[Late Saturday Morning]

[Roxxie’s POV]

Okay, why does this day just keep getting weirder? A pervy ex-student of the academy may know something about my powers; Cyan’s parents won’t spill on what the fuck happened last night; a strange, self-proclaimed Dragon Buster or whatever walks in out of nowhere with not only info on where Cyan was last night, but comes in with a unique power of his own; and now TEALA of all ponies may have something like the colt’s and mine as well? What the fuck is going on here?! I haven’t seen something get THIS out of hand since Teala decided to file a lawsuit on Summer Flight Camp for her poor treatment. That goes for both from the staff, AND from the other pegasi that were there. She may have been young at the time, but since she has the money and power to back her up, it’s scary to think about what she’s capable of. I haven’t seen her go so far since that day though, at least not until this morning. If she was going so far as to threaten the pervert with a lawsuit from… That, JUST to have him tell us more about what was in that book of his, and even go so far as warn him of not getting away, then this must be turning into something BIG.

The three of us got to the backyard a few minutes later, with expressions of shock from the aftermath of what used to be a fountain, like an Ursa Minor came in and destroyed it while being cranky from an unpleasant wake-up from a nap.

“WHOOOOA!” Blaze exclaimed as he got off my shoulder and ran around the scene inspecting the damage. “What happened here?! Someone must be CRAZY strong to cause this much destruction!” He commented.

“Did you have anything to do with this?” Nil the pervert asked with a raised eyebrow while crossing his arms.

“Watch it pervert,” I threatened. “I may be tough, but I wouldn’t go so far as destroying someone’s property unless they REALLY ticked me off. Plus, how could I even cause THIS much damage to one of my best friends’ stuff?” I asked while gesturing to the scene.

“If there’s one thing I learned from all the books I’ve read in my time, it’s that reality is stranger than fiction, and you never know WHAT life can bring to you,” he concluded while straightening his hat.

“…Point taken,” I scoffed.

A few moments later, Teala walked into the scene, with Sigmund following while carrying two long, black cases. “Thank you all for coming,” Teala started. “I suppose you’re wondering why I’ve brought you out here, and what happened to my fountain?”

“CH’YA I AM!” Blaze replied. “It was like a dragon swooped down here and smashed the bitch! Wait, was it a dragon that did this?! Where did it go?!” He yelled while punching into his open palm. “I’m gonna PULVERIZE the bastard for breaking someone’s stuff!”

…Is this kid serious? Is he even around our age? I’d think swimming across the sea to the Griffon Kingdom is more possible than beating a dragon of all things.

“No Master Blaze,” Sigmund answered. “There haven’t been ANY sightings of dragons reported as of late.”

“Awww, I was so fired up too!” Blaze whined in disappointment.

“Anyway,” Teala continued. “I’ve gathered you all here because this might be the best place for us to demonstrate our new… Abilities without risking any damages inside my mansion, and possibly injuring anyone. These abilities in question, may have what Mr. Nil Thunder has studied and recorded in that book of his. His findings seem important considering how he had wanted it back so badly after Roxxie found it, and not want us to get involved with it.”

“I didn’t want you fillies to get involved for a good reason,” Nil defended. “But seeing and experiencing the events that has transpired today so far has gotten me more piqued with interest, and record these findings in my research.”

“I think Roxxie and I can add more to it right now,” Teala proclaimed, which directed our attention to her.

… Wait, me AND her?! What does she even have to show to us?!

“Roxxie,” Teala said, which snapped me out of my thoughts. “Since you were so eager in the subject earlier, why don’t you come up and explain to us what made you so riled up in the first place, and show us what you can do?”

…Um, crap. I didn’t think I was gonna be put on the spot like this. Now everyone’s staring at me to see what I have to bring to this weird show and tell.

“Um… Okay,” I complied before I took Teala’s place, and everyone watched me like an audience waiting for me to start a performance or something.

