Dear Readers:
Hows it going? I hope you're all doing well. I'm doing... Better. (Not much, but meh) I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I look forward to your responses. So... I hope you enjoy! More messages for you fine folk after the chapter.
-Kyllier

Tuesday Night, Outskirts of Ponyville.

“Well it looks like we’re here again.” Connor said as he stepped out of the wagon, Faelan right on his heels.

“Hmmph! Finally. We should have accomplished what I came here for last week.” Trixie said, following the two.

“Yeah well, I’m glad we didn’t. From what my contact here says, they had a bunch of problems with… Not so nice people shortly after we left.” Trixie stared at Connor for a moment before shaking her head.

“I will enter town tomorrow morning.” Connor crossed his arms and nodded.

“How long do you think it will take for you to do what you need to?” Trixie shrugged and looked towards the town.

“As long as necessary. Don’t feel like you have to wait on me.” She said, turning her head up.

“You plan on using the amulet don’t you..?” Connor said, sighing. “Be careful with how much you use it, the thing is cursed Trixie.” Trixie narrowed her eyes and turned to Connor.

“There are no such things as curses!” She growled, stomping a hoof on the ground. “Trixie will get her revenge, and she will use the Alicorn Amulet to do so.” Connor turned his attention towards the Everfree forest that they had parked the carriage next to and looked at the wheels. “Be sure to fix the wheels too while Trixie is gone. You decided to use those ones, you’re in charge of the upkeep.” Connor grinned as he looked the wheels over. The previous day when they were on their way to Ponyville, Trixie experienced her first blowout. One of the tires ran over an extremely sharp rock and ruptured.

“Yeah well, I’ll have it fixed by the time you get back.” Trixie eyed Connor for a moment before nodding.

“See to it that you do. I’ll be turning in for the night, Trixie will probably be gone already by the time you get up in the morning. You do tend to sleep in rather late…” Connor rolled his eyes and nodded to Trixie as she walked back into the carriage.

“Yeah yeah, miss grumpy.” He turned to Faelan with a raised eyebrow. “What’s up her ass?” Faelan rolled his eyes and walked towards the Everfree forest. “Already heading into the forest, huh Faelan?” The wolf nodded and continued walking. “Well see you when I see you then.” Connor frowned and looked in the direction of Ponyville. “This is going to be a fun experience,” he muttered to himself as he trudged towards the small town.

Ponyville: Golden Oaks Library

Josh sat hunched over a desk, his head in his hands which was his usual thinking position, as Twilight began to pack up her materials for the night. Yawning she turned toward him and smiled, shaking her head as she levitated a blanket and placed it over Josh’s shoulders.

“Thank you Twilight.” Josh muttered, glancing her way.

“Of course.” Twilight replied, as she walked over to looked at what Josh was working on. “Hmm… I’m not sure that this is going to work.” Josh blinked, looking up at her confused.

“What do you mean? I’ve double checked the information you’ve given me to research... Everything should be right.” Twilight shook her head and levitated the quill out of Josh’s hand and began to make a few corrections.

“Didn’t we have a discussion yesterday about how some things from your world don’t work here? Like the sun and moon moving on their own?” Twilight glanced towards Josh and smirked. Placing a hand over his face, Josh groaned.

“Just like how magic helps pegasi fly and the princess’ keep the sun and moon in their proper places. I just don’t see how the general concept isn’t going to work. The charged gem goes in here.” Josh pointed at the diagram of the magic revolver he’d been working on. “If it needs to be charged, you can just pop it out and then recharge it.” Twilight shook her head.

“That’s not the issue with this.” Twilight tapped the barrel with the quill. “This is the part of the weapon that you may need to work on.” Josh looked at the diagram, confused.

“That’s where the bolt of magic gets shot from.” Josh said, scratching the back of his head. “I’m sorry Twilight but I’m not seeing the issue here.” Twilight smiled, patting Josh’s shoulder with a hoof.

“Think back to that article I had you look over regarding the explosion of the magical gems at Canterlot Magic Academy.” Josh furrowed his eyebrow.

“Well.. When the large gem exploded, it created a massive discharge which completely destroyed the room it was stored in...” Twilight nodded and began to jot some words down on the diagram.

“Exactly. The only way the room would have been safe is if there was a magic warding spell placed on the walls to contain the explosion.” Josh blinked and shook his head.

“How is a magic warding spell supposed to help with the barrel design?” Twilight stared at Josh for a moment before placing a hoof to her face.

“Just like with the room, if you were to fire the magic off, it would just cause the barrel to explode.” Josh’s eyes widened.

“So the warding spell is used to act as a focus with the barrel to help direct the magic where I want it to go?” Twilight nodded

“In theory, yes. Something of this nature hasn’t been attempted before, as far as I’m aware.”

“Alright. With that, it should be complete, right?” Josh asked, glancing towards Twilight, only to come face to face with her, causing her to blush brightly and look away. “Everything alright Twilight?” Josh asked, confusion in his voice.

“Y..Yes, everything is fine, Josh.” After a moment to collect herself, Twilight cleared her throat. “From how the first draft of the weapon looked, everything should be set and accounted for, let’s head to bed. You said that Connor would be here tomorrow right?” Josh nodded, yawning as he began to put away everything. As Josh corked the inkwell, a knock came from the front door. “Who could that be this late?” Twilight muttered as she walked over to the door and opened it with her magic, coming face to face with Connor.

“Well hello there! You must be Twilight!” Connor said, only to be suddenly gripped in Twilight’s magic and brought indoors where he was then thrown onto the couch. Connor looked around the room, confused. “Thanks for the welcome.” He muttered dryly. Josh walked over and stood beside Twilight who had her horn alite, preparing for anything.

“Early arrival huh, Connor?” Josh asked, folding his arms and frowned at the man.

“Josh.” Twilight hissed, glancing his way. Josh sighed and covered his face with his hand.

“Let him go Twilight. There must be a reason that he showed up here early.” Twilight grumbled, releasing Connor from her magic. Josh watched as the spell faded and Connor was able to relax. “So why are you here, Connor?” He asked after a moment of silence.

“Well Josh, I did tell you that I’d be here this week.” Connor blinked and stared at Josh for a moment. “You definitely seem to be getting used to things around here.” Josh frowned and crossed his arms, shaking his head.

“No thanks to you.” He muttered. The room was filled with silence once more, only to have it broken by Twilight clearing her throat.

“Why are you here, Connor?” Twilight asked, repeating what Josh had asked.

“Yes yes, of course.” Connor said, leaning forward and placing his hands on his knees, grinning. “The Scions and the Master think that I am dead.” Josh and Twilight glanced between each other before turning back to Connor.

“So?” Josh asked, crossing his arms.

“So! That means I can assist you with taking them out!” Josh blinked at Connor, scratching the back of his head.

