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The Secret of Sun Cloak

by Flame Runner

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Message

To her most esteemed royal majesties Princesses Celestia and Luna,

After many months of intense research I have finally been able to compile an adequate account of the recent “Great Hunt” (as it has now been labeled). This is, to my knowledge, the most accurate account of said “Hunt” to date. You see, it all began in a dressmaker’s shop of all places…

Chapter 1: The Message

Rarity, a magnificent white unicorn with purple hair as majestic as the sea, was hard at work piecing together another of her fabulous dresses. A recent burst of creativity had left her sketch book full of brilliant new designs. She turned to glance at the open book, lying on a nearby table, and then back at her half finished dress.

“It needs something more…” mused the fashionista. “Oh! Diamonds should do the trick.”

She turned toward her jewel box. Only one gemstone kept it from being completely empty.

“I shall have to find some more jewels soon. Opal, remind me to grab some jewels tomorrow.”

Opalescence, Rarity’s pet cat, purred gently as she napped in the sunlight. The unicorn’s horn glowed with magic and a similar shimmer encased the beautiful crystal.

“My last diamond,” pouted Rarity, “but it shall look splendid on this dress.”

She put the gemstone snugly on the unfinished gown.

“It’s perfect!” she squealed happily. “Now where did I put that ribbon?”

The unicorn spun in circles looking for her missing cloth when the diamond started to glow again, but not by Rarity’s magic.

“That’s peculiar,” pondered Rarity, who leaned in closer to the shimmering gem.

The diamond began to hum and then to spark as the glow surrounding the jewel grew ever brighter. A sudden flash of light from the gemstone caught Rarity off guard and she jumped back with a high-pitched squeal. From within the diamond appeared a small, three-dimensional image. It was the picture of a yellow unicorn stallion with deep brown hair. He appeared to be elderly, and yet sturdy on his feet. On his back was a cloak which shimmered as invisible light bounced off of its rich red, blue, and gold threads. The image was almost transparent, but could be easily seen at the same time.

“Hello,” spoke the stallion, looking at nowhere in particular. “I am Sun Cloak and if you’re receiving this message then perhaps Equestria is finally ready for what I have so longed to give it. Please, do not be alarmed at my sudden appearance; all of Equestria should be seeing the same thing, if my magic worked correctly. I have long since passed away, but will offer one final puzzle to those who remain behind. I, Sun Cloak, have hidden away my greatest treasure and it is available to any who would like to claim it. However, you must solve my riddles to find it. I am sure that many of you are wondering what exactly is happening, so I will give you twenty-four hours to perform research and look into these things before I offer the first clue. Good luck.”

The image sputtered and faded from view. Rarity stood transfixed in shock. Suddenly her shock gave way and the unicorn bolted from her boutique screaming, “M-Mayor! Twilight! Anypony!”

* * * * * * * * *

The entire village was gathered outside Town Hall to hear Mayor Mare speak. Ponies everywhere had seen the enigmatic Sun Cloak appear through crystals of all shapes and sizes to speak his message. Ponyville was in an uproar and order was hard to come by for the distraught Mayor.

“Settle down everypony! We have our best researcher looking into this mystery. Just calm down.”

The crowd would not be calmed however, and the Mayor was forced to keep shouting for the next few minutes until the brilliant unicorn scholar, Twilight Sparkle, came onto the stage. Instantly questions began to flood the air:

“Do you know what’s going on?”

“What are we to do?”

“Is there really a treasure?”

“Will my family be safe?”

Twilight silenced them quickly.

“Citizens of Ponyville!” proclaimed the purple mare and the crowd hushed to an uneasy silence. “What we have all just witnessed is unprecedented. A unicorn from many decades ago has left us a message about a hidden treasure. From my research, this unicorn was known in history as Sun Cloak the Gifted. It is said that he found a way to enchant jewelry in such a fashion as to allow even earth ponies to perform small feats of magic. However, he buried himself alive underneath a great mountain and his wisdom died with him. If this really is Sun Cloak and his message is true, then the treasure is assuredly beyond value. But be warned anypony who wants to search for the elusive treasure, for he was a powerful unicorn and the search for his treasure is sure to be highly dangerous.

Furthermore, from recent observation, it appears that Sun Cloak is able to communicate through gemstones. Unfortunately, I have been unsuccessful in determining how this is possible. My recommendation is to wait the twenty-four hour period he assigned before anypony begins to freak out. Be at ease that Sun Cloak seems only to offer a treasure hunt and that nopony is in immediate danger. That is all the information I have gathered so far, but I will continue to look further into the matter.”

Twilight turned from the crowd and began walking away. Regrettably, the mass of ponies only became more clamorous after her announcement. The Mayor was left to organize Ponyville back to some sense of order, even though the task seemed hopeless. However, she was relieved to find that the mass was slowly dispersing, each leaving for their own homes to speak of treasure, the mysterious Sun Cloak, and to determine if perhaps they could seek after the prize themselves.

* * * * * * * * *

In the town library Twilight was pouring over old history texts as her young dragon helper, Spike, hovered over her shoulder.

“Anything new?” asked the purple dragon.

“Spike, you asked me that just five minutes ago.”

“I know. I know. But it’s too exciting! An ancient unicorn, buried treasure, and a full fledged treasure hunt!” Spike was practically bouncing off the walls.

“Urgh!” moaned Twilight as slammed the tome she had been reading shut. “All of these books say the same thing: A powerful unicorn, myth of enchanted jewelry, buried himself. I need more information!”

Twilight stamped her hoof on the floor right as a loud knock came from the library door.

“Oh no! Twilight, it has to be the townsponies! We need to get out of here quick, before they flood the whole library! ”

“Let’s see what they want first.”

“You already know what they want. They either want to know where the treasure is, if it exists, or who Sun Cloak is, but we don’t know yet! Send them away before things get out of control!”

Despite Spike’s insistence, Twilight calmly opened the door. Standing outside were all of Twilight’s best friends: Rarity, Pinkie Pie an earth pony as pink as her name, Applejack an orange farm pony, Fluttershy a yellow pegasus, and Rainbow Dash a cyan pegasus with rainbow hair.

“Hi girls! I called for you an hour ago. What took you so long?” Twilight beamed.

“Mass of ponies…talk of treasure…not a good combo,” was all Rainbow could breathe out.

“Well, come in fast! Before Spike has a heart attack.”

Twilight shut the door quickly and the friends gathered around to speak, but, before a word could be uttered, Spike’s eyes went wide and he clawed at his stomach. Seconds later he belched forth a pale green flame. The ponies watched in anticipation as a scroll materialized through the fire and dropped to the floor.

“A message from Princess Celestia!” Twilight shouted excitedly.

She levitated the letter to her face and began to read aloud, “Twilight Sparkle and friends, I am sure that you are all aware of Sun Cloak’s message. Somehow his challenge has gone across all of Equestria and he has promised to speak again in only a few hours. Because of these recent events I am hereby calling you all to Canterlot where we may discuss these matters in private. Even as you read this, my charioteers are coming to pick you up. Please, prepare yourselves quickly. I want you all here before Sun Cloak’s next message arrives. Signed, Princess Celestia.”

“What?! Get packed for a visit to Canterlot with such short notice?” cried Rarity. “I shall have to work quickly. Goodbye girls!”

“Now wait, I think we need to-” started Twilight, but it was too late. Her friends had departed in an instant to grab their things. “-make a plan.”

“Don’t worry Twilight,” comforted Spike, “you’ll have plenty of time to plan on the ride to Canterlot.”

She sighed, “You’re right Spike. Come on, we need to get packed ourselves.”

The duo began to grab their things and stuff them into Twilight’s saddlebag as the clock ticked away. They knew that with each passing second the chariots were drawing ever closer to the small town of Ponyville.

* * * * * * * * *

“Everypony ready?” asked Twilight as her friends gathered around the large golden transports. A few encouraging nods told her that they were set. “Alright then, next stop: Canterlot!”

The six ponies and Spike boarded the chariots, manned by powerful pegasi, and rose quickly into the air.

“What do you think Princess Celestia could want us for?” Rarity asked Twilight.

“I really have no idea.”

“I don’t know about you all, but I’m up for a treasure hunt,” declared Rainbow Dash.

“Ooo! Ooo! I bet the treasure is really shiny!” said Pinkie happily.

“So, what would you guys do if you found the treasure?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“I would make the finest dresses Equestria has ever seen! And I would never have to go out hunting for gems again,” declared Rarity exuberantly.

“I would throw a party!” declared Pinkie.

“Pinkie, is that your answer for everything?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Yup!”

“Right,” said the cyan Pegasus flatly.

“I know what I would do with it,” stated Spike. “I would eat it. I’ll bet gems that old have to be a delicacy or something.”

“I’m sorry to burst all your bubbles,” spoke Twilight, “but Celestia probably just wants us to get some research done and put any silly rumors to bed. Don’t get any grand ideas of treasure hunting and glory.”

Yet the ponies kept up their talk of treasure hunting and glory as the charioteers flew swiftly through the evening until they arrived at the famed mountain city of Canterlot.

* * * * * * * * *

Princess Celestia and her sister, Princess Luna, had been patiently waiting for the small party to arrive. The doors to the Princess’ throne room were flung wide open and the group ran in.

“Welcome all of you,” Celestia began graciously. “Allow me to get right to it: Sun Cloak’s message has placed my sister and I in a tough situation. Ponies all over Equestria have heard the news of the treasure. Many will surely try for the prize and could be in grave danger if they attempt to do so. Luna and I have talked it over and have selected you all to hunt for it as our specially designated team.”

“Beyond this, I have created a glorious team name for thou!” Luna beamed brightly, “Thou shalt be the Royal Treasure Seekers!”

Twilight opened her mouth, but was cut off by Celestia.

“Before you speak I want you to hear us out. We have many brave guards willing to go, but I know that we will need them in the days to come. A nation wide treasure hunt will surely bring turmoil and the chaos will need to be reigned in before it becomes problematic. You all have proven yourselves to be brave, loyal, and true in the face of grave danger. We would be honored if you would accept and go as the Royal Treasure Seekers. This treasure must be kept from evil hands or else disaster could come upon Equestria. Are you all up to the task?”

“Are we ever!” shouted Rainbow Dash.

“Very well then, the resources of Canterlot are at your disposal. I suggest that you all get a good night sleep before the riddle comes tomorrow morning. We will meet you here at that time. Good luck, my little ponies.”

Chapter 2: The Riddle

Chapter 2: The Riddle

Equestria seemed to be having difficulty sleeping that night. All of the houses stayed lit much longer than usual and whispers of gold and jewels could be heard into the wee hours of the morning. Even with all of the excitement though, the small group staying in Canterlot Castle managed to catch a few hours of shuteye before the sun raised its head over the horizon. After a quick breakfast, the friends headed to the throne room where they found the Princesses waiting for them to arrive. Also present was a new piece of furniture, an elegant round table with a large sapphire placed directly in the middle. Another new addition to the room were the fully armed guards who surrounded the outer edges of the entire throne room. The guards were constantly looking out the large glass windows nervously, as if a swarm of equines could burst forth at a moment’s notice.

“Welcome!” greeted Princess Celestia. “I hope you all slept well. You will notice the large gem sitting on the table. This is one of the many jewels from which Sun Cloak appeared yesterday. We now have only to wait for the appointed time.”

And wait they did, for Sun Cloak waited the entire twenty-four hour period he promised. It wasn’t until some time into the afternoon that the large jewel sputtered to life with an ancient glow. A low hum came from the sapphire and small sparks crackled until they became a bright flash of light. When the light faded Sun Cloak the Gifted was again standing before the ponies in his semi-transparent state.

“Good morning…or afternoon…or evening. I don’t particularly know when this message will reach you all so, good whenever-it-is to you all. I hope that the twenty-four hours allotted yesterday was enough time to allow you prepare. Now, before I give the first riddle I would like to go over a few ground rules. Firstly, a warning: I have done everything in my power to ensure a clean competition so be aware that attempting to cheat will be met with severe consequences. Second, I mentioned that anypony is able to hunt for my treasure and, while this is true, only the first seven teams to solve this riddle will be able to continue. Lastly, I want you all to understand my intentions for this contest. During my life my treasure would have been used poorly. I hope that time and the coming challenges will allow only a worthy team to retrieve my treasure and use it properly. And now, on to the riddle; since this is the first one I will make it fairly simple. I hope you have something to write with or have a good memory…‘Here it begins; where I shut them in; to the world I died.’ Good luck, Equestria.”

The image faded as the glow around the sapphire died. The throne room resounded with the sound of many hushed conversations. Even the guards had their thoughts on the matter.

“What in tarnation is that suppose to mean?” bemoaned Applejack.

“Quick! We need to get to a race track!” shouted Pinkie as she sped off and grabbed a schedule of Equestrian sporting events from who knows where.

“A racetrack?” asked Rarity, “Why, whatever for?”

Pinkie popped her head up from searching the sports list.

“Didn’t you hear him? He said, “here it begins” and you always begin at the starting line and they have starting lines at race tracks.”

She then went right back to scanning the paper and mumbling names of racetracks to herself.

“Um…I don’t know if that’s right Pinkie. You know, maybe,” Fluttershy tried to get her head around the sports list that Pinkie kept turning around and around.

“Hmm…he said that he shut something in and that it begins there. What kinds of things do you shut in?” offered Spike.

“Heifers!” shouted Applejack and she stomped a hoof on the floor resolutely.

“Huh?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Ya’ know: cows. We shut ‘em in our barn every night. I say we take a look at some farms.”

“Hmm…A racetrack at a farm…” murmured Pinkie, who continued to look over her brochure.

“But what about the last part? About him dying to the world?” commented Twilight.

“Did he die on a farm? Oh! How dreadful!” cried Rarity.

“If he did die on a farm it wasn’t because of the animals, all of the farm animals I know are kind and gentle,” Fluttershy defended.

“I don’t know if we’re getting anywhere useful,” Twilight shook her head. “Princess Celestia, is there anything you know that could help us?”

They all looked to the Princess of the day, except for Pinkie Pie who continued to rotate her sport schedule around and around. Celestia stood still and closed her eyes, she appeared to be deep in thought. Finally, she spoke.

“I don’t know how helpful it is, but I should make you all aware that I knew Sun Cloak.”

“You…knew him?” asked Spike.

“Well, I shouldn’t quite say that. It’s more that I knew of him, but I did meet him once many, many years ago.”

“Does that mean that you know the answer to the riddle?” asked Rarity.

“No. I am sorry to say that I do not, but I thought you may like to be aware of this fact in case it becomes useful later.”

“Perhaps I could be of assistance,” Luna spoke up.

The group turned their attention to the Princess of night.

“Of course! You must have met him too!” replied Twilight happily.

“No, Twilight Sparkle, I did not. He lived and died during the time I was sealed in the moon. But I have been thinking upon the last phrase, ‘To the world I died’. That sounds like something that would be recorded in a history book. If thou couldst use the Archives thou might be able to find out where Sun Cloak met his end.”

“That’s a great idea!” exclaimed Twilight.

She took off for the Royal Archives and the others followed closely behind, but Pinkie Pie didn’t notice and remained pouring over her sporting events brochure.

“Neighbraska Stadium!” shouted Pinkie suddenly.

The pink mare looked up from her paper with a bright smile and saw only the two Princesses looking at her, a bit startled.

“Umm…”

“The library,” Celestia answered the unasked question.

Pinkie took off running, leaving her brochure to fall to the floor. Luna glanced down and then her eyes lit up brightly. She levitated the brochure to her face.

“Oh, sister look! The Phoenixes are playing the Comets next Tuesday.”

* * * * * * * * *

“Let’s see ‘Q’… ‘R’… ‘S’. Here’s the ‘S’ section, let’s see if ‘Sun Cloak’ is on any of these books,” Twilight thought aloud.

“Oh! Twilight! I found something!” shouted Spike happily. The young dragon’s book finding skills were top notch thanks to his assistance at the library in Ponyville. He held out a dusty tome titled, “The Tragedy of Sun Cloak”.

“Perfect! Thank you Spike!” said the happy unicorn as her magic yanked the book from the dragon’s claws.

She flipped it open.

“It looks like an epic poem.”

“An epic poem? Is that like a poem that’s put to really loud music?” asked a certain pink pony.

“No, it’s a long story written entirely as a poem,” corrected Fluttershy.

“That’s right Fluttershy! I’m quite impressed,” Twilight praised her yellow friend. “Now, epic poems are usually just fables and myths, but there’s always a grain of truth hidden away in them,” lectured Twilight.

The purple unicorn skimmed through the tale quickly. She mumbled a few words as the myth unfolded: “war”, “dragons”, “city”, “jewels”, “forbidden love”, “magic necklace”, “mountain”, “traitor”.

“So, what’s it say?” asked Rainbow Dash as Twilight shut the tome.

“There wasn’t much of use, but I paid special attention to the last few pages. It tells of Sun Cloak’s final act: to crumble an entire mountain upon a unicorn city made of nothing but crystals. He was in the city when the mountain fell and died within it. In the end he was branded a traitor for his actions and written out of most histories.”

“A city made purely of crystal? That sounds like the Crystal Empire!” voiced Rarity.

“Well, I suppose that answers the riddle,” said Applejack.

“Sounds good! Let’s get a move on!” Rainbow Dash blurted.

“No. Wait,” Twilight stopped her rainbow maned friend short. “Remember what Princess Luna said? She wasn’t around when Sun Cloak was alive.”

“So what?” Dash interjected.

“So, the Crystal Empire vanished for a thousand years and just recently came back. Sun Cloak couldn’t have been to the Crystal Empire or even known it existed!”

“Oh…That’s a good point,” Rainbow agreed.

The library was silent for a few moments.

“What now?” Spike finally spoke up.

“Oh! Oh!” Rarity suddenly got excited. “Princess Luna might not have been around, but Princess Celestia was! If there was another city made of nothing but crystals she would surely know about it!”

“Rarity, that’s brilliant!” Twilight jumped for joy.

“Come on y’all! What are we waitin’ for?”

Applejack charged back to the throne room with the other following close behind.

* * * * * * * * *

“A crystal city?” mused Celestia. “And you say that it’s not part of the Crystal Empire? Hmm…I must say, I don’t recall such a place.”

The group looked downcast at the bad news.

“But don’t let that be the end of it,” the Princess continued, “is there anything else you can tell me about this place?”

“The book claimed that the city was situated on a tall mountain and that many waterfalls flowed through it,” Twilight added somewhat dejectedly.

The Princess closed her eyes and sat in thought for a moment.

Guards were constantly moving around the room, whispering news to the others and clanking around in their shimmering armor Pinkie noticed that a few guards had surrounded the circular table from before and appeared to be pointing at some form of map. “Fillydelphia,” claimed one of the warriors as he pounded the map with a hoof, “we need support in Fillydelphia. There’s a group of hooligans stirring up the city and-”

A sudden burst of laughter from Celestia cut through the guard’s voice.

“Princess, what is it?” asked Twilight alarmed.

“I just figured out the riddle. I’m a little surprised you didn’t solve it first Twilight. After all, you’ve been there.”

“What? I have? Where?”

“The answer is Canterlot!” declared the Princess emphatically. “Deep beneath Canterlot are caves full of gemstones. Many years ago, the caves were discovered and masses of ponies came from all over Equestria to claim their wealth, but a massive earthquake sealed the caverns deep below the ground and took most of the original city with it. Years later, the Canterlot you know was built on top of those old caves. Only a few even know the caves exist so it looks like Sun Cloak’s first riddle wasn’t as easy as he thought it was.”

“Of course! The Changeling Queen trapped me in those caves!” Twilight’s eyes went wide with the revelation.

“Did you say ‘crystal caves’?” Rarity asked. “As in ‘crystal caves’ crystal caves?”

Celestia smiled and nodded.

“Then what we waiting for? There are gems to be found!”

“But, how are we supposed to get into the caves exactly?” asked Spike.

“There is one entrance I know of at the bottom of the mountain. I will have my charioteers take you down there,” replied Celestia.

“Aw yeah! Now we get to do some real treasure hunting!” cried Rainbow Dash with joy.

* * * * * * * * *

The party boarded one of the large chariots and was quickly whisked to the foot of the enormous mountain. The charioteers dropped them off at a small, natural entrance into the massive stone and then flew back up to Canterlot.

“I don’t know…it’s so dark in there,” Fluttershy voiced her concern as she peeked into the mouth of the cave.

“I’ll bet it’s not that dark in there,” declared Pinkie as she bounced in. “Oh, nope. It is that dark!”

Then she giggled and it echoed off the walls somewhat eerily.

“I-I think I’ll just stay out here, if that’s ok with you.”

“Boo!” yelled Rainbow Dash from behind.

“Eeep!” shrieked Fluttershy and jumped backward into the mouth of the cave.

“That wasn’t so hard, now, was it Fluttershy?” asked Rainbow as she strolled casually in.

“Ok, I’m in the cave. I can do this. Be brave Fluttershy, be brave,” the yellow pony spoke to herself and inched forward with eyes closed.

“Let me get some light,” Twilight said.

Her horn began to glow and illuminated the cavern walls. The purple-tinted light spilled into the cave and showed a tiny, winding passage further into the mountain.

“Alright! Let’s find some treasure!” Spike dashed forward but halted in his tracks when he heard Rarity speak up.

“Step aside, this is my time to shine,” declared the fashionista.

The white unicorn’s horn began to shimmer. All along the walls, small pockets of precious stones became visible even through the hard earth. The further into the mountain the group moved, the larger the stones became. Soon, the party was surrounded by walls of pure crystal. Twilight’s light bounced playfully off of the shiny gems and cast strange shadows along the walls. At first the group “Ooo”d and “Ahh”d at the sight but, even surrounded by the enchanting crystals, they soon realized that they had no idea what they were looking for. The twisting passageways and confusing reflections only meant that the group became lost more quickly than they thought possible.

“We’ve been in here for hours!” complained Rainbow Dash.

“And here I thought you actually wanted to hunt for Sun Cloak’s treasure,” said Rarity pointedly.

Her horn was still ablaze and she was even sweating and panting.

“Besides, I’m doing all the hard work. Do you know how difficult it is to keep a spell up for this long?”

“Alright y’all. We haven’t even officially started this here treasure hunt and we’re already at each other’s throats. Let’s jus’ sit down and take a breather,” Applejack suggested.

They all agreed with a contented sigh and slumped to the floor.

“I just had an idea. What if THIS is Sun Cloak’s treasure?” asked Spike as she lay on the ground and waved to the enormous gemstones.

“As great as that would be Spike, Sun Cloak said that only seven teams could continue on the hunt,” replied Twilight. “I think that pretty much everypony could come in here and take something. I don’t think that he meant the Crystal Caves.”

“Surrounded by the most beautiful gems in Equestria and I have nothing to carry them with! Such a shame,” pouted Rarity.

It was then that her horn blazed to life and yanked her to her feet. Her own magic then began to drag the prissy unicorn down the passages at a blinding speed.

“Rarity!” wailed Spike.

“Quick! After her!” urged Twilight.

They chased after their white friend, down and around several curving passageways. A few times they lost sight of her and had to follow the sound of her screaming as she was forced to fly toward some unknown destination. Shortly, however, the chase came to an end. The party had come to an opening unlike any before it.

It seemed to have been hollowed out by a living creature. The ceiling became rounded, like a dome, and the floor had been smoothed out. Circling the center of the room were seven stone pedestals and in the center was another pedestal with a large ruby placed on top. Rarity lay sprawled out before the central pedestal and her horn was no longer glowing.

“Stupid horn, dragged me all the through those dusty floors!” whined the unicorn as her friends helped her to her feet.

As she brushed herself off, a spark jumped from the ruby and a low hum echoed off of the cavern walls. A short flash blinded the ponies for a moment but, when they recovered, Sun Cloak’s translucent form was standing before them.

“Greetings,” began the unicorn, “you have solved the first riddle and are ready to begin the real hunt. On each of the pedestals behind me you will find a small gem. In order to continue the hunt you will need one of these crystals, please pick one up and make sure everyone in your party touches it.”

The Royal Treasure Seekers walked carefully up to one of the stone pedestals and grabbed a small ruby that was lying on its surface. Each one touched the gem, as Sun Cloak had instructed. Twilight glanced at the other pedestals and noticed something slightly disturbing.

“Girls,” she whispered, “two of the other pedestals are empty. I don’t think we were the first ones here.”

Before any of the others could respond, Sun Cloak spoke again.

“Now that you have all touched the stone, its magic will only react to your team. The gem that you have chosen is connected to your party until the hunt has ended. This is to ensure that no foul play can occur. The other gems on the other pedestals will not react to you and, in fact, they will also keep you from stealing them. If you don’t believe me, try touching one.”

“Ok!” Pinkie said happily.

“No! Don’t!” cautioned Fluttershy.

But Pinkie placed her hoof close to a tiny emerald on sitting on a different pedestal and instantly she began to shake uncontrollably. Small magical sparks jumped at her hoof and her hair became even frizzier than usual, if that was possible. She pulled her hoof away and the effect died.

“Whee! That was fun! I felt all tingly and everything! You guys should try it.”

“No thank you Pinkie Pie, I like my mane as is,” said Rarity as she took a small step away from the other gems and held her mane down.

Sun Cloak spoke one last time and the group quieted down.

“From now on, I will only appear to those who hold these crystals. The next riddle will be given once the last gem is collected. If you are lucky enough to have solved this riddle before the last gem is gone, then I suggest you use your time wisely. Prepare yourselves while you have the opportunity to do so…and good luck.”

Chapter 3: The Crusaders

Chapter 3: The Crusaders

It took some time and effort, but the Royal Treasure Seekers finally managed to twist and turn down enough passages until they found the light of the sun once again. They set out on a quick march up the mountain and back to Canterlot Castle. Their spirits were high and they even started to sing, but back in their hometown of Ponyville things were going somewhat differently.

Ponyville was becoming a central hub for traveling treasure hunters the likes of which had never been seen before in all Equestria. Beyond even this, many of the townsfolk were also trying to solve Sun Cloak’s riddle. Some, with wild imaginations, started to dig in the middle of the town square! They thought that Sun Cloak’s treasure was hidden right under their noses. Needless to say, the Mayor was in a tizzy. She attempted to persuade the townsfolk to stop with their foolishness, but the treasure was too alluring to pass up. Soon, royal guards had to be flown into the small town to keep some semblance of order.

Despite the presence of the guards, ponies and even some adventurous griffons continued to flood the small town either as a rest stop before reaching Canterlot or because they believed the answer lay in the little village. The library in town was packed to the roof as curious folk flooded the hollow tree in search of information on Sun Cloak and the whereabouts of his elusive prize. The library wasn’t the only place full of ponies, however, as a certain tree house on Sweet Apple Acres held three very excitable fillies in its branches.

“We’ve just gotta’ find that treasure!” proclaimed Apple Bloom, a small yellow earth pony who tended to wear a ridiculously large red bow in her hair.

“Yeah! We could be Cutie Mark Crusader Treasure Hunters!” agreed Scootaloo, an orange pegasus.

“A treasure hunting mark! I wonder what that would look like?” pondered Sweetie Belle, a white unicorn.

“It doesn’t matter what it looks like as long as we get it,” replied Scootaloo.

“I guess, but we don’t even know where the treasure is. How are we supposed to get our cutie marks if we can’t solve the riddle?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“That’s easy!” began Apple Bloom, “We jus’ have to think like we were hindin’ the treasure. If it was your treasure, where would you hide it?”

The young earth filly pointed at Sweetie Belle.

“I’d hide it in my backyard,” Sweetie Belle shrugged.

“No.No.No. It has to be somewhere that nopony would think to look. Somewhere that would be tough to get to,” Scootaloo shook her head and then started pacing. “I got it!” she shouted with a small leap, “The Everfree Forest!”

“Of course! The Forest is a perfect place to hide treasure,” Apple Bloom nodded.

“But where in the Everfree Forest would you hide it? The Everfree is so big, we’ll never be able to search it all,” Sweetie Belle waved her hooves in front of her as wide as she possibly could.

“Rats! You’re right Sweetie Belle, but I know that it’s in there,” stated Scootaloo. “It just has to be.”

“Zecora!” shouted Apple Bloom excitedly, it was now her turn to jump up and down happily, “Zecora lives in the Forest; she’s got to have a map or somethin’.”

“Hey yeah! That’s right!” Scootaloo cheered up. “Come on Crusaders, we’ve got a treasure to find!”

“Cutie Mark Crusader Treasure Hunters! Yay!” the fillies raised their victory cry to the high heavens and then blindly charged into the ominous Everfree Forest.

* * * * * * * * *

The three Crusaders soon found themselves in an awkward situation. It wasn’t getting to Zecora’s house that was the issue, it was getting IN it. It would seem that the Crusaders weren’t the first to suspect the Forest of holding the treasure because the zebra’s house was packed to the brim full of pushy ponies. With a grunt and a mighty heave-ho, the three fillies somehow managed to shove their way into the small house.

It seemed that Apple Bloom was right about Zecora having maps. The few she had were sprawled out on tables and surrounded by the mob of equines.

“I can’t see!” complained Scootaloo while she jumped into the air for a peak over another pony.

Zecora, herself, was very busy answering questions and trying her utmost to make sure that the potions lining the walls in her home didn’t fall. The Crusaders seemed to be out of luck at every angle, but they were determined to not give up. They managed to regroup in a corner where the crowd had thinned out a little.

“Ok, we’ve got to start looking soon or somepony else is going to find the treasure first,” Scootaloo began. “Any ideas?”

“I saw a few caves on the maps, maybe we could start in one of em’,” offered Apple Bloom.

“That doesn’t sound very safe,” said Sweetie Belle.

“This is the Everfree Forest,” Scootaloo said curtly, “nothing here is very safe. Besides, where would you start?”

“Um…well…” Sweetie scratched her head, “I think I saw some old ruins on one of the maps. It might have been an old castle or something.”

“Ooo! An abandoned castle…” Scootaloo nodded her head mischievously and a sly grin spread across her face, “that’s the perfect place to hide a treasure! Good work Sweetie Belle. Cutie Mark Crusaders, head out!”

* * * * * * * * *

It took a good deal of finagling, dodging, and a good deal of luck, but the fillies finally managed to get out of Zecora’s house. Of course, with the brief glimpses they got of the maps it was also quite a feat that they even managed to find the ruins at all, but find them they did.

The ruins were indeed ancient. A lone bridge stretched across a large drop-off which led to the remains of a once proud castle. Some of the towering walls were still intact, but most had succumbed to the pressures of age and now lie as rubble. A large set of doors was miraculously still attached to a grey stone wall that had worn the years better than most of the rock around it. Behind the doors stood a few stone pedestals. All but the middle pedestal had nothing on them; the middle pedestal held a strange stone orb covered in moss.

The fillies were not alone in their suspicions of the ruins. A few daring ponies were scouring the premises for a clue, a hint, anything that would solve Sun Cloak’s first riddle. They sun above their heads began high as the fillies began their thorough search. They searched high and they searched low, they checked down crumbling corridors and they peered around cracked pillars, they even managed to check out a few windowsills, but there was not a hint of treasure to be found. The fillies began feeling discouraged as the noon slowly faded to evening.

“It’s going to be dark soon. I think we need to leave. I really don’t want to be stuck in the Everfree at night,” warned Sweetie Belle, who kept glancing up at the falling sun.

“But the treasure is here! I can just feel it!” Scootaloo protested. “Let’s check one last place before we leave.”

“Well…alright, but I we need to be quick about it,” Sweetie relented.

The three rounded a turn and came face to face with a gaping hole in the walls. It led to what once was a beautiful garden. It now lay overgrown and untended. Many vines clung to the sides of ancient stone while large trees overshadowed even some of the castle’s fading walls. A marble fountain, somehow managing to survive the cruel grip of time, stood proudly at the far end of the garden. The Crusaders began their final search here.

They climbed up the huge trees, they pushed through the overgrown flowers, and they dug in the tall grasses without any luck; but time was rapidly running out. Apple Bloom was the first to make her way over to the old fountain. Long ago the water had dried up and the stone sat cold and parched. The yellow filly began to search the fountain, now overgrown with vines.

“We need to leave or it’ll turn night before we get home!” called Sweetie Belle from the other end of the garden.

Suddenly, Apple Bloom started jumping and shouting. “Here! Over here!”

The young farm pony pointed her hoof toward the base of the fountain.

“What? What is it?” called Scootaloo who came running over as quick as her legs would carry her.

Sweetie Belle also rushed over, the thrill of treasure wiping all care from her mind.

“Look here! It’s right on the base. I see writin’.”

The others squinted and moved their heads in closer. As their heads came nearer to the base, a strange mystical writing faintly shimmered to life, as if it had been etched into the old stone. Some of the words were hidden under dense vines or covered over by grass but two words could clearly be seen.

“Treasure,” Scootaloo pointed at one of the words and whispered greedily.

“Maneway?” Sweetie Belle questioned as she pointed to the other word.

“Do ya’ know what this means?” screamed Apple Bloom excitedly. “The treasure is buried under Main Street!”

“Sweet!” shouted Scootaloo.

“Hey, did I get my cutie mark?” Apple Bloom asked.

Sweetie Belle shook her head.

“Aw, hay seed! I thought fer sure I would get my cutie mark after that,” pouted Apple Bloom.

“If the treasure is under Main Street then we’ve got to get back to town before some other pony digs it up!” Sweetie Belle’s face lit up animatedly.

“Quick! To Main Street!” shouted Scootaloo.

The trio took off through the Everfree Forest and back to Ponyville as the sun finally dipped over the horizon.

Chapter 4: The Competitors

Chapter 4: The Competitors

Morning sunlight gleamed radiantly, illuminating both the city of Ponyville and the city of Canterlot. Even as the Crusaders woke up to continue their adventures, a different band of treasure hunters were finding themselves waking in the prestigious Canterlot Castle.

After finding the ruby in the Crystal Caverns, the Royal Treasure Seekers had made their way back to the Castle and had immediately begun preparing themselves for whatever might await them in the coming days. The preparations were coming along well, perhaps even a little too well.

A week had now passed since the group returned from the Caverns and still the gem they had found remained dull and lifeless. It had only taken them a few days to gather necessary supplies like clothes, food, and sleeping bags. Now, the Royal Treasure Seekers were free to pursue activities at their own pleasure until Sun Cloak should call.

It was well into the afternoon on one of these days that Rainbow Dash slammed open the door to their room in the Castle. The room was long and completely built of cobblestone. A large red rug was spread across the floor and a fireplace had been set halfway down the room. Tall windows allowed the noonday sunshine to spill in upon the beds, which lined both sides of the walls. All in all, it was spacious but also cozy.

“Urgh! I’m so bored. There’s nothing to do!” Dash groaned as she threw herself onto her bed, which hadn’t been made.

Spike snorted loudly from a few beds down, turned over in his comfy bed, and immediately started to snore. Rainbow Dash lazily glanced over toward his general direction.

“Has he really been sleeping all day?” Dash wondered aloud.

“Yup,” Applejack replied, “He calls it an ‘extended nap’.”

Startled, Rainbow looked over to find the orange mare standing over a small writing desk under one of the windows. Dash flipped herself out of bed and sauntered over to her friend. Applejack never turned around, as she seemed to be busy writing.

“What’cha up to AJ?”

“Huh?” the farmer turned and noticed Rainbow Dash standing over her, “Oh, I’m jus’ writin’ home and tellin’ em’ what’s happenin’ ‘round here.”

“That’s nice. I wish I could find something to do. Hey, by the way, where is everybody?”

“Well, Rarity said somethin’ ‘bout goin’ out to meet Fancy Pants, Pinkie Pie’s in the kitchen, and I don’t think Twilight’s left the library since we got here.”

“Figures. Everypony has something to do but me! Wait, what about Fluttershy?”

“Uh…hi,” a soft voice said from behind the cyan pegasus.

Dash turned around to find Fluttershy standing there.

“Did you say that Twilight hasn’t left the library?” asked Fluttershy timidly.

Applejack nodded.

“Oh, but that’s so sad. Doesn’t her family live in Canterlot? I know she hasn’t been back often to see them since moving to Ponyville. I’m sure that we could do some research for her if that meant she could spend some time with her parents.”

“That’s a great idea Sugarcube,” Applejack smiled. “How ‘bout tonight? I could get in contact with her folks and we’ll set her up at a good ‘n proper restaurant or somethin’.”

Then, the door flung wide open as Rarity walked in. She was levitating a boatload of shopping bags full of clothes, purses, and sewing material.

“I’m back!” she sang and dropped her bags carefully by her neatly made bed.

“Rarity!” Applejack greeted. “Perfect timin’. We were in the middle of plannin’ a night for Twilight to get together with her folks. I’m sure you know of a good eatin’ joint in Canterlot?”

“What a splendid idea! And I know just the place: The Prancing Gardens. Of course, I’ll have to set up reservations quickly but that shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Great!” Applejack replied.

“This is nice and all, but is there a way I can help?” Dash spoke up.

“Well, someone still needs to let Twilight know,” Fluttershy replied. “Maybe you could tell her?”

“If it’ll give me something to do, consider it done!”

Rainbow Dash sped out of the room to find her scholarly friend.

* * * * * * * * *

“A night with my parents at the Prancing Gardens?” Twilight was beaming excitedly. “That’s wonderful! Thank you so much!”

“I really shouldn’t take all the credit. It was Fluttershy’s idea after all,” Dash shrugged nonchalantly.

“But it’s tonight? That only gives me a few hours to prepare! The Prancing Gardens is very high class. I can’t just show up looking like this.”

“Don’t sweat it Twilight. You’ve got plenty of time. Besides, I’m sure Rarity wouldn’t mind helping you find an outfit.”

“Of course, but…Oh! I’ve got so much to do to get ready! Thanks again!” Twilight ran out of the Royal Archives happily.

It was then that Pinkie Pie ran full force into Rainbow Dash.

“Oof!” cried the cyan pegasus, “Pinkie Pie? What are you doing here?”

“Shh…look,” Pinkie shushed Rainbow and pointed at a book shelf.

As Dash watched, a pony walked over to the shelf and took a book out. Suddenly, a spray of confetti and streamers plastered his face. Pinkie and Dash couldn’t help from snickering and then bursting into laughter.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were doing pranks?” Rainbow asked, “Looks like I know what I’m doing tonight.”

The two friends left the library, talking of various ingenious ways on how to give the Royal Guard a night they wouldn’t soon forget. Twilight, too, was also preparing for a night she would not soon forget at the prestigious Prancing Gardens.

* * * * * * * * *

The restaurant was packed that night as Twilight sat down to a dinner of the finest oats, flowers, and hay Canterlot could offer.

“Twilight, I can’t tell you how proud we are of you,” began Twilight’s mother, a white colored unicorn with two-toned purple and white hair. Her clear blue eyes shimmered with excitement and a small tear trickled down her cheek.

“Yes. Our daughter, a hero!” praised her father, also a unicorn but deep blue in color with even darker blue hair.

“Mom…Dad…Stop it,” Twilight waved a hoof in front of her and blushed.

“Oh, we just haven’t seen you for so long,” cooed her mother, “I know you write to us and all, but it’s just not the same.”

They began to catch up on life, research, and work while the gourmet food was served. In due course, the conversation turned to the inevitable treasure hunt.

“Rumor on the street is that you and your friends might be partaking in the hunt on behalf of the Princesses,” Twilight’s dad said between bites.

“That’s right,” began her mom with wide eyes, “we tried to ask your brother about it, but he wouldn’t talk on the matter. He mentioned something to do with your safety.”

Twilight’s eyes grew large and an excited smile grew across her face.

“Shining Armor is in Canterlot?! I thought he was still in the Crystal Empire with Cadence.”

“Oh yes!” her dad replied, “Didn’t he tell you yet? Princess Celestia called him back. He’s still the Captain of the Royal Guard, remember, and Canterlot needs his protection, sadly from its own citizens. I know you’ve been locked in the Castle for a while now, but surely you’ve gotten some news about Canterlot recently?”

Twilight shook her head, “No, I’ve been too busy performing research on Sun Cloak to listen to much news.”

Her mother’s gasped in shock, “You mean you haven’t heard? Oh, there was almost a mob organized in the downtown shopping district. They thought the treasure was hidden in Canterlot Castle of all places! Luckily the Guard, and your brother, was there to put a stop to it before anypony did anything rash.”

Twilight’s father then spoke up, “And some ponies have even claimed to have seen a dragon flying around the mountain! Shining Armor hasn’t put his shield up yet, as it’s only a rumor, but he’s definitely needed here in Canterlot.”

“Then what about Cadence?” Twilight pressed.

“She’s still in the Crystal Empire,” her mother said assuredly, “She’s got her own city to keep from going berserk.”

“But all by herself?”

“It’s her magic dear,” Twilight’s dad explained, “Shining Armor told us she can use it to keep the crystal ponies calm and thinking clearly. Even so, Princess Luna sent a number of guards to help her out.”

