one of its vines. He quickly started the brakes as he dodged another vine, now staring at the portals as he whispered, "Oh no...Twilight."
As this happened, Sugarcoat and Sunset both came up to the plant, Sugarcoat managing to outmaneuver it while a vine swung at Sunset, making her leap off her bike. The ride was then gripped by the vine, crushing it in one blow. Rainbow heard the sound and looked back, seeing both Flash and Sugarcoat coming up before spotting Sunset. Without even a second's hesitation, she pulled her bike to a stop and spun around, Flash passing her as she revved her engine, shooting past Sugarcoat next.
Sunset shook her head as the sound of growls made her look up, now seeing the plant preparing to strike. But as it thrust its head forward, Rainbow drove up and held out a hand. Sunset managed to grab hold and was pulled up onto the bike, right before the plant bit down. Sunset sighed in relief before giving Rainbow a hug, "Dash, you saved me!"
"I wasn't about to let my friend become plant food!" Rainbow declared as a blue light began to surround her. Sensing this, Rainbow pulled the bike to a stop and jumped off, throwing her helmet off as her ears morphed and her hair grew longer, wings now sprouting from her back.
Over with the judges, Cinch, Ruby and Cadance all went wide-eyed with Rainbow's transformation, Cinch turning to Celestia and Luna, the duo giving sheepish smiles. At the same time, the students were also showing the same expressions, Lightning yelping, "What the heck?!" He then turned to Iron, Heather and First, the three looking away with sweat pouring down their faces as they watched Sunset and Rainbow continue to race.
Flash had just reached Twilight as he saw her leg being wrapped around by a vine, Spike trying to bite through it until he was grabbed by another. "Hang on!" He pumped his engine and did a wheelie to cut through the vine holding Spike. He caught the puppy before slamming the wheel onto the one holding Twilight, cutting through it before leaping off as the plant tried to bite him.
Landing just a bit away, he saw the scanner in the distance, "That's it! This...ends...NOW!" He threw Spike over to Twilight before running at the device, only for a vine to grab his wrists, pulling him away from the scanner. "No!"
"FLASH!" Twilight screamed as she saw him get lifted up, the other students gasping at the sight.
He started pulling at the vines, but it wasn't enough. The plant kept tightening its grip, making him yell out in pain. But as this happened, another portal opened right behind him before firing out a beam of magic right into his back. "GYAH!" He cried, feeling his back now be struck.
"FLASH!" His eyes shot open despite the pain, making him looked down to see Twilight staring up at him. The look on her face showed nothing but fear, something that was on his face as well.
But as he saw this, a new vine began to appear behind Twilight, making him growl. Fear left him as he knew he had to do one thing. He wanted to save her. "Get..." Orange energy began to build around him, "off..." he closed his eyes as the pressure in his back began to hit its peak, "of...ME!" His eyes flew open, energy exploding off of him. The blast burned the vines, releasing him from the midair grip...but he didn't fall.
He stayed in the air, his ears morphing to be like Rainbow's as a small ponytail formed out the back of his head, a pair of wings now bursting out of his back. Everyone gasped again, the glow around Flash's eyes dying down as he looked down at his hands, feeling strength pour into his body, "Whoa...I feel...powerful!" But as he said that, he looked up to see another predaplant attacking, Flash flapping his wings to effortlessly dodge it. He didn't know how he knew how to fly, but he could. The teen quickly spun around, kicking the plant in the head, "Back off ugly!"
ROAR!
"Oh yeah?! Come and get me!" Flash barked back, the plant firing a pair of vines at him. Flash began to dance around the attack, both vines slithering around in the air. But as they were about to grab him, Flash came to a stop. "You're done."
The vines just tried to move at him...only to feel themselves pull back. It was here that the plant saw that Flash had to tied the vines while he dodged them, the final knot being right after his taunt. "HA!" Flash laughed before looking down at the scanner, "Now to put an end to this."
Twilight's jaw was fully dropped as she watched this, her brain now going into overdrive. She could not comprehend what was happening, her eyes twitching at the sight. Her mind could only say one thing: This...is magic.
But as the acceptance of this fact went into her brain, she then Flash land near the scanner, her eyes going wide as she realized what would happen, "FLASH, NO!"
Her words fell on deaf ears as Flash reached for the scanner, only for it to start beeping. In quick motion, it opened up, blasting him with a burst of energy before sucking every bit of power out of him, "AUGH!" He fell to his knees, his body freezing before slumping over as Twilight grabbed the scanner, trying to shut it again.
As this happened, Rainbow and Sunset saw what had happened before Flash ponied up, Rainbow saying they would deal with it after the race. Agreeing with this, Sunset kept her focus the competition, Rainbow guarding her from plants as Sunset went into Mach two. At this speed, she caught up to Sugarcoat, the two glaring at each other as they both floored it, pushing their bikes to the limit.
And then the red tape at the end broke.
"Canterlot wins!" Cadance announced, the Wondercolts all cheering at the victory. The CPA students were wide-eyed, not happy while Lightning and his friends were just staring at Flash and Twilight in pure confused shock. As for Cinch, she was absolutely livid, anger peaking as she not only had lost, but two of the students had transformed into...something. Cadance saw the anger on her face, gulping as she and Ruby shared before the dean made another announcement, "Attention students, please proceed to the gym."
And as she said this, Twilight had now managed to push the scanner shut, cutting off the energy drain. The portals began to fade away, the plants all being beheaded as the wormholes closed. As this happened, Flash let out a breath of pain, then fell over into the dirt.
"FLASH!" Twilight screamed as she and Spike ran over to him, "Are you okay?"
"I don't wanna go to school today." Flash muttered out.
Spike laughed, "He's fine."
"This isn't funny Spike," Twilight growled before looking down at the scanner. "Oh...what do I do?!"
Meanwhile...
"Is everybody all right?" Applejack asked as the Rainbooms regrouped, the girl only now recovering from the previous magic drain.
"Better than all right!" Rainbow cheered, "We won!"
Rarity and Pinkie were about to celebrate with her, but Sunset next words stopped all celebrations in their tracks. "Yeah, we won." She pulled off her helmet, "but somebody could've been seriously hurt. The magic is going haywire and I have no idea how to fix it!"
"Magic?" They all turned to see the Royal Knights, Lightning and his friends all glaring at them. "That's what's going on?" Lightning asked, Sunset now freezing up at his glare.
"Lightning...stop." they all turned to see Flash, Twilight using every bit of her strength to help him up. "Calm down. It's...complicated."
"Obviously," Lightning replied while Iron and Wild ran over to help keep him upright.
With Flash properly cared for, Twilight did a long gulp before turning to the Rainbooms, "Um, excuse me?" They all turned to her, "Um...I uh...I'm sorry. This is um...my fault."
"Why would this weird stuff be your fault? Aren't they changing into flying glowing things?" Wild asked with a raised eyebrow. "You know, except Flash."
Twilight shook her head in response, "No...my scanner is uh...doing this. I um...didn't mean for any of this to happen. I just wanted to learn about the strange energy coming from this school. I didn't know that it was magic or...how it works."