“So… It all started after Teala and I separated last night,” I began. “I was angry and frustrated in myself for not stopping Cyan’s Magic Duel with our damn bully, and end up getting hurt in the end.” I looked down with ears folded as I recalled the events. “Angry with myself, I just started punching into the street while I kept yelling to myself how much of a useless friend I was, not caring for the damages that I was bringing to my hands.” I held up the back of my hand to show my wounds from yesterday. “As I kept getting more frustrated, and decided to do one final punch, not caring if I’d break my hand or knuckles… Something weird happened.”

“What was that?” Teala asked.

“… I punched through the ground like it was nothing,” I replied, which got everyone’s expressions to surprise at the strange event. “I got stuck in it soon after, and tried getting out, but things just kept getting stranger and stranger… I think this is where I need to showcase what I got as to why I wanted to know more about what was in Nil’s book…” I turned to the pieces of fountain on the ground, facing away from the fountain, closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm myself.

Alright… Let’s try not to get Teala or the others hurt okay? If anything, hurt me instead.

With my line of thought finished, I opened my eyes; looked at the biggest piece; straightened my stance with my fists just below both sides of my ribs while the statue piece was to my left; and my front facing the audience. I side stepped hard to my left and put my whole body into the punch on the statue piece, and-

POOM!

The statue piece flew to the side, and collided with a nearby tree. With my punch finished, I relaxed my posture, and looked back to the audience. Everyone’s jaws were dropped to the ground, except Blaze who had a big smile from ear to ear, with his orange eyes glimmering in awe.

“THAT. WAS. AWESOME!” Blaze exclaimed. “YOU CAN MOVE STATUE PIECES!”

“Hold on, I think I can do something else now that I’m getting the hang of this,” I interrupted before I lightly stomped on the ground, and had three more statue pieces hopped up. I did a one-two punch, and a side kick in a certain direction that the rubble followed and hit the tree the first one collided with. I smiled as I was getting a better feel for this. “Woo! Roxxie, you rock!” I praised myself.

“I’LL SAY!” Blaze exclaimed. “Imagine how much evil dragon butt you’d be kicking with that kind of power!”

…You know, as crazy as that sounds, I can’t help but feel that might ACTUALLY be possible. Still, what’s his deal with dragons though? It’s kind of obsessive really.

“And you had JUST come across this yesterday after I left?” Teala asked as she walked up.

“Yeah, I was freaking out at first, having no idea what I was doing as I tried a few things. After I was able to hide the mess I made, I just ran off and not bother telling anyone else about it until now,” I finished.

“Well I can certainly see now why you were so antsy to find some answers from Nil,” Teala responded. “But I do believe it’s my turn to tell my side of the story. About what happened after I left, and show something I should have with you and Cyan after all this time.”

…What’s this something? I don’t know why she seems so serious about this, but I’m sure Cyan and I wouldn’t mind either way. Guess I’ll have to see what she’s got.

With that thought in mind, I nodded before I joined the audience, and waited for what Teala had to show.

“The first thing I should probably show is this secret I’ve been hiding from everyone for a while,” Teala started. “Something I found to my liking back at Summer Flight Camp, and I followed through with it for many years later. I was reluctant to show my parents, and to you and Cyan about this, but with everything that’s happened today, and where Nil’s study may lead us, I think now is a good time as any to reveal my secret.” She looked at me with guilt before she turned to Sigmund, and nodded.

Sigmund took the two black cases and walked up to Teala, put down the one on his right, and presented the other on his left to her. She opened the case, took something out, and turned her back to us. Her wings were trembling, as if she was nervous to what she was about to show, but took a deep breath to calm herself, turned around, and-

SHHHHHING!

The sound silenced the area, with me and everyone’s eyes opened wide in shock and awe as we witnessed what Teala was holding close to her muzzle with her eyes closed.

“T-Teala…” I stuttered, “Is that…”

“IS THAT A SWORD?!” Blaze interrupted with excitement, still sporting the huge smile.

“A rapier to be specific, but yes,” Teala answered.

Silence filled the area again, not believing what I was seeing.

Th-that can’t be right… Teala’s so… Fragile. I mean she can be pretty intimidating at times, but that’s when she had economic and social power at her side. This… This has got to be a joke right? Yeah! I mean Teala of all ponies wouldn’t be interested in such a sport! She’s just showing us the sword for comedy sake!