“Wow,” Twilight was taken aback, “I had no idea how crazy a nation wide treasure hunt would be.”

The family was silent for a few awkward moments as they all took another bite or two of their dinner, but they didn’t really seem to be very hungry. Then, Twilight started to get really excited.

“Oh!Oh!Oh!” she leaned in close to her parents, “I forgot to tell you, we ARE going on the treasure hunt! In fact, we already solved the first riddle!”

Her father quickly hushed her, “Shh! Shh! If anypony in Canterlot finds out about it you could get mobbed! You have to keep it a secret.”

“Right,” Twilight shrunk back and calmed down to a whisper.

Her parents couldn’t hold back the smiles on their faces, however. Then, her mother’s face became cheery as a thought clearly crossed into her mind.

“Sweetie, if you’re really in the running for this thing then we might be able help,” she whispered.

“How so?” Twilight leaned back in.

“Well, your father and I have heard some talk about this Sun Cloak character and his treasure recently. But then again, who hasn’t? And we may have figured out who else is in the hunt.”

“Really? Who?”

“They call themselves the Society of Sun,” continued her father quietly, “it’s like a secret society for this Sun Cloak character. They’ve been around for years now, but after this incident they’ve started to gain in popularity. I mean, I hadn’t even heard of them before this whole ordeal!”

“It’s a very small group from what we’ve heard, only about four or five, and they tend to be secretive,” her mother added.

“But the reason that we suspect them,” her dad jumped back in, “is because, for all of their newfound popularity, they won’t let anyone else join. In fact, it seems that they’ve locked themselves in their meeting house and only come out to grab supplies. It’s all very suspicious.”

“Thank you,” Twilight smiled, “I’ll definitely make sure to do some research on this Society of Sun.”

“Of course you will,” her mom said and another tear welled up in her eyes. “Oh, look at our little researcher, going off on treasure hunts for the Princesses! Who would have guessed?”

“Oh mom,” now Twilight started crying as she walked over and hugged her mother passionately.

As with all good things, however, the meal came to an end and the tight-knit family was forced to say their farewells and head their separate ways, but, before returning to Canterlot Castle, Twilight had some investigating to do.

* * * * * * * * *

“Hmm…” Twilight pondered as she strolled down the lamp lit streets of Canterlot. A good many ponies were strolling around and almost every house light seemed to be on. Her lavender eyes darted from home to home, looking for one in particular.

“That shop keeper said the meeting house was down this street. Let me see, she said it was painted blue and circular. It shouldn’t be that hard to find…There! That must be it!”

Twilight jogged confidently up to the round building. It was smaller than most around it and was painted a light blue. She found that the door was also painted blue, but was a much darker shade than the outside walls. On the door was carved an emblem of a sun, which looked suspiciously like the symbol on Sun Cloak’s own cape. This carving was painted a cheery gold color.

Twilight knocked politely on the door. The sound of shuffling hooves came from inside the house and a few muffled voices she couldn’t make out. Then, a small slit in the door opened up. Twilight found herself staring into a pair of glaring green eyes.

“We are not inducting anypony into the Society of Sun, so go away,” said a gruff male voice.

The slit slammed shut and Twilight was left speechless.

“What are you doing?” a different muffled voice said from inside, this one also male.

“I’m just-” replied the grumpy one.

“No! We in the Society of Sun treat others respectfully. I know you joined us only a few months ago, so I’ll let this one slide, but don’t let me catch you doing that again,” the second voice reprimanded the green eyed one.

More shuffling could be heard from inside and the slit once again opened to reveal a pair of deep yellow eyes shining from inside.

“Ah! Welcome! Please, if you would, step away from the door for a moment,” said the stallion with the golden eyes.

Twilight did as asked and the door slowly opened as a light brown colored unicorn stepped out. He opened the door just wide enough to step outside, but then closed it quickly behind him so Twilight couldn’t see in. The pony appeared to be around the same age as Twilight and had a short mane, deep brown in color. Twilight noticed that his cutie mark was a trio of blue question marks.

“I would like to give you my sincerest apologies for my friend’s rude behavior,” the stallion’s voice interrupted Twilight’s observation, “but I must confess that he was correct. We are not accepting new recruits at this moment, however, you can come back in a few months when this whole treasure hunting mess is dealt with and we’ll gladly review your credentials.”

“No, I’m sorry. I’m not here for that,” Twilight smiled somewhat awkwardly, “Actually; I’m here to put a rumor to bed. I heard that your group may have figured out Sun Cloak’s riddle?”

“I’m terribly sorry, but what did you say your name was again?”

“Oh! Sparkle, Twilight Sparkle.”

The stallion’s eyes lit up excitedly for a second, but he immediately cleared his throat and the excitement dimmed.

“Well, I’m sorry Miss Sparkle, but because of the recent developments in the city I really can’t help you for fear of my friends’ safety. If, however, we have indeed solved the riddle I’m sure you will hear about us soon enough. Good night.”

He then reopened the door, again barely enough for him to slip through, and closed it behind him. Twilight waited outside for a moment more but, hearing nothing from inside, slowly cantered back to the Castle.

“I don’t think that’s the last time I’ll be seeing them,” she mumbled to herself.

* * * * * * * * *

The Royal Treasure Seekers were already fast asleep when Twilight waltzed into the room. She tiptoed quietly over to her own bed and flopped into it with a contented sigh. Soon they were all snoring peacefully as the moon made its rounds across the heavens. It wasn’t until breakfast the next morning that Twilight finally had a chance to reveal her suspicions to her friends.

“Morin’ Sugarcube! How were your folks?” Applejack asked happily as Twilight found her way down to the Royal Kitchens.

A good spread of food had been laid out for all to enjoy.

“I had a great night. Thank you everyone,” Twilight smiled as she took her place at the table, “But listen to this: My parents heard a rumor about another group that might be in the treasure hunt. They’re called the Society of Sun. I went to visit their meeting house and I’m almost certain that my parents were right. The one I spoke with sounded way too confident to not be in the hunt.”

“Oh? So we’ve finally got some competition, huh?” Rainbow Dash pondered, “Maybe we’ll actually be able to start this thing soon.”

“Good morning!” a strong male voice called from up a flight of stairs.

All heads turned to find a powerful white unicorn stallion come down the stairs. His hair was three separate shades of blue and his eyes were also blue. He had a cutie mark of a starry shield adorning his flank.

“Shining Armor!” cried Twilight happily.

She jumped up to hug her brother fiercely.

“Easy there Twiley,” he chuckled, “I heard you had dinner with mom and dad last night and I wanted to make sure I got a chance to say hi before you leave again.”

“Thanks for coming! It’s so good to see you. How’s Cadence by the way?”

“She’s doing alright, but very tired. As soon as things start to settle down, I’m heading back.”

“So how’s the Royal Guard?” asked Rainbow Dash with a small grin on her face and a playful gleam in her eyes.

“Actually, that’s one of the reasons I came here. I heard that a couple of bored ponies decided to pull a few pranks last night,” he shot a knowing glance at Rainbow. “So I thought that maybe I could make their trip somewhat less boring. How would you like to come with me on a bit of a mission in exchange for the Royal Guards not getting purple milk to drink?”

“You got a deal!” said Rainbow Dash.

She extended a hoof and Shining Armor shook it, they were both chuckling.

“Alright, so here’s the situation:” Shining Armor addressed the whole group, “There’s a mare stirring up a crowd claiming that she’s solved Sun Cloak’s riddle and wants an audience with Princess Celestia. It should be fairly simple; just need to calm the crowd down and find out what’s really going on.”

“Come on! What are we waiting for?” Rainbow shouted and the group marched out behind Shining Armor.

* * * * * * * * *

When the small band arrived at the scene a large mob had already gathered. Many ponies crowded around a tall slab of stone upon which a single blue mare was standing. Even a few griffons could be seen in the teeming mass of candy colored equines. The Royal Guard was already hard at work by the time Shining Armor and company arrived. The guards were pushing their way through the crowd to get at the one standing upon the large stone platform.

“Equestria listen to me!” shouted the mare, “I have solved the riddle of Sun Cloak the Gifted and demand an audience with Princess Celestia to discuss this matter. The Great and Powerful Trixie has spoken!”

“Trixie?!” shouted the Royal Treasure Seekers in unison.

“Trixe? Who’s Trixie?” Shining Armor turned around to the mares, a look of confusion on his face.

“She’s a show-off who came to Ponyville a few times and Twilight showed her up,” said Rainbow Dash stated flippantly. “She’s probably only up there for the attention.”

As the Royal Guard moved closer to Trixie, she once again sounded her declaration to the masses, “Hear the Great and Powerful Trixie! I present proof!”

The boastful unicorn floated a small object into the air.

“I can’t see what she’s holdin’,” Applejack squinted her eyes.

“Why…it’s a gem!” said Rarity in disbelief.

“Behold!” roared Trixie, “the answer to Sun Cloak’s first riddle! I demand an official audience with Princess Celestia to discuss the matter!”

“She actually solved it?” gasped Twilight in shock.

“Wait. Tell me, did she really figure the riddle out?” asked Shining Armor.

The group could do little else but slowly nod their heads.

“TRIXIE!” roared Shining Armor suddenly.

It was as if the entire plaza froze in time at the command of his powerful voice.

“IF IT’S AN AUDIENCE WITH PRINCESS CELESTIA YOU WANT, THEN AN AUNDIENCE YOU WILL GET! FOLLOW ME!”

“What are you doing?” Rainbow Dash pressed.

“If she solved the riddle and wants to see the Princess on the matter, then she can speak with the Princess,” Shining Armor whispered to Rainbow. “Look on the bright side though, you now know one of your competitors and can listen to her while she speaks with Princess Celestia. This could give you an advantage.”

Trixie made her way through the crowd with a haughty smile, her light blue two-toned hair bobbing with each confident step.

“Then quick! We need to get lost before she sees us,” warned Rainbow.

The friends hastily merged into the large crowd as Trixie came closer to Shining Armor.

“Well, it’s about time,” she huffed, “Do you know how long I’ve had to stand up there? Far too long! That’s how long.”

Shining grunted with annoyance and turned from Trixie.

“Hey! What are you doing? You promised to take me for an audience.”

She pounded a hoof on the plaza’s stone floor.

“I said follow me,” Shining Armor replied curtly.

Suddenly, a group of Royal Guards surrounded Trixie and Shining Armor to keep the crowd from moving in too close.

“Very well,” Trixie agreed.

The blue mare was led through the streets of Canterlot by the Guard and into the Castle for an audience with Princess Celestia. All the while, the Royal Treasure Seekers watched from a comfortable distance away.

* * * * * * * * *

“Princess Celestia, I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, have solved Sun Cloak’s first riddle and request your aid in my journey to reclaim his treasure. I ask for very little from you. I only require access to the Archives and a place to stay until the next riddle is given.”

Twilight and her friends had their ears propped up against the large doors leading into the throne room and were listening to the conversation. It sounded like Trixie was getting her way.

“I have thought over your request and seen the proof of your claim,” Celestia stated regally. “I hereby give you access to the Royal Archives and will give you lodging. Your request has been granted.”

Trixie smirked to herself and then turned her attention to the large double doors.

“You can all come in now! Trixie knows that you’re standing out there!”

The proud unicorn suddenly ignited her horn and yanked the doors open with her magic. The friends, who had been leaning into the doors, all fell unceremoniously on the ground. They soon picked themselves up.

“Huh? B-But ya’ couldn’t have been expectin’ us,” stammered Applejack. “How did ya’ know we were standin’ out there?”

“Hmph. Trixie has learned many things since you last saw her. That is one of reasons she is so Great and Powerful,” the blue mare claimed triumphantly as she waltzed up to the group. “I also know that you have solved Sun Cloak’s riddle, but that matters little. Twilight may have put an Ursa Minor to sleep, but when Trixie finds Sun Cloak’s treasure she will be famous throughout all history! Then Trixie shall be Great, Powerful, and Famous!”

“We’ll see how smug you look when we find the treasure first!” boasted Rainbow Dash.

“My little ponies!” Celestia stated firmly. “I expect you all to get along while you are under my roof. There will be no boasting or gloating over deeds not yet done. Is that clear?”

They were all silenced immediately at the voice of Celestia. Slowly, they turned to face the white alicorn and all nodded in agreement.

Without warning, the large sapphire still sitting on the round table in the throne room sputtered to life and Sun Cloak’s image appeared among the ponies.

“Good whenever-it-is to you all,” began Sun Cloak. “This will be my last message to most of you. If you are hearing this, then it means that seven teams have already solved my riddle. I regret to tell you that you are now out of the hunt. My best regards to you all and good bye.”

The image faded and the sapphire returned to its normal state. But, that wasn’t the end of Sun Cloak. The ruby held by the “Royal Treasure Seekers” and Trixie’s own diamond each began to glow and hum. Sun Cloak leaped from each of the small jewels, which created two separate images of the mysterious unicorn.

“If everything is working properly my last message to all Equestria has just finished and you are one of the seven to posses the key to my treasure. I would like to explain a little about how these gemstones work before I give you the next riddle; however, that would put the final team at a very serious disadvantage. So, in all fairness, I will give one more hour for the last team to prepare themselves or at the very least to find their way out of the Crystal Caverns. For the other teams, I suggest you grab a snack, sit back, and relax. I will speak once again in exactly one hour. But remember this, time is ticking.”

Chapter 5: The Crystal

Chapter 5: The Crystal

“More waiting!” grumped Trixie. “Very well, Trixie supposes that she could spend some time preparing herself for the next challenge.”

She then turned toward the group of friends and added, “Trixie may or may not see you around. It all depends on whether or not you can keep up!”

Trixie then galloped out of the room, headed for who knows where.

“Keep up or not. Hmph, we’ll show her,” mumbled Rainbow Dash under her breath.

“Well,” opened the Princess after Trixie had gone, “it appears that Sun Cloak has given you all some time for preparation and even snacking. Is there anything you would like to eat before the next riddle comes in?”

“Well shoot, I suppose I’ve got a hankerin’ for some hay fries right now,” mentioned Applejack.

“I could go for some gems,” Spike shrugged.

“Perhaps a small salad,” mused Rarity.

“Very well, I shall have my chefs prepare a light snack while you gather your supplies and prepare for travel. I do not wish to disturb the guards working here when Sun Cloak’s next message comes in, so meet me in my private bed chambers in one hour where we can listen to the riddle in private.”

The party nodded gratefully and hurried off to grab the supplies they had gathered over the past week. When the supplies were neatly packed and everypony’s saddlebags had been fitted snuggly, the group headed down to the banquet hall where, as promised, a table sat prepared with food for everypony. Sparkling gems, fattening hay fries, fresh flowers, crunchy oats, and even a few frosted cupcakes lay atop the table in a glorious spread. The friends all had a bite to eat, but they didn’t seem too hungry. Time ticked by quicker than they expected and the group soon found themselves in Princess Celestia’s private chambers.

* * * * * * * * *

Spike placed their tiny ruby in the center of a small end table and circled around it. Princess Celestia also stood among them, waiting patiently for the mysterious unicorn to make his next appearance. Even Princess Luna was able to find time in her busy schedule to come and listen to Sun Cloak speak. The jewel hummed and vibrated, bringing Sun Cloak’s image back to life.

“It has now been one hour and it is time for the hunt to truly begin. I promised to explain how your crystal works, but I want to make this a little more interesting. So, I will give the riddle first and then you will have a choice to make. After I give the riddle you may choose to wait without touching the gemstone for an unspecified amount of time before I will explain to you how your crystal works or, if you believe you have the answer, you may take the jewel and gain a head start on your competition. Let’s begin with the riddle.”

At this point Spike pulled out some parchment and a quill from Twilight’s saddlebag.

“ ‘First loved ones seen through newborn eyes inside this tiny home,

And there inside a quarry lies with hard and cold grey stone.

Once here, do find the guiding light and listen for my voice;

If find the way that I have marked, you have made the proper choice.’

You may now choose to wait or you may take the crystal now and gain an advantage. Choose wisely.”

Sun Cloak’s image faded away and the humming crystal became dull and silent.

“I say we take it and go!” encouraged Rainbow Dash while reaching toward the gem.

“Rainbow stop!” shrieked Rarity.

The brash pegasus’ hoof halted mid-air, hovering above the gemstone.

“Why? If we can take a head start, then I saw we take it!”

“Because dear, we have absolutely no idea where we are going. It’s no use having a head start if we simply end up walking in circles,” Rarity explained.

“Even I’d like to grab it and run,” Spike added, “but Rarity is right, if we don’t know where we’re going it won’t do us any good.”

“Ok, so what can we do?” asked Rainbow Dash as she placed her hoof back on the ground.

“We can start solving this riddle,” stated Twilight.

The group began to argue back and forth. Some believed that they may be looking for a stone house; others thought the riddle was a metaphor for something else. Princess Celestia gave a few suggestions herself and also kept the friends from becoming too rowdy, but Princess Luna did not utter a single word; she instead remained deep in thought. After much debate, Luna finally broke into the conversation.

“It is a two part riddle,” she stated assuredly.

The group quieted instantly at the Princess’ first words.

“Why would you think that?” asked Fluttershy politely.

“Listen carefully to this phrase, ‘Once here…’ this implies that thou must get somewhere before the next lines will do any good. Therefore, the riddle we are trying to solve is a two part riddle. We must solve part one before the second piece will make sense.”

“Well, looky there! I’d say she’s right,” agreed Applejack with a tip of her hat toward the discerning Princess Luna.

“Ok, so we need to solve the first part. But exactly are we trying to solve?” asked Twilight.

Spike picked up the paper he had scribbled on and began to read aloud, “ ‘First loved ones seen through newborn eyes inside a tiny home, and there inside a quarry lies with hard and cold grey stone.’ Hey Twilight…what’s a quarry?”

“Ooo! Ooo! Pick me! Pick me!” shouted Pinkie as she jumped around the group and waved a hoof in air.

“Um…Pinkie?” said Spike as he pointed a claw at her.

“A quarry is a place where ponies dig out rocks! I know because I used to live on a rock farm!”

“Eww…A rock quarry?” Rarity shuddered, “Those places are so dusty.”

The group gave her a strange look, but soon Twilight cemented Pinkie’s definition.

“She’s right Spike.”

“Ok.Ok,” began Rainbow Dash, “So where does a rock quarry and a house with loved ones lead us?”

“I…I don’t know,” Twilight sighed and shrugged.

Time seemed to have passed by more quickly than the group had anticipated because the crystal suddenly sparked to life and Sun Cloak began to speak.

“You have waited patiently and now you shall be rewarded.”

The party quickly turned their attention to the crystal and to Sun Cloak.

“These gemstones are arguably my greatest work I have ever created. By enchanting them with light and sound I have made countless recordings to help you solve my riddles. Allow me be frank, all of the places my riddles take you have had some significance in my life. That is also why I have recorded my entire life’s story inside these gems; however, I will not just tell you my story and then let you go off adventuring. No, that would be too easy. Instead these crystals have been designed so that when certain key words or phrases are spoken I will appear and relay a new message to you.

Let me explain further, simply speak to the crystal and ask it for the last riddle and I will appear and say it again. Nevermore will you need to record my riddles on paper, I will tell it to you again if you ask for it.

One last thought, not all of my messages are available to you right now. After you successfully solve a riddle, more messages will become available. I suggest that you learn what you can from your gem to solve my riddles. This information is of vital importance to help you in your quest.”

His recording paused for a moment, but didn’t disappear. Then he spoke again.

“Ah, but perhaps my meaning is not quite clear enough. Hmm…Oh! I have an idea, I will set up a sample word to use as an example for you. Trying saying ‘riddle’ to your crystal and see what happens.”

He seemed to smile and chuckle at his own cleverness.

“Oh! Oh yes! And good luck!”

The image faded from view and left them all speechless, except for the vocal Rainbow Dash.

“That finicky unicorn!” she protested. “Even his crystal is a riddle!”

Suddenly, Sun Cloak shot forth from the humming ruby and began to speak.

“Riddles? I love riddles! A good puzzle always seems to brighten up my day,” he said before fading away.

Rainbow Dash’s eye twitched in mix of shock and utter disbelief at the short, off-topic message.

“Is that how those ‘keyword’ doohickeys of his work?” asked Applejack as she scratched her head.

“I don’t quite know,” replied Twilight. “Maybe we should try it again?”

She cleared her throat and then spoke.

“Riddle.”

The gem immediately became alive with light and sound as Sun Cloak appeared.

“Riddles? I love riddles! A good puzzle always seems to brighten up my day,” the message repeated itself.

“Fascinating,” mused Twilight.

“Riddle!” shouted Pinkie in delight.

“Riddles? I love…”

“Riddle!” Pinkie interrupted the message.

“Riddles?...” the message began to replay from the beginning.

“Riddle!” the bubbly pony again shouted.

“Riddles? I love riddles…”

“Riddle!”

“Pinkie!” shouted the group.

“Hee hee!” giggled Pinkie, “Sorry.”

The message played itself out one last time and Sun Cloak’s image faded from view.

Chapter 6: The Town

Chapter 6: The Town

“Alright, so we now know how to use Sun Cloak’s crystal, but we still haven’t solved his ridd-,” Twilight stopped mid-sentence, not wanting the crystal to repeat itself again, “…his puzzle.”

“That’s right, but what in the hay does a tiny house, loved-ones, newborn eyes, and a rock quarry all have in common?” asked Applejack.

“Ooo! Ooo! I take care of the Cake’s children all the time!” Pinkie offered enthusiastically. “They have newborn eyes and loved ones, but I don’t know if I’d call their house tiny.”

“Pinkie! You’re a genius!” shouted Twilight happily.

“What? You think it’s at the Cake’s house?”

“No, the Cake’s children have newborn eyes and loved ones. Sun Cloak must be talking about his own home; where he was born!”

“Twilight, that could be a little far fetched don’t you think?” asked Rarity.

“I think she’s on to something,” Rainbow Dash defended her purple friend’s claim.

“Alright, but even if she is correct we have no idea where he was born,” reminded Rarity.

“She’s right;” said Twilight dejectedly, “to find that kind of information would take me hours of research in the library.”

“Why don’t you just ask Sun Cloak?” asked Fluttershy quietly.

“That’s a great idea!” Spike agreed.

The young dragon then proceeded to pick up his team’s small ruby and he spoke to it.

“Sun Cloak, where were you born?”

At once the gemstone began to hum and flash as the dull yellow unicorn, always with his sparkling cloak, appeared before the group.

“Where was I born?” mused the ancient stallion as he raised a hoof to his chin, “I was born and raised in the little town of Saddleback. It was a mining town and my parents owned a small eatery in it called The Sun and Stars.”

Sun Cloak vanished as soon as he had appeared, but the group now had the answer to their question.

“I guess that settles it. Since he lived in a mining town, they must have had a rock quarry,” stated Twilight.

“Then let’s get a move on!” shouted Rainbow Dash with a triumphant leap into the air. “Just one question…where is Saddleback?”

“I have no clue,” Twilight shrugged.

“Twilight,” began Princess Celestia, “why don’t you and your friends come with me to the Royal Archives and we’ll look through the maps we have on file. I’m sure we can find the town there.”

* * * * * * * * *

The small party went with Celestia, but what they found was not what they were expecting. Sprawled across various tabletops were a litany of maps, diagrams, and notes left haphazardly by someone clearly in a hurry.

“Trixie!” exclaimed Rainbow. “She must have figured out the clue and beat us here. We’ve got to hurry or she’ll get to the next one before us too!”

The group set about looking over all the maps that Trixie had left unattended in her great rush.

“I don’t see a Saddleback on these maps,” declared Spike. “Are we sure these are the right ones?”

“If Trixie figured out the puzzle and left these maps so suddenly that she couldn’t put them away, then it’s bound to be here somewhere,” answered Twilight even as she was scanning a fading parchment.

For a few minutes they didn’t have any luck.

“Ooo! Ooo!” shouted Pinkie suddenly while pounding on a map. “Here! I found it! Saddleback!”

The others looked where she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a small black dot with the label ‘Saddleback’ above it.

“And look right next to it,” Rarity pointed slightly above the little dot, “there’s a small mountain; the perfect place for a stone quarry.”

“It would appear that you have found what you were looking for,” began Princess Celestia. “I will make sure to get this mess cleaned up, so don’t worry about that. However, as for transportation, I will again lend you my charioteers. Saddleback doesn’t seem to be much further away than Ponyville, even if it is on the opposite side of Canterlot. But this will be the last ride I will be able to offer you. I do not know where Sun Cloak will send you next and I will need every able body I have at my disposal to keep the peace.”

“Thank you Princess,” said Twilight as she bowed her head toward her glorious mentor.

* * * * * * * * *

The group of seven was off to Saddleback. They were once again soaring through the skies at great speed, thanks to Celestia’s charioteers.

“Trixie may have beaten us to the maps, but at these speeds we’re sure to get to Saddleback first,” commented Rainbow Dash.

“Heh, no kiddin’. Look! I think I already see it!” Applejack pointed down to a blurry spot of color on the ground.

The trip had taken up most of the afternoon, but soon the party found themselves unloading their supplies and waltzing into the small town. The terrain seemed to be more akin to a desert. Small shrub brushes and some skinny trees dotted the landscape. But around the town grew plenty of greenery thanks to a great irrigation system and a deep reservoir full of water.

“Welcome to historic Saddleback,” Spike read a sign as the charioteers took back off to Canterlot, “Population: 134.”

The town itself was a hodgepodge of architectural design spanning different eras in Equestria. Most of the buildings had the tell tale signs of age on them, but some of them looked to be brand new. The streets in the town were mostly dirt roads with one large, central dirt street running through the heart of the original settlement. The seven trotted slowly down this main road, looking for any sort clue that would help them solve Sun Cloak’s riddle.

“It’s so dusty here,” mentioned Rarity, “Good thing I packed the perfect outfit for just this sort of occasion.”

The white unicorn was wearing a light brown outfitted with many pockets. She also had on a large hat that matched her clothes. She looked like she had stepped out of the pages of one of the “Daring Do” adventure books.

“So, what are we lookin’ for exactly?” asked Applejack.

“Anything that could lead us to the answer,” Twilight responded.

Some of the townsfolk were out and about. They watched curiously as the party made their way down the road. Almost all of the inhabitants were earth ponies and they certainly didn’t look like rock miners.

“I don’t like how they’re all looking at us,” Rainbow Dash leaned over to Pinkie Pie and whispered.

“Maybe they just need to hear a happy song,” replied Pinkie and she took a deep breath.

“No! Pinkie! That’ll only draw more attention!” cautioned the cyan pegasus.

“My-” Pinkie started to sing when Applejack interupted.

“Looky yonder!” The orange mare pointed to a building with delight.

Pinkie stopped her song and the group looked up at the structure. In large, but worn, blue and gold painted letters was a name: Sun and Stars Café.

“Good eye Applejack,” encouraged Rarity. “Well come along everypony, it’s beastly hot out here and I could do with something to drink.”

The party entered the old establishment. It had clearly been redone multiple times, but had held fast through the long years nonetheless. A small bell attached to the top of the door jangled as the friends came inside. The cushioned booths were a bit worse for wear, but seemed to be holding together all the same.

“Well howdy!” called a green colored earth mare from behind a counter. “What can I do ya’ for?”

“I am quite parched, do you have anything to drink?” asked Rarity as she strolled up to the counter.

“Why sure we sure do. Best water in all of Saddleback missy.”

“Oh, I suppose water will have to suffice then.”

“K, just one sec.”

The young mare filled up a tall glass with ice cold water and handed it over to the prissy unicorn.

“Anythin’ else I can help y’all with?”

“Actually yes,” began Twilight, “we were told that there was rock quarry somewhere around here?”

“Aw, that old thin’? It’s straight down the road, ya’ can’t miss it, but it’s a long walk. What would ya’ want to go there for anyway? It hasn’t been touched for years.”

“Hold on, I thought this here was a minin’ town,” said Applejack.

“Oh I git it! Y’all must be on one of them historic tours of Equestria!” the pony blindly guessed, “Well let me help ya’ out then. This here town hasn’t been used for minin’ for a long time now. That was back when Saddleback was new. Now a-days Saddleback is a farmin’ community. Best oats ya’ ever did eat.”

“Thank you very much, but just one last question,” Twilight replied gratefully, “Do you know who originally owned this café?”

“Can’t help ya’ much there. The first owners built this place ‘round five hundred or so years ago, I reckon. All I know is that they were entertainers of some sort, maybe musicians. Anythin’ else?”

“No, I think we’re good. Thank you again for your time,” Twilight thanked the helpful mare and then turned to leave.

The rest of the group followed behind their purple companion.

“My pleasure, and, hey, don’t be a stranger. Come on back again sometime!” the green pony called out with a cheerful wave.

“So what now Twilight?” asked Spike when they were back outside on the road.

“I suppose we’ll just keep walking toward the quarry. I don’t know anywhere else we could start at.”

The group again began their walk down the large dirt street. After a few minutes in the hot sun, a large grey colored cliff with a smooth cut face began to appear in the distance, the quarry was in sight. They took a few more steps forward when something totally unexpected happened: Sun Cloak’s ruby hummed and sputtered to life and appeared before not only the group, but also the entire town.

“Welcome to Saddleback!” said the translucent stallion. “I don’t know if it’s still in tact by the time you hear this message, but even if it isn’t I want to welcome you to my home town. This quaint village is a mining town and…”

Sun Cloak blabbered on about Saddleback, but the group wasn’t paying much attention to the unicorn. If anypony in the town hadn’t been watching the Royal Treasure Seekers before, they certainly were now.

“Shut it off! Shut it off!” rasped Rainbow Dash desperately as she waved her hooves around and tried to hide Sun Cloak’s image with her wings.

“I don’t know how!” Spike replied as he clicked on the ruby frantically with his claws.

Suddenly, Pinkie’s head lunged toward the tiny ruby and she ate the gem.

“Pinkie! Wh-What are you doing?” Spike jumped back startled, with a slobbery claw.

“Mmhhm…rrff...immmin…hngg,” she mumbled back.

Sun Cloak’s muffled voice could still be heard rambling on from inside the pink pony’s mouth.

“Spit it out!” cried Rainbow Dash.

“Ptooie!”

The gemstone hit the dirt and landed safely at Fluttershy’s feet.

“What was that all about?” Rainbow Dash moved over to confront Pinkie.

“I thought you wanted it to be quiet, so I made it quiet.”

“But not like that!”

Sun Cloak’s message came to an end and his image faded away in the dusty streets. The villagers were stunned as they stared wide-eyed at the strange group who had come into their town. Suddenly, a young teen-aged stallion rushed forward with some of his friends.

“Grab the crystal! We still have a chance at the treasure!” he shouted.

Four ponies surged forward with the brash youth, focused solely on the Royal Treasure Seeker’s ruby. As the ponies grew closer, a yellow barrier formed around the seven friends. The rambunctious youths bounced harmlessly off of the strange yellow bubble.

“Twilight, was that you?” Applejack whispered.

“No,” Twilight said and shook her head in disbelief.

Her wide eyes told that she was just as shocked as the rest. The barrier held fast even as Sun Cloak’s voice boomed through the air all around.

“My magic will protect the seven teams until the end of the hunt. Let this be a warning to you!”

The warning echoed angrily throughout the small town. The young hooligans screamed and ran away while the rest of the town took a few steps away from the strangers in their midst. The yellow barrier detracted and Spike picked the ruby out of the dirt and dusted it off with new-found appreciation. The friends trotted speedily toward the quarry as the villagers’ eyes followed their every move.

Chapter 7: The Quarry

Chapter 7: The Quarry

The further the Royal Treasure Seekers moved toward the quarry, the less the villagers watched. The curious eyes of the villagers slowly thinned as many entered back into their houses or headed out to work the fields. In fact, by the time the friends made it to the quarry, not a single villager remained in sight, however, two odd looking pegasi were already standing beneath the shadow of the smooth carved mountain.

The quarry clearly hadn’t been used for quite some time and had become overgrown with weeds that poked through its rough exterior. The hard, chiseled stone rose high into the sky and sat forlornly by its lonesome, casting a shadow over the flat surface where the friends now stood. Besides the pair of pegasi, not a single other living creature could be seen.

“Hello over there!” called a pegasus stallion while waving his hoof.

The group turned their attention toward the pegasi and Pinkie Pie waved back happily.

“Hi!” the pink pony answered.

The pegasi quickly flew over to the band of friends.

“It’s so nice to find others out here,” said the orange stallion from before. “My name is Boomer and this is my wife, Juliet.”

Boomer had short cropped yellow mane and appeared to be close to middle-aged. Juliet, the other pegasus, was a mare with a red coat. Her hair was a wild blue with streaks of purple. Boomer had a cutie mark of a golden horseshoe while Juliet’s mark was a four-leaf clover.

“My name is Pinkie Pie!” giggled the happy-go-lucky Pinkie, “And these are my friends Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Spike!”

“Honey! A dragon! A dragon! Do something!” screamed Juliet, who instantly pointed fearfully at the miniscule Spike.

“I’m on it!

Boomer leaped high into the air with a shove of his powerful wings and started a dive bomb at the baby dragon.

“Stop!” shouted Twilight as she waved her hooves cautiously and moved in front of the cringing Spike.

Boomer caught himself mid-air and remained hovering inches above the Royal Treasure Seekers.

“Spike isn’t a bad dragon, Silly!” giggled Pinkie.

“That’s right,” Rarity offered a defense, “our little Spikey-wikey wouldn’t harm a fly. He’s actually quite the cook.”

“Oh my, we’re terribly sorry,” expressed Juliet with absolute sincerity written on her face. “Honey, apologize.”

“Right! Sorry everypony, it’s just that we’ve had some…bad experiences with dragons in the past.”

He flew back over to his wife and touched down by her side.

“You’ve had run-ins with dragons?” Rainbow Dash asked with raised brows, “Where in Equestria have you been? They won’t go near most normal pony towns.”

“You mean, you haven’t heard of us?” Juliet’s expression instantly changed to shock. “Dear, they haven’t even heard of us,” she turned to her husband.

“Why, we’re famous treasure hunters!” declared Boomer proudly.

He rummaged through a saddlebag hanging at his side.

“Now where did that- Ah! Here it is!”

He came out with an aging newspaper hanging from his mouth. He plopped it at the hooves of the Royal Treasure Seekers. The title read: “Treasure Hunting Couple Finds Sunken Treasure”.

“We found the legendary Gillian Griffon’s famed treasure!” Juliet explained. “It was lost at sea for over fifty years!”

“Sorry, but I never heard of anythin’ like that before,” Applejack shrugged.

“And that’s not the only expedition we’ve been on,” added Boomer. “We’ve traveled all over Equestria in search of rare treasures. We’ve even been off the continent before. The world is such a fascinating place.”

“Whoa! So you guys are like Daring Do, but in real life?” Rainbow asked excitedly.

“I guess maybe we are,” replied Juliet, “but trust me on this, real treasure hunting is so much more fun than simply reading about it!”

“Awesome!” squeaked Dash.

“So, what brings two treasure hunters, like yourselves, out to Saddleback?” asked Twilight as she handed the paper back to Boomer.

“Haven’t you heard?” Juliet gasped as Boomer placed the aging paper away. “This unicorn, Sun Something-or-other, offered a chance to find his greatest treasure.”

She suddenly looked suspiciously around and then motioned for the Royal Treasure Seekers to come in closer as she whispered, “And we have reason to believe that his treasure might be right here in Saddleback!”

“Whoa! No way!” Pinkie asked with genuinely surprise.

“Now, why would you think that?” Rarity bluffed.

“Well we were flying around Canterlot one day and decided to go exploring,” began Boomer. “So we flew down to the base of the mountain and found these huge caves underground. I tell ya’ I’ve never seen anything like ‘em before, but then we stumbled across this room full of gems and picked one up. That Sun What’s-his-face fellow jumped right out of the crystal and started blabbing about treasure and all sorts of stuff. We left with the gem and we eventually found our way here.”

“Would you like to see it?” whispered Juliet excitedly.

“See what?” asked Spike.

“The crystal of course!”

Juliet rummaged through her own saddlebag and came out with a small emerald.

“I wouldn’t advise touching it,” cautioned Boomer, “there were some other gemstones in that cave and they gave us a mighty nasty shock.”

The party of friends gazed on in amazement. The Royal Treasure Seekers now knew that they had been beaten to Saddleback.

“So, what will you do if you find the treasure?” asked Rainbow Dash, still looking at the emerald.

“Do with it? We have no idea!” laughed Juliet. “For us, the thrill of the hunt is reward enough!”

“I tell you though,” Boomer continued, “We thought that maybe this quarry held the key to the treasure, but we’ve looked high and we’ve looked low and haven’t seen heads or tails of anything.”

Suddenly Juliet’s stomach began to growl.

“Oh! Listen to that. My stomach’s gotten all rumbly,” Juliet announced and then turned to her husband. “Guess that means it’s time to eat. I know! I saw the quaintest little diner in town, maybe we could get something there?”

“All right, Honey. Good-bye kids! It was nice meeting you and enjoy the quarry!”

The treasure hunting couple cantered slowly back into town and away from the band of friends.

“Well that was certainly interesting,” commented Twilight.

“I like them!” bubbled Pinkie.

“Well, the good news for us is that we know another one of our competitors. The better news is that they don’t know that we’re looking for Sun Cloak’s treasure too,” recapped Rarity.

“Plus, it sounds like they jus’ got lucky on that first puzzle. I don’t think we’ll have to worry much ‘bout them,” added Applejack.

“What did you think Fluttershy?” asked Spike.

“I thought they made a really sweet couple.” She had a cute grin on her face.

“But, did you hear what they said?” Twilight grabbed the group’s attention. “They looked everywhere around this quarry and didn’t see anything. The answer might not be here and we need to be open to that possibility.”

“But we’re still going to look, right Twilight?” Spike asked.

“Of course! I just want everypony to be prepared for the worst, should it come to that.”

The Royal Treasure Seekers then broke off into small sub-groups and started to comb the area. They searched all around the ancient stone, but the walls didn’t hold a secret entrance, and the stone floor really had nothing to hide. The pegasi looked from high in the sky, but still no sign of an answer could be seen. Even Rarity’s gem finding spell didn’t produce a clue. Time slowly wore down the tired friends and they eventually decided to take a breather. Spike wasn’t ready to give up quite yet, as he began to replay Sun Cloak’s riddle again and again.

“Spike please! Turn that thing off,” whined Rarity as she sat on a blanket she had brought.

“Hold on. I think I’m on to something here.”

“Well, would you mind telling the rest of us?” asked Rainbow harshly.

“I can’t quite put my claw on it, but I know there’s something I’m missing. I can just feel it!”

“We could all go back and grab a bite to eat,” suggested Fluttershy.

“That’s near the best idea I’ve heard all day!” agreed Applejack heartily.

“We could head back to the Sun and Stars,” said Twilight. “Who knows? Maybe if the place was run by Sun Cloak’s parents then there might be a clue to be found in there.”

The ponies all agreed and even Spike was coaxed into not playing the riddle again by the promise of food. The party headed back into town as the sun kissed the horizon.

* * * * * * * * *

The bell to the Sun and Stars Café jingled as the friends strode in.

“Well, welcome back!” greeted the kindly earth pony from earlier. “I knew y’all couldn’t stay away for long. What can I do ya’ for?”

“We’re here for dinner,” responded Rainbow Dash.

“Shore thang! Let me show y’all to yer table and we’ll fix y’all up somethin’ mighty tasty.”

The green pony led the group to a large round table and sat them down. The place wasn’t very busy, but, then again, it was well past normal dinner time when the friends came in. A few patrons looked up and pointed at the group. Discussions could be heard taking place in hushed whispers.

“I tell you what!” began the friendly pony, “There’s some rumor goin’ ‘round ‘bout this strange magic unicorn in the middle of town today. It’s just plain bizarre the stories I’ve been told. You folks heard anythin’ ‘bout that?”

The friends looked over at each other with startled expressions, but didn’t say a word.

“Oh, probably not I reckon,” the green pony pushed through the awkward silence. “Anyways, what do you folks want fer supper?”

The party went around ordering their dinners, but Spike seemed awfully distracted. The young dragon kept muttering to himself while he racked his brain for answers to the riddle.

“Once here do find the guiding light…Once here do find the guiding light…”

“Spike, are you ok?” Twilight leaned over and whispered.

“Huh? Oh! Yeah, there’s something about this line…but I can’t put my claw on it.”

“It could just be your imagination Spike.”

“No, it feels like more than that.”

“Look, it’s just that you’ve hardly touched your food and it’s already getting dark out,” Twilight said with concern for her friend. “That’s really not normal for you.”

“Wait…getting dark out?” Spike’s eyes grew wide and a grin spread across his face.

“Yes Spike, it’s getting late and we need to find a place to sleep for the night-”

“Once here do find the guiding light!” Spike shouted excitedly. “Quick! Everyone, we need to head back to the quarry!”

