A crack broke the air, Sweetie's horn blocker losing its magic as Discord turned it into a chain of daisies, having recovered whilst Neos escaped.

"I swear, I'll punch you myself, you looked real pathetic" Babs snorted, before smiling and shaking her head. "But I don't think you need anymore of that right now"

"No, what I need is more like an army" Sweetie quipped back good naturedly, experimentally lifting a few rocks to check if her magic was in check.

"Well, maybe the fellows over there could oblige" Discord added, pointing behind Babs at a group of ponies that Sweetie Belle knew well, the Freedom Friends. Well, what was left after most had disbanded or joined other organizations, but still a good dozen or so. "I mean, they helped you out once" the draconequus continued, eagerly awaiting for some action after being locked up. Normally, he'd have kept moping, but after seeing the unicorn do it constantly, it struck him as a very poor posture for someone such as he.

"Spitfire, Shining Armor! Would you really be willing to fight with me again?" Sweetie gasped, her eyes tearing up slightly at the knowledge that she was supported by at least some.

"Of course we are" Spitfire smirked, letting out a shrill whistle as all of the assorted allies save for Sweetie Belle covered themselves in avatar form. "What about him?" Spitfire asked, giving a nod in the direction of Discord.

"Well, I am personally reforming once more. Beats being stuck in prison" Discord shrugged, whispering the last part into his own ear. Most of the veterans grumbled about it, but didn't raise further objection, having seen Discord's power first hand. Silver Spoon wasn't a veteran.

"Why should we trust you?" Silver Spoon sniffed, her snout upturned in such a way that even her sparkling avatar looked semi-ridiculous in the posture. Discord merely chuckled and curled around the head of the avatar.

"How about good will?" Discord offered, before bursting into a stream of chuckles as Silver Spoon backed off.

"Discord, I've got something serious for you to do. Can you try to fuse with Scootabelle?" Sweetie asked of the draconequus, prompting a choke from Shining Armor. Spitfire quickly whacked him on the back so that he didn't choke further, but still looked at Sweetie like she was insane. Even Discord was following the same action.

"Fuse? My dear filly, when I get big, I am still me. Your "avatar" isn't really biological. And besides, you don't have the Element of Magic, so how c-" Discord was cut off as Sweetie transformed herself into the avatar with the sound of a thunder crack, having absorbed the Element of Magic's energy into herself so that she no longer needed the crown to create her avatar.

"Just try. It's our only hope of beating the horde that Twilight will bring if she's mad" Sweetie said quickly, her patience for the spirit quickly waning. Discord made a mocking bow and grabbed his head, stretching himself upward to match Sweetie's avatar before coiling around it.

"If we become a Frankenpony monstrosity, let the record know it was all Sweetie's fault" Discord chuckled weakly before the signature magenta glow began. With a sound like the aftermath of a lightning strike, Discord and Scootabelle began to meld together

"Killing them isn't hard, but there's too many" Burning Cobalt said through gritted teeth, his control of the upper half of the avatar fading a little from fear. There was silver lining in that killing the poor, misshapen things was a mercy. The few that were studied after the first attack constantly mewled in pain, even when not wounded.

"Keep it together" Sandy Dunes replied, twisting the flanks of their avatar to dodge two tentacles attempting to impale the legs.

On the enormous Ark, Applebloom paced in a room set off for herself, barking out orders alone. It was too much, too many desperate voices she had to ignore, to help the bigger picture. The only thing that kept the Earth Pony from falling at a time when her defenses were at half capacity was a simple fact. If she failed, all of the horrors she had committed and was committing now, would be pointless. Without end.

"Applebloom, the Ark is losing power" Celestia whispered, letting herself into Applebloom's room. The former monarch had lost the servile tone and instead sounded outraged. "Do you know why? It's because the ponies, dragons, buffalos, everyone on this ship is losing faith. They lose faith because they are being attacked, but most of all, because they don't see you. They think you've abandoned them. You're no better of a leader than I was" Celestia yelled, her eyes wide and her mane billowing once in a demonstration very similar to Celestia as the Solar Queen. At first, Applebloom did not respond, then she smiled weakly and looked up at Celestia, the earth pony's face haggard as if she had lived for 100 years and not the 24 she actually was.

"If I showed myself and they saw just how afraid I was...it would make things worse" Applebloom hissed, struggling to keep any emotion from showing. Celestia sighed, her mane going normal once more as the alicorn stepped out of the room. Her new leader was in no condition to lead at this moment, she possibly never was. Applebloom's eyes looked out through the semi-transparent fleshy walls of the energy construct, seeing a long, black beast coiling around the area where her room was. "Am I at my limit? Is this when I die?" Applebloom murmured, looking the snake in the eye as the savage creature opened its mouth, preparing to attack. The Ark still had its shields, but they would fail soon enough. The snake's bite was interrupted by a yellow and purple candy cane flying through space, embedding itself in the beast's head. Applebloom looked towards the source and it was none other than Scootabelle, now covered in serpentine markings and with Discord's head on the left shoulder.

"It's only over when you give up. So don't give up Discord" Sweetie spoke to her fused counterpart, the advice partially meant for both of them. Neither could afford to dwell on the past in this moment.

"Already ordering me around? Maybe you could spend that energy blasting goons away instead" Discord said, flashing his teeth and preparing another candy cane spear Next Chapter: Atmospheric Clash Estimated time remaining: 5 Minutes