With that thought, I laughed heartily which got everyone in the area but Teala and Sigmund looking at me with confusion. “Oh man, Teala… You really got me,” I admitted. “It’s a fancy sword you got there, sure, but it’s some kind of souvenir right? I mean there’s just no way that you’re-"

CHING!

The sound of Teala’s sword clashing with Sigmund’s silenced me stiff. Not a moment too soon, the two started a duel. Loud clangs were made from their swords with each strike filling the air. Teala wasn’t just slashing with Sigmund willy-nilly like. Her swordplay was quick, dexterous, not to mention majestic as she attacked and defended against Sigmund. Heck, though the two were putting their best in their strikes, it was like a dance for Teala, as she stared at Sigmund with a look of determination, passion, and excitement. She didn’t bat an eye as she fought with a confident smile, something I’ve never seen from her before until then.

The two finished with their sabers held up horizontally, and pointing at each other’s necks. Both of them nodded to each other as they smiled, while their eyes were still gazing into one another’s. They moved their blades away from each other, and sheathed their weapons after they finished. “As you can see Roxxie, this is no joke,” Teala finally spoke. “I’ve learned and practiced the art of fencing with Sigmund for many years, probably for as long as you’ve learned and trained fighting and martial arts.” She held the sheathed sword in her hands while she smiled. “I may have played with wooden ones at first back at Summer Flight Camp, but something just clicked with me as I played, as if a part of me was filled while doing this. Something that made me warm with excitement, curiosity, and confidence, as if I finally found something I could truly enjoy.”

“When I saw Master Teala telling me her experiences with her playing swords back at that camp, I was pleased to see how happy she looked,” Sigmund added in. “Her eyes just shined with youth, and I wanted to help her maintain that happiness as much as I could. So I offered to be her instructor for the art of fencing, and she just flew around with joy when I asked. Unfortunately, I feared her parents may not be so thrilled with Teala finding this new hobby, so we kept our practices and training sessions a secret for a long time. I taught her how to fence, how to take care of her rapier, and helped find suitable blades for her as she improved and grew out of her old ones.”

“I didn’t tell you or Cyan about this because I wasn’t sure how open you were with me having this hobby,” Teala commented. “It may have been because of how hesitant I was with telling my parents, but that’s no excuse for keeping this secret from you two, the best and closest friends I have ever cherished, and would never replace even with all the money in the world. So I must apologize for keeping this from you two, and I do hope that I would still be your friend.” She looked down with her ears folded.

Silence filled the area for what seemed like minutes until a sound of giggles broke it. Everyone was confused at where it was coming from until they found the source… Me. Giggles turned to chuckles, and quickly changed to fits of laughter as I held my gut to avoid getting it spilled out. “Oh man Teala… Out of all the things you’ve been worried about over nothing, THIS may be the top of the list!” I exclaimed as I wiped a tear from my eyes.

Teala stood there in shock as she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “I-I don’t understand… You aren’t mad?” She asked with confusion.

“Of course I’m not mad! Why would I be?” I asked. “Teala, what you like to do in your time is your own thing, and no matter what it is, I would never make you stop what you love to do, and I’m sure Cyan would say the same thing. It’s like if someone wanted me to stop training to be the best fighter in Equestria, and dude, I would NOT that take that lightly.” I walked over to Teala and had my hands on her shoulders. “We’re your friends Teala, and whatever you want to do that makes you feel right and happy, we’ll be with you every step of the way. Unless you do something stupid enough for us to snap you out of it, which would be something I’LL be doing a lot later on. Otherwise, we’ll always have your back, no matter what happens,” I finished with a smile.

Teala’s eyes started to well up with tears, lips quivered, dropped her sword before clamping onto me, and sobbed into my chest. I hugged in return, and rubbed her back to comfort her, being careful with her wings along the way. A few moments later, Teala pulled back, and Sigmund passed a handkerchief to her with a smile before she gladly took it and wiped what tears were drying up on her face. “Thank you Roxxie, you have no idea how happy that makes me,” she said.