“I had a helluva time with Drex as it was, what makes you think I even would stand a chance against all of them?” Connor stared at Josh for a moment before glancing towards Twilight. Twilight sighed, placing a hoof over her face.

“You make it sound like you’d be going against them alone, Josh.” Twilight said, rolling her eyes. Pressing her side up against Josh, she looked up at him, smiling. “I’ll be here for you, you know that right?”

“She’s not the only one either, I’ll be sure to help out too. You can be damn sure of that.” Connor said, grinning. Twilight turned and glared at Connor. Noticing the glare, he huffed and frowned. “I’m sensing some hostility here.” He muttered dryly.

“Can you blame her?” Josh asked as he walked into the kitchen and got himself a glass of water. “The way she sees it, you brought me here knowing that I would have to go through all of these trials, just to assist you with this fight against your old allies.” Connor blinked, sighing as he shook his head.

“Well, that is kind of what happened.” Connor said quietly. “But look at the good that has come from you being here, Josh.” Connor said, looking towards Josh as he walked back into the room, drinking from his glass. “Aren’t you happy with the knowledge that your dad isn’t suffering anymore? That he is completely cured of all sickness.” Twilight frowned and nodded, looking back towards Josh.

“As much as I hate to admit it, Connor does have a point, Josh.” Wincing, Josh sat down on the floor in front of the table, beside Twilight. “There have been other things too that have happened since your arrival that would have otherwise ended poorly if you weren’t here, Josh.” Twilight said, offering him a small smile.

“If anything, you should be thanking me.” Connor said smugly, chuckling under his breath as he pulled a canteen out from under his robes and took a drink.

“Don’t push your luck, Connor.” Twilight said, shooting him a glare. Grinning, he held his hands up in mock surrender.

“Anyway, back to the point on hand.” Connor said, leaning back into the couch. “I have a few things I want to show you that may help you feel a bit more confident in your use of magic. Tomorrow I’ll be stopping by early in the morning to pick you up and take you out to the Everfree to test a few things where we won't bother anyone.” Josh blinked and opened his mouth to respond only to have Twilight speak up first.

“That may not be a bad idea.” Twilight said, a smirk on her face. “Dawn can go with you too and keep Connor in line, should anything happen.

“Well I guess-” Josh began only to have Connor interrupt.

“Who is Dawn?” Connor asked.

“Dawn is a royal guard, sent here by Princess Celestia to help watch over Josh and train him.” Connor groaned and leaned back on the couch.

“Well that’s just great. Now I’ll have someone looking over my shoulder while I’m trying to do my job.” Twilight’s smirk grew wider.

“Oh come on now, it’s not such a bad thing!” Connor glared at Twilight, muttering a swear under his breath.

“It can’t be helped I guess.” Connor finally said after a moment as he slowly rose to his feet, stretching. “Be ready with Dawn tomorrow morning.” Walking towards the front door, he stopped in front of Twilight and glanced at her. After a moment of looking her over, a grin spread across his face. “Yeah… You should be fine.” Sliding his hands into the pockets of his robes, the man chuckled as he opened the door and left the library. Once outside he began to whistle as he walked in the direction of Trixie’s Wagon out by the Everfree.

Twilight slowly shut the door, her brow furrowed as she frowned and glanced over at Josh. “What do you think he meant when he said I should be fine?” She asked, confusion in her voice. Josh shrugged, yawning as he did so.

“No idea… He’s a strange one. The sooner we can get rid of the scions, the sooner we can be rid of him and I wouldn’t be happier.” Twilight nodded.

“That’s true, I don’t think I like having him around. But you have to admit that having him at hoof could be beneficial to us. He is a strong mage, I could tell just by being near him, he radiates with energy.” Josh rolled his eyes, stretching as he turned and picked up the papers that he was working on.

“I’m going to head to bed, Twilight. Apparently if what Connor said is true, we’re going to have quite the day tomorrow. I can only hope that’s a good thing.” Twilight watched as Josh walked up the staircase. Once he was out of sight, she used her magic to open the door to the basement.

Dawn sat on her bed in a meditative state, only to slowly open her eyes as she watched Twilight walk down the stairs.

“Oh, you’re up.” Twilight said as she noticed Dawn watching her. “I hope I’m not intruding, there is just something I wanted to ask you about.” Dawn nodded and motioned for Twilight to continue. “Well you see..” Twilight began as she sat down. “Do you remember the human that Josh and I told you about, named Connor? The man that is the reason Josh is here in Equestria to begin with?” Dawn nodded.

“I remember.” She spoke quietly. “Was that the po… Person who was here moments ago?” Twilight nodded in confirmation. “I see.. What did he want?”

“Connor wants to take Josh out to the Everfree Forest tomorrow morning to show him some magic. Since I’m still really unfamiliar with what I’ve been calling elvish magic, I thought that it would be best if Connor could show him some things.” Dawn frowned, her eyes narrowing.

“That doesn’t really sound like the safest idea.”

“I understand, which is why I came down here. I wanted to ask if you wouldn’t mind going with Josh and Connor tomorrow morning, not just to protect Josh, but to also keep an eye on Connor. I don’t really trust him very much and it would…” Twilight paused as Dawn held up a hoof. “Yes?” Dawn took a deep breath before she nodded, one of her ears flicking in annoyance.

“Yes, I will go with them tomorrow. But next time something like this happens, I would like to be a part of the decision making before it is decided.” Twilight prodded the floor with a hoof, clearing her throat.

“Of course, and I apologise for not bringing this to your attention when Connor was still here.” Looking up, Twilight smiled at Dawn. “Thank you though, for agreeing to accompany Josh.” Dawn smirked, shaking her head.

“It isn’t a problem. I wouldn’t really be doing my job of protecting him if I just let him go off on his own with a possible danger present.” Twilight opened her mouth to thank Dawn again, but was interrupted with a yawn. “And it would seem that it would do you some good to get some rest, Twilight Sparkle.” Blushing, Twilight nodded in agreement.

“And I will do just that, good night Dawn.” Dawn took a deep breath and closed her eyes, re-entering her meditative trance as Twilight walked upstairs.

Wednesday Morning

Josh’s door swung open as Dawn walked in. “Up and at ‘em, kiddo. Time to get going. That Connor guy is supposed to be here soon, and we don’t want you to look like you just crawled out of bed.” Josh groaned and flailed his arm to the bedside table, picking his phone up and off of it. Turning it on, he grimaced as the light from it nearly blinded him in his half awake state.

“Five in the morning, Dawn? Can’t we wait a bit longer?” Josh asked, pressing his face into the pillow to block out all of the light.

“Nope! Get up.” Dawn said with a smirk, yanking the blankets off of Josh and throwing them in one corner of the room. “And be quick and quiet about it. You wouldn’t want to wake your marefriend would you?” Josh blinked once, turned to Dawn and blinked a few more times, confusion evident in his face.