Rainbow laughed as she started to walk over to her, "That's okay. Neither do we." But as she got close, Twilight's pendant started beeping again before opening up.
"Oh no!" Twilight yelped as it started sucking Rainbow's magic out of her. "Oh, no no no! Not again!" Everyone gasped, Sunset rushing over to Rainbow as she fell to her knees. "I'm sorry!" Twilight yelled as she started trying to shut the device again, "It just started absorbing the magic on its own, but I'm not sure how!"
Hearing this, Sunset glared at her, "What do you mean you don't know how?! Didn't you make that?!" She reached for the scanner and tried to shut it, but before she could, it unleashed a beam that flew up into the air. After a few feet, the beam burst into a large portal above everyone's heads, this one showing night time.
"You guys are seeing that too, right?" Gorgenia asked.
"Yeah..." Wild nodded with a dropped jaw, "I see it."
"But I don't believe it," Script finished, all staring at the portal as Cinch returned and secretly saw the whole thing.
Twilight groaned as she tried to push the scanner shut, "It also causes these corresponding rifts to appear! I don't know how that works either."
Sunset looked down from the portal and glared at Twilight...and didn't see the Twilight she knew. What she saw was a girl who thought she was too smart to think about the consequences of her actions, one who only cared about what she wanted, not caring about the damage she might do to those around her. What she saw...was herself.
And in a single motion, her face turned red in anger as Sunset yelled, "Is there anything you do know?!" She started getting right up in Twilight's face, "Like how to get our magic back?! Or how to fix the portal to Equestria?!"
Twilight started to backpedal as she whimpered out, "Equestria?"
Sunset didn't answer her question, instead continuing to berate her, "You're supposed to be so smart, but did you ever think that you shouldn't be messing around with something this dangerous?!" She snatched the scanner, using all of her anger induced strength to slam the device shut. "Flash told me you talked to Grand. Didn't he tell you that you shouldn't be messing with this, especially something you don't understand?!"
Doing so closed the portal, Twilight looking close to tears. "But I wanna understand!"
"But you don't!" Sunset slapped the device away. "Instead, you decided to take our magic and hurt us without a care in the world, thinking you're just allowed to do whatever you want. And worst of all, you put the lives of my friends in danger, and you don't care!"
Those last words finally did it, tears now pouring down Twilight's face. "I'm sorry," she squeaked out, "I didn't mean to."
With that, she ran off while beginning to bawl her eyes out. "Twilight!" Spike yelled as he ran after her, "Wait!"
Flash tried to do the same, pushing himself out of the others' grip before falling to his knees. "Flash!" Heather and First knelt down, trying to stop him, "Stop! Don't push yourself."
Sunset was now panting, Rainbow pulling her out of her rage by placing a hand on her shoulder. She turned to her friend before sighing, "Sorry." A few glared at the teen, remembering the old version of her for a second before she turned to Iron, "Could you take Flash inside? He'll be okay after some rest." Iron nodded and moved over to help Flash back up, the Royal Knights helping him. Sunset then turned to Lightning, his friends showing nothing but confusion while Lightning was a little hesitant to look at Sunset. Despite this, she said, "Sorry you had to see that. I'm guessing you all probably have a lot of questions," they all nodded. "Well, can you ask Iron or someone else? We...we have other matters to deal with."
"Yeah...I can see that." Lightning replied, biting his lip at the same time before looking at his friends, "Come on." They all nodded, turning away with unsure looks on their faces.
As this happened, Cinch was speaking with Celestia with a death-piercing glare, "You can't possibly call that a fair race."
Celestia frowned back, "Principal Cinch, we all saw what happened. You can't think CHS had some kind of advantage."
"Can't I?" Cinch asked before pointing at Rainbow, "Even without your trained attack plants, your students have wings!"
"Um, principal," Ruby spoke up. "Might I remind you that one of our students also grew wings." Cinch turned to glare at her, Ruby just shrugging back.
Celestia shook her head, "Well, the race certainly had some...extenuating circumstances. Perhaps we should end the games now and declare a tie."
"A tie?!" Cinch gasped, "Was this your strategy all along?! To force us into accepting you as equals?!" Ruby, Cadance and Luna all rolled their eyes as Cinch continued, "I think not! The games will continue and Crystal Prep will prevail despite your antics and whatever performance-enhancing regimen your students are on!" With that, the principal did an almost military turn to the right and marched back into the school.
Once she was gone, Sunset walked up to Celestia, "I'm sorry I couldn't stop all of this from happening."
Celestia shook her head again, "It's not your fault, Sunset."
"Isn't it?" Sunset asked, "I should know how to control the magic I brought here, but I don't." she began to slump over as all her failings began to pile up. "I let everyone down, and now Principal Cinch thinks we're cheating."
Celestia placed a hand on Sunset's shoulder, "It doesn't matter what Principal Cinch thinks."
"But it does," Sunset pulled away, "The students here at CHS don't just wanna win. They wanna beat Crystal Prep. It isn't gonna count if the other side doesn't really think they lost. Crystal Prep is never gonna believe we won fair and square if there's magic around. And that magic is only around...because of me."
Everyone else frowned, not able to reply to her. And as this happened, Celestia saw the glares from Cadance and Ruby. "Perhaps we can start fixing this by explaining a few things."
In another room where magical education was also happening...
Iron had led Flash and the others to the music room, the teen resting on the floor while using his blazer as a cushion. First had gone off to the locker room to collect Flash's stuff, allowing him to change into his regular clothes before resting.
"And that's about it," Heather finished, now staring at Lightning, Script, Gorgenia and Wild as they all shared slack-jawed looks from the story, "I know it's a lot to take in, but it's all completely true."
"It's just..." Script started, "A bit too much."
"Oh, we know." Iron grumbled with crossed arms, "We don't believe it half the time either."
Wild spoke up next, "So what you're saying is..." He turned to Lightning and laughed, "You dated a horse?!"
Lightning glared back at him, Gorgenia chiming in next, "Not the time Wild."
"So Twilight's been stealing the magic from the girls?" Lightning asked as he looked back at Iron, "I'm guessing that's not a good thing."
"You saw what happened," Iron replied, "She stole the portal and now it's getting pumped up by the other magic she stole. If Sunset can't find a way to fix this, who knows what might happen."
"We have to find Twilight," they all turned to the voice, now seeing Flash get up.
Heather ran over to him, "Flash, you have to rest. You're-"
"I'm fine," Flash interrupted, his legs wobbling as he tried to stand up, "I'm...okay. What matters right now is making sure Twilight's okay." Flash's face started to show a tinge of anger, "After what that girl said to her, she's gotta be a wreck."
"Please don't be angry at Sunset," Heather told him. "She's been under a lot of stress and almost seeing her friends get eaten likely put her over the edge. I'm sure once she calms down, she'll want to apologize to Twilight."
"That's fine," Flash grumbled, "But I've gotta find her before she does something stupid. Who knows what might happen if she absorbs any more magic. That scanner could blow us all to kingdom come."
"But we have no idea where she is," Gorgenia added.