“But we’ve already searched there,” huffed Rainbow Dash. “Why would we go back?”

“Come on! I’ll explain on the way!”

The purple dragon pushed away from the table and ran out the door with as much speed as his legs could muster. His friends rushed out after him.

“Do y’all want some dessert?!” the green pony called out after them, but the friends were already gone. “I suppose not then.”

* * * * * * * * *

“So let me get this straight. You think that to see this ‘guiding light’ it has to be dark out?” questioned Rainbow Dash.

“Yeah! Think about it, you can’t see a light easily in the daytime because it’s too bright out, but at night you would be able to see it,” Spike explained his epiphany.

“It sounds crazy!” blurted Pinkie, “So crazy it just…might…work!”

The Royal Treasure Seekers came to the old stone quarry as the moon rose steadily into the sky. The sun had sunk far below the horizon. Not a single living soul was to be seen around the overgrown mountain for miles. It made for a rather eerie sight.

“So then what do look for?” asked Fluttershy.

“I don’t really know,” Spike replied, undeterred. “A light. Any kind of light!”

They searched all around the carved stone cliff. They checked under weeds and combed the ground meticulously, but still without success. Rarity once again tried her gem finding spell, but nothing could be found. The group was starting to give up hope.

“It’s here! I just know that it’s here!” screamed Spike as he dug desperately into the quarry.

“I’m sorry Spike, but it looks like your guess was off,” replied Twilight.

She placed a comforting hoof on her tiny friend. Spike slowly stopped digging and fell to his knees. A small tear began to trickle down his face.

“G-G-G-Girls?” stammered Fluttershy. “W-What is that?”

The timid pegasus held a shaky hoof out toward the base of the quarry. A pale green glow rose up from the ground, barely noticeable under some dense shrubs that had grown over its surface. The ponies carefully trotted over to the ghostly light. The light seemed to rise from a crack in the hard stone; the crack was cut in the shape of a perfect square. That wasn’t the only oddity; however, it also looked like some of the shrubs had recently been removed from where the light was protruding. The Royal Treasure Seekers tried to find a way to get underneath the stone. Applejack and Rainbow Dash kicked where the light was protruding, but the rock remained steadfast. Even Twilight’s magic was of no use. The light remained a mystery.

“There has to be a way under there,” Rarity mused.

“Look!” Fluttershy pointed. “There’s a small dent in the rock.”

“What of it?” Rainbow Dash dismissed the observation. “There’s plenty of dents on every rock.”

“But this one looks like it’s the same shape as our ruby,” Fluttershy replied.

“Are you suggesting that we put our ruby into the hole?” Rarity asked.

Fluttershy nodded.

“Alright then,” Spike said.

The dragon took their gem and wedged it into the crevice on the stone slab. Immediately, the ruby lit up and began to hum an almost melodic tune. Powerful magic engulfed the rock and lifted it out from the ground. The heavy stone then slid off to the side which allowed the group to peer into deep, square hole.

“Whoa,” Rainbow Dash gasped.

“Hello!” shouted Pinkie into the dark crevice. “Hello! Hello! Hello!” her echo came back.

“Stand back everypony,” cautioned Twilight.

The others stepped back as horn began to glow with magic. Light trickled out from it and she carefully stuck her head down the hole. Her violet light illuminated the dark passage.

“It doesn’t appear to be all that long of a drop, but if we go in there’s no way to get out,” her voice mumbled up from the hole.

She stepped back and turned to the others.

“Let’s goooo!” Pinkie giggled while she jumped into the square.

The pink mare slid out of sight in but a second.

“Pinkie!” screamed Rainbow Dash. “Ugh…well now somepony has to go after her.”

Dash, too, jumped into the hole after her pink friend. A few seconds later Rainbow shouted back up.

“Hey guys! There’s a huge down tunnel here!”

The rest of the party hesitantly followed and stepped into the square opening. Spike remembered to snatch the ruby out of the stone slab before he leaped into the darkness below.

The hole lead to a much more open room. The room was domed at the top, but not smooth. It looked natural, however, a long tunnel had clearly been carved into the natural cavern. Its walls were chiseled with a single indented line running down each side. These lines were more than mere decoration though; they were glowing a very faint green.

“That must be the guiding light Sun Cloak was talking about!” whispered Spike excitedly as he pointed at the glowing lines.

“Well come on slow pokes!” blurted Pinkie, “Let’s get going!”

They entered into the mystically illuminated tunnel. With each step, they sloped deeper and deeper into the earth. Down the eerie shaft the friends trod until the small gem in Spike’s hand began to glow and hum. They stopped when Sun Cloak appeared before them in the dimly lit tunnel.

“Greetings!” he hailed. “I feel I must apologize for sending you into yet another underground passage. You see I personally hate long, dark, creepy, cramped…”

Fluttershy began to hyperventilate.

“…dusty, forgotten passages and hope you can forgive me. But I did not make this message simply to apologize; I have a warning for you. Your challenges have only just begun. I give you a chance to quit the hunt. For if you take another step forward the way you came in will seal itself closed. I advise you to think carefully whether you are committed to finding my treasure or not.”

“Umm…Maybe we should head back out and come in the morning,” squeaked Fluttershy. “You know, when it’s not so…dark.”

“No can do,” Rainbow Dash said. “We’ve made it this far and we’re not turning back now.”

The brash pegasus then took one step forward. The lights in the tunnel shut off and a low rumbling sound could be heard behind them as the stone entrance sealed itself shut. When the rumbling ceased, the lights in the cavern returned to their normal, eerie glow. Now, with nowhere else to turn, the party continued down the long tunnel, which only lead deeper and deeper into the heart of the earth.

Chapter 8: The Tunnel

Chapter 8: The Tunnel

Time was lost to those below ground. Even so, the group felt like they had been walking for countless hours on end. The tunnel was beginning to feel smothering even though the passage was clearly large enough for many ponies to walk abreast. Fluttershy had managed to squeeze herself between her friends, where she felt safer, but the dim tunnel wouldn’t let her fears subside.

“What was that?” she gasped and looked behind her.

“Your shadow,” mumbled Rainbow Dash who was behind the frightened pegasus.

“Oh…right.”

As the group pressed through the dark tunnel, a quiet scratching sound would periodically reach their ears.

“What was that?” Fluttershy asked and turned her head back around.

“That’s just the echo from us walking,” grumped Dash, the cyan pegasus had to constantly urge her yellow friend forward.

But every now and then something undeniably spooky would reach their ears. It was the muffled voices of other ponies arguing. This noise echoed from a good distance in front of the Royal Treasure Seekers. But never once did they stumble across the source of this sound and it unnerved even the toughest in the group.

“Rainbow, could you not beat your wings so loudly?” sputtered Fluttershy. “It kind of scares me.”

“Fluttershy, I’m on the ground and my wings aren’t out. How could I be flapping them?”

“But I h-heard some flapping behind me.”

“That’s crazy! There’s nopony behind us, just watch.” Rainbow Dash turned around and shouted down the dimly lit tunnel, “Hello! Anypony down there?!”

The sound bounced and echoed off the walls, but no other noise came back.

“You see? Nothing. Now come on, we’re falling behind.”

Fluttershy continued down the tunnel with the group but, nevertheless, the sound of flapping wings and scratching on rock could be heard from behind her.

The Royal Treasure Seekers walked down the passage until; at last, they came to a large carved room. At the far end of the room were three separate tunnels, each leading in a different direction. The friends quickly moved to the center of this room. When the did so, their ruby sputtered into life. The image of Sun Cloak appeared before them, pacing between the three separate passageways.

“You have braved the tunnel and found yourselves here,” he said, “but the hardest challenge is yet to come. There is a choice you must make. So listen to my advice, pick the right one.”

Sun Cloak disappeared with a wry grin on his face, leaving the group dumbfounded.

“Pick the right one?” Applejack insisted grumpily, “Ya’ got any more nuggets of wisdom for us, Sun Cloak?”

The others were left with mouths hanging open. Applejack was right; Sun Cloak really hadn’t seemed to help much, but Pinkie Pie didn’t seem fazed in the slightest.

“Okie dokie lokie!” she declared happily.

She skipped over to the passage the furthermost to the right and waited for her friends to join her.

“You can’t be serious,” Twilight said. “There’s no way it could be that literal.”

“You’ll never know until you try,” sang the happy-go-lucky equine.

“Oh, why not?” Rarity shrugged. “It beats sitting around and arguing.”

“That’s the spirit! Come on!” Pinkie waved for the others to join her as she bounded happily down the tunnel.

The others followed nervously behind.

* * * * * * * * *

The tunnel curved and zigzagged in what seemed to be no particular order. Fluttershy still thought that she could hear wings flapping gently behind her, but every time she looked down the dim passageway nopony could be seen. The hushed voices the group heard earlier had no longer been heard ever since they moved into this new tunnel, which seemed to be leading nowhere, but Pinkie Pie kept the group going forward with her unquenchably optimistic spirit.

At long last, the group came to what appeared to be a dead end. Before them sat a large grey boulder which blocked their way forward.

“Oh great!” grumbled Rainbow Dash, “A dead end! Now we’ll have to go all the way back and try another tunnel.”

“But Rainbow Dash, look!” Fluttershy pointed at an indent in the stone.

Of course, it was the exact same shape as their ruby. Spike whipped out their crystal and placed it firmly into the hole. A now familiar hum and glow erupted from within the jewel and Sun Cloak appeared once again in their midst.

“The challenge beyond this wall is difficult,” he warned sternly, “Therefore, I have one word of advice that you must obey should you want to leave these tunnels: Follow the guiding light and listen for my voice. Do not stray from the path, one way or the other. Simply follow the guiding light and listen for my voice and I promise that you will succeed.”

When these words had been said, the boulder shot the ruby out. Spike picked it up and the stone rolled itself into the wall, revealing a dark passage beyond. The group walked forward found themselves in pitch black darkness. There was no light to guide them and no voice.

“Is this some kind of joke?” asked Rainbow. “I don’t see any light.”

Suddenly, the stone closed behind them and they were trapped in the inky blackness of the tunnel. Fluttershy whimpered and Spike began screaming while running in circles until he bumped into Fluttershy who also started to scream.

“Calm down,” demanded Twilight, silencing the screams. “We need to keep our heads about us and figure out what Sun Cloak meant if we ever want to get out of here.”

Just then, the ruby began to glow softly. A mysterious red orb materialized from within the gemstone and floated out until it shone brightly before the Royal Treasure Seekers. They all watched as it danced and flew playfully around them. Pinkie giggled at it. The orb then slowly moved down the passageway. It jumped and bobbed in the air to indicate that it wished to be followed.

“Twilight, what is that?” asked Rarity.

“I think it’s the guiding light.”

The party followed the orb down the passage. It wasn’t hard to keep up with the red ball as it gleefully pranced around the mazelike tunnel system, but something peculiar started to happen. A second orb appeared down a different tunnel, but this one was blue. It too danced around the friends and silently begged for them to follow it. Still yet another light, this one yellow, appeared in another path and then a green one also appeared. Each orb led down different passageways and each playfully asked the party to follow it as guide.

“Which one do we follow?” asked Spike as he spun around, looking at each of the different confusing lights.

“The green one looks simply divine. I want to follow that one,” stated Rarity.

“The yellow one gives off more light. It would be easier for us to see if we follow it,” commented Applejack.

“The blue one looks like fun!” giggled Pinkie.

“But we started with the red one,” Fluttershy reminded, “I think we need to follow it as the guiding light.”

“Whichever one we choose, we’d better do it quickly,” Twilight urged. “They’re all moving away from us.”

Each orb was headed in a different direction, down a different tunnel, and if the ponies didn’t decide quickly, they would be left in the dark without a light to guide them.

“Alright then, I’ll decide for us,” Rainbow Dash spoke up. “If we started with the red one, we’ll stick with the red one. Now come on! We’d better catch up.”

The group followed after Dash and soon found themselves back with the slow moving red light, but the other orbs wouldn’t leave them alone. The green one would appear around a bend, the yellow one would show up down a passage, and the blue one would pass by in the opposite direction. Each light pestered and flew around the group. They had no clue of what was happening.

“Don’t get distracted!” yelled Rainbow. “The other orbs just want to lead us away from the real guiding light.”

“But they look so fun!” pleaded Pinkie Pie.

“And maybe they’ll stop pestering us if we follow them!” Rarity added as the yellow light flew right in front of her face and blinded her for a second.

“No! We’re sticking with this one no matter what. I don’t represent the Element of Loyalty for nothing.”

As they followed the red sphere even more strange things began to happen. They started to hear sounds of little foals laughing down one tunnel or the heavy breathing of a dragon down another. The orbs also flew down passages with these noises. Some of birthday parties or the musical genius of a beautiful orchestra, but always the red light went down tunnels with dreadful sounds. Iron striking rock would clang from the passage the kindly red ball would lead or even the sounds of a cackling fire, burning wood to ashes. But the source of these noises was never perceivable and each time the group would brave the noises, they would find nothing but more dark passages and their red orb.

“I really don’t like this,” whimpered Fluttershy.

“Me neither. It’s enough to give anypony the hee-bee jee-bees,” murmured Applejack.

Still, the party persisted following the red dot. After what seemed a very long walk down the dark and noisy passages, the red orb stopped at a dead end. Then the light did something completely unexpected, it danced straight through a wall and left the party alone in the dark.

“Shoot! Well what now?” asked Applejack.

“I-I don’t understand. That was the guiding light!” screamed Rainbow in agitation.

“Hold on girls, maybe there’s a way through the wall,” suggested Twilight.

The ponies began pushing and shoving at the solid wall, but to no avail.

“I can’t even see my own hoof in front of my face!” commented Rarity. “We’ll never figure this out if we can’t see.”

“Not to worry girls, I’ve got the light covered,” said Twilight cheerfully.

The purple unicorn’s horn began to glow as soft lavender light spilled into the passages, but it didn’t last long. Soon a strange, black mist covered the glowing horn and the light was put out.

“Well that’s just great!” Rainbow Dash shouted in irritation. “Not only can we not move this wall, but we can’t see either!”

“But,” Spike spoke his piece, “the other lights and even the noises all went away as soon as we came here. There isn’t anywhere else we can go.”

The ponies and dragon began to argue amongst themselves about what to do. Fluttershy, however, remained quiet. She was shivering in fear; unable to speak.

“Here,” a warm voice said softly.

Fluttershy looked around, but couldn’t make out where it had come from, but it sounded familiar.

“Here,” it whispered again.

This time Fluttershy knew the speaker, it was Sun Cloak. But where was he hiding?

“Here,” the unicorn spoke again.

Then, the scared pony found the source. Just around a darkened corner was standing the transparent visage of the stallion. Fluttershy carefully crept up to the image and, for the first time, truly looked at him. This pony, the one who always wore that shimmering cloak, was here to save her. She giggled a little when she noticed how his hair fell comically over one eye and he tried to blow it away, only for it to fall back over his eye.

She gazed into his translucent hazel eyes and saw something she had never seen before. For the briefest of moments the pegasus saw a spark of wisdom in his ancient eyes, but mingled with his wisdom she also noticed a deep sadness. However, there was more in his kind stare, something that baffled her. She found that there was something which drown out his sadness, it was a mysterious joy which blazed like dragon fire. Then, the moment was over.

Sun Cloak’s warm smile and kindly eyes made her feel at ease even in this dark place. He was pointing his hoof at a place on the wall and whispering, “Here.”

Fluttershy remembered the last part of the unicorn’s riddle, “…and listen for my voice.”

“I solved the puzzle!” she shouted excitedly. “Everypony! The answer is over here!”

The group didn’t appear to notice, however, so she waltzed up to them and did something very un-Fluttershy for a brief moment.

“I’ve figured it out! The answer is right over there!” she flapped her hooves and waved excitedly.

The others, quite taken by surprise, quieted down.

“What’s over there?” asked Spike.

“Don’t you see Sun Cloak?” she asked, but when they turned to look, he was gone. “I-I’m serious. He was there just a second ago.”

“Fluttershy’s not one to make somethin’ up,” said Applejack. “If she says it, I’ll give it a chance.”

The rest were in agreement and went over to look at the place Fluttershy had suggested. They felt along the cold stone wall and eventually ran across a small hole, the perfect size for their gem. Spike placed the ruby snuggly into the fissure. Behind the group, a large slab of stone rolled away from the wall to reveal their small red orb. The guiding light had not led them wrong after all.

“Well, would ya’ looky there! It’s the light!” Applejack was stunned.

“I knew it wouldn’t lead us wrong.” Rainbow Dash smiled.

Spike plucked the crystal from its resting place and the party continued after the red ball. Soon, the new tunnel they entered began to be etched with the dim glowing lines from earlier. With the soft green light now urging them on, they finally came to another wide room. The red orb dissipated and their ruby glowed and hummed. Sun Cloak appeared once again before the exhausted group.

“My most hearty congratulations to you. You have braved the dark tunnels and did not stray from the guiding light. Even when all hope seemed lost you quieted yourself and listened for my voice. Well done! You have shown remarkable determination in the face of confusion and fear. My second riddle is now complete and you may hear the third one anytime you so wish, simply ask the crystal.

Now, in this room you will find a set of three golden rings, each of a different size. You will need these to complete my next challenge. When you are ready to leave, place your crystal in the wall at the far end of this chamber.”

The unicorn’s image faded away and the friends walked over to a small stone table placed in the center of the room. As suspected, the rings were lying, untouched, on top of the cold stone slab. They picked the golden circles up and admired them for a few moments when suddenly a blur of black feathers snatched the rings away and flew into the air. A bright flash accompanied the blur and momentarily blinded the ponies. A shriek of pain echoed through the cavern while a large mass collided with the hard floor.

“There shall be no cheating so long as I can help it!” Sun Cloak’s voice thundered through the cavern.

Chapter 9: The Warning

Chapter 9: The Warning

“The rings!” cried Rainbow Dash as the golden circles clanked and rolled around on the hard stone floor.

The unlucky thief didn’t have it off so well. The feathered fiend had received a nasty shock for his efforts and now lay moaning pitifully on the cold floor. The friends moved over to find the criminal and retrieve their prize.

“A griffin!” said Twilight in astonishment.

“Ugh…” moaned the griffin in pain.

He was a male griffin and quite skinny. The feathers adorning his head were a deep grey in color whereas the rest of his body was velvety black; however, the tips of his wing feathers were the same grey as his head. He twitched sporadically as he lay moaning on the ground.

“How did he get in here?” Rarity wondered.

“Slick!” A harsh feminine voice yelled from behind the Royal Treasure Seekers, “What kind of a bone-headed move was that?”

They quickly twirled around and found two more griffins standing behind them.

“Get back over here and give them the rings back,” the female griffin commanded.

The one called Slick lay in pain upon the floor, not doing much else than moaning and twitching.

“Sly, go and get him up,” the female sighed with annoyance and turned to her muscular companion.

Sly, the strong male griffin who stood by the female, went to pick up his injured pal. His head feathers, in stark contrast with Slick, were pure white while the rest of his body was a rich brown. The tips of his wings seemed to be crooked and bent and he had a small scar on his hind right leg.

Sly whisked himself into the air and over the heads of the ponies, landing gently upon the ground but yet still pushing up a cloud of dust. He hoisted his friend onto his own back and slid the rings toward the equines. Sly then proceeded to carry his friend back over to the female griffin, legs barely trembling beneath his burden. He tossed Slick was onto the hard earth with a thud and the black griffin groaned again.

“Come on Slick, get up!” The female griffin gave him a sharp kick.

Slowly, the injured creature found his feet and stood up. He wobbled for a few seconds and then straightened himself out while glaring at his female compatriot.

“Ugh…Did you have to kick me J?” Sly’s whinny voice bounced through the cave.

“Quit whining you baby,” J, the female spat back, “You made a dumb move and now you’re paying for it.”

This female griffin was unlike any the Royal Treasure Seekers had ever seen. While her grey body color was nothing out of the ordinary, her golden head feathers and gold tipped wings made her really stand out.

Even shocked by the three griffins in their midst, the ponies eventually found their voices when Applejack managed to speak.

“Excuse me but…who are y’all?”

The griffins turned to face the ponies and the female, J, once again spoke up.

“We’re just a couple of treasure hunters trying to make a living.”

“Treasure hunters?” accused Rainbow harshly, “More like treasure thieves! You tried to swipe our rings!”

“Whoa! Cool your engines, Sparky,” J’s fierce blue eyes bore into Rainbow Dash. “My boy Slick here made a bad move and it looks like he paid for it. Let’s just call it even and you can be on your merry way.”

“Call it even?!” Dash flew right up to J’s face. “Oh no! Not until we know what you’re doing here and who you are.”

“Rainbow,” Spike grabbed the cyan pegasus’ wing and tugged on it, “I think you need to relax for a moment.”

Turned back to the young dragon and opened her mouth to reply, but then exhaled and closed it. She looked back at the griffin trio and then back at Spike and nodded her head in agreement. Of course, that didn’t stop her from giving the griffins a long, hard glare.

“Wow, your friend has some temper,” chuckled J. “But I suppose it’s only fair to at least tell you our names. I’m J. This is Sly”, she motioned toward her brawny companion, “and that numbskull over there is Slick.”

“So, what were you doing in these caves?” asked Twilight curiously.

“Hunting for treasure of course!” J replied back. “Didn’t I already tell you that?”

“Well yes, but how did you get in?” Rarity followed up.

“We followed you,” answered the twitchy Slick.

“So you were the ones making all that flapping noise behind us,” gasped Fluttershy.

“Slick, I told you to let me do the talking,” J growled quietly to the black one.

“But what could you have possibly wanted to follow us for?” pressed Twilight.

“I’d think that one would be obvious,” J rolled her eyes. “You’re after Sun Cloak’s treasure and so are we.”

J held out a small sapphire and a crooked smirk grew on her face when the Royal Treasure Seekers looked at it with mouths hanging open.

“Now let me get this straight,” Rarity said, still not prying her eyes from the sapphire, “you have one of Sun Cloak’s gems and instead of solving his puzzle you followed us to the finish. That sounds an awful lot like cheating to me.”

“Whoa now,” J yanked the crystal away from the friend’s sight, “this Sun Cloak fellow never said anything about not following other teams and he sure didn’t stop us so if anything it’s your fault for not paying better attention. If fact, you should all be thankful that we’re here to teach you about being wary of the other teams.”

“Alright I’ve heard enough of this!” Rainbow flared her wings threateningly. “So you cheated and tried to steal our rings and now you want us to thank you for it? Oh no!”

The cyan pegasus snorted and stomped the ground like she was about to charge.

“Hey! The ring thing was all Slick here,” J held out her talons in a non-threatening manner. “If I would have had my way we would have followed you in and you would never have even known we were here.”

“Come on J!” piped up Slick defensively, albeit a little groggily. “Those were the last rings and we need them to get the treasure.”

“Are you still that stupid?” J spat at Slick. “There are seven teams and each team needs a set of rings. So, when this team here,” she pointed her sharp talons at the ponies, “puts their gemstone in the far wall and leaves, three nice shiny new rings are going to pop up for us. Got it?”

“So what was your plan exactly?” Rainbow burst into J’s chiding remarks. “You were just going to follow us all the way to the treasure and nab it at the end?”

“Pfft…That’s not how we roll,” J waved a talon through the air flippantly. “Nah, we just sort of play it by ear and see how things go. Now, if you would be so kind as to leave so that we can get our rings and be on our way that would be great.”

“You’d like that wouldn’t you?”

Dash glared at J. J glared back and smiled deviously.

“Hush up RD,” chided Applejack. “They got us. We need to leave in order to solve the next puzzle and the only way to do that is to put our gem in the door and head on out.”

Rainbow let out another snort and grudgingly turned toward the far end of the room. The others also moved to the exit and Spike placed their ruby in the small notch the stone. The gem began to hum what seemed to be some form of melodic tune and the rock slid away to reveal a dark ramp leading rapidly toward the surface. Spike plucked the ruby from its resting place and the friends walked into the final tunnel.

“Don’t be too sad now,” shouted J to the departing group. “I’m sure that we’ll see you again. Whether or not you’ll see us depends on if you’re as perceptive as you were today or not!”

The griffins chuckled softly as the rocky door closed behind the Royal Treasure Seekers. The dark tunnel began to light up with the same disconcerting green glow from before.

“Ooo! Those nasty griffins!” fumed Dash. “How did griffins even get into Sun Cloak’s hunt in the first place?”

“Come on everypony,” Twilight said calmly, “it’s very late and we haven’t slept yet. Plus, I think these tunnels are starting to get to everypony. Let’s just get outside first and then we can set up camp and discuss these things properly in the morning.”

The suggestion sounded good to the now exhausted group and they began their climb through the upward sloped passage. It led straight and true to one last stone door with a notch. A simple placement of their ruby and the way ahead was cleared as pale moonlight spilled into the tunnel. The group happily climbed from the darkness and onto wide, open land once more.

“It’s delightful to be in fresh air once again,” purred Rarity happily, “those tunnels were not only dark, but stuffy too.”

The friends looked around at their surroundings, but could see no sign of Saddleback, only small hills full of rough and tumble bushes and a few scraggly trees.

“I guess we’ll just have to make camp somewhere around here tonight and find Saddleback in the morning,” stated Twilight.

The sleepy ponies began preparations for camp. They let the saddlebags they had been carrying drop to the ground and fished around for the necessary supplies.

“Step back everypony,” commanded Rarity.

A very compact white square floated out of her saddlebag, propelled by magic coming from the prissy unicorn. It landed gently on the ground and then began to unfurl itself into a mass much larger than should be physically possible. It unfolded into an elegantly designed tent, big enough to fit the entire party.

“This is something new I concocted just for the occasion,” said Rarity with delight. “I figure, why rough it when you could have something much nicer?”

The group didn’t complain and, in fact, didn’t seem much in the mood for talk whatsoever. They simply entered the tent without thinking and began to doze off as soon as their heavy heads hit their pillows.

* * * * * * * * *

Sunshine broke over the horizon, but the tired ponies snoozed soundly as the sun began its trek through the heavens. The morning was nearly over when Pinkie Pie first began to stir and Applejack soon joined her pink friend. The two began to make breakfast from the supplies they had brought but, with Pinkie helping, it was anything but quiet. Soon, the entire group found themselves awakened from sweet sleep to the smells and sounds of breakfast.

“Actually, when you think about it, it’s more like a brunch,” Pinkie commented.

“I reckon you’re right ‘bout that Pinkie,” Applejack replied while stirring a bubbling pot over a small campfire. “We’ve slept near half the day away. I should kick myself for sleepin’ so late, ‘specially when we’re out here helpin’ the Princesses and all.”

“Good morning! What’s for breakfast?” Rainbow Dash yawned and stretched her wings.

“Now Rainbow, I know it’s early but a proper lady should always ask what she can do to help before simply nabbing a bite to eat,” Rarity corrected her friend.

The cyan pegasus and white unicorn looked at each other and yawned. They had clearly just gotten up.

“So, is there anything you girls need help with?” asked Rarity.

“Well that’s mighty kind of ya’,” began Applejack, “but I think we’ve done near everythin’ that needs doin’. Why don’t y’all just take a seat and we’ll git breakfast…err…brunch set out.”

Pinkie Pie and Applejack went about setting up a table right outside the tent and soon filled it with hot cereal and some fresh water along with plenty of fruit and a couple of small gems for Spike. The four ponies took their places. In no time, Twilight Sparkle, Spike, and Fluttershy joined the others for a tasty brunch.

“So, what’s the plan for today?” Rainbow asked with a full mouth.

“For starters,” opened Twilight after swallowing down a bite of oats, “we need to get back to Saddleback so that we can find our bearings. Once we’re done with that, I suggest that we head back to Canterlot where we can listen to Sun Cloak’s next message away from prying ears. After last night’s encounter with the griffins, I don’t want to hear the next puzzle until we’re in a safe location.”

“Speaking of the griffins, does anypony know what happened to them?” quizzed Rarity.

“As soon as I put my head down, I was out cold. I have no clue,” Spike mumbled between crunchy bites of precious stones.

“I heard the rock door open and then some flapping over our tent,” replied Fluttershy. “So, I guess they’re gone.”

“Good riddance!” breathed Rainbow with passion.

The group slowed down their chat long enough to enjoy a few more bites but eventually Spike interrupted the silence.

“How exactly do we plan to get back to Canterlot or even Saddleback for that matter?”

“Well, it’s much easier to see from the sky,” Twilight thought aloud. “So, Rainbow Dash-”

“I’m on it!” Dash interrupted her scholarly friend and bolted into the sky.

The pegasus made a decent sized cloud of dust in the process, which made the others cough and covered the rest of their uneaten food.

“Hey! I can see the rock quarry!” she shouted down at the group who was attempting to dust their brunch off. Dash came down for a landing and, once again, knocked a dirt cloud into the food.

“It looks like we’re a good distance past the quarry, so we need to move in that direction.” She pointed her hoof toward the horizon with confidence.

“Pff…pff…” Rarity spit out dirt. “Do try to be more careful when you…pff…take off.”

Pinkie stared down at her dusty food and giggled. “Looks like brunch is over, let’s get going!”

“We need to pack up first and then we can head back toward town,” Twilight suggested.

The group packed up their gear and cleaned up what was left of the food while Rarity put her elegant tent back into a cube, the size of which should not be possible.

“Ok, everypony make sure to double check that we’ve got everything with us,” reminded Twilight.

“We’ve already checked and double checked. Let’s get going!” Spike replied impatiently.

“Alright then, Rainbow Dash, lead the way.”

* * * * * * * * *

The quarry came into view, over the dusty hills and scraggly brush, after a good walk. The friends soon found themselves back on the quarry’s hard, rocky surface and stood in its cool shade. Saddleback could be seen down the large dirt road and the party was more than happy to reach civilization after their time under the earth, but they weren’t the only ones at the quarry that day. A group of four ponies, three earth ponies and one unicorn, were presently upon the grounds. They appeared to be staring at the ground and having a rather heated debate. Pinkie Pie wasted no time in making her presence known, much to Rainbow’s chagrin.

“Hello over there!” called the pink pony while waving.

The foursome, quite startled by the peppy voice, looked and found the seven Royal Treasure Seekers.

“Afternoon to ye!” a grey speckled stallion yelled back in a thick Irish accent.

“What’cha doin’?” asked the curious Pinkie.

When the four didn’t respond, Pinkie Pie moved up closer to them. She began by introducing herself and all of her friends to the other ponies. Reluctantly, her friends stepped forward when their name was called. When the introductions had been made, the foursome stood blinking and looking quite dumbfounded at the smiling Pinkie Pie.

“Well,” the speckled stallion finally said, “I’m Professor McKracken from the University of Hoofington and this here is me class. They’re on an archeological and geological expedition for course credit.”

The Professor was quiet for a moment. He glanced at his students and nodded his head at them. When his students didn’t quite seem to understand, the Professor continued.

“Why don’t ye introduce yerselves to this fine group?”

One of the students, a mare with a light cream coat and beautiful grey eyes, lit up at the Professor’s suggestion.

“Well howdy! Name’s Rocky Road. It’s a pleasure to meet y’all.”

Next, the only unicorn in the group, a stallion who had a white coat and a deep blue and purple mane, spoke.

“My name is Gemwalker. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Finally, the last student spoke up. He was also a stallion, but had a light brown mane with streaks of black and a pale green coat.

“Hey. I’m Diggs,” he mumbled and didn’t really make eye contact.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” spoke Twilight. “I didn’t know that U of H had any kind of credit programs like this.”

“Yes, well,” Professor McKracken agreed, “it’s a new and excitin’ area that the University seemed quite pleased to incorporate. In fact, this is my first time leadin’ a group and it’s gone remarkably well. But, if ye don’t mind me askin’, what is a large group, such as yeselves, doin’ out here in Saddleback?”

“Oh! Us? You see…” stammered Twilight, “um…well…”

“We heard about this place and decided to come check it out for ourselves,” Rainbow Dash intervened. “Just a quick visit, nothing big.”

“Ah! I see! Tourists then,” stated the Professor. “We’re actually out here on much more important business. I’m sure you’ve all heard of this Sun Cloak. Well, we originally began our research expedition at the base of Canterlot and happened to run into this massive cave system. Long story short, we solved his first puzzle quite by accident. Of course, our group was larger at the time as everypony got an automatic ‘A’, and those here are the ones who decided to tough it out ‘till the end. Anyhoo, we have reason to believe that right here in Saddleback may be the answer to the next clue! Isn’t that excitin’?”

The Royal Treasure Seekers were stunned. Wide eyes and open mouths from the group made the Professor smile a bit awkwardly. Pinkie didn’t seem very startled, however, and quickly responded.

“Wow! That’s super duper terrific!”

The U of H teacher seemed to regain his composure after the encouragement and continued to speak.

“We have reason to believe that right here in this very quarry lies the answer, but we’ve yet to find anythin’. So, if you’ll excuse us, we need to get back to work.”

He turned toward the in his group unicorn and gave a command.

“Mr. Walker, if you would please continue with what you were doin’.”

“It’s GEMwalker,” corrected the unicorn.

“Quite right, Mr. Walker,” replied McKracken, oblivious.

Gemwalker growled and murmured under his breath, but still began to use his magic. His horn glowed as he made a brief search around the quarry.

“I just don’t see any jewels around here,” he relayed.

“But your gem findin’ spell worked so well back in the Crystal Caves,” mused Rocky Road.

“Gem finding spell?” whispered Rarity to herself.

It was then that she noticed Gemwalker’s cutie mark; it was eerily reminiscent of her own. Like hers, it was three gemstones. The only difference was that his mark held red crystals while her mark featured blue ones. But Rarity remained silent about it.

“Well, we really must be off, but good luck!” wished Twilight with a wave good bye.

The Royal Treasure Seekers began to head toward town when Fluttershy turned back toward the struggling team.

“I don’t know if it will help much,” she said in her soft voice, “but when we were here yesterday we saw something unusual around those bushes right over there. You could check it out…if you want.”

The shy pegasus then gave a sheepish, but warm, smile and turned back around to follow her team into Saddleback. As soon as she turned away, the U of H students went over to investigate the new lead.

* * * * * * * * *

“I heard that,” Applejack leaned over and whispered to Fluttershy as they walked back through town.

“Oh…you did?” the pegasus responded guiltily.

“Yeah, I did. I promise not to tell the others, but why’d you let ‘em know where the entrance to the tunnel was?”

“They’re just a group of college students. I figured that helping them wouldn’t hurt us at all. Plus, they looked so lost, just like we were, and I couldn’t stand to see them like that.”

“All right. Helpin’ out some students doesn’t seem so bad to me. And, when I think about it, I guess they’ll have some mighty nice stories to tell their folks. Nice goin’ Fluttershy.”

After a few more minutes of travel, the group finally made it through Saddleback and stopped for a rest next to the large wooden “Welcome” sign.

“So, what’s our plan Twilight?” asked Spike.

“Alright, the trip here took us most of the day by air and now we have to walk.” Twilight was levitating a map in front of her. “I’d say that we have roughly three days of travel to get back to Canterlot. On the way we can listen to Sun Cloak’s message and try to figure out where to head next before we reach the city.”

“Three days of walking? Oh, what fun,” Rarity said, oozing with sarcasm.

“I agree! It’ll be like one looong hike and I love to go hiking. Especially when there’s-” Pinkie began to talk way too fast.

“Thank you, Pinkie,” Rarity quieted her ecstatic friend.

“I say: the sooner we git a move on, the better,” stated Applejack as she hopped back to her feet.

“Ok then everypony, let’s get going!” Spike insisted and began to lead the charge.

“Um Spike,” Twilight stopped him in his tracks. “Canterlot is this way.”

“Heh heh,” the dragon chuckled nervously, “…right.”

The first day on the road was rather dull as the group slowly climbed over dusty hills and past scraggly bushes and trees. Soon however, the city of Canterlot became a visible dot resting upon the high mountain. However, it was still a solid two day march away and the group had to put up camp for the evening. The sky was beautiful and clear that night, full of bright stars, but the party didn’t have much time to notice seeing as they were all fast asleep.

The following morning began just as uneventful as the march the day before. They had another breakfast of hot oats and picked up camp quickly. Still, not a cloud seemed to be in the sky and the bright morning sun beat down upon the ponies.

“Hey…Twilight?” huffed Fluttershy while breathing heavily. “Could we…maybe take…a break?”

“Yes…Please,” Rarity panted. “I’m just…dying in this heat.”

“Ok everypony…let’s take…a breather then.” Twilight agreed.

The group quickly collapsed upon the warm ground and a shadow soon appeared above the friends.

“Yes! Some shade! Thank you, cloud!” Rainbow yelled her thanks into the heavens.

But the shadow passed too quickly to enjoy. In fact, so quickly that it made Spike a little nervous.

“Um, Rainbow,” he gulped as he pointed to the sky, “I don’t think that’s a cloud.”

Without warning a bright orange flame engulfed the party. Luckily, Sun Cloak’s yellow barrier sparked to life just before any damage could be done. The ponies screamed and huddled closely together as Sun Cloak’s warning echoed through the air.

The flame quickly subsided and the yellow shield dissolved. A black dragon landed solidly on the ground and stood before the shaking ponies. He was smaller than most dragons of his age, being only around three times larger than an average pony. His eyes were a fierce green and he had a large scar along his right eye.

“Poniesss,” hissed the beast, “I could almost smell the unicorn’s strong magics on you and have come to give you a warning.”

He paused for a moment while he gave the group a good looking over before continuing.

“You will no longer participate in the treasure hunt if you know what’s good for you because I will claim the treasure for myself. Do not get in my way!”

Even though he glared menacingly toward the ponies, but did not see Spike who was blocked from view by the equines. The black creature spread his leathery wings and was about to take off when Rainbow Dash spoke up against the threat.

“We’re not afraid of you,” she croaked.

The dragon folded his wings and glared at the bold pegasus.

“A-And besides,” stuttered Dash under the stare, “you can’t have the treasure unless you have a special gem and you sure can’t take ours; we’re protected.”

“I do not need to take yours,” replied the great beast camly, “I have my own.”

At these words the dragon displayed a small purple amethyst between his gnarled claws.

“But how did-?!” shouted Rainbow Dash in shock.

“Dragons have long known of the Crystal Caves below your precious Canterlot,” said the dragon as he fingered his amethyst greedily. “It was only a matter of finding an entrance large enough for me to get in. Now be away with you! You little pests!”

“Hey!” Spike jumped into the forefront to defend his friend’s honor. “No one talks like that to my friends!”

The black monster was taken aback as he stared wide-eyed at the miniature dragon before him.

“Another dragon…how interesting,” the black dragon stroked his chin in thought.

“That’s right pal! And you’d better back up or I’ll…I’ll…”

“Calm yourself young one,” growled the dragon.

Spike cringed and stopped talking. The black creature continued to stare at Spike and he craned his neck to get a better look from all angles. Slowly, he nodded his head, took his amethyst, and stuck it firmly between the scales on his torso.

“I am Grallix of the Frostbluff Peak,” said the dragon calmly, “and it would seem that you share my humiliation, young one.”

“Humilation?!” Rarity cried out indignantly. “Why whatever do you-?”

“SILENCE!!!” roared Grallix aand smoke poured from his mouth.

He then glared at the ponies before continuing.

“Little one, it would seem that you have been shunned from your kind and forced to live amongst these…these…ponies. I feel your pain young one. I have the misfortune of being small, even though warrior’s blood runs through my veins. I am a dwarf and am looked down upon by our race.

I have had my own hoards wrenched from beneath my claws and have been forced to slave away for others. When I called upon it, my strength failed me. I will accept no more of this. That is why I seek after the unicorn’s strong magics. I invite you to join me, young one. Together we can right these wrongs and be rulers among our kind.”

Spike looked back at Grallix in shock. The black dragon stared back with almost kind eyes, he seemed to be sincere.

“I…” Spike started but then paused to think, “…No. You have it all wrong. I haven’t been shunned and these are my friends. I’m sticking by them no matter what. And threat or no threat, we have been asked by the Princesses to find Sun Cloak’s treasure and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

The older dragon’s expression changed, ever so slightly, to one of confusion, but then became stern once more.

“Very well young one, have your way. I will let you all go, but be warned. If you choose to continue upon this course of action then you had best hope that we never meet again. I may not be able to harm you, but I promise that I will make your lives miserable.”

As soon as his threat was hissed, Grallix opened his powerful wings and flew into the sky. The ponies watched in horror as he careened toward the peaceful town of Saddleback which they had left only a day before.

Chapter 10: The Stand

Chapter 10: The Stand

“Welcome to historic Saddleback,” the Great and Powerful Trixie read aloud. “So this is Saddleback. Hmph. It’s dustier than Trixie prefers, but that matters little so long as Trixie solves the riddle.”

“Riddles?” Sun Cloak appeared and his message began to play. “I love riddles! A good puzzle always seems to brighten up my day.”