“Come again…? Marefriend?” Dawn rolled her eyes and walked out of the room, but not before glancing back in and motioning for Josh to hurry up. Sighing, Josh crawled out of bed and threw on his clothes. “What is that even supposed to mean…?” Josh shook his head as he picked up the practice blade that Dawn had given to him and followed her outside.

Once outside, the two walked over to an open area near the library and stood ten feet across from each other. Reaching back to a sheath that hung across her back, Dawn drew a similar practice blade with her mouth. The first time that Josh saw her do that a few days prior caught him off guard, she used that opportunity to disarm him of his weapon moments later. Since then, he had become a bit more accustomed to the strange way this pony wielded her blade.

The two stared across the yard, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Josh held the hilt of the sword loosely in his right hand as he paid close attention to Dawn. She had her hooves evenly spread out under her while her attention was focused on him as well. Josh took a deep breath as he tried to regulate his breathing. His heart pounded in his chest as he watched her. Slowly taking a step forward, he placed his right foot in front of his left and took a, what Dawn had called, riposte stance.

Dawn raised an eyebrow as Josh slowly made his way towards her. Taking a step back with one of her hooves, she dug it into the ground and waited for him to take a few more steps. Upon seeing Dawn move one of her legs back, in what he thought was a hint at retreat, he raised the blade to waist level and stood still. She took this chance to push of the ground and leap towards him with a heavy strike. Unprepared for this sudden change, Josh raised his blade into the air, barely parrying the blow and returning the strike. Raising her own blade, she blocked the strike and strafed to the right, striking low at Josh’s unprotected calves.

Wincing as the practice blade came in contact with the back of his leg, he lept to his right and turned, swinging down at her, only to have the blade blocked once more. Suddenly from a few yards away, the sound of clapping interrupted the practice spar as Connor approached, wearing the smug shit eating grin he usually wore.

“Josh! Not bad my boy, not bad. And that is after what? A day of practice?” Dawn narrowed her eyes at Connor as he walked towards them.

“Four days so far with three hour sessions per day. If it wasn’t for his tolerance to pain, he wouldn’t be nearly this far along.” Connor waved a hand dismissively.

“Nah, chalk it up to good ol’ human spirit. Though with ears like that, I can hardly say that counts for you anymore, ey Josh?” Josh winced at Connor’s remark, placing a hand over his left ear. Dawn sheathed her blade and stepped forward between Josh and Connor.

“You said you had some things you wanted to teach Josh, lead on to the place where you plan for this to happen.” Connor blinked and looked at Dawn.

“What is it with you ponies and being so pushy.” Dawn rolled her eyes and walked past Connor, heading in the direction that he had approached them from. Glancing between the two, Josh sheathed his practice blade as well and walked quickly to catch up with Dawn.

“Oh come on already, lighten up you two, geesh.” Connor said, grumbling as he caught up and led them towards the Everfree forest. Upon entering the forest, Josh looked ahead towards Connor.

“So how far away is this place?” Connor glanced back as he continued to walk, shrugging.

“Oh it’s not too far, about fifteen minutes in. One of my companions found it when we were here last time.” Josh frowned, glancing towards Dawn.

“Just lead us to the place so we can get this over with. The sooner we’re out of the Everfree, the better.” Dawn muttered. They walked the rest of the way in silence, every now and then a sound from deeper in the forest would catch Josh’s attention and he’d stop and listen, only to have to jog and catch up as he fell behind Dawn and Connor.

“Ah hah! Here we are!” Connor announced as he pushed his way through some foliage, revealing the mouth of a cave a short ways away. As they approached the entrance, Connor crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. “I knew I forgot to do something when I was last here…” Dawn and Josh joined him at the entrance a moment later. Josh’s eyes widened at the sight while Dawn’s narrowed as she turned towards the older mage.

“Connor, what is the meaning of this? Why is there blood and dead griffon parts around here?” Connor stroked his chin, shrugging.

“I can only assume that the beasts of the Everfree didn’t finish picking the corpses clean. This is not how I left the cave, I swear.” Dawn took a step towards Connor.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t have you arrested now? Do you not realize that having this many dead griffons on Equestrian soil could put the princess’ in a lot of trouble!?” Dawn slowly raised her voice as she approached Connor. The mage held his hands up as he slowly backed away from Dawn.

“Oh come on now, it was self-defense!” Dawn stopped and glanced towards the corpses once more.

“Explain. And it better be good, Connor. You should know that you aren’t on good terms with the crown as it is.” Connor nodded, folding his arms once more.

“Yes yes, of course.” Sitting down, Connor made himself comfortable and began to tell Dawn what had happened to him a week previous when Stelma had originally attacked Ponyville.

Ponyville, Golden Oaks Library.

Spike worked on cleaning up the dishes from breakfast, glancing towards Twilight who was sitting on the couch, going through a stack of books. “Do you want to go and get ready for the day, Twilight?” He asked curiously, setting a couple plates to dry.

“Hm? Oh, I probably should.” Twilight said as she placed a bookmark into the book she was looking through. “Spike, how are we doing on lettuce?” Spike shrugged and walked back to the fridge, only to suddenly belch flames as a scroll appeared via magic. “Huh, I wonder what that could be about.” Twilight said quietly as she turned her attention towards Spike who had grabbed the scroll out of the air and brought it to her.

“Here you go Twilight. I wonder what the Princess could want.” Twilight took the scroll in her magic, unsealed it, and began to read aloud.

Dear Twilight Sparkle

It has come to my attention that within the next few days I will be having some ambassadors from Saddle Arabia. Would you be able to come up with some way to display your magic in an entertaining fashion? Perhaps you could get some of your friends to assist you as well. The ambassador’s wife likes little woodland creatures, if you could incorporate some in your act, that would be appreciated.

Princess Celestia

Twilight blinked and stared at the letter. “Woodland critters? Well that is right up Fluttershy’s alley.” Twilight rolled up the letter and looked over to her assistant. “Hey Spike, want to go with me to Fluttershy’s so I can see if she will let me borrow some of her critters for the act?”

“Sure Twilight. I just finished cleaning the kitchen anyway.” Spike said as he folded up his apron and placed it on the kitchen counter before following her outside.

“Great! On the way back, we can pick up some treats from Sugarcube corner.” Twilight said, glancing back to her assistant, smiling.

Ponyville: Fluttershy’s Cottage

It took a few minutes for Spike and Twilight to finally assure Fluttershy that her animal friends would be okay, and even then she was still hesitant to allow Twilight to test her spell. After rounding up the critters, Fluttershy walked over to them and bent down to their level.

“Don’t be scared little friends, Twilight is wonderful with magic.” She said softly. Behind her, Twilight looked over her friend’s shoulder and nodded eagerly. Before she could say anything though, Fluttershy quickly turned towards her and lowered her voice even more. “If anything happens to them Twilight, so help me...” Eyes widening, Spike quickly jumped between the two and gently pried them apart.

