The next morning's breakfast was enjoyed in the dining hall. Rarity had an important meeting to attend. Fluttershy and Applejack had already enjoyed their meal and were going about their respective duties. Rainbow Dash had to prepare her strike team for an assault on the changeling lines. Pinkie Pie hadn't been seen all day and Twilight wasn't there either. Besides themselves, the Fairy Tail group had found themselves eating with Spike. The dragon had removed last night's armor and sat there in his all his scaly glory. Each scale shining in a mixture of hues as the light hit them.

Natsu had taken to sitting next to the dragon as though he was worried that he would vanish. At first Spike seemed a bit disconcerted by this, but as the meal wore on he relaxed and started to enjoy his company. Especially after he heard Natsu's story.

Halfway through the meal, Twilight joined them, Flash trotting close to her. With a sigh, she settled herself in a seat next to Spike while Flash found his way to the seat on the other side of her. For a minute she leaned on her foreleg and stared blankly at the table.

"She's a slow riser." Spike explained.

At the sound of his voice, Twilight suddenly snapped awake, blinking and rubbing her eyes.

"Mmm good morning everypony." She groaned as she helped herself to a slice of bread. "Sleep well?"

"We slept very well, thanks." Erza answered the pony as she wiped her face. "I actually wanted to thank you for your help. If it weren't for you we probably wouldn't be here."

"Think nothing of it." Twilight answered as she served herself some apple pancakes.

"If its not a bother, I'd like to ask you something." Erza continued.

"Ask away." Came the answer as Twilight placed a bite of pancake in her mouth.

Erza cleared her throat. "How did you know?" She asked. "Yesterday when we were talking and you said that magic here works differently then magic there. It was like you knew we weren't from here. But how did you know?"

Silence prevailed as Twilight chewed her food. After swallowing, she took a drink and wiped her mouth before turning her attention to Erza. For a minute they stared into each others eyes. Erza's eyes were hard like steel. Twilight's were soft and cool. After a minute, Twilight smiled and took a drink of juice. A confused look spread across Erza's face. She wasn't used to that. Normally people would quail at her stare. But then again she was dealing with royalty.

After she finished her drink, Twilight turned to Erza, a smile on her face and a playful glint in her eye.

"Well I guess I'm not getting out of this one." She said jokingly. "But I'll warn you, its a long story."

Erza shrugged. "I think we've got time." She answered.

Twilight smiled again. "Determined, aren't you?"

Erza cracked her own grin. "I have a reputation to live up to."

Twilight chuckled and sat back in her chair, taking another bite of pancake. After she swallowed, her story began.

"First thing you should know is I wasn't always an alicorn or royalty." She began. "Once long ago I was an ordinary unicorn."

"Yeah." Spike said nostalgically. "I remember. You were a magic prodigy. The most powerful unicorn I knew."

Twilight blushed. "Yes." She said wistfully. "I was a very different pony back then. Besides being a little talented, I was also a study freak. I would often spend days on end, studying magic and other things. I wasn't very interested in making friends."

"What happened?" Wendy asked.

Twilight eyes took on a very distant look. As if she was lost in memory. "Ponyville happened." She said softly. "To make a long story short, I took up residence in Ponyville where I'd met five of the most amazing ponies ever. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. And it was through their influence that I became a better pony. We went on dozens of adventures together. And eventually, when I reached a certain form of understanding, I became an alicorn princess."

Erza sat there as she digested the information set before her. Meanwhile Twilight had finished her pancake and after wiping her mouth continued.

"Even as a princess there were still many adventures in store for me and my friends. At some point I traveled to an alternate world, via a magic mirror. The reasons for such a journey is unnecessary. The point is, after that adventure I became curious about inter dimensional portals. The mirror was a stable portal that could only go a short distance. But that adventure made me wonder if there were other worlds out there. Scientists have theorized that such a thing was possible, but it had never be proven. Till then.

"I became fascinated with the idea of inter dimensional travel and I experimented with inter dimensional portals. I figured it was like a basic teleportation spell, only enhanced considerably. During one of my experiments, I made a portal. It was a small one and was highly unstable. The next thing I knew, I found myself in a human body in a different dimension. Fortunately, I had enough bits to get myself a place to stay and some clothes. After that I started trying to find a way home.