“I hate to break up this touching moment,” Nil interrupted. “But I’d like to know how your display of fencing has to do with what happened yesterday if you don’t mind me asking.”

“And for the record, the swordfight? SO. AWESOME!” Blaze exclaimed. “You were all like ‘ching ching ching!’ And then ‘WHOOSHED’ side to side while dodging the butler’s attacks! I was on the edge of my seat for how epic it was!” He explained excitedly.

Teala just giggled from his childish astonishment. “Thank you Blaze. As for what this has to do with what happened yesterday, I was doing this to vent my frustrations with Sigmund after the Magic Duel,” she explained. “I got so riled up with anger as I explained to him about what happened during our session. It just got out of hand until…” She pointed to the destroyed fountain while blushing with embarrassment.

“Wait… YOU trashed that fountain?!” I asked with disbelief.

“WHOOOOA!” Blaze added. “Are you saying you have the power to blow things up with your MIND?!”

Teala shook her head before she answered. “No Blaze, that’s not it. The water had enough force to break out of the statue like a geyser, and made it to the way it is now. I had no idea what it was at the time, until Sigmund somehow had an idea. He asked me to try something, and… Well, this is where I’LL be showing my stuff.” She gestured us to come closer to the fountain where there was still water pooling around it. She took a moment to stare at the water intently with her hand up before a glob of water started to rise from the water, rippling and dripping as it hovered in mid-air. She dropped her focus not too long later, and the glob splashed back to the fountain, leaving us wide-eyed once more in awe.

“Incredible...” I said, breaking the silence.

“And now I have a couple questions for YOU Mr. Nil Thunder,” Teala started while directing her gaze towards him. “First, do you know if me tapping into this power is part of why I received THIS the same night?” She asked before she rolled up her sleeve, and Sigmund and I gasped in surprise.

There was a symbol… A rapier sword standing vertically and proudly in front of a marine blue heart, with three droplets of rain water between them.

“… A cutie mark…” I concluded. “Wait, you got a cutie mark the same night you found this power?!” I exclaimed.

“Let me guess, you too?” Teala asked.

I nodded and rolled up my own sleeve to show my own cutie mark. It was a black belt tying three small, gray boulders together, with a yellow shield behind it. “I didn’t find it until I got home afterwards. It looked cool for sure, but it felt weird getting this the SAME day I was able to do, well, that.” I pointed to the four statue pieces that I used to hit that tree.

“HEY! I actually got MY cutie mark after I found out I could do all of that fire stuff!” Blaze added in while showing off his own that was exposed already.

Teala nodded at our additions to the claim before she turned to Nil. “I assume you and your acquaintance you mentioned earlier have something similar that have to do with your OWN abilities?” I asked.

Nil just chuckled at the remark before he answered. “Right you are princess. My acquaintance is able to produce Light, and her cutie mark was three hearts with a white light shining around them. Mine,” he said before he pulled up his own sleeve, showing two conjoined, metal gears getting struck by a lightning bolt. “Is actually a different case. I came across my Thunder ability before I found my passion of inventing and working with science and magic involving electricity. It wasn’t until after that I found my own cutie mark.”

“Wait a second…” I interrupted before I counted out the elements I mentioned earlier back in the dining room. “Water, Earth, Fire, Light, Thunder… What was the last one?” I asked.

“Shadow I believe,” Teala finished. “And if these series of events are occurring with all of us in a general area is no mere coincidence, then that can only mean…”

“…Cyan came across the Shadow ability after he left us… THAT’S probably the thing he discovered in the letters he left us!” I exclaimed. “HOLY SHIT! This is just getting weirder and weirder! Why is all of this happening?!”

“Don’t you get it?!” Blaze asked excitedly. “The six of us were brought together for a reason guys! I don’t know what, but something BIG is probably coming, and fate has somehow brought all of us together in the same city!” He explained loudly.