“Aw don’t worry Fluttershy, Twilight’s magic has gotten a lot better since she accidently crushed me and Applejack with a giant snowball.” Spike said, leading Fluttershy away from Twilight and the animals to give Twilight space to cast her spell. Hearing this, Twilight lowered her head, blushing. Fluttershy nodded.

“Of course she’s good with magic. Twilight's great with magic. I guess I just don’t want my little friends to be scared…” As Fluttershy looked over to where her friends were sitting, her eyes widened. “Oooh! Look how scared they are!” The animals looked towards Fluttershy, waving and clapping as they waited for Twilight to begin casting her spell. Walking up beside Fluttershy, Twilight laid a hoof over her shoulders.

“I promise Fluttershy, nothing bad will happen to them.” Fluttershy cleared her throat before finally taking her eyes off of the animals and looking over to her friend.

“I know.” She said through clenched teeth. Taking a few more steps towards the animals, Twilight’s horn began to glow as she encased the critters in magic.

“Stop! Stop! They can’t take it!” Fluttershy said, hiding her face behind her hooves. Twilight rolled her eyes as she safely levitated the animals into the air, flying them through the air until they made a figure eight.

“Twilight, that looks amazing!” Spike said excitedly. Moments later, Twilight lowered the animals to the ground and then dropped the spell.

“Pheww.” She said as she wiped her brow with a hoof. Looking around, the animals quickly ran over to her and began jumping up and down, chattering happily. “Okay, that’s it for now little ones. Maybe we can practice again later, that’s if Fluttershy says it’s alright.” The animals quickly ran from Twilight and over to Fluttershy, continuing to jump up and down.

“Your magic has really improved since we came to Ponyville, Twilight!” Spike said cheerfully. “Princess Celestia’s going to love it!”

“Thanks Spike.” Twilight said, smiling at her assistant. “I have to be at my best for when she arrives with the delegates from Saddle Arabia. I still can’t believe she’s trusting me with the entertainment!” She said happily, only to be mowed down a second later as Rainbow Dash plowed into her.

“Twilight! Come quick, it’s an emergency!” She exclaimed, wide-eyed as she stared down at her friend. “There’s a cloaked pony in the main square causing all sorts of problems!”
Taking Rainbow in her magic, she gently lifted the pegasus up and set her aside before rising back to her hooves.

“A cloaked pony, Rainbow?” Twilight asked, confused. Taking a deep breath, she looked to her friend and nodded. “Okay lead on, I’ll be right behind you.” Twilight turned back to Fluttershy. “Thanks again Fluttershy, hopefully after I can get this sorted out, we can have some more fun with your animal friends.” She said, offering her a small smile.

“R..Right. F..Fun.” Fluttershy said before beckoning her animals to follow her back towards her house. Twilight lifted Spike up and sat him on her back before bolting off in the direction of the town square.

“What exactly was the cloaked pony doing, Rainbow?” Twilight asked, breathing heavily as she did her best to keep up.

“First, it was just small annoyances here and there, the pony would cast a spell to trip somepony up. But it’s gotten worse, now she’s full out assaulting ponies!” Twilight frowned as they slowed down, approaching the square.

“A unicorn then… I wonder who she is.” Twilight muttered as she walked through the crowd and approached the cloaked pony. “What’s going on here?” She asked, only to have the pony look towards her. A grin appeared from beneath the cloak’s cowl before the pony lifted a hoof and pulled it off.

“Well well well… If it isn’t Twilight Sparkle.” Trixie said, her eyes glowing a dark red, the Alicorn amulet hanging around her neck.

Cave in the Everfree Forest

Josh sat beside Dawn at the cave entrance as Connor finished telling his story. “So where is this… Trixie, now?” Josh asked curiously. All of a sudden there was a bright flash, forcing the three to look in the direction of Ponyville. Above the trees they watched as a giant glass bowl was lowered over Ponyville. “The hell is that…?” Josh muttered under his breath. Dawn’s eyes narrowed as she turned her attention to Connor.

“You planned this, didn’t you?” Connor held his hands up defensively.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about!” He said, his eyes darting back and forth from Dawn and Josh to the top of the bowl that could be seen from where they were standing.

“You tell me right now Connor… I have friends there. What is going on!?” Josh growled, glaring at Connor.

“I honestly don’t know what’s going on in Ponyville right now, Josh.” Connor said, raising his arms defensively. Josh scoffed and shook his head before glancing towards Dawn.

“He’s not going to speak. Let’s head back to Ponyville and see if there's anything we can do.” Josh said, glaring daggers at Connor. Dawn took a step forward and pointed a hoof at Connor.

“As a royal guard, I hereby place you under arrest until we can get the full story from you.” Josh raised an eyebrow and stared at Dawn for a moment.

“Oh come on, you can’t seriously think he’s going to accept that offer, Dawn.” She ignored Josh, staring at Connor who was returning the stare. Finally, Connor shook his head and crossed his arms.

“No I don’t think I will. There are other things that still need my attention, like for instance, we were supposed to be training, Josh.” Josh grit his teeth and shook his head.

“Yeah, not happening. It was foolish for me to think that I could trust you to begin with. You know what, heck with this, I’m outta here. Feel free to join me if you want, Dawn.” Dawn stared at Connor for a moment, glaring, before shaking her head.

“This isn’t over, human.” Dawn said condescendingly, turning, Dawn rushed past Josh and then glanced back at him briefly. “Aren’t you coming? We have a town to help.” Josh nodded and began to follow her.

Josh and Dawn were only a few steps apart before a wall of flames sprung out of the ground, separating the two. Staggering back, Josh held up a hand to block the flames from his eyes.. “Oh for crying out loud.” Josh groaned. Drawing her sword, Dawn looked around for a way around the flames, only to see that Josh was surrounded.

“Oh come on Josh, I told you I’d help you get some training in. Now we can do this the hard way, or the easy way. You have to be better prepared to fight the scions when you run into them next.” Taking a deep breath, Josh stood still for a moment, eyes closed. As he let out the breath, he looked at Dawn through the flames.

“Dawn… Get back to Ponyville and try to figure out what’s going on, I’ll catch up at soon as I’m done here.” Dawn blinked.

“Oh you can’t be serious.” She muttered, sheathing her blade. “You better hurry up then.” Turning around, she took a few steps before glancing back at the two. Making eye contact with Josh, the two nodded before Dawn finally bolted in the direction of Ponyville.

“Fine, let’s make this fast.” Josh said, turning around to face Connor. “I have somewhere to be.” Josh unsheathed his blade and turned to face Connor.

“Oh come now, my boy! This will give me the perfect opportunity to see how you fight with magic.” Josh rolled his eyes as he took a relaxed stance with his hands at his sides. The gears in his mind began to move before a grin slowly spread across his face.

“We’re in the Everfree Forest, it would be a shame if I didn’t practice a few of the spells that Princess Luna had me spend all that time learning.” The electricity suddenly fell away from his fingers as he balled his hands into fists as a green glow engulfed them. Connor watched this for a moment before smirking.