"Well it's a good thing I do," they all turned to the door and saw Spike walk inside. Lightning and his friends just stared at the dog as he moved over to Flash, "Twilight wanted me to come check and see if you were alright. My trusty nose can always find you."
"Did...did that dog just speak?" Wild asked.
"Yes, he did. We'll explain later." Flash grumbled as he picked up Spike, "Where's Twilight?"
"She's getting ready for the final event." said a new voice, everyone turning to the room's door to see Cinch. Flash went wide-eyed before trying to hide Spike behind his back, "Don't bother. I spotted your little pet and figured I'd follow, hoping to find Twilight. But I'm glad I found you instead."
"Uh...why?" Flash replied, his words slowly coming out of his mouth.
Cinch grabbed the tip of her glasses and adjusted them, "Flash, it's come to my attention that the only way CHS was able to get to our level is because of the magic they have. In order to put things back on an even footing, Crystal Prep must fight fire with fire."
Everyone shared a glance, Lightning then asking, "Wait...you don't mean you want to use magic, do you?"
"Are you insane?!" Flash yelped while Spike leapt out from behind him and growled.
"I am not," Cinch replied before glaring down at the dog. "It's only fair that if CHS insists on cheating, the only way to level to playing field is to use the same method."
"The girls aren't cheating," Heather told her. "They don't know how their magic works. In fact, they wanted to compete without it. Twilight's the one that's been causing all these problems."
Flash shot her a glare, but Cinch took his attention back as she said, "Of course you'd say that, since it's your school that's cheating." She then walked up and put a hand on Flash's shoulder, "Now then, are you ready to do what you must for your school?"
"No!" Flash swatted her hand away, "I'm not gonna use something I know nothing about just so you can win some stupid game."
"You will use the magic," Cinch growled as she walked back to the door before pointing at him, "Don't forget, your entire educational life is in my hands. And not just yours."
"Hang on. He probably couldn't do it if he wanted too," Lightning chimed in. "Twilight's pendant thingy zapped all the magic out of him."
Flash glanced at him before nodding, "Yeah, that's right. And it did the same to the rest of the girls. None of us have any magic. It's all inside Twilight's device." He then went wide-eyed as he realized what he had said before seeing a sinister smile appear on Cinch's lips. "No. You can't!"
"Oh, but I can and will. Twilight will use the magic and claim victory for Crystal Prep."
"There's no way she'd do that," he barked back, "You're crazy!"
"Oh, she will do as I say. After all, she and I have an agreement." She shined an extra big grin as she saw confusion grace Flash's face, "What, she didn't tell you? If Crystal Prep loses the games, then I'll be forced to expel a certain student. You."
"WHAT?!" Flash screeched, about to run after her before she pulled her arms out and grabbed the room's doors, slamming them shut. "HEY!"
"I'm sorry, but it seems none of you will be able to attend the final event of the games. Don't worry, I'll make sure someone's filming so you can see us beat this school once again later."
The eight teens and puppy then ran to the door, only for a clicking noise to sound out. They quickly tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge, "Let me out!" Flash yelled before beginning to bang on the doors, "LET ME OUT!"
"Flash, its no use." Lightning pulled him away, "She's locked it."
"How the heck did she get a key?!" Heather asked next.
"That does not matter now," First told her. "What matters is getting out of here and warning Twilight before it is too late."
But as these words left First's mouth, they fell on deaf ears as Flash pulled himself out of Lightning's grip and started slamming on the doors again.
Outside, everyone was waiting for the final event while standing at the front of the school. Cadance and Luna then walked up, Luna holding a pair of flags while Cadance explained, "Since the score's tied, the final event will determine the winner of the Friendship Games."
Luna waved the flags. "Somewhere on campus, a pennant from each school has been hidden. The first team to find their school's flag and bring it back wins."
Cadance nodded in response, "And as soon as our teams are ready, we'll begin."
As this happened, the Rainbooms stared at the Shadowbolts as Fluttershy said, "I um...I don't feel like playing these games anymore."
"But we have to play," Rainbow told her. "This is the last event!"
Rarity sighed and shook her head, "It is a little hard to focus with all the magic stealing and portal opening."
"And I feel awful about what I said to Twilight," Sunset moaned as she slumped over before looking at the opposing group. There she saw the girl in question, a look of panic on her face as she shook like a leaf. She also noticed that Flash wasn't there.
"Especially since she obviously didn't mean to do all the stuff she did," Sunset heard Fluttershy say. "She's actually really nice." This made Sunset facepalm, causing the rest of the girls to shoot Fluttershy a glare, making her slowly hide behind Pinkie.
Applejack then patted Sunset's shoulder, "Come on Sunset, let's just get through this last event and prove we're not a bunch of cheaters. Then you can go over and apologize." Sunset did a small nod of agreement, happy to see her friends were still with her.
As this happened, Twilight kept looking around for Flash, only for Cinch to walk in front of the Shadowbolts, "Girls, I'm afraid Mr. Sentry is still feeling a little worn out due to what happened during the last event." This made Twilight gasp, her eyes shrinking at the statement as Cinch continued, "As such, Miss Zap will be standing in for him during the last event."
"Aw yeah!" The girl pumped her arms. "Let's do this!"
"Hang on, does it even matter?" Sunny asked, "How are we supposed to win against a bunch of girls that can do what they did before."
Cinch shook her head before glaring at the girls in question, "I know I'm asking you to beat a team that isn't playing fair, but Canterlot High must be made to understand that even with this odd things they can do at their disposal, beating Crystal Prep is simply not an option."
"What if they grow wings again?" Sugarcoat asked, "I mean, Flash was the only one affected by that weird stuff. We can't do that."
"A fair question," Cinch turned to Twilight, "Though I believe we can now fight fire with fire." Twilight began to shrink back, placing her hand on the scanner nervously. "I've seen what your device can do Twilight. Containing magical energy is fine, but have you considered releasing it?"
Twilight's eyes shrunk at the suggestion, making her squeak out, "But...but I don't even understand how it works."
"But you'd like to," Cinch told her as the rest of the Shadowbolts began to crowd around her. "And since our opponents have already used it to stay competitive, I see no reason why we shouldn't do the same." She leaned down, glaring right into the shivering teen's eyes, "Unless of course, you don't care about what happens to Flash." Twilight's heart almost stopped. "Or have no interest in Everton. Though honestly, I think there's more knowledge packed in that little device than any independent study program could offer."
She then tapped the device, a huge grin on her face as she asked one last question, "What do you think you should do?"
Meanwhile...
"Three...two...ONE!" Flash, Lightning and Iron all body tackled the door, the wood not even budging as they all fell back.
Spike ran up next, "You okay?"
"I'm fine," Flash groaned as he picked himself up. "Again."
"It's useless Flash," First told him. "This room was designed to be soundproof. Every inch of it is reinforced so sound will be unable to get through."
Heather nodded in agreement, "Not even a battering ram could get through it."
"We have to," Flash slammed a fist into door before falling back again, "I'm supposed to protect her." He groaned as he everyone stared at him, "But now...but now I might be why she gets hurt."
"Flash," Gorgenia placed a hand on his shoulder, "This isn't your fault."