“Oh hush! Trixie said puzzle! Not riddle! Puzzle! Urgh!” Trixie frowned at her diamond until the message stopped.

A few townsfolk who were about looked at the newcomer but, when Trixie looked back at them, they quickly set about their daily business. They had seen enough strangers and weird happenings in the past few days to last a lifetime. Trixie began to walk down the large dirt road leading through the center of Saddleback.

“The quarry should be somewhere close by,” she talked to herself while walking. “You!” she pointed toward a young filly. “Tell the Great and Powerful Trixie, where is your quarry?”

The filly cocked her head sideways and gazed curiously at the blue unicorn, decked in a shimmering blue cape, and simply pointed down the road without saying a word. Trixie harrumphed her thanks and continued her trek down the dusty road.

It was nearing noonday when a large shadow suddenly flew over the unicorn’s head. A large mass crashed behind Trixie and the ground trembled for the briefest of moments. A few villagers who were outside screamed, grabbed their young, and fled into their homes. The unicorn was in the process of turning around when an orange flame bellowed towards her. A yellow shield burst to life around Trixie. Even so, the boastful unicorn stood trembling before the onslaught as Sun Cloak’s warning echoed through the town: “My magic will protect the seven teams until the end of the hunt. Let this be a warning to you!”

Trixie stopped trembling when she realized that Sun Cloak had provided a protective barrier against any threats aimed her way. She then grew confident and unswervingly glared at her attacker; it was a black dragon with a scar running down his right eye. Still, she took this fact in stride and mockingly answered his attack with pointed words.

“Ha! Is that all? The Great and Powerful Trixie cannot be hurt so easily.”

“I do not need to hurt you to warn you,” the dragon threatened. “Stay away from the treasure. It is mine.”

“Yours? Trixie thinks not! The treasure is as good as mine. In fact, somepony should teach you some manners and the Great and Powerful Trixie would be more than happy to do it.”

“Teach me some manners?” the beast chuckled and let a small stream of vapor puff out of his nostrils. “Well go ahead. Fire away…pony.”

Trixie snarled and then concentrated. Her horn began to glow and a small thundercloud materialized behind the black dragon.

“I’m waiting. Oh Great and Powerful Trixie,” mocked the dragon, not realizing the threat behind him.

Suddenly, a lighting bolt burst from the grey cloud and launched a sneak attack on the dragon. But, the bolt was stopped short by a powerful yellow barrier and Sun Cloak’s angry voice shot back in Trixie’s face the same warning issued to the dragon. Trixie was stunned at this turn of events, but quickly managed to regain her composure.

“Well,” the boastful mare snorted, “I certainly don’t need to harm you to teach you a lesson. I used to run from beasts such as yourself, but I have learned much since then.”

“You would not be so bold if you were not protected by strong magics,” countered the dragon.

Not paying attention to the beast’s words, Trixie raised her hooves into the air and dropped them solidly upon the ground. A bright flash and a cloud of smoke appeared from where the unicorn had been standing. When it cleared, she was nowhere to be seen.

“Teleportation will do you no good unicorn!” roared the dragon angrily. “Come and face me like a true warrior if you really want a fight!”

But Trixie did not appear; instead an unnatural smoke began to rise around the black creature’s feet. The smoke was tinted a light shade of blue and began to grow until it had enveloped the dragon’s body. It covered his claws, feet, torso, nose, mouth, and even his eyes so that he was blinded. He roared in anger and an intense purple flame began to intermingle itself with the blue mist. The purple fire slowly wrapped around the dragon’s body. The more purple fire wrapped around his body, the more the smoke dissipated. Soon the black creature was free of the clinging mist.

“I know the cleansing flame, unicorn,” whispered the dragon threateningly. “Your tricks, all your smoke and mirrors are useless. Come! Show yourself!”

“The Great and Powerful Trixie may hate to admit it,” came a haughty voice from behind the dragon, “but it seems that we are evenly matched.”

The dragon turned around to face his foe.

“So just be on your way,” Trixie waved him off without a second thought, “but this time YOU be warned, if you ever run into Trixie again she will show you a thing or two about ‘strong magics’.”

The beast fumed and hatred burned in his green eyes.

“I am Grallix of the Frostbluff Peak and you have already been a hindrance to me!” shouted the dragon. “I shall finish you now and put an end to your boasting!”

With these words Grallix flung himself toward Trixie, with wings outspread, and crashed solidly into a yellow barrier. Sun Cloak’s warning played again, but Grallix ignored it.

The dragon began to claw and scrape the shield, raising up a terrible screeching noise but doing no damage to the bubble. Trixie gasped and took a small step backward. Finding that he was doing nothing to the shield, Grallix instead began to pound upon it from the top.

“Since you will not listen to reason I am forced to put my warning into action,” Sun Cloak’s voice stated a new message. The bubble instantly began to hum with energy. Yellow sparks leaped from the shield and onto Grallix’s grizzled claws. He roared in agony, smoke pouring forth freely from his nostrils, and a tear born of pain rolled down his cheek. But still, the determined creature would not stop pounding on the yellow barrier. He smashed it harder and harder, but the shield held fast. However, the ground beneath the shield did not. Suddenly, Trixie found herself falling into a small crater made by the pressure placed upon the circular barrier.

The yellow bubble slid further and further into the earth until dirt and gravel poured onto even the very top of the shield. Grallix continued to push upon the painful sphere until Trixie could no longer see sunlight. The dragon finally released his hold upon the yellow shield and roared his finally farewell to the buried unicorn.

“I may not be able to harm you, but when your shield finally goes down you will be trapped beneath rubble! I will never have to deal with you again. So long, Trixie the Weak and Pathetic!”

He then breathed purple fire onto his painfully singed claws. He breathed a quick sigh of contentment and then unfurled his great wings. He propelled himself into the sky and proceeded to speed toward the quarry. When he landed on the grey stone, he sniffed the air.

“I smell ponies,” he whispered to himself.

Following the scent lead him to the stone entrance with Sun Cloak’s tunnel system.

“I can almost taste his strong magics,” breathed Grallix excitedly.

He quickly took his purple gemstone and shoved it into the carved slot. The stone door lifted itself out of the ground and rolled away from the square hole. Grallix plucked his jewel from the door and smashed himself into the opening. It was too tight for the large beast to fit, but through sheer willpower alone he managed to claw his way into the wider space at the bottom and landed next to the tunnel system. The tunnels were larger than the entrance and Grallix could snuggly squeeze his body through them. He clawed down the dim passages with hunger in his eyes.

* * * * * * * * *

Trixie stood trapped beneath dirt and debris that could come crashing down upon her at any moment. It all depended on whenever her shield decided to shut itself off.

“I can’t teleport if I can’t see where I’m teleporting to,” she whispered shakily.

Her horn was already aglow and producing light, but all she could see were stones waiting to crush her. She was scared as she ran around looking for any kind of escape from the dragon’s trap. Suddenly, her face lit up as an idea struck. She refocused her magic to take hold of a large stone. She flung the stone away. Smaller rocks and dirt began to fill in the open space, but it had created an opening just large enough to allow sunlight into the crater. Now that she could see outside, Trixie used her magic and teleported herself back out onto the dirt road.

The crater behind her collapsed further into the ground now that her shield was no longer present to hold it up. She shakily stood upright, catching her breath and regaining her composure from adrenalin and from the sheer exertion of magic she had performed.

“Grallix,” Trixie snarled under her breath, “Trixie is not out of the hunt yet and you will be sorry that you ever doubted her.”

She then took a deep breath, let out an angry snort, and charged toward the old quarry.

Chapter 11: The Puzzle

Chapter 11: The Puzzle

The Royal Treasure Seekers stood in silence. They watched until the powerful dragon had flown far from eyesight. They were blissfully unaware of the showdown currently taking place in Saddleback. After standing there and staring for far too long, Twilight finally came back to her senses and spoke.

“It…” her voice cracked. She cleared her throat and spoke again, “It looks like we have some tough competition.”

Pinkie Pie was the next one to speak.

“Ooo! I love competition! Especially if it’s a baking competition…”

“Pinkie,” chided Twilight.

But the pink pony was on a roll, “…plenty of cupcakes and chocolate and…”

“PINKIE,” said Twilight a little more forcefully.

“…And the best part is that I get to taste test…”

“PINKIE!” Twilight shouted.

“Oh! Hi Twilight!” Pinkie said ignorantly. Then the pony noticed Twilight’s frustrated glare, “Oops, I got on one of those tr…tag…tag-net things of your again, didn’t I?”

The purple unicorn let off a sigh, “Yes Pinkie, you got off on a tangent. But that’s beside the point. After our encounter with Grallix it reminds me of how many teams we’ve bumped into recently. It might be a good idea to write them all down so we know who we’re up against.”

“I’m on it Twilight!” Spike said as he pulled a parchment and quill from the supply bags. “Never leave home without some paper.”

“Good.” Twilight smiled pleasantly.

“I’d put the dragon down first,” mentioned Rainbow Dash.

“Alright, d-r-a-g-,” Spike spoke aloud as he wrote.

“It was Grallix, dear. I shall never forget that brute,” commented Rarity.

“Ok, so g-r-a-l-l-i-x, Grallix. Who’s next?”

“That fun pegasus couple!” added Pinkie with glee. “Their names were Juliet and Boomer.”

Spike wrote down the names of the pegasi.

“Oh, and that nice University team,” Fluttershy recalled with a smile.

“And those nasty griffins!” fumed Rainbow.

Spike was writing as quickly as he could. “Anyone else?”

“Can’t ferget that Trixie,” declared Applejack.

“Alright that’s one…two…three…four…five teams and we make six,” counted Spike. “That means we there’s only one other team to find before we know all seven.”

“Spike,” Twilight said abruptly, “I may know who the seventh team is.”

“Really? Who?” he asked.

“Remember that Society of Sun group I was telling you all about back in Canterlot? I have a hunch that they’re in this thing too.”

“If your hunch is correct that means that we know every team,” Rarity said with a hint of excitement.

“This is great and all, but there’s one thing that we’re forgetting,” Rainbow Dash stated.

“And jus’ what might that be?” asked Applejack with one eyebrow raised.

“We need to figure out which teams know that we’re in the hunt and which ones don’t.”

“That’s a very good observation Rainbow Dash,” Twilight agreed.

“Well, the griffins obviously know,” Applejack said.

“And that nasty Grallix too,” commented Rarity.

“And somehow Trixie found out,” Rainbow Dash added.

“I don’t think the pegasi couple knows,” said Pinkie Pie.

“And the U of H team doesn’t know either,” responded Spike.

“That leaves just the Society of Sun,” stated Fluttershy.

“We still don’t know if the Society of Sun is in the hunt or not, but if they are, I doubt they know,” replied Twilight confidently.

“Ok, so as it stands,” Spike read from his list, “around half of our competitors know that we’re in the hunt. The others are clueless.”

“That could give us a serious advantage.” Rainbow smiled.

“All of this information is good, but it won’t help us if we don’t get back on the hunt,” Twilight reminded. “I think we’ve rested here for long enough, it’s time to keep moving.”

The bookworm readjusted her saddlebag and began a slow march toward the distant city of Canterlot. The others followed suit and the team was once again back on the road and back in the hunt.

* * * * * * * * *

The scenery began to change as the party made its way closer to the glimmering mountain city. The dusty hills and scraggly brush slowly morphed into green pasture and open plains. The change was hardly noticed until the group had made it a substantial distance away from Saddleback. Not a sign of civilization seemed to be evident in these wide open lands, but they knew that when they got close enough to Canterlot, many towns would become visible.

The group had been walking a long time and Rarity insisted on another break. So, the party set themselves down once again and let their heavy saddlebags come to the green earth. The ponies had been resting for a few moments when Spike leaped to his feet.

“I just remembered! In all the confusion we forgot to listen to Sun Cloak’s next puzzle!”

The little dragon ran over to Twilight’s bag and retrieved the small ruby.

“Wait, Spike,” cautioned Twilight.

She peered into the sky and then began to comb the area with her eyes and ears.

Finally, she seemed convinced, “Ok, it doesn’t look like anypony else is around. Go ahead.”

Spike smiled excitedly and then spoke to the enchanted jewel, “Sun Cloak, what is the next riddle?”

The ruby began to purr melodiously. A crackle of sparks and a large flash brightened the sky as the visage of Sun Cloak appeared. The wizened unicorn stood regally with his shining cloak and his mane half pulled over his left eye. Then, the message began to play.

“ ‘Where the ol’ ring-a-round scores a coup de grace

  And where pegasi fall with a bumbling ace,

  Here you will find the next challenge awaits;

  Only at small: for one…for all’.”

Sun Cloak vanished from sight and the humming gemstone became silent and dim.

“Now what in the hay does that mean?” Applejack mumbled to no one in particular.

Twilight scratched her chin in thought.

“Maybe THIS time it’s a race track!” Pinkie shouted excitedly.

“Pinkie, I’d love to go to a race track, really I would,” replied Rainbow, “but why would such a powerful unicorn lead us to a sports arena?”

“I’m sorry Pinkie, but I think that RD here might be right,” confirmed Applejack with a nod.

“Well, it was worth a shot anyway!” The pink equine shrugged cheerfully.

While Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash talked about going to the races, another conversation was brewing.

“Pegasi fall?” murmured Fluttershy.

“What was that, Fluttershy?” asked Rarity.

“Oh…um…just the line about pegasi falling. I don’t like it much.”

“It does sound rather odd, doesn’t it?” the white unicorn pondered. “Do you think it has some major significance?”

“I don’t know, but after what we experienced in the tunnel, I’m afraid that my ability to fly might be taken away for the next challenge.”

“That sounds rather serious,” Rarity replied with concern. “We should see what Rainbow Dash thinks of that.”

The dressmaker broke into the other’s conversations, “Rainbow darling, Fluttershy had a thought about that ‘pegasi falling’ line. She thinks Sun Cloak may take away your wings for the next challenge.”

Rainbow Dash looked over at Rarity and couldn’t hold back her laughter, “Ha!Ha!Ha! Take away my wings! That’s a good one Fluttershy!”

She slapped her yellow friend on the back, but when she actually looked at Fluttershy, she saw a dim seriousness etched across her face.

“Wait. You don’t seriously think Sun Cloak could really take our wings away…right?” Rainbow grew visibly worried and her breathing became faster.

“Not being able to fly is not good. Not good,” she shook her head and began to pace nervously.

“Girls, calm down!” Twilight intervened. “Sun Cloak didn’t say anything about taking your wings away. I say we get back on the march as we discuss the ridd-err…puzzle. The sooner we get back to Canterlot, the sooner we can get some real research done.”

Twilight then calmly proceeded to place her bag on her back and motioned for the others to do the same. They all did so, and Rainbow began to clam down as she took some deep breaths. Soon, the team was on the road again and the discussion on Sun Cloak’s newest mystery ran the gamut from sporting arenas all the way to Los Pegasus, but the sun’s time in the sky was nearing an end and soon a soft glowing moon arose to take its place. The group set up camp and Twilight made mention that, “We should reach Canterlot by early afternoon.” The ponies and baby dragon quickly fell asleep after a hard day’s march.

* * * * * * * * *

Canterlot, the city of royalty to some, but to Twilight this gleaming city was once home. The Royal Treasure Seekers had arrived right on schedule, but were no closer to finding an answer to the elusive riddle. They walked through the streets and continued their discussions.

“I’m tellin’ ya’. It must’ve been some famous carnival or somethin’ that he went to. Ring-a-round makes sense to be one of them prize winnin’ games or some kind of ride and pegasi fallin’ could be referin’ to some sort of clowns,” Applejack was explaining her theory to Rarity.

“And I say that’s simply ridiculous. I had a dream about it last night where I watched as a ‘small’ pegasus jumped out of a spinning windmill and into a lake below. I believe that we need to find some sort of peaceful lake town.”

As more heated debate exploded from their wild imaginations, the Castle suddenly loomed in front of the group. Discussion ceased as the friends found themselves once again entering the large palace. A couple of guards came to escort the seven to Princess Celestia. The party was led to the throne room, which was still filled to the brim with scurrying war horses who were busy making plans and attempting to keep the peace throughout Equestria. Princess Celestia looked up as the group entered the room and motioned them over. Her eyelids had bags under them and she was in what seemed to be a heated argument with an officer.

“We don’t have enough forces in the city your Majesty,” sounded the officer.

“And I don’t have any to send yet. I just sent out a group to help in Cloudsdale. As soon as I have the forces to give, I will give them. But as it is, I cannot send any additional support at this moment.”

The officer snapped a salute and briskly walked away with a small grunt. The Royal Treasure Seekers took their place by Celestia’s side.

“You’d think that after over a week and a half since Sun Cloak sent out his first message that Equestria would settle down a bit, but they haven’t seemed to figure that out yet,” sighed the Princess wearily.

“I’m so sorry Princess,” Twilight sympathized.

“There’s no need to be sorry, I just need to take a breather from all of this fuss. Come; let’s go back to my chambers. I have something important to share with all of you and a much needed nap to take.”

The Princess of all Equestria led the party out of the crowded throne room and to her own private chambers, where things were much quieter. The group soon revealed their findings from Saddleback and spoke of the next riddle to the white alicorn.

“It seems that you’ve learned a lot my little ponies,” Celestia said after she had heard their tale, “but I have some information that may be helpful to all of you down the road. After Sun Cloak first appeared, I was certain that I had seen him somewhere before. I believe I mentioned this to you the last time you were here, but something bothered me about the whole thing. For some reason I couldn’t remember where I had met him. Just last night it finally dawned on me where Sun Cloak and I met.”

She walked over to her curtains and drew them shut before continuing.

“It was at my old castle in what is now the Everfree Forest. I held a reception there for many brave ponies who helped in the Third Dragon War. I’m sure you remember reading about the War, Twilight. Although it shouldn’t really be called a war;  seeing as it was more or less two years of small skirmishes on the outskirts of Equestria, near the Dragon Lands. That’s beside the point though. Sun Cloak was one of the tacticians or, more specifically, he was a strategist during the War. I honored him and several other ponies during that night nearly five hundred years ago.

I was on the verge of writing to you to let you know this information, but I was informed that you had just arrived in Canterlot and wanted to tell you in person.”

“Thank you Princess,” Twilight said gratefully. “Do you think this information has anything to do with Sun Cloak’s puzzle?”

“I do not know,” the Princess replied.

The group took in this new information as Celestia yawned.

“Come on y’all let’s give the Princess some space,” Applejack suggested. “She’s been workin’ mighty hard these past few days.”

The orange earth pony headed for the door. They all left single file, with Spike taking up the rear. Just as the baby dragon was closing the door he looked back in to find Princess Celestia sinking into her covers.

“It’s like melting into a sweet slice of pie,” purred the powerful ruler as she gave off a contented sigh.

Spike closed the door and chuckled quietly to himself.

* * * * * * * * *

The group of friends had debated and researched their afternoon away. They currently found themselves in the Royal Archives. Each one was busy scouring through books and records, searching for some sort of clue or insight into Sun Cloak’s confusing riddle.

Tomes lay sprawled haphazardly across various tables. Some of them were opened to certain pages that may or may not be leads while others were closed shut. The Archives seemed to have an endless supply of scrolls, papers, and manuscripts, each from different eras and on countless topics.

Rainbow Dash had called it quits and lay snoozing in a corner with a book over her head, Rarity began pouring over manuscripts detailing the fashion from other centuries, and Applejack had found a paper detailing the Apple family’s history. Luckily, Pinkie Pie was still hot on the trail. The party pony made it like a game of “Where’s Waldo” and was having a blast doing it, even if she wasn’t really getting anywhere. Spike was simply looking through the massive library and putting anything that sounded vaguely interesting into a large pile for Twilight to pick through. He was used to late night studies, thanks to Twilight, and knew that she would want a sizeable pile to pilfer for information when everypony else slept that evening. The purple scholar, herself, was in the process of re-reading “The Tragedy of Sun Cloak”. She slammed the small tome down in frustration.

“Come on! Tell me something!” she vented into the old pages.

“Twilight, are you all right?” asked Spike worriedly.

The unicorn took some deep breaths and closed her eyes for a moment.

“Yes,” she stated coolly, “I’m fine. Just frustrated is all. I’ve read through this story twice today and still can’t find a hint of any ‘ol ring-a-round’ or ‘pegasui falling’ or even a mention to anything being significantly ‘small’.”

“It’s getting late. Maybe we all just need some rest,” the dragon suggested. “Then we’ll be ready to tackle this riddle tomorrow.”

At the mention of “riddle” Sun Cloak’s ruby sputtered to life as his message echoed loudly throughout the library. The sound bounced around the open room and Rainbow Dash jumped up from her nap with a huge snort. The others lost any semblance of concentration on whatever they were doing. Heads popped up from books and dusty papers. They looked at Spike who was chuckling nervously.

“Sorry about that,” he apologized with an awkward smile.

“Spike,” Twilight stated, “I think you’re right. Why don’t you all get to bed? I’m going to take a short walk outside to clear my head and then do a few more hours of research.”

“But Twilight-” Rarity said with concern.

“I’ll be fine Rarity,” Twilight interrupted her friend. “You all look tired. Plus, I’ve stayed up doing research way later than this before. Don’t worry about me.”

At this, the young dragon gave out a powerful yawn. Then Rainbow Dash began to yawn and soon everypony was busy yawning.

“I’m all for bed,” admitted Rainbow Dash wearily, “I’ll see you in the morning.”

She trotted out of the Archives and the others slowly trickled out behind her. Soon, the room was empty except for Twilight Sparkle.

Moonlight poured in through tall glass windows and a sizeable amount of small candles gave off a soft orange glow around the library and cast strange flickering shadows upon the bookshelves. The unicorn stretched, yawned, and headed outside for a quick walk.

The air was clean and crisp. It was a beautiful evening with many bright and shimmering stars in the sky. Twilight knew all the constellations and loved to tell others about the wonders of the heavens. She was looking up and rattling names off under her breath when something fell in front of her face. It landed upon the bridge of her nose and clouded her view. She shook her head free from the nuisance. She looked down at the ground to see what had hit her. A small, neatly folded, piece of paper lay before the unicorn’s eyes and there appeared to be some writing on it. With magic, Twilight opened it began to read.

“Twilight Sparkle,

It would seem that you and your group have hit a road bump. I very much wish to help, but I can only meet you tonight. You will find me at the Prancing Gardens. Come alone or don’t come at all.

-A Friend”

Unsure of how to take this message Twilight did the only thing she knew to do, she headed back to the library and began to make a list.

* * * * * * * * *

Twilight was pacing up and down the empty Archive aisles and rambling to herself.

“Pro: I could get good information on Sun Cloak’s puzzle. Con: It could be a trap. Pro: I would get a nice dinner. Con: I could be wasting valuable time. Pro: I could find a supporter. Con: It might be a false lead. Urgh! None of this is helping.”

She re-read the note, “I can only meet you tonight. Come alone or don’t come at all.”

The unicorn closed her eyes and thrust her head down. Her hooves tapped against the cold stone flooring as she debated what to do.

“To go or not to go? That is the question.”

She let out a small but determined snort and opened her eyes. It might be crazy, it might be a false lead, and it might even be a trap of some sort, but the chance to come home with an answer was worth the risk.

The purple mare quietly gussied up her mane and found the outfit Rarity had helped her prepare a few days before for the very same high-class restaurant. She was going to the Prancing Gardens, and she was going to get some answers.

* * * * * * * * *

11:43 PM read a clock on the restaurant’s back wall. Twilight had been waiting for nearly twenty minutes for this mysterious ‘friend’. She told the maitre d’ sitting behind a fancy counter that she was expecting someone and had spent the rest of the time fidgeting in a small waiting area.

“Nice to see you again, Miss Sparkle,” said a vaguely familiar voice from behind her back

Twilight turned around to find herself staring into a pair of yellow eyes. A unicorn stallion stared back for a few moments until the maitre d’ spoke.

“Table for one Sun Chaser.”

“Here,” replied the yellow-eyed stallion with dignity as he rose up a hoof.

“Right this way sir.” The maitre d’ bowed and then walked around a bend.

The maitre d’ then pointed toward an empty area reserved for private parties.

“Come along Miss Sparkle,” the stallion, Sun Chaser, prompted.

Twilight fell behind the stallion and decided to take a good look over him. It was the unicorn from the Society of Sun that had talked to her only a few nights ago. She noticed that his hair had been dyed a deep brown, but what the original colors were Twilight couldn’t make out. His cutie mark appeared to be a trio of deep blue question marks with sparks dancing around them. His voice was not deep, but not high either. It had an air of dignity to it, like a true gentlecolt. He was also wearing a sharp looking tuxedo.

“We hope you thoroughly enjoy your meal, Sir,” the maitre d’ turned around to find Twilight standing there, “…and to you as well Miss.”

He then hurried off to help the other guests and left the two unicorns alone at their small, but private, dining table.

The two took places across from each other. Twilight wasn’t quite sure what to make of this stallion.

“Well Miss Sparkle,” he began, “it seems you’ve been rather busy since the last time we met. Allow me to formally introduce myself, I am Sun Chaser and I have asked you here to help you.”

Twilight nodded politely and then spoke up herself.

“It’s nice to officially meet you Sun…oh, Mr. Chaser.”

“Please, no need for formalities. Just Sun Chaser will do fine.”

“Very well then, it’s nice to meet you, Sun Chaser. Now, how exactly do you intend to help me? And what exactly do you know?”

Chaser had a mischievous glint in his eye as he began to speak.

“I know a great deal Miss Sparkle. It seems that you and your friends have been quite busy. For starters, your brother is Captain of the Royal Guard and he married royalty. You, personally, are the student of Princess Celestia herself. Not to mention the fact that you and your friends bear the Elements of Harmony and defeated both Nightmare Moon and Discord.”

Twilight had the appearance of one who has just been praised at an award ceremony and also one who had just been run over by a train.

“It’s a wonder what somepony can learn if they only put in the proper research,” Sun Chaser chuckled when he noticed Twilight’s emotional crisis.

“And why would one need to do the ‘proper research’ on myself and my friends Mr. Chaser?” Twilight squeaked.

Twilight peered nervously at the stallion.

“Why, Miss Sparkle, don’t be startled. I do the same amount of research on all of my competitors.”

Twilight was again taken aback. It took all of her focus to calm down and regain her posture.

“Now I would love to continue our discussion, but let’s do it over some food shall we?” suggested Sun Chaser nonchalantly.

Twilight gave her agreement with a small nod and a waiter soon appeared to take up orders. A light salad started off the fancy dinner with the finest of toasted grains for an appetizer.

“Well Miss Sparkle, it seems I know an awful lot about you and I find it only fair to allow you to learn something about myself. Ask away.”

“For one, please stop calling me ‘Miss Sparkle’. You’re going to give me a headache. Just Twilight will do.”

“I believe I can handle that, Twilight.”

She smiled softly at the mention of her name, but soon remembered that she knew next to nothing about the stallion across from her. The smile faded as she began asking questions.

“So, you’re part of the Society of Sun?”

“Why yes. In fact, I’m the head of the Society.”

Twilight almost choked on a piece of lettuce. She cleared her throat politely and then continued.

“The head of the Society? Then where’s the rest of your group?”

“Oh. I’m here by myself, same as I asked from you. And, before you ask, no, my peers do not know I am here.”

“Then why are you here?”

Sun Chaser swallowed down a few oats before answering.

“Mmm. Simply delicious! Ah yes, like I said before, I’m here to help.”

“Help with what exactly?”

Twilight asked cautiously between bites.

“With the hunt of course.”

“And how do you know that we’re even in it?”

“Because you have a stunning red ruby with a long since deceased unicorn seemingly trapped inside who just so happens to talk to you. You’re either in the hunt or you’re delusional.”

Twilight gagged at the forthright manner with which Sun Chaser talked.

“Ooo! It looks like it’s time for the main course,” Chaser smiled as a waiter came to take their orders. “I’ll take the Chef’s Choice of the Day.”

“And for you Madame?” asked the attentive server.

“Um…I’ll have…the same,” Twilight somehow managed to reply.

“Very good. I can take those menus, if you please.”

The menus were handed over to their server and conversation soon started up again as the chef prepared the meals. Tonight the Chef’s Choice was a tasty flower based dish in a spectacular white sauce and topped with carrots, but Twilight wasn’t very concerned with food at the moment.

“But, how did you know-?” Twilight started.

“Because,” interrupted Sun Chaser, “ours is a beautiful blue sapphire.”

Twilight was caught off guard. For all intents and purposes, he seemed very high class, but he could also be very curt.

“So is the entire Society of Sun on the hunt, or just you?”

“Oh, the entire Society is in the running.”

“Another question, how did you know the color of our crystal?”

“We found out in Saddleback.”

“Saddleback? But we never saw you there,” Twilight’s voice was beginning to sound a little edgy.

“When Sun Cloak first revealed himself in the center of town. You remember? Those young hooligans rushed at you and the shield came up. Well, we were standing in the crowd and saw the whole thing. You really need to be more attentive.”

Twilight had already been reprimanded by a team of griffins but now a snobby unicorn?

“Well excuse me if a random unicorn pops out of a crystal in the middle of town without a proper warning.”

“Calm down. Calm down. I was merely stating a fact.”

Twilight gave Sun Chaser a hard glare, but the stallion didn’t even notice.

“Oh look! That’s our main course right there,” he said happily and looked hungrily at two plates of food, being carried by the server.

The delectable food was placed before the two equines and Sun Chaser began to dive in.

“Chef Whiskwisher has really outdone himself tonight,” commented the stallion between bites.

Twilight stared at her food and then back at Sun Chaser, she didn’t eat a single bite.

“So remind me again why I’m here?” Twilight sighed.

“Yes, that’s right. I am here to help you solve the riddle that you’re stuck on.”

Twilight tensed up at the mention of ‘riddle’, but no there was no humming and no light sparked to life.

“However,” continued the stallion, “there is one stipulation.”

Twilight played around with her dish, not looking into Sun Chaser’s eyes.

“Let me guess, you want me to join your Society?”

“I would gladly welcome you into the Society of Sun,” he said happily. “We truly need more of a…feminine presence. But I will only accept your generous offer after the hunt is finished.”

Twilight’s eyebrows raised and she looked up at the stallion, who continued to speak.

“No, in exchange for a valuable hint, you will pay for our dinner. It shouldn’t be too much of a problem for somepony with Celestia’s ear.”

Twilight instantly turned from confused to angry in the blink of an eye.

“Nopony treats Princess Celestia like some kind of a money machine or speaks of her that flippantly! No! I’m done,” she got up and started to leave. “We don’t need your kind of help.”

“Sure you won’t reconsider?” Sun Chaser called calmly. “My group and I leave tomorrow and I won’t be able to see you again for quite some time.”

The purple mare stopped with her back turned to Sun Chaser. She thought about the riddle and how long everypony had searched to get this far. Finally, she turned back around.

“Fine,” she sighed. “I agree, but I have a condition of my own.”

This made even Sun Chaser raise an eyebrow.

Twilight continued, “Only if the information is good enough will I pay. We have a deal?”

“Agreed.” The stallion smiled.

Twilight moved back over to her plate and began to thoughtfully chew on some of the carrots while she waited for Sun Chaser’s next move. He leaned in close to Twilight’s face and then looked around at the other patrons suspiciously before speaking.

“Our dear friend, Sun Cloak,” he whispered into Twilight’s ear, “used some ancient sporting terminology in his latest riddle.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide at the revelation. Pinkie Pie was right?! Sun Chaser chuckled when he looked at Twilight’s expression.

“I’ll take that as information well worth the meal. It was a pleasure talking with you, Miss Sparkle. I hope we have the pleasure of doing it again some time.”

He got up and turned to leave but Twilight voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Wait! Before you leave…I have one last question.”

Sun Chaser turned back around.

“Why are you helping us?” she asked.

The stallion smiled ever so slightly before giving a reply.

“My intentions are my own. And, I’m sure that if you continue the excellent work you and your team have already begun, then you’ll find out soon enough. Have a pleasant evening.”

He nodded his head courteously toward Twilight and turned to leave. But he had not walked more than three steps before he spoke again, with his back still turned to Twilight.

“Oh! One last word of advice, if I may. He gave you the crystal for a reason. I would suggest that you actually start using it.”

This time Sun Chaser did not stop, but calmly left the building and headed into the late evening air. Twilight took a few more bites of her meal as she pondered over all she had learned. Eventually, the bill was paid and Twilight went straight back to the library to look for some answers.

Chapter 12: The Findings

Chapter 12: The Findings

The light of a new day had barely crested the horizon when the Twilight came barging into the Royal Treasure Seekers sleeping chambers. She slammed the doors open and yelled to the heavens.

“Merring!” she cried in happy ecstasy.

The ponies began to stir from under their covers and woke. Yawns and groans greeted Twilight’s perky ears.

“Huh? What time is it?” groaned Spike groggily.

The tiny dragon rubbed his eyes and looked out a large glass window to see the sunrise.

“Mmff…ummf…gugh…” gurgled Rainbow Dash into her pillow as she rolled over, still sound asleep.

Pinkie Pie leaped out of her bed wide awake.

“Merring to you too!” the pink equine shouted.

“Come on y’all! I git up at this time almost every mornin’ back at Sweet Apple Acres,” Applejack said as she hopped out of bed.  The country mare got right to making her bed. She clenched her sheets between strong teeth and tugged them into a snug, smooth spread.

“Can’t a girl get some beauty sleep around here?” whined Rarity. “And can you please stop all the shouting?”

The white unicorn sat up, forced her eyes open, looked around, and then fell back into her comfy sheets. Of course, she got up fairly soon for the simple reason that Rainbow Dash’s snoring wouldn’t let her fall back asleep.

Fluttershy woke up without so much as a peep. She blinked her eyes and gave a dainty yawn before flipping herself onto the ground. She made up her bed in a nice, neat manner.

“Quick, Spike, get the rings from my saddlebag,” prompted Twilight anxiously.

“Twilight, did you ever get to bed last night?” asked Spike as he moved to get the rings with a stretch and a yawn.

“There’s no time for sleep when we’ve got a puzzle to solve!”

Twilight’s left eye involuntarily twitched a little. Her eyes dilated and she had almost as much nervous energy as Pinkie Pie.

“Twilight, really, what is all this about?” grumped Rarity as she finally forced herself out of bed.

“It’s Merring!” shouted Twilight, her voice trembling with enthusiasm.

“Calm down, Sugarcube,” stated Applejack. “Now jus’ what is this ‘Merring’ of yours?”

“Merring is the answer to the puzzle! And when Spike gets those rings we found, I’ll be able to explain it!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m on it,” Spike’s muffled voice came from inside Twilight’s saddlebag.

The little dragon rummaged around until he finally came out with the three differently sized rings. He brought them over to the sleep deprived Twilight and dropped them at her feet. They clanged against the stone floor. Spike went back over to his small bed and sat down in it while Twilight levitated the rings into the air.

“Rainbow Dash, you might want to hear this,” Twilight said to her sleeping friend.

“I’m up…I’m up,” mumbled Dash.

The cyan pegasus waved a hoof in the air and then rolled over again and buried her face in her pillow.

“Sure you don’t want to hear this? It’s about sports,” teased Twilight.

“Sports?” Dash’s eyes flew open and she stared at Twilight attentively.

“Can you please just tell us what this is all about?” questioned Rarity.

“This is about the puzzle we couldn’t solve last night,” Twilight’s voice was quivering. “This is the answer!”

Twilight used her magic to bring the three rings together. The golden circles fit inside each other like a matryoshka doll. Twilight then chose the largest of the rings and put the others back on the hard floor.

“Merring is an ancient unicorn sport created over six hundred years ago. It was originally designed as a teaching tool for young unicorns to focus their magic,” Twilight began her explanation. “Here’s the general layout of the game…”

Twilight spun her ring magically in the air until it became parallel with the floor, making it completely horizontal.

“One incredibly large center ring floats in the middle of the playing field. We’ll let this ring represent the center ring. A small track, the width of two ponies standing shoulder to shoulder is placed around the gigantic center ring. This track is the only area that ponies are allowed to stand on the playing field. Five small towers are placed on the outside of the track, equally spaced apart.”

At this time in the explanation, Twilight levitated five small pieces of chipped rock from the floor and placed them evenly around the small ring to show how the towers would be spaced.

“Each tower has a small clear crystal on the top which glows when struck with magic. The objective of Merring is to focus magic onto the main ring and jump it toward the towers.”

Twilight shot a small beam of purple energy at one side of the golden ring. Her magic stuck to the ring like glue and glowed brightly. Slowly, her magic expanded around the ring until she could bounce some of it to a rock, while the rest of her magic stayed glued to the ring.

“Whichever team can capture four of the five towers first is declared the winner.”

The purple magic overtook the rest of the ring and it jumped onto three more of the floating pebbles.

“Any questions?”

“Yes,” opened Rarity, “you mentioned teams. How many unicorns play this game at a time?”

“From what I’ve read, the teams can be as large as eight per side or as small as one on one. It’s actually really interesting how the teams work together. You see, as a team they can combine their magical focus on the center ring to expand the magic’s reach around the central ring in order to hit the towers, but the opposing team also wants to get the towers. When the two magical forces meet, they push against one another for supremacy on the main ring, kind of like a tug of war match. If one team has better focus, they will begin to shove the other team’s magic backward and will claim more space on the central ring which they can use to jump onto a point tower.”

“Ok, so unicorns channel magic onto a massive ring and then try to push the other team’s magic away to snatch up the towers,” reviewed Rainbow Dash.

“That’s right,” beamed Twilight.

“Then what are the rings we found used for?” asked Applejack.

“I’m glad you asked. These small rings are called side rings and they throw a wrench into the game. You see, when Merring starts, the two teams choose a tower to begin at. This means that two point towers already start with owners, but the other three towers have these rings placed at their base. These side rings add an element of extra strategy to Merring. It’s one thing to push and shove another’s magic away, but what if a unicorn could float one of these small rings anywhere they wanted and then bounce magic onto them? By using these smaller rings as stepping stones, a team can loose in the tug-of-war on the main ring, but still come out victorious.”

To demonstrate this concept, Twilight floated a small piece of chipped wood from a bed frame onto the miniature playing field. She then proceeded to launch magic from the ring to the woodchip and then to the last unclaimed rock shard.

“That means that the players have to fight for control on the side rings as well as on the main one, right?” recapped Fluttershy tentatively.

“That’s correct. Merring was known to be very intense. In fact, it’s the intensity of the sport that eventually killed it. Sometimes a unicorn would push beyond what they were capable of and they would injure themselves…permanently. Merring was eventually cancelled as a professional sport, but it didn’t truly die out until around two hundred years ago.”

The ponies took in all of this new information.

“This is all quite fascinating,” mused Rarity, “but how does it relate to the puzzle?”

“Do you remember that line, ‘the ol’ ring-a-round’?” Twilight asked. “Well it turns out that was a term used for one of the basic plays in Merring. The ol’ ring-a-round is where a team sends out a surge of magical energy through the main ring to make the opposing team break focus. It’s a tactic that was known to end games in seconds if used properly.”

“Does this mean that we’re going to a racetrack after all?” asked Pinkie ecstatically.

“Sort of,” replied Twilight, “Merring is a sport, so we may have to go to a sporting arena which may or may not be close to a race track. The only problem is that Merring hasn’t been played for centuries. The closest we can get now days are the reenactment groups that still keep it alive as a kind of dinner show.”

“Are we going to a dinner show then?” asked Spike with interest.

“That’s just it. I don’t know where we’re supposed to go next,” replied Twilight.

The room became silent for a moment as each one thought over the new developments.

“If you don’t have the answer,” Rarity eventually spoke up, “…Then why did you wake us up at this ghastly hour!?”

“Because I know how to find the answer!” Twilight replied with a sleepy kind of happiness.

Her eye twitched again and she broke into crazy grin.

“Spike!” Twilight commanded with all the feeling of a mad scientist. “Get…the crystal!”

She clapped her hooves together and chuckled in delight. Spike shuffled a few steps away from Twilight and went to grab the ruby. He rummaged through her bags and finally came out with the polished gemstone. Tentatively, he handed the shiny jewel to Twilight as her eye twitched again.

“Sun Cloak!” the purple equine shouted at the crystal. “Tell us about Merring!”

The ruby began to hum its well known tune and Twilight gave a hiccup of a mad laugh as the gemstone flashed and sparked, enshrouding the small room in a bright yellow light. When the light had faded, Twilight was no longer laughing but instead gazing intently at the image of Sun Cloak.

The old unicorn was dressed, as always, in his enigmatic cloak. He appeared excited and his eyes lit up brightly.

“Merring,” whispered the dull yellow unicorn with intensity. “My all time favorite sport.”

He smiled before continuing in his normal voice.