“Ah, Equestrian magic. Yes, you’re definitely adapting well, boy-o.” Suddenly, without warning, the shadows around the clearing they were standing in, shot up and covered all three of them in darkness. “So ponies can manipulate shadows huh? I’ll assume that the same can be said for light.” Connor said loudly, to make sure Josh could hear. “Neat trick to be sure, but what are you going to do now, Josh?” Raising his own hands, flames suddenly shot from them, forming an orb in front of Connor that continued to expand until it finally burst, shooting flames in all directions.

Quickly raising his left hand, Josh dropped the darkness spell he had been holding, swapping it with a shield that he used to encase himself as well as a few other points around the clearing. Connor waved his hand and killed the flames, which had finished dispelling the darkness.

“Well now, I bet you weren’t prepared for this.” Josh said, a smug smirk on his face as his voice echoed around Connor. Surveying the clearing, a look of confusion came over his face briefly as he realized what Josh had just done. Standing around Connor in a circle, were three shadow clones that Josh had conjured up. The past couple of days since being able to use his magic again, Josh had been practicing the spell that Luna had to tried to teach him the week prior. Learning how to cover an area in darkness was just something he picked up whilst fiddling with the shadow clone spell.

“Where did you learn how to do this…?” Connor said, almost in awe as the shadow clones, almost indistinguishable from each other, began to step forward, closing in on Connor. Raising their right hands as one, the green light faded from them as a sudden gust filled the clearing. Seeing what was happening, Connor quickly decided to start removing the clones one by one until he found out which was the real one. Setting his hands ablaze, he shot off a few fireballs towards one of the clones only to have them hit a glowing purple shield.

Knowing he couldn’t keep up the ruse for long, Josh increased the strength of the gale as sparks began to dance between his fingers. Electricity melded with the gale, trapping Connor within the eye of the storm. Forcing the tornado to shrink in size, he was suddenly hit with a wave of fatigue and dropped to one knee. Thankfully Connors attention was elsewhere, not so thankfully though, he was pounding the shield of one of his clones which was quickly draining his strength. Muttering a curse under his breath, Josh dispelled the clone and shot a spark of electricity through the winds towards Connor. A wall of fire sprung up from the ground, blocking the spark, shooting it upwards.

"There you are!" Connor said. He turned in the opposite direction of Josh, and threw a wave of flames in the direction he believed him to be in, dispelling his clone. Josh smirked and continued to shoot electrical sparks through the wind, leading them through the winds until they finally shot in and towards Connor.

“Enough!” Connor shouted as he began to gather flames once again, shooting them in multiple directions, trying to get at Josh through the vortex that surrounded him.

“Enough is right.” Josh said from right behind Connor, causing the older man’s eyes to widen. Raising the practice blade, Josh brought the hilt of the sword down on the back of his head. Connor’s eyes rolled up into his head as he was knocked out cold, falling to the ground. Staring down at the man, Josh shook his head.

“You may have age and experience on you, but you’re messing with a gamer. Enemies can’t dodge, block or parry if your accuracy is high enough and you’re behind them.” Grinning, Josh turned and ran in the direction that Dawn had left a few minutes prior. His newly acquired elven physique helped him run faster than he ever would have been able to prior.

As Josh ran through the Everfree towards Ponyville, he caught a glimpse of a tribal looking hut and a trail leading up to it. “That’s certainly interesting. I’ll have to check it out after I get whatever is in Ponyville taken care of.” He thought to himself, unbeknownst to him that Twilight was just a few yards away inside of that very hut. Exiting the forest shortly after, Josh slowed down to a jog. Spotting Dawn a few yards away, he walked over to her.

“That was fast.” She said, glancing his way, only to turn back and stare at the dome.

“Yeah, had to be sneaky and get him when his back was turned.” He muttered as he walked towards the dome.

“Don’t touch it.” Dawn said suddenly as he reached his hand out. Josh glanced back her way, confused.

“Why is that?” Josh asked, pulling his hand back. Dawn rolled her eyes.

“It’s magical, whoever set this up will know if somepony tampers with it.” Josh’s brow furrowed as he crossed his arms and frowned.

“I see.” He muttered to himself. “What if we tried to dig under it?” He asked suddenly. Dawn snorted in exasperation.

“Dig under it, really? We’d be better off contacting the princesses. Once we come up on the other side, the caster will know that somepony new has entered the area.” Josh groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

“How do you know how all of this works anyway?” He asked incredulously. Dawn gave Josh a deadpan look before rolling her eyes.

“I’m a member of the Solar Guard under Princess Celestia. There would be something wrong if I didn’t know how the basics of shield magic worked.” The logic of that answer wasn’t lost on Josh, but it didn’t annoy him any less.

From outside the shield looking in, the two watched as red and black flags slowly began to pop up all over town. “What do you suppose those flags are? Some declaration of power?” Josh said as he ran a hand through his hair.

Dawn shrugged and turned away, looking back towards the forest. “It doesn’t matter, unfortunately there is no way for us to contact the princesses, so all we can do is depend on Twilight Sparkle and her friends to solve this predicament. What did you do with Connor?” Dawn asked, glancing Josh’s way.

“I knocked him out.” Josh said, smirking.

“Uh huh… And how did you manage that?” Dawn asked, sitting down, her gaze fixed towards the forest.

“Well, you see, I used a spell that Princess Luna had me learn to create clones of myself. From there I just snuck up behind him while he was focused on one of the other clones and knocked him out.” Dawn sat in silence for a moment before turning to Josh and glaring at him icily.

“You’re too soft.”

“What do you mean by that!?” Josh asked, dumbfounded. Dawn shook her head, annoyed by the situation.

“It’s too late now, Connor will be up and about soon and we will have to deal with him before the end of the day.” Josh groaned, causing Dawn to roll her eyes. “What did you expect to happen? Run back here and just bust on through the shield? We have no way of knowing how strong it is without Twilight Sparkle. I just hope that this will all be taken care of before tomorrow night.” Josh raised an eyebrow, confused.

“What happens tomorrow night?” Josh asked

“Ambassadors from Saddle Arabia will be here for a meeting with Princess Celestia. She made sure to inform me in advance that Twilight Sparkle will be in charge of the entertainment using her magic.” Josh blanched.

“Ambassadors from a foreign country? Are you kidding me? We have to get in there now and stop whatever is going on.” Electricity crackled between his fingertips. Dawn placed a hoof on his side, stopping him.

“Didn’t you hear what I said the first time?” She scolded.

“Of course I did.” Josh muttered, but we have to get through this and save the town.

“Josh, calm yourself. Whatever was able to conjure up a shield this side must of been incredibly strong. The princess’ themselves would have trouble with something of this size.” Josh groaned and sat on the ground beside Dawn.