"You heard Cinch. Twilight's only doing this because she threatened to expel me." He looked down in shame, "I always thought the reason I met Twilight and became her friend was so she could be safe. But now...now I'm putting her in danger, and its all my fault."
"Flash, Cinch would have just used some other way to blackmail her even if you weren't here." Spike told him as he placed his head in Flash's lap. "You might not see it, but you give Twilight strength. Even when you're not there, your influence has made her stronger. Not strong enough to not be taken advantage of, but that's just because she's gotten use to you being there."
"He's right," Lightning added, "She'll learn to stand up for herself without you, but it'll take time. You need to stand back and let her face stuff alone, and when that time comes, she'll tell you when she needs your help." He then looked back at the door, "But this is a time you do need to be there for her."
Flash sighed and shook his head, getting back up as he glared at the door. "I know. I need to get out of here now."
"Let's try one more time." Iron added as they got ready to charge. But as they got into position-
Click, click, clack.
"Anyone in here?" Everyone went wide-eyed as they saw Grand open the door, "What are you all doing in here? I heard banging, and-" He didn't get to finish as he was suddenly tackled by Flash, the teen hugging him tight enough to almost break his bones.
"Thank you!" He yelled, tears almost streaming from his eyes. Before Grand could ask what was going on, Flash let him go and shot down the corridor with Spike by his side.
"What the heck?!" He asked as Lightning and the others raced out of the music room.
"Sorry gramps, no time!" his grandson yelled back.
"Magical emergency!" Heather added as they ran. Grand blinking at the sight before trying to run after them.
Flash was at the front of the group, running as fast as he could with Spike at his heels. They then reached the doors and burst through them, now finding themselves at the side of the school. "This way!" Spike told him, running around the building with the humans following after him.
They soon came across the back of a large group of Crystal Prep students, all raising an eyebrow as they heard them singing. But it was the words they sung that scared Flash. "Unleash the magic! Free the magic!" Flash then saw Twilight walking out to the center of the field, the teen and Spike beginning to push through the group as they heard Cadance speak.
"The last event of the Friendship Games begins..."
He then reached the front and saw Twilight holding up her pendant. "Twilight!" Spike cried as she began to open it, Sunset running up to stop her.
"NO!" Flash yelled, jumping at her to do the same.
But it was too late. Twilight opened the pendant, causing a blinding white light to explode out.
Flash, Spike and Sunset all moaned in pain as they were blown back by the shockwave, stumbling over while covering their eyes from the light. Everyone else was just as shocked as they watched the magic fly out of the scanner, Twilight dropping it as she was lifted into the air.
As this happened, Flash shook his head before looking up and yelling, "TWILIGHT!"
The sphere began to grow larger, slowly enveloping Twilight as her eyes went wide. Realisation had struck her that this had been a very bad idea, now feeling pain consume her as she knew one thing: There was no way she was gonna be able to control this. She turned around, now looking down at Flash as she reached her arm out, "Heeeeeeeeeelllllllp...meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
Flash ran up and jumped...only for the orb to close. Gasping at the sight, an explosion followed, knocking Flash back as his body slammed into the ground, "Blaugh!" he yelped, only for his ears to now hear Twilight's pains screams inside. He looked back up as he yelled, "TWILIGHT!"
"AAAAAAHHHHH!!!" she screamed...only to come to a stop. And as the yelling came to a halt, the orb melted away, showing a new being. It was Twilight, who had a darker skin and hair that had a dark flame-like aspect. She was now wearing a purple dress and long purple socks with shining crystal hears. A pair of black and blue wings sprouted from her back, a similar looking tail now dangling from her lower back. There was also a long horn made of light blue crystals grew from her forehead before a pair of crystal glasses appeared around her eyes, which opened to show an almost sinister look.
Flash could only shiver at the sight, unable to comprehend the sight in front of him.
The transformed teenager let out a maniacal cackle as she turned to Sunset, "You were right! I didn't understand magic before, but I do now!" As soon as she said that, her horn exploded with the magic she had taken. It then shot down into her hand, the girl turning to the Wondercolt statue.
BLAM!
She fired a blast at the stone horse, making it explode into pieces. The shards then floated over the former portal before creating a new wormhole, only that made Sunset gasp as she saw certain figures inside the crack, "Equestria!"
"Ahahaha!" Twilight laughed as she saw a spark of purple lightning fly out the portal and arc down into the ground. The following strike caused to make a new purple light appear, the girl firing another beam of magic at the light. The Rainbooms all had to leap away as the magic hit the light, making bolts of magic infused lightning to fly everywhere.
The students all screamed as the magic bolts flew in every direction, creating small tears all over the place. Many of them ran before they could fall into one, Sunny Flare spotting a certain someone trying to leave unnoticed.
"Hey!" Cinch turned to her, "Where are you going?!"
Cinch pointed at Twilight, "Anywhere to avoid that...monster!" She turned back to them, "And I suggest you do the same!" She ran off while Sunny looked to the rest of her teammates, all of them giving uncertain glances in response.
"Twilight!" yelled another voice, making everyone turn to see Sunset trying to get close to Twilight, "You can't do this!"
"Why not?!" Twilight barked back as she pointed at the new portals, "There's a whole other world right there, and it's filled with magic!"
She fired another blast, hitting a tear that had just opened at the school's doors. Ruby saw it coming and pushed Cadance away, Luna doing the same as the portal opened. As this happened, Sunset continued to yell at Twilight, "Twilight, you're destroying this world to get it!"
"So what?!" Twilight roared as magic began to swirl in her hands, "There's more magic there, AND I WANT TO UNDERSTAND IT ALL!" With that, she thrust both hands forward, firing a massive blast at the center of the courtyard.
"Move!" Flash added as he tackled Sunset, saving her from the blast as a barrage of cracks began to appear in the courtyard. And as everyone saw the cracks cover the ground, they all tried to escape...only to be sucked in. But as this happened, a couple of girls were there.
"Don't let go!" Applejack grunted, using all her strength to hold onto a falling student.
Rainbow did the same, helping another as she felt the dirt grind under her feet, "I got ya!"
While this happened, the Shadowbolts just stood there in frozen terror. But before they could react, Lightning, his friends and the Royal Knights ran past them, Lightning yelling, "What are you waiting for?! Let's help them!"
He then grabbed a CHS student that was falling into the cracked ground, the rest doing the same. Wild spotted Pinkie having trouble pulling up another student, quickly running over and grabbing her waist, "I gotcha!" He said as he pulled her back.
"Thanks," she replied as they began to pull back more. As this happened, the Shadowbolts all shared a glance before running up to help as well, just as Rarity slipped over the side of the portal, falling along with Fleur-De-Lis and another girl they didn't know.
Rainbow, who was holding onto Bright Idea at the time, gasped. "Hang on!"
"Obviously!" Rarity screamed back while holding onto the side of the portal, only to be caught by Indigo and Lemon.
"We got you!" The pumped up girl yelled.
While this was happening, Twilight stared at the growing portal, a huge grin appearing on her face. "Twilight!" She turned to see Flash, his feet shuffling as lightning sparked out, pushing him back, "Twilight, you have to stop this!"
