Chapter Sixteen: Allies

I was suspicious as to why nothing had changed yet. Everything seemed normal, for Equestria, at least. Discord couldn't possibly not know that Twilight and I were successful in the quest he forced us to undertake. It was only a matter of time. The group began chatting. The road was empty, except for the occasional wagon.

"So, Time Piece, was it? You're a historian?" Rarity asked.

"Yes, I've been one for years. It's my passion."

"What was it like, in Zach's world?" Rainbow Dash queried.

"Fascinating. There are so many differences, yet so many similarities." He answered. I couldn't disagree with him. Much of society was the same. The largest differences were the lack of magic, the fact that humans were omnivores, a comparatively violent past, and a massive technological gap.

"What did you see? Where did you go?" Pinkie chimed in. The ponies were questioning the poor stallion incessantly.

"I met Twilight and Zach at a museum. I got a lot of attention from a lot of humans."

"What kind of attention?" I asked.

"Not unfriendly, if that's what you were implying. They just talked to me, and I answered their questions as well as I could. They kept calling me 'Doctor Hooves' for some reason."

"That's a name we made up. You see, as you may or may not know, in our world Equestria isn't real, it's fiction. You are rarely portrayed in stories about Equestria, and because of your cutie mark and appearance, they named you after something else." I explained. Time Piece was confused.

"That doesn't make sense, though. I've studied the history of Equestria for years, and I can assure you, it's real."

"Keep in mind that my universe is just that- another universe. It's not the same reality that we're in now. I don't doubt you, I know that Equestria is real, but not in the same way as something like... Spike is real." I pointed to the dragon on Twilight's back.

"What?" Spike didn't follow.

"Dragons don't actually exist in our world; they're made up. Equestria doesn't actually exist in our world, it's made up. Same concept. But here I am, seeing both things, things that don't exist where I come from. Say, cars don't exist here, do they? Does petroleum?"

"Petro-what? Isn't that some made-up thing?" Rainbow Dash responded.

"Exactly." The group returned to their silence for a few moments as we walked along. Still, nothing had changed. Discord had to be up to something. Rarity started the conversation again.

"Zach, you've changed your attire." She observed. I was wearing a red T-shirt now. I'd left my sweater at my house. "I can't say it's any worse, but it's still so boring." She critiqued.

"Well, I find my clothing comfortable." I said in a casual, though defensive manner. Why were we talking about such trivial things? The situation wasn't casual, like these ponies seemed to believe.

"It ain't your place to judge him, Rarity." Applejack came to my defense.

"Can we talk about something more important? This isn't just a walk." I didn't like extraneous chatter, I never did.

"Zach is right. The universe is at stake, we can't have everypony worried about what Zach is wearing. We need to be ready to deal with Discord when he decides to strike." Twilight rallied the group. I admired her leadership abilities.

"Right! But... Discord hasn't done anything yet." Rainbow Dash observed.

"We don't know that. Rainbow, could you go ahead and check out Canterlot?" I asked her.

"With pleasure!" She zoomed off, leaving her characteristic prismatic trail. I noticed that the other pegasus hadn't said a word.

"Fluttershy? Anything on your mind? You haven't said anything." I asked the timid pegasid.

"Um, no. Nothing." Fluttershy said dismissively. She was scared, I could tell. She remembered what Discord had done to her and her friends, and she didn't want to go through it again.

"Discord hasn't got anything over us. We are strong and capable. We're going to stop him before he causes any major damage." I tried to sound reassuring, as I had several times before. These ponies were my allies in this endeavor, and they had to be strong in its execution. If even one of the six elements were to fall victim to Discord's tricks, which would be more potent than last time, our efforts could well be for naught.

"Rainbow is going to assess the situation. We should be well aware of what's going on before we get to Canterlot." I continued. Fluttershy looked better. I looked up at the sky, noticing something familiar. I pointed to them. "Look!"

The sky ahead was full of pink clouds. They hadn't been there mere moments before.

"Candy clouds!" Pinkie said excitedly.

"Pinkie, dear, this is not the time." Rarity tried to calm the excited earth pony.

"It looks like Discord has started his game." When I said that, another voice came from behind me. Discord.

"Ah, yes, I have! You're in for a treat, you are! Oh, and thank you so much for going to so much trouble to bring back the missing pieces."