"Fortunately for me, there was no end of research on the subject of portals and within a year I was able to construct a portal large enough and stable enough to make it to Equestria. But while I was there, I didn't just sit around. I studied and learned that world's culture among other things. The country I found myself in was a place called Fiore. The city I'd found myself in was called Magnolia. A rather lovely city. When I came to Magnolia, I thought it proper to join a guild to fully experience this strange world. Can you guess what guild I joined?"

Twilight smiled impishly as she pulled back her mane, revealing a familiar mark on the back of her neck. There, in dark purple against her violet body, was the Fairy Tail guild mark. Every pony sat stunned as Twilight let her mane fall. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together.

"Your Eveline." Erza said quietly.

Twilight nodded. "As I studied you're culture, I found that Twilight wasn't a common name. I wanted to blend in as well as immerse myself in your world in order to learn better. So I found a name that suited me and used that as my alias. When I joined Fairy Tail, I found it to be a warm and fascinating place. Not only was everypony friends, but it felt like a family. A family that needed help. When I walked in those doors, I immediately knew that they needed help. And when I heard the story I knew why. I couldn't turn a blind eye to somepony in need. So I did what I could to keep their spirits up. But then, after the portal was made and I got to Equestria, Chrysalis declared war. I couldn't abandon my responsibilities at our time of need. I decided that after this was resolved I would return. Unfortunately, this war has taken much longer to resolve then I thought it would and now guild members have followed me home."

Twilight breathed deeply. "I wonder how they're holding up?" She murmured quietly to no one in particular.

She then turned to Erza. "So are you new members?" She asked. "Are they doing okay?"

Erza smiled and shook her head. "Our guild members are doing fairly well, however we are not new members." She then told the princess what had happened that day on Sirius island, about their battle with Acnologia and how they escaped death.

Twilight listened to every word. When she had finished, the princess broke out in a grin and began to laugh.

"So you cheated death." She said amazedly between chuckles. "I'll bet that everypony was happy when you returned. Especially little Romeo. Poor kid was the gloomiest of them all. Crying about his 'big brother' Natsu-nii. Really quite sad. I told that he needed to keep his chin up for Natsu-nii. After that he was as quiet as a post with the most solemn expression you've ever seen on a kid his age. By the time I left, I figured that the only thing that would make him smile is if everyone came home. So tell me, did Romeo smile when you came back."

"He did." Natsu said with a grin.

"Knew it." Twilight returned with a grin of her own as she helped herself to some more apple pancakes.

"I have a question." Levy said. "Why didn't our magic work when we needed it?"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "I thought I answered that question." She said between bites. "But I suppose you want a more detailed explanation."

"As I said before." She continued. "Magic in Equestria works very differently then magic in Fiore. Part of the reason for your inability to use magic like you usually do is because of your species change. Unicorns use magic differently then humans in your world. In basic your magic is still there, you're just unable to access it."

"But I did something." Erza protested as she remembered her fight with the changelings.

Twilight nodded. "Yes." She said. "I imagine that when you became desperate you instinctively reached within yourself and temporarily to a certain extent accessed your magic. And to be honest it was quite impressive. You lot have raw talent."

All of a sudden she stood up. "Which is why I have decided to teach you." She declared.

Flash did a spit take and Spike almost choked on his ruby.

"You can't be serious!?" Spike yelled once they were alone.

"Of course I'm serious." Twilight answered. "Why not show them how to do magic in our world? Besides, I've always wanted a student. And now I've got six!"

Spike looked at her flabbergasted. "There are other unicorns who can teach them." He said. "You aren't in any condition to teach any pony. In fact you should be lying down right now!"

"I'm not as frail as you think Spike." She countered. "I can hold myself together. Plus none of the unicorns we know will be able to explain it so they understand."

Spike opened his mouth to say something more when Flash put his hoof on his arm. Spike paused and turned to the calm guard.

Flash shook his head. "You and I both know just how stubborn she is." He said quietly. Before Spike could reply, he stepped forward.

"Your highness." He said with a bow. "If it is alright, might I have permission to teach the female pegasus?"

"What a wonderful idea." Twilight said clapping her hooves together. "Who better to teach a pegasus then a pegasus."

Flash nodded and Spike understood what he was saying. They couldn't convince her to back down. The least they could do was help her.

Spike sighed in resignation. "Alright." He said. "But I'll be keeping watch."

Twilight grinned. "Of course you will." She said playfully. "Oh and Flash? What did I say about calling me 'your highness'"

Flash just smiled.