"Why?!" Twilight barked back, "With this power, we'll never have to worry about anything ever again!" She held out a hand, "Join me Flash. You'll get just as much magic as me once we travel through the portal. Let's stand side by side as we head to this new world!"
Flash just stared at her, his eyes shrinking at the sight. He then turned to see the other students, nothing but fear and desperation in their eyes. The Crystal Prep students, who had mostly treated Twilight like dirt, and the CHS students that had yelled at her for causing all these problems were now nothing but shivering hiding teens.
He then sighed as he glanced back at her, "I'd follow Twilight to the ends of the earth..." Twilight shined a giant grin, making her descend as her hand got closer. But as the hand was at his level, Flash slapped it away, making Twilight gasp as Flash started to glare at her, "But you're not Twilight! My Twilight wouldn't dare risk destroying the world, not matter what it got her!"
Twilight reflexively flew back, growling as she continued to ascend, "So be it. I don't need you anymore. Not now that I have this much power."
"Twilight's never needed me," Flash added, "I see that now. I was just holding her back, fighting her battles instead of helping her fight them herself. Who knows how strong she'd be if I wasn't there for her." His body shook in anger and self-loathing. "When I get her back, things will be different...so give her back to me right NOW!"
The sight of Flash rejecting her made Twilight flinch, the anger on his face making her heart feel like it was gonna rip apart. But that feeling faded when another portal opened behind her, this one making her magic flare as lightning fired out of the crack, causing Flash to stagger back.
Sunset was also forced to jump away from another portal, this time landing by Twilight's scanner. The sight made an idea form in her head, picking it up as she saw it beep and point at all of her friends. As this happened, each of them began to glow their respective colors, Sunset's mind putting the pieces together. Generosity, laughter, kindness, honesty loyalty...and courage. That's what caused this to happen, and that was how she was gonna save Twilight.
But before Sunset could do anything, one of the portals unleashed another bolt of magic lightning. It struck the ground in front of Sunset, causing an explosion and knocking the scanner out of her hand. "AAAHHH!" She screamed as she began to fall into a portal, the scanner now falling inside.
Sunset closed her eyes, knowing she was about to get thrown back into Equestria. Knowing this, Sunset tried to remember an anti-gravity spell in case she came out in midair, only to feel something grab her hand. Looking up, she saw Flash leaning over the portal while holding onto her, "Hang on!"
With a few quick pulls, she was back on the ground, both panting as Sunset said, "Thanks."
Flash helped her up in response, now asking, "Can you save her?"
Sunset shook her head, turning to her friends to see the magic glow around them begin to die down. "I...I thought I could, but without the scanner-I don't know."
Flash now saw she was staring at the main portal, the crack getting bigger. And as he stared, a bulb went off in his head, making him sigh before taking a deep breath, "Alright. Time to do something crazy."
The teen then removed his blazer and tie, Sunset asking, "Flash, what are you doing?"
"Twilight...or whatever she is now, was right. Every time I've been near these portal things, I've been sucking up the magic. Maybe I can level the playing field, if only a little."
Sunset's eyes went wide as she watched Flash take a step back, seeing him preparing himself for something. The sight made her realize what he was up to, "Flash, you can't-"
"I have too," he interrupted as he glanced back at Twilight. "For her."
With that, he broke into a run and leapt over the edge of the portal. "FLASH!" Everyone who knew him screamed as he began to fall into the portal. Twilight just laughed at the sight, her magic induced madness making her think Flash had changed his mind and was trying to get some magic to be by her side. They then watched as Flash completely disappeared into the wormhole, a bright flash of light finishing his departure.
Flash could only feel one thing as he fell...and that was nothing. His brain was rebooting, making him open his eyes to see there was nothing around him. Instead, he saw he was in some kind of white void, unable to tell which way was up or down, alive or dead. He was...nowhere.
"Is this...Equestria?" He asked, doing a long gulp as he realized he could now be trapped in another universe. But before that thought that could get into his head completely, he saw something in the corner of his eye. It was a bubble of golden light, giving off a warm feeling as it floated up to the teen. Flash blinked at the sight, now seeing an image inside, seeing what looked like him, though as a pony. It was a pegasi with the same hair, eyes, coat with the same color of his skin and his flank had his emblem on it.
"Is that...the other me?" He mumbled out as he saw the pony stand there, a happy smile on his face. The bubble soon flew away, Flash reaching out to grab it, only for another bubble to come by. This one had what he figured was Twilight's counterpart, only to see another sphere fly by with more Equestrian versions of others he knew. There was a dragon version of Spike, a pony version of Shining Armor, Cadance, Twilight's parents, Principal Celestia and even Grand. This was followed by the pony versions of the Rainbooms, minus Sunset, the Royal Knights, Ruby and Lightning's friends. One even showed him beside a strange humanoid dog.
Then the images got more action packed, one showing Flash battling a black horse with wings and a horn, another fighting what looked like Lightning. There was another with Flash and the dog fighting some amalgamation monster in a world filled with giant pancakes and tubas, the next one a giant snake with wings and scorpion claws. One showed a swarm of bug-pony hybrids while another showed him fighting pony covered in a black mist before a giant rock monster and an even bigger centaur.
During these images, the pony's hair got shorter and he gained a scar on his chest, but he still looked like Flash. It was here they showed him in golden armor, wielding swords made of pure light. This made Flash go fully wide-eyed, gasping at the sight.
"Did he...I, really do all this?" Flash gasped, knowing it was hard to believe. He was seeing himself as a great warrior in another world, something he would have never imagined himself being.
It was here that one last bubble flew up to him, the others fusing into this one before turning into a pillar of light. Flash had to squint due to the brightness, unable to see anything in the bubble of light. He growled at the glow, his eyes struggling to move open as the light continue to radiate. And as he shielded his eyes with his hands, he had a feeling he should speak up, "Hello? Can...can you hear me?" The bubble said nothing, "Are you from Equestria? Please, I need your help. Magic from your world is running wild in mine. My best friend...she's in danger. I need some way to save her!" The figure did nothing in response, slowly growing smaller until it seem to pop out of existence.
Flash sighed at this, slumping over before suddenly needing to shield his eyes due to a new explosion of light that erupted from where the bubble had been. And as the light faded, his eyes went wide as he saw a new sight. Himself.
The pony version of him was standing right at him, shorter hair and scar confirming this was the same one. He looked Flash up and down, only to turn away as the light bubble from before appeared and began to pulse brighter and dimmer in nonrhythmic ways.
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" The pony turned back to him, "Twilight's in danger, and its because of your world's magic!" Pony Flash raised an eyebrow at this, tilting his head before gesturing for him to continue. Flash sighed as he started to explain everything that had happened, Pony Flash going wide-eyed by the second. "So please...help me save her. There has to be something you can do."
Pony Flash turned to the bubble, which pulsed again before he glanced at the human Flash, "Okay, I'll help ya." Flash shined a big smile, only for Pony Flash to shake his head, "But I uh...can't do much. For one, I can't come back with you. It's...complicated."