“Merring is a sport of champions. I played it myself during my years at Small University. But, there are many other great sports out there that should be mentioned. I say ‘should’, but I will mention only one other. My second favorite sport: Cloudclip. Ah, I have such good memories watching and competing with my friends on the field. There’s nothing quite like the smell of freshly cut grass and the hum and whir of magic as it crackles through the air or the feel of a soft cloud beneath your hooves as you cheer on friends. No, nothing quite like it.”

Sun Cloak ended his message with a distant look in his eyes and a deep, contented sigh. He smiled and chuckled one last time and then the message ended. Twilight’s eye twitched again as the ruby became dark and the image faded. Spike took the gem from Twilight and looked caringly at his exhausted friend.

“Um…Twilight, you may want to take a nap,” suggested the dragon.

Twilight looked at her young helper a long time before speaking.

“…Yeah.” she agreed before trotting over to an empty bed and falling into its fluffy sheets.

Soon enough, snoring came from the purple mass, fallen on the soft bedding.

“Let’s move into the kitchen, shall we?” asked Rarity warily.

The others followed the white mare out of the small sleeping room to let Twilight get some rest.

* * * * * * * * *

The friends, those who were awake, had made it down to the Royal Kitchens where a table had serendipitously already been prepared with breakfast.

“She’s pushin’ herself too hard,” Applejack mumbled with a pastry stuffed between her teeth.

“That may be true, but she got results.” Rainbow Dash pounded a hoof on a small table full of breakfast foods. “Plus, I know about that other sport, Cloudclip, that Sun Cloak mentioned.”

“Do ya’ now?” asked Applejack with interest.

“Sure I do. Even Fluttershy knows about Cloudclip.”

All heads turned to the shy pegasus. She blushed a little and daintily picked up an apple strudel.

“Yeah,” Rainbow’s voice drew all the heads back to herself, “Cloudclip is an old pegasi sport. From what I’ve heard, it was originally used as an army exercise to teach troops how to fight without the ability to use their wings.”

She munched on a cherry filled donut before continuing.

“I’ve been to a few matches myself. It’s not my kind  of thing, but it’s popular in some circles.”

The others looked at Rainbow expectantly, but she continued to happily sit and munch her pastry.

“Well?” asked Spike as he leaned closer to Dash.

“Well what?” she replied while chewing.

“How do you play Cloudclip?” Spike explained and leaned in closer.

“Oh! Right,” Rainbow started, but then noticed how close Spike had gotten in his excitement. “Hey, uh…would you mind backing up a tad, Sport?”

Spike looked embarrassed as he quickly moved back.

“Thanks. So, as I was saying, Cloudclip is a game where pegasi gather a whole bunch of clouds into a large platform. Two teams each get on opposite sides of the playing field and try to kick the clouds out from under the others. Wings are strictly forbidden and using them will get you kicked out of the game. Whichever team is left standing on the clouds is declared the winner. I mean there’s other stuff to it, like a second platform below the first and whatnot, but that’s the gist of it.”

She shrugged and went back to finishing her breakfast.

“It can actually get a bit rough,” said Fluttershy quietly. “Luckily, I haven’t heard of any injuries yet this year.”

Suddenly Pinkie Pie popped up right by her yellow friend with a large foam finger on her hoof.

“Woo Hoo! I love sports! So, when are we going to that race track?”

“Pinkie where did you-? Nevermind,” Rarity shook her head in disbelief.

“Didn’t you hear Twilight? We don’t know where we’re going,” Spike replied.

“Then I suggest we figure that out while Twilight’s snoozin’ the day away,” said Applejack after taking one final bite of breakfast.

“Sounds good to me,” Rainbow Dash nodded as she finished off her donut.

“First things first,” Applejack addressed the group, “we need to go back over that puzzle. With all of this new information we should be able to solve it.”

Spike whipped out the ruby and asked Sun Cloak to repeat his riddle.

“ ‘Where the ol’ ring-a-round scores a coup de grace

  And where pegasi fall with a bumbling ace,

  Here you will find the next challenge awaits;

  Only at Small: for one…for all’.”

When Sun Cloak’s message was finished, his form dissolved.

“So we know what the ‘ol’ ring-a-round is’,” Rarity thought aloud, “but we still don’t know what that talk about pegasi and small is about.”

“I reckon that the pegasi falling is that Cloudclip sport,” Applejack suggested.

“So we’re definitely going to a race track then,” Pinkie stated with total sincerity.

The others looked at their foam fingered friend, who now had on some crazy rainbow clown wig. Rarity was able to bring the conversation back to something more productive in one quick sentance.

“That’s all well and good, but what is this ‘small’?”.

“For one, for all…” mused Rainbow Dash. “It sounds kind of like a line in one of the Daring Do books or something.”

“Wait.Wait.Wait,” Spike held up a claw. “Didn’t Sun Cloak say he went to Small University?”

“Spike you’re a genius!” praised Rarity with delight.

“So all’s we got to do is find this Small University?” Applejack pondered. “How hard could that be?”

* * * * * * * * *

A loud gurgle interrupted a group of ponies weary from research in the Royal Archives.

“When my stomach growls like that it usually means it’s time to eat,” Pinkie told the others.

“I’m not sure we need your Pinkie Sense to tell us that,” Rainbow Dash said bluntly. “But yeah, I’m starving too.”

“But what about Small University?” pleaded Spike.

“Oh, Spikey-wikey, we’ve been looking over these old maps for hours now. I think it’s time for a break,” replied Rarity.

Spike looked back down at the faded parchments lying before him. These large and faded pages were maps from ages past in Equestria’s long history. Cities no longer in existence pocketed the old papers and some showed modern cities as no more than backwater villages. The ancient ink had begun to blur together in Spike’s eyes after so much staring. They really all could do with a break.

“Alright,” the dragon sighed, “but what about Twilight? Do you think somepony should wake her?”

“I’ll get her,” volunteered Fluttershy.

“That settles it then. To the kitchen!” Rainbow Dash charged off with a flourish of her wings, mind set on food.

“Do wait up!” called Rarity.

The party followed after their friend down the corridors of the Castle to grab some lunch while Fluttershy went off to get Twilight. When they had all left, a figure stepped from the shadows of a bookcase. The shadowy being began to pour over the maps set out by the Royal Treasure Seekers. It pushed the papers around harshly, mind set on something specific. The papers slid all around and even off the table, but the creature still had not found what it was searching for. Grunts of frustration came from the being as more and more maps found their home on the hard stone floor. Without warning, the doors creaked opened again. The creature gulped and shot toward the sky, shoving the last of the maps to the ground. Twilight Sparkle had entered the library.

“Hello? Anypony here?” the unicorn called.

She waltzed casually over to the table, once filled with maps. She looked down curiously at the pile on the floor.

“That’s odd,” she commented.

She ignited her horn and lifted the papers in a gentle magical embrace. She took a glace over each one and slowly set them back down on the table one by one. The other being in the room eyed the pony from atop a bookcase, lost in shadows. It waited and listened as the papers crinkled and as Twilight paced around the table.

“Where is everypony?” Twilight asked aloud.

“Twilight! There you are!” called the soft voice of Fluttershy.

The purple scholar turned around and found the shy pegasus trotting toward her.

“Fluttershy! Do you know where everypony went?”

“Yes, they’re having lunch. I was sent to wake you up, but you weren’t in your room so I came looking for you.”

“Thanks.”

“Come on,” Fluttershy nodded for Twilight to follow, “we think we know where the riddle is trying to lead us. Everypony’s waiting for you in the kitchen.”

The two left and their hoof steps echoed around the large, empty library. The figure swooped down from his position and again shoved papers around, always looking for its objective. Another clip clop of hooves came from outside the library. The being snatched up some of the maps in frustration and whisked itself up to the library’s ceiling where it left through a small crack in one of the giant window panes. Its prize may have eluded its grasp, but hopefully it had taken enough with it to be of use. The figure made haste away from the castle, headed straight into the sun to blind anypony foolish enough to look for it. The being chuckled quietly to itself.

* * * * * * * * *

“So Small University, hmm?” asked Twilight between bites into her sandwich.

“Correct-a-mundo!” Pinkie declared.

“We haven’t found any clue as to where this University is, though,” added Rarity.

“So that’s why I found all those maps on the floor,” Twilight shared.

“On the floor?” asked Fluttershy. “No, we made sure to place them carefully on the table. They looked quite old you know.”

“Maybe Rainbow Dash knocked them off when she flew out in such a hurry,” suggested Spike.

The others stared at Rainbow accusingly.

“What? I was hungry,” the pegasus defended herself with a mouth full of oats.

“It’s ok. There was no harm done,” Twilight replied. “Just try to be more careful next time.”

“Well, my stomach is full and I’m a hankerin’ to find that there University,” Applejack said. “Ain’t no silly map gonna’ best me. Not when we’re so close to solvin’ the next puzzle.”

“You go ahead,” Rainbow said with a wave of her hoof. “Me and Pinkie have something to do real quick. We’ll catch you in a few minutes.”

The others shrugged and turned to leave. They made their way out of the Kitchen and down the halls which led to the library, where they began their search anew. However, in the kitchen things were going a little differently.

“Ok, Pinkie,” Rainbow whispered when the others had left. “Let’s see who we have yet to prank.”

The pink pony giggled as she grabbed a small list from her saddlebag. She handed it to Rainbow Dash.

“Let me see…” whispered Dash. “…Valiant Charge, nope got him last week. Who else? Oh! Quill Feathers!…No. Wait. She’s out of town. Hmm…I got it! Pinkie, we haven’t pranked the chef yet.”

Pinkie Pie began to giggle uncontrollably as Rainbow Dash whispered into her what she had planned for the Royal Chef that afternoon.

* * * * * * * * *

All was going smoothly in the library. Maps were being passed around and mumbling was coming from the group. They were gathered around the table and were constantly pouring over the old parchments. Each one was searching thoroughly for even the slightest sign of Small University.

“It’s odd,” Spike whispered to Twilight, “I thought for sure that we had a few more maps laid out earlier.”

“You must have just counted some twice,” she mare whispered back.

“I guess so,” he shrugged and continued with the search.

“Ooo! Ooo!” Rarity began to point emphatically to a point on her crinkled map. “Right here looks like it might be the University.”

“Um, Rarity…” Fluttershy said, “On my map it says that place is now a village. They would have already had a community if there was a University there.”

Rarity groaned and then went back to looking over the maps with a slight frown on her brow. They were all getting slightly frustrated as they searched through the old documents.

“Are there any older maps?” Twilight asked a few minutes later.

“Sorry, Sugar Cube,” replied Applejack, “either they don’t have anythin’ older or somepony else has em’.”

“Rats!” The purple unicorn stomped her hoof on the floor.

Only a few seconds later, the library doors burst open and Rainbow Dash darted inside. The cyan pegasus looked scared. She flew hastily into the room and crouched behind Twilight, trying to hide herself.

“What are you doing?” asked Twilight.

“Hiding!”

“From what?”

Loud hoof steps could be heard echoing from the hallway outside the library and an angry muffled voice was calling out.

“That,” croaked Rainbow Dash. “You’ve got to help me!”

“Ok, but first you’ve got to tell me what happened,” Twilight threatened.

“Let’s just say a prank didn’t quite go as planned.”

“You’re still pranking the royal guard?” huffed Twilight.

Rainbow looked up at Twilight with an almost innocent plea in her eyes. Twilight shook her head in disbelief.

“Well come on,” the purple bookworm said as her horn began to glow.

Both Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle were shrouded in a bright flash of light. They found themselves standing atop a bookshelf and hidden in the shadows. Soon, the Archive doors flew open and two angry stallions charged in. One, wearing a chef’s hat, had his face covered in a sticky purple substance. The other, decked in armor, had the same gooey stuff lodged in his helmet and covering his once shinny chest plate. The two came toward those in the group who were holding maps. All that Twilight and Rainbow Dash caught were some snippets of angry questions and frustrated hooves pounding on the cold floor. Eventually, the two left and things began to settle down.

“That was too close!” said a pink pony to Rainbow Dash’s left.

“Pinkie?” Dash looked over at Pinkie Pie, but had to do a double-take. “But how did you get up here?”

The pink equine ignored the question and instead flipped her head over the bookshelf so that she was reading the book spines upside down.

“Whoa! They look so different from this angle!”  she giggled happily. “Oooo, This one sounds cool. ‘Yisrevinu Llams’.”

She pulled the old book from the top of the huge bookcase and began to flip through its pages.

“Aww,” she moaned disappointedly, “it’s just an old school yearbook and it doesn’t even have pictures in it.”

She was about to place the book back on the shelf when Twilight stopped her.

“Wait! Pinkie, let me see that.”

Pinkie handed the yearbook over to the unicorn, who began to examine it eagerly.

“Do you know what this is?” the purple mare asked as she shoved it into Rainbow Dash’s face. “This is a yearbook from Small University! And it’s close to five hundred years old!”

“Whoa!” Rainbow Dash strained her neck around the cover so she could read it with Twilight, “The Royal Archive has a yearbook from five hundred years ago?”

“The Royal Archive carries anything ever published, including yearbooks. Come on, let’s show the others.”

Twilight’s horn began to shimmer once again and the three atop the shelf teleported back down to the main group.

“Rainbow Dash,” said Rarity accusingly, “just what was that whole mess all about?”

“No time for that right now,” interrupted Twilight, “Pinkie found something that may give us the answer.”

She levitated the old book for all to see.

“This is a yearbook from Small University,” explained Twilight, “and it might tell us where the school is located.”

“Really?” asked Rarity excitedly. “Let me see it.”

Twilight carefully placed the book on the table and allowed the others to skim over it.

“Here! Right here!” Rarity planted her hoof triumphantly on the front page. “It says that Small is located in Trottington. Quick! Everypony look for a Trottington on the maps.”

Each pony grabbed a map and started a search for Trottington. Spike, however, wanted to do something else.

“Hey Twilight, can you hand me that old yearbook?” he asked and pointed.

“Sure,” Twilight levitated it to him, “but what do you want it for?”

The book floated over to Spike, who caught it mid air with a small hop.

“I want to see all the funny student pictures from that long ago.”

“Sorry to burst your bubble Spike, but they didn’t take pictures back then. They had to hoof draw any picture that they wanted so only teachers got pictures put in those books. And even the teachers didn’t usually get pictures.”

“Really? Aw…teachers always take boring pictures anyways,” mumbled Spike as he opened the old book and found that Twilight was right. The only thing to greet the dragon was a lot of fancy words. Still, he flipped through the pages until he found the professors and he began to chuckle. It would seem that luck was on his side and this book had pictures. The old fashion was quite humorous to look at.

“I found it! Trottington!” declared Applejack from across the table. She was pointing at her map and showing the others where the town was.

“Excellent!” declared Twilight. “Fluttershy, could you grab a current map and find where that is?”

The yellow pegasus obliged and current map for the modern day location of the old town. Her eyes sparked when she found the location.

“Here it is. It looks like there’s a new town or something where Trottington was. The map says ‘Hooverdale’.”

“Hoo-Hoo-Hooverdale?!” Rarity began to sway back and forth in excitement, almost fainting.

“What? What’s Hooverdale?” asked Twilight.

“What’s Hooverdale?” Rarity’s eyes went wide in absolute shock and she grabbed Twilight’s face. “Why it’s only the ninth richest community in all of Equestria! You have to be either a millionaire or famous to even enter the place.”

“Do ya’ think the Princess can get us into there?” asked Appleajck.

“Of course Princess Celestia can get us into Hoovedale,” replied Twilight, as she gently pushed Rarity’s hooves off her noggin. “And, if we know where we’re going, I suggest we start packing for the trip while I talk to Princess Celestia.”

The others began to organize the maps into a neat pile when Spike suddenly jumped to his feet.

“Twilight! Everypony! Look at this!” he shouted. With claws trembling in excitement, the dragon held up the ancient yearbook. What greeted the ponies was a picture of a young unicorn stallion with the title “Professor Sun Cloak”.

-------------------

First fan art:

Huge thanks to The Truth of Chaos! Make sure to check out his page on Fimfiction and his DeviantArt page.

Chapter 13: The Alliances

Chapter 13: The Alliances

Even while the Royal Treasure Seekers stood stunned by Spike’s findings, a shadowy figure darted swiftly through the afternoon sky. The being made sure that it was not seen by flying directly toward the sun. The creature had already flown out of Canterlot Castle and now made its way to a large open plain a good distance outside the city borders. Not a soul was visible on the ground below the figure. If fact, the only living thing in sight was an old oak tree which was standing in the grassy field. The creature swept silently into the branches of the oak and crouched down into the leaves with the maps it had pilfered.

“Finally you’re back,” a harsh feminine voice whispered from another branch. “Well, did you find it?”

The speaker moved from the shadows, it was a female griffin with a golden head.

“Not exactly, J,” spoke the figure with his whiny voice.

“And what do you mean, ‘not exactly’?” asked J harshly.

As J spoke, another griffin stepped from behind her. This one was a head taller than the female. He was a male griffin and he was very bulky and muscular. He wore a solemn expression on his face and his brown eyes gazed at the one clutching the stolen papers. The one clutching onto the maps looked up at the muscular one’s face and gulped before slowly fixing his gaze back on J.

“W-W-What I mean is that I don’t have the answer…”

J’s clear blue eyes narrowed and bore into the skittish burglar. She began to swish her tail around sharply.

“…b-but I have the next best thing,” stuttered the thief.

“Continue,” J cooed with a cold interest.

“M-Maps. Maps from long ago. We can find nearly anything that Sun Cloak could point us toward.”

At these words, the stammering one held out his prize shakily.

“Nice work, Slick,” stated J with a small smile on her beak as she took the pages from her griffin friend.

Slick, the griffin thief, smiled with relief. Even so, his light grey eyes shifted around with nervous energy and he never quite stopped twitching.

“Alright, let’s see what we’ve got here,” murmured J as she scanned over the worn pages. “So, do you know what we’re looking for?”

“From what those ponies said, I’d say we’re looking for a University called Small,” Slick replied as he fluttered over to J’s branch.

“Small University, eh?” J mused as she poured over the pages clenched between her talons.

A dull thump hit the ground outside the oak tree in which the griffins were perched. The tree itself rumbled slightly at the disturbance.

“What was that?” asked Slick while his head and eyes darted from side to side.

“Chill, Slick,” commanded J calmly. “Sly, go and check on it for us,” she said to the hulking griffin behind her with a wave of her talon.

The large brown griffin fanned out his wings and glided to the ground. He landed by the oak’s base. In an instant he had discerned the source of the shaking. Two massive black and scaly legs were the first glimpse of the dragon that Sly got. Undeterred, however, the muscular griffin flew up to meet this new arrival face to face. The black beast noticed movement and tilted his head so as to watch whichever creature had been brave enough to approach.

“Dragon,” opened Sly in a deep and confident voice, “I suggest that you leave the shade of this tree.”

The brown griffin flew up in front of the dragon’s face.

“Griffinsss” snarled the dragon and a small stream of smoke lurched into the air.

“Leave now,” Sly demanded, “Unless you came for a fight. I’d be happy to send you away with a new scar.”

Sly pointed a talon toward the dragon’s right eye, more specifically, at the scar running across it.

“You are brash for a griffin,” breathed the dragon, whose green eyes bore into Sly. “But I come only to give a warning…this time. I suggest that you and those cowering in this tree abandon the hunt. The unicorn’s magics will be mine and mine alone. If you get in my way, then we’ll see about that fight you seem to so eagerly desire.”

“Who’s cowering?” J shot out from the cover of the tree.

She glared straight into the dark dragon’s eyes without even a hint of fear, only of determination.

“Ah,” the dragon smiled and showed off his sharp teeth. “You must be the leader of this small band then. I will say what I said to your companion here;” the beast waved a grizzled claw at Sly, “leave the hunt…before I end it for you.”

“And just what hunt are you blabbin’ on about?” J asked angrily.

“Don’t play dumb with me,” the dragon raised his voice and smoke poured from his nostrils. “I can practically smell the unicorn’s magics on you. You have one of his crystals.”

“Very intuitive,” J said, “I’m impressed.”

The dragon chuckled softly to himself and smirked.

“In fact,” J continued, “I’m so impressed that I’ll even offer you a proposition.”

The black beast raised an eyebrow and tilted his head ever so slightly at this turn of events.

“J! What are you thinking?!” shrieked Slick as the black griffin exploded out from the oak’s protection.

“Shut it, Slick,” J snapped at her twitchy companion.

Slick froze mid-air while J turned her attention back to the dragon.

“Now, as I was saying, it seems that we might actually be able to work together. You want Sun Cloak’s magic? Sure, knock yourself out! I have no use for magic. All I want is the money: cold, hard cash.”

The dragon sized up the female griffin with his eyes and he furrowed his brows in thought.

“We already have something of value to contribute,” J continued without giving the dragon a chance to reply. “We have the answer to the next puzzle. But, if you want it, you’re going to have to prove yourself useful. We got a deal?”

The dragon remained silent for a few more moments. The muscular Sly flew close to J and allowed his body to hover slightly in front of hers, so as to use himself as a shield should the time come. Slick simply shivered behind his leader while his shifty eyes darted back and forth.

“Agreed,” spoke the dragon slowly, “on one condition.”

He lifted one claw to emphasize his point. It was now J’s turn to raise an eyebrow as the beast continued.

“I am allowed to pursue the treasure as I see fit. We will share information and split the treasure when the hunt is over. I will take anything pertaining to the unicorn’s magics and you may have anything else.”

“Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast big guy,” J wagged a talon in front of the dragon’s face. “Before we give you anything, you have to prove that you’ll be of use to us. Sly here’s our muscle,” she pointed toward her bulky friend, “and Slick over there is the best pickpocket I’ve ever met.” She moved her talon to point over at her twitchy companion. “And I’m the brains of this whole operation. So what can you give to the team that we don’t already have?”

The dragon stared J down with his piercing gaze, but she didn’t flinch. He opened his mouth to speak when instead he began to inhale sharply.

“Ahh…Ahh…Chooooo!”

A small burst of green flame poured from the black dragon’s nostrils as the creature sneezed violently. The griffins scattered to avoid the unexpected fire. A parchment materialized from the green blaze and fell to the ground. The dragon snatched up the paper and opened it. His eyes scanned over the words but the more he read, the angrier he became. His eyes glowered with hatred and his claws began to shake with fury. Without warning, he tore the parchment to shreds and then spewed out an orange fire which quickly engulfed the paper and burned it to ashes.

“Now that’s interesting,” mused J as she watched the events unfold. “Where did that letter come from?”

“It’s known as the Sending Flame,” growled the beast, still shaking with rage.

“So, you can send messages as well as receive them?” she pressed.

“Yes.”

“Well, well, well then,” she chuckled, “seems like you’ve got something to offer after all. Welcome to the team. I’m Jay, but my friends here call me J. Choose which ever you like.”

“Jay…” hissed the dragon softly. “Very well, I accept your offer. Now, let me introduce myself, I am Grallix of the Frostbluff Peak and you may find that I can do more than simply send and receive messages.”

“Excellent.” Jay wrung her talons together greedily. “Alright then, how about that answer I promised?”

* * * * * * * * *

That very same afternoon, the Royal Treasure Seekers were in Canterlot Castle, gazing intently at the picture of Professor Sun Cloak.

“It says: Professor of Music Theory,” read Twilight Sparkle. “That’s funny; I’d think he would be teaching magic or something.”

“This is all well and good and very interesting, but let’s not get side tracked,” stated Rarity as she pulled her eyes away from the book. “After all, we are going to Hooverdale and the sooner we get there, the better.”

“Of course,” agreed Applejack. “Come on y’all, let’s get packed. And you, Sugar Cube,” the orange equine pointed a hoof at Twilight, “are goin’ to talk to the Princess ‘bout gettin’ us in to Hooverdale.”

“I’m on it,” the purple mare nodded and trotted off quickly.

The group split up to do their own tasks. Most would pack, but Twilight would get the group into the protected community of Hooverdale if it was the last thing she did.

* * * * * * * * *

“Of course I can get you into Hooverdale,” said Princess Celestia to her faithful student. “I’ve been invited there many times myself. I’ll get you a document proving that I’ve sent you and they’ll let you in.”

“Thank you so much, Princess!” Twilight bubbled with glee.

“Now, on the matter of transportation, I can’t lend you any of my charioteers due to the pressing need for keeping peace in Equestria.”

Twilight’s smile lessened somewhat at the news.

“But I can do something for you,” Celestia continued.

The scholar looked questioningly, but hopefully, at her mentor.

“I can still give you one of my extra chariots. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash will need to pull it, but this will also give you a ride to your next destination as well.”

“That sounds wonderful Princess!” declared Twilight.

Celestia laughed merrily at her student’s happiness.

“I’m glad to be able to help. Oh, but Twilight?”

“Yes, Princess?”

“I wouldn’t advise leaving instantly. It’s a full day’s journey when one travels by air and an even longer one if one walks. Why don’t you all rest here one more night and then take off bright and early tomorrow morning?”

“I don’t think Rarity will be too happy about that, but taking in to account that Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash are pulling for us…we’ll stay one more night.”

“A wise choice, my faithful student.”

No sooner had the two parted company than one of the Royal Guard came up to Celestia asking for more support or some such matter. Twilight went back to tell her friends that they should make themselves comfortable for one more evening in the illustrious Castle.

* * * * * * * * *

The afternoon sun beat down upon a group of travelers that day. Four unicorns had made their way out of Canterlot and found themselves marching across a wide open field, which teemed with all manner of tall grass.

“Come on, Cumulus!” called a brown colored stallion to another stallion behind him. “You’re slowing us down! If we’re going to make it to Hooverdale before the other teams then you’re going to have to pick up the pace!”

“I’m comin’ Sun Chaser! No need to get your mane in a twist!” the other stallion, Cumulus, called back in his gruff voice.

Cumulus was a unicorn in the Society of Sun, just as the other three unicorns were in the Society. He had pale green eyes and a dark blue mane which rippled over his grey coat like a shower of rain. He was short and stubby for a fully grown stallion and he had the mark of a storm cloud wrapped in lightning upon his flank.

“Sight Seer, would you mind helping him out?” asked Sun Chaser as he turned to yet another stallion to his right.

The one named Sight Seer nodded his head. Seer’s horn began to glow violet, the same enchanting color as his eyes, and a very similar colored magic encased Cumulus. Suddenly, the stubby stallion found himself standing at Sun Chaser’s hooves.

“Ooo, Sight Seer!” rumbled Cumulus angrily as he stamped a hoof on the ground, “I don’t care if Teleportation Magic IS your specialty. I don’t need any help to keep up with the group!”

“I was only doing as Sun Chaser asked,” Sight Seer responded calmly in his deep, silky voice.

As a matter of fact, no one would suspect such a deep voice to come from such a lanky stallion for Sight Seer was tall and skinny. His perfectly straightened yellow mane fell over a light blue coat while his cutie mark displayed his talent for Teleportation Magic. It was a seven pointed star with sparks flashing around it.

“Well, from now on, and I don’t really care if Sun Chaser asks you to, don’t teleport me without my permission. Got it?” grumped Cumulus.

“Oh, Cumulus, settle down. It’s not that big of a deal,” a female unicorn’s soft-spoken voice broke through the grumpy one’s moodiness.

Although these words were soft, they also seemed to hold a subtle, but powerful, force behind them. Cumulus bobbed his head around in frustration before conceding defeat.

“You’re right, Rose Shine…as usual.”

Rose Shine was a unicorn mare, the only female in the Society of Sun. Her coat was red and she had a short, green mane which had one single streak of dark green running through it. Her eyes were, oddly enough, grey and her cutie mark was that of a rose, but the rose was half stone and half living.

“Come, come,” stated Sun Chaser cheerily.

He waltzed up to the grumpy stallion and bumped him encouragingly on the shoulder.

“There was no harm done and now you’ve finally caught up with us. Let’s get back on the move.”

The group followed their leader through the tall grasses and further from the safety of Canterlot.

* * * * * * * * *

In an oak tree, ironically in the very same field as the Society of Sun, sat three griffins. A black dragon stood next to the tree. They were all pouring over some pilfered maps from the Royal Archives.

“Alright, where are you Small University?” asked a frustrated Jay.

Her gold tipped wings flicked in aggravation.

“Slick! You sure they said ‘Small University’?”

The dark griffin, Slick, bobbed his head up and down timidly.

“Come on then! Where are you, Small?!” Jay pounded her talons against the trunk of the oak.

Grallix, the black dragon, stood breathing over her shoulder. Suddenly, the dragon’s pupils grew wide and he turned his head.

“I sense the unicorn’s magics,” the beast stated.

“Yes, we know. We have the crystal that you sense,” responded Sly, the muscular griffin.

“No, this is different,” hissed Grallix. “There is another team nearby.”

“Another team?! Where?” asked Jay urgently.

“Over there.” Grallix pointed a claw away from the lone oak.

Jay squinted her eyes and focused her vision toward the point Grallix had pointed. In the far distance she could barely make out a small group of ponies.

“It’s a group of about three, maybe four ponies,” she said. “Slick, I want you to do a quick fly by. Don’t get too close; I don’t want them to know that we’re here. If they’re headed off toward the next clue, then maybe we can follow them to this Small University without ever even finding it on these accursed maps.”

Slick shot off at once, a ball of nervous energy. He was good at his job, however, and remained just out of eye sight. He came back quickly with his report.

“Four of them, J. All unicorns. It looks like they’re leaving Canterlot on some kind of trip.”

“A rival team on a journey away from Canterlot?” mused the female griffin. “It looks like someone is about to solve another puzzle for us.”

She chuckled to herself before continuing.

“All right, here’s the plan: we fly up so high that the unicorns can’t see us. Our eye sight is much better than theirs so we’ll still be able to track them. As long as none of us does anything stupid, we’ll be at the answer in no time. Let’s fly!”

The griffin trio shot straight into the clear sky and made haste to a high altitude. Grallix also lurched into the heavens and kept pace and height with the three griffins. If all went according to plan, the unicorns would remain clueless and the newly formed alliance would be one step closer to Sun Cloak’s treasure.

* * * * * * * * *

“Can’t you just whisk us off to Hooverdale from here, Sight Seer?” Cumulus grumbled to his lanky companion. “My legs are aching.”

“I can only teleport to where I can see. It will be a full day’s walk before Hooverdale is in sight,” replied Sight Seer calmly.

“Of course it will,” harrumphed the squat Cumulus with a scowl.

“What’s wrong Cumulus?” asked the mare, Rose Shine, softly.

“Bah! It’s my job. Those ponies at the Weather Factory don’t seem to understand that we need more rain in Canterlot next month. We’re hosting a prestigious gardening event in the city and those plants need water!”

He stomped his foot on the ground to emphasize his point.

“I’m sorry to hear about that, but isn’t there anything you can do?” asked Rose. “You’re talent IS Weather Magic after all.”

“Well…there is one thing, but I’d rather not do it if possible.”

“And what’s that?”

“We could get a few pegasus to dip into a small reservoir we hold in case of emergencies and then I could use my magic to create some temporary rain clouds. But it would empty the reservoir in the process.”

“Ah! The troubles of scheduling weather for an entire city,” laughed Sun Chaser as he strolled over to Cumulus’ side.

“You be quiet!” huffed Cumulus as he turned his head toward his leader. “Getting a position helping schedule the weather in Canterlot is a very prestigious and important role. It’s much better than giving tours at that old museum of yours!”

“Cumulus!” Rose’s soft, but powerful voice rippled through the air. “You know that Sun Chaser only gives tours at that museum because he wants to. He’s been offered many higher positions in Canterlot, but he’s turned them all down.”

“Sorry, Rose,” apologized the stubby stallion. “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just stressed is all.”

Cumulus took some deep breaths and closed his eyes. Slowly, he opened them again and his constant scowl became less noticeable.

“Feeling better?” asked Sun Chaser.

Cumulus gave a curt nod and the group continued for a few moments without speaking.

“Chaser,” said Sight Seer suddenly and quietly, his face showed alarm. “We are being followed.”

Sun Chaser’s eyes grew hard and calculating. He furrowed his brows and turned his attention toward Sight Seer.

“Where and how many?”

“I can sense four of them. They’re up very high, where even eye sight cannot reach. Three are about our size, but one is much larger,” reported Seer.

“Right,” responded Chaser with a quick nod. “Well, let’s see who’s following us then. Shall we?”

The light brown unicorn set his horn ablaze with yellow magic and suddenly a bullhorn magically appeared floating in front of his mouth.

“You up there!” shouted Sun Chaser into the bullhorn. “Yes you! Get down here! I’ve got something to say to you!”

Once the message was given, the bullhorn disappeared in a puff of yellow tinted smoke and the unicorn’s horn quit glowing. The Society of Sun gazed up into the blue sky and waited for a response. In time, three dark specks appeared high in the heavens. As the objects grew closer, the shapes of three griffins became perceivable. Finally, the griffins landed at the feet of the unicorns.

“Well?” asked a female griffin sharply.

“Well, what?” replied Sun Chaser with a shrug.

“What did you have to say to us?” the female cocked an eyebrow up angrily.

“Oh right!” Chaser said much too happily. “…Stop following us and solve the puzzle for yourself!” he snapped.

“What are you talking about? Puzzle? What puzzle?” the gold headed griffin acted shocked.

Sun Chaser smirked and chuckled softly. He looked confidently at the griffin and then said, “Riddle.”

Suddenly, Sun Cloak’s form appeared twice with dual flashes of light. One Sun Cloak was in the midst of the Society and the other image appeared near a black, scrawny griffin standing behind the female.

“Riddles? I love riddles! A good puzzle always seems to brighten up my day,” spoke the dual images before fading away.

Sun Chaser looked pleased, but the female griffin was staring daggers into him and clawing at the ground angrily.

“How’d you know?” hissed the gold headed female as he clear blue eyes bore into Sun Chaser.

“Because, Jay, I do my research and I have powerful friends.”

Jay’s expression changed instantly to one mixed with both genuine shock and rage.

“And I know you have another friend whom you’re trying to hide from us as well,” Chaser stated bluntly. “Why don’t you call him down here? Or should I do it for you?”

Jay scowled at Sun Chaser, but then turned her attention toward a muscular griffin by her side.

“Sly,” she said with a forced calmness, “they want to meet our companion…why don’t you get him for us?”

The muscular Sly flew into the sky until he was outside the range of sight. The two groups peered at each other with suspicion as a few tense moments passed by in silence. Soon enough, however, two shapes came into view. There was a small one, which was obviously Sly, and one that was easily three times the muscular griffin’s size. The two beings shook the earth as they landed. Now, standing among the unicorn group were three griffins and a black dragon. The dragon smiled deviously, showing off his razor sharp incisors to the four equines.

“Grallix of Frostbluff,” said Sun Chaser calmly.

The dragon lost his smile.

“You’re rather small for a fully matured dragon, aren’t you?” questioned Sun Chaser.

Grallix roared in Chaser’s face which whipped the unicorn’s mane around.

“I know my own weaknesses!” screamed the black beast. “And I don’t need a stinking pony telling me about them!”

“Huffy, aren’t we?” asked Sun Chaser calmly while brushing his mane back into place. “I must say, for all of my careful research, I know the least about you Grallix of Frostbluff.”

The dragon chose to glare at the bold unicorn.

“I think I’ve heard enough of this,” Jay broke up the staring contest. “Look, we already heard you talking about Hooverdale. So we’ll just be on our way. See ya’ at the next puzzle!”

She waved flippantly at the unicorns and then took to the sky. The two other griffins followed suit and shot into the sky.

“I’m afraid that I can’t let you do that,” stated Sun Chaser abruptly.

Jay and the other griffins froze midair and turned around. The female flew right into Chaser’s face and pressed, “Oh yeah? And why’s that?”

“Because,” whispered Sun Chaser with a hard set voice, “I know who you are, Jay Pennsworth, and I WILL stop you.”

The griffin backed off and snarled at the unicorn.

“So, you know who I am, eh?” she retorted. “Fine. But there’s still nothing you can do to stop me. Sun Cloak’s shield protects me and my team just as well as it protects yours. You can’t do a thing.”

“I wouldn’t be so confident if I were you,” replied Chaser.

Jay looked quizzically at the yellow eyed stallion.

“It’s true that Sun Cloak’s shield will protect from deadly threats,” Chaser began to pace back and forth until he reached Rose Shine.

He leaned over and whispered something into the mare’s ears before continuing.

“But, there are ways around it.”

At this he turned toward Rose Shine and shouted, “Rose, now!”

She nodded her head and put one hoof forward. Her horn sparked to life and a brilliant green distortion rippled from her horn and flew into the sky. The magical distortion was shaped like a crescent moon; it was horizontal and parallel to the ground. The distortion zipped through the air until it collided with the three griffins. The magic went straight through the three creatures and fizzled grey after it had passed through all three of them.

The stunned griffins inhaled sharply as the magical surge passed into their bodies and then they became as still as death. Their wings froze in place and they plummeted to the ground. Sun Chaser lit his own horn and a large mattress appeared beneath the falling griffins. The frozen creatures hit the cushioning, but they remained motionless. Chaser then dispersed the mattress.

Rose turned her attention on the black dragon and fired the same magical crescent at the beast. But Grallix shot out a gust of purple flame, which engulfed the green distortion until Rose’s spell had fizzled into nothingness.

“I will not be taken that easily!” roared the beast as smoke poured from his mouth and nostrils. “Tell me what you did to them!”

“Your companions are fine,” stated Sun Chaser confidently. “Rose here is a master of Animation Magic and your friends have simply been rendered motionless for twenty-four hours. When the time has elapsed, they will be able to move again.”

Grallix snarled in annoyance while glancing at the frozen griffins. He then leveled his cold gaze back onto the yellow eyed unicorn.

“Now, if you would be so kind as to stand there for a few more moments, you can join your friends,” quipped Chaser.

“Arrogant pony!” fumed Grallix. “Who are you to mock a dragon?!”

Sun Chaser suddenly stood tall and proud as he stared unswervingly into the dragon’s fierce green eyes.

“I am the closest living relative to Sun Cloak the Gifted,” he said resolutely, “and I will make sure that only those worthy of his treasure will ever see it.”

Grallix was taken aback for a moment at the revelation and his eyes glimmered with fear for the briefest of seconds. Then, the dragon began to laugh a hearty and wicked laugh which roared into the heavens.

“Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha! You had me going for a second!” he pointed a grizzled claw at Chaser and wiped a small tear from his eye before becoming deathly serious again. “But the one you call Sun Cloak was a single child and never had any children. And, for telling me such a blatant lie, I will punish you most severely. That will teach you about the consequences of lying to a dragon.”

Grallix snarled and charged at the yellow eyed stallion, but he was yanked to the ground by some unknown force. The tinkling of metal against metal reached the dragon’s ears as he crashed upon the ground. A set of large, magic chains were now connected to both his leg and the ground. He glanced at Sun Chaser and found the unicorn’s horn to be glowing with a bright yellow hue. In anger, the dragon began to belch purple fire onto the golden chains. The chains began to erode and lose their strength as the purple flame enveloped them.

“Cumulus, I need lightning!” commanded Sun Chaser.

Cumulus’ eyes lit up with delight even as his horn began to glow a pale green. A small thunderhead appeared around the golden chains and the grey cloud spewed forth lightning onto the metal. Grallix howled in pain as electricity flowed into his scaly leg. His purple fire was swiftly doing its work, however, and soon the chain would be no more. Grallix began to yank and tug on the ever weakening chain.

“Rose!” called Sun Chaser.

The red mare ignited her horn and the powerful de-animating distortion flew at the dragon. Unprepared and caught unaware, Grallix was blasted clean-through by the magical crescent. He gasped sharply when the magic passed through his body and he fell limp to the ground, a scowl of pain and determination still etched across his grizzled face. Sun Chaser released the remnants of his golden chains from existence and Cumulus allowed the storm clouds to rain upon the tall grasses of the plains.

“This is unfortunate,” Sun Chaser said to his group, he was sweating and panting slightly. “I was hoping that the griffins were not so far into the hunt. We’ll have to pick up our pace. I want to be in sight of Hooverdale by tomorrow afternoon. Twenty-four hours doesn’t give us nearly as much time as I’d like.”

The equines took a very short breather after all their magical exertion, but they were soon on the road again. This time they had a quickness to their steps that was driven by necessity. The griffins could certainly not be allowed to find Sun Cloak’s treasure and having a dragon on their side would only make things that much more difficult.

* * * * * * * * *

Evening was only just beginning in the sleepy town of Bridleby. The small community was located close to the base of the mountain on which Canterlot resided. The land outside was beautiful, full of luscious trees which grew thanks to the roaring waterfalls coming from the cliff. A group of four weary travelers entered the town and soon found themselves at the Sleep Inn. They purchased rooms for the evening and, after unloading their packs, went out for a bite to eat. The four sat down in a crowded diner and began to talk as their food was being prepared.

“So, explain to me again why we’re going to Canterlot?” asked a young stallion.