After breakfast, the group had returned to their room to process and discuss the new information they'd been given. For a minute they sat there processing this info. Finally Lucy spoke.

"This is incredible." She said. "We have royalty as a guild member."

"Royal or not, when you join Fairy Tail their all the same." Grey said.

"And she doesn't really seem like the type of pony to toot her horn." Levy pointed out.

Erza nodded. "Indeed." She said. "That's one of the first things I noticed about her."

Natsu thumped his hooves together in a gesture that might've been a punch had he had his hands. "Royalty shmoalty, we found her." He declared. "Now I can challenge her."

Everypony gawked at Natsu for a moment. Natsu was, for lack of a better word, incredible. Here they were in a strange land with bodies different then our own, no way to access our magic and Natsu intended to challenge, quite possibly, the most powerful being here. Not only was Twilight a pro at magic they didn't know how to use, but according to some of the guard ponies they'd spoken with earlier, Twilight's ability and power over magic bordered on deity. And Natsu, who couldn't even defeat Gildarts or Makarov, intended to go against her!? Such a thought was not only stupid, it was suicidal level insane. And somehow this didn't surprise anypony.

Once everypony recovered, they reacted to this declaration properly.

"YOU WILL DO NO SUCH THING!" Grey, Erza, Gajeel and Lucy shouted whilst simultaneously hitting Natsu upside the head.

"I should've seen this coming." Carla said.

Every pony looked at her quizzically.

Carla sighed. "It doesn't take a vision of the future to figure something was up." She explained. "Think about it. In our world, during our seven year disappearance, soon after the destruction of Sirius island, a new member joins Fairy Tail only for her to vanish before the year's out. But she still leaves a significant mark on our mourning guild. Meanwhile here in Equestria, Queen Chrysalis and her changelings declare an open war on Equestria and for the past seven years each side has fought each other to a stalemate."

Erza nodded. "I will admit I myself have been thinking that these events were oddly in sync."

"There are books on magic theory that theorize that significant events are often in sync in the multiverse." Levy added.

"So you're saying that when big events happen in one universe, a myriad of other universes experience their own big event?" Lucy asked.

Levy nodded. "There are many many theories about alternate universes and different dimensions." She said. "One of them is that these universes are connected. Sometimes when something big happens, it resonates across dimensions."

Silence once again fell on the group as they contemplated this information.

"I personally think we should take Twilight up on her offer." Gajeel said at last. "I feel too vulnerable and useless without the use of my magic."

Grey nodded. "Yeah." He said. "We were pretty much useless the other day with that changeling attack. If we learn how to use magic here, then if something like that happens again, we'll have a fighting chance."

Levy agreed. "And who knows." She said. "Maybe when we get home we might be able to create new spells."

Lucy nodded. "Plus I'd like to know more about this place." She said.

Erza looked pleased as she nodded. "So we're all in agreement?" She asked.

Every pony nodded. Erza turned to the exceeds.

Carla shrugged. "Why not." She said in an even tone. Pantherlily nodded agreement.

"Aye!" Happy declared.

"Then let's get learning!" Natsu declared happily. Everypony else cheered agreement.

Unbeknownst to them, sitting outside their door listening in, was Spike. As they cheered, a smile spread across his scaly face as he remembered the days when he and his own friends cheered like that. With that thought in mind, Spike stood and made his way down the hall.

This war had hurt many, many ponies in more ways then one. All too often, Spike had witnessed tears being shed by the family and friends of lost soldiers. It was one of the things that kept him from collapsing into despair. If only to stop the tears. But it seemed almost like nothing he did made the tears stop. Even among his friends, the grimness of war had dulled their smiles. More then anything, Spike yearned for the days when they would hang out together without a care in the world.

'Perhaps these travelers are just the thing we need to turn the tide.' Spike mused to himself. 'Perhaps they can bring happiness back and stop the tears.'

That afternoon, the six ponies and three exceeds found themselves in a large courtyard facing Princess Twilight. To one side was Flash Sentry. To the other, Spike. Flash trotted forward and faced Lucy.

"I'll be your teacher." He announced as he raised his wings.

Instinctively, Lucy repeated the action. Flash then flapped his wings, lifting him several feet off the ground. He then turned to her and motioned for her to do the same. At first Lucy was nervous. She'd never flown like this before. And it scared her that a botch up could end in bodily harm. But as she flapped her wings, it almost seemed like her body took over and then she was flying.

