JOURNEY OF THE
~~BREEZE

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BY: JUSTIN DANIELS

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And so, we boldly and valiantly traveled through the Everfree Forest in search of the place supposedly known as "The Castle of the Two Sisters". We traveled high and low, and dared NOT let any problems stand in our way... for we knew that the fate of the world was in our hands... and hooves, of course. With that as our motivation, we carried on with out task, and walked forward with VERY little trouble to interfere with-

"Ugh... are we THERE, yet?! We've been walking for HOURS now... and be we, I mean ME!" Bolt complained as he breathed heavily with each step he took.

Twilight shrugged her shoulders before replying, "Look, relax already! I'm still trying to remember the steps that the others and I took when we went there, alright?!" Then she rubbed her right hoof over her snout before humming to herself. "Now, then... if I remember correctly, we should be getting close to Froggy Bottom Bogg now!"

Bolt suddenly stopped moving with an annoyed expression on his face. "Hey! Why'd you stop?"

"Um... Twilight... you do realize that Froggy Bottom Bogg was, like, the other turn that we made about an hour ago... right?!" Bolt's face was starting to twitch occasionally as he said that.

Twilight, of course, glared at him before replying, "No! I could've sworn that we had to make a left turn to get there!"

"Well if that were the case, then you must've broken from the trail and took a u-turn without realizing it, because the Bogg, I can assure you, was at the right turn from the first fork in the road!"

"And just how would you know that, exactly?!"

Bolt was about to respond... but before he could even say another word, however, he soon found the ground behind him start to rise above his head. When he turned around, he realized what was happening; he was falling down a huge crack in the road... a gorge.

While Twilight and Summer gripped onto his hair tightly while screaming, Bolt quickly dug into his bag and pulled out his Grip Whip. Then, mere seconds after he pulled it from his bag, he swung the disc into the corner of the gorge and raised his feet forward; allowing him to swing onto the corner of the gorge painlessly. (As it turns out, the boots that he wore allowed his feet to withstand greater lengths of falls without causing any harm to his body... as long as the falls weren't too big, and as long as it was his feet that would land on the surface... but since his gloves are made of the same material, they also have the same effects, as well.)

"Good timing, Bolt! I was kinda worried you would've forgotten that you have that!" Summer cheered, while Twilight stared wide-eyed at the Grip Whip.

"H-hey... now that I have a greater look at it... isn't this a Grip Whip?!"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion. "Yeah... but how do you know what it is?"

Twilight rolled her eyes and replied, "Well, duh! It's a device that the ancient horses used long ago! It's one of the earliest lessons on Equestrian history that a filly would learn... but to see one up close... and here I thought they were obsolete!"

Summer shook her head and smiled while bolt used the Grip Whip to climb his way back up the gorge. (And due to the fact that he had one, the process would include drawing the line back in, gripping a rock with his left hand, sling back upwards, draw line back in once more, and repeat.)

"They are obsolete, Twilight! What Bolt was trying to tell you is that, when we first met, that was exactly where we came from... and by when we first met, I mean when you kinda... threw us about... half a mile away or more, give-or-take..."

It took a moment for those words to sink into Twilight's mind. When it did, all she could do was smile sheepishly through a blush and reply, "Um... sorry?"

Summer merely chuckled before replying, "Hey, it's quite alright, Twilight! At least you showed Bolt the true power of an alicorn! Maybe with that knowledge, he'll be more considerate when it comes to your personal space... so at least that's a bonus!"

Bolt smirked (catching their attention), before replying, "Summer, don't tell me you've forgotten what my job is, did you? I'm a photojournalist! Getting inside people's personal space is what I do on a daily basis! If anything, Twilight here can expect a long interview and a lot of pictures to make up for the extra time that I could be using to figure out a way to get better at fighting, so I can face that 'Tirek' guy!" Then he chuckled. "And perhaps you can get me famous in a magazine once this is all over! You are a princess, after all... and maybe I could use those pictures for blackmail to keep you from saying 'no', as well!" Suddenly he felt, what appeared to be, a mosquito bite on his scalp, which nearly caused him to lose his balance. "OW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!"

Summer looked at Twilight and noticed that she was rolling her eyes upwards and whistling idly. Next to where she stood was a small (for them, but microscopic for Bolt) hole in Bolt's scalp. The hole appeared to be as wide as Twilight's horn, which gave Summer a clue as to what happened while she was focused on Bolt. Needless to say, however, she was mischievous natured, and merely smiled with Twilight before shrugging her shoulders. "Looks like it was a mosquito, Bolt! Better keep your nose in your own business, so that it doesn't try... poking its own nose into your scalp again!"

Bolt groaned before mumbling to himself, "I'm starting to regret this decision already..." *POKE* "OW! I KNOW THAT IT'S YOU, TWILIGHT!" While he didn't notice it, Summer and Twilight bumped hooves with evil grins on their faces before bursting out laughing. "THAT BETTER NOT LEAVE A MARK, DARN IT!"

As soon as Bolt was back on the ground level, he sighed with relief, before turning back around to examine the other side of the gorge. "Huh... looks like there's more of the forest on that side!"

Twilight looked towards the left and right before gasping at a distant object that she noticed on the far-left side; hanging just over the gorge... an old-looking rope bridge loosely hanging on a pair of old ropes. Unfortunately for Bolt, however, it appeared that the bridge was several miles away, and appeared to be the size of a baby inchworm in visual size comparison. "Bolt! I know where we are! We're in Ghastly Gorge!"

Summer's eyes shot open at that statement. "Ghastly Gorge?! Don't Quarray Eels live here, though?!"

As if on cue, the ground below them started to tremor. Then, before anyone else could say a word, a huge burgundy eel about the size of a ten-story tall building (but potentially taller) burst through the ground above them and hissed loudly. The burgundy eel had, what appeared to be, a purple mane on its "scalp", five-foot-long pink dots that ran from five feet away from its golden eyes in a straight pattern, and purple plates beneath its lower jawline. Dangling from each of its lips were fangs that started one foot high on the innermost corners of its mouth, and ended at three feet long in the outermost corners (in the center). As it hissed, its tongue appeared to be purple, and split at the tip; similar to the way how snakes' tongues are.

Bolt hesitantly reached his right arm up to his sword to draw it, but by the time his hand touched the handle, he felt the Quarray Eel's tongue wrap around his elbow; rendering it useless. Summer and Twilight screamed it terror as the eel... stood there... not doing anything.

Then, the unexpected happened; it let Bolt go and backed up... much to everyone's confusion. Before Bolt could even ask what was going on, the eel started to hiss and make odd noises... something neither Bolt nor Twilight could understand. Summer, on the other hand, flew in-between Bolt's eyes and said, "Bolt! It's asking you to change into your other form!"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion before looking up to the eel... who nodded its head in agreement. Not wanting to even bring up an argument, Bolt quickly reached into his pouch and pulled the flower out. Then, after placing it on his forehead, he was engulfed in the all-too-familiar glow, and in the matter of seconds, he was a timberwolf again.

"Can thou underssstand me now?" the eel asked in a... strangely feminine voice.

Bolt nodded his head before barking, "Um... yes, ma'am?"

The eel then smiled before nodding her head. "Thank goodnessss! I wasss afraid thou wouldn't be able to underssstand what I sssay!" Then she bowed her head respectfully. "I am Sssylvannia. It isss an honor to finally meet thee, o hero of the other world!"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion. "It's... an honor to meet you, Sylvannia. My name's Bolt... but I'm not sure what you mean by Hero of the Other World... I mean, I haven't even saved the world yet!"

Sylvannia lightly chuckled at his statement. "Oh, I am aware of thine predicament! 'Tis not the first time I hath seen thy race before, though... but I can assure thee, thou art indeed the next chosen hero... and for that I sssay 'why not claim thee the chosssen hero already, for it isss thy dessstiny, after all!'"

Bolt shrugged before replying, "Well... if that's what you feel comfortable calling me, then by all means! It's just... new to me, that's all."

Then Sylvannia looked at Summer and Twilight curiously. "I sssay, though... thou mussst be burdened to take care of thossse two on thy shoulders... dossst thou have a problem with them, or be they alliesss to thee?"

Bolt tilted his head head in confusion once more before the realization clicked in. "Hm? Oh, Summer and Twilight? Nah, they're cool! No trouble with them at all!"

Sylvannia nodded her head in understanding before turning to Summer. "Be wary, breezie... for I hath seen many days, and slain many foes that dared threaten the safety of the last few heroes... and I shall not hesitate to strike thee down, should thou threaten this one's safety!"

Summer gulped nervously before nodding her head. "R-right! Loud and clear!"

Twilight, instead, turned to Summer confusedly before asking, "Um... what did it say?"

Sylvannia deadpanned at Twilight before turning to Bolt. "Did thine other friend dare to question my gender?!"

Bolt shook his head before replying, "It wasn't intentional, Sylvannia. She just can't understand the difference between the sounds either of your species makes... no offense."

Sylvannia sighed with relief before replying, "None taken, as long as no blasphemy was intended. Anyways, I guess that thou must be on thy way to the source of the disturbance... do I speak the truth?"

Bolt nodded his head before replying, "Yes, ma'am... and we'd appreciate all the help we can get in arriving there... if you're okay with helping, that is."

Sylvannia nodded her head before smiling. "I do believe I can make arrangements, so long as thou hast the grip to handle my speed!"

Bolt thought for a moment before an idea came up. "I... might have a tool to help secure that, but... I'm not sure if it'll hurt you or not... and I have to be in my 'Human Form' in order for me to use it, so I'll need Summer here... the actual breezie... to translate your words for me."

Sylvannia nodded her head before replying, "Well, if it makes thee feel comfortable, then I shall inform thee that I shall not hold it against thee if thine tool does harm to me."

Bolt shook his head before replying, "Please don't hurt yourself for my sake, Sylvannia. I wouldn't be able to rest at night knowing that I had to hurt someone to save someone else."

Sylvannia chuckled before nodding her head. "Thou hast a caring heart... and my word... that I shall not harm myself for thine own good, then. I shall tell thy friend 'Summer' if I hurt." Then she lowered her head to the ground level. "When thou art ready, I shall take thee to thine destination... and worry not, for I hath been around long enough to understand thy other language; despite being unable to speak it."

Bolt nodded his head before smiling. "Thank you, Sylvannia." Then, after lowering his head and pulling the flower off of it, he was once more engulfed in a light, and shifted back into a human. "So... you can still understand me, then?"

Sylvannia nodded her head before hissing a couple times. Summer, in turn, translated, "She said yes."

Bolt smiled before nodding his head and reaching into his pouch. Then, after pulling his Grip Whip out of it, he pressed the green button and walked up to Sylvannia's lowered neck and wrapped his feet over it. After he was seated on it comfortably, he placed the Grip Whip's sticky side on the back of Sylvannia's neck and asked, "Does this hurt?"

Sylvannia made, what he would assume would be, a laughing noise before shaking her head "no". Bolt didn't even need a translation for that one. "Alright... thanks." Then he looked up and asked, "Are the two of you ready?"

Twilight, who was apparently left in the dust (or in this case, Bolt's scalp without the slightest clue on what to do), replied with a question. "Wait... what are we doing?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Hitching a ride, of course! Sylvannia here knows where we're heading, and offered to give us a lift!"

Hearing that statement caused Twilight to wrap her hooves around Bolt's hair strands... only to notice a problem right away. "Um... Bolt? I know that breezies have "sticky hooves", but... I don't think I have that trait, despite my transformation!"

Bolt hummed in response before smiling. "Well, then... looks like you'll have to shift back into a pony while we're on this ride, huh?"

Twilight smiled sheepishly before nodding her head. "Um... if she's okay with it, that is."

Bolt looked at Sylvannia; hoping for a response. Sylvannia appeared to be thinking for a moment, before nodding her head and hissing. Summer translated it for them, though. "She said 'it's okay, as long as you keep your horn away from her scales'... and something about unicorn magic being problematic for her safety. Then again, I can understand that one for anyone!"

Twilight smiled before closing her eyes and engulfing herself in a pink light. Then, once she was no longer glowing, she gently glided down to Bolt's chest and wrapped her wings around him to cautiously keep herself from falling off, while he, in turn, wrapped his left arm around her. This action caused her cheeks to suddenly turn pink... that, plus the position that she was in... with a male. Bolt, on the other hand, didn't seem to notice, as he was focused on Sylvannia. "I think we're ready, Sylvannia! Please go a little slower than usual for Summer's sake, though... and Twilight's too, of course!"

Sylvannia nodded her head before turning around. As she did, Bolt smiled at the thought of just how fast (and awesome) this ride was going to be.

As a child, I've always enjoyed Roller Coasters... but to this day, NONE of them could possibly compare to just what went on at that time. Some might even say that I could've been heard from miles away.

"WOO~! THIS IS FREAKING AWESOME!" Bolt practically cheered at the top of his lungs while Twilight and Summer screamed for dear life, as they were all safely behind Sylvannia's scalp, and traveling at an incredibly blurry speed through an underground tunnel. Sylvannia, on the other hand, was happy to know that Bolt was actually enjoying her assistance. That alone was enough motivation for her to smile each and every passing second along the way.

Unfortunately, though, the fate world was at stake, so she had to make the trip as short as possible. With that in mind, her smile was also short-lived, as she started recognizing the soil patterns around her. "We shall be drawing nearer to thy destination in mere seconds, now..." she hissed, to which Summer translated for Bolt through his cheering.

He sighed before nodding his head. "Aw... but we just started!"

"Bolt! This is no time for fun and games! We have to stop Tirek's forces from doing any more damage!"

Bolt merely shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Eh, whoever says that saving the world has to be a boring task must've been a boring person, to be honest." That statement caused Twilight to glare at him and grumble beneath her breath.

A few minutes later, and Sylvannia came to a sudden stop; causing Twilight, Summer, and Bolt to suddenly jerk forward. Thanks to the Grip Whip, however, they were able to avoid getting tossed off. Then, after a moment of silence, Sylvannia began digging upwards. In the matter of seconds, they were all greeted by the moon's bright gaze.

Sylvannia then lowered her head to the ground level; allowing Bolt and the others to land, while Twilight turned herself back into a breezie and flew into Bolt's hair. Bolt smiled at Sylvannia and bowed his head politely. "Thank you, Sylvannia! We couldn't have made it without your help!"

Sylvannia smiled at them before nodding her head and hissing the words, "Any time, my friend... but I implore thee... please may thou turn back into thine other form once more?"

After Summer translated Sylvannia's words for him, he nodded his head and did as requested. "Bolt... please come closer to me."

With a slightly confused look on his face, Bolt did as instructed. Then, Sylvannia closed her eyes, and the pink circles around her body started glowing brightly; much to Bolt's, Summer's, and Twilight's surprise. After they glowed for a few more seconds, Sylvannia opened her (now glowing) golden eyes, and looked at a small patch of grass that grew from around the hole that her head was sticking out of.

As soon as her golden gaze focused on the patch of grass, the grass was surrounded by a golden aura, and in the matter of seconds, it shaped into a long, thin whistle made entirely of grass, yet felt sturdier than a rock.

After levitating the "Grass Whistle" in front of Bolt, Sylvannia smiled and said, "If ever thou finds a hole in the ground like the one I reside in now... merely blow this whistle inside it, and I shall return to thy aid again."

Bolt nodded his head and smiled. "Thank you, Sylvannia! I'll be sure to keep my eyes peeled!"

Sylvannia chuckled before turning her head towards the opposite end of the gorge... towards where the massive stone castle stood over the large rope bridge. "I am afraid I can not aid thee beyond that bridge, though. If thou hast any questions, feel free to ask, though... for I hath heard from the woodland critters of the lay of the land over there."

Bolt thought for a moment before nodding his head. "Actually, I do have a few questions, first. Most importantly, what should I expect to find in there?"

Sylvannia replied, "A very intelligible question, indeed! Several millenniums hath passed since the creation of this castle, yet so many changes hath been made in-between, so some of the woodland creatures hath limited knowledge even to this day. Thou must, however, be wary of traps that hath been added to it since the invasion began. Merely keep true to thy senses, and thou shalt do fine, though!" Then she sighed before continuing. "But while thy time inside is limited, I hath a small request for thee... 'tis a selfish one, though, so thou needeth not listen, if thou dost not want to."

Bolt shook his head before replying, "You have proven to be a good friend, Sylvannia... and as a friend, I will do my best to help. Please, tell me what you need me to do."

"Well... during the invasion, I hath fought to protect my kin and my eggs. Unfortunately, however, the forces that I faced were FAR too cunning for my knowledge... and since a fighter I am not, they hath managed to take all of my eggs, and store them in a chest in there. I know this because I saw them crossing that rope bridge with it. Though enraged, however, I knew better than to destroy it with my eggs in the monstrous creatures' grasps... for in doing so, then I would've most definitely killed my own eggs then." Several tears started to form on her eyes as she continued. "And what's worse, they even taunted me while doing so... for they knew of my weakness, and decided to put my sanity to the test... by tossing one of my eggs over the bridge... too far from where I could reach."

Summer's eyes and jaw were wide open at that statement. "A-and... they just laughed at that?!"

Twilight tilted her head in confusion before asking, "What happened?"

Summer translated what Sylvannia told us, while I decided to help the poor Quarray Eel by nuzzling her with my right cheek with a sympathetic look on my face. No doubt those things have given her Hell in the past few days... and because these things practically murdered an innocent, unborn baby, I no longer felt any regrets in ripping their throats out after hearing that.