“What do you suggest we do then?” He muttered.

“There is only one thing we can do.” Josh glanced over at her hopefully. “We wait.” Groaning, Josh laid back onto the ground. Looking up at the sky, he raised one hand to shield his eyes from the sun. From the position of the sun, it had to of been around noon.

“I’m going to take a nap then, I’m a bit worn out still from dealing with Connor.” Josh murmured as he turned onto his side and covered his head with his arms. Dawn watched him for a moment before shaking her head and turning her attention back towards the town.

Zecora’s Hut

Twilight stood in the middle of a small pond while nearby Zecora balanced on one leg in a meditative pose. “Ah, no noise, no sound, no din, no fuss must interfere with your focus. Unlearn what you have learned, only then victory can be earned.” Twilight gritted her teeth as she focused on concentrating. The magic duel from earlier repeated itself through her head. ‘Trixie IS the highest level unicorn!’ Faltering, Twilight’s magic failed and she dropped into the pond with a splash. Approaching the pond, Zecora looked down into it at Twilight and shook her head.

“There is much, much that I can teach. But the answer you need may still be out of reach.” Sighing, Twilight shook the water off of herself and walked out of the pond behind Zecora.

“I’m sorry, Zecora.” She said. “I’m trying my best, but I just can’t stop thinking about Trixie.” Looking off to the side, Twilight’s brow furrowed. “There was something different about her…” She said softly, frowning. “It’s like she’s gone from high-and-mighty to mean-and-nasty…” Zecora took a few steps away, shaking her head.

“Your thinking needs a readjust, total concentration is a must.”

Just outside the shield, two hours later. (2pm)

Placing a hoof to Josh’s side, Dawn shook Josh. “Hey, get up, somepony is approaching the inside of the dome.” Stretching, Josh slowly raised himself to a seated position and rubbed his eyes. Walking towards the dome, a couple of beavers were carrying a log directly towards them quickly. Raising their tails, they began to slap at the dome, causing a reverberation to race through the whole thing. Eyes widening, Josh raised his hands and began to try and shoo the beavers away.

“No no, bad beavers, that is not a good idea.” The beavers ignored him and continued to slap at the dome.

“Come on Josh, it doesn’t look like they’re going to listen, let's run to the forest and wait.” Running a hand through his hair, he nodded to Dawn and followed her towards the Everfree. About ten minutes of waiting later paid off, inside the dome, the two watched as a blue unicorn wearing a strange amulet, sat on top of a chariot that was being pulled by two young colts. Unable to hear what the unicorn was saying, the edge of the dome eventually lifted and the beavers were able to carry a log outside of the dome, only to have the dome fall back into place behind them.

Josh let out the breath he didn’t even know he was holding as she had the colts turn around and drag the chariot back into town. Minutes later as the unicorn was out of sight, there was a rustling around the log as two rabbit ears slowly raised out of it.

“Oh I don’t want to do this!” Squealed fluttershy as a couple birds flew over and pulled her out of the log and sat her outside of it. Josh blinked in confusion as he watched the butter pegasus back up towards the log that she was pulled out of.

“Fluttershy?” He asked as he stepped out of the overbrush.

“J..Josh?” Fluttershy asked timidly as she looked towards the everfree, peaking behind her hair. “Oh gosh, oh my goodness… It’s just horrible Josh, Twilight has been kicked out of Ponyville by Trixie.” Josh blinked at Fluttershy as Dawn followed him out of the woods.

“Wait, you mean that blue unicorn was Trixie? The same unicorn that Twilight showed up almost a year ago?” Fluttershy nodded.

“The same… Have you seen her? Trixie kicked her out of Ponyville hours ago.” Josh blinked in confusion. Turning towards Dawn, he raised an eyebrow. Shaking her head, Dawn shrugged.

“I’ve been keeping an eye on the bubble since I got away from Connor, if she was kicked out, it was before I got here.” Josh nodded and glanced at the bubble again.

“Fluttershy, do you know if there is anywhere that Twilight would go outside of Ponyville?” Blushing, Fluttershy hid once again behind her mane and looked up at Josh. “Y...Yes, we have a friend that lives in the Everfree Forest, her name is Zecora. Though we don’t visit her too often because of where she lives.” Josh nodded in thought, his attention turning back towards the woods.

“I see…” He muttered before beginning to walk towards the treeline.

“W..Wait!” Josh looked back towards Fluttershy. “I.. I mean please wait.” She asked timidly. Josh motioned for her to continue. “Well I um.. I know the way to Zecora’s. I can show you if you want.”

“That would definitely be helpful.” Josh said as he waited for Fluttershy and Dawn, the former leading the two into the Everfree.

Connor, middle of the Everfree, 3pm

“Oh man, did someone get the plates of the truck that hit me? My head feels like shit…” Connor groaned as he slowly got to his feet, a pounding headache reverberating through his skull. Staggering to his feet, Connor glanced in the direction of Ponyville only to smirk to himself upon seeing that the dome was still in place. “Well I guess that just means that Josh still is trying to figure out how to deal with Trixie…” Stretching, he winced again as pain shot through his head.

“Never expected him to pull something underhanded like that… I’m not much of a fighter though I guess.” Snapping his fingers, a globe of flame appeared above his hand lighting the way as he began his trek back towards Ponyville.

Approaching the dome, Connor raised his fist and knocked three times against it. Crossing his arms, he tapped his foot and waited, minutes later a flash appeared on the other side of the dome as Trixie teleported in. Blinking at Connor as she took notice of him, she smirked.

“Ah! So you finally decide to grace Trixie with your presence?” Connor rolled his eyes and glanced down to the amulet around her neck.

“How long have you been wearing that?” He inquired. Huffing, Trixie glared at him.

“That is none of your business!” She said with a glare, flicking her tail to the side. “Trixie has done what she needed to in order to get rid of that annoying Twilight Sparkle.” Connor sighed, rubbing his brow with his palm.

“This is not the best way to do it, trust me… You’re going to anger someone that you do not want to get on the bad side of.” Connor said, warningly. Trixie blinked, shaking her head.

“The princesses? Hmmph! They can’t do anything to me now that Trixie has the Alicorn Amulet! And you know what Connor?” Trixie asked with a smirk. “You can’t do anything to me now either. So you can just continue doing your thing, and Trixie will do her’s!” With a flick of her tail, Trixie teleporting back into Ponyville, blocking Connor from following her.

“Fine, fine! If that’s how it’s going to be, fine. Everyone thinks that they know best when something even bigger is going on! I am getting sick and tired of going by everyone else’s speed. I’ll just have to figure some other way to get them to understand that the Master is not going to wait too much longer…” Connor turned on his heel and walked past Faelan who had followed him out of the forest.

Zecora’s Hut

“Josh, Fluttershy, Dawn! I’m so glad you three are okay!” Twilight shouted as she ran up to the group of three that had reached the hut.