The others looked at Lucy in amazement at her accomplishment.

"Wow! Lucy, you're flying!" Natsu declared.

Lucy looked down at herself and smiled. "I am." She said, breathless at her own accomplishment. She then smiled. "I'm flying!" She said a little more excitedly. She then started to do an aerial backflip.

Halfway through she started to spin out of control and almost crashed to the ground when Flash flew up to her and threw himself at her side. The push straightened Lucy before she could crash. Once she was steady, Lucy shook herself.

"Sorry." She apologized. "I was just so excited. I've never flown like that before."

Flash nodded. "Understandable." He said. "But next time, hold off on tricks till you learn more about flight. Now follow me."

Flash then flew off into the sky, Lucy trailing behind. Soon they were out of sight of the courtyard. Lucy looked down, trying to quelch her fear at how high they were. Instead she turned to Flash, who flew steadily beside her.

"So what's our first lesson." She asked the guard.

Flash grinned. "Flight."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/

"Well now that she's squared away, let's begin our lesson." Twilight's voice snapped everypony out of their stupor and they turned their attention to her instead of the spot in the sky where Flash and their friend had disappeared.

Seeing that she had their attention, Twilight smiled and continued. "Now the first thing we'll learn is how to access your magic."

At that moment, her horn began to glow with a magenta light. They then watched with amazement as a nearby rock also glowed with the same magenta energy and began to float and bob in the air next to her.

"As you can see, unicorns access their magic differently." She continued as she moved the rock around in front of them in an almost hypnotic manner. "In your world, magic is accessed using spells and items. Unicorns don't require items or spells to access their magic."

Twilight's horn and the rock then stopped glowing, causing the rock to drop to the ground in front of them.

"We use our minds." She said in a playfully spooky voice. Yet there was a note of seriousness as though she wasn't kidding.

Before anypony could react, she turned to the wizards, now unicorns. "Now I want you all to focus." She said. "Reach deep into yourselves and touch your magic. Once you do that, channel that magic into your that instruction in mind, they sat down and began.

Erza felt herself submerge into her own mind. Much like she was sinking into water. It didn't take long for her to locate her magic. Floating above a lake of red energy, Erza could feel it for the first time. Normally she'd felt her magic like a sort of constant presence but usually it was almost like there was something in between her and the raw, unbridled power of her magic. Like a sort of pipe. Now, she felt like there was nothing separating her and her magical power. As she approached the 'lake' that represented her power, she got a feel for it. She could feel that her magic was hard and sharp. Almost like a molten sword. She then reached for the magic, as if to grab the hilt of a sword.

Grey had a similar experience at his 'lake' of white energy. Except instead of feeling a hard sharpness, his magic had a harsh white coldness. Grey shivered as he felt the biting cold of winter blow off his 'lake' of magic. Which was odd considering how he'd hiked through multiple mountain storms shirtless without once shivering.

'Well it is magic.' He thought as he stepped towards the 'lake'.

Gajeel also found his 'lake' of steel grey energy. His felt hard and stubborn like metal. Shifting from molten to hard. Gajeel smiled as he leaned towards his magic and felt the power rolling off of it.

Wendy could feel the winds that blew off her 'lake' of light blue magic from afar as she approached. Near the 'lake', Wendy felt a variety of soft and harsh winds. She could also feel the power of her magic like heat from a fire.

It took a while for Natsu to find his magic. But when he did, his 'lake' of magic was like fire. Hot and intense. As he approached, he wiped sweat off his brow and leaned towards the lake.

Levy's lake was more gentle then then the others. There was a musty dry feel. Like an old book. And floating on the lake and around her were runes and words.

Twilight sat in the courtyard watching the six still unicorns. Then she smiled.

"They found it."

Spike rose a ridged eyebrow as he wondered how she knew that.

Almost simultaneously, the six ponies dove into their lake. At first they felt tingly. Like pins and needles all over their body. Then it hit. Erza felt like a hundred swords and knives had all of a sudden been pushed against her. Grey felt like he'd dove into an icy cold pool, only it was a hundred times colder. Gajeel felt like he'd suddenly been shoved into molten metal then cooled. Wendy felt as though she was being buffeted by every wind in the world. Natsu felt like he was being melted by his own fire. And Levy felt like a hundred books were being pressed on top of her.

The sensation lasted just a second. But from their point of view, it felt like forever. When the sensation ended, they opened their eyes and found themselves back in the courtyard facing a smiling Twilight.