And despite being the "Princess of Friendship", Twilight must've felt the same way when Summer finished telling her the story.

"Th-those... those MONSTERS!" Twilight shouted, before closing her eyes and weakly trying to fight back tears. "I... I don't even know why they would even do something like that... b-but..." Twilight looked at Sylvannia and slowly shifted her hurt expression into one of confidence. "Y-you have the word of a princess... that we will stop them! And... i-if they haven't done anything to the other eggs, then... we'll save them right away!"

Bolt nodded his head in agreement before barking his agreement. Summer, of course, nodded her head and agreed without hesitation.

Sylvannia weakly smiled before nodding her head. "Th... thank you... all of you." And with that, she dug back into the hole and was no longer in sight.

Bolt quickly turned back into a human and placed his flower back in his pouch, while lifting Sylvannia's Whistle from the ground, and gripping it firmly. "Well, Summer... Twilight... let's go." And with that, the three of them slowly crossed the long, wooden rope bridge that creaked and turned at every footstep Bolt took.

As soon as he was midway across the rope bridge, however, he squinted his eyes to get a better view of what was ahead. (Due to the darkness of the night, it was difficult for him to see.) What he saw caused all eyes to widen.

There, standing directly in the center of the other side, was a midnight goblin who held a long kitchen knife-shaped sword and a tall wooden tower shield. He grinned mischievously at the group before lifting his sword in the air... which caused Bolt's inner "GET THE HELL OUTTA THERE" instinct to kick in. At once, he started reaching into his pouch... but by the time he had his arm over the pouch, the goblin already managed to cut the rope at Bolt's left; sending the wooden planks downward, and in a vertical position. Worse for Bolt was the fact that he was reaching his right hand into the pouch that was over his left hip; he wasn't able to catch the rope that remained in time. As the three of them screamed in terror, everything went dark for Bolt... and then, unbelievably bright.

Slowly, Bolt stood back up after lying on a pure white surface. Looking around, all he could manage to see was a distant sky blue color in the horizon, with a pure white castle in the far distance. After taking a couple steps, he also noticed that the steps that he made slightly resembled the sound of marble being stepped on... but at the same time, it felt more like a cloud; walking on thin air.

"I see you have made progress, Bolt." Scorpan's voice echoed from behind him; causing Bolt to jump before turning around.

Then Bolt chuckled before replying, "I take it you've been watching me, huh?"

Scorpan nodded his head before replying, "Indeed, I have... and I also see that you've met Sylvannia."

Bolt's eyes widened at that statement. "Wait, you know her?!"

Scorpan chuckled before replying, "Indeed, I do. In fact, she was even a close ally of the former hero, herself!"

Bolt nodded his head before chuckling. "I kinda figured she was around during the ancient times... I mean, she even speaks like Princess Luna!"

"Indeed... but speaking of her is not why I summoned you here."

That statement caused Bolt to gasp. "W-wait... I didn't... die, did I?!"

Scorpan shook his head and smiled. "No... and don't worry about yours and your friends' safety while you are in this area. In this side of my kingdom, time means nothing. In Equestria, you and the rest of the world around you are frozen in time... until I send you back, that is."

Bolt sighed with relief. "So I'm not dead... alright, then! That's a load off my shoulders, at least!" Then he crossed his arms and tilted his head out of curiosity. "Though now that you mention it... why exactly did you summon me here?"

Suddenly, Scorpan's smile faded from his face. Then, after crossing his arms, he replied, "Simple... I have decided to train you."

"Um... train me? Train me in what?"

Before replying to Bolt's question, Scorpan raised his right hand up and snapped his fingers; causing Bolt's sword and sheath to appear on his back... but nothing else. "So... you're gonna train me in swordplay, huh?"

Scorpan nodded his head before folding his arms back over his chest. "That is correct. As you may already know, you will not stand a chance against my brother at your current state. That is why it is vital that you learn these lessons that I shall teach you."

Bolt nodded his head while a grin formed on his face. "Awesome! So you'll teach me how to defeat your brother, then?" Suddenly, a realization hit Bolt. "Hey, um... why don't you have a sword?"

Scorpan chuckled before replying, "Because I don't need one for this demonstration."

"Demonstration?"

There was a moment of silence, until Scorpan clarified his meaning. "I want you to strike at me."

Bolt tilted his head in confusion. "Um... what?!"

Scorpan sighed before replying, "Do not fear for my safety, Bolt. Like my brother, I am immortal, and can't be easily harmed by ordinary weapons."

Bolt nodded his head before mumbling, "Well... if you're sure about this..." Then, with a quick burst of energy, Bolt attempted a horizontal slice towards Scorpan's left side.

As soon as his sword was within range, however, Scorpan immediately caught the innermost corners of the blade... with his right pointing finger and thumb. As he held onto the blade, however, his right hand was radiating a white mist... almost as if he were using magic. What's more, Bolt was unable to move the blade out of Scorpan's grip.

"Hm... a basic horizontal slice. You lack unpredictability. Your stance is far too defensive when you lack a shield, and your eyes are practically telling your opponent what your next move is." Then Scorpan glared at Bolt before adding, "You still have a lot to learn." As soon as he finished speaking, he released the tip of Bolt's sword and teleported a few more meters away from Bolt. "Now, then... strike once more! This time, however, I want you to surprise me! Do not hold back, for I am ready!"

With another nod, Bolt readied his sword. Instead of having it behind him this time, however, he held it in front, and with both hands. Then after letting out a battle cry, he dashed towards Scorpan and raised his sword overhead, while Scorpan raised his right hand over his own head in a defensive manner. Instead of swinging vertically, though, Bolt quickly angled his sword to his left, and swung right... only for the sword to get caught by Scorpan's left hand.

Instead of telling Bolt his flaws in tactics, though, Scorpan quickly moved closer to Bolt's right shoulder and grabbed his sword handle with his right hand, and in the matter of seconds, he had Bolt's sword. Then, in a blurring motion, Scorpan lifted his left leg up and kicked Bolt to the floor, causing him to stumble a few times. Before he could even sit up more than an inch, though, he soon found his sword now pointed at his chest. Needless to say, he was staring wide-eyed at Scorpan's undeniable skills... that, and the unimpressed expression he was giving him.

"Another feeble attempt, unfortunately. You can't expect an enemy to fight without having a backup plan, can you?"

Bolt groaned before shaking his head left and right. "No... no, I can't. So what would you suggest I do, then?"

Then Scorpan weakly smiled before bowing his head respectfully, while offering Bolt his sword back. "Trust me... the solution is far more easier than you think." He raised his right pointing finger up and said, "Lesson One: NEVER Strike First!"

Bolt accepted his sword again before nodding his head. "So I just let my opponent strike first? Then I do some sort of counter-attack?"

The answer Scorpan gave him, however, caused his eyes to widen. "No."

"No?! Then... who strikes first, exactly?!"

"Only a fool would strike first, for in doing so, they are fighting blindly. As such, you mustn't focus on defending yourself only, as well. Instead, you must examine your opponent's every move. Determine their weaknesses, and take note of their abilities. Then, when they are most vulnerable, that is the time to attack!" Bolt nodded his head with a serious expression on his face. This time, he had determination in his eyes.

"With that in mind, I will ask you once more... strike at me, for I am ready!"

Then, Bolt raised his sword defensively and stared at Scorpan for around thirty seconds... trying to find a weak spot. Seeing that he couldn't find any, Bolt decided to just go for it once more. Instead of letting out a war cry and running, however, Bolt decided to cautiously approach the waiting Scorpan. Finally, with all his might, he ran up to Scorpan and lunged his sword forward in an attempt to stab him... which only resulted in his sword getting caught once more.

"Again, not an effective strategy, Bolt. A thrusting attack is most effective when the opponent is cornered, and would have nowhere to move. Otherwise, it is the most easiest to dodge!"

Suddenly, a grin formed on Bolt's lips. "Who said I was thrusting?"

Before Scorpan could even respond to Bolt's comment, Bolt quickly lifted his right foot up and, with all his might, managed to kick Scorpan in his left kidney; breaking his grasp on Bolt's sword, and sending him to the ground, while Bolt ran up to him and held his sword up to his neck.

Silence fell in the whole place. Then, Scorpan smiled... and after that, chuckled. "Well done, Bolt! It would seem that you are, indeed, ready!"

Bolt's eyes sparked with hope. "Ready to defeat your brother already?!"

Scorpan's smile grew wider before he burst into laughter... much to Bolt's confusion. "Good heavens, no!" Then he continued to laugh, while Bolt's face turned red with annoyance.

"Then... what am I ready for, exactly?!"

Instantly, Scorpan's laughter died down, and his smile was instantly shaped back into a serious expression. Then, with the snap of a finger, Scorpan was standing up once more... only this time, a sheathed sword the size of a large claymore appeared out of thin air. Each and every part of it, however, appeared to be made of a pitch black metal on the outline, while the inside of the blade appeared to be pure white, and glowed as brightly as the floor beneath them.

"It is time that I teach you your first move, now."

Bolt stood in a corner of a black ring, while Scorpan faced him; his pitch black sword drawn in his right hand. "Now, then! This attack will be most effective against armored foes who are heavily guarded in the front; especially the ones with shields!" When he finished saying that, he snapped his left fingers... and at once, a dark blue gel-like creature appeared in-between both Bolt and Scorpan. The figure was shaped exactly like a midnight goblin, and even held a wooden shield and club just like the two that Bolt already defeated.

"And now, I present to you... the 'Assassin's Strike'! Pay close attention!" Scorpan then turned his blue gaze towards the goblin and stood with his sword behind his back.

The goblin then made a war cry before charging towards him with its club raised high. As it did, Bolt noticed Scorpan quickly reverse his grip on his blade before awaiting the goblin's move. Then, right when it swung downwards, Scorpan quickly sidestepped to the left while it lowered its tower shield to block any incoming attacks. Instead of striking at it, however, Scorpan used his left hand to grip the top of its tower shield and leap over its shoulder. Then, before it even had time to react, he pierced through its chest with his reverse-gripped sword without even having to turn around to face it. It shrieked in agony before fading into a blue cloud.

Bolt stared wide-eyed at the display before him. "Um... okay, so... just how am I gonna-"

Before he could finish, Scorpan chuckled before replying, "Do not worry about your physical capabilities, Bolt! Your hidden power has made you already capable of doing these things... and much much more! You just have to find it within yourself... and only then, will you be ready to face my brother!"

Bolt nervously nodded his head before slowly stepping into the ring, while Scorpan stepped out of it. Then, in the matter of seconds, another one of the fake midnight goblins materialized from thin air on the opposite end of the ring.

"Remember, Bolt! While you're in here, you will feel pain... but you will not be able to die; regardless of the lethality of the hits you take!"

Bolt nodded his head and smiled at Scorpan's reassurance, before raising his sword defensively. "Now, then... are you ready, Bolt?"

After double-checking his stance once more, Bolt took a deep breath and replied, "Ready..."

"BEGIN!"

At Scorpan's sudden shout, Bolt instinctively jumped into action. With his left hand in front of him, and his sword reverse-gripped behind him in his right hand, he dashed towards the goblin... only for his face to meet a large club, followed by a shield. Then, when the club wanted a reunion, it appeared from the south. (Bolt was hit by a sideways swing, a shield bash, and then an uppercut.)

He then groaned in pain after flying out of the ring, while Scorpan sighed and shook his head. "You forgot to study your opponent, Bolt."

Bolt merely sighed through wheezes as the fake midnight goblin began laughing at him from the center of the ring. That action, of course, caused Bolt to glare and stand back up. Then he ran back into the ring with his sword reverse-gripped once more. This time, however, he managed to dodge the goblin's vertical swing and grab onto its shield.

Instead of jumping over the goblin's shoulder, though, he ended up getting lifted by the shield, and thrown the other side of the ring.

"OW, YOU JACKASS!" Bolt shouted when he stood back up. The goblin merely continued to taunt him; causing him to raise his sword in annoyance.

"Never fight angrily, Bolt! An angry opponent, though more than likely capable of dealing more damage, is also far more vulnerable to getting hit!" Scorpan called at from the other side.

Bolt groaned before nodding his head and taking deep breaths through his nose, and out his mouth. "Got it..." Then he stepped back in the ring and reverse-gripped his sword once more.

The goblin chuckled when it saw him reverse-grip his sword yet again, before it, in turn, placed its shield on the ground... much to Bolt's confusion.

"It put its shield away, because it read your movements, Bolt! Do not allow the enemy to see your intentions, or you will risk the situation backfiring on you."

Bolt nodded his head and raised his left thumb up... shortly before being knocked out of the ring once more. "HEY! I WAS TALKING, YOU FREAKING..." Bolt stopped himself before taking deep breaths once again. "Focus... right?"

Scorpan nodded his head.

"Thought so..."

The goblin picked its shield back up and motioned for Bolt to go towards it... which he obliged to quickly. Then, as Scorpan watched his trainee get tossed and pulverized in several more-than-lethal hits, he sighed. "You have a lot to learn, still..."

Bolt groaned at each push-up that he was forced to do as a result of failing his combat test.

I was never really sure WHY I had to do push-ups, since I was in spirit form, and wouldn't gain any more strength physically. Turns out, he was punishing me for not paying attention.

We spent what MUST'VE been days (which turned out to not even be a millisecond in reality) worth of work training, and going over the ONE freaking move that he was teaching me. He eventually allowed me to wield my shield at the same time as the sword; stating that I was going to need to get used to the stance I would be using, if I were to succeed.

Surprisingly, things went a LOT more smoother after he brought the shield up! I was at my thousandth push-up, and would've been sweating, if I even had the glands in my spirit.

"One... t-thousand... p-push-ups..." Bolt whispered through heavy breathing before falling flat on the ground once again, for what must've been the hundredth time.

Scorpan nodded his head and smiled. "Good... then are you ready to head into the ring?"

Bolt nodded his head quickly. (Turns out, if you tell Scorpan "no", then he will throw in some extra push-ups for one's break, before asking if he/she is ready again... directly after the push-ups. Bolt learned that one the hard way.)

"Good... then you may begin when ready!"

After closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Bolt opened his eyes to meet the bored goblin who smirked at him with its shield held up between the two combatants. Then, Bolt stepped into the ring and tightened his grip on the sword. As the goblin continued to smirk, however, Bolt noticed that it did so behind the shield.

When he was ready, Bolt quickly lifted his sword up and made yet another mad dash towards the goblin, which only made Scorpan sigh and place his face in the palm of his right hand. The goblin grinned before tightening its grip on its shield and raising its club in the air... but before he could even get close enough to it, Bolt stopped and slowly backed towards where he came from, much to both Scorpan's and the goblin's surprise. Then, Scorpan weakly smiled at the next scene before him... Bolt started laughing at the goblin.

"Sure had you fooled, huh?!" Bolt said between chuckles; causing the goblin's grin to quickly lower, and a glare to form on its face. "What's wrong... you mad, bro?"

"Grr...." the goblin growled, which only intensified when Bolt looked up and towards his left while scratching his chin with his left pointing finger and thumb. (Up close, though, his eyes were still locked on the goblin's movement... lesson number twenty-five.)

"Or are you a woman?"

The goblin's growl became a vicious snarl while Bolt shrugged his shoulders.

"Eh, I can't really tell the difference. You're all ugly enough to just be classified as 'things', if you ask me."

With an enraged roar, the goblin dashed up to Bolt with its club over its head and its shield at its side. This action caused Bolt to grin wickedly at it, while preparing his shield for what comes next.

When in range, the goblin swung at Bolt with all its might... but what it didn't notice was Bolt quickly running closer to it and using his shield to deflect the short end of the club (the area closer to the handle); instantly disarming it. Hesitantly, the goblin tried to bash Bolt with its shield, but before it could get far enough in range, Bolt quickly put his weight on it (stopping the shield's movement), and lifted himself over its head, while reversing the grip of his sword while in the air. Then, when he landed it, he plunged behind his back while letting out a battle cry. In an instant, the goblin dissipated into a puff of smoke.

Bolt started breathing heavily... but not because of his victory. Looking down, he also noticed that he happened to plunge the sword into himself in the process.

With a slightly amused smile, Scorpan shrugged his shoulders before commenting, "Progress, at least."

I bet if there were more people caught in that place, then they would've been able to hear my screams of agony from the other side... if that place were a round planet, that is. And if they thought that it were heaven that they were in, I doubt if the words I used at that time would be allowed, also.

"O-one... t-thousand... five... h-hundred... push-ups..." Bolt wheezed before falling flat on his stomach again. ("Perhaps I should've mentioned to him that I have a slight allergy to pain!"

"Well, perhaps we should fix that allergy then, huh?" Scorpan chuckled, causing Bolt's eyes to widen.

"Wait... you can READ MY MIND?!"

"How do you think I was able to speak to you earlier?"

"... WELL, SON OF A B-"

"Don't forget why you're doing those push-ups this time!" Scorpan interrupted, causing Bolt to chew on his lips.

"Um... because I stabbed myself?"

Scorpan shook his head. "Your choices of wording when you did stab yourself."

Bolt just lied there for a moment... and by moment, it meant just a few seconds until Scorpan asked, "So... ready to try again?"

Bolt stammered back to his feet and nodded his head, before turning to the ring again. "You didn't reply fast enough. Another two-hundred and fifty!"

"OH, MOTHER F-"

"Five hundred, now."