"Discord, it isn't enough to ask you to just stop now, is it?" I knew the answer to this before I even thought of asking it.

"Why, no! The fun is just beginning!" With that, he flew off toward Canterlot Castle.

"Irritating fellow, isn't he?" Rarity said, expressing her distaste.

"Let's go. We have to get to the archives." I restated our objective as Rainbow Dash returned. She was almost completely covered in chocolate and cotton candy. I was surprised by her ability to fly with such impediments.

"Bad weather ahead!" She licked her lips. "Tasty, though." She came down to the ground. "Ugh, this is so... sticky!" She complained.

"What are we going to do?" Time Piece asked. "We can't go through that chocolate storm."

"We're going to have to. Rainbow, can you move these clouds?" Twilight queried.

"Not without help, these ones are heavy-duty!" At that moment, Derpy appeared behind us.

"Wait up, guys! Is there anything I can do to help?" How opportune that she would come at this time.

"Yes, Derpy, there is!" Rainbow Dash shook off what she could of the sugary excess she had aquired. "We've gotta move those cotton candy clouds up ahead!"

"Sure thing, Rainbow Dash!" The two pegasi moved quickly toward the growing storm, and set to work. I saw things other than chocolate come out of the clouds. One of these objects was a large muffin. Derpy paused in the air for a moment, and began working with increased vigor. The clouds were defending themselves with bursts of custard and pudding. It was an interesting spectacle. The eight of us cheered as the two pegasi beat back the clouds, clearing the path. A few minutes later, the pair returned victorious, covered in various confections. Derpy was holding a rather large muffin, one of the projectiles sent against them.

"Good work, Derpy!" Rainbow said, shaking off the excess again.

"Thanks, Rainbow Dash!" She really liked helping Rainbow; she was the leader of the weather team in Ponyville and one of the- if not the- fastest flyers in Equestria; A living legend to Derpy. She set down and began to eat her prize. When she was done, the ten of us continued toward Canterlot. We passed many a chocolate puddle.

"Good work clearing the clouds, girls." Twilight praised the two.

"I couldn't have done it without Derpy."

"This isn't over yet. Discord will have plenty more tricks up his sleeve." I warned.

"Right. Be ready, everypony." Twilight said. Spike belched forth a letter. Twilight opened it and read it.

"My Faithful Student,

If you are reading this, then Canterlot Castle has been compromised by the forces of chaos, and my sister and I have been deposed. We are depending on you and your friends to save Equestria. Good luck, Twilight Sparkle.

Sincerely, Princess Celestia." Twilight read aloud.

"Well, that was expected." I said. Twilight shot me a look.

"We have to get to the archives! We need to save-" She stopped and looked at the landscape before us. The ground had suddenly become... different, distorted. Canterlot was nowhere to be seen, though it should have been large on the side of the mountain before us. However, even the mountain had disappeared.

"How are we going to get through this?" I asked Twilight.

"I-I don't know. I don't know anything about illusion magic." She replied helplessly. Another voice spoke.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie does!" Said the voice. The blue unicorn appeared before our very eyes, out of nowhere.

"Why are you following us?" I asked her.

"I had nothing better to do." She said non-chalantly. "Besides, the Great and Powerful Trixie does not have to explain her motives!"

"No, why are you really following us?" I pried. It was to no avail.

"Silence! Do you want my help or not?"

"We do. Please help us, Trixie." Twilight said.

"Ahahah! The powerful Twilight Sparkle needs help! I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, would be glad to assist you! Follow me!" Her horn began to glow, and the path was clear in a significant radius of the illusionist. "Stay close, or else." She warned.

She guided us through the warped landscape, and we soon arrived in a normal-looking area. Another new ally had appeared at an opportune moment. It was almost suspicious. Trixie was obviously strained by the use of her powers.

"Please. The Great and Powerful Trixie requires rest." I was reminded of the time. I checked my watch, It read 7:30. However, as I looked to the sky, the sun seemed locked in place; Celestia couldn't set the sun, and Luna couldn't raise the moon. The world was stuck in eternal early-evening. After a few minutes of resting, the group, now of eleven, continued. About ten minutes passed, and we arrived at the gates of Canterlot. They were unguarded and upside-down. Twilight magically opened the gate, shutting it after we were through. The scene before us was as I'd feared it might be.