“Hey Twilight.” Josh said, furrowing his brow. “Sorry that I wasn’t in Ponyville when that Trixie pony showed up.” Twilight shook her head, frowning.

“No, it’s not your fault. None of us knew that she would be coming, much less taking the opportunity to strike while you were gone.” Josh sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“Twilight is right, you know.” Dawn began, nodding towards the unicorn. “None of us knew that she would be working with Connor.” Twilight’s eyes widened at this piece of news.

“Wait what? Trixie is working with Connor?” Josh groaned and nodded.

“Um… Who is Connor? If you don’t mind me asking, I mean.” Fluttershy asked quietly as Zecora exited her hut, only to stare at Josh for a moment, confusion apparent on her face.

“Yes, I would like to know too. Come inside my hut, we can discuss this over a bowl of stew.” Zecora said slowly, eyes never leaving Josh. Nodding in agreement, Twilight beckoned the gathered group to follow Zecora into her hut.

“Let's head on inside, there seems to be a lot of things that need to be explained.”

30 Minutes Later

“That is um… A lot to take in…” Fluttershy muttered quietly.

“I wish I had known about all of this before, fighting is definitely not something I adore.” Zecora said, drinking from a cup of tea that she had just finished brewing.

“Sometimes it is necessary, unfortunately with Connor and Trixie attacking us at the same time, it makes things kind of difficult. We don’t really have a way to get past that barrier…” Dawn said, pushing away her empty bowl.

“I’m at a loss... “ Twilight muttered, frowning. “Trixie is just too strong for me right now, I don’t have anything strong enough to get through that shield by force.” Josh stared at the table for a moment, his brow furrowed.

“Maybe we could trick her in some way.” Zecora’s ears perked up as she turned her attention to Josh once more. Smirking slightly she nodded and glanced Twilight’s way.

“Twilight Sparkle, much work have you done. You learned all of my lessons, all but one.” Taking a sip of her tea, Zecora raised a hoof and continued. “If Trixie’s tricks have you in a fix, you must nix your magic and use the six.” Brow furrowing in confusion, Twilight looked away for a moment.

“Nix your magic, use the six… Nix your magic, use the six. That’s it!” Twilight’s eyes widened as an idea sprung to her mind. From where Josh was sitting he could almost see a lightbulb appear above Twilight’s head. “Zecora, you’re a genius!” Levitating a quill and parchment, Twilight began to scribble something out while glancing over. “Now, we’ll need to get you back inside Ponyville, Fluttershy.”

“Um… Okay.” Fluttershy said softly. “What would you like me to do though?” Twilight levitated the rolled up parchment that she had been working on and slid it into one of the pouches on Fluttershy’s saddlebag.

“Not to worry, the instructions will be all in here. As soon as you can, get all of our friends together and follow this it will tell you what to prepare. I’ll get Trixie’s attention in a couple of hours, that should be plenty of time for you all to get everything set up.” Twilight wrapped Fluttershy in a hug briefly before backing up. “Okay we don’t have much time to lose.” Fluttershy nodded and left Zecora’s hut slowly, glancing back briefly before heading down the trail to where she had originally been dropped off with the log.

“So… What do you want us to do?” Josh asked confused, glancing over to Dawn briefly.

“Not to worry, I have a task for you two as well.” Twilight stated confidently. “You both need to watch out for Connor and…” Twilight turned to Josh, frowning slightly. “Don’t use your magic like you did before. You could of burnt yourself out. I know you felt it, that hard to breathe feeling in your chest after casting so much so quickly. Using the amount of magic that you did was incredibly foolish of you. There is always a better way to fight back instead of just throwing everything you have. Remember what you and Rainbow Dash did during the fight against Drex? The lightning weapons you used were ingenious and incredibly light on magic consumption.” Twilight took a breath, about to continue before Dawn raised a hoof effectively cutting her lecture off.

“I’ll be sure he doesn’t continue to use magic for the rest of the day Twilight. We’ll think of a way to apprehend Connor without the use of magic.” The two mares looked over at Josh who was asking Zecora for some more tea. “It is my duty as Josh’s guard and trainer to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid. I underestimated Connor and got him into that mess, it won't happen again.” Twilight frowned in confusion before nodding uncertainly.

“Oh, okay. Just be sure you both come back safe when this mess is all done and finished with.” Twilight finished off her tea and turned to watch Josh and Zecora talk. After a moment Josh got up and walked over to one side of the hut and sat down with his back to the wall. Closing his eyes he began to attempt to get some rest before it was time once more to hunt down Connor.

“I’ve never seen a creature of his kind before. His anger when he talks about this Connor shakes me to the core.” Twilight nodded. “The tea I made for him is a special kind, it is meant to calm the nerves and ease the mind. He will sleep for an hour or two I suspect, this will give us an hour to reflect. What plan did you come up with for Trixie and her tricks? Knowing you it will be something of a quick fix.” Beaming happily at Zecora, Twilight took a sip from her tea before replying.

“So, this is what we’re going to do…”

Clearing in the everfree forest. (5:30 pm)

“Ah! So you decided to return boy-o? I was wondering how long I was going to have to wait before you made your appearance again. Though I don’t suspect you’ll be doing much in the way of magic.” Connor grinned as he watched Josh enter the clearing alone. His training sword in one hand. “Are you actually up for some training then Josh? Or do you plan to knock me out once more. Though I have to hand it to you, that did catch me off guard. But leaving me probably wasn’t the best idea. What if a manticore decided to snack on me? That would not of been nice.” Connor frowned, looking to the side for a moment.

“Oh will you shut up already?” Josh grit his teeth as he walked up to Connor, when he was four feet away he stood still and held his sword out at the ready. Seeing this Connor raised an eyebrow.

“A sword? A wooden one at that. Josh are you okay?” Connor asked. “You must be confused because we were going to do some magic training, not swordplay. I don’t really deal with that type of…” Josh slid his left hand behind his back as he held the sword loosely in his right. “Fine, if that’s how it’s going to be. I suppose we’ll just play your game then boy-o.” Backing up a few feet, Connor backed up a few feet.

Taking a deep breath, Josh reflected back to what Dawn had told him as they were approaching the clearing.

“I asked Twilight to place an anti magic enchant on your sword. Any spells you deflect or parry with it should be thrown back to the caster. It should make your battle with Connor interesting and you would have to cast anything. While you distract him I’ll sneak up and attach this anti magic band to one of Connor’s legs. Once that is done we have him.”

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he watched as Connor flicked a flame into existence above his palm and sent it towards Josh. Side-stepping Josh took a step back and lightly swung the blade against the flame, redirecting it back towards Connor.

“Whoah!” Connor shouted and side stepped the flame, watching it fly back into the cave. “Now that was unexpected. Alright so maybe we can train like this, not how I had planned but it will work.” Raising an eyebrow Josh prepared for another attack. “Let’s see how long you can keep this up Josh.” Throwing two flames Josh’s way this time. Only caring about actually hitting one of them, Josh moved aside and hit it back towards Connor who sidestepped it.