"Welcome back." She said as they pulled themselves up and shook themselves.

"Good to be back." Gajeel grunted almost sarcastically.

Twilight nudged a rock towards him. "Focus."

Following her instructions he focused as he reached for his magic. This time he found it easier then before and a tingly feeling was felt in his horn. He then opened his eyes and almost fainted at the next thing he saw.

There, hovering in front of him, surrounded by a grey light was the rock. He turned his head to see the others gaping at his accomplishment.

Twilight smiled. "Congratulations." She repeated. "You are now accessing your magic."

By the end of the day, they were all exhausted. After touching their magic and learning how to access it, the rest of the day was spent practicing and perfecting magical telekinesis, something Twilight said is very common here in Equestria. By the end of the day, they'd been able to pick up things as large as boulders.

Deciding to skip dinner, the six ponies stumbled to their room. Upon entering the room, they discovered Lucy draped across one of the beds.

"Hey guys. How was your day?" She asked hardly moving from her spot on the bed, her voice listless.

"Informative." Erza answered curtly as she flung herself across her own bed.

The others replied with various groans as they flung themselves on their beds.

"What about you Lucy?" Happy asked. "How was your day? Did you have fun flying?"

Lucy turned slightly from her back to her side. "Ehhhh. So so." She moaned as she laid back on her back.

"Not as easy as it looks, is it?" Carla said, a hint of haughtiness in her voice.

Lucy frowned, but didn't turn to the white exceed. "Well...yeah. Flash and I mainly exercised my wings. Right now, not only am I seriously exhausted, but back feels like it's on fire."

To illustrate this point, Lucy sat up, reveal a dozen or more ice bags underneath.

Everypony, plus three exceeds, winced.

"Don't worry." Pantherlily said. "You're just breaking your wings in. Your body isn't used to the strain that wings present. Not yet at least. But with practice and use, your body will grow stronger and it won't hurt anymore."

Lucy lay back down. "Really?"

He nodded. "When I was smaller and learning to fly, my parents and teachers made sure that I exercised my wings at any chance I had. It hurt, but soon, I was able to fly without my wings feeling like they were ripping my back out."

Lucy nodded, her eyelids feeling heavy. "Good. I'll..keep that in mind...tomorrow." And with that, she was out like a light.

The three exceeds surveyed the room and saw that every pony was asleep. With soft smiles on their faces, they tucked everypony into their blankets and pulled the long curtain that divided the boy's beds from the girl's.

"What would they do without us?" Pantherlily muttered good humoredly sounding every bit a devoting parent.

"Nothing at all." Carla said haughtily, though there was a hint of good humor in it.

"Aye." Happy whispered as the three closed the door and flew to the dining room to enjoy dinner.

The next several days were mostly spent learning from their respective teachers. The first three days were spent practicing and training. Hard. Learning the basics of magic and exercising. Soon enough though, they nailed the basics and they were ready for more. Twilight taught the unicorns more advanced spells. And Flash moved on to more then just flying. Lucy learned that here in Equestria, pegasi couldn't perform magic like unicorns. Instead, they had a different style of magic. Weather magic. Flash showed Lucy how to touch and move clouds.

When they weren't learning magic, flight or weather magic, the Fairy Tail members spent some time learning about the world they had found themselves in, alternatively touring the city or visiting the library. At some point after basic training, Pinkie and her friend, somepony name Cheese Sandwich, (odd name for anypony), threw a massive almost citywide party to welcome them all. It was quite impressive, to say very very very least. Epicly huge would be closer to the truth and even that didn't do it justice.

Things seemed to be just right with the world and for a time, it seemed almost like the war didn't even exist. Then that time ended. And the day had started out so normally...

Flash and Lucy landed in front of the castle after practice.

"Your doing quite well." He commented as they walked. "In the short time you've been here, you learned more then some pegasi would say they learned in their first year of flight school."

Lucy puffed her chest forward. "I've always been a fast learner." She then touched the keys that dangled from her specially made belt. "It's just a shame that I can't use my gate keys like usual."

"I'm sorry I can't do anything." He apologized, the memory of her disappointed face when he told her she wouldn't be able to use her gate keys in that body flashed through his mind.

Lucy just smiled. "No don't be sorry." She said lightheartedly. "I think this is an opportunity to get myself fit so I can be a better celestial wizard back home. It wouldn't hurt to make myself a better fighter so I can fight for myself in case I get into a situation where I can't use my gate keys."