His coat was a pale green color and he had a light brown mane with streaks of black running through it. His brown eyes gleamed through a pair of circular glass at a middle-aged stallion who sat across the table from him.

“I’ve told ye already lad,” stated the middle-aged stallion in an Irish accent.

This one’s coat was a speckled grey and his mane was a deep black.

“We be goin’ to Canterlot so’s to do some research. I’m hopin’ that the Princess’ll be kind enough to give us access to the Royal Archives when she hears of our participation in Sun Cloak’s hunt.”

“Yee haw!” a mare at the table shouted with a grin as wide as a mile plastered across her face. “Tomorrow we meet royalty!”

She had a deep blue mane with small bands of light blue running through it. Her coat was a pale yellow and she had grey eyes. She was sitting next to the middle-aged stallion.

Across the table from the mare sat the only unicorn in the group. He had a deep blue mane with violet stripes. His coat was a luminous white and his eyes were a pale blue. His cutie mark was a trio of red gemstones and he was currently toying with a small emerald which he had set spinning on the tabletop.

“Gemwalker, will you cut that out?” asked the pale green stallion in frustration, his voice was slightly grating to listen to. “You won’t leave that stone alone for even a second. It’s driving me crazy!”

“I’d think you’d be more excited about an ancient stone, Diggs,” spoke the unicorn in a smooth, high society voice. “After all, your talent IS archeology.”

Diggs, the pale green earth pony, had the mark of an archeologist. His was a digging tool crossed over a brush.

“Students, settle down now,” spoke the grey speckled earth pony with his Irish accent.

“Yes, Professor McKracken,” the two replied in flat unison.

Professor McKracken had his own cutie mark. It showed off his talent for teaching the earth sciences. His mark was one of a closed book with a large gemstone on the cover. The gemstone was cut in a hexagon shape and its color was a bright green.

The door to the diner opened as a pegasi duo entered the eatery. The students turned their heads to look at the newcomers. One was a stallion and the other a mare.

The stallion had an orange coat and a short cropped yellow mane. His cutie mark was a golden horseshoe. The mare had a red coat and a flowing blue mane with streaks of purple. Her mark was a four-leaf clover.

The pegasi were soon seated at a table. The students soon turned their heads away from the pegasi and resumed their own conversation.

“Those two,” Gemwalker spoke and nudged his head in the direction of the pegasi, “I feel like I’ve seen them somewhere before.”

“Do ya’ know where?” asked the mare in a Southern accent.

“If I knew where I saw them, Rocky, I would have told you,” quipped Gemwalker.

The mare, Rocky Road, gave Gemwalker an accusing look, but soon put her mind to work on other things.

“Well, if ya’ know em’. Then why not go speak with em’?” Rocky asked Gemwalker.

“Because I can’t remember where it is I would know them from,” the unicorn replied, slightly bothered by the suggestion.

The four turned their attention back to the pegasi. The two winged ponies were placing their orders and laughing with their waiter. The pegasus mare seemed to think of something and began to rummage through her saddlebag. She pulled out some sort of paper and pointed her hoof to it.

“I know where I’ve seen them!” whispered Gemwalker with enthusiasm.

The other three turned their attention back to the unicorn.

“I read about those two in the paper not too long back. They found some sort of treasure.”

“So they’re treasure hunters!” whispered Rocky excitedly.

“Of course you’d remember something about shiny gems and money,” huffed Diggs as he rolled his eyes.

“If those two be accomplished treasure hunters,” stated the middle-aged Professor, “then maybe they can help us. Mr. Walker, would ye mind goin’ over and talkin’ with them?”

Gemwalker nabbed the emerald from the table and started to saunter over to the pegasi but not before he looked his teacher in the eyes and said, “My name is GEMwalker.”

He then continued over to the pegasi couple without even waiting for a reply from his professor.

“Excuse me,” said Gemwalker as he neared the pegasi.

The couple turned toward the white unicorn.

“Are you the ones who found that treasure a while back?” Gemwalker asked.

“Honey!” the mare placed a hoof on her husband’s shoulder. “It looks like we have a fan.”

“Why goodness me!” replied her husband.

The pegasus stallion fumbled and bumbled his way around the table until he came over to shake hooves with the unicorn.

“Yes. It’s true,” assured the orange stallion. “We are the famous treasure hunting couple who found Gillian Griffon’s sunken treasure and we’ve been on many other treasure hunts as well. I’m Boomer and this is my wife, Juliet.”

Boomer motioned with his hoof toward his wife and she came to stand by her husband’s side.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Juliet said in a cheery voice.

“The pleasure is all mine,” Gemwalker spoke courteously and bowed his head.

“Ooo! Ooo! I know just what you’re after,” Juliet claimed excitedly. “Let me just…get it…for you.”

The red mare searched through her saddlebag until her head popped back out, clenching a paper between her teeth. She flopped the paper onto the table. Gemwalker noticed that it was an old newspaper. On the front cover was a picture of Juliet and Boomer standing beside a waterlogged ship with a pile of treasure gleaming behind them.

“Ah yes! And here are some pens,” Juliet almost sang. “Let me just sign this for you. Um…what was your name again, Sweetie?”

“Oh, it’s Gemwalker.”

“Righty-o, Mr. Walker,” said Boomer as he snagged a pen from his own bag.

“No. No. My name is GEMwalker.”

“Of course it is,” mumbled the stallion as he used his mouth to flourish his signature onto the newspaper picture.

“There you go, Sweetheart.” Juliet handed the freshly signed paper to Gemwalker, who took it with a smile.

“I…I have to ask,” Gemwalker said, a little nervously. “Did you really find seven fire rubies on Griffon’s ship?”

“As sure as the day is long,” chuckled Boomer. “And that’s not all we found, plenty of gold and other rare gems too.”

Gemwalker was really becoming energetic at the talk of treasure. The unicorn began to inhale a little faster and his eyes grew slightly larger amongst his excitement.

“S-So what does a fire ruby feel like? Does it really produce heat on touch?”

“Well, I don’t know much about those fire rubies, Deary,” began Juliet. “But I can see that you share a love for treasure and jewels and I have something here that just might interest you.”

The pegasus mare stuck her head into her bag and pulled out another object. This one was much smaller, but also much more shiny. She clunked it onto the table for Gemwalker to see. Sitting before him was a green gemstone, which looked almost exactly like his own group’s small emerald.

“I-Is that what I think it is?” gasped the unicorn with the greatest of desire.

He slowly reached out a hoof to touch another of Sun Cloak’s riddle crystals.

“I’m not sure I would…” Boomer warned, but it was too late.

Gemwalker gently touched the pegasi’ emerald, which instantly sent a tiny jolt into the unicorn’s hoof. The white unicorn began to shake and his dark blue mane frizzed up as magical energy flowed through him.

“…touch that,” finished Boomer.

Gemwalker quickly released his hold on both the pegasi’s emerald and also on his own team’s emerald. Instantly, the jarring magic ceased and his mane fell back down to its usual straightened appearance, with the exception of a few now unkempt strands.

“Oh dear! Are you alright?” Juliet gasped with concern.

“Mr. Walker!” shouted Professor McKracken as he rushed up to his student’s side.

The grey speckled stallion placed a caring hoof on his student’s back.

The unicorn looked back at his teacher and spoke quite calmly, “My name is GEMwalker.”

Two small emeralds now lay upon the floor of the diner. Boomer reached down to retrieve one.

“I’ll get it, Honey,” said the pegasus stallion.

But when he touched the stone, he found a surprise of his own. Magic surged through the orange pegasus and he began to shudder and shake. His own short yellow mane started to poof up until he released his touch on the green gem.

“Oops, that would be mine,” Gemwalker apologized as he quickly snatched up and tried to hide his team’s emerald.

“Quite,” was all Boomer could wheeze.

“Honey!” squealed Juliet as she placed a hoof around her husband. “Are you ok?”

“Fine. I’m fine,” rasped Boomer.

By this point the other patrons in the eatery were looking over at the strange happenings. Some hushed murmurs were rustling through the air and some ponies were even pointing.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say that you have a crystal of your own,” Boomer mentioned to Gemwalker. “Where did you say you were from again?”

The Professor and not Gemwalker responded, “We be a group from the University of Hoofington. Me and me students have found ourselves on a treasure hunt and we were wonderin’ if, perhaps, ye could help us out?”

“A group of college students you say?” asked Juliet. “Oh my! What fun you must be having. And if you’re not having fun, then what good is a treasure hunt? We’d be more than happy to help you out, right Dear?”

Her husband gave a nod in agreement and smiled broadly at the two before him. Another equine walked over to those who were talking.

“Sorry to interrupt,” stated Diggs who had only just walked in on the conversation, “but we seem to be drawing some unwanted attention.”

He motioned with his eyes to the other patrons who had stopped eating and were instead staring at the odd group.

“I see ye be right lad,” answered McKracken. The Professor then turned his attention back to the pegasus, “We be stayin’ at the Sleep Inn here in town. Could we maybe meet up after supper and talk things over?”

“The Sleep Inn you say?” asked Boomer.

“Why, that’s where we’re staying too!” Juliet answered happily.

“Terrific!” replied the Professor. “Enjoy your supper.”

The three from U of H went back to their table. Gemwalker stuffed the newspaper in his bag. Shortly thereafter, food came for the foursome and the patrons at the diner eventually went back to enjoying their own meals. The dinner was thoroughly enjoyed by all before they went back that evening to the Sleep Inn.

* * * * * * * * *

The students and their professor found themselves in a quaint room at the Sleep Inn. The room was not elaborate. The walls were painted white and one wall held a small window which allowed a look at the town outside. The Inn was not very tall and the group was located on the uppermost floor, floor three. A few beds lined the walls and a small nightstand rested between every set of beds. A painting of flowers hung over each nightstand and each nightstand held one dim lamp. There was also a closet in the room, which wasn’t being used. There was one door that led to a restroom, complete with a tiny shower, and one door which led to the hallway. The team’s saddlebags lay haphazardly on the floor, except for Gemwalker’s which was tucked neatly under his bed.

This room was to be the place where the U of H students would spend the night, but there were currently two pegasi in this room as well. The pegasi had come in only recently. Not counting the pegasi couple, only two equines were standing. Diggs and Rocky Road were each lying on their beds. Almost as soon as the pegasi arrived conversation started up.

“A fine welcome to ye!” greeted the Professor. “Come in and make yeselves at home.”

“Oh! Just look at all of you,” Juliet smiled cheerfully. “Ready to take on the world and set out on an adventure! I remember when my Boomer and I set off on our first treasure hunt. Those were good days.”

She sighed happily.

“Excuse me,” said Diggs from his comfortable position on his bed, “but shouldn’t we get to know each other if we’re going to be working together?”

“Introductions! Of course!” Juliet replied blissfully. “My name is Juliet and this is my husband, Boomer.”

“It’s a pleasure.” Boomer nodded his head toward the students.

“And I’m Professor Granite McKracken from the University of Hoofington and these are me students, Rocky Road, Diggs, and you’ve already met Mr. Walker.”

Each of the students responded as their name was given. Rocky Road, the only female in the U of H team, smiled and waved her hoof vigorously. Diggs snorted and nodded his head. Gemwalker bowed courteously but he mumbled, “It’s GEMwalker,” under his breath.

“And now that we all know each other, I’d say it’s time to get to work,” finished McKracken.

“Well then, let’s get right to it,” opened Boomer with enthusiasm. “Which puzzle are you on?”

Rocky Road sat up on her bed and began to recite the riddle from memory, “The last clue was:

‘Where the ol’ ring-a-round scores a coup de grace

  And where Pegasus fall with a bumblin’ ace,

  Here y’all will find the next challenge awaits;

  At Small: fer one…fer all’.”

“Then we’re on the same one,” cooed Juliet gleefully.

“Excellent!” replied the Professor. He paused for the briefest of moments before continuing. “Any idea what it means?”

“Professor! I know something,” stated Diggs and he raised his hoof as a force of habit.

“Yes lad?”

“It’s that line about ‘the ol’ ring-a-round’. I’ve done some looking into ancient unicorn lore and happened upon a game that used to be played called Mer…Mare…Mmm…well it was something starting with an ‘M’. Anyway, one of the plays in this game was called the ol’ ring-a-round.”

“Alright,” Boomer swung his hoof in front of himself happily, “now that’s a good lead. But what else can we get from it?”

“Class, where would ye go to play a sport?” McKracken asked.

“I’d go to the school sport fields, I’d reckon,” replied Rocky as she scratched her noggin.

“Ah! The school. Now that makes me think o’ somethin’,” the Professor responded. “I just can’t quite put me hoof on it, but it’s somethin’ to do with that last line, ‘for one, for all’.”

“Reminds me of my old college’s motto: Stand together, Learn together, Live together,” Boomer reminisced.

“And that’s it!” McKracken practically shouted. “I was readin’ about some old universities, I was, and I came across one from long ago named Small University. It had the motto ‘For one, For all’ next to it.”

“That fits perfectly with the clue!” Gemwalker stated excitedly. “ ‘At Small’. We need to get to Small University.”

“Uh…that’s going to be a problem,” Diggs said.

“And why’s that, Deary?” asked Juliet.

“Because Small University no longer exists,” the light green stallion replied. “I’ve done all sorts of research on the old places in Equestria, schools included. Small University was torn down and a small neighborhood sprung up in its place. Well, in time, the neighborhood was torn down and then some businesses came up, but the businesses…” He droned on in lecture mode until noticing that nopony was really interested. “So, long story short, one of the richest communities in all of Equestria is currently sitting where Small U used to be. And they don’t let just anypony waltz in.”

“What did you say the community’s name was?” asked Boomer.

“I didn’t,” replied Diggs. “It’s called Hooverdale.”

“Hooverdale?” responded Juliet in her typical cheery voice, “What a coincidence! We were invited not too long ago for tea with one of our friends who just so happens to live in Hooverdale. Stick with us Dearies and we’ll get you to the next puzzle.”

She winked at the group and then looked out the window.

“Oh Honey! Look at how dark it is outside! We should get to sleep; I know how cranky you get without a good night’s rest.”

“Whoops! Well, time does fly and all that,” chuckled Booomer. “Night everypony! Tomorrow we make for Hooverdale.”

Boomer took his wife’s hoof in his and walked with her out the door. After the pegasi had left, Professor McKracken stood with a broad smile across his face.

“Well, looks like we won’t be needin’ to go to Canterlot after all,” said the teacher, “What good luck!”

* * * * * * * * *

Equestria was lit by a host of bright stars, but one unicorn could not see the glory of the stars for she was stuck deep in the heart of the earth, lost in darkness and confusion. Sounds bounced all around the blue unicorn known as Trixie. They were harsh sounds of hammers pounding against stone and of axes cracking wood. A bright red orb bounced teasingly in front of her face. She batted a hoof at the small nuisance, but her hoof only went through it.

“Go away!” she screamed at the orb angrily.

Trixie looked to her left and saw a yellow orb and then to her right and found a green one. She screamed at the top of her lungs and her own angry voice echoed back into her ears.

“Where is the blue one Trixie started with?!” she demanded of the other colored orbs.

The other balls of light only seemed to laugh at her. The beautiful blue ball which had been her guide at first had never been seen after she began to follow a yellow orb, but then a red one had appeared and then a green one. She chased after each one and quickly found herself walking around in confusing loops or stuck at dead ends. Her stomach growled at her.

“Be quiet,” she whimpered, almost to the point of tears.

She had come to yet another dead end after spending hours, maybe even days, traversing the dark passages of the tunnel below Saddleback. She was starting to give up hope of ever getting out. Slowly, she slumped to the ground in defeat and softly began to sob.

“Here,” she heard a soft voice call out to her. It sounded comforting, like that of an old friend.

Trixie glanced around through blurry eyes, but saw nothing.

“Here,” the voice said again.

The unicorn mare shot her eyesight to the place from which the voice was coming and wiped her eyes. Standing before the very hungry and confused mare was the transparent image of Sun Cloak. The ancient unicorn was pointing his hoof to a point on the wall and then, before her very eyes, he disappeared.

Trixie went over to investigate the slab of stone and found a notch, the perfect size for her small diamond to fit in. She shakily stuffed the gem into the hole and watched as a hidden stone doorway opened to reveal a small blue orb. The orb bobbled in the air, almost seeming to chide the unicorn for not following it.

Trixie snatched up her diamond as quickly as she could and leaped toward the soft blue light. She followed the blue ball until it led her into a large, hollowed out room. Her diamond hummed and glowed to life. Sun Cloak the Gifted appeared before the mare and the blue orb dissipated. Then the old unicorn spoke.

“My crystal registers that you have been stuck in these tunnels for over two days,” he stated. “If you would have stopped and thought on my riddle before blindly chasing after any old light, you would have found your way here much sooner.”

He paused momentarily before continuing.

“Allow me to explain. I said ‘follow the guiding light’ and not ‘follow the guiding lightS’, emphasis on the ‘S’. Now let this be a valuable lesson for you, not all lights which claim to guide are good and true. But don’t think that I’m only talking to you; I’m chiding myself as well. You see, when I was young and foolish, I would have made the exact same mistake.”

Sun Cloak took a deep breath and looked upward for a moment, as if recalling an old memory, but he soon looked back down and continued.

“When I was young I knew that I was more magically gifted than most of my peers. I believed that I could become great and powerful through study and practice. I was bold and arrogant, I believed that I had control and could do whatever I wanted to do. I was wrong.”

The old unicorn again stopped talking and suddenly appeared very sad, but he composed himself and continued.

“I now beg you, learn from my mistakes. Use my crystal and learn from me, before life teaches you its lessons the hard way. Enough of that kind of talk however, I offer your team my congratulations.

You may hear my next riddle anytime you wish, simply ask the crystal. On the table before you, you will find a set of three rings, each of a different size. You will need these to complete my next challenge. When you are ready to leave, place your crystal in the wall at the far end of this chamber. I wish you the best.”

Trixie listened to the information and did as she was told. She picked up the rings, took off her cape, and wrapped the rings snuggly in her cape. She then placed the wrapped rings in her battered saddlebag. She pressed her diamond into the far wall and watched as one final passage, leading out of the tunnel, greeted her with a soft green glow. She grabbed her crystal and trotted up and out of Sun Cloak’s dark maze. The beautiful night stars and a shimmering moon met Trixie’s gaze as the blue mare stepped from the darkness.

Finally free of the maze, Trixie breathed a determined vow to the stars above her, “Sun Cloak, Trixie will not only solve your puzzles and find your treasure, but she will also figure YOU out. Then Trixie will truly be Great and Powerful and there will be no room for doubt.”

Then she collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Chapter 14: The Journey

Chapter 14: The Journey

The sleepy town of Bridleby was well into the evening and those staying at the Sleep Inn could be heard snoozing away, but one stallion was wide awake. A pale green stallion was tossing fitfully in his bed, unable to find rest. Finally, he got up and walked quietly over to the door. He pushed it open and almost stepped out when a hoarse whisper caught him off guard.

“Diggs?”

The green stallion turned his head toward Gemwalker.

“What are you doing?” the white unicorn prodded.

“Shhh,” Diggs hushed the other student. “I can’t stop thinking about those pegasi and I can’t get to sleep. I’m going out for a little. Want to join me?”

“Uh…yeah. Sure.”

The unicorn sleepily pushed himself out of bed and the two students exited the room together.

“So, where are we going?” whispered Gemwalker as the two closed the door behind them.

“I don’t really know,” answered Diggs quietly. “I just need some place where I can think.”

“The main room here at the Sleep Inn is nice,” offered Gemwalker, “It’s got a small fireplace and some comfy couches. I doubt anypony else is up this late at night.”

“That sounds like it’ll work. Come on, we’ve got some things to talk about.”

The two quietly creaked through the hallways and down three flights of stairs to the common room. A small fire was burning comfortingly in the fireplace. The fire plus a few candles gave the room a warm sort of lighting, which danced and flickered over the two stallions.

“Gemwalker,” Diggs opened after he had settled himself in front of the fireplace, “you know I can’t stand some of the things you do, but you’ve got a level head.”

The unicorn wasn’t sure what to make of the compliment/insult combo, so he remained silent as Diggs continued.

“The Professor and Rocky seemed to take to those pegasi like they had been friends for years and so did you. But I don’t like it. They seem WAY too friendly and getting help from a professional treasure hunting couple is far too lucky for mere coincidence. Out of everypony here, you seem to know the most about them. What can you tell me?”

“Diggs, I think you’re overreacting a bit,” cautioned Gemwalker.

Both their faces flickered with light and shadow as the fire crackled and popped in the fireplace.

“Look,” the pale green pony sighed, “I just don’t trust them…yet. Maybe if you can tell me about them I’ll feel more comfortable, but I think that treasure hunters hunt treasure and that means that they’re not sharing Sun Cloak’s treasure with us if we find it.”

Gemwalker paced around the room for a few moments before setting himself by Diggs, in front of the fire. He looked into the dancing flame and let his mind contemplate what his fellow student was saying. In time, the unicorn turned to face the earth stallion.

“Alright, I don’t know much about them, but what I do know I’ll tell you.”

Diggs smiled pleasantly at Gemwalker.

“They really are a treasure hunting couple. Their biggest find was that sunken ship a few years back. They signed a copy of the paper that printed their story and gave it to me. I read through it.

They’ve been hunting for years now, all over the world, but never seem to use conventional methods. Oddly enough, they don’t seem to know what to do with the treasure they find. With the sunken treasure they kept a few bobbles and donated the rest. When I asked them about a specific gem, the fire ruby, they didn’t know anything beyond the fact that they had found a few of them. If you’re really worried about them stealing the treasure, I wouldn’t. I’d be more afraid that they’d donate it all.”

Diggs nodded his head in understanding and then got up. He began to pace, his brows furrowed in thought.

“Hmm…” he murmured, “…alright.”

The green stallion stopped pacing, but had his back turned from Gemwalker.

“Alright, what?” asked Gemwalker when Diggs remained silent for a moment too long.

“Maybe they’re not too bad, but I still don’t trust them. Tell you what, let’s watch them and see how they act. If they’re sincere, then we have nothing to worry about. But they’ve just been getting far too lucky for my tastes. I mean, staying at our exact Inn and on the same floor no less! Plus, being invited to Hooverdale just in time to solve the puzzle? No, there’s got to be something else going on here and, Gemwalker, you and I are going to find out what.”

Diggs turned back around and threw a hoof around the unicorn’s back, almost like they had entered into some kind of secret contract. Gemwalker turned his face and gazed back into the fire. Its orange light bounced warmly across the unicorn’s face.

“…Alright Diggs, I’ll keep my eyes on them. Now come on, we’re leaving early tomorrow and we both need some rest.”

The two stallions left the softly glow of the common room and quietly made their way back up to the third floor and into their cozy room. Soon, the two were snoring away with the rest of the hotel as the moon made its rounds through the celestial heavens.

* * * * * * * * *

A bright morning sunlight was pouring through the windows of Canterlot Castle. The Royal Treasure Seekers had only just finished breakfast and were busy loading their bags onto a large chariot which Princess Celestia had given them for transportation.

“Ok, I think that’s the last of it,” sighed Spike happily.

The little dragon hopped gingerly into the chariot and sat down for a break. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and watched as Twilight and Applejack helped Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy get strapped into the chariot.

“I want to thank you both for being willing to fly us all the way to Hooverdale,” said Twilight gratefully.

“It’s really no problem,” replied Fluttershy in her soft voice. “I’m just glad to be able to help.”

“All I can say,” Rainbow Dash broke into a devious smile, “is that you girls should hold on tight because we’re going to be going fast.”

“Alright, we’re good to go on this end.” Applejack yanked on Rainbow’s harness to prove that it was snug. “How’re ya’ comin’ along, Twilight?”

“We’re tight and secure,” replied the purple unicorn.

Twilight then turned to Fluttershy and asked, “Why don’t you move around a bit and see how it feels?”

The yellow pegasus complied. She shuffled around and fluttered her wings.

“It feels fine to me,” stated Fluttershy.

“Is everything ready up there?” Rarity asked while leaning over the chariot’s front.

“We’re all set,” replied Rainbow Dash with her head turned back toward the chariot.

Twilight and Applejack moved to the back end of the transport and they hopped inside.

“Hold on everypony!” shouted Rainbow Dash.

The two pegasus flapped their wings open and then charged forward to build up some speed. In almost perfect synchronicity, they beat their wings against the air and the chariot bounced into the morning sky.

“Let’s fly!” shouted Pinkie happily with hoof pointed toward the horizon.

* * * * * * * * *

Another team was busy preparing for departure toward Hooverdale that morning. The students from the University of Hoofington and a pegasi couple were making their final arrangements before leaving the town of Bridleby.

“Now students,” Professor McKracken said in his Irish accent, “make sure that ye’ve got everythin’ o’ yours packed. It’s a good five days march to Hooverdale.”

They all glanced around their hotel room one last time.

“I’m ready,” replied Diggs flatly.

“Check-a-roo,” sung Rocky Road.

“I’m set,” said Gemwalker.

“And you’ve got the crystal Mr. Walker?” asked the professor.

“It’s GEM-” started the white unicorn before being interrupted by Diggs.

“When DOESN’T he have it?”

“Alright, alright. No need to get antsy. Now we just need to wait for…” McKracken was cut short by the door flinging open and two pegasi entering.

“We’re here!” said Juliet in a sing-song cheery tone.

“Hope everypony’s ready to go,” stated Boomer.

“Perfect timin’!” applauded the professor. “Alright students, grab your things and let’s go.”

The ponies picked up their saddlebags and said their farewells to the town of Bridleby. The morning slowly moved closer to afternoon as the group of six trekked ever closer to Hooverdale. They talked as they walked, mostly about what to expect when they reached Hooverdale.

“Hooverdale’s a wonderful place,” cooed Juliet with a bounce in her step. “We’ve been there a few times before and I absolutely adore it. The buildings are simply gorgeous and the food is always top notch.”

“That sounds great!” Rocky Road gave a smile of approval.

“That’s fine and all,” stated Diggs bluntly, “but what about before Hooverdale existed? You know, when Small was still standing? Isn’t that the time period we need to be focusing on?”

“Hmm…never thought about it that way,” Boomer thought aloud.

Diggs sighed with annoyance but then spoke up again.

“Then it’s a good thing that I’ve done a bit of research on that particular area for a class project.”

The pale green stallion took a few moments to organize his thoughts before continuing.

“Alright, Hooverdale is the latest project to come up in the area. We all now know about Small University, but after Small was torn down, a different town popped up in its place and then it became a business district. Unfortunately, the businesses didn’t make it and the land got bought up by a young investor. That’s when Hooverdale came into existence. This whole process took a few hundred years and, throughout all of these different projects, there’s been one peculiar factor that has remained the same. According to legend, the land is haunted…”

* * * * * * * * *

“Haunted!?” shrieked Fluttershy.

The yellow pegasus’ wings suddenly snapped shut and the chariot began to shutter and rattle as Rainbow Dash struggled to keep it aloft.

“Fluttershy!” grunted Rainbow beneath the weight. “Fly! Use your wings and fly!”

The timid pegasus clenched her eyes shut and forced her wings to snap back open. They caught the wind and she soon got back into a good rhythm. She reopened her eyes and brought her breathing back under control.

“Sorry about that everypony!” yelled Rainbow Dash back to the shaken group in the chariot. “Fluttershy got a bit spooked, but everything is back under control. Why don’t you keep telling us about Hooverdale Rarity?”

“Um…yes…right,” mumbled the frazzled unicorn as she picked herself off of the floor.

She cleared her throat and attempted to regain her composure before continuing.

“Like I was saying, legend holds that Hooverdale is haunted.”

Fluttershy cringed a little at these words, but managed to continue flying.

“What do you mean…h-haunted?” asked Spike as he hid behind the group’s luggage.

“Are we going to meet a ghost?”  asked Pinkie as she grabbed Spike in her front hooves and spun him around. “Because I’ve always wanted to meet a ghost. It’s on my To-Do list. Right next to ‘Befriend a Zombie’.”

The pink pony set Spike down and then pulled out a tightly rolled scroll titled “To-Do” out of seemingly thin air and proudly displayed it to Twilight, who was standing next to Pinkie. The purple unicorn gently pushed the parchment out of her face as Rarity continued.

“No, it’s not haunted like that.” The white mare shook her head. “There’s only one area that’s actually considered haunted. It’s in the middle of a beautiful forest kept as common ground for the residents of Hooverdale. There is a strange circle is in the center of this forest. Not a single tree, bush, or flower will grow on the circle and even the grass that does grow there doesn’t dare to grow above an inch or two.”

“That’s very peculiar,” mused Twilight.

“Oh, but it gets stranger,” added Rarity. “Some ponies have actually tried to build things, like gazebos, on the circle but, the very next day; all construction has fallen apart like it was never put together in the first place. Apparently not many ponies even walk close to the circle.”

“If anythin’ has magic written all over it, that’s it,” Applejack stated and she stomped down her hoof for added emphasis.

“I guess we know where we’re going then?” gulped Spike.

He shuddered at the thought.

“Bring it on!” shouted Rainbow from the front with a smile.

The chariot suddenly picked up speed and sent those riding tumbling to the floor.

* * * * * * * * *

Early afternoon came upon the small town of Saddleback. A good distance away from the town, however, Trixie awoke. Her eyes painfully opened to let the sunlight in. It took all of her remaining strength to simply push herself onto her hooves. Shakily, she stumbled her way over to a large rock which she leaned against and clung to for support. Her mouth was dry and she was panting hard. Her mind was swimming and her stomach growled loudly at her.

“No,” rasped the unicorn with all the weary strength she could muster, “Trixie is NOT done with this hunt yet.”

Her horn slowly lit up with a good deal of sparking and sputtering. Trixie grunted and wheezed as she placed all of her remaining willpower into one final magic trick. At last, a small bright blue light ignited at the very tip of her horn and remained even as tge rest of her horn’s glow faded.

“Take me to civilization,” ordered Trixie in a hoarse whisper.

The magical spark seemed to understand Trixie’s command and began to drag the weary unicorn across the dusty ground and toward Saddleback. As she was being dragged along, her hooves scratching along the dirt, Trixie’s eyelids drooped shut and she fell back into unconscious.

* * * * * * * * *

Trixie was not the only one to awaken on that sunny afternoon. Far off in a field teaming with tall grasses, a trio of griffins and one dragon were finally beginning to stir. The black and winged beast suddenly inhaled deeply as he twitched and ticked in short mechanical bursts back to life. He shook his head and shook out his body, wings, and tail until he felt the flexibility in his limbs return. The great beast gazed upon his griffin companions who lay, still frozen, in the grasses to his side.

“Animation Magics…” hissed the dragon disdainfully as one of his grizzled claws scratched his chin in thought.

A sudden trio of gasps shook the dragon from his thoughts as his mind came back to the griffins. Each one of the half-eagle, half-lion creatures sputtered back into life, much as he had, and jumped quickly to their feet. They shook out their sore wings and loosened their neck muscles.

“What was that?!” screamed Jay with a combination of anger and shock etched across her face and laced in her voice.

“Animation Magics,” replied Grallix calmly.

“And that means what, exactly?” Jay snapped angrily.

“The red mare can make things move or stop moving. She de-animated us or, in simpler terms, she froze our movements for an entire day.”

The feisty Jay began to pace back and forth while testing her wings. The other griffins began to ruffle their feathers likewise.

“Well, it seems that we’ll have to be more careful around those unicorns then,” grumbled Jay.

She turned to her griffin friends and relayed a new strategy.

“Alright, from what I saw, the magic was a horizontal disk shape and totally flat. It shouldn’t be very hard to dodge. We were simply caught off guard.”

“Yes,” Grallix smiled a toothy grin from behind. “In fact, magics of that sort are extremely tiring. She wouldn’t be able to use that kind of power too many times before she became completely exhausted.”

Jay spun back around to face the dragon, she had on a grin of her own.

“Nice to know. I’m sure we’ll be able to use that to our advantage.”

Grallix stared down at Jay. The griffin stared back into his scarred eye evenly. Suddenly, the dragon closed his eyes and exhaled a powerful sneeze. A small plume of green fire burst from the dragon’s nostrils and a letter materialized from within the fire. Grallix took the paper angrily between his claws, but left it unopened. He snarled at the message and breathed slowly, attempting to hold back a store of hidden anger. His claws began to slowly shred the outside of the parchment as he grated them back and forth on each other.

“So, what’s in a name, Jay Pennsworth?” asked Grallix as calmly as possible, attempting to keep up conversation despite the letter.

“Tell you what,” replied Jay, “I don’t ask you about those messages and you don’t bother about my past.”

She pointed a talon at the slowly shredding paper before crossing her legs in front of herself. Grallix sized up the griffin for a few moments before giving a slow response.

“Agreed.”

He then shot forth a bright burst of orange flame which engulfed the parchment and turned it to blackened ashes before the griffins’ eyes.

“J, we’ve lost a lot of time.” The muscular Sly strode up to his leader.

“Right,” Jay nodded and turned around to her griffin companions. “So, judging by the sun I’d say that it’s sometime in the afternoon. Even if we fly at top speed the entire way, we wouldn’t make it to Hooverdale until extremely late in the evening. If I’ve read Sun Cloak correctly, then I’d say that he’s not done with his game yet. We’ll fly as close to Hooverdale as we can today and then take a rest for the night. It shouldn’t be difficult to solve the puzzle sometime tomorrow and we can gain any lost ground during the next puzzle.”

“Very well,” said Grallix.

The powerful, but comparatively small, dragon spread his large leathery wings and trundled skyward in a blast of air that almost blew the griffins off their feet.

“Let’s fly!” commanded Jay to the griffins.

The three griffins then snapped their wings open and shot into the open blue sky. The fearsome alliance blazed through the air with Jay at the lead and Grallix taking the rear. The feisty female griffin was smirking with a sinister glee as she cut through the sky, eyes dead set on the far horizon.

* * * * * * * * *

The afternoon sun was only just beginning to wane as the Royal Treasure Seekers made their way quickly toward Hooverville. Spike was napping comfortably on the floor of the chariot and the others were busy talking.

“This is your captain, Rainbow Dash, speaking,” Dash yelled back to her friends riding in the chariot. “We are a little past halfway to our destination and the sky looks bright and clear the entire way. The royal kitchens of Canterlot have provided us with snacks for the voyage. Pinkie, would you mind grabbing them for everypony?”

“Okie dokie lokie!” giggled the pink mare happily.

Pinkie Pie rummaged through a small package from Canterlot Castle and pulled out bags filled with food.

“Complimentary peanuts!” Pinkie stated happily. “Who wants some?”

They each got their bags and began to munch happily.

“Hey Pinkie! Can I get some?” shouted Rainbow Dash.

“Sure!” replied the happy-go-lucky equine.

Pinkie Pie snatched up a bag and tossed it into the air and toward Rainbow Dash, but the wind gripped the package of peanuts and sent them hurdling back into the chariot. They smacked the slumbering Spike in the face and the young dragon jumped up in shock.

“We’re under attacked!” screamed the little dragon as he haphazardly breathed small bursts of green fire skyward. “Oh no! Twilight, they’ve blinded me!”

The purple unicorn mare reached up her hoof and removed the small bag of peanuts from the young dragon’s eyes.

“Oh…heh heh,” chuckled Spike nervously as he snagged up the peanuts and his cheeks flushed red. “Thanks.”

The ponies laughed and giggled as their ride continued smoothly through the heavens.

* * * * * * * * *

The day was passing into early evening as a group of four unicorns marched across the land. In the far distance, a speck of civilization came into view. Being such a long way away, the bright mansions of Hooverdale appeared to be miniature replica houses or children’s play things.

“Here we are at last,” huffed a weary Sun Chaser. “Unfortunately we’ve gotten behind. It’s already evening and I was hoping to arrive by the afternoon.”

The unicorns came to a halt and looked upon the distant community with happy relief.

“Sight Seer,” Chaser turned to his lanky friend, “do you have the energy to teleport us that far or should we rest here a few minutes?”

“I can rest when we’re in the city,” replied Sight Seer.

The light blue stallion set his gaze upon the distant community. His horn slowly began to glow violet as he gathered his thoughts and focused them on Hooverdale and then onto himself and the others in the Society. A blinding flash of light surrounded the four unicorns and, when it dissipated, they were standing inside the beautiful gated community of Hooverdale. Sight Seer stumbled forward but luckily found a stone statue of a pegasus and righted himself. He was breathing sharply and gasped for air as his whole frame shook.

“Are you ok?” Rose Shine rushed over to his side and placed a tender hoof on his shoulder.

“I-I’ll be alright. It just t-takes a tremendous amount of p-power to teleport this far,” wheezed Seer.

“Everypony take a breather,” ordered Sun Chaser calmly. “I’m going to see where exactly in Hooverdale we are and I’ll try to figure out where to go from here. Stay in this location. I’ll be back shortly.”

Chaser took in his surroundings. He and his group were in the backyard of a wealthy pony’s house. The lush green grass had been mowed only the day before and felt wonderful beneath their aching hooves. Surrounding the lawn was a shiny black gate made out of some sort of sturdy metal. Various marble statues were placed in the elegant yard along with a single pond, which contained a fountain. Many varieties of flowers, shrubs, bushes, and trees were also present in the luscious backyard. The mansion, which sat adjacent to the garden, was huge and had been painted white. It had many large windows and stood proper and sure. It was three floors tall and appeared to even have a basement. A large wooden patio sat outside the house and was the connector between the mansion and the backyard garden.

Sun Chaser knew that he and his group could not stay in this location long as Hooverdale was a protected community and only those permitted into Hooverdale by friends or were there on important business were allowed. He quickly used his magic to create a trampoline beside the gate and sprung himself up and down a few times before gathering the courage to bounce over the iron bars. He landed softly and then dissolved the magical trampoline. He waved a farewell to his companions from the other side of the bars before taking off into the community itself.

He used his magic once again and a fancy suit formed around his body. Hopefully this would keep any of the rich ponies from asking too many questions as he attempted to discern where he was. The unicorn was aware, however, that the suit would only last for an hour or two. Creation Magic could only create a magical object for a limited time, he knew.

The evening air was pleasant and cool. A few of the high society residents were out enjoying the final rays of sunlight. Many unicorns, pegasus, and even a few entrepreneurial earth ponies made their residences in the large mansions and manors adorning the small hill upon which Hooverdale was built. Sun Chaser noticed that he was close to the bottom of the lush hill and quickly made a trot for the top. Luckily, he was never questioned or stopped by the residents and he made good time. Close to the peak stood the largest building of all. Chaser wisely avoided the place and set about looking down below at the beautiful community.

After only a few moments of searching, the light brown unicorn spotted what he had been searching for, a flourishing forest at the base of the mountain with a strangely empty circle at the center. He noted that the forest was on the opposite side of where his group had been teleported and that they would need to walk around Hooverdale to reach their destination. With all the dignity of one raised in high society, he marched back to his companions to tell them what he had found.

* * * * * * * * *

The light from the slowly setting sun illuminated the peaceful and posh community of Hooverdale. Its high stone gate with black iron bars grew steadily closer to a chariot full of ponies plus one dragon.

“Hooverdale dead ahead! Hold on tight everypony!” shouted Rainbow Dash from her position at the front of the chariot.

The ponies who were riding gripped the chariot’s exterior and gazed in awe at the gorgeous houses and beautiful gardens which filled their view from the sky.

“There!” Rarity pointed toward one of the numerous mansions. “That is Sapphire Shore’s summer house! Ooo! And over there is the home of millionaire, Pony Stark!”

Busy pointing out the mansions of the rich and famous, Rarity had released her hold on the chariot. The metal vehicle came to the earth with a sharp bump. Fluttershy was exerting herself in order to keep up with Rainbow Dash and the chariot rocked and roiled until the two pegasi came to an uneven halt. On first contact with the ground, Rarity was sent flying out of the chariot and into the sky.

“Ah!!!”

“Rarity!” shrieked Spike as he helplessly flung out a claw, hoping to catch her.

The white unicorn flailed her hooves around and screamed as she was sent sailing. She landed with a bump, but continued to yell and shriek and wave her hooves around haphazardly.

“Um…Rarity?” asked Fluttershy softly. “Could you please get off my back?”

The fancy mare stopped her floundering hooves and looked at where she was. She had managed to land perfectly on of Fluttershy’s back and the yellow pegasus was looking at Rarity with pleading eyes.

“Uh, yes,” replied Rarity.

She slid off of the shy pegasus with as much dignity as could be mustered considering the circumstances.

“Thank you,” sighed Fluttershy, whose legs and wings were trembling.

“Rarity, are you ok?!” Spike was the first to hop off the chariot and he rushed over to Rarity’s side and hugged her as fast as lighting.

The white mare cleared her throat and then spoke, “I’m quite alright…thanks to Fluttershy.”

Rarity then smiled sheepishly as she patted Spike on the head. He released his grip on the white mare.