The two continued this for a bit, circling each other. Connor would throw a fireball and Josh would hit it back. The ones he couldn’t hit he’d either dodge or duck under. Connor grinned as he began throwing the spells at Josh faster and faster. After a few minutes, Josh and Connor had finally traded places in the clearing. Unbeknownst to Connor however, Dawn had been concealing her presence in the underbrush near where Josh had started.

“Oh man this is fun boy. I’m just glad I was able to put up this shield to protect the trees from these flames otherwise we’d have a forest fire on our hands.” Josh took a step forward as Connor prepped two more flames and threw them back to back at Josh, trying to catch him off guard. Seeing what Connor had planned though he dashed briefly forward and hit the first flame, only to leap backwards a split second later and swing for the second.

“Too slow boy-o!” Connor yelled, grinning as the second flame hit Josh, throwing him back a few feet. Beating the flames out of his clothes, Josh looked up to see yet another flame come his way. Raising his blade he parried it and knocked it back. As Connor moved to dodge, a loud ‘click’ could be heard.

“Got you. Good job Josh, he shouldn’t be able to use any magic now.” Connor looked back at Dawn, eyes-wide.

“I should've known you wouldn’t approach me on your own!” Josh rolled his eyes and walked up to Connor while holding his side where the fireball connected with him.

“Oh shut up.“ Connor looked back to Josh, only to once again be hit in the head with the training sword, knocking him out. “That’s the second time today I’ve knocked you out like a sack of potatoes.” He smirked slightly to himself as he watched Dawn pull out some rope that she had gotten from Zecora.

“You did okay for your first actual battle with a blade.” Dawn said as she began to tie Connor up.

“I don’t know if I’d call that a battle, I was practically playing tennis with him. Except instead of squishy tennis balls, he was using fireballs.” Josh winced as he placed a hand on his burnt side. “I wonder how Twilight is doing.” He muttered only to see the dome evaporate a few moments later.

“I suppose that should answer your question.” Dawn wrapped the rope that was binding Connor around herself. “Let’s bring him back to town, we can put him in the cell at the sheriff’s station until the Princess arrives tomorrow.” Nodding, Josh followed Dawn as she dragged Connor back to Ponyville.

Later that night (8pm)

“So, all is well then? Connor is in prison, Trixie has left and no longer is in possession of the Alicorn amulet. I think we are going to be okay for now.” Twilight said with a smile.

“Yeah, the only thing that bothers me is it seemed like Connor was actually trying to help train me, he just was going about it horribly wrong.” Josh grimaced at that idea. “And as much as I don’t like saying anything nice about this guy, he may of been on to something. That magic repelling enchant on the sword was incredibly useful and could come in handy against the scions.” Twilight levitated a few books onto their shelves. When she had arrived home a few hours back she immediately began cleaning the mess that was made while she was gone.

“I think we should just leave your magic training up to Princess Luna and myself. For swordplay, Dawn.” Josh nodded in agreement.

“So, Princess Celestia should be here tomorrow then?” Twilight paused for a moment only to franticly pick up more books and place them on their shelves.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I completely forgot about that! How will I have everything set up by the time the dignitaries from Saddle Arabia arrive!?” Twilight began running from room to room, grabbing this and that until Spike stepped in her way with a yawn.

“Calm down Twilight, everything is going to go just fine. The girls and I went over it briefly while you and Josh were banished. Applejack has already got to work on the stage where you’ll be performing your magic and Rarity and Pinkie Pie have been working on the decorations. What else did you think they would be doing during the time they weren’t being harassed by Trixie?” Twilight’s eyes widened at this. Scooping Spike up into a hug she beamed happily at this.

“Oh thank you Spike! I’ll have to thank the girls as well, but I believe with that though I can rest easy knowing that we’ll have everything completed on time.”

Josh smirked as he watched Spike and Twilight. Scratching the back of his head, he made his way into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of glasses, filling them with water. “Here you two go. You both looked like you could use a drink.” Thanking Josh, Twilight and Spike gratefully took the glasses and sat down on the couch.

“What a day huh?” Josh muttered, yawning and shaking his head.

“Yeah, what a day is right, I’m just glad that it is over.” Spike said, stretching, sipping from the glass.

“I think we should get started on that weapon, Josh.” Twilight said, glancing over to the table that Josh had been using as a desk.

“Wait, what? Are you sure? It was fun to think about and come up with ideas, it definitely gave me a few thoughts on how to use magic differently, but I don’t believe your Princesses would approve of this.” Twilight turned towards Josh and took a step forward.

“I think they would approve, especially with everything that has been happening around here recently with Connor and the Scions. Having a weapon like that with extremely little magic consumption would definitely be worth working on. If it is okay with, I’d like to take you and Princess Celestia aside tomorrow when she arrives and show her these blueprints.” At seeing Josh’s hesitation, she took another step forward and placed a hoof on his knee.

“Please Josh? I don’t like seeing you coming home injured…” She glanced at his burnt side, now wrapped in gauze only to look back into Josh’s eyes. “Everytime you leave my sight, this seems to happen.” Meeting her gaze, Josh sighed and nodded.

“Okay, we can ask Princess Celestia tomorrow.” Twilight smiled happily, wrapping her hooves around Josh’s neck in a hug.

“What did I say about making decisions without me Twilight Sparkle?” At that Josh, Twilight and Spike all turned and looked towards Dawn who had come up the stairs from the basement room. Twilight let go of Josh and walked over to the desk, beckoning Dawn over. As she began to explain how the magic revolver worked, Josh glanced over to Spike who had picked up the water glasses without his noticing and took them to the kitchen.

“Hey Spike.” Catching the dragon’s attention. “I’m going to head to bed, it’s going to take Twilight a little bit to convince Dawn that this is a good idea, just make sure they aren’t too loud.”

“Hey no problem Josh. Goodnight. I’ll make sure they stay quiet.”

Getting up, Josh walked up the stairs and made his way to his room where he collapsed onto the bed, still exhausted from using as much magic as he did during his first encounter with Connor. “I never would of been able to do any of that before my changes happened… But dang, magic exhaustion sucks.” A few moments later, he was out like a light.

Author's Notes:

So um... Hey everyone! Kyllier here ^^;; Sorry that I um, haven't posted anything in about a year and 1/2. I have no guarantee when the next chapter after this one will be, but I mean... I actually was able to finish this one at least right? After scrapping half of the story multiple times, this was what I was able to come up with. I don't like it, but hopefully you all will. If not I apologize. I'm out an editor, and I'm out of someone to bounce ideas off of, which is actually how I made it through the first 12 chapters. So this one was actually written all on my own, no editor and no idea bouncing person.

(P.S. Currently looking for a new editor! Please message me, would be awesome to roll out more chapters.)