"But I didn't even-"

"You thought of it... and stalling? Seven hundred and fifty!"

"But I'm not-"

"One thousand."

("Two... t-t-thousand... f-f-f-five... h-hundred... p-p-push... ups...") Bolt thought before falling to the ground breathing heavily. (Due to the high excursion his spiritual body was feeling, he lost the ability to talk for a while.)

Scorpan chuckled before looking at the human who was lying on the ground with his arms spread out tiredly. "So... are you ready to try again?"

Wordlessly, Bolt nodded his head and raised both thumbs up, before his arms flopped back down on the ground.

"Good. Then step inside the ring when you're ready." At the end of his statement, another goblin materialized in the ring.

On the bright side, AT LEAST I was in spirit form! My body would've died at attempt number one, more than likely! Though I often felt like I was ALREADY dead in there... and being in "spirit form" didn't help, either!

I was practically dead, and in Hell, disguised as Heaven.

Bolt took a few more deep breaths before opening his eyes and glaring at the goblin ahead of him. This goblin looked dumber than the rest in his eyes, so he had a feeling this one would react differently. With that in mind, he quickly ran up to it while it raised its sword up and lunged at him in a stabbing motion. Instead of stopping, however, Bolt quickly stepped right and managed to disarm the goblin with his shield before gripping onto its shoulder (since it didn't raise its shield in-between the two) and landed behind it. When he landed, Bolt switched his sword into a reverse-grip position and, while looking over his shoulder, managed to stab the goblin in the chest before straightening his stance and sheathing his sword... right as the goblin dissipated.

Scorpan slowly clapped his hands together with a bored expression. "Surprisingly, well done!"

Bolt chuckled before nodding his head. "Thanks! So, what's next?"

With a shrug, Scorpan replied, "Would you like the test now?"

"Wait... what test?!"

"Simple... would you like the test, or would you like to continue with the practice?"

"So, by test, you mean..."

"If you fail it, then I hold no responsibility for you, should you die in the process." Scorpan said as his sword materialized into his hand once more.

That statement caused Bolt's heart to skip a beat (metaphorically, of course). Then an uneasy expression soon followed. "Um... w-would it hurt for me to practice a little more?"

Scorpan's bored expression turned into a comforting smile. "Of course, Bolt... but remember! Practice does not make one perfect! It merely perfects one's abilities, and secures their futures."

With a nod, Bolt smiled. "Thank you." Then, in the snapping of a finger, another practice goblin was in the ring, and Bolt was ready to train until he was sure he could pass the test.

As I started getting more and more victories in the ring, eventually, Scorpan tried throwing me off by sending in ANOTHER goblin shortly after I finished dispersing one. Needless to say, I was caught by surprise... which won me a couple hundred more push-ups.

Finally... I felt like I was ready.

"Are you sure you are ready?" Scorpan asked as both he and Bolt stood in the opposite ends of the ring.

With a serious expression on his face, Bolt nodded his head. "Yes, sir!"

Scorpan stared into Bolt's eyes for what seemed like hours (and considering how little time meant to them in there, it very well could've been) he smiled before nodding his head. "Alright, then... prepare yourself!"

Bolt was about to raise his sword when Scorpan snapped his left finger; causing the sword, shield, and ring to disappear. Then, with a mighty swing, Scorpan sliced through the air... and as he did, Bolt could've sworn he heard the sound of fabric tearing. Needless to say, the swinging motion of the sword (plus the lack of one for himself) caused him to flinch and close his eyes. When he opened them again, though, they opened wider, as the sight of the bottom of the gorge came into view... a long, distant view.

Turning to Scorpan for answers, Bolt could only stand in silence as Scorpan's sword disappeared from his right hand, and he turned around. "Remember, Bolt... the test itself is the real deal... but you can't face reality, when in your own mind!"

Bolt's eyes widened at that statement. "W-wait... I'm in... my own mind?!"

Scorpan chuckled before nodding his head. "Does it not seem odd that you recognize the scenery before you?"

Turning around, Bolt's eyes widened when he noticed that the distant castle was no ordinary castle... it was a mirage of the castle deep inside Breezie Valley... and the area surrounding it was the village that surrounded it.

"Wow... now that is trippy!" Bolt commented, causing Scorpan to chuckle.

"Indeed... though now that I have taught you your first lesson, I want you to go forth to victory." Then he smiled and placed both of his hands on Bolt's shoulders. "I know that the burden you carry is a lot... but know that the world, despite not knowing it, is counting on you to save it... and with them, I am also counting on you."

Bolt nodded his head before lightly chuckling. "I... may still need a hand with that, though!"

Scorpan's smile only widened. "Do not worry, Bolt..." he lifted Bolt by the shoulders, which caused a slightly worried expression to form on his face. "Throughout your journey, I know you will." With that, Bolt was suddenly turned towards the portal, and without warning, tossed through it; causing time itself to quickly resume as if he were in a paused moment of a movie.

There was only one reminder that he was truly back in reality... the one thing that he could remember doing prior to all the training his spirit was put through... he was falling.

After falling for merely a few seconds, Bolt's mind finally caught back onto the situation at hand. Quickly reaching for his pouch, he attempted to grab his Whip Grip. Before he could reach it, however, everything around him grew dark, and the feint sound of quaking rocks was heard around him. Then, in the matter of seconds, the light returned around him, as he was gently placed back on the ground... or in his case, far more gently dropped onto the ground, rather than splattered across an immense number of rocks in the bottom of a grotto.

As soon as he landed, Bolt fell onto his butt as he breathed heavily. Then, after figuring out that he was still alive, he sighed in relief before falling on his back... only to discover the mysterious figure that saved him the trouble of either dying or climbing the grotto with his Grip Whip.

"Thanks, Sylvannia." Bolt mumbled, still feeling dazed by the recent turn of events.

Sylvannia hissed with a smile on her face before burrowing back in the ground.

Bolt then looked up and asked, "You girls okay?"

Twilight was the first to speak up... by transforming back into a pony, and speaking her mind with an annoyed look on her face, as she looked towards the goblin on the other side of the fallen bridge. "NO, I AM NOT OKAY! NOW HOW IN THE WORLD ARE WE GOING TO CROSS?!"

"Um, Twilight?"

"AND FOR ALL WE KNOW, ONE OF OUR FRIENDS COULD BE IN THERE, AS WELL!"

"Well, technically your friends, but still, I think-"

"AND WHAT ABOUT THE HARMONIC ACORN?! SURELY THAT WOULD BE VITAL, ALSO!"

Instead of speaking, Bolt merely sighed and gently pinched Twilight's snout shut with his right hand. "Twilight... I think I've got a plan."

Twilight's ears perked up at that statement, and a smile formed on her face. "Oh... okay, then! What's your plan?"

Bolt deadpanned at her and pointed at something behind her. Turning around out of confusion, Twilight tilted her head when she found nothing... which made Bolt plant his forehead in his right palm and sigh.

"Your wings, Twilight... can't you fly?"

Twilight groaned before nodding her head. "Yes... but I know you can't! And for the record, I do not enjoy flying anywhere near a midnight goblin, thank-you-very-much!"

Bolt nodded his head before fiddling through his pouch... which caused Twilight to pause. "Please, do go on!" he sarcastically implored, before pulling out his flower.

Twilight didn't even get a chance to respond before Bolt already transformed back into a timberwolf. Then, without warning, Bolt lowered his snout between her hooves and raised up; causing her to yelp as she was flung on his back. Then, when Bolt started charging towards the grotto, Twilight instinctively squeezed tightly on his neck which, thanks to his sturdy wooden frame, didn't even slightly risk choking him.

Summer, on the other hand, quickly shouted at the top of her lungs from the center of Bolt's flower, "TWILIGHT! YOU MIGHT WANT TO FLAP THOSE WINGS, LIKE, NOW!"

Instinctively, Twilight did as requested. Then, with the speed Bolt was running, added with the support of Twilight's iron-like grip and flapping wings, they were able to glide over the goblin's head and land a safe enough distance for Bolt to remove his flower and for Twilight to turn herself back into a breezie.

Letting out a furious snarl, the goblin lifted its sword up and ran towards the human who, at this point, drew his sword and shield.

"Bolt! That one looks like it's more skilled than the last two... don't drop your guard!" Summer called out, to which Bolt nodded in response.

"Don't worry, I've got this! Hang on tight, by the way!" With a confident smile, Bolt stood there waiting for the goblin to reach him, while Twilight and Summer both looked at each other uneasily.

Then, as soon as the goblin was within reach, Bolt quickly lunged forward and deflected the goblin's sword out of its hand with his shield. After that, he gripped the goblin's right shoulder and rolled over it, before flipping his sword in a reverse-grip position. Then he turned around and, with a cautious but quick jab, Bolt pierced his sword into the heart of the midnight goblin; killing it quickly, causing it to turn gray, and then turning it into ashes.

With a smug smile, Bolt straightened his stance back up and sheathed his sword, while Twilight and Summer had a little trouble picking their jaws back up.

After finally regaining their senses, Summer was the first to speak this time. "Um, Bolt?" She turned to Twilight and added, "Excuse the language, Princess Twilight." Then she turned back to Bolt and, with all of her lung power, asked, "HOW THE BUCK DID YOU LEARN TO FIGHT LIKE THAT?!"

Before Bolt could answer, however, Twilight added her own few bits in as well. "None taken, Summer... and also," she cleared her throat and raised her voice as well, "WHY DIDN'T YOU DO THAT WHEN YOU WERE FACING THE OTHER TWO?!"

With a sheepish smile, Bolt merely shrugged before replying, "Um... it... didn't cross my mind at the time?"

After a moment of awkward silence, Twilight sighed before replying, "You know what? I don't even want to know anymore... just please be careful as we go through! We don't want anything to sneak up on us!"

With a nod, Bolt replied, "Got it." Then, the three continued on their perilous trek through the darkness that claimed the Everfree Forest. Mere minutes after the ordeal, Bolt even decided to start using his Light Wand, after filling it with the leftovers of the last bit of oil from the jar that didn't get splashed through the handle of the fire trap.

One hour in, and Bolt continued to walk through, what looked like, the remnants of an old road, while Summer and Twilight both looked around nervously. The deeper the trio got, the more ominous the sights around them appeared.

Finally, when Bolt was about to complain about something (more than likely his feet hurting), he stopped in front of an ancient-looking stone sign that was covered in thin vines. Holding the wand closer to illuminate it, Bolt brushed the vines out of the way with his right hand while reading the words written on it.

"Welcome to Ponyville..." Twilight read out loud. "I... think we're close, now."

Bolt nodded his head and followed the old road. Along the way, he and the others skimmed their surroundings cautiously, only to stop when they bumped into an old, moss-covered fountain with, what appeared to be, the remains of a horse statue in the center. Surrounding the statue was a large, round, open road that might've been a town square once. Several roads surrounded it, with old, worn down houses leaning between roads.

Twilight gulped before turning to Summer. "I... don't think we've taken this route before..."

Summer nodded her head and replied, "I can probably see why... this place gives me the creeps!" Then she looked forward and weakly smiled. "But on the bright side... at least we're on the right path! Look!"

Following Summer's directions, both Twilight and Bolt looked forward, and gasped. There, a good distance away from the ruined town, was a ruined castle with dark blue bricks and a brighter blue roof covered in holes. Ancient blue and orange flags dangled loosely on the sides of the entrance; both of which having either a picture of the moon on it, or the sun, with an alicorn of the respective color facing opposite directions.

There wasn't a doubt about it... that was the Castle of the Two Sisters they were looking at. Slowly, but cautiously, they continued onward towards the castle in high hopes that they would be able to find the cause of the disturbance.

MODERN PONYVILLE

Outside the entrance to the house within the homestead of Sweet Apple Acres, Discord stood there silently; trying to find the right words to say. When he felt confident enough, he took a few deep breaths, before knocking on the front door.

After a small moment of waiting, a yellow-coated filly with a red mane and a pink bow tie answered the door... only to stop mid-swing and stare wide-eyed at the glum draconequus that stood there. "Um... h-hello Mister Discord... is... i-is there somethin' ah can help ya with?" the filly asked nervously.

Discord sighed before opening his eyes. "Apple Bloom... I need to talk to you all... about Applejack."

After delivering the message to Sweet Apple Acres, Discord couldn't help but cry as he walked away from the entrance to the door. Regardless of being the Spirit of Chaos, he couldn't, for the life of him, stand to see the family who was all embraced in a group hug with the tears streaming down their faces. Winona, the family's pet dog, even had a heartbroken expression on her face. As soon as she let out a pained yowl in the air, the color of the entire farm started to turn gray... including the family that resided within it. Discord knew the meaning of it... the family was deeply broken inside. With another sniffle, he turned towards Ponyville, and continued to spread the news to the rest of the inhabitants.

As he turned away from Sugarcube Corner, Discord felt the same amount of emotional pain when he turned away from the gray-looking building. Upon answering the questions of the curious ponies nearby, soon they turned into shades of gray, after hearing the news of their friends' disappearance. Regardless of telling them that Princess Twilight was on the case, none of the ponies seemed to believe him.

Discord told Sweetie Belle the news of her sister's abduction next, and asked her to pass the news on to her parents (along with the news of Twilight being on the case)... but he had a gut feeling that they, too, won't take his word for it. As he left, soon that building turned gray. He also dropped Opalescence, Rarity's pet cat, off as he left the house.

After leaving the simple wooden shack that Scootaloo and her parents lived in, he couldn't even bear the sound of the filly's cries. He didn't even turn around to see the looks on her parents' faces, but he knew, from the sound of it, that they were deeply hurt, also. After all... Rainbow Dash was one of their most honored guests, and their daughter's role model... and occasional babysitter, should they both need to go somewhere at the same time.

With the news spread, Discord slowly walked away from the once colorful town of Ponyville. He didn't even need to turn around to know that, at that time, every house was a dull shade of gray now... Ponyville's entire heart was broken.

CASTLE OF THE TWO SISTERS

After taking a deep breath, Bolt slowly opened the decrepit wooden doors and stepped inside the main entrance. Merely five steps in, however, the doors quickly slammed shut; causing him to quickly turn backwards and watch, as a group of plunder vines quickly blocked their exit.

"Well... looks like there's no turning back, now." Twilight muttered quietly.

Summer nodded her head and replied, "At least we know that there are more plunder plants inside... so we should keep our eyes on the ground and ceiling!"

With a nod, Bolt cautiously walked deeper into the castle. While doing so, he noticed that there were four old hallways that appeared to lead to nothing but darkness... at least, it appeared so. In the center, at the top of a pair of stairs that connected to an indoor balcony, a huge pair of double-doors rested, but appeared to be locked by a large group of chains that had a white diamond-shaped crystal in the center. On the first floor, the far-left hall appeared to be connected directly to a stairway that went down. The second one appeared to be just an ordinary hall that remained flat. The third one, which sat on the opposite end of the second, was the same, and the fourth one on the far-right was connected to a stairway that led up... but this one appeared to be protected by a magic shield that glowed an eerie red color. Considering the fact that they were searching for an acorn, Bolt chose the far-left hall, first.

After five minutes of walking down the seemingly endless stairs, Bolt was finally able to see the floor. With a relieved sigh, he quickened his pace and, before he knew it, he was in a small boxed-in room with a wooden door on the right. Like the one in the ruins of Celebration Castle, these ones required lifting. Instead of an iron bar in the center, however, it appeared to not have anything to grab a hold of.

"Well... crap." Bolt muttered.

Twilight sighed before flying forward and rubbing her lower lip in thought. "Hm... perhaps I can lift it with my magic! Hold on..." With her eyes closed, her horn started to glow brightly. Before they knew it, the entire door was engulfed in a pink glow, and lifted up; allowing them to pass. As Bolt walked past her, she flew back into his hair before releasing her grip when they were inside the room. Upon releasing her grip, the door quickly fell back down.

After looking around the room, Bolt sighed and rubbed his chin in thought. "Nothing but books in here... must've been the library."

Instead of getting an audible response, Bolt noticed Twilight flying off of his hair before turning back into a pony. As soon as he noticed her expression, he raised a confused eyebrow... she appeared to have an unhealthily large smile on her face. "Um... Twilight?"

Summer flew up to Twilight and asked, "Hey, Twilight! What's going on in that little head of yours?!"

Twilight's ears twitched, but she remained silent, as she stared back and forth at the numerous amount of books that filled each bookshelf.

Bolt sighed before crossing his arms and leaning on the nearest bookshelf. As he did, however, he felt a book slide and fall onto the floor. Upon landing, the book's pages flipped open; freeing Twilight from her "inner bookworm".

With the flick of her left ear, Twilight quickly jerked her head towards Bolt and gasped. "Bolt! These are Princess Celestia's and Princess Luna's lost archives! Most of these books are thousands, if not tens of thousands of years old!" Then she "squeaked" at the page of the book that fell from the shelf... The Journal of Starswirl the Bearded: Entry Four was written at the top. "A-and THAT is a journal from the greatest unicorn to ever live! Bolt, do know what this means?!"

Bolt shrugged before guessing, "That... you like to read books?"

Twilight chuckled before shaking her head. "No... but I do love to read books! I mean, it's not like I would live in a library if I didn't!"

At that statement, Bolt raised a confused eyebrow. "You... live in a library?" Twilight nodded her head without losing the toothy smile or the sparks in her eyes. Then, with a sigh, Bolt rubbed the back of his head with his right hand and mumbled, "And here I thought Sunny had unusual habits..."