“I can’t exactly say ‘fate’ has something to do with this,” Nil argued skeptically. “But I must say, coming across this in such a short amount of time after me resigning from the academy is quite the progress in my studies. I didn’t even think our cutie marks could play some part in our magic either. You’re certainly pretty bright for a spoiled princess,” he referred to Teala.

“And you’re quite cunning for a lousy pervert,” Teala rebutted. “Still think your research is none of our concern?”

“After all of this? I retract that statement,” he humbly replied with a tip of his hat and a smile. “Alright, you have me convinced. I’ll tell you everything I’ve come across so far in my studies, and after that, I’ll see what I can do to help you with Cyan’s disappearance.”

Teala nodded before she answered. “Thank you for your assistance. How long are you planning to stay in Canterlot if may ask?”

“There’s a few things I need to take care of before I leave,” Nil replied. “I’ll probably be leaving by Tuesday.”

“I want to meet this Cyan guy,” Blaze added. “If he’s someone that important, I DEFINITELY want to see what he’s capable of. I’ll probably spend one more night here in Canterlot before I get going to my own next destination. There could be a chance I’ll run into him while I’m there.”

“Sigmund, how long are Mother and Father planning to stay in Cloudsdale?” Teala asked her butler.

“They should be staying until Wednesday Master Teala,” Sigmund answered. “I’m hoping we’ll get the fountain aftermath cleaned up and repaired before then.”

“Excellent. Nil Thunder? Blaze Fullthruster? I would like to offer you two places to stay here in my mansion for the rest of your time here in Canterlot. Adding to it, whatever services we can provide you until you’re ready to move on,” Teala finished, which got everyone, including me, wide-eyed at her offer.

“Teala, are you sure?” I whispered in her ear. “These guys aren’t exactly your normal everyday ponies, and I can’t help but worry to leave you alone with them.”

“It’s the least I could do to thank them for helping us with our Cyan issue,” Teala argued. “And though I have enough security to keep me safe, I was actually wondering if you’d like to spend the next few nights with me as well? There’s something I especially want to discuss with you tonight alone.”

“Um… Sure, I can do that,” I replied. “School doesn’t start again until Wednesday next week for our finals right? We might as well use that time to get some studying in as well.”

“Of course,” Teala agreed. “Now, we had a very eventful morning. Why don’t we take a breather to gather our things, and we’ll meet back here for Nil’s explanation on our powers?”

“I’m down with that,” Nil answered. “I need to get my things back from my room in the academy anyway. I have something I need to talk to someone about over there as well.”

“I have nothing but the tarp I came with, the clothes on my back, and my empty bit pouch,” Blaze added. “I’ll just hang out here and slack while I wait if that’s okay? OH! And some lunch would be awesome to have as well.”

“You just ate eight servings of breakfast, and you’re hungry again NOW?!” I asked loudly.

“Hey, I was without food for a while alright?” Blaze defended. “I could probably go for ten servings of lunch to get me through the rest of the day.”

“Oh boy, our chefs are going to have a whopper today,” Sigmund added before all of us laughed at that remark.

“Okay everyone, you all know what to do. Let’s meet back here at 0300 and we’ll discuss our next course of action. You’re dismissed,” Teala finished with the rest of us nodding in agreement before we all went our separate ways.

Man, this is just getting stranger for me by the minute. Call me crazy, but I wonder if the dragon colt might have an idea with fate bringing all of us being together on the same day? Still, despite the circumstances, one goal is still in my sight: Find Cyan, and have the three of us reunited once more… After that… I think it’s about time I confess my feelings for him like he did in the letters. Come to think of it… I wonder how Teala feels for him? What will happen once we’re all together again? How much will things change for us after that? I wonder what kind of cutie mark Cyan has after he came across his Shadow powers? UGH! I think his questioning habit is rubbing off on me! Fuck it. I’ll just play by ear, and see what this ‘fate’ has in store for me. Watch out world, I’m coming up to buck your asses, and nothing’s gonna stand in my way of finding Cyan, and protecting him and Teala from harm. This I swear. Next Chapter: Chapter 14: New Job, New Place, and Facing Changes Estimated time remaining: 6 Hours, 18 Minutes