“Can somepony get this thing off of me?” asked Rainbow Dash grumpily from underneath her harness. “I’ve got an itch and I can’t scratch it.”

She was trying to shake the harness off, but it wasn’t doing any good.

“Hold on! One second!” called Twilight from the chariot.

The purple mare jumped out of the vehicle and came to Rainbow’s aide. A magic aura surrounded the Rainbow’s harness before clicking free and floating slowing to the ground.

“Thank you!” said Dash curtly and then saddled up to the chariot and began to rub her back on it. “Ahhhh…” she breathed contentedly as she scratched her back, “that’s it right there.”

“Fluttershy, hold on one second Darling and I’ll have that harness off your back too,” stated Rarity after observing Rainbow Dash’s antics.

A blue magic surrounded Rarity’s horn and Fluttershy’s harness. With the same clicking noise, the harness came loose and floated to the ground. The yellow pegasus sighed deeply and then allowed her wings to droop at her side.

“My wings are so tired, I can’t even feel them,” said Fluttershy.

“Halt!” shouted an imposing female voice from beyond the wall of Hooverdale. “Who goes there?”

The group looked over to the wall and found that two guards had been posted beside the main entrance to Hooverdale. The entrance was an impressive black metal gate crafted in the elegant design of a tree. At the center was the trunk and flowing branches and large leaves tapered off to either side. The guards peered from behind the beautifully crafted gate at the seven newcomers with suspicion in their eyes. Both guards were earth ponies and each one held a spear, but the spears were slung over their shoulders and not held in an aggressive stance. Twilight quickly and calmly trotted over to the gate after grabbing a sheet of fancy paper from her bags and announced the group and their business.

“Hello! I’m Twilight Sparkle and these are my friends.”

The purple unicorn waved a hoof back at those unpacking the chariot.

“I have a document from Princess Celestia allowing us entrance to Hooverdale.”

She handed the paper to the guards, who took it and inspected it for legitimacy.

“Alright, everything looks to be in order,” stated the female guard. “Welcome to Hooverdale.”

The guards moved to opposite ends of the large gate and grunted as the metal tree split in two. It scraped against the ground until the entrance into Hooverdale was wide open. The guards walked outside the open gate and up to Twilight.

“If you’d like, we can park your chariot inside the gates,” offered the guard.

“Thank you very much,” responded Twilight with a smile and a nod.

The guards moved over to the chariot and began to haul it inside while the Royal Treasure Seekers took their first steps inside the rich community of Hooverdale.

“I can’t believe that I’m actually in Hooverdale!” squealed Rarity happily.

She gazed around at the magnificent structures and landscaping with mouth agape and she began giggle, ever so ladylike of course.

“Those are some mighty fine houses.” Applejack gave a short whistle.

“Rainbow Dash,” said Twilight, “did you see where the forest was located from the sky?”

“I sure did,” Dash nodded, “it was-”

“It’s this way!” Rarity interrupted her cyan friend with a gleeful wave of her hoof. Rarity charged ahead of the group, through the streets of Hooverdale and the others followed as the sunlight began to wane.

* * * * * * * * *

The Royal Treasure Seekers found themselves standing at the edge of Hooverdale’s forest. This land was common ground for all residents to enjoy as they saw fit. Many excellent walking trails snaked underneath the green branches. Only one path led to the center of the forest, however, and it was rarely used. Upon this seldom trod trail trotted the six ponies and young dragon.

“Here ghosty, ghosty, ghosty!” called Pinkie Pie into the quickly darkening forest.

Fluttershy shuddered every time a twig snapped and jumped with many a “squee!”

“P-Pinkie, could you stop calling for it?” stuttered Spike.

“But it’s on my list,” responded Pinkie as she once again pulled her list out of thin air and handed it to Spike.

Suddenly the group stopped. Spike, who was reading over the gigantic list, bumped into Rainbow Dash and fell down. They had reached a clearing with nothing but short grass, shaped in a large circle.

“We’re here,” whispered Twilight.

The party walked cautiously into the strange circle. They felt tension in the air and trotted along slowly, constantly glancing this way and that. A sudden pop, flash, and hum came from behind the ponies. They all jumped up and screamed until they realized that it was only Sun Cloak’s ruby, being held by Spike. The unicorn’s familiar transparent image greeted the group as Sun Cloak spoke.

“Welcome to the Small University sports fields!” announced the unicorn with a happy smile. “Ahead of you lies one of the most fun challenges I have ever had the pleasure of creating. In the center of the field you will find three small circles, each one a different size, and one small indent inside the circles. You are to place the rings you found from the last riddle into these circles and then place your gemstone in the indent. I hope you are all somewhat familiar with the fine sport of Merring, but if not I will give a brief explanation once the challenge begins. Oh, and one last thing, have fun!”

Sun Cloak faded. The group found the places where they were to set the rings in the center of the strange clearing. The grass had stopped growing in four places, each spot making a circle the exact size of the rings and one the perfect fit for their ruby. Soon the rings were placed in their respected locations and so was the gem.

The ruby glowed and began to hum a noise reminiscent of a cheering crowd. It spread a warm magical glow over the first ring. The ring also started glowing with the same energy, which then grew until it reached the second ring and then the third ring. With each ring and the crystal glowing, the three golden loops slowly rose of their own accord into the air. The party of ponies looked in awe at the incredible sight, but more was to come.

In an instant, a blinding flash of golden light lit the sky and, when the group could see once again, a massive golden ring comprised of the same transparent substance as Sun Cloak’s image was hovering around the field. Slowly, a glowing track made of pure light spread itself around the semi-visible ring and then five golden towers of the same transparent substance grew up and around the track. The party took a step back and gasped as the field became illuminated by the soft golden glow of the transparent, magical objects. They all gasped and Twilight was the first to speak.

“We’re going to play Merring?!”

Chapter 15: The Game

Chapter 15: The Game

“Leave your crystal where it lays. Now, all contestants please move to the path and then place your hooves on the center ring.” Sun Cloak’s voice boomed across the circular field even though his image was nowhere to be seen.

The group did as asked and moved themselves to the glowing path which surrounded the gigantic ring. Oddly, the glowing path did not feel solid. It shown yellow, as did the ring, but had no true substance. It was merely a mirage formed of pure light. The ponies, although clearly standing on the path, felt only the short grass beneath their hooves. They each reached out and touched the large, floating ring but all they felt was empty air.

“Excellent!” Sun Cloak remarked jovially, “The crystal has detected your team and will now create an opposing team.”

On the far side of the circular path, a faint glow hazed the air and began to expand and contract. A few blurry images slowly became clear as the glow condensed into a tangible form. Seven unique versions of Sun Cloak were to be the opposing team; however, each Sun Cloak had a different glow: cyan, pink, purple, white, yellow, orange, and green. The images stood absolutely still and gazed absently into the night.

“I will now explain the basics of this challenge,” echoed the old unicorn’s voice. “You are going to play a game of Merring. If you win, you will be able to continue on to the next riddle. If you lose, you must restart the game. Rules are fairly simple, you are to jump your team’s magic onto four of the five towers positioned on the outside of the path by channeling your magic through the central ring. You are not allowed to leave the path you are standing on or you will be disqualified and leave your team down one member. Before anypony asks: Yes, non-unicorns can play this game. I have specially designed the playing field so that anypony the crystal recognizes may focus their thoughts onto the ring and influence it. Go ahead; try it out…unless you’re all unicorns, in which case you should disregard my last statement.”

Rainbow Dash was the first to try. She closed her eyes and focused all her thought on the center ring. A small red glow lit the surface of the ring and throbbed with pulse and power. She barely dared to crack a peek through her left eye and then both of her eyes flew open at the sight. She started to laugh with glee. Focusing her mind, Dash moved the red glow right and then left along the ring.

Applejack was the next brave soul. With a few huffs and grunts from the farmer, another red glow sprung to life on the strange ring. She slowly moved her own glow around the golden circle and began to laugh with Rainbow Dash.

“Ooo! Ooo! My turn!” shouted Pinkie.

The pink mare never even closed her eyes. Another red glow appeared on the ring. She whipped it around and around the ring at hypersonic speeds.

“Pinkie! You’re going to give somepony a seizure!” cried Rarity as the white unicorn’s eyes attempted to stop spinning.

“Unicorns,” declared Sun Cloak suddenly.

All the red dots on the ring dissipated as those controlling them lost concentration.

“Your normal magic will not work on this ring, it is made only of light and focusing regular magic on it will do nothing for you. Instead, you must focus your mind just like the non-unicorns. Don’t worry; it’s quite easy to do.”

Rarity and Twilight looked at each other as the message ended. Of course, they both attempted their usual magic, but it did nothing except to blur the light-ring. Then, they focused on it using only their minds instead of their magic and two red dots lit upon the floating circle.

“How strange,” mused Twilight in awe.

“Contestants!” shouted Sun Cloak and the unicorns jumped and lost their concentration. “I hope that you are all ready to begin. To start, stand at one of the five towers. The opposing team will then choose their starting tower and the three side rings will be placed at the three empty towers. Remember, get your magic onto four towers and whatever you do, don’t leave the path.”

The Royal Treasure Seekers took their place at a tower which stood directly behind them. It looked just as good as any other tower. Then, they watched as the ghostly figures of Sun Cloak began to move. They walked in perfect synchronization to a tower at the opposite end of the field. Then, the three rings from the middle of the field were levitated toward the three open towers.

“I wish everypony the best,” Sun Cloak announced. “Play hard, good luck, and let the games begin!”

The next few moments seemed to be a blur as everything happened all at once. The opposing Sun Cloaks sprung into action. Three held their ground and began to create a magical blue aura on the center ring. The blue aura began to expand rapidly until the magic leaped onto a tower, turning the mirage-crystal at the top blue.

“Quick! Everypony concentrate on the ring!” shouted Twilight.

The Royal Treasure Seekers focused all their thoughts on the center ring and a beautiful red glow emerged on its shimmering yellow exterior.

But even as the Seekers focused, two pairs of Sun Cloaks were bounding around the path in opposite directions attempting to gain ground closer to the Royal Treasure Seekers.

“They’re trying to cut us off from their side of the ring!” Spike yelped and pointed at the charging figures.

Twilight’s eyes went wide. “Rainbow, stop the group on the right! Applejack, you get the one on the left!”

“On it!” yelled Rainbow.

She cut right and left a rainbow laced trail behind her.

“Yee-haw!” shouted Applejack as she charged.

The two took off on their respective routes to stop the opposing Sun Cloaks in their tracks. Rainbow Dash met her competitors first and she slid sideways so as to block the rest of the path off, Applejack did the same thing only a few seconds later. The two pairs of Sun Cloaks stopped in their tracks and then turned their attention on the center ring. Right where they stood, blue auras flashed into existence and made quick progress toward the other rapidly expanding blue magic. The Sun Cloak team’s magic combined which left them owning slightly over half of the main ring.  More blue magic reached out and claimed yet another tower for blue.

“AJ! Rainbow!” screamed Twilight. “Focus on the ring! Stop them from advancing any further!”

The two mares complied with quick nods and focused their minds on the ring. Two sparks of red blazed to life on the center ring and forcefully advanced toward the blue aura. The two toned auras collided and ground against each other with small sparks of red and blue flying off of the high energy impacts.

Meanwhile, Twilight and the others hadn’t been idle. They had focused their minds and their own red aura was zipping around their half of the ring. Now, the entire golden circle was plastered in either a shade of red or of blue. The Royal Treasure Seekers had also claimed a tower, making the match two for red and three for blue.

Across the field, Rainbow Dash could be heard grunting and struggling against the blue force that was forcing itself into her red one. She began to break a sweat as she fought back.

“I need some help down here!” roared Dash as she struggled and huffed under the strain.

“Fluttershy,” commanded Twilight, “you need to concentrate. You haven’t gotten any magic on the ring!”

The scared pegasus was trembling as she watched as the events unfold. She had begun to hyperventilate and she appeared frozen to the ground, as if in shock. Her eyes were dilated and her wings were snapped tightly by her side.

“Fluttershy, Daring, we could really use some help about now!” grunted Rarity.

Even the pristine unicorn was sweating and shaking from her intense efforts.

“Please Fluttershy, we need you,” begged Spike as a painful tear squeezed out of the dragon’s tightly closed eyes.

Fluttershy’s breath became slower and her eyes began to come back into focus. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and exhaled. The yellow pegasus grunted and more red magic surged onto the light-ring. Fluttershy sent her magic racing toward Rainbow Dash’s end. It collided with the Sun Cloaks’ blue magic and began to shove it in favor of the red side. There was no time for celebration, however.

“G-girls! Take a looky yonder!” warned Applejack from the left side of the playing field.

An enormous mass of blue energy was bounding toward Applejack’s side of the field. It was as if every Sun Cloak had put their combined focus into one massive ball of energy.

“No problem!” called Pinkie, as sprightly as ever.

The pink equine hopped over to her orange friend and put on her game face. An obscenely large quantity of red magic surged from the pink equine’s concentration to do battle with the blue monstrosity. The two magic surges collided and lit up the forest with a brilliant display of red and blue sparks. When the light finally faded, neither side was any closer to their goals. Applejack looked exhausted, but Pinkie, even after her large burst of power, seemed as chipper as ever.

“Tag in!” called Pinkie as she tagged her friend’s hat.

Applejack let out a small chuckle and huffed back to the main group as Pinkie took over.

“We can’t move an inch,” reported AJ as she reached her friends. “Them Sun Cloak doohickeys are jus’ too tough.”

The field was still teeming with blue and red sparking magic, which illuminated the entire playing field in a bizarre and wondrous discoloration of light. Twilight focused on sending another wave of energy to Rainbow’s side before responding.

“The closer you are to an object, the easier it is to focus on it. The Sun Cloak team has spread themselves out evenly so they can focus anywhere on their side, but we’ve been defending this tower with five of us. We need to spread out if we want to make any headway. AJ, Spike, and Rarity, go help Rainbow Dash. Me and Fluttershy will keep this tower and hold them off of Pinkie’s side.”

The three nodded their heads and took off to assist Rainbow Dash.

“Alright, finally some backup! Let’s give it to em’!” cheered Dash as her friends sidled up to her.

The group of four began to pound away at the defenses of the two Sun Cloaks and the effect was immediate. The four shoved aside a good portion of blue magic and came within range of another point tower, but the Sun Cloak team would not be taken easily. Soon a wave of blue came crashing upon the group and stopped them mere inches from tower range.

“One…Two…Three…PUSH!” commanded Rainbow Dash.

The foursome put all of their effort into an attempt for the tower, but was met by a solid wall of the blue magic. The field was almost totally even now. The blue magic of Sun Cloak’s team had mere centimeters more of the ring than the Royal Treasure Seekers.

“We’ve almost got another tower, Twilight!” Spike yelled over his shoulder.

“Keep at it! We just need to wear them down!” responded the purple unicorn.

Suddenly, Rarity gasped.

“I just got an idea.”

“What?” asked Applejack.

“Unicorn magic is stronger the closer you are to an object, if we could only move a little close to that tower then our magic would be able to overpower Sun Cloak’s.”

“That’s a great idea!” Spike shouted. “But what about the two Sun Cloaks blocking the path? We can’t move past them.”

A new burst of blue magic from the opposing team made the foursome cease discussion for a moment. The red and blue tug of war continued with brilliant flashes of light until the strong burst was subdued. Still, neither side could move their magic any further along the ring. Spike rose a hand up to rub his aching head. Applejack was sweating profusely and Rarity was panting heavily from her efforts. Even Rainbow Dash, athlete though she was, had begun to show signs of exhaustion.

“Alright,” Dash grunted out through clenched teeth, “we need to get past these two? Consider it done!”

The cyan athlete pulled back her hind legs and then unleashed a powerful kick against the Sun Cloaks in her way. But instead of shoving them out of the way, her legs whisked through them, as if pushing against air. The images blurred and shimmered as her legs passed through, but they soon returned to their normal appearance.

“There will be no physical contact against the opposing team or else you will be disqualified!” Sun Cloak’s voice boomed across the field.

Rainbow Dash frowned and stomped her hoof in the grass below her hooves.

“I don’t quite think that worked,” stated Rarity.

The white mare was now sweating freely and she didn’t seem to care. But Dash was not amused at her friend or at Sun Cloak’s rules.

“Yeah? Well I don’t need to touch them to get past them!” retorted Rainbow Dash.

She snapped her wings out and a smug grin formed on her face. The cyan pony needed only one quick push to take to the skies, but a pair of horrified eyes watched as Rainbow took off.

“RD! Don’t do it!” Applejack shouted.

It was too late; however, the pegasus was already in the sky and she easily flew over the heads of the glowing Sun Cloaks. She touched back down on the opposite side of her opponents and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Ha! What’cha gonna do now Sun Cloak? Bet you never expected that!”

“Disqualified!” replied the voice of the old unicorn.

“What?!” protested Dash.

“You have left the path and are hereby disqualified. You shall no longer be able to use magic on the ring,” sentenced Sun Cloak.

Rainbow’s mouth hung open in disbelief. She focused her mind back on the ring, but nothing happened. She closed her eyes and grunted and gnashed her teeth in effort, but not even the faintest hint of red magic would spark to life. Her connection had surely been severed and she was helpless to do anything but watch her six remaining friends battle against seven Sun Cloak’s, a game that would surely not end well.

“No. No! NOOO!” she screamed desperately into the night.

“Cool it, RD!” Applejack shouted back.

The orange mare then grimaced as another blue pulse blasted into her defenses, which cut any further talk short.

“But I’m disqualified! I can’t help!” bemoaned Dash. “It’s now a six verses seven match! We can’t win against those odds!”

Dash hung her head in despair.

“No!” Twilight’s voice seemed so small coming across half the field, “We might not have as much magic, but you can still help! Fly above the playing field and tell us what they’re doing! We might still have a chance to win this!”

Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and gathered her resolve. She breathed in and out until her breathing became a calm and steady stream. Then, she opened her eyes. They were hard set, like one wounded but not willing to give in.

“Alright, we’re not done yet,” she spoke to herself.

One moment later she was in the air and hovering over the ring, watching every move from both sides.

“LET’S WIN THIS THING!” she roared with vigor.

Twilight smiled and the other’s resolve was bolstered, they were not done yet. Dash’s eyes darted left and right, searching for any weak points that could be exploited. Her eyes went wide as she perceived an incoming threat.

“Twi! Incoming left!” warned Rainbow as a wall of blue magic began to surge toward Pinkie.

Twilight and Fluttershy poured all of their minds into halting the blue beam that threatened to wash aside their red magic. They grunted as they strained against the opposing magic. The blue advanced a few inches before they were able to subdue it.

“We have to go on the offensive or else we’ll get too tired to do anything!” screamed Twilight with an exhausted voice.

“Aww…but I was having fun doing this,” pouted Pinkie Pie. “Oh well!”

She smiled and suddenly an obscene amount of red energy sprung up beside the party pony and rushed forward. It smashed through the blue and advanced forcefully upon the left side. Each one of the seven Sun Cloaks shot an alarmed glance at the mass of red that was tearing its way toward a point tower. The blue magic on the right side of the field became much weaker as the entire Sun Cloak team slung magic at Pinkie’s red orb.

“Quick! Hit the right! Hit right!” commanded Rainbow.

She flailed her hooves and pointed to the right to emphasize her point as she hovered over the playing field. They complied and sent a wave of red energy down the right side of the ring. A point tower was quickly claimed which forced the Sun Cloak team to revert their attention to the right.

“Now the left!” screamed Rainbow.

A wall of red smashed into the left side of the blue magic and dared to capture a tower. The blue magic was no match for the entire focus of the Royal Treasure Seekers. Sun Cloak’s team soon refocused again, only to have Rainbow Dash shout to switch sides and the red magic followed orders.

Back and forth, like a massive game of Ping-Pong, sparked and popped the colorful magic. Slowly but surely, the red overtook the blue. In only a few short minutes, the final tower had been captured. Final score: Red: 4 Blue: 1. The Royal Treasure Seekers had managed to pull victory from the jaws of defeat.

“Congratulations!” sang Sun Cloak, full of mirth. “You have bested yet another challenge and can now hear my next riddle whenever you wish. I sure hope you had fun! I know I always did.”

The Royal Treasure Seekers trotted back to Twilight where they all gathered together once more.

“I’m…not sure…‘fun’…is the right word,” panted Rarity.

In a mere few seconds later, the glowing path and ring melted into thin air, after all it was only an illusion made of light. Next, the Sun Cloak team bowed their heads in humble defeat from across the field and they too dissolved into the night sky. The glowing ruby in the center of the field became dull. The stars and moon shone their brilliant light into the center of the dark circle of trees like they had for countless years.

“I’ll get…the ruby,” wheezed Spike.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead as he stumbled over to grab his team’s crystal. He plucked it from the crevice and trundled back to his group when the sound of a slow applause came from the outer edges of the forest.

Clap! Clip! Clap! Clip!

The Royal Treasure Seekers looked all around as the sound bounced and echoed into the clearing.

“Well done! Well done!” shouted a voice from the trees. “Bravo!”

It was a voice that Twilight had heard before, but where?

Then a group of ponies, four unicorns to be exact, stepped from the cover of the forest. In the lead was a light brown colored stallion with yellow eyes, Sun Chaser!

“For your first game of Merring, that was quite spectacular,” praised the unicorn.

“Chaser, should I freeze them?” asked a pretty unicorn mare to his side.

The Royal Treasure Seekers tensed up at the notion, but were too worn out to resist.

“What?” asked Sun Chaser incredulously. “Of course not, Rose! Don’t you know who these ponies are? This group has been hoof picked by Princesses Celestia and Luna themselves. We shall not lay a hoof on them.”

The friends let out a collective sigh that they didn’t know they were holding.

“Instead, how about we show them how Merring is really played?” added Chaser, ending with a sly sort of smile.

“I’d say that we held our own just fine,” said Rainbow Dash, she didn’t quite like Sun Chaser’s smug little grin.

The stallion simply walked forward. His group followed behind him and the two teams officially met face to face for the first time.

“Ah, but you see Rainbow Dash, Sun Cloak was going easy on you,” stated Chaser.

Rainbow was shocked to hear this unicorn say her name when they had never before met, and it showed.

“Don’t give me that look.” Chaser chuckled. “I do research on everypony that I’m competing against. I know who all of you are: Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Spike, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle.”

At the mention of each name, he would point at the correct pony. For all his composure when Pinkie giggled at the mention of her name, it threw him off guard. Still, he continued without more than a second of hesitation.

“And now, allow me to introduce myself and my group. I am Sun Chaser,” at this he winked inconspicuously at Twilight. “The tall one here is Sight Seer.”

“A pleasure.” The lanky stallion bowed his head to his competitors.

“The short one is Cumulus.”

“Hmph,” snorted Cumulus.

“Finally, this is Rose Shine.”

“Hello,” said the lone mare softly.

“Where’s the rest of your Society?” asked Rarity after the introductions had been made.

“Oh, but this is the Society. This is all of us,” replied Sun Chaser.

“All of you?” asked the white mare in surprise.

“You have no idea how ridiculously hard Sun Chaser here makes it to join,” Cumulus grumped.

“Is that so?” queried Rarity.

“Yes, well, only the best of best can join,” stated Chaser awkwardly, but he recovered quickly. “Now, I believe we have a game to win. You are free to watch if you want. It shouldn’t take long.”

With this, the unicorn leader brushed past the mares in front of him and walked directly to the center of the field. From his saddlebag he produced three rings and a sapphire. He placed them in their respective niches and the field rebirthed itself. The ring, the track, and the towers all came back to life. Sun Cloak’s voice once again echoed around the arena, but nopony was really listening. All were focused exclusively on the Society.

“Good!” said Chaser as he trotted back to the conglomerate of ponies. “Now that that’s out of the way we can begin. Um…your group may want to stand back. This will be quite intense for a few moments.”

Twilight nodded without uttering a word. The Royal Treasure Seekers took a few steps back. They continued to watch as each member of the Society placed a hoof into the floating light-ring.

“Who wants to bet it’ll take em’ ten minutes just to get three towers?” snickered Rainbow Dash.

“Ooo! I’ll take that bet!” Pinkie raised a hoof. “Three cupcakes?”

“You got yourself a deal, three cupcakes.”

Rainbow Dash stretched out a hoof and the two shook.

“I wish everypony the best. Play hard, good luck, and let the games begin!” Sun Cloak’s voice announced.

The Society had chosen to position themselves at the same tower that the Royal Treasure Seekers had done only a few minutes before. Standing across from the Society were four glowing versions of Sun Cloak: one brown, one red, another blue, and the last one grey.

The game began instantly. The Sun Cloak team and Society each sent ponies to either side of the glowing ring to block the other team and to grab as much ground as possible. Red and blue magic shot onto the glowing ring and spread much faster than the previous match. Within mere seconds, the two magic colors were fighting and shoving each other for dominance.

“Now!” roared Sun Chaser.

A very small, but powerful surge of red energy flowed through the ring and directly into the opposing Sun Cloaks’ side. It blazed through the blue magic and made the glowing visages shake their collective heads in shock as the magic swept cleanly and quickly through their side. The blue magic was down for only an instant, but that’s all the time it took. The two unicorns at both sides of the field shot forth their red magic and claimed up almost the entire golden ring. Soon, four towers were claimed for red and the match ended almost as quickly as it had begun. Sun Cloak echoed his congratulations and the Society picked up their sapphire as the field melted into nothingness once more.

Rainbow stood with her mouth agape, it threatened to hit the ground if she opened it any further. The other members stared at the Society in utter shock.

“But-but-but…” stammered the cyan pegasus.

Pinkie hopped around her group and sang, “Three cupcakes for me!”

Sun Chaser and company cantered slowly up to the mares, barely panting and with smug faces.

“And that, my dear Element wielders, is how one performs the ‘ol ring-a-round,” stated Sun Chaser.

The Royal Treasure Seekers remained motionless.

“It looks like you didn’t have to freeze them after all, Rose!” laughed Cumulus.

“Anyhow, we must be off,” Sun Chaser said. “Treasure to find and all that! Well, it was nice to officially meet you and perhaps we shall bump into each other again some day. Until then, so long!”

With a flourish of his hoof and a curt bow of his head, Sun Chaser led his group back into the forest and toward Hooverville.

“Um…Twilight…what jus’ happened?” asked Applejack after the group had left.

“I…Um…I……” stammered the purple mare. She shook her head to clear it. “Um…let’s just…get back to the chariot.”

The friends managed to find their way back to their chariot where they crashed for the night, exhausted, confused, and dumbstruck by the day’s activities.

Chapter 16: The Ransom

Chapter 16: The Ransom

Twilight Sparkle was lying comfortably on the shiny metallic surface of her team’s loaned chariot. Her head was propped on her saddlebag for support and her legs were curled up in a tight ball, it was actually kind of cute. But her ears began to twitch as a voice cut into her peaceful rest. Although her eyes remained closed and her breathing stayed normal, the sound of Pinkie Pie had most assuredly woken the purple scholar.

“You got this! Come on Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie’s enthusiastic voice cheered in a hushed whisper. Well, as hushed as Pinkie Pie could get anyway.

Twilight lifted a droopy eyelid and let light come flooding in. When her vision had cleared up, she could see Dash, precariously perched just above a snoring Spike. Pinkie Pie was standing behind Rainbow and cheering as the cyan pegasus attempted to grab the ruby clutched lovingly in Spike’s claws. Twilight watched for a few more moments, but aside from perspiring a bit, Dash didn’t really seem to be making any progress.

Twilight grudgingly lifted her head and looked around. Applejack was somehow still asleep and snoring…loudly. Her hat bobbled comically on her head with each breath. Rarity was also still asleep. She had crashed next to Spike, or had Spike crashed next to Rarity? Whatever the case, her tail was whipping back and forth rhythmically in front of the little dragon. This only made Rainbow Dash’s attempts all the more difficult.

Dash had now begun to bite her lip as she pressed her hoof closer to the ruby. Her brow was furrowed in concentration as she bridged the last few centimeters to get at the crystal. Her hoof connected with a soft clinking noise.

“That’s it!” cheered Pinkie.

Rainbow smiled with relief. She started to pull the ruby from Spike’s hold, but at that moment Spike rolled onto his side. Dash lost her footing as well as her grip on the gem. She tumbled headfirst into Spike’s face.

Spike awoke with a start. His eyes flew open and were filled with Rainbow’s large, violet irises. He screamed and leaped to his feet. He flung the ruby into the air, not realizing that he was even holding it, and ran smack dab into Rarity. Thinking quickly, Twilight caught the gem by levitating it but was forced to watch as things quickly escalated into chaos.

Rarity’s tail whipped around to flick off the nuisance which had bumped into her side but only managed to flick Spike’s nose. Spike inhaled sporadically. He tried desperately to hold back a sneeze, but couldn’t.

“Ahh…Ahhh…Ahh-choo!”

A small emerald flame launched from the dragon’s nostrils and lit Rarity’s tail on fire. It was only the smallest of flames but it was more than enough to wake up the sleeping unicorn. Rarity sniffed the air even before her eyes opened.

“Does anypony smell something burning?” she asked groggily.

She let her nose lead her to the source and let forth an ear piercing screech when she found it.

“Fire! My tail is on fire!”

The pristine unicorn leaped from the chariot and tried desperately to put it out. In all actuality, her attempts to put the flame out really came down to her scooting on her rump in tight circles. This commotion managed to awaken Applejack.

The farm pony awoke with a loud snort. She glanced around to figure out just what was going on. When she saw a small trail of smoke coming from Rarity, who was still scooting on her rump, Applejack had a pretty good idea of what was going on. She also made a plan to help.

“I’m a comin’!” Applejack slurred.

She stumbled around the chariot, still half-asleep. Instead of leaping to the rescue, Applejack jumped forward and only managed to slam her entire body into Rainbow Dash. The two mares came crashing into the chariot with a dull thud. All the while Rarity was still screaming and trying to put the flame out.

Spike saw his chance to aid his lady in distress. He snatched Applejack’s hat from her head and crawled out of the chariot.

“I’ll save you Rarity!”

The dragon came up to her blazing tail and began to wave the hat on it like a fan. However, instead of making the fire smaller he made it grow larger. Rarity screamed even louder and outright began to sprint in absolute horror. Spike ran after her and continued to wave the hat, only faster this time.

During this train wreck, Applejack had managed to find her footing and soon leaped out of the chariot, successfully this time. She snatched her hat back and quickly tackled Rarity to the ground. She used her own hat to smother the fire and it died out. The crisis was finally averted. When this fact registered in Twilight’s mind, she pulled the ruby back to herself and tucked it gingerly in her saddlebag. She then turned her attention to Rainbow Dash.

“What were you thinking?” pressed Twilight, quite upset.

Dash had to ply her face from the floor before she could reply.

“Well, Pinkie and I wanted to hear the next puzzle. But you were all asleep and we didn’t want to wake you.”

“That’s right!” agreed Pinkie. “Oh! But look! Now we’re all awake so we can listen to the puzzle and not even have to worry about waking you up.”

Pinkie smiled brightly. Twilight glanced over the pink pony’s shoulder. Rarity’s tail was blackened and still smoking a little. Spike was apologizing profusely while Rarity held her tail and bemoaned the slight loss. Applejack was beating out her Stetson, which was also looking a bit blackened. Pinkie was right; they were all most definitely awake. But Twilight also did a quick head count and came up one short.

“Hey, where’s Fluttershy?”

And that’s when the shy pegasus walked into the crazy scene. She had on an apron and wore a smile from ear to ear.

“I just finished making breakfast!” she announced.

When she looked around, she found the others staring at her blankly. Her smile quickly melted into concern.

“Oh no! I didn’t wake you with the noise I was making, did I?”

There was silence for only another moment or so before Spike started to lose it. He couldn’t keep himself from chuckling. Soon the others couldn’t hold back from laughing, despite the bizarre morning.

“Fluttershy, breakfast sounds amazing,” Twilight said.

They all ate and complimented Fluttershy on the great spread. With bellies full, the Royal Treasure Seekers were finally ready to hear Sun Cloak’s latest riddle. Twilight grabbed the ruby from her pack and placed it in the middle of the group.

“Sun Cloak, what is the next riddle?” she asked.

In a flash of light and with a slight humming noise, Sun Cloak appeared before the ponies.

“ ‘Circled by trees, covered in leaves,

A castle in forest lay.

Where Harmony gleams, among Princess’ dreams,

This your road today.’ ”

When his message was complete, Sun Cloak retreated back into the crystal.

“Girls,” Twilight was beaming, “there’s no need to discuss where we’re headed because I already figured it out.”

“Where?” asked Pinkie.

“We need to go to the abandoned castle in the Everfree Forest, where we first found the Elements of Harmony. Team, we’re going to Ponyville. We’re going home!”

Dash sprung into the air and placed the chariot harness on her shoulders.

“Well, what are we waiting for? Somepony strap me in!”

* * * * * * * * *

Splotches of sunshine trickled through the leaves of a lush tree. The light danced playfully over the face of a griffin. She grunted and squirmed as the beams tried to penetrate her closed eyelids. Moodily, she relented and awoke. Her beautiful blue eyes opened groggily and she pushed herself onto her feet. The griffin took in her surroundings with nothing more than a quick glance, but it was enough.

She was on the lower branch of a large elm tree. To her left, on a different branch, slept a scrawny black griffin. His feathers twitched sporadically as he slept. His breathing was short and shallow, but that was usual for Slick. Sly was already awake. The large griffin, who resembled a bald eagle in color, was standing on the ground and peering off into the distance. Seated by the muscular Sly was the newest member of the group, Grallix. The black dragon had his tail wrapped around his frame and he seemed to be lying in a comfortable position, like one would sleep on a pile of gold. The dragon’s head was up and he appeared to be looking in the same direction as Sly. However, since both of these brutes had their backs to Jay, the only thing she could see for certain was the scar on Sly’s back leg and Grallix’s green spines. Jay leaped to the ground and the other two turned around to face her.

“What time is it?” snapped Jay, trying to keep weariness out of her words.

A good leader never showed weakness. At least, her father never had.

“It is well into the morning,” answered Sly.

Jay scowled at the news, but Sly turned back around. Jay decided to find out what he was looking at and glanced up. Off in the distance sat a green hill. Sunlight spilt onto it and revealed a luxurious city nestled on and around the hill, Hooverdale.

Jay didn’t take very long admiring the scene, although it would have made a lovely painting. She noticed Sly brush his talons through the air, as if on some sort of imaginary canvas. She shook her head and scrambled up to Slick’s branch. The twitchy griffin was still out cold.

“Come on Slick! Get up!” Jay nudged him with her claws.

He snorted and rolled onto his side.

“Now,” Commanded Jay coolly.

Slick’s grey eyes opened instantly. He hopped to up and yawned.

“G’moring J!” he croaked.

“No time for good mornings,” spat Jay. “We’ve got to get a move on. Hooverdale’s right over there.” She pointed in the direction of the hill through the elm leaves. “And we’re behind schedule.” She turned and hopped back to the ground. “Should have been up hours ago,” she mumbled angrily to herself.

She heard Sly land next to her. She then smiled a bit as he saw the city for the first time. But, as she had said made clear, there was no time for sightseeing. She quickly snapped her wings open and instantly regretted it.

“Ah!” she winced and closed them.

Of course, that made the others turn around to see what was wrong. She instantly put on a brave face and gritted her beak.

“Something wrong, J?” asked Slick genuinely.

“It’s nothing,” she said. “I must have just pushed myself a bit too hard on the flight yesterday.” Wanting to change the subject and thinking quickly, she pointed a talon at Grallix. “You!”

This made the dragon’s eyebrows rise, but he didn’t speak.

“Time to make yourself useful for once. I can’t fly right now, so you’re going to carry me into Hooverdale. Got it?”

Grallix glared at Jay and snorted smoke, but she remained steadfast. Her resolve was that of solid steel.

“Very well,” he growled.

Jay dashed up to the dragon and clawed her way up his back. She found a comfy enough spot between two of his large spines and held fast to one so she wouldn’t fall off.

“Anyone else looking for a ride?” Grallix half asked, half threatened.

Sly snorted and promptly took to the sky. Slick took a step back before opening his own sore wings. Though it looked painful, he forced himself into the air. Then Grallix pressed out his own leathery wings and took heavenward. The four took off, toward Hooverdale.

* * * * * * * * *

A well-to-do mare shrieked and pointed into the sky. She then promptly fainted. Others looked up and began to scream for themselves. Most ran for cover, but a few of the smarter ones ran to get the guards. The guardsponies rushed out to assist, but even some of the more squeamish ones turned a bit pale at the sight above them. A real live dragon was flying just above the town! A gruff guard ran off and grabbed a bullhorn. He turned it on with a loud squeak and started yelling to the dragon above.

“Uh…attention dragon! This is a restricted area! If…If you don’t leave we’ll be forced to use…um…force!”

Jay swung herself around Grallix’s neck and waved a dismissive talon at the terrified ponies below.

“Aw, save your breath!” she shouted down.

The gruff guard was flabbergasted, to say the least, seeing a griffin riding a dragon and also having that same griffin telling him to shut it. He dropped the bullhorn and watched as dragon flew right over his head.

“I sense strong magics coming from down there.”

Grallix pointed a grizzled claw to the forest on the other side of Hooverdale.

“Then bring us down,” commanded Jay.

The group sailed over the community and dropped into the open, circular field inside the forest. They could still hear the muffled shouts of the ponies as they ran around in circles. Jay chuckled a bit at the thought of those posh up-shots running around like scared children.

“Welcome to the Small University sports field!” Sun Cloak’s voice rang out.

The sound came from both the griffin’s and dragon’s crystals simultaneously.

“Jackpot!” Jay shouted triumphantly.

She skillfully jumped down from Grallix’s back and onto the soft turf.

Sun Cloak went on to explain that they were to play a game of Merring in order to receive his next riddle.

“Oh, and one last thing, have fun!” Sun Cloak’s message came to an end and the crystals became dull.

“That means that only one team can go at a time. Swell,” remarked Jay sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes. Grallix, however, had been to sniff the air. His eyes grew as he caught a familiar scent.

“Another team has been here,” announced the dragon.

“Another team?” squeaked Slick. “You mean those unic-?”

Grallix raised his claw and the griffin was silenced immediately. He kept sniffing and moving his head to and fro, attempting to get a better trail. Finally, he stopped and turned his gaze upon the three griffins.

“I can still track them, but the trail will grow cold quickly. I must be the first to complete the challenge. I will then track our adversaries and send you word of their location.”

“And how do we know that you won’t just leave us behind?” queried Jay.

“Because I give you my word. Never doubt the word of a dragon,” snarled Grallix.

His eyes bore accusingly into Jay. She threw her talons into the air to show that she meant no offense, but really she was just trying to play it off coolly.

“Alright. Alright. No need to get all uppity about it.”

Grallix’s eyes narrowed to slits, but finally he relented and nodded his head. If one had been close enough they may have noticed that Jay had started to perspire. Messing with an angry dragon was not exactly high up on her wish list.

Grallix trundled over to the center of the playing field and plucked his amethyst from between his scales. He inserted it into the niche and did the same with the golden rings he had so carefully tucked into his scaly hide. A shimmering yellow ring appeared along with five towers and a transparent track. The griffins couldn’t believe their eyes. Slick’s mouth hung open in awe. In fact, even Grallix seemed impressed at the intricate and magical playing field.

“Leave your crystal where it lays,” ordered Sun Cloak from the amethyst. “Now, all contestants please move to the path and then place your hooves on the center ring.”

Grallix did as requested and placed his large claw inside the ring. After a few more instructions from Sun Cloak, an image shimmered to life at the opposite end of the playing field. It was an image of Sun Cloak himself, but this one was somehow managing to release a kind of black tinged light. It was reminiscent of a bizarre, cartoony outline.

“So this is to be my competition?” mused Grallix.

He walked over to investigate this new work of magic. He poked at the image, but his hand went right through it and only blurred the image for a moment or two. He sniffed it, but couldn’t seem to smell anything. Finally satisfied with his observations, the dragon breathed out a soft purple fire. The flame enveloped the image and began to eat away at it. Soon the figure had dissolved into nothingness and Grallix smiled.

He found a point tower and moved over to it. The game began shortly thereafter but with no one to compete against, Grallix’s red magic easily grabbed up the entire ring and all five point towers. Sun Cloak congratulated him on his victory and Grallix laughed. Grallix grabbed up his crystal and flapped open his powerful wings. He turned his head toward the griffins.

“I will send you my message soon enough.”

And then, Grallix took off. Behind him, the playing field was disappearing. But his keen eyes were set on a different sight. They gleamed with the thrill of the hunt as he took off, hot in pursuit of the rival team.

* * * * * * * * *

Far away from Hooverdale, in the small town of Saddleback, Trixie was regaining consciousness. She groaned as her eyes grudgingly opened, first the right and then the left. Her head was throbbing and the light burned her pupils. She winced and pulled a hoof up to rub her head.