Sunny, having heard his statement, growled at him and retorted, "Hey! It's perfectly normal for a breezie to collect pollen samples!"

Bolt merely chuckled at her statement before shrugging his shoulders. "I bet you'd want to burn those samples if you knew what they are, though!"

"Oh, really? I already do know what they are, thank-you-very-much! They're what make new flowers grow, of course!"

"And would you happen to know where they come from?"

"Well... no, that's somepony else's job. Why, do you know where they come from?!"

Bolt nodded his head before lifting his right hand between his mouth and Summer's curious ear. Then, after he whispered the information to her, her entire face started turning redder.

"L-LIAR!" She stuttered before flying backwards.

After letting out a light chuckle, Bolt shrugged his shoulders and leaned on the bookshelf with his arms relaxed. "So, what will you do to your collection n-AAA!" Before Bolt could finish his sentence, the bookshelf quickly rolled in a circle, and the ground below him spun with it; sending him into an unknown hidden room... while Summer and Twilight remained in the library with shocked expressions on their faces.

"BOLT!" Summer shouted at the top of her lungs before trying to move books around... only to result in them barely even budging.

Twilight quickly started searching the shelves frantically while saying, "Quick! Search for a blueprint to this place! Maybe there's directions on how to get to where Bolt is!"

Before Summer could respond, however, the bookshelf rolled back in place with Bolt gripping on the shelf tightly and shaking in fear. When he looked around, however, he couldn't find Summer anywhere. Twilight, on the other hand, noticed what just happened and gasped... Summer was in the room Bolt was in.

"Hang in there, Summer! We'll get you out of there as quick as we can! Just-" Before she could finish her sentence, however, the sound of Summer's voice screaming at the top of her lungs was faintly heard from the other side of the room... causing Bolt's and Twilight's eyes to widen in shock.

"SUMMER!" Bolt shouted before frantically throwing books off the shelf while Twilight quickly, yet neatly, caught them and stacked them on an old desk on the other side of the room. When they finished clearing out the whole shelf, they appeared to be in shock, as there was nothing visible on the bookshelf... it was just an ordinary bookshelf.

It was at that fateful time that Twilight learned a new word from Bolt... but considering the circumstances they were in, she shuddered to think about what the word could've possibly meant. Needless to say, she could probably assume that the definition of it was more than likely close to the slang definition of "Buck".

After several feeble attempts of punching through the bookcase, Bolt's fist rested through the dents of the said bookcase, and with each passing half-second, he breathed heavily, and through gritted teeth. Twilight, on the other hand, continued to quickly skim through the books in high hopes of finding a blueprint of some sort.

"We're wasting time here, Twilight... we need to search this place!" Bolt stated.

Twilight nodded her head and turned back to him. "Alright, then! You search the areas outside of here, while I continue to search for a blueprint! If you can't find anything, and if I can't find anything, then we'll meet in the main lobby! Okay?"

Bolt nodded his head before replying, "Alright. Stay safe, though... can't afford losing two people I promised to protect..."

With that, Bolt quickly rushed out of the room and up the stairs with extra pep in his step. It only took him half the time to get up there as it did for him to go down. Then he decided to take the next available hallway once he was in the main lobby again... the one directly at his left that sat between the far left hall and the stairs that went up to the indoor balcony.

When he stepped in the hallway, he was quickly greeted by a plunder lobe... but instead of showing any sign of nervousness, he merely glared at it and drew his sword and shield. "Not this time, asshole..." With a single slice to the right, the plunder lobe was dismembered before it could even spit its sleeping gas at him.

After a few seconds of checking the room, Bolt looked down and noticed that there was a hole in the far-left corner... a hole in the wall that led to a tunnel too short for Bolt to stand in. Not wanting to take any unnecessary risks, he decided to get his flower from his pouch and place it on his forehead. A glow and a transformation later, and Timberwolf Bolt was already sniffing out Summer's scent through the short hallway.

Twilight hummed to herself while quickly skimming through the bookshelves. Then she groaned in frustration before slamming the book shut and levitating it on the growing pile of read books. "Ugh... where in Equestria could a guide to this place be?!" Sighing to herself, Twilight looked down and closed her eyes. "Fluttershy... Rainbow Dash... Pinkie Pie... Rarity... Applejack... Summer... Bolt... they're all counting on me! Not to mention all of Equestria. Hay, for all I know, maybe even all of Equuleus!"

Suddenly the sound of a feint rumbling noise caused Twilight's right ear to twitch. Curiously, she looked over her right shoulder... only to find nothing out of the ordinary. With a sigh of relief, she turned around and looked at the book... only for the rumbling noise to distract her again. With a frustrated sigh, she turned around once more... only to find nothing again. Then she squinted her eyes, before a nervous expression formed on her face... she read too many horror stories to know about this kind of situation. With that in mind, she raised a protective spell around her before turning around quickly... only to find nothing in front of her.

After catching her breath again, she sighed in relief before dispelling her shield and going back to the book she was reading. Then... the rumbling noise resumed... but instead of turning around, Twilight closed her eyes and raised her shield spell up again for another minute... but nothing appeared to be attacking her.

She sighed in relief before telling herself, "That's it... no more horror stories for me from now on." Then she flipped to the next page before freezing in place, as her heart rate rose quickly. From the light of her horn, she was able to notice a foreign shadow hovering just over her eyesight... the shadow of something that looked like a spike of some sort. What's worse, she was too exhausted to bring up another shield, so all she could do was shakily look up... only for her eyes to meet another eyeball hanging on the ceiling; a large red eyeball with an emerald green iris around a pitch black pupil.

Bolt continued to push through the countless large crates that covered the storage room, after having started doing so when he was able to turn back into a human.

"Why... did they... need... so... many... freaking... boxes?!" he mumbled to himself after managing to push the last of the boxes out of the way; revealing a hidden doorway that led to another set of stairs that went down. Cautiously, he lifted his Light Wand out of the ground and carried it with him down each of the stairs.

As soon as he was at the bottom of the stairs, he noticed that they led to a room that, from the looks of it, could possibly be the one that hid behind the library. Another thing that Bolt noticed was that it appeared to be full of webs. After shining his wand closer to the walls, though, he also noticed that there were countless large eggs that swarmed every wall.

"Summer? Are you in here?" Bolt asked as he examined the walls cautiously; giving a couple eggs a few experimental kicks... only to stop when the third one he kicked busted open and poured out a green liquid. "Ugh... gross!"

After kicking the gunk off of his right boot, he stood still after hearing feint movement and muffled noises... noises that sounded an awful lot like Summer's voice. Then, when he tried following the noise, he slowly looked up once he figured out the direction it was coming from... directly overhead.

Sure enough, there was a ball of web that had a familiar red glow coming from the center of it. "Summer?! Summer! Hang on, Summer, I'll get you down from there!"

Before Bolt could take a couple steps, however, an arch in the wall opened up; revealing a midnight goblin behind it, wielding a knife-shaped longsword and a wooden box shield. On its shoulders, it wore spiked shoulder pads strapped onto its chest by a harness with several different vials of multicolored potions on the belts of each one.

Bolt quickly stuck the Light Wand into the ground and drew his sword and shield quickly. As he did, though, the goblin chuckled before sheathing its sword on its back and pulling a red potion out of a vial on its belt. Then it uncapped it and swallowed the contents that rested in the vial before throwing the empty vial over its right shoulder.

Slowly it started to walk closer to Bolt, who stood ready. Then the goblin growled in the usual goblin's high-pitched voice... only this time, its voice started getting lower in pitch, and it started growing taller... much to Bolt's surprise. As it grew, its arms started getting bulkier, its chest started getting wider, and its legs started getting thicker. Then, after fifteen seconds of the goblin's growth, it stood head-to-chest with Bolt... with the head belonging to Bolt. Taking a deep breath, the goblin roared loudly, causing the entire room to rumble, before making a mad dash towards the nervous human.

GOBLIN WAR CHIEF: GROM

Just a split second before Grom could land a hit on Bolt, Bolt quickly managed to roll underneath Grom's right arm just in time to avoid the goblin chief's downward slice. Then, instinctively, Bolt attempted to stab the goblin war chief in the back... which ended in failure after the blade was ricocheted by the hidden plate on the goblin's back.

"Crap, this guy's wearing heavy armor!" Bolt grunted frustratedly, before rolling backwards in time to dodge Grom's horizontal spinning slice. Then Bolt raised his shield up and started circling around Grom, while Grom raised his shield and slowly kept his eyes focused on Bolt.

Bolt then noticed that Grom wasn't wearing anything to protect his eyes, which gave Bolt an idea. Quickly he tried to put his shield away... but at the very second that he attempted to even lower his shield, Grom roared and made another mad dash at Bolt; causing Bolt to raise his shield back up and plan his next move quickly.

When Bolt's eyes turned to Grom's sword, he noticed that this time, Grom was going to attempt a diagonal left slice, so a roll to his left (Grom's right side) would be a safer choice. Impulsively, however, he had a hunch that Grom was going to try something afterwards. With that in mind, Bolt quickly made a dash towards Grom and, at the time Grom started swinging his sword, Bolt was already on the floor and rolling... but as he did, he didn't take his eyes off of Grom.

As Bolt expected, Grom continued to spin until he was facing Bolt's direction while Bolt was on the ground... and Grom's right hand was over his shoulders... he was about to cut downwards. With that in mind, Bolt quickly rolled to his right just in time to narrowly avoid the tip of the blade before he quickly pushed himself back on his feet.

When he was standing up again, he was already panting heavily as sweat started falling from his forehead. What's worse for him, though, was that Grom barely even looked tired at all. "Darn it... how is this guy still energized like that?!" Then Bolt's eyes widened in realization... the potion must've done more than just make the goblin stronger! "Perhaps it also improved the goblin's energy!" Bolt concluded before glaring at the goblin who, at this point, started to chuckle.

"Oh, you think you've got it all figured out, huh?! I'm just warming up!" Bolt taunted, which, for some odd reason, didn't even get through to the goblin. ("Dang it! It looks like it's also smarter, now! What the hell was in that potion, anyways?!")

Then bolt noticed something that (if he were paying closer attention, he would've noticed) he could use to his advantage... the goblin behemoth's chest was still slightly exposed, but only the area around his heart. What's more, Grom's entire breastplate appeared to be held together by several belts. ("If I can cut those belts off, then he'll be exposed enough for me to land a hit or two!")

While he was lost in thought, Bolt failed to notice that the goblin was now dashing after him quickly. Letting out a startled gasp, Bolt quickly checked Grom's stance and noticed that this time, he had his sword behind his back, so he couldn't quite read his next move clearly. With that in mind, Bolt had a feeling the only option this time is to block the incoming attack. So he made another mad dash towards Grom with his shield raised up.

When he was within reach, however, Grom didn't even thrust his sword. Instead, he moved his shield in front of his right arm and, with all his might, swung it to the left; colliding with Bolt's shield, and sending Bolt flying to Grom's left. When Bolt landed, he landed on his shield and rolled around a few times in pain. Then he looked to his right and saw Grom charging after him once more.

As fast as he could move, Bolt quickly sheathed his sword and reached into his pouch. Then he quickly pulled out his Whip Grip and slung it behind his back and in the air. At this point, Grom was already just mere meters away. The second the Whip Grip caught hold of the wall, Bolt quickly pressed the red button and narrowly dodged Grom's sword by a hair.

At that point, Grom's momentum kept him from stopping in time to bump into the wall and grunt in both minor pain and frustration. Then Grom looked up at Bolt while Bolt, during Grom's time of disorientation, already had his shield attached to his sheath, as well as his camera in his left hand. Then, at the click of a button, Grom was temporarily blinded by the sudden flash of light; giving Bolt enough time to put his camera away, unattach himself from the wall, and disarm Grom's shield from him with the Grip Whip. Then Bolt quickly put the Grip Whip away and drew his sword and shield again while Grom's eyesight returned to normal.

"Yeah, chump! What're you gonna do now?!" Bolt taunted, which made Grom snarl this time. ("Hook, line, and sinker!") Bolt thought as a sly grin grew on his face.

Grom glared at Bolt before sheathing his sword and reaching into a small pouch that was, apparently, on his belt. Then he pulled out an unexpected device to use in any kind of battle... a tin-looking bracelet that, from the distance Bolt could see it, appeared to be slightly like a closed crescent in shape.

("Something's off about that bracelet...") Bolt thought, as he watched Grom quickly latch the bracelet on his right wrist. Then, to Bolt's shock, Grom's bracelet quickly glowed a dim white color. As it glowed, Bolt noticed the upper half of the bracelet thicken and engulf the outer half of Grom's right hand, while a few tin straps wrapped around Grom's inner half of his hand and attach together. Then the bracelet stretched up to halfway up Grom's elbow before folding back down, until there was a thick square that rested at the tip of the tin addition to Grom's brown leather gauntlet with the tin attachment.

Grom looked at his gauntlet and stretched his fingers out while keeping his fingers close together. As he did that, the square piece of the gauntlet quickly crawled down the tin part of the gauntlet by a pair of conveyor-like lines and crawled over his hand, before ending at the spot where the additional tin straps wrapped around his hand, and circled around his hand until it was within his palm. Then he closed his fingers onto the square device, which then protruded a pair of silver bars that curved inwards. When the bars were as stretched out as they could get, the area between the tips of the bars glowed, and a string materialized; revealing the bracelet to be some sort of bow.

On the spot where the bracelet wrapped around Grom's wrist originally, five pitch black squares rested, and above them (where the bow itself came from), a larger square appeared, with a tin cap attached to it. Grom quickly reached his left hand into the pouch he got the bow from and pulled out a thin-cut diamond, and placed it in the large square, before closing the cap. When the cap was closed, the five small squares started to glow white.

Bolt didn't need an explanation about what was going on there; Grom was going to fight him from a distance... and the squares must've been his ammunition counter!

Without a moment to spare, Bolt quickly raised his shield up and kept his eyes peeled on Grom. As he did, though, he quickly sheathed his sword and pulled out his Grip Whip before Grom pulled the bow string back. As he did, though, Bolt noticed a pure white arrow materialize at the tip of the bow. Not taking a moment to spare, bolt quickly slung the Grip Whip's disc to the right and slid quickly; quick enough to dodge the first arrow that, when landing on the wall, merely stuck on it and disappeared upon contact. Bolt quickly turned back to Grom just in time to notice that the fifth tiny square that glowed white was now a dark gray color, but wasn't as black as it was before the diamond was inserted.

Grom snarled as Bolt continued to play "Hard-To-Hit". Then, after missing the second shot, Grom roared again before pulling the diamond out of the bow's slot (dimming the lights down to black in the process), and pulling the bracelet off by merely gripping the edges of his wrist and pulling up. As soon as he pulled it up, the entire tin attachment to his gauntlet glowed again, and in mere seconds, the bow was just an ordinary bracelet again.

("Now's my chance!") Bolt thought to himself before latching the Grip Whip onto Grom's left arm and pulling himself up to Grom in the matter of seconds. (Thankfully, though, he managed to avoid ramming into Grom's spiked shoulder pads.)

The sudden foreign object attaching to his arm caused Grom to drop the bracelet and the diamond on the floor before reaching over his right shoulder with his right hand to draw his sword. Before he could even reach it, however, Bolt already managed to kick both of his feet into his face; disorienting him once again, and allowing Bolt to get back on the ground level, put his Grip Whip away, draw his sword and shield, and begin slicing at Grom's chest plate to get to the belts.

With each passing hit, more and more of the belts continued to break off, until all that was left was just the two belts that held the vials on his belt. Even the shoulder pads were off, now.

Before Bolt could deliver a killing blow, though, Grom quickly jumped back and drew his sword again. Without the heavy armor holding him back, Bolt knew that Grom could more than likely run faster now, and react even quicker. With that in mind, Bolt knew that all he had was his sword and shield that he could use.

Then, Bolt thought back on his training with Scorpan earlier. ("Without his armor, that means that I have a chance at this, now!")

After the two of the fighters stared off at each other for a moment longer, Grom finally got impatient and started charging after Bolt with his sword over his right shoulder and tilted diagonally. Bolt knew what to do at that point, though, so he was no longer intimidated. He knew that Grom would more than likely test his new-found freedom by changing his attacking direction at the last second.

Sure enough, whenever Grom was within reach, Bolt noticed his wrist twist to change his swing into a right swing... just in time to dodge to the right. Frustrated, Grom quickly tried to slice again; only for Bolt to use his sword to cut Grom's wrist and disarm his sword. Then Bolt quickly grabbed onto Grom's right shoulder and lift himself up over his head. Then, after flipping his sword in a reverse-grip position while overhead, Bolt wrapped his left arm over Grom's neck, kicked the back of Grom's knees, and angled his sword upwards; allowing Grom to fall back-first into Bolt's waiting sword.

Upon landing on the sword, Grom let out another loud roar that made the room shake before turning gray, and dissolving into ashes.

Breathing heavily, Bolt quickly sheathed his sword and shield again before looking up and sighing in relief when he saw the web that held Summer still hanging up there with her muffled voice still present. Then, after taking his Grip Whip out of his pouch again, Bolt sent it up to the top of the webbed ball that hung on the thin layer and pulled the ball of web towards him.

"Don't worry, Summer! You're safe, now!" Bolt said as he tore the web apart with his hands. After five seconds of tearing through the web, Bolt smiled when he saw Summer safe and unharmed.