"I'm really starting to hate that word." Flash grumbled back, making Pony Flash chuckle.
"Sorry. I'm guessing you've had a few long days with no explanations, am I right?" Flash did a slow nod in response, "Yeah, I know how you feel. Anyways, I can give you a little something that might help." He lifted his hoof and put it on the sphere, a gold mist flying out. "I'll lend you a bit of my power."
"Really?"
"Just a little. Hopefully it'll be enough to level things with your Twilight. Oh and uh...it won't last long. You'd better make it count." Flash nodded as they moved closer, the bubble moving between them. "Get ready."
Flash blinked at his words, "What do you mean? is this a bad idea?"
Pony Flash let out a long sigh, "This power I wield...its a lot to handle. Trust me on this, and I'm you."
Flash frowned hearing this. He remembered how good it felt the last time he used this magic, then remembered what was happening with Twilight. Could he really wield this power? What if lost control and ended up like his best friend. He'd be causing more trouble then he'd be fixing. "Maybe this isn't such a good-"
"Stop." his pony version pointed at him, "You're a version of me. You can do it. I was gonna tell you that this power...well, it isn't for you, as it isn't mine either." Flash just tilted his head at this, pure confusion on his face. The sight made the pony chuckle again, "Don't worry, I know its confusing. I'll just say this: Don't use this power selfishly, or it won't work. It only works if you want to use it to protect those you care about. If you do that, it'll never betray you."
Flash shined a big smile at this, "I like the sound of that. If this power let's me save her, I'll do it!"
Pony Flash let out a laugh before pointing at the sphere, "Now that's what I'm talking about. You're more than worthy of the power."
Flash nodded as he took a huge breath before placing his hand on the bubble. As he did this, the mist within shot into him, the bubble's light pulsing as he felt power pour into his body. And as he did this, he turned to his pony counterpart, the figure nodding as he began to vanish into the light of the bubble, "Thank you."
The light blazed for several long seconds, everyone freezing as they tried to shield their eyes. And as this happened, the light suddenly vanished, making everyone lower their arms before a new light blasted out of the vortex. This one began to spiral into a tornado, the crowd backpedaling at the sight as Twilight also began to fly away from it. The vortex then arced up, nearly hitting the flying girl before heading back down.
It was here that the spiral broke away from the portal, this time creating a normal tornado, which wrapped around a certain figure. He was kneeling on the ground, crouched down before slowly ascending as an explosion of light blasted off the tornado. It was Flash Sentry, now showing himself fully clad in golden armor, the light shining off his body. His armor was wrapped around his chest, arms and feet. On his head was a mask-like helmet with two triangular spikes coming off his head that formed a V shape. The light from the tornado then flew behind him and hit the back of his armor, forming a pair of crossed swords between his wings that were made entirely of light.
The word magnificent was the word that came to everyone's mind as Flash opened his eyes, looking down at himself with a giant grin, "Wow...he was right. Heck, this is even better than the last time."
Twilight laughed at the sight, "Amazing! You look incredible Flash!" She then floated over to him, reaching out her hand, "You see? This power is incredible and we haven't even scratched the surface of it yet."
"You're right," Flash added as he pulled a sword off his back, his fingers touching the blade's surface, "This power is incredible." This made everyone go wide-eyed, gulping as they heard his words. The very light from this body made them shiver in fear, knowing what it meant if he agreed with her. That is, till he looked up at Twilight, "But if getting more means destroying this world, then I'd rather not have it."
Everyone let out a sigh of relief at his response, only to look up and see Twilight hiss as she flapped her wings, going slightly back as she screeched, "You can't be serious! Look at what we can do with it!"
"I am looking...and what I'm seeing isn't something I'm interested in." Flash put the sword away as he continued, "I never needed power, wealth, fame or glory to be happy." He smirked as he put his hands into his pocket, only to suddenly feel something in one of them that him shine a hidden smile before continuing, "As long as those I cared about were safe and happy, then I'm fine."
"Then why don't you make me happy and help me get to that other world?!" Twilight barked back, magic swirling in her fingertips, "Well?!"
"Because what you're doing won't make you happy," Sunset added as she moved over to Flash, standing beside him. "All that will happen is you'll destroy this world, go to Equestria, and cause problems there. And let me tell you, that world has some of the most powerful defenders ever, and that'll be your last mistake. After that...it'll be too late. You won't be able to undo your mistake, and you'll grow to hate yourself, like I did."
"You're wrong!" Twilight screamed, magic now surging around her body.
"No, I'm right! This isn't the way!" Sunset replied, "I know you feel powerful right now, like you can have everything you want! I've been where you are, I've made the same mistake you're making! I put on a crown and, just like you, I was overwhelmed by the magic it contained! I thought it could get me everything I wanted!"
"Oh, you're wrong. Unlike you, I can have everything I want!" With that, she unleashed a burst of magic right at Sunset. But before it could hit her, two swords exploded off Flash's back, making him side-step and block the attack.
He then crossed his swords, a dome of light appearing around him, making Twilight flap backward from the sudden summoning of light. As she did this, he pulled out a certain scanner out of his pocket before giving it to Sunset, "I believe you were looking for this." Sunset gasped, taking the scanner as Twilight fired another blast. Flash turned back to the battle, seeing the dome begin to crack. "You better hurry! I don't think I have enough to push her back!"
"I know." Sunset replied as she walked through the dome, standing in front of Twilight as she yelled, "You can't have it all! Even with all that magic and power, you'll still be alone!" She opened the scanner and raised it up high, each of her friends beginning to glow, "True magic comes from honesty! Loyalty! Laughter! Generosity! Kindness!" Every time she announced a quality, the girl's magic pulsed, Sunset turning to Flash, "And courage!" With that, the six energies shot off their owners towards Sunset, pooling into the scanner as it began to lift Sunset into the air.
The girl turned her focus to Twilight, no doubt seeing some fear in her eyes. "I understand you Twilight, and I want to show you the most important magic of all..." With that, she slammed the scanner shut before tossing it to the ground. The device shattered, releasing an explosion of magic that made a new sphere of light, this one consuming Sunset. And as it faded a few seconds later, it revealed a new Sunset. This one wore dress a long pink and white dress with knee ledge orange high-heeled boots with wings on the sides, white gloves and orange armbands with her cutie mark on them. Her hair was wrapped upward as a pointed white horn graced her forehead. A pair of golden wings made of light were also sprouting from her back, "The Magic of Friendship!"
Twilight looked horrified at the sight, everyone else gasping or smiling. Flash was also transfixed, not noticing his arm disappear into a golden mist. Sunset then crossed her arms as they began to glow, thrusting them forward to unleashed a barrage of light beams, each striking every portal and closing them.
Twilight growled at this sight, charging at Sunset with a magical fist as Sunset did the same. The blow knocked both back, a minor shockwave coming out of the exchange before both fired a beam of magic. But as they clashed, Twilight began to push Sunset's beam back, making Twilight smirk.