“Glad to see that you’re awake,” a gruff, but feminine voice said.

It sounded far away and faded, but Trixie knew that couldn’t be right because a mare soon walked over to her. The mare had a deep green coat and dark grey hair. Her hair was a little frizzy and she wore a white garment, like a hospital worker. Her magenta eyes were kind, but firm.

“Wh-What happened?” Trixie heard herself groan.

She coughed. She hadn’t realized how dry her throat was.

“We found you outside and brought you in. You were dehydrated and unconscious. In fact, you’ve been out for a full day.”

Trixie leaned her head back. It fell into a soft white pillow. Her eyes wandered down to her hooves and she saw that a fuzzy green blanket had been caringly draped over her body. She felt beneath her and found that she was lying on a hard mattress. Then, Trixie groggily looked at her environment.

She was in a small, square room with plain, white walls. A picture of flowers had been hung opposite her. Trixie figured it was to make the room seem less boring. There was a door to her left which appeared to lead out to a hallway.

“Trixie…” she whispered hoarsely, “Trixie is…is in a hospital?”

“I’m afraid so, Sweetie,” replied the green mare.

Trixie figured she was a nurse.

“But Trixie can…cannot stay here. She has to leave right…right now!”

“I’m sorry, Sweetie,” the nurse shook her head sadly, “but I really can’t let you go until you’ve recovered a bit more.”

Trixie flopped her head back into her pillow and closed her eyes. She gathered up her strength and waited until she could bring her breathing back to normal. Finally, she opened her eyes and lifted her head until she could see eye to eye with the nurse.

“Trixie cannot waste any more time and she will certainly not stay here, with your permission or without it.”

The nurse and Trixie locked eyes for a few seconds. Trixie was visibly shaking as she held herself up and her breathing was uneven. At last, the nurse released a deep sigh, shook her head, and left the room. Trixie’s eyes went wide and anger burned in her eyes.

“Trixie will not stay down! She will not stay here!”

Trixie screamed at the nurse, who had her back turned to the showmare. Despite her threat, as soon as the nurse was gone, Trixie fell back into her pillow. She really wasn’t strong enough to leave, but her pride wouldn’t allow her to admit it.

It felt like a blur of a few minutes and only a couple of moments to Trixie when she heard the familiar sound of hooves on tile. She opened her eyes and sat up. The nurse was back, but this time she had a clipboard clenched in her mouth. The nurse dropped the clipboard onto Trixie’s bed. Trixie gave the mare a questioning look.

“If you want to leave that badly, then you’ll have to sign this waiver.”

The nurse then pulled a pen from her pocket and plopped it on top of the clipboard. Trixie was a bit shocked. They were really letting her go that easily? Still, she wasn’t going to complain.

Trixie lit her horn and levitated the pen, an action she regretted almost instantly. The pen fell from its magical embrace and Trixie’s horn stopped glowing. She grimaced and grit her teeth as a new wave of pain surged into her head. The nurse sighed and reached down to pick up the pen.

“Look,” said the nurse, “if you’re gonna go gallivanting off to who-knows-where in your condition, at the very least I wouldn’t use magic for a few days. Got it?”

Even through the pain, Trixie understood and shook her head in agreement. The showmare snatched the pen in her hoof and grabbed the clipboard in the other. She scrawled off her signature and then handed it to the nurse. Trixie began to inch herself off her bed when she was stopped by the nurse.

“Whoa-ho there, Sugarcube!”

The nurse was looking over the waiver.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie? I don’t think so. We need your real name, not your stage name.”

The nurse handed the clipboard and pen back to Trixie. Trixie glared at the clipboard, but accepted them. She sloppily crossed out her signature and wrote her actual name to the side. Trixie then gave the pen and board to the nurse.

“Trixie Lulamoon,” stated the nurse pleasantly as she looked over the waiver. “Well Miss Lulamoon, you’re free to go.”

Trixie continued to scoot ever closer to the edge of her bed. The nurse walked over and tried to help her, but Trixie only shooed the help away. The nurse backed off as Trixie finally managed to roll herself off. She stood on quite shaky hooves and leaned on the bed for support, but she was standing of her own accord. The nurse was looking worried, so Trixie thought that she would try to get her to stop looking at her like some helpless filly.

“So, how much do I owe for your fine services?”

It worked. The nurse turned her attention from Trixie and looked at a paper, clipped to Trixie’s bed.

“Uh…250 bits.”

Trixie pushed herself away from the bed and managed to stand without its support. Already she was feeling a little stronger. She shuffled over to her bags, which had been placed in a corner, and searched through them. She found a stack of shiny gold coins and pulled them out.

“50…100…150…200…250,” Trixie counted off the stacks and then handed them to the nurse. “Here, 250 bits. Trixie would not pay a cent less for your services,” she boasted.

The nurse accepted the money and looked it over. Everything appeared to be in order, a full 250.

“Well, looks like you’ve got everything in order then,” said the nurse.

Trixie slung her packs onto her back and grunted beneath their weight even thought they hadn’t been very full to begin with. She started to hobble out of the room.

“Now listen, make sure to drink plenty of water and rest often. And absolutely no magic for a few days. I don’t know where you’re going in such a hurry but good luck, Sugarcube.”

Trixie listen to the nurse’s words but didn’t stop. She cracked the door open and headed out. She made her way down the hallway and came to a large reception room. There was a fidgety desk worker there. When she saw Trixie, the desk worker was quite alarmed.

“Um…mam? Do ya’ need some help?”

Trixie ignored her and kept plodding on.

“A wheelchair maybe?” pressed the desk worker.

“Trixie is fine. Thank you,” Trixie grunted out.

“Ya’ sure ‘bout that?”

A forceful “Good day!” was all the desk worker got in reply.

A little while later, and Trixie had made her way out of the front doors and out onto the dusty streets of Saddleback. She stood still as the afternoon sunlight warmed her face. She was trembling and she was sweating from exerting herself so much.

Knowing that she couldn’t go much further in her condition, Trixie sought a place to rest. Her eyes came to rest on a faded sign which read, “The Sun and Stars Café”. She pressed herself and found the strength to make it the distance to the small diner. Trixie plopped herself down in an empty booth and let out a contented sigh. She ordered some food and drank a full jug of water before feeling her strength return.

As she sat and rested, Trixie searched her bag for something very important to her. Out came a small diamond and she put it on the table.

“Oh, Sun Cloak,” cooed Trixie to the crystal, “we’re going to Canterlot next. I can get more supplies there, but more specifically I can get enough information to solve anything you could throw at Trixie. However, it’s a good few days march from here to there and Trixie needs somepony to talk to. I hope you’re ready because we’re going to get to know each other very well.”

* * * * * * * * *

The noonday sun flowed warmly onto the backs of the Society of Sun. The four unicorns were walking toward their next destination after having already listened to Sun Cloak’s riddle the night before. They had already made good progress. A small dot on a hill was all that could be seen of Hooverdale from this distance. As they walked along, they struck up conversation. Their most recent one was about their victory in the Merring match.

“Bah ha ha! Did you see the looks on their faces?” laughed Cumulus heartily.

“The Royal Treasure Seekers you mean?” queried Sun Chaser.

“I don’t care if they’re called the ‘Pompous Ambassador’s Club’, the way their mouths hung open after we won was unforgettable!”

Cumulus flicked a tear from his eye.

“You do realize that Sun Cloak made his Merring game easy to win, right?” asked Sight Seer.

This had the effect of immediately silencing Cumulus’ unusually cheerful mood. He frowned and shot a glare at Seer.

“Well of course I know that! If it had been hard then we might have actually had to try.”

“You know,” Rose Shine entered the conversation, “for their first game of Merring, I think that other team did well.”

“I agree,” said Chaser. “In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if we run into them again.”

“Oh! Enough of this Merring business,” Cumulus grumped. “So Chaser, where exactly did you say we were headed again?”

A smile spread across Sun Chaser’s face as he recounted his research from memory.

“Our next destination is the Everfree Forest. This Forest is truly astounding if my sources are to be believed. It is full of strange and wondrous magic. There are apparently plants that want to laugh and creatures of great beauty which live in the Forest’s shade. But, the Everfree is a place of great peril as well. I suspect that there are many challenges that we have yet to face.”

The other’s eyes went wide, whether it was the thought of danger, of untapped beauty, or perhaps even the idea of bizarre magic. Whatever the reason, Chaser could see the gears in their minds turning as their imaginations began to get the best of them.

“Do you think that-?” Cumulus began, only to have Sight Seer silence him.

Seer threw a hoof out in front of Cumulus. The stubby stallion halted instantly, as did the rest of the Society.

“Chaser! There’s-”

“What was that for, Seer?!” fumed Cumulus. “Can’t you tell that I was asking a question?”

“We don’t have time for that, Cumulus!” Seer replied.

His eyes were wide and showed fear in them.

“Chaser it’s-!”

Sight Seer was interrupted yet again, but this time by a loud thud. Something large had hit the ground hard enough to make it shake beneath the unicorns’ hooves. They all turned around. A large, toothy grin greeted them; it came from a black dragon.

Before the Society had any time to react, Grallix heaved out a furious blaze of green fire. The flame barreled toward sweet Rose Shine and engulfed her body in a swirling vortex. All this happened and yet still, Sun Cloak’s shield did not protect her.

Her hooves were the first to go. They dissolved into magical embers. She screamed in horror and tried desperately to get away, but she was helpless to do anything. Then her horn and her hair followed suit until her entire body had been dissolved and blow away by a magical wind. When the screaming stopped, so did the green vortex. Grallix only laughed.

“Ha! Ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!”

“ROSE!!!” bellowed Cumulus.

The stubby pony leaped to where she had been only seconds before. There was nothing there to indicate that there had even been a struggle. The only thing that told of the horror he had witnessed was that the grass was slightly burnt.

Cumulus turned back around to face Grallix. There was a ferocity in his eyes that blazed like dragon fire.

“You MONSTER!!!”

With a roar born of passion and rage, Cumulus ignited his horn. It blazed a deep blue. The magical essence blasting from the small unicorn was palpable. The moisture in the air was sucked away in an instant and three furious storm clouds formed around Cumulus, each sparking with untamed lighting. With one last vengeful scream, Cumulus released the full force of his miniature storm upon Grallix.

Lightning flashed and storm winds bellowed, but Grallix stood his ground. A yellow bubble formed around the dragon and Sun Cloak’s angry voice boomed even above the powerful squall.

“My magic will protect the seven teams until the end of the hunt! Let this be a warning to you!”

The grey clouds dispersed, the wind died, and the lighting came to a halt. All that remained was Cumulus, sweating and shaking. His horn no longer glowed and a bitter tear rolled down his face. But never did the fire in his eyes fade. Even Grallix looked impressed.

“You are small, but you have fire,” praised the dragon. “I respect that.”

Cumulus lowered his head in defeat. That was not the end, however, it was now Sun Chaser’s turn and he did not look happy. The angry leader stepped forward, toward the dragon. There was no fear in his eyes, but there was a calm determination.

“What have you done with Rose Shine?” he demanded. “You obviously didn’t kill her or else Sun Cloak’s shield would have stopped you.”

“I have sent her away,” stated Grallix with a snort. “And only I know where.”

“Then bring her back before things get messy.”

Sparks began to shoot off of Chaser’s horn. Grallix leaned down and pinched his horn between his claws. It stopped sparking. Then, Grallix leaned down with his mouth right by Chaser’s ear.

“Here’s the deal,” he hissed. “If you want to see her again then all you have to do is lead me to the next destination. Do that and I will return her.”

Keeping his face forward, not looking Grallix in the eyes, Chaser replied.

“And if we refuse?”

“Then good luck finding her. Equestria is such a large place for such a small pony.”

Chaser’s face snapped to face Grallix in an instant. They glared at each other for what seemed like ages. A pin drop could have cut the tense silence. Finally, Sun Chaser spoke.

“What if we told you the name of our destination? Would you agree to bring her back then?”

“No,” Grallix snorted instantly. “To ensure that you are brining me to the right place, you must personally lead me there. Then, and only then, will I give Rose Shine back to you.”

Chaser turned from Grallix and looked at the faces of his friends. They were obviously in great pain, but they held back their emotions well. Chaser nodded slowly toward them and then turned back to the dragon.

“We will bring you to our destination,” he said reluctantly.

A grin crept up Grallix’s face.

“But,” Chaser breathed with a hidden fury, “if you even think about going back on your word…”

He pointed an accusing hoof at the dragon and let the threat trail off. Grallix snarled.

“Do not doubt a dragon’s word.”

Chaser snorted and promptly turned away. He marched off without a word and his two friends followed. There was no cheerful laughter or song or talk as they set out determinedly toward the Everfree Forest. Grallix took to the air and followed closely behind the three unicorns. As he did so, a small grin formed on his grizzled face.

Chapter 17: The Losers

Chapter 17: The Losers

A golden chariot shot through the afternoon sky. The Royal Treasure Seekers still had a few hours worth of travel before they would make it back to Ponyville and they were trying to entertain themselves as best as they knew how.

“I spy…something white and fluffy,” said Pinkie Pie.

“It’s a cloud…again,” sighed Rarity, quite bored.

Her hooves where hung over the side of the chariot and she was looking down as the ground passed by below. From this height, even the trees looked miniature. Spike was clicking his claws against the metallic floor, which was starting to get on Applejack’s nerves. Applejack was trying to get some rest. Her Stetson was covering her eyes and she was leaning against the wall opposite Rarity. Finally, Applejack lifted the hat from her face and spoke.

“Spike, can’t cha’ see that I’m tryin’ to get some shut eye?”

He stopped tapping his claws instantly.

“Oops. Sorry. I didn’t realize that I was doing that.”

He sighed and tilted his head backward and looked up. There was nothing above them but the sun and blue nothingness. He tilted his head back down to look at Applejack.

“It’s just that I’m so bored.”

Applejack picked herself up from the floor and started to stretch out her legs.

“Then why not think up somethin’ more fun to do?”

“Like what?” asked Spike.

“I’ve got it!” Twilight shouted suddenly.

Spike turned around to face Twilight.

“What?”

“Why not play a guessing game?”

Twilight sauntered over to the team’s bags and began to rummage through them. Spike was right on Twilight’s heels. He tried to poke his head around Twilight’s body to see what she was up to.

“What kind of guess game? You mean like twenty questions or something?” asked the little dragon.

Twilight finally found what she was looking for and turned back to Spike with a smile on her face and a ruby in her hoof.

“The way I see it,” replied Twilight. “Sun Cloak left us a ruby that will speak if we ask it the right questions. Since we’ve got some downtime, why not try to see what kind of information we can get from it? Not only will it ease our boredom, but it’ll also help us solve his puzzles.”

“That’s a great idea!” Spike jumped jubilantly.

The others in the chariot slowly began to surround the purple scholar. They were just as interested in this guessing game as Spike.

“So how is this going to work?” queried Rarity. “Do we each get one question and then somepony else gets to ask?”

“That sounds fair to me.” Applejack nodded her head.

“Ok, so who wants the first question?” Spike asked eagerly.

“Oh! Oh! Pick me! Pick me!” Pinkie threw a hoof in the air and bounced around energetically.

“Alright, Pinkie Pie will go first,” announced Twilight. “And I guess we’ll go clockwise from there. Rarity, you’re next.”

She handed the ruby to the pink pony.

“Ok, we need to start with the really important stuff first,” Pinkie said. “So…what’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?”

She waited with baited breath, but the crystal remained dull and lifeless.

“Sorry Pinkie,” Twilight shrugged apologetically.

“That’s ok,” Pinkie smiled and handed the ruby off to Rarity. “Besides, you can only tell so much from a pony’s favorite ice cream flavor. Don’t worry though, I’ll ask about his taste in hats next time.”

The group hushed as Rarity cleared her throat.

“Now, Sun Cloak, I must admit that I am curious about the fashion in your day. Could you tell us about it?”

Twilight groaned. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. But, shockingly, the ruby thrummed and lit up. Twilight was taken aback. All of their faces moved closer to the glowing gem as Sun Cloak appeared to answer the bizarre question.

“Fashion? Fashion?! Confound fashion!” roared the old unicorn.

Now it was Rarity’s turn to be taken by surprise. She gasped. The nerve of this unicorn!

“Look at this!” declared Sun Cloak.

He pointed at his deep brown mane.

“Just look at it! It falls over my eyes so I can’t see a blasted thing!”

He was right; his hair was pulled over his eyes, which must have made it difficult to see where he was stepping. He blew a puff of air at the hair. His locks bounced into the sky and then fell back down over his eyes.

“You see that? You see it?”

He then began to mutter to himself. Spike caught something about hair stylists. But mostly, the group just stood there with dumb looks on their faces; Rarity’s mouth was practically touching the chariot floor. Finally, after a brief pause and a calming breath, Sun Cloak went back to speaking normally.

“Sorry about all that. It did feel good to get it out of my system though.”

His eyes grew wide as a brilliant idea entered his mind.

“You know what? I could probably change my hair style! Well…now that they all think that I’m dead and all.”

He brought a hoof up to his chin in thought. A grin began to form as he considered the possibilities, but suddenly he shook his head and put his hoof down.

“No! No no no! What are you thinking Sun Cloak? You are a gentlecolt and true gentlecolts must use this style…at least until this fashion dies anyway.”

He sighed deeply.

“You know what? I just hope that this style dies soon and never ever comes back. More so than my death, this fashion coming back would be a real tragedy.”

The image disappeared and the gem stopped humming. The Royal Treasure Seekers looked at each other, looking for some clarity to what they had just witnessed.

“Well that was certainly…interesting,” Rarity said.

But Twilight’s hoof clacked against the chariot floor as an idea popped into her brain. The others looked toward the source of the noise.

“Did you hear what he said?” Twilight asked excitedly.

“Uh, Sugarcube,” Applejack replied with an eyebrow raised, “I think we all jus’ heard what he said.”

“No. Not about his hair!” Twilight shook her head. “The part about everyone thinking that he was dead! Quick! Rarity give me the ruby, it’s my turn.”

Rarity handed off the small gemstone and Twilight lifted it gingerly in front of her eyes.

“Sun Cloak, when did you die?”

The crystal came to life in an instant. Out came the translucent visage of Sun Cloak with a pop and spark. He was looking rather bewildered.

“Did you just ask me when I died?” asked the ancient unicorn. “Well how should I know that?! It’s not like I’m dead yet.”

He chuckled.

“In fact, I won’t know when I died until I’m actually dead. Perhaps I need to remind you that these are just recordings and that I know nothing beyond my own time.”

His image faded from view, but left behind one blushing Twilight Sparkle. Spike giggled quietly to himself.

“Hey!” a call came from the front of the chariot.

It was Rainbow Dash, who was busy flying.

“You guys can’t have all the fun back there! I think I deserve a turn!”

Applejack sauntered as close to the front as she could. She leaned over the chariot and shouted into the strong headwind.

“Alright, what do you want to ask him?!”

“Try to find out what the treasure we’re after is!” replied Dash.

Applejack walked back to the others.

“Hey, RD wants to find out what the treasure is.”

“Got it!” said Spike.

The dragon took the ruby from Twilight and spoke.

“Sun Cloak, what is your treasure?”

The crystal became alive for the third time that day and Sun Cloak appeared before the ponies.

“Ah…my treasure. Well, I do want my treasure to remain somewhat of a secret. Call it ‘The Secret of Sun Cloak’, if you will. But if you’re asking this because you’re afraid that it’ll turn out to be some kind of ‘learn a moral lesson from the old coot’ mumbo-jumbo then don’t worry. There’s plenty of shiny stuff that would make any treasure hunter want to be the winning team.”

He once again dissolved in the noonday sun and left the ponies to their own wonderings on what exactly they were trying to win. As the afternoon wore on, the chariot stayed the course, bound for Ponyville and the mysterious Everfree Forest.

* * * * * * * * *

The day was taking its toll on Jay, Slick, and Sly. Each one of the griffins was sweating and panting. In front of them was a large golden ring, covered in shades of red and blue magic. Standing opposite from them were three images of Sun Cloak, each glowing a different color. Slick, the scrawny black griffin, was holding the far left end while Sly, the muscular one, was on the right. Jay herself had taken a spot in between the two and was shouting out orders and giving help to whoever needed it most.

Jay looked around and shot a burst of red magic toward Slick. She also noticed the swarm of ponies watching her and her team. It was kind of hard to miss the entire lot of candy colored equines. Jay wasn’t sure how many of them there were, nor did she really care. All she wanted to do was win. However, she did know why they were here: Entertainment.

It was into their first game that the guards arrived. They interfered and cost the griffins their match. Jay and her team was just about to get lost when one of the local residents came by to see what all the fuss was about. Recognizing Sun Cloak and his crystal, the pony had been able to convince the guards to let the griffins try again. After all, they were one of the only seven teams to be able to participate.

Hesitantly, Jay had restarted the Merring match. It was actually quite hilarious to see the looks on the guards’ faces when the entire playing field came to life. But the citizen decided to stay and watch. Soon, more of the residents from Hooverdale began to come and watch. Needless to say, it was somewhat distracting. It became even more distracting when they started to cheer. And that was what cost the griffins their second game.

Frustrated, but unable to do anything about the masses, Jay simply started up another round of Merring. Two more games had come and gone and the ponies started betting on whether Sun Cloak would win again or the griffins. The griffins were being sold as the “underdogs”. This made Jay very angry, but she couldn’t do a thing about it except put her rage to use in their current game, game five.

“Go Griffins!!!” screamed a particularly vocal fan.

“Come on Sun Cloak!” came a counter cheer.

Jay growled to herself and poured more thought onto the ring. She was not going to lose to this finicky old coot of a unicorn again.

“Place your bets! Come on folks! Betting tables over here!” Jay heard a pony yelling in the background. She had to tune the sound out or she would lose focus. Merring was next to impossible to play once she lost focus.

“J! I need some help over here!” Slick shouted.

Jay looked down the field. Yet again, the scrawny griffin couldn’t seem to hold his own against the blue magic. She sighed and lashed out at Sun Cloak’s blue force.

“Keep it together, Slick!” Jay roared.

“Come on griffins! I’ve got three hundred bits riding on this game!” a pegasus shouted.

“Taken em down Sun Cloak! Down! Down! Down!” an earth pony yelled back.

“Would you just shut up already?!” Jay shrieked.

The crowd hushed to an uneasy silence for a few seconds. Those brief, beautiful seconds when Jay could actually concentrate were wonderful, but short lived. A crowd of that size could not and would not stay silent for long and murmurings quickly turned into shouting once again.

“Hey Sly! Comin’ your way!” Jay shouted down to her muscular friend.

A large quantity of red magic leaped toward the right end of the field. Sly channeled his own thoughts into a tight ball that merged with Jay’s force. They pummeled the right side of the ring and forced Sun Cloak backwards. But Sun Cloak would have none of it and sent a quick reply. Red and blue clashed with sparks of light and sound. Cheers rose from the crowd.

“J! J!” Slick screamed frantically. Jay turned her attention over to the left. “I-I can’t hold it any longer!”

“You’ve got to! Come on! Hold them off!” Jay retorted.

Just then, a wall of blue energy slammed into Slick’s magic. He poured all he had into blocking it. He grunted, screamed, and then collapsed. The audience gasped.

“Slick!? Slick!” Jay took off toward her fallen companion.

He was still breathing, which was a good sign, but he was definitely unconscious. Beyond this, however, Sun Cloak’s blue magic was pushing through Slick’s rapidly fading barriers. Jay screamed at the top of her lungs and shoved back Sun Cloak’s magic with all she had in her.

“Not again!!!”

The effort was too little, too late unfortunately. She didn’t even reach a point tower.

“Jay!” shouted Sly from the other end of the field.

Jay heard him, but refused to turn her attention from the task at hand.

“Jay! We cannot win this fight!” cautioned Sly. “We need to give up! We can get some rest and come back at it with fresh minds!”

Jay ignored him and continued to press herself beyond what her body could handle.

“Jay!” yelled Sly forcefully. “We cannot win with only the two of us! Listen to me, Jay! When have I been wrong about these kind of things before?!”

Grunting and panting, almost at the verge of tears. Jay finally relinquished her mental hold on the ring. She bowed her head in defeat and sweat dripped to the ground. Sun Cloak captured their final tower and the game came to an end.

“You have not completed this challenge,” Sun Cloak’s voice boomed out. “Your team must win one game of Merring or else you cannot move onto the next riddle. Come back when you are ready.”

The playing field dissolved. Sly walked over to Jay and put a comforting wing around her. He was breathing heavily, but seemed to be taking the loss better than Jay.

“YES!!!” screamed somepony in the audience.

Jay snarled, but couldn’t rise up the strength to do anything more.

“Let’s check on Slick,” suggested Sly.

Jay nodded her head. They turned to Slick and found two ponies already standing over him. Jay opened her mouth to shoo them off, but they spoke first.

“It’s ok, Mam. We’re doctors.” The one who spoke was a blue unicorn stallion.

“What happened to him?” asked Sly.

“He’s exhausted himself to the point of unconsciousness,” replied a purple earth mare, the other doctor. “He’ll be alright, but it’ll take him a few hours to recover. And when he does, he’ll have a splitting headache. Poor little guy.”

“Thank you,” said Sly.

“No problem,” replied the mare. “After all, you did just make me a hundred bits richer.”

“And me a hundred bits poorer,” huffed the stallion.

The mare chuckled to herself. Sly looked back at Jay, she had her eyes closed and wasn’t looking at Slick. She was taking in deep breaths, obviously trying to get herself under control. She opened her eyes and looked at Sly.

“We will beat Sun Cloak,” she whispered with vengeance. “That’s a promise.”

“Yes,” replied Sly calmly. “We will.”

* * * * * * * * *

Trixie Lulamoon trudged along over scraggly looking hills and past even more scraggly looking shrubs. Saddleback was behind her now and the world before her. A blue star-stitched hat adorned her head and kept the sun from her weary eyes. Her matching cape was tucked snugly in her saddlebag. She had wrapped it around the three precious rings she would need for Sun Cloak’s next riddle.

Trixie swayed and wobbled. She sweated and grunted. Perhaps the nurse was right, perhaps Trixie should have waited; perhaps she should have given up the hunt.

“No!” she grunted and forced herself to move forward another painful step. “Trixie will not give up that easily!”

She stumbled and fell into a patch of dry grass. She tried to lift herself, but simply could not find the strength. Finally, she let herself lay there.

“But perhaps Trixie could use a break,” she huffed out.

The sun was warm on her face and a gentle wind blew from the east. Trixie didn’t know how long she laid there with her eyes closed. It was one of the few moments that she got to enjoy nature for just nature, mostly because she didn’t have any other choice than to lay there and enjoy it. Suddenly, her eyes flew open as an idea popped into her brain.

“The diamond!”

Trixie mustered the strength to open her bag and began to search through it. Out came a small diamond, Sun Cloak’s diamond. Trixie smiled. Maybe she wouldn’t be forced to do nothing after all. Trixie took a cautious look around her, but there wasn’t a living soul to be seen.

“Excellent, no pry ears to overhear our conversation,” she murmured.

Trixie lifted herself into a sitting position, it was more civil that way after all, and then spoke to her crystal.

“Well Sun Cloak, here we are. So let’s just skip the pleasantries, shall we?”

She waited, as if the old stallion would reply, but the diamond remained silent.

“Good.” Trixie nodded her head. “Trixie desires to know what you meant back in the tunnels about becoming Great and Powerful. More over, Trixie desires to know what you meant when you said that you were wrong.”

Trixie waited, but Sun Cloak did not reply. Her expression changed from eager desire, to that of annoyance.

“Bah! Finicky old coot!” she huffed. Trixie snorted and then tried to think of another question.

“Ah!” Trixie’s eyes lit up. “Very well then, Sun Cloak. I have another question. Tell Trixie how you got your title, The Gifted.”

Immediately, her diamond lit up. A faint buzzing noise announced the arrival of Sun Cloak.

“Sun Cloak. Sun Cloak the Gifted,” stated the transparent stallion. “You know, I actually used that title for quite a long time. Not anymore though. Now I am simply Sun Cloak, nothing more and nothing less. Of course, you want to know how I got my title. Yes, well, hmm…” He placed a hoof to his chin as he brought back old memories.

“It was back in my University days. You see, I was a very talented magician even at a young age. I was hailed as a protégée, or gifted one might say. And so I was bestowed with my title.” He smiled and began to pace back and forth as he started to lecture.

“The giving of titles is a long running tradition, you know. It goes all the way back to Star Swirl the Bearded and his apprentice, Clover the Clever. To get a title is a prestigious event. In fact, a title can never be revoked once given, but to give up a title of one’s own free will…now that’s something that has never been done before, to my knowledge at any rate.

However, my title represents the old me, the me that is dead, the me that was too blind to see those around me, the me that brought suffering to those I loved. And so, I am no longer The Gifted. Though history may record me with my title for every generation to come, let it be known that I am not that unicorn any longer. I am Sun Cloak. Sun Cloak the finicky old coot.” He smiled and the image faded away.

Trixie sat there, unmoving for a good while. She wondered about his past, why he would willingly give up an honor of that kind. But she had more pressing matters to attend to. She needed to solve the next riddle and his past surely wouldn’t have anything to do with it. She had listened to his riddle previously and something stuck out to her, something that she couldn’t keep from asking.

“University days?” Trixie puzzled aloud. “Hmm…‘Here at Small’,” she repeated. “Sun Cloak! Tell Trixie about your University days!”

Trixie was rewarded with another flash of light and the victorious hum of her diamond.

“Small University,” said Sun Cloak, his face aglow with pride. “Those were some of the best years of my life. Not only did I go there as a student, but I also became a professor! How do you like them apples?” He chuckled to himself and his smile never left his face as he began to recount his favorite memories.

“I played sports, Merring champ two years running! I attended social events. Of course I did my homework…well, most of the time.” He laughed again, but then his eyes looked far away. As if he was dreaming, “I fell in love.” And then, his face turned grim and he didn’t speak for a while. “Then the Dragon War came upon us. That’s when everything started going south…again.”

Sun Cloak closed his eyes and looked like he was about to say something else, but thought better of it and said nothing. His image faded soon after that.

“Dragon War?” Trixie wondered aloud.

Without warning, the diamond flashed in her face. Trixie yelped and fell over.

“The Third Dragon War,” Sun Cloak said as his image came into focus.

Trixie picked herself up as the recording rambled on.

“I was a strategist during the second year of fighting. Can you believe that I started as a field medic? A medic of all things!” Sun Cloak laughed. “Oh, but I suppose I had been studying healing magic quite intensely…” He stopped speaking and a look of sadness crossed his face. He soon shook it off and continued. “That doesn’t matter now. But, as I was saying, I was soon promoted to a tactician and I fulfilled my role admirably. I was even invited by Princess Celestia herself to attend a special ceremony held in honor of those serving in the war. But I digress.

You see, fighting dragons is no small feat. In fact, it’s truly a miracle that both sides took as few casualties as they did. The whole war was like one massive stand off. The tension was like a thin sheet of ice, it could have been broken at a moment’s notice. The pressure in those war rooms was off the charts as we waited and planned for the worst. And then…they left. The dragons just up and left, not a word as to why. They didn’t return and that was the very anticlimactic end to what could have been a very messy war.”

Sun Cloak disappeared and left Trixie all by her lonesome. The showmare gently placed the precious gemstone back in her bag. She had felt her strength return to her and was ready to move on. She wobbly rose to her hooves and slung her bag on her back. Then, she trotted off toward the horizon.

* * * * * * * * *

Evening was quickly approaching the fancy community of Hooverdale. A kind of eerie silence filled the evening sky. All around, hundreds of ponies were gathered as three griffins placed outstretched talons into a ring made of pure light. The golden beams flowed over them and time seemed to slow. At least, time slowed for one griffin. Her name was Jay.

She could feel every heart beat. She could feel every breath. She could hear the faintest sound. To her right stood Sly, as resolute as ever. To her left stood Slick, he was still a bit wobbly.

The young Slick had become conscious hours ago. He had groaned and moaned like some toddler. Jay was not impressed. Of course, the doctors had told them that Slick would have a splitting headache but he didn’t have to whine about it like that. Luckily for Jay, he soon got a hold of himself and was able to stand. Standing wasn’t much better, however, as he kept stumbling around like some circus clown. They got him seated and brought him some water and waited. And waited. And waited. Jay didn’t like waiting. She was ready to win. Even so, they had waited until Slick finally said that he was ready.

So here they were. The light blurred their talons for those few precious seconds before the storm. Then, the moment was over. A cheer from the crowd broke through Jay’s concentration and brought her back to the present. She pulled her talon from the golden light and Sun Cloak spoke.

“I wish everypony the best. Play hard, good luck, and let the games begin!”

Across the field three images of the ancient unicorn materialized. Jay looked to her two companions.

“You remember the plan?” she asked.

“Yeah, you and me’ll take the right side,” Slick replied. “Sly’s got the left. We push them hard and fast so they don’t know what hit ‘em.”

“Good.” Jay nodded and blew a snort out her nostrils. She put on her game face and then led her team to their starting tower. “I want this game over fast. No more casualties over a stupid unicorn game, got it?”

Slick and Sly both nodded. Across the field, the Sun Cloaks took up a charging stance. The griffins matched them. There they stood for a few moments, eyes locked, waiting for the other to make a move.

“GO GRIFFINS!!!” shouted some earth pony from among the crowd.

The griffins took this as their cue and bolted. Both Jay and Slick dodged right while Sly made his way to the left. The Sun Cloaks mirrored their movements and charged down the field. Neither team wanted to give up an inch more than necessary.

As soon as they met, brilliant magic formed upon the golden ring. Red and blue burst to life and clashed. Jay grunted and howled as she put all of her pent up fury to bear against Sun Cloak. By her side, Slick tried his best.

He grit his beak and allowed sweat to drip from his brow to the grass below. He wasn’t looking so good. He shook and trembled even as he stood, but never did he relent. His shaky bursts of magic combined with Jay’s rage into a force to be reckoned with. Sun Cloak simply could not withstand the pressure of such a quick attack and the blue magic receded.

Inch by inch, the griffins took ground. One tower. Two towers. Three towers. Just one tower to go and the griffins would win! Jay could taste sweet victory and then, a voice shattered her happiness.

“Jay!” huffed Slick.

She snapped her head around to face him. He was sweating profusely and shaking even more than usual. She could see the concentration on his face, but it was fading fast. “Jay, we’re going to win!” There was an unnerving smile on his face.

Jay looked back at the ring. They only needed one more minute. She looked back at Slick and knew that he couldn’t last if he kept pushing himself. Jay knew that she had a choice to make, win or have Slick back off?

One second passed. Then two. Then three. He wasn't going to make it at this rate and Jay knew it. She had to make a call and she had to make it now. Looking him straight in the eye, Jay spoke.

“Slick, back off.”

“W-What?!” puffed Slick. He was trembling even more violently now. “C-Come on J-Jay! We-We’ve got this!” He was still grinning stupidly and wouldn’t back off.

“Slick back it way off! Right now!”

The black griffin ignored her.

“Slick! That’s an order!” roared Jay.

Slick only started to laugh, no, to cackle like a lunatic.

“Heh heh! Ha ha! W-We’re gonna win! We’re g-gonna win! Hee hee! Ha ha!”

“Slick!” roared Jay.

“Jay! We’re gonna-!!!” He collapsed upon the ground, unconscious once again.

“SLICK!!! You over zealous pea brain!!!” fumed Jay. “Rraagh!!!!!”

Jay threw everything she had at Sun Cloak with the might of a raging Manticore. Red clashed against blue in a furious squall of concentration and determination. Despite her strongest efforts, however, Jay could not put a dent in Sun Cloak’s barriers by herself. She lost focus for only an instant, but in that instant the blue magic jolted slightly toward her side. She couldn’t keep this up.

Jay’s sweat trickled to the ground, along with a bitter tear. She could not lose again. Not when they had come so far, not when they had come so close. She closed her eyes and bowed her head. She sighed in despair as Sun Cloak continued to press her back.

But suddenly, something snapped in Jay Pennsworth. Her eyes flew open. They were ablaze with a fierce determination, the equal to any dragon fire.

“No,” she whispered under her breath. Her head snapped up and she glared at the advancing blue magic. “NO!” she screamed.

Her concentration manifested itself in a ball of red magic. It smashed against the advancing force and halted its progress. Jay’s eyes scanned the arena. Surely there was something she could still do. There had to be something!

Her eyes came to rest on a long forgotten object. A ring. A very small ring taken from Saddleback was lying next to the point tower she was defending. Jay smiled as a plan hatched in her brain. She turned toward Sly’s side of the field.

“Sly!” she yelled out.

He turned his head toward Jay.

“When I give the word,” continued Jay, “hit them with everything you’ve got!”

Sly nodded and went back to defending his side. Jay looked at the small side ring and took in a deep, calming breath.

“This had better work,” she whispered to herself. “Alright, now or never!”

In an instant, Jay took her focus off of defending her side of the field. She instead put all of her effort into lifting the side ring from the ground. It obeyed her command and levitated through the sky. Jay slung the ring over to Sly’s side and then gave the word. “NOW!!!”

Sly grunted and heaved as he put all of his mental might to bear against Sun Cloak. The red magic on his side moved forward a few inches, but not enough to reach the tower. However, Jay wasn’t saddened by this; in fact things had gone exactly to plan. The red magic from the center ring leaped onto the floating side ring. The magic then jumped once again from the side ring to the point tower. Jay had created a bridge for her team’s magic to travel across and steal the tower from Sun Cloak.

The tower changed from blue to glorious red. The fourth point tower belonged to the griffins! Jay had done it! She was too overjoyed to notice, however, that the crowd remained strangely quiet. All of their mouths hung open and their eyes were wide, some gasped.

“Jay!” roared Sly from across the field. “We didn’t win!”

“What?!” Jay shouted back.

She looked behind her and, to her utter dismay, found that while she was busy with the side ring, Sun Cloak had come just far enough to steal the tower she had been defending earlier. To have come so far, to have defied the inevitable, and then have it all come crashing down was too much for Jay to take.

“No,” she breathed. “No no no no!” She fell to the ground, defeated.

Without warning, a massive ball of red energy surged forward and shoved Sun Cloak’s magic off of her point tower. Jay’s eyes went wide in shock.

“I’m nothing if not an overzealous pea brain!” screamed Slick as he shoved away the last of Sun Cloak’s influence.

Jay was dumbstruck. Slick had recovered in the nick of time. The griffins now owned four point towers, they had officially won.

“Congratulations!” echoed Sun Cloak’s voice. “You have bested yet another challenge and can now hear my next riddle whenever you so desire. I sure hope you had fun! I know I always did.”

The field, center ring, and towers all faded into oblivion as a crowd of ponies erupted into crazy cheering. A myriad of hooves pounded against the ground in applause and some even whistled. Jay turned around to the audience, smiled, waved, and then crashed on the ground.

Chapter 18: The Return

Chapter 18: The Return

The last rays of sunlight fell over the horizon and allowed the silvery light of moon to gleam off of a golden chariot. Twilight leaned over the edge of the chariot and looked down. With the aid of the moonlight she could catch glimpses of lush green trees and rolling hills.

“Ah shoot!” Twilight heard Applejack clack a hoof on the metal floor.

Twilight turned around and found her friends still gathered around Sun Cloak’s little ruby. She walked over to her friends.

“Still having trouble?” asked Twilight.

“Yeah,” groaned Spike. He scratched his head and took the ruby from Applejack. “You’d think that a unicorn who has so much to say, he’d be more talkative.”

“Hm…” pondered Twilight. “Maybe he accidentally made the key phrases too specific?”

“No,” Rarity replied. She shook her head. “Most of the time when we ask him something useful he tells us that we haven’t gone far enough in the treasure hunt yet.”

“Well that’s not very helpful,” Twilight said.

They didn’t say much for a few moments, but instead looked at Spike. He held the ruby in front of him and his eyes were closed. It was easy to tell that he was deep in concentration. Suddenly, he raised a hand to the sky with one figure raised in triumph.

“Ah ha!” He signaled for the others to gather around him and they did so. “Do you guys remember what we found in the Royal Archives? That picture of Sun Cloak?”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie gasped. “What about it?”

Spike smiled and then spoke. “Sun Cloak, can you tell us about being a professor?”

The crystal lit up bright and beautiful in the soft moonlight. It sparkled in all of their eyes and a cheery humming noise met their ears. Smiles abounded on every face as Sun Cloak appeared before them.

“Ah…Professor Sun Cloak.” The old puzzle lover grinned. “Haven’t heard that title for a while. You see, I was a professor of music theory at Small University. That’s right; I not only attended Small but taught there too! Of course, my schedule changed a little bit going from student to teacher. I coached Merring instead of playing it and graded homework instead of doing it.” He leaned in and began to whisper. “Between your team and me, the grading system at Small is absolutely atrocious! Um, but if the school is