Summer, in turn, smiled at him before flying up and hugging his left cheek. "Bolt! For once, I'm actually HAPPY to see you!"

Bolt smirked before replying, "Oh, for once, huh? I bet you dream about me every night!"

Summer chuckled before shaking her head. "Yeah, right! I'd rather dream of a toad eating me!"

After their playful rant, however, Summer flew off of Bolt's cheek and smiled warmly. "Seriously, though... thanks for the save, Bolt! I owe you one!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Eh, it was nothing. I can't leave my best friend hanging, after all... literally!"

That statement caused Summer's eyes to widen. Quickly she looked left and right before asking, "W-wait a second! You didn't run into the giant spider, did you?!"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion. "Um... no, not really. Why?"

Summer's pupils shrunk into pinpricks at that statement. "BOLT, WE HAVE TO GET TWILIGHT, AND WE NEED TO GET HER NOW!"

Before Bolt could reply, however, their ears were met by an ear-piercing shriek of terror... which came from the opposite end of the wall with the bookcase. In unison, the two of their heads jerked towards the sound, and instantly, they both knew just who it was that screamed. "TWILIGHT!" the two of them shouted in unison.

Quickly, Bolt ran up to the bookcase and began digging through the books in high hopes of finding the way to get to the other side. When that failed, Bolt yelled out of frustration before punching the bookcase with his right fist; leaving a noticeable dent where his fist made contact.

Summer, on the other hand, started searching the area around the bookcase while Bolt was digging through the books. Shortly after Bolt punched the bookcase, Summer spotted something out of the ordinary... a crack that, for some odd reason, led from the bookshelf to the (still open) archway on the wall that Grom appeared from. "Bolt! There's something here!"

When Bolt looked towards her direction, he looked down and, without hesitation, followed the crack towards the archway. As he did, though, he re-claimed his wand and shined it in front of him. Before running towards the hallway, however, he looked to his right and noticed that the bracelet that Grom dropped didn't disappear like everything else... or the diamond that he planted in it for ammunition. Without hesitation, he picked the two up, put them in his Pouch, and continued towards the hallway, where Summer was waiting for him. What he found next caught him by surprise... there was a long, narrow tunnel. Quickly, yet carefully, he ran through the tunnel until he made it to the end of it.

After thirty seconds of running through the thin and dark tunnel, Bolt finally made it to the end of it. Upon leaving it, however, he noticed right away that he was outside the castle walls, and was now standing on top of an old balcony. He looked left and right, but couldn't find any signs of what the crack led to. With a sigh, he shook his head and turned to leave... but before he could even take a step, Summer stopped him and pointed at his top-right.

When he looked towards where she was pointing, he smiled before sighing in relief. There were several posts that, at some point, must've served as hanging gardens before. Now, they appeared to be nothing more than stone protrusions that, with the aid of his Grip Whip, could be used to swing across.

Summer flew ahead for a quick second before heading back to Bolt with a smile on her face. "Hey, Bolt! There's an open window on the other end that you could swing into! It's also been slightly damaged around the edges, so it should be easy!"

Bolt nodded his head before pulling his Grip Whip out of his pouch. He held it with his right hand, since he was going to be turning left to circle around the cylindrical shaped tower. After taking a few deep breaths, he slung the disc towards the first post and gulped nervously when it landed. ("You can do this, Bolt... it's just like in the cave... except the fall would be thousands of feet in the air... no biggie!") Bolt thought to himself before holding his breath. Then, when he was ready, he ran diagonally forward and right before jumping off the ledge. As he did, the Grip Whip remained intact, along with the post that it was attached to.

When Bolt was able to see the open window, he lifted his feet forward and braced for a fast entry. Then, when he was inside the window, he quickly pressed the green button which detached the Grip Whip's disc from the post... but when he was inside, he noticed that there was a large gaping hole on the inside of the tower... which he was about to fall into. Quickly, he pressed the green button again, right as his feet hung over the edge of the hole. Thankfully, the disc of the Grip Whip was dragging across the floor, though, because by the time he was about to fall down the massive hole, his Grip Whip caught onto the floor, and kept him from doing so.

When he looked down, Bolt gulped when all he could see was nothing but endless darkness below. Without hesitation, he pressed the red button and was once again dragged up onto ground level (or in this case, where he could stand rather than hang). Then he looked around and noticed another doorway over the hole with the remnants of the wooden floor protruding.

He sighed to himself before asking Summer, "Great! Now what do we do? The Grip Whip can't reach that far, and without another one, I can't simply climb the walls to get there!"

Summer hummed before looking around with her right forehoof over her snout. Then, when she looked up, a smile formed on her face. "Hey, Bolt! What about the chandelier up there? Can't you swing on that one?"

Bolt looked up and smiled at her. "Thanks, Summer! Maybe I can!"

Summer shrugged her shoulders before flying back into his hair again. "Oh, Bolt... what would you do without me?"

"I wouldn't be in this area, that's for sure!"

"Oh, really? And just why wouldn't you be?"

"Because I heard you screaming and ran up here to save you from whatever you were screaming at."

Summer didn't reply to that one. Instead she remained silent with a slight blush on her face. "Oh... so you were worried about me?!"

Bolt nodded his head with a smile. "Well, yeah! Technically, you've been my only friend in this world, so why wouldn't I be worried?"

"Oh... well... thanks, then! And... thanks for rescuing me back there."

"Don't mention it. Anyways, hold on tight!"

With a quick swing in the air, Bolt slung the Grip Whip's disc up and, as if by a stroke of luck, it was able to reach the chandelier at the last inch. Giving the Grip Whip a few cautious pulls, Bolt took a deep breath and jumped from the wooden platform. As he did, the Grip Whip and the chandelier thankfully remained intact. Then, after kicking his feet forwards and backwards a few times to boost his swinging radius, Bolt released the chandelier, and successfully landed on the other platform with a roll.

After standing back up, he put his Grip Whip away and dusted his tunic off before lifting the door open. Then, when he stepped into the other room, he slowly lowered the door to avoid breaking the wooden platform even further. Shortly after standing back up once the deed was done, he turned around... and stared at the room he was in in disbelief.

Floating in midair, there were four wooden platforms circling a central stone platform that didn't move... or appear to be attached to anything. In fact, below it was a chandelier that, for some odd reason, was swinging back and forth. It didn't take Bolt long to realize what caused the chandelier to swing.

"Isn't that the same chandelier that we just swung on?!" Bolt asked Summer as he pointed at it. Then, out of curiosity, he said, "Summer, float over the edge of this platform right quick! I wanna see something!"

Summer shrugged her shoulders before doing as requested. Then Bolt turned around, opened the door behind him, and looked up. Sure enough, Summer was floating overhead in the other room. "Summer! Look at this!"

Summer turned around and, after following Bolt's eyesight, looked down in the room they were in... only to find Bolt staring at her from the lower level. "Okay, now... this is trippy!" Bolt stated.

With a sigh, Summer shrugged her shoulders and replied, "Maybe it's a portal door? I hear they were common for several centuries, but... to see one in this place is quite bizarre! Who would've known that portal doors were around for thousands of years?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Guess that's one thing to ask Celestia and Luna, huh?"

Summer nodded her head before flying back in Bolt's hair. "Well, look up and see what else we should expect!"

Bolt looked up and, sure enough, found another set of platforms covered in the darkness; each in different floors. Some were spinning in circles, while others were completely moving on their own. The ones directly above them, however, appeared to be circling a floating stone platform, instead... in a way that a ceiling fan would operate. Some further up were spinning clockwise, while others spun counterclockwise around them. Altogether, the entire place looked more like it was a giant puzzle, rather than a room at all. "Something tells me this place must've been a fun-house, or something, because this is ridiculous!"

"Oh, quit your complaining, Bolt! We've got to get through this, if we expect to save Twilight and get that Harmonic Acorn!"

Bolt puffed before sarcastically retorting, "Yes, mom!" Then he looked up at the platforms before groaning. "Well, crap! This is gonna be more riskier that the last one!" Taking a deep breath, he drew his Grip Whip once again and smiled. "No need for unnecessary risks, though!" With that in mind, he slung the disc towards the nearest platform and caught onto it. Then, at the press of a button, he was on the moving platform.

After a few seconds of waiting, he was able to sling the Grip Whip onto the other side. Then, when he was there, he tried opening the door... which resulted in him straining a few times before falling on his back, with the door remaining grounded. "Darn it! It's stuck!"

Summer hummed and rubbed her chin in thought. "Maybe it's locked on the other side?"

Bolt sighed before standing back up. "Then in that case, I guess we'll have to find a key of some sort?"

Summer shook her head and replied, "I don't think so. Portal Doors are normally closed by magical means... and considering the age of this castle, I would assume the source would be a magic crystal."

Again Bolt sighed. "Then I guess that's it, then?"

The two of them stood there silently, until the realization hit Bolt... and in turn, he ended up hitting his forehead with his right palm. "You know, sometimes I wonder how I let such obvious solutions get past me."

"Oh? You have a plan?"

"Yeah. Summer, I might need you to fly up to the floor above us, and use your natural light to help me see which door to shoot at."

It took Summer a few seconds to find out what Bolt was saying. When she did, however, she also ended up planting her face in her right forehoof. "Duh! They're PORTAL doors, which means the other side of that door is, literally, up there!" Then she chuckled. "I guess it is a playhouse, huh?"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before reaching into his pouch and pulling out the bracelet that he picked up from Grom. When Summer noticed it, however, her eyes widened.

"Bolt! Is that a Bow Bracelet?!"

Bolt nodded his head and smiled. "Sure is! Why, you know about it?"

"Put it on, and I can give you a basic run-down on it."

Bolt nodded his head and did as instructed. Then, when his right glove was quickly engulfed in the bronze gauntlet-like attachment's bindings, Summer flew closer to it and sighed. "Of all the Bow Bracelets that you could've found, you just had to get a bronze one, didn't you?"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion. "Um... sorry, but what are you talking about? I just picked this one up off of the guy that captured you!"

Summer nodded her head and replied, "Well, this one is a basic bronze one. As you can see from the five black squares, when you put the diamond in the ammunition slot," as she said that, Bolt did as she said, "the squares will begin to glow white. With each shot you make, one of the squares will blacken, and will remain black until a minute passes."

"Is there a catch to that?"

"Yes. If you were to fire before it glows again, you'll have to wait another minute until the second one lights back up, then the first one will have to go another minute."

"So in other words, I'll have to wait two minutes until all five glow again?"

Summer nodded her head. "Yes... but don't take that as a bad thing, though! If you were to fire one, and wait about thirty seconds, the next arrow will actually be more powerful than an average one, since it draws energy from the first one's recharging state!"

Bolt smiled at that statement. "So if I were to fire one, I can almost guarantee the next one will be strong enough to do double the damage?"

"Eh... more like one and a half times the damage, but considering they're magic arrows, I doubt if it would make much of a difference, regardless."

Then another thought came across Bolt's mind. "What happens if I were to use all five, though?"

"That is where things will get hairy for you, and why I'm not too much of a fan of the bronze series."

"Why's that?"

"If you were to use all five of the shots, you'd have to wait five minutes, and between each minute, you won't be able to use any arrows. Think of it as a way to keep it from overheating. You are dealing with metal, after all."

Bolt nodded his head. "By 'Bronze Series', I'm guessing there's better ones out there?"

Summer shook her head. "Unfortunately, the Bow Bracelet died out with the Horses. Now, all that remains are whatever we could find in the old ruins. Who knows, though? Maybe if we find a blacksmith of some sort, we could ask if there's a way to improve this one."

"How many different series were there, exactly?"

"Altogether, there were six: Bronze, Copper, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Celestial."

"What's the difference, besides the metals used in them?"

"With each additional power comes more arrow capacities, and less time it would take to replenish the arrows. Copper would have the capacity to carry ten arrows, instead of five, and would only require you to wait thirty seconds for the next one to return, or five minutes for all ten to be replenished. Silver would have fifteen arrows, and each would be replenished at fifteen seconds, or you'd have to wait two and a half minutes for all fifteen to return. Gold would have twenty, which would replenish every ten seconds, or two minutes for all of them. The Platinum would hold twenty five arrows, which would replenish every five seconds, or a minute and twenty five seconds for all of them at once. Then there's the Celestial."

"Would that one be thirty?"

"No. That one would have no limits. Not only does it draw energy from the crystal itself, but it also draws energy from the magic fields around it, making it an unstoppable weapon, and a must-have for any archers out there. I wouldn't get your hopes up on finding that one, though. Only the princesses themselves have ever carried one before."

"Perhaps we could ask them if they have some, then?"

Summer shrugged her shoulders. "Eh, again, I wouldn't get my hopes up on that... though it wouldn't hurt to try, I suppose." Then she looked up at the floor above them; more specifically, at the other side of the door before them. "Hey, look!" She flew up towards the door and smiled when she noticed another diamond-shaped crystal similar to the one that rested on the double-doors in the entrance. "Perhaps you can shoot this thing down with your Bow Bracelet! Just... watch your shot, okay?"

Bolt nodded his head and slowly lifted the bow up towards the crystal. Then, instinctively, he reached his left hand towards the glowing string between the corners of the bow's arms and pulled back. As he did, however, a pure white arrow materialized between his fingertips. Then he took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, before releasing the arrow. In just a split second, the arrow flew across the room; leaving a white trail behind the path that it took.

"HEY! AIM AT THE CRYSTAL, NOT ME!" Summer shouted from overhead. When Bolt looked up, he groaned when he realized what had happened... he missed... by a couple feet.

Cautiously, Summer flew back up to him and glared at him from directly in front of his eyes. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW CLOSE THAT ARROW WAS TO MY BUCKING ANTENNAS?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders and smiled sheepishly. "Um... my bad?"

Then she sighed before shaking her head. "You know what? I'm just going to stay in your hair, where it's safe!"

"Hey, cut me some slack! The only thing I'm familiar with shooting with is a camera, alright?!"

Summer rolled her eyes before flying back into his hair. "Yeah, yeah! Just hurry up and shoot that crystal, already! I'm starting to get hungry again!"

Bolt merely stuck his tongue out and mocked her last few words before drawing another arrow and taking aim once more.

It's been fifteen minutes, and Bolt's Bow Bracelet was fully replenished for the third time since he started attempting to aim at the crystal that sat harmlessly over the door ahead of them.

While Bolt had a determined look on his face, Summer had an impatient, annoyed, and completely irritated expression on her own. "How, Bolt?"

Bolt looked up at her in confusion. "How what?"

"How can you possibly be this terrible at aim, and still be considered good with a camera?!"

Bolt's determined look was quickly changed into one similar to Summer's. "Oh?! Well then, Misses Know-It-All, how about you try and shoot that crystal with this thing?!"

"You know what? Follow my lead, and I will!" She retorted, which caused Bolt to roll his eyes.

She then flew up to the crystal and squinted her eyes while angling her forelegs and hooves in a box-like pattern directly in-between. Then she flew back down to Bolt and repeated her former actions before motioning for Bolt to draw an arrow. After he did so, she pushed his right hand to the left a little bit before forcing him to lower his right hand, which held the arrow. Then, after doing the "box" motion again, she nodded her head and said, "Alright, Bolt! Release!"

After rolling his eyes, Bolt did as instructed... only to watch the arrow fly through the air, and hit the crystal directly in the center; causing it to shatter into pieces, and fall off of the door, along with the chains that it held together.

Bolt stood there wordlessly before looking up at Summer and glaring. Then, when he freed his right hand from the Bow Bracelet and put it back in his pouch, he pointed at her and said, "Beginner's Luck!"

Summer, however, chuckled as she flew back into his hair. "Oh? And guess what?"

"Don't say it."

"I haven't even used a bow or a camera before!"

Bolt groaned and planted his face into his right palm. "I'm not gonna hear the end of this, am I?"

Summer shook her head and replied, "Nope! And it's gonna totally get better when we free Twilight!"

Bolt groaned again, but removed his face from his palm. "Oh, crap! I completely forgot about Twilight!" Then, without even pulling out his Grip Whip for safety procedures, Bolt quickly jumped onto the platform in-between the one that the door was rested at the side of, and the floating stone platform in the center, then followed with another jump towards the one that the door was on. After gripping the door's handle again, he grunted as the handle, with a little bit of resistance, lifted up, and in the matter of seconds, the door was completely opened up again.

Once more, Bolt walked past the door, only for it to close behind him. Then he looked down and, sure enough, the broken shards of the crystal were on the ground, and the same platforms that were behind the door behind him were also below him on the lower floor. "Okay, Summer... is there any unwanted locks in the next one?"

Summer flew up to the floor above them for a moment, before returning in front of Bolt. Then she shook her head and smiled. "Thankfully, it looks like there isn't!"

Bolt sighed in relief before looking forward... only for his jaw to drop when he saw what was next... the four wooden platforms that circled around a stone one. What's worse, the next door wasn't directly across from them, but rather, at the far-right corner of the door they exited from... and the distance was so far, even the Grip Whip wouldn't be able to reach it.

After scanning the area a little more, Bolt then noticed another crystal over the door... only this time, the crystal was on the same floor that they were on, rather than on the floor above them. With that in mind, Bolt could help but chuckle. "Well, at least they made this one easier!"

Summer nodded her head nervously as she eyed the rotating platforms ahead of them. "A little too easy, if you ask me... be careful!"

Bolt nodded his head and pulled out his Bow Bracelet once more. Then, after drawing an arrow from it, he stopped and looked up. "Hey, um... Summer?"