Flash returned her smile. "Good to see you've got a positive attitude."

"Thanks! Is that all for today?"

Flash nodded. "I have other duties to attend to. I suggest you join your friends in the courtyard and watch them practice."

"Good idea. See you later!" And with that she rushed off to find her friends.

Flash smiled at her enthusiasm as he walked into the castle. She had thrown herself into learning even at the beginning when her back felt like it was on fire.

As he thought about his student, a clatter of hooves caught his attention.

"A letter just came for you." A soldier announced as he approached.

He then handed Flash the letter. It was a small parchment wrapped in a yellow ribbon, the color that meant extremely urgent, and bore the seal of the Royal Guard. A seal that could only be used by the Captain of the Royal Guard, Shining Armor. Who was positioned at the frontline.

At first, Shining was reluctant to leave his sister's side, especially in her condition. But after much insistence and reassurance, mostly from Flash, Twilight's brother admitted defeat and agreed that he was more needed at the frontline. Before leaving, however, Shining had made him swear up, down and sideways that he would make sure that he kept Twilight safe.

He chuckled softly at the memory as he broke the seal and unscrolled the letter.

-Massive changeling attack. Pushed through front lines and continuing forward. Send help.-

Flash blinked and reread the letter twice before the contents finally processed. First, the changelings had amassed a huge force that had pushed through the front line. And second the force was so big, Shining Armor felt it necessary send a for help. Then a third thought occurred that made Flash drop the letter.

With a cry, he immediately turned round.

"Twilight!"

Meanwhile, in one of the courtyards, Wendy, Erza, Grey, Natsu, Gajeel and Levy were practicing their magic under the watchful eye of Twilight and Spike. As Lucy entered, she waved at her friends before settling down next to Twilight, not noticing when the alicorn's body tensed for a second.

A moment later a grunt caused everypony to turn in her direction.

Twilight was leaning forward, front legs spread out in front of her and trembling as though they were being strained. Her head was bowed low and her mane covered her face so they didn't see her eyes dilated and her face covered in a cold sweat.

"Um...are you okay?" Lucy asked, concerned.

Twilight didn't answer. Instead she began to sway side to side, eventually landing in front of Lucy. At this point every pony's eyes were wide with alarm. Spike's wider then all of them. Immediately, he scooped her up and rushed out of the courtyard, almost running into Flash as he rushed to the courtyard like the castle was on fire.

The guard opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something. Then he caught sight of Twilight and his mouth snapped shut. They then rushed to the castle, leaving the Fairy Tail wizards confused and worried.

'This is the worst one by far.' Spike thought as he tucked Twilight into her bed. She'd lost consciousness and now lay trembling and sweating, small moans occasionally escaping her mouth.

"I received a message from Captain Shining Armor." Flash finally said. "There was a surprise attack and the changelings pushed through the line in a massive invasion force."

Spike nodded. That explained it. He then breathed heavily through his nose.

"If..if you don't mind, I'd like to be alone."

Flash nodded. "I'll be outside if you need me, Lord Spike."

Spike didn't even feel like correcting him as he exited the room.

Instead he sat on the floor with another sigh as he pondered the past seven years. A year after the accident that sent Twilight to this other world, she came back forty feet in the air above Ponyville. After descending to the ground safely, she theorized that the portal that brought her there was stable enough for travel but it deposited travelers at random places. Because they'd been so worried about her, not only did him and their friends converge on her but also Princess Luna and Celestia.

As she was telling them her adventures in the strange world she'd been sent to, the alarm rang. Out of nowhere, Chrysalis attacked. They and many of the towns ponies just barely escaped mostly because Celestia and Luna were able to protect them. But at the cost of getting captured, leaving Twilight to lead a country through a war.

At first they tried to get into contact with Cadence. But the empire had come under constant attack, forcing her to remain and protect the Crystal Empire. They then thought to ask the dragons as dragons and ponies share the same land. During the campaign though, they discovered something amazing. Upon discovering his magic, Spike not only grew several times his size, but also became the dragon king. With him leading, the ponies acquired a powerful asset.

Then the fits started. That day of her first fit had been imprinted in his memory forever. It had started out as a normal day. Then all of a sudden, Twilight collapsed screaming in pain. At the same time, the changelings launched a massive attack from their base in Ponyville, claiming a massive chunk of land. Twilight spent three days passed out and in pain.