"I won't lose! I will have this magic! Its-"
"Twilight!" She suddenly heard a certain puppy's voice, making her look down to see Spike run around the portal before jumping into Flash's arms. The two looked up at her, the looks on their faces making her go wide-eyed. Spike's face was one of despair, his eyes large and ears drooping. She had never seen him be so sad.
But then she saw Flash. It wasn't disgust or anger on his face, but instead...disappointment. He just showed a long frown, one she had never seen on him, the sight making her eyes twitch as she felt water begin to form in them. It was the look of him not wanting to do anything with her.
She could feel her heart ache at the sight, Flash and Sunset's words echoing in her mind. Her brain went into overdrive, now going over everything that had happened. She knew one thing: Sunset was right. She had forgotten everything. Flash, Spike, her brother, Cadance, Ruby, Lightning and his friends. All for the magic. She looked back down, now seeing that her magic was going to destroy the world, all so she could go into a portal that she had no idea what it was even about.
The teen blinked, her eyes morphing back to normal for a second, "Spike...Flash." And as she did this, Sunset's beam instantly pushed her back, making her look back before she saw Sunset's power overwhelm her, making her scream as the magic began to consume her, "NOOOO!"
She began to flinch, expecting to barrage of pain...only to feel nothing.
Instead, she opened her eyes to see she was in a white void, Sunset floating in front of her while reaching out a hand, "Take my hand, Twilight." Twilight flinched back again, fear devouring her face a Sunset continued, "Don't let the magic make you forget about all the good things you would lose. I know the bad things might outnumber them, but one good thing will always outshine a hundred bad ones. Let me show you there's another way...just like someone once did for me."
Twilight clenched up, tears filling her eyes before she began to slowly reach out, taking Sunset's hand. As soon as she did, golden light flowed from Sunset's hand and began to spiral down Twilight's arm. She closed her eyes as her glasses and horn vanished, a bright light exploding off the two.
Flash stared into the light that had engulfed Twilight and Sunset, hating that he couldn't do anything. But as he did this, a pair of silhouettes appeared in the pillar of light, slowly descending before the light faded. Both girls reverted back to normal, though Twilight looked a little shaken by the experience.
She pulled her hands out of Sunset's, "I am so sorry." She looked down in shame, tears filling her eyes again. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen."
Sunset just smiled at her, "I know. And going by my own experiences, they'll forgive you." Twilight smiled back, only to hear a familiar barking. She then looked down to see Spike, glasses in his mouth, jumping into her arms and knocking her back.
Twilight laughed as she felt him nuzzle her cheek, only to stop laughing as she saw Flash walk up to her. "Flash..." She stood up, looking down as she muttered out, "I'm sorry. If I had just listened to you, none of this would have happened. I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but-" She didn't finish as Flash pulled her into the tightest hug possible, squishing Spike between them.
"There's nothing to forgive. This wasn't your fault. It was the magic that made you do all that."
"But...you didn't seem to lose who you were when you got it."
"Uh...yeah." Flash chuckled at this, "Let's just say I had a little...help from an unlikely new friend. If they didn't give me the advice I needed, I'd have probably been the same way. But I didn't cause I had something more important then power." Twilight giggled into his chest, hugging back until Spike complained about not being able to breath. They laughed as they pulled away, only to see Cinch suddenly come out of hiding and march over to the rest of the faculty.
"Principal Celestia, on behalf of Crystal Prep, I demand that you forfeit the Friendship Games!" Everyone who heard her glared at the woman, rolling their eyes as she continued, "Clearly, CHS has had an unfair advantage for quite some time, and it's certainly obvious that your students have been using magic for their own benefit!"
Flash was about to march over, the urge to finally deck her too strong for him to resist. Luckily, he wouldn't be getting arrested due to Sunset jumping in front of him with a hand on his chest. She shook her head, giving him a look that said, 'Relax and let this play out.'
"I'd like to think that saving the world benefits us all," Celestia replied as she crossed her arms, Flash deciding he already liked this principal.
It was then that Sugarcoat spoke up, Flash also deciding her brand of tactless truth telling had its moments. "At least they didn't manipulate Twilight into releasing all the stolen magic and turning into a power-crazed magical creature that tried to rip the world apart just to win a game."
Everybody glared at Cinch at that, Pinkie speaking next, "Wow! That's a lot to take in when you say it all at once."
"That's ridiculous!" The principal barked back.
"Nope," Spike added while shaking his head, "That's pretty much what happened."
"Actually," Sour spoke in her sweet voice, "We're all to blame." She then shot Cinch a sour look, "Though it was mostly her."
Cinch growled before turning to Celestia, "Obviously my students have been infected with your magic, but I plan on taking all of this up with the school board!"
Celestia just shined a coy smile, "Good. I'm sure they would be very interested in hearing all about the magical students with wings."
"Oh, and the portals to different dimensions." Luna added, her eyebrows hopping up and down.
"And don't forget to tell them about the talking dog," Cadance finished with a giggle.
"Because that would never ruin your reputation," Spike growled.
Lightning then spoke up, "And while the school board is there, why don't you tell them about how you locked several students up against their will."
This made everyone turn to the teen, only to glance back at Cinch as Ruby chimed in, "Oh? Then maybe we should forget about the school board, and instead decide to involve the police."
"And don't say there won't be any proof." Grand added as he walked into the crowd, having been watching the whole thing from the sidelines. "I was the one who released them, and I can assure you there was no way they could have locked themselves in from the inside. I'm sure all my good friends in the police division would be interested in hearing about it."
Cinch could now feel sweat pouring down her face, making her gulp a she saw both schools now uniting to glare at her. It seemed the games had done just what it was named for, combining the schools as they stared at her, making her backpedal. She then took a deep breath and spun around, walking away as they all knew they wouldn't be seeing her anytime soon.
And as this happened, Celestia spoke up, "Well, I know these Friendship Games haven't been what any of us expected, but given what we've all just been through, I think it's fair to declare us all winners."
There was not a single word of complaint, loud cheers of two schools now muting any negativity out. The Friendship Games were now officially over.
Some time later...
Everything after that seemed like a blur, all the students who had run off returning to hear the details of what had happened. Flash had gotten several hundred questions about what had happened when he leapt into the portal, though Ruby made sure to give him a stern lecture about jumping into magical rifts in the fabric of space.
Eventually, she let up and both Flash and Twilight now found themselves on the front steps of the school. Twilight was sitting while Flash was laying on the ramp beside them, looking up at the sky with his arms behind his head. The two were also wearing medals around their necks that had a horseshoe on them, something all the Friendship Games participants had been awarded. Twilight was petting Spike's head when she heard Cadance speak up. "I guess that was one way to finish up your time at Crystal Prep." Flash then saw Cadance sit down, "Pretty sure Cinch will be fast-tracking your application after all of that."
Twilight shook her head at this, "Actually, I've been thinking about it and...I'm not so sure now is the time for me to apply to Everton."
Both Cadance and Flash went wide-eyed, Cadance asking, "Really?"
"I may know about a lot of things, but friendship isn't really one of them." She turned to Flash, both sharing a smile as she continued, "And I'm definitely not gonna learn more about it by being alone all the time."