Summer sighed before flying in front of him and eying the crystal on the other side of the room. "A little to the left, and an inch higher." Bolt adjusted his aim as instructed, until Summer motioned for him to stop. "Good! Now, fire away!"

As soon as Bolt sent the arrow flying towards the crystal, he took a cautious step back and drew his shield from his back just in case it turned out to be a trap. Then, when the arrow hit the crystal, the arrow stuck into it and vanished into thin air... all while the crystal began to glow as white as the arrow that hit it was.

Shortly after the impact, a loud clinking noise echoed through the room. Then when Bolt and Summer looked towards the four platforms after they gave a quick jamming noise, their eyes widened when the platforms fell downwards, save for the stone one in the center, which began to rotate counterclockwise, as opposed to the clockwise direction that the four wooden ones were doing around it. "Okay... so hitting that crystal drops the wooden ones, and makes the stone one rotate the opposite direction... good thing I wasn't standing on the wooden ones, huh?"

Summer nodded her head and gulped. "Y-yeah." Then she froze in place and sighed. "Oh, great! NOW how are we supposed to get to the other side?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "I don't know... maybe there's another crystal in here, somewhere. Mind lending me your eyesight again?"

Again Summer sighed. "Alright, then. Hold on, I'll just be a moment!" With that, she flew upwards once more, and then returned to him after about a minute of waiting.

"Well... you might not like what you're gonna have to do." As soon as she finished saying those words, the crystal over the door to the next floor darkened again. Then, as quickly as they fell, the wooden platforms that were once circling the stone platform flew back into place, and started spinning again. The entire scene caught Bolt's and Summer's attention.

Bolt then looked back at Summer and deadpanned. "The other crystal isn't in my reach, is it?"

Summer shook her head and replied, "Not unless you were on one of those platforms there."

Bolt nodded his head and sighed. "Well, looks like we'll just have to use the stone one, since it isn't moving as much as the wooden ones, huh?"

Summer shrugged before replying, "Whatever floats your boat... though you might want to check it, first... in case it might fall once you step foot on it!"

That statement caused Bolt to gulp. "Um... good idea. One sec." Then he reached into his pouch and pulled out his Grip Whip. "The disc of this thing weighs about a few pounds... maybe it could be enough to make any kinds of pressure sensors to act up."

Without hesitation, Bolt slung the disc towards the stone platform, though for safety precautions, he didn't bother activating the grappling mechanism. Then, when it landed, he smiled when he saw that it didn't do anything but roll with the rotating platform. "Well, at least I have a shortcut to that thing!" With that, he pressed the green button on his Grip Whip.

As soon as the disc lit up, however, the disc let out a loud clinking noise, and in the blink of an eye, it was thrown upwards, and towards the ceiling area just over Bolt's head.

With wide eyes, Bolt stared at the Grip Whip, before looking back at the stone platform. Then, for the first time, he noticed a dim blue circle over the platform... a circle that caught Summer's attention.

"Bolt! I think that platform has a one-way portal on it!"

"One-way portal? Care to explain?"

Summer thought for a moment before looking directly below Bolt's feet. Then her eyes widened when she saw another blue circle directly in the center of where he stood. "Well, a one-way portal is pretty much a portal that takes you one way. You can't go through it the other way... and from the looks of it, that one would take you right back to where you're standing if you were to step into it."

"So in other words, that stone platform is just a trick to make me want to shoot that crystal easily?"

Again Summer shook her head. "That wouldn't explain why the wooden platforms would fall, though! If this place were owned by the princesses themselves, they would've at least designed it with a way to get through... and I'm going to assume that way would involve shooting both crystals before a minute passes!"

That statement caused Bolt's eyes to widen. "Wait, both?! Where's the other one?!"

Summer flew up and pointed at a stone block-like protrusion a couple of meters over the door they came from with, what appeared to be, a magic force field blocking another crystal inside the said protrusion... one that caused Summer's eyes to widen. "Wait a minute... that wasn't there before!" Then she looked at the crystal on the other side of the room and sighed. "Looks like you're going to have to shoot that crystal to unblock the one over your head, first... but that one's blocked too tightly to shoot it from where you're standing!"

"So what you're saying is... I have to shoot that first crystal while I'm standing on a wooden platform, then jump to the stone one before the wooden ones fall?"

Summer nodded her head. "That's if the crystal over there also disables the one-way portal."

Again Bolt nodded his head, but let out an annoyed groan in the process. "Well, that's fantastic! As if it weren't bad enough when we were standing still... now we're gonna have to deal with moving targets!"

"Hey! I'll be with you every step of the way, okay? Besides... with my coordination skills, I doubt if you would even need thirty seconds to clear this thing!"

Bolt thought for a moment before letting out a smirk. "I still say you just have beginner's luck... but I guess that's better than nothing, right?"

"Right! So, are you ready to get this done and over with?"

"Yeah... just let me get my Grip Whip ready for those wooden platforms!" With that, he slung the Grip Whip's disc towards the wooden platforms... but as soon as it hit, it ricocheted like the stone platform. "DARN IT!" Then he sighed before putting the Grip Whip back up. "Well, looks like I'm not using this in here!"

Summer then cleared her throat. "Well, Bolt... now that I see you might have a little trouble with safety in this one, I'll go on ahead and ask again... are you sure you're ready? Take a few deep breaths, first... Bolt?"

She then noticed that, at this point, he was now standing at the doorway with his right palm leaned on it, his right foot planted horizontally on the corner of the wall, and a determined look planted on his face... the same determined look that Summer grew to hate. "Bolt... don't tell me you have another stupid idea!"

Bolt merely smiled at her in response before shaking his head. "Alright, then. I won't... now get ready to coordinate!"

"What?!" Before she could even say another word, she was already back in Bolt's hair, while he ran and, as if timed perfectly, managed to land on the nearest wooden platform. When he landed, though, he gripped the corners of it to ensure that he doesn't slide off.

"Bolt! I'm not kidding when I say you need to warn me before you do this kind of stuff!" Summer complained, to which Bolt smirked in response.

"Well, you did tell me not to tell you, didn't I?"

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before slowly standing up with his knees slightly bent to help him keep his balance on the moving platform, and pulling his Bow Bracelet out of his pouch again. Then, after clipping it on his wrist once more, he turned towards the direction of the stone platform, drew an arrow, and took a deep breath. Summer took that as her cue to help coordinate his shot.

"Now, when I say 'go', I want you to wait exactly one second before you release it... got it?

Bolt nodded his head before replying, "Got it!"

Finally, when the platform was reaching the point where it was facing the crystal over their destination, Summer corrected Bolt's position, took a deep breath, and then shouted, "GO!"

One second on, and the arrow was sent flying across the room with its signature white trail behind it. As it did, however, Bolt quickly jumped from the wooden platform to the stone one... before it started to glow. Without warning, Bolt quickly found himself falling down into pitch black darkness... then being lifted back up by an unknown entity that felt like a solid ground. When the darkness was lifted, he blinked a few times and looked around; he was back at the front of the second door, where he saw the four platforms make a sudden stop and fall to the floors below them. "Crap!"

Summer sighed before planting her face into her right hoof. "This... might take a while."

After ten minutes consisting of five failed attempts and a five-minute arrow recharging break, Bolt was finally starting to get the hang of the puzzle. "Okay... so jump about a split-second after the platforms stop... got it!"

Summer, on the other hand, was staring blankly at the crystal, constantly thinking of ways how she is going to get back at him for wasting so much time... and with that, she was also feeling a slight bit of sympathy for Twilight having to wait so long for her so-called "hero" to get there.

"Wow, Bolt! I wonder how you figured that one out!" she sarcastically retorted.

Bolt merely smirked before drawing the arrow once more, after the bow was fully charged. Then, after taking a deep breath (and getting instructed/yelled at by Summer) he released the arrow from the bow and crouched lower than he was while keeping himself balanced from the movement. Finally, as soon as the arrow hit the crystal, the crystal started to glow again, the platforms made a sudden stop, and as Bolt looked at the stone platform in the center, he noticed that the blue circle suddenly stopped glowing; signaling that that was his cue to jump. Right before the wooden platform fell, he gulped and leaped forward, and on top of the stone platform without falling through it... much to his enjoyment.

"FINALLY! NOW HURRY UP AND AIM AT THE OTHER CRYSTAL, SO WE CAN GET THIS OVER WITH!" Summer shouted at the top of her lungs, which (as usual), to Bolt, sounded like someone talking to him in an indoor voice.

"Alright, already! Sheesh!" Then he stood still for a moment to allow the built-up dizziness from the former spinning to wear off, before drawing another arrow and aiming it up. As he did, Summer once again helped him with his aiming, until the crystal was aligned once again.

"GO!" Summer ordered. And like the last few times, after one second, he released the arrow through the air, and into the crystal.

This time, however, the crystals turned light blue, and the stone platform stopped spinning, which caused Bolt and Summer's eyes to widen in worry. Their worry, however, was short-lived when they saw the four wooden platforms from before float back up to their level... but instead of circle the stone platform, they formed an outstretched line with about a meter of space in-between them... and shortly following them, the two other wooden platforms from the floor below levitated with the current one's four, and extended the path to the halfway mark.

Then, the furthest wooden platform started to move forward and backward in a straight pattern... while the one behind it started to move left and right. The one behind that one started to raise higher and lower. The two behind that one started moving in a scissor-like pattern around the first one from the stone platform. The first one, however, didn't even budge.

"Oh, great! Now we have to get through some sort of obstacle course!" Summer groaned. Bolt, on the other hand, shrugged his shoulders before putting his Bow Bracelet away, pulling his Grip Whip out, and holding onto it for safety precautions. While the platforms may refuse him gripping them, that doesn't mean the walls won't be able to be gripped, should he slip up... and with no other platforms below his feet, he knew that there wasn't anywhere he would be able to land on, besides the floor pieces on the sides where the doors were.

After taking a deep breath and a few practice jumps up and down, Bolt backed up a couple steps before bursting into a quick jog and jumping in the air towards the first platform. When he was within reach, he managed to keep his balance without even falling over. Then he squinted his eyes at the next platform that was moving clockwise, with the one after that one moving counter-clockwise. As he stared at them, he also noticed that, when they all reached the center, they were all still in a perfect line. With that in mind, he quickly studied the movement patterns that they were moving in, before holding his breath once more and leaping towards the next one.

Due to the movement that the platform was making, he ended up falling on a knee, but even so, he managed to avoid falling over the edge... and after that one, he had the same result, but in reversed directions. Then, when he made it to the forth one, he started to have trouble keeping his balance. As it rose up, he ended up bumping his shins on the corner, and due to the momentum from the former one's movement, he barely managed to catch the corners of the rising platform.

"Bolt! Are you alright?!" Summer asked with sudden concern in her voice.

Bolt groaned at the burning pain in his shins before the platform started lowering again, which gave him enough added upward momentum to pull himself on top of the platform. Then, with another pained grunt, he started rubbing his shins. "Eh, I've been through worse. Doesn't mean it didn't hurt, though!"

"Well pace yourself, Bolt! Don't you even realize how high up we are?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Eh, heights haven't really been a big issue for me, to be honest. You'd be surprised how many high-shots I had to make while I took my pictures. There's a reason why I was considered the best shot with a camera, y'know!"

Summer decided to ease the tension with a snarky response. "Doesn't excuse your poor aiming skills when it comes to bows, though!"

Bolt merely rolled his eyes at that statement before pointing at her while she flew in front of his face with a slightly amused smile on her face. "Now look here, Missy! Just because you keep making lucky calls does not mean that you're some sort of expert!"

Summer rolled her eyes in response before chuckling. "Whatever you say, Robin Hood!"

That comment caused Bolt to freeze for a moment before sighing. "You know what? I'm not even going to ask how you know about that work of fiction from my world. I'm just gonna get up, and get this crap over with!"

Summer tilted her head in confusion. "Work of fiction? Robin was one of the most skilled archers in Equestria, dating back to before even Discord took the throne!"

"Not listening~!" Bolt mused before crouching in a safe position and jumping from the platform to the next one, right as they aligned perfectly. Then, when he landed, he gripped the sixth one's sides with his feet and rear end planted firmly on the center to keep from falling once it started moving forward.

Once it made it three quarters from the first side to the next, however, it started moving backwards again... much to Bolt's displeasure. "Ugh... even with it moving to the other side, that still isn't enough room for me to jump across!"

Summer, however, flew towards the door and smiled. "Well, at least there isn't even a sign of a portal over here... maybe you can use your Grip Whip on this one!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Worth a try, I guess." Then, after readying his aim, he slung the disc towards the other side when the platform was close enough. Then, after pressing the green button, the disc, for once, locked into place... which caused Bolt to cheer long enough to forget that the platform was now moving away from the other side. Before he could even react, the platform moved away from him, and caused him to swing downwards, which caused him to let out a panicky yell, before he instinctively hit the red button to pull him to the other side.

When he was on land again, he deadpanned at Summer's hysterical laughing form. "SWEET CELESTIA, BOLT! MAYBE YOU COULD'VE PASSED FOR AN OPERA SINGER, AS WELL!"

Bolt, despite having a tomato red face now, merely rolled his eyes and retorted, "Hey, at least I can get loud enough for people to actually hear!"

That caused Summer's laughter to die down quickly. Then, with a slightly hurt expression, she replied, "Hey! I can get louder! If... if I wanted to, that is..."

Bolt was about to deny her claim, but he stopped himself after hearing her voice shift slightly at the end of her sentence... a shift that he only heard once, before.

As much as I wanted to get back at her after being so impatient... I knew better than that. Despite how much we taunted each other, she and I were practically best friends... perhaps on a "Peter Pan" and "Tinkerbell" scale, even, and THEY knew each other all their lives, pretty much!

And when I heard her voice shifting uneasily, I knew that I screwed up, and struck where I shouldn't have. The only time I heard her voice shift like that was shortly before we left Breezie Valley... and even so, it was between her and her dad, Winter Breeze. Shortly following her voice shift was an unnerving amount of tears... and trust me when I say this. If you've heard Summer crying, even the coldest hearts would melt... well, ALMOST, anyways.

Before anything else could be said, Bolt sighed and said, "Sorry, Summer. That one was too far, even for me to say."

Summer sniffled a few times before shaking her head. "N-nah, you're right. I am way too quiet, even for Breezie standards, so-"

"No, Summer! I was wrong, and you know it!" Bolt interrupted, which caused her to jump slightly as she floated in front of him. Then he looked her in the eyes (to the best of his abilities at least, considering the size difference) and added, "And besides... quiet or not, you have a beautiful voice!"

If her fur weren't naturally red, Summer wouldn't have been able to hide the blush that she had forming on her face. "You... think my voice is beautiful?"

Bolt chuckled before giving her a thumbs-up. "Well, yeah! And for proof, I... kinda heard you singing a couple times in your sleep."

That statement caused her eyes to widen, her pupils to shrink, and her blush to intensify. "W-wait... I SING IN MY SLEEP?!"

Bolt tilted his head in confusion before nodding his head. "Yeah, I... kinda figured you knew that!"

Summer groaned before shaking her head a few times, while her wings started to jitter between sweeps. "Um... I-I-I... I..." Then she sighed before shaking her head again. "I think we should keep moving! Anyways, I'll be in your hair if you need me, so... bye!" And like that, she was once again on Bolt's scalp while he raised an eyebrow.

Then he shrugged his shoulders and thought to himself, "Well... at least she isn't sad now, I guess..." And with that, he walked up to the next door and opened it, revealing the floor above them. This time, however, when he took a step forward, he noticed that there was actually a whole floor there, this time... completely made of stone.

"Hey, Summer! Looks like we won't have to worry about falling this time!"

Summer flew out of his hair again and sighed in relief. "Well, at least there's a break in this crazy puzzle!"

Bolt nodded his head and chuckled. "Yeah... but still, I might need you to examine this place also... in case there might be some sort of trick to it."

Summer nodded her head and did as instructed. Then, after about a minute of inspecting the area, she flew back to him and reported there to be nothing out of the ordinary, this time. With a sigh of relief, Bolt walked across the room towards the door on the opposite side of the one they came in from.

As soon as he made it just a meter away from the door, however, a massive layer of webs quickly shot from the corners of the door, and blocked the way through... which caused Bolt to jump. Then, after turning around, he noticed the door on the opposite end of the room (the one where he and Summer came from) was also covered in webs... pinning the two of them in the room.

Bolt then looked up and Summer and deadpanned. "Yeah... nothing out of the ordinary, alright!"

Suddenly, both of their attention was caught by, what sounded like, a light chuckle over them... a light, yet low, dark, and unnerving chuckle. Slowly, the two of them looked up. What they found next caused Bolt's blood to turn cold.

There, hanging from the center of the dome-like ceiling, was a single red eye surrounded by nothing but the darkness overhead. Then, with the eye constantly facing the two of them, the figure that the eye belonged to started to move away from them, with the sound of thin metal clamping on the stone following the movement of the eye. Finally, when the figure was at the ground level, the figure was clear enough to be seen... but regardless of being visible, it was far from pleasant to witness.

The figure had the lower half of a spider with eight legs. The upper half, however, was more similar in shape to a minotaur, save for the head that was more flat, and almost shaped like an orc, but with one eye. It even had the two lower fangs pointing up, and protruding from its mouth.