'Those were the three worst days of my life.' Spike thought as he winced at the memory.

At first they were confused. What happened? Why is she hurting? How can we help? After two days of studying, they discovered the answer in one of Celestia's journals. Alicorns have a deep and intense bond with the land of Equestria. Much like they were merely an extension of the land and vice versa. When the balance is thrown off however, the alicorn feels intense pain. It was then and there that Spike decided that they had to end this war, fast.

But no matter how hard they tried, the changelings always outsmarted or over powered them. Before long, they'd fought themselves to a stalemate. And every battle. Every bit of land the changelings claimed. Only served to make her worse and worse. And now...something told Spike this would be the last big battle.

Spike paused in his thoughts as his ears picked up the sounds of a rather loud argument just outside the door. Standing up, he walked over and opened the door. Just outside, with his back to the door stood Flash. Surrounding him were the visitors. As he opened the door, he saw that they were trying to coerce Flash into telling them what happened. Flash denied them with a calm face that was quickly beginning to strain. As soon as spike opened the door, he turned to him with a relieved expression.

"Lord Spike." He sighed.

Immediately, they all turned to him. With a few quick strides, Erza was suddenly in his face, a hard glare in her eyes.

"What's going on?!" She demanded.

"Nothing." Spike instinctively answered, feeling very much like a child being scolded by his mother.

Erza's gaze only hardened. "Don't lie to me." She growled. "That back there wasn't nothing. Something's going on and we intend to find out."

With that, she pushed past Spike and into the room, quickly followed by her companions. Once inside they paused in front of the bed.

Spike sighed as he and Flash entered. "It's not something she wanted you to worry about. But, I suppose you deserve to know. After, that, back there."

Flash widened his eyes and opened his mouth to stop him, but Spike pressed a claw to his lips. "They deserve to know."

Flash lowered his head in a nod and turned to them as Spike cleared his throat and began.

"As you already know, Twilight is the ruler of Equestria in the absence of Celestia and Luna. She's also an alicorn and is blessed with powers and gifts unique to alicorns. One gift is Equestria itself. As an alicorn, Twilight is an extension of the land of Equestria. And vice versa."

Spike paused, at which point Flash picked up the conversation. "When the balance is thrown off though, it causes immense pain for Twilight. And with how the wars been going..."

Flash didn't finish the sentence. He didn't need to. They understood the message.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Wendy asked after a minute of silence.

For a moment Spike and Flash fidgeted.

"Its wasn't our place to say." Flash finally answered.

Spike bit his lip. "Twilight...doesn't like sitting on the sidelines when other ponies are in need. Even..even though s-she hurts every day, she insists on playing her part in this war."

Lucy watched Spike as he spoke and immediately understood how they felt about all this. Helpless. Frustrated. Angry.

"The changelings have pushed through the front line and advancing." Flash said. "Soon enough they'll take Canterlot. Then..."

He looked away, not finishing his sentence.

"And we can't stop them." Spike growled anger and frustration ringing in his voice. "No matter what we do, they either outsmart us or over power us. We've been fighting a losing battle."

"Sounds like you're in trouble." Natsu finally spoke. His head low, his mane hiding his expression.

Silence fell as they watched Natsu walk out to the balcony.

"Natsu." Lucy said cautiously. "What are you doing?"

Natsu turned from her position on the railing, a massive grin on his face. "Helping a guild member."

The Fairy Tail wizard's eyes widened. "Natsu wai-." Lucy didn't get to finish before he disappeared in a flash of light.

The changeling force was massive. Much bigger then Shining Armor had ever seen. They quite literally darkened the sky. Even though Shining and his soldiers would've gladly fought to the last stallion, he made the call to retreat.

At that moment, he headed a group of soldiers while the rest of his stallions ran ahead to evacuate nearby towns. All of a sudden, a flash caught his eye. Turning to the source, he was almost knocked down by a unicorn barreling past. A yellow unicorn with a spiky pink mane. As he rushed past, horn ablaze, Shining saw a fierce determination he'd never seen before.

Then he saw where the unicorn was headed.

"Wait!" He called as the unicorn made a beeline for the changeling horde. The unicorn, however either didn't hear him or was ignoring him.

"WRAAAAAAAHHHHH!" He screamed as he flung himself into the horde, quickly vanishing into the swarm.