"So, you're staying at Crystal Prep?" Cadance's question was met by Twilight staring at the courtyard, seeing all the different students hanging out with those they should have nothing in common with.
"Well, it seems the students here at CHS know an awful lot about the subject." This statement got Flash shine a huge grin as he saw Cadance turn to him, "I don't suppose...you could transfer to this school instead."
"REALLY?!" Flash and Twilight both gasped, only for Twilight to glance back at Flash. Seeing her confusion, he asked, "What?"
"You want to come here too?"
"You kidding me?" He stood up and pointed at the school behind him, "I planned on transferring here the second you left for Everton. This place is awesome, and you wanting to come here makes it even more so." Twilight shined a huge smile now, happiness on her face as she knew what this meant.
"The two of you would certainly be missed at Crystal Prep, but..." Cadance put her arms around Twilight and hugged her, "I think that's a great idea! I'll be sure to speak to Principal Celestia about it right away."
"Yes!" Flash cheered, pumping his arms, "Not only will we get to come here, I'll finally have Ruby off my back!"
"Oh, is that so?" He froze at the sudden voice, making him turn around to see Ruby glaring at him with crossed arms. "Don't think you can escape me that easily. I'll be sure to keep in contact with this schools guidance counselor to make sure you don't fall into old habits."
"Does this school even have a guidance counselor?" Twilight asked, making Flash gulp as he knew where this was going.
Ruby shined a huge grin, "If it doesn't..." She turned to Flash, her glare making Flash backpedal as she continued, "I'll just come and do it myself when I have the time." This made Flash groan before slumping over, the girls and Spike all laughing at his misery.
While that happened, the Rainbooms were standing by the destroyed Wondercolt statue. The Royal Knights, Lightning and his friends were sitting off to the side, all the Rainbooms wearing medals. As they did this, Fluttershy was stroking Angel as she turned to Sunset, "Still no word from Princess Twilight?"
Sunset shook her head as she stared at her journal, "No, not yet." She then slapped the book shut, "But I think I may have figured out how magic works in this world." This caught everyone's attention, turning to her as she continued, "We pony up when we're showing the truest part of ourselves." She looked down at her journal, "I was so busy waiting for someone else to give me the answers that I gave up looking for them myself. I'm sure there will be more magical problems that pop up in this world, but like Applejack said, Princess Twilight and Sir. Flash have their own problems to worry about in Equestria. We can't expect them to always be around to help us."
"But maybe we can be?" Everyone turned to see Celestia leading Flash and Twilight over.
The principal gave them a giant smile, "It seems we have two new Wondercolts here at Canterlot High!"
This got everyone gasping and cheering, the Royal Knight running over a Twilight spoke up, "I'm not sure how much help I could be, but I'd like to try. If you would all give me a chance that is."
Her response was a crowd of grins, Flash laughing as he added, "Welp, looks like you're stuck with us. Hope that's okay."
"Are you kidding?!" Heather almost yelled, "This is great!"
First nodded and bowed, "Welcome to Canterlot High School."
Iron then stepped up with crossed arms, "Just one question." He looked Flash dead in the eyes, "You can play guitar, right?" Flash raised an eyebrow, only to nod, "Awesome!" He pulled him into a headlock, "We finally have a permanent guitarist!"
"Wait, what?!" Heather and First both hugged them in response, big smiles on their face.
"Welcome to the Royal Knights!"
"We will need to get practicing as soon as possible," First finished as they started to pull Flash away. But before they could get really moving, Lightning and his friends stood in front of them.
"You guys gonna be alright without me?" Flash asked with a cocky smirk.
Lightning just laughed, "You kidding? With you gone, I might actually get to relax."
They all started laughing as Celestia turned to them, "Lightning, I'd be happy to accept your transfer if you wanted to come. You and your friends are all welcome here. It's clear you've changed for the better since your expulsion."
The four all shared a glance before looking back and saying, "Thanks for the offer, but we're happy where we are."
Script did a small nod, "I'm sure Crystal Prep is gonna change for the better after all this."
"It'll need us to help sculpt it into a school to be truly proud of."
"Just wait and see!" Wild almost yelled, "One day we're gonna throw the biggest rave ever, and you're all invited!" He cheered, sticking his tongue out while doing the rocker symbol with his fingers. Everyone chuckled at this as Celestia turned to the Rainbooms and Royal Knights.
"I'm sure I can count on you all to help our newest students feel at home."
Sunset threw an arm around Twilight in response, "You sure can." The rest of the Rainbooms pulled her into a hug, the Royal Knights getting pulled in as well.
Once the hugs were over, Celestia headed off with the Crystal Prep students, helping them return to school. Flash and Twilight waved goodbye to their old classmates as they drove off, choosing to stay behind since Pinkie had thrown together a last minute 'Welcome to CHS picnic party'.
Everyone except Iron sat in front of the portal, enjoying the food and drinks prepared. After a few minutes, Iron showed up while carrying a guitar. "Alright Sentry." he tossed the instrument over to Flash, "Let's see how good you really are." Flash rolled his eyes as he started playing, everyone beginning to dance to the music. Then, to everyone's surprise, Twilight started singing.
(Twilight) I spent so much time searching Looking' for something' more Digging' holes too deep And opening every door
And when you stand too close Yeah, the picture's never clear And when you look too far away It all but disappears
Everyone cheered before deciding to join in.
(Rainbooms with Royal Knights in brackets) And it was right (right) there in front of me (Oh-oh, ah-oh-oh) Just too close for me to see (Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh) Sometimes the things you want Are not the things you need And it was right there in front of me
(Sunset Shimmer) There was a time before I didn't know where I belonged I thought I needed more And that I couldn't get along
(Twilight and Sunset) But who I am Was all I ever needed And when I faced that test I finally succeeded
(Rainbooms with Royal Knights in brackets) And it was right (right) there in front of me (Oh-oh, ah-oh-oh) Just too close for me to see (Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh) Sometimes the things you want Are not the things you need And it was right there in front of me
(All) Oh, whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh
(Twilight, Sunset and Flash) And it's all I'll ever need
(All) Oh, whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh
(Twilight, Sunset and Flash) And it was right there in front of me
(All) Oh, whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh
(Twilight, Sunset and Flash) And it's all I'll ever need
(All) Oh, whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh
(Twilight, Sunset and Flash) And it was right there in front of me-ee-ee
But as Flash finished playing the last few notes, the portal began to activate. It flash and wobbled before a pair of familiar teens leapt out onto the blanket, both their hands balled up as if they hadn't had fingers before. Sir. Flash Sentry and Princess Twilight Sparkle shook their heads, Twilight talking before she could get a good view of her surroundings, "I'm so sorry I didn't get here sooner! I didn't get your messages until just now because I was caught in this time travel loop and honestly, it was the strangest thing that's ever happened to me!"
"That's nothing," Flash grumbled as he shook his head, "I ended up fighting in an all out war and almost became the new roo-" He stopped when he saw his and Twilight's counterparts staring at them, the Twilights looking shocked while Flash just waved at his twin, "Oh...hey. Nice to see you again. How'd everything turn out?"