At first, due to the shadows of the room, it appeared to have two thick arms... but when it was in the light of the center of the room, it turned out that it had three pairs of arms; two where its shoulders were, two right below the shoulders, and two on the sides of where its kidneys were, leaving two feet of space between the middle and lower pairs.

Along with revealing its arms, it also revealed another frightening detail to Bolt... it was completely armed to the teeth, and covered in thick dark blue plating from top to bottom, without even a single weak spot in sight, save for its one eye... and while it wouldn't be too much of a problem if it were Bolt's size, the fact that the figure towered over him by twice his height made it clear that this wasn't going to be easy.

Bolt quickly drew his sword and shield, and stood in a defensive position, while the mysterious arachnid figure lifted his (as Bolt thought considering the sound of its voice) four upper arms behind his back and drew four scimitars, while both of his lower arms reached his waist, and drew a battleaxe and a war hammer; all of which were colored similarly to his armor. Then, after raising all of his weapons in the air, he let out a loud war cry, before dashing towards Bolt at a surprisingly fast speed, despite the large amount of armor he was wearing.

ARACHNID KNIGHT: AHGG

Because of his fast speed, Bolt didn't have enough time to dodge-roll out of the way. Thankfully, though, his shield was drawn already, so he was still able to block the incoming war hammer that was on a collision course for his whole body. As soon as it was right in front of the shield, however, Bolt learned a quick lesson about the size of the tip of the hammer... it was as wide as his whole shield, and this creature was stronger than he looked.

After Ahgg's hammer hit Bolt's shield, he was quickly thrown to the left side of the room with his balance barely intact, and his left hand shaking with painful vibrations from the shield. Instead of rolling around on the ground in agony, though, he slid on the ground with his left leg behind him, his right knee bent to where it was nearly touching his chest, his left hand behind his back grasping onto the shield for dear life (knowing that it will come in handy big time), and his right hand grasping onto his sword, while his knuckles and the outer side of his sword's handle slid on the stone bricks beneath him to keep himself from falling on his face. Then, after his left leg hit the wall, he quickly stood back up and glared at Ahgg while raising his sword back up in a defensive position.

Summer started to sweat profusely as she stared at Ahgg's menacing arsenal of weaponry. "Bolt! I don't think your sword will be able to do anything, as long as he wears that armor!"

Bolt nodded his head and replied, "Yeah, I kinda noticed that! Any ideas?!"

Summer was about to reply, but was cut off by Ahgg roaring again, and dashing towards Bolt at another fast pace. This time, however, Bolt was more aware of his speed, and managed to roll towards the left; just narrowly dodging Ahgg's axe. Instead of stopping in front of the wall, however, Ahgg quickly lifted his two front-most legs and started to run on top of the wall; concealing himself in the shadows... which caused Bolt to gasp.

"Okay, that is just plain unfair!" Bolt complained before quickly running to the center of the room and looking around nervously on the ceiling, while Summer kept an extra eye behind him.

When she saw that he was about to crash into Bolt from the back, she quickly shouted, "BOLT! MOVE!"

As soon as she started yelling, Bolt kicked it into high gear and managed to roll out of the way in time, but not before getting nicked in the left shoulder by the axe.

Out of pain, Bolt grunted before looking at his shoulder. To his surprise, though, he felt the pain, but couldn't see any tears in the clothing.

Summer's eyes widened at that. "Bolt! I think your clothing is enchanted with a protection spell!"

Bolt chuckled before nodding his head. "Yeah, well I'm not about to risk that spell wearing off!"

Summer nodded her head and replied, "Yeah, I wouldn't, either! When clothing is enchanted with a Protection Spell, its effects usually come from the energy of the wearer! The more damage it absorbs, the more tired you will get... and if you pass out, the effects wear off!"

"Noted!" Bolt nervously stated before dodge-rolling another attempted tackle from Ahgg. Once again, though, Ahgg didn't stop, but instead climbed the walls towards the ceiling. "Okay, there has to be something I can use against this guy!"

Summer nodded her head. "Yeah, but while he's running so much, your Bow Bracelet won't be much help!"

Bolt tilted his head before asking, "Wait... he's armored though, isn't he?"

Summer shook her head. "Not his big gaping eye, though! I bet if you could stop him from moving, I could help you shoot his eye!"

That statement caused Bolt's eyes to widen in realization. "Summer, you're a genius!"

Summer didn't respond to that, but eyed him warily, as he sheathed his sword and reached into his pouch. "Um... Bolt?"

"I can't shoot a bow worth a flip, right?"

Summer rolled her eyes as she nodded her head, but continued to remain silent.

"But that doesn't mean there's nothing I can shoot with!"

"That's a double-negative, Bolt. What could you possibly have that you're... good... with?" She then planted her face in her right hoof. "Oh... right..."

With a sly grin, Bolt quickly pulled out his trusty camera and listened for the sounds of the armor clattering on the ceiling. Like last time, the sound was coming from behind him, which meant he was about to strike from the back.

"BOLT! HE'S RIGHT BEHIND YOU!" Summer shouted, to which Bolt nodded his head to.

Then, in the blink of an eye, Bolt turned around, lifted his camera in front of his face, and shouted, "SMILE!" At the click of a button, the flash of the camera filled the entire room. Out of a mix of surprise and pain, Ahgg roared, closed his eye, and dropped his weapons so he could rub his eye; completely unaware of the fact that he was still running. Then, right when he opened his eye back up, he was already too close to the wall for his front legs to start climbing, and he was moving too fast to stop himself from crashing directly into it.

As soon as he crashed into the wall, however, Bolt and Summer both noticed that his armor started to crack.

"Bolt!" Summer began, only to be interrupted by Bolt running forward and grabbing Ahgg's war hammer with both hands.

"Way ahead of you!" he stated before standing up... with the hammer tucked in his hands, his back arched down slightly, and his knees bent halfway down. "Good gosh, this is heavy!"

Without even waiting for Summer to reply, Bolt moved the head of the hammer behind his back and to his right, while Ahgg remained dazed and partially blinded by the flash of light and the impact on the wall. Then, with all his might, Bolt charged towards Ahgg and swung the war hammer to the left; clashing into Ahgg's armor between his middle and lower left arms. The impact caused his armor to crack even more. In the matter of seconds, Ahgg's scaly torso was now exposed.

Bolt smiled triumphantly before tossing the war hammer on the ground to his left and drawing his sword and shield again. (He had to put his shield away to hold onto the war hammer, after all.) Before he could even land a strike, however, Ahgg was no longer in his daze and quickly punched Bolt across the chest; causing him to fly across the room. This time, however, he did roll on the floor in agony.

"OW! CRAP, THAT'S GONNA LEAVE A MARK..." Bolt wheezed before looking at his unharmed chest. "Well... at least this tunic took the blow!" Then he yawned, which caused Summer's eyes to widen.

"BOLT! DON'T TAKE ANOTHER HIT LIKE THAT AGAIN!"

Bolt groaned before nodding his head. "Got it, mother!"

"I'M SERIOUS! YOU'RE GETTING TOO TIRED TO FIGHT!"

"Relax, already! Sheesh!" Bolt replied before standing back up just in time to see Ahgg standing in the center of the room with all four of his scimitars, his axe, and his war hammer already back in his hands, while he glared beneath his cracked helmet with his single eye that, at this point, looked red and irritated. Then he let out another roar before charging towards Bolt. This time, however, he was moving in a blurring speed... a speed Bolt wouldn't be able to dodge easily. "Ah, crap..."

After quickly dodging Ahgg's incoming downward thrust with all four of his scimitars by rolling to the left, Bolt raised his shield just in time to block another strike from the war hammer, and watch as Ahgg, now nearly twice as fast as he was a second ago, turn around and growl in frustration. "He's moving too fast! It's humanly impossible for me to catch up to him... unless..."

When Bolt finished mumbling to himself, he smiled slyly, and sheathed his sword again, which made Ahgg tilt his head in confusion, and caused Summer to breathe frantically. Then, as fast as his arms could move, Bolt drew the flower from his pouch and planted it on his forehead, while Ahgg began dashing towards him in the blink of an eye.

As soon as Ahgg was within range, he raised all six of his weapons up, only to drop them when the light that Bolt emitted upon transformation blinded him yet again, and caused him to completely miss the timberwolf that was now about to death-grip him in the throat with his fangs.

Letting out a vicious snarl, Bolt held on for dear life, while Ahgg roared and used all four of his upper arms to attempt to pull him off. When he was finally able to do so, however, he had to grip onto his neck with both of his upper arms, while he lifted two of his scimitars back up with his middle two hands.

After spitting out a hint of gray ash from his mouth, Bolt quickly removed the flower from his forehead, which blinded Ahgg once more by the resulting light, and put the flower away, while drawing his Grip Whip from his pouch, and his sword from his sheath. Then he slung the disc towards Ahgg's head, and managed to get a hold of his helmet. With a smile, he drew the disc back into the handle; pulling Ahgg's helmet off, and fully exposing his eye, which was now covered in tears, as he continued to try to readjust to the darkness once again with his upper arms, while he switched their places on his neck with his middle arms. Then Bolt quickly threw the helmet across the room, which caused Ahgg to blindly swing his war hammer and axe towards it, and smash it to pieces.

While Ahgg was distracted, Bolt quickly used the extra time to put his sword and Grip Whip away, and switch to his new toy; the Bow Bracelet. After drawing an arrow, Summer helped him aim towards the back of Ahgg's head, while Bolt whistled loudly. When Ahgg turned his head towards the source of the sound, Bolt released the arrow, which managed to hit Ahgg's eye directly in the center.

Letting out another loud roar, Ahgg dropped his axe and war hammer to attempt to pull the magic arrow out of his eye, all while Bolt put the Bow Bracelet back into his pouch and drew his sword and Grip Whip out once again. Out of his blind fit, though, Ahgg's back was facing Bolt now, which meant that he would have to strike him in the back. So, Bolt ran towards him and slung the disc onto the back of Ahgg's shoulder. Then he jumped up and pressed the red button; sending his feet on a collision course for Ahgg's back and his head. Then, as soon as he was able to deliver the extra-dazing high-speed kick, Bolt angled his sword towards the back of Ahgg's neck (the area between his shoulders, to avoid stabbing his own left foot) and said, "Lights out!" As soon as he finished saying that phrase, he thrust his sword into Ahgg's neck, which silenced him instantly, but caused his legs to flail about in every direction, before his upper torso fell on the ground (giving Bolt his cue to step off of him and put his weapons away) and rolled on his back. Then, with all of his arms now curled over his chest and neck, his spider-like legs all curled up, before he turned completely gray, and faded into a large pile of ash.

Bolt was breathing heavily after the battle. Summer flew out of his hair and appeared to be weakly smiling. "Hey, Bolt. You did good there... but maybe you should rest up for a little bit?"

Shaking his head, Bolt replied, "Sorry, Summer... but I gotta go get Twilight. You said there was a giant spider that caught her... unless that was it?"

Summer nodded her head and replied, "Yes, it was. I could remember the red eye, and the grunt that it made."

Letting out a yawn, Bolt looked at the pile of ash and smiled. "So all that's left is just to find Twilight, then... and since she isn't in any immediate danger, I guess a little rest wouldn't hurt." With that, he walked up to the wall and lied down on the ground below it, while Summer flew over him; emitting a peaceful glow. Then, ever-so-slowly, Bolt's eyelids felt more heavier, and in the matter of seconds, he was fast asleep.

After an hour of sleeping, Bolt yawned and stood back up, feeling slightly refreshed. Summer flew back into his hair before asking, "Sleep well?"

Bolt nodded his head and replied, "Yeah... could've used about ten more hours, but eh, it'll do for now." Then he looked at the gray ashes, and smiled. "Looks like that guy won't be abducting anyone else, now."

Summer looked at the ashes and shuddered at the sight. "Yeah... but now, all we have to do is figure out where he put Twilight and those eggs!"

Letting out a yawn, Bolt turned to leave, but was stopped by Summer saying, "Hey! What's that over there?"

When he turned around and looked towards where Summer was pointing, he walked up to the pile of ashes, and noticed that Ahgg's belt wasn't among the rest of the armor in the pile of ashes. With a raised eyebrow, Bolt knelt down and lifted the belt up before looking at Summer again. "A belt?"

Summer shook her head and smiled. "Not just any belt, Bolt! It's an Obsidian Belt! Put it on, and it'll guarantee your feet will stay grounded! Well... until you press the buckle in the center inwards, that is."

Bolt nodded his head and smiled. "Neat! Does it have any other benefits?"

She nodded her head in response. "Yeah! It's also a sturdy piece of armor! While it'll keep you grounded, it'll also enhance your strength, meaning if you grab onto something heavy, the pressure won't rip you in half!"

With a nervous gulp, Bolt scratched the back of his hair. "That's... good to know, at least." Then he pulled the strap open and clamped it over his waist. As soon as he did, the formerly black circular buckle started to glow white, which caught him by surprise. "Huh... is it on?"

Summer shrugged before replying, "I don't know... try moving!"

Bolt nodded his head and tried to move... but he couldn't even lift his foot off the ground. "What the-?!"

"Press the buckle in, then. It's like a button that turns its powers on and off accordingly."

Bolt did as requested, and tapped on the glowing white buckle. When he did, the buckle stopped glowing white, and was once more pitch black. Then when he tried to move, he sighed in relief when he found that he was able to again. "Hm... mix this with the Grip Whip, and I might be able to pull heavy things down!"

Summer chuckled. "Looks like there is a brain down there!"

With a laugh, Bolt shrugged his shoulders and replied, "Eh, it works on weekends, and only on Tuesdays and Saturdays."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know. It's Monday, so I'm not in charge of figuring that out until tomorrow."

They decided to end the conversation short and continue on with their exploration. After lifting the next door up and stepping forward, he examined the next room they were in.

There were several floating platforms over their heads that appeared to lead to another door. The platforms were all floating in the air like the ones below them. When they looked down, they noticed right away that they were back in the same room before fighting Ahgg, but this time, at the very top. Above their heads was another door, and on the other side of the room was another crystal that must've needed to be shot.

Pulling out his Bow Bracelet, Bolt looked at Summer who helped him aim correctly. "You know... I'm starting to think whoever made this place must've been a freakin' puzzle-lover."

Summer nodded her head and replied, "Maybe so... oh, and you're all set. Fire when ready!"

Bolt did as ordered and fired away. When he did, the platforms above their heads fell down, and started levitating at their floor level, while the dust from the ceiling above them blew away in the air. Then Bolt gulped before taking a deep breath and jumping onto the closest platform.

Looking up, Bolt noticed that the furthest platform appeared to have a pull-lever overhead. So, he put his Bow Bracelet away and drew his Grip Whip out of his pouch and slung the disc up and towards it. When it made contact with the lever, it stuck in place as anticipated... much to Bolt's and Summer's relief. Then Bolt pressed the red button and was quickly pulled onto the lever.

With his feet positioned downwards, Bolt used his left hand to press the button on the belt; making the buckle glow white, and causing the lever to quickly fall down with him still on board. Then, once the lever stopped falling any further, a loud click was heard from overhead, followed by the sound of, what appeared to be, cogs turning. When Bolt looked down, his eyes widened when he saw the platforms from down below were now rising up to the areas between the platforms up there. As soon as they were at the top floor, they turned out to be shaped perfectly into a whole floor.

Bolt released the lever and sighed in relief when he found that the floor was now a whole floor again. Then he turned to Summer and smirked. "Like I said... a 'puzzle-lover'."

Summer chuckled at the coincidence. "I guess you were right! Look out, Tartarus! You might feel a draft!"

Bolt chuckled at her and retorted, "Hey! I've been right before on multiple occasions!" Then he walked forward, and towards the stone platform from below that was in the center of the room. When he stepped on the magic symbol in the center of it, however, he didn't fall through it. Instead, though, a rainbow-colored, glass-like staircase appeared before them that led to the door ahead of the entrance.

Without hesitation, Bolt walked up the steps, and lifted the door before them. Then, when he walked in, he sighed at what the next room was.

"Great! More stairs!" he complained.

Summer shrugged her shoulders before replying, "At least they lead down, right? Maybe it'll take us somewhere new!"

Bolt groaned before quickly following the spiraled staircase downwards.

When they reached the bottom stairs, Bolt's eyes widened in relief at what the staircase led to. "Oh, THANK YOU!" he shouted as he stepped out of the stairway, and was now back into the Main Lobby.

Then he raised an eyebrow and turned back towards the room he came out of. "Hey, Summer? Wasn't that place locked by some sort of barrier?"

Summer shrugged her shoulders and replied, "The magic red shield-like thing? It must've been dispelled when you killed Ahgg, I guess."

Bolt nodded his head and turned towards the staircases that led up to the throne room. The crystal was still attached to it, and as such, it was still locked. Drawing his Bow Bracelet again, Bolt aimed up, let Summer help him with his aim, and released an arrow through the crystal; shattering it instantly, and causing the chains that held the door shut to disappear.

Gulping nervously, Bolt walked up the stairs and stood before the large stone double-doors. "Well... last room. This must be where Twilight is!"

With a nod, Summer replied, "Y-yeah... be careful, though. It may very well be a trap!"

Bolt decided to take precautions and put his Bow Bracelet away, then draw his sword and shield. Finally gathering up the rest of his courage, he pushed the doors open and stepped inside.

Right as soon as they were a few steps inside the room, the stone doors closed, and a red aura quickly encased it; causing Bolt and Summer to look back at it in unison, before gulping and looking forward.

There were a pair of thrones that rested on the top of a balcony that no longer had any stairs that led up to it. The balcony's stone fence-like wall was also broken in the center where something powerful must've hit it... but the lack of any debris made it appear as though the fence was broken for a long time.

In a small enclosed space at Bolt's and Summer's right, there was a room that appeared to be sealed shut by a red aura. Inside the space, however, was a sight that gave both Bolt and Summer the relief they needed for a long time.

"Twilight?! Twilight!" Summer shouted before flying up to the space.

From the other side of the space, the lavender alicorn looked up at them and gasped, before a wide smile formed on her face. "Summer! Bolt! Oh, thank Celestia you're here! You will not believe this, but..." she turned towards the other side of the small space, and looked at something in the shadows... or in this case, somepony.

Bolt and Summer followed Twilight's gaze and gasped when they saw a yellow-coated pegasus mare with a long pink mane and tail, and a pair of light blue eyes. What else caught their attention was that her wings were folded over her hooves, and a large egg the size of her body was covered by said wings to keep warm.

When she looked up at Bolt and Summer, her eyes widened and she let out a barely audible "Eep!"

Twilight smiled warmly at her and walked up to her. "It's okay, Fluttershy... they're here to help us!"

Fluttershy slowly looked up at Bolt and Summer again, who were smiling at her innocently, and nodded her head. "T-thank you... um... m-my name is Fluttershy." she said in a quiet tone.

Summer nodded her head and replied, "And I'm Summer! This big lug here is Bolt! He's good once you get to know him, so there's no need to be afraid of him."

Fluttershy nodded her head and weakly smiled. "I appreciate the gesture, but... Twilight wasn't able to dispel this barrier. S-she's trying, though."

Twilight nodded her head and turned back to Bolt and Summer. "Did... you happen to defeat that spider person?"

Bolt nodded his head and smiled. "Yeah. He won't be a threat to you all any longer."

Twilight smiled weakly. "T-thank you, Bolt. I... don't want to know how you managed to do it, but... I can see that you're full of surprises."

Summer nodded her head and was about to reply, but the sound of rocks falling in the center of the room caught all of their attention. Bolt turned around and quickly raised his shield, while side-stepping away from Twilight and Fluttershy, and back towards the entrance. If something were going to try attacking him, he didn't want to risk their safety, despite them being under a magic barrier.

Summer quickly flew back into Bolt's hair and stuttered, "B-Bolt? W-what... what do you think made that sound?!"

Bolt shrugged his shoulders and replied, "I have no idea... but whatever the case, it's clear we aren't alone in here."

More rocks began to fall from the ceiling, which caused Bolt and Summer to look up in unison. Then, when their eyes were focused on the ceiling, they started to wish they didn't.

From the darkness, a single red eye was staring at them... and following that, several more smaller red eyes did the same. Then, ever-so-slowly, the eyes all fell closer towards the ground level, until they were midway down. The rest of the way, the body they belonged to quickly flipped around, and started to fall quickly. When it landed, the floor shook at the impact, and caused Bolt to jump back and stare incredulously at the massive spider that filled most of the room.

The spider then turned around to where its head was facing them, and glared with its one eye on its head, while the other eyes on its neck followed suit. Then its four front legs lifted off the ground and started flailing greedily as it let out a loud roar and jammed its two front legs just a few meters around Bolt's left and right, with its drooling jaws hanging downwards, and its one menacing eye gazing directly at Bolt, who braced himself for combat.

Thinking quickly, Bolt sheathed his sword and drew his camera, then dodged Arachne's front right appendage that attempted to crush him from overhead by rolling to his left. Then Arachne looked his way and opened her jaws while he quickly clicked the button, and sent the flash of light onto her eye.

Arachne closed all of her eyes and roared in pain as she stepped back and shook her head to get the stars out from around her sight. This delay was enough for Bolt to put his shield and camera away and draw his sword and Grip Whip. Then he quickly slung the disc onto Arachne's back, and in the blink of an eye, he was directly over her one big eye with his sword ready to strike.

Without even the slightest bit of hesitation, he managed to strike her eye four times; causing it to blacken and disappear into dust, while she flailed around helplessly. Then Bolt raised his sword to stab beyond the eye socket, but before he could even start the strike, Arachne's lower legs arched up, and somehow, Bolt found himself flying towards the entrance, where he slid a couple meters before staring at the Grip Whip... and the fleshy attachment that was on it.

"THIS THING CAN FREAKIN' SHED IT'S SKIN?!" he shouted while Arachne roared again and climbed on top of the back wall.

With an intense glare, Bolt threw the chunk of skin off of the disc and looked around the ceiling for a way to get up there. Then Arachne did something that caused Bolt and Summer to stare dumbfounded at her... one of her smaller eyes sunk into her skull, and in the empty socket where her big eye used to be, a new one grew in its place. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Bolt complained. "There's too many small eyes to count! How can we possibly get this thing to die quickly?!"

Summer shrugged and replied, "M-maybe you could aim at the smaller eyes?!"

Bolt nodded his head and sheathed his sword and Grip Whip away. Then he pulled out his Bow Bracelet and took aim for the new big eye, and waited for Summer's directions. When ready, he shot another arrow which landed directly in Arachne's eye, and caused her to screech before losing her grip on the ceiling. Then, once she landed, Bolt quickly drew his sword and Grip Whip once more. This time, however, he didn't aim at the big eye, but instead started slicing at the smaller ones. At each hit, he was able to take out a lot of them. When he finished with his forth strike, he counted twenty (including the big one) when Arachne repeated her former shedding skill. This time, though, she didn't climb up the wall. Instead, she growled and began stomping her legs towards Bolt while he, in turn, used the Grip Whip to slide out of most of their locations, and rolled out of the others' ways.

After about a minute of dodging, Arachne shot a web up into the ceiling and climbed it quickly. Then she let out another roar, and in the matter of seconds, Bolt heard the floor on the other side break. When he looked down, he noticed three Midnight Goblins dug out of it, and were now after him to defend their queen; carrying heavy clubs and wooden tower shields.

Bolt glared at them before preparing his sword for a bath. Then he used his Grip Whip and slung it towards the center Goblin, who shielded it and caused the disc to stick onto his shield. Afterwards, Bolt jumped up and pressed the red button again; sending him flying towards the middle Goblin, while the other two lifted their clubs to strike at him.

When he was between them, however, they were too focused on him, and ended up bashing their friends' skulls, instead, while Bolt sliced at the third one's neck; sending the three of them down into three piles of dust.

Looking up, Bolt prepared to sling on top of the walls once more. Before he could even press the button, however, Arachne roared again. This time, however, no Midnight Goblins appeared. Instead, the walls crumbled around them, followed by the ceiling. When Bolt noticed this, he quickly ran around the room and managed to dodge the falling debris. Then, once he looked up again, he saw that Arachne was still up there; attached to a web she must've conveniently placed over the roof prior to this battle. At this point, Bolt was able to notice two giant trees that must've taken thousands of years to grow, due to their sheer size.

Bolt quickly looked towards where Twilight and Fluttershy were, and sighed in relief when he saw that they were unharmed, having been inside the shield wall that was now shaped up to be like a bubble. Bolt also noticed that the shield wall around the entrance was gone, but then again, so was the castle. Now, they were fighting on a huge stone platform in a thin strip of land surrounded by a thousand-foot drop.

Bolt growled as he saw Arachne hanging up there, while he was unable to do anything. "Darn it! Summer, any ideas?!"

Summer shook her head and replied, "I can't see how we can reach those trees, because they're on the other islands!"

As if on cue, the two of them heard a loud whistle from up above. Bolt turned to look, but saw nothing. Then Summer squinted her eyes, and gasped. "Bolt! Isn't your vision enhanced when you're a Timberwolf?"

Bolt nodded his head, sheathed his sword and Grip Whip, and pulled his flower from his pouch. Then, after making the quick transformation, he gasped when he saw the source of the whistle.

"ANGEL?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Bolt barked loudly.

Fluttershy gasped at that statement before turning her head towards where Bolt was facing... the tree on his far-right. "ANGEL?! ANGEL, YOU HAVE TO LEAVE, OR YOU'LL GET HURT!"

Bolt noticed Angel biting down on something from the distance, but he couldn't see what it was, due to the angle Angel was facing. Then, when Angel turned back around, he lifted a vine, and jumped from the branch; swinging on a rock that was tied at the center.

The vine was extremely long, but not long enough to reach the ground. Even so, the length of the vine was enough for a Grip Whip to latch onto the rock with... and Bolt's was the first one that came to his mind.

"Thanks, Angel! I owe you one! Now please get somewhere safe, while I finish this thing off!" Bolt barked to Angel, who nodded his head in response.

"You got it, Bolt! Good luck!" Angel replied before climbing on top of the branch overhead, and quickly scurrying back over to the other side of the gorge where it was safe.

Bolt then quickly changed back into his Human Form and drew his sword and Grip Whip. Then he slung the disc onto the rock at the tip of the vine and flung upwards. Afterwards, he started to swing back and forth, with each swing getting even closer to Arachne, who still hasn't moved yet, due to the fragile nature of her webs. Then, when he was within reach, Bolt quickly released the disc from the rock, and sent it onto Arachne's back.

The foreign contact caused Arachne to flinch and attempt to reach her free legs after him to strike him while he dangled loosely. Bolt began to sweat nervously before looking up at Summer. "Um, Summer! Any ideas?!" He noticed that all of Arachne's eyes were closed, so he was unable to strike them directly... plus, he caught onto her back too far for the sword to reach, anyways.

Summer thought for a moment before replying, "Your belt! It increases your weight, doesn't it?!"

Bolt gasped before a smile formed on his face. "That's right! Thanks!" Then he looked up at Arachne and pressed the red button; sending him right there on her back. Shortly after pressing the button, he also noticed that two of her legs were now bashed together where he was just mere moments ago, so he sighed in relief at the narrow escape. He then pressed the buckle of his belt inwards, which instantly made the extra weight tear Arachne's web, and cause the two of them to fall in midair.

Arachne's legs rotated to allow her to land on them, but even so, the new weight that Bolt possessed caused all of her legs to stretch out, while she was unable to strike at him. Then he released the disc and threw it closer to her head and slid back up to striking distance.

In his first strike with his sword, he sliced through the ten remaining eyes on the right half of her neck.

In his second strike with his sword, he sliced through the nine at her left.

In his third strike, he managed to destroy the big eye, leaving the socket there for the final strike.

For his forth and final strike, he lifted the sword up in the air and let out a loud battle cry before piercing the sword through the socket, and causing Arachne's upper torso to fall limp on the ground, while her lower half started flailing rapidly.

Arachne let out a loud hiss and a roar once again, while Bolt pulled his sword out of her skull and sheathed it, along with the Grip Whip. Then he pressed the belt's buckle once more and jumped from Arachne's back, then watched as her upper torso lifted into the air. Afterwards, she fell on her back, while her legs flailed helplessly closer to her chest, until they stopped moving, and ended in a curled-out position. Then her legs quickly turned gray, followed by her body, and ending at her head. Finally, after another five seconds of just sitting there, her legs fell inwardly like a hollowed-out shell breaking, and in the blink of an eye, a large pile of dust was all that remained.

Bolt breathed heavily before turning towards Twilight and Fluttershy, who were no longer bound inside the shield bubble. Then he smiled and walked up to them, while Summer flew ahead of him and cheered.

"Twilight! You're alive!"

Twilight chuckled before nodding her head. "Yeah, but it's all thanks to you two! If you both haven't shown up, then I... I don't know what would've happened!"

When Bolt was close enough, he noticed that there were tear stains below her eyes. It was clear that she's been crying for a long time... and considering the fact that she addressed the other pony by name, some of them must've been tears of joy for seeing her lost friend, Fluttershy.

Bolt was so lost in thought, that he didn't notice the lavender blur flying his way. When he got a chance to see, Twilight held him in a death-grip of a hug, while crying on his shoulders. He raised an eyebrow before lightly chuckling and patting her on the back. "Hey, Twilight! Looks like you were wrong!"

Her ears perked up at that comment. "W-what... do you mean, exactly?"

Bolt grinned and replied, "We made it out of here alive! And we've found one of your friends, as well!"

Twilight sniffled a few times before nodding her head and flying backwards. "Y-yeah... you're right! I... was wrong!" Then she gave him a playful glare. "But don't think I'll let that be a habit, mister!"

Bolt nodded his head and replied, "You got it, Missy!" Then he turned towards Fluttershy and knelt down to the ground level. "Hey, Fluttershy! My name's Bolt... it's nice to meet you!"

Fluttershy weakly flinched down at her name being mentioned, but she bowed her head politely, while still holding the egg carefully. Bolt noticed it right away, and raised both eyebrows in surprise.

"Is that... one of Sylvannia's eggs?!" Summer asked before flying closer to the said egg.

Fluttershy nodded her head and replied, "I-if you mean the Quarray Eel that those monsters were taunting, then... y-yes." She then closed her eyes as tears began falling from them. "T-they already ate the rest of them... but I managed to keep them from getting to this one. It's the last one of them all, unfortunately."

Bolt sighed deeply and nodded his head. "Dang... I hope she'll be okay."

Twilight nodded her head and replied, "Well, we can't just sit here and stall! We have to find the Harmonic Acorn, and return it to the Tree of Harmony!"

Bolt nodded his head and turned towards the pile of dust. When he looked at it, though, he noticed a white glow coming from inside the dust. Quickly he ran up to it and dug through the dust, then pulled his hand out, with the second Harmonic Acorn clenched inside his hand. With a smile, he placed it in his pouch and turned to Twilight. "Done! Now, we just need to find a way back to the other side!"

Once again, they were cut off by another sound in the distance. Looking towards the tree where Angel set up the vine, Bolt, Summer, Twilight, and Fluttershy noticed the tree was starting to fall. When it did, it landed across the gorge, in the form of a makeshift bridge for them to cross. Bolt looked towards the other side and saw Sylvannia looking at them from the hole where the tree once was.

Fluttershy was hiding behind Twilight, who smiled and patted her on the back. Bolt smiled and waved at Sylvannia, who bowed her head respectfully and waited for them to finish up with what they were doing.

"Looks like Sylvannia's already here." Bolt said before reaching into his pouch and pulling his flower back out. "I'll give you all a lift up there... maybe then, we can go to the Tree of Harmony much quicker."

Twilight nodded her head and smiled. "Good idea, Bolt."

Then, after another flash of light, Bolt was in his Timberwolf form once again. He crouched down and allowed Twilight and Fluttershy to hop on his back while Fluttershy gently tucked the egg between her chest and Twilight's wings. Afterwards, Bolt crossed the tree bridge carefully for the sake of the egg and the passengers.

Bolt looked worriedly at Sylvannia, as her tears fell from her eyes. They just told her about her eggs, and what had happened to them. "I wish we got there sooner... but if what Fluttershy said was true, then we were already too late the moment we arrived."

"Thou hasss my thanksss, Bolt... and thy friendsss, as well. At least... thou managed to sssave one... and for that, I shall forever be grateful." Sylvannia weakly stated.

Bolt shook his head and replied, "With all due respect, Sylvannia, I can't take all the credit. Fluttershy was the one who guarded it while she was held captive."

Sylvannia nodded her head and smiled at Fluttershy. "And thou can underssstand me?"

Fluttershy weakly nodded her head and replied, "Y-yes, m-ma'am."

Sylvannia chuckled before bowing her head. "Then thou art truly more braver than thou appears. I beg of thee, do not fear me, for I am forever grateful for thy courage!"

Fluttershy weakly nodded her head and smiled. "Y-yes, ma'am... t-thank you, M-Miss Sylvannia."

Sylvannia chuckled before shaking her head. "Please, young one, no need for formalities! Thou art a friend of mine, now!"

Twilight was receiving translations from Summer throughout the entire conversation. She then decided to ask, "Um... Miss Sylvannia?"

Sylvannia looked at Twilight and chuckled. "And the same to thee as well, Princess Twilight Sparkle!"

When Summer translated that to Twilight, she blushed. "Um... and to you as well, Sylvannia! You don't have to call me Princess!" Then she and Sylvannia lightly chuckled. "Anyways... I was wondering if you might be able to help us get to the Tree of Harmony?"

Sylvannia hummed for a moment before smiling and nodding her head. "But of course! First things first, though... I hath to take my egg to my nessst for sssafety. Then, I shall return ssswiftly!"

With a nod of approval from everyone, she gently picked her egg up with her tongue, and sunk her head back in the ground. Then Bolt and the others decided to sit and wait for when she returned.

Once again, we were at a resting point, eager for the next step this journey would take. Little did we know, however, that this next step was going to turn the tide of this journey... ...and NOT in a good way...

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~TO BE CONTINUED~

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Author's Notes:

After a couple months of endless brain-farts, hand-cramps, colds, coughs, sneezes (which sucked, by the way!), and the occasional block that was quickly jack-hammered through, I've finally gotten Episode FIVE released!

At the moment, it's been unedited, so please forgive any grammar mistakes! Also, I've had to stop it back-and-forth, so if there are any situations that conflict with something that happened earlier, please let me know in the comments section, and I'll get it squared away!

Also, since this Dungeon Chapter was so long, I might stretch the time between this one and the next one a little more, so that I can get more updated quicker, and with less time in-between! (Oh, and one more thing! If you want a heads-up on what to expect next, highlight the space right after the last sentence in Bolt's first-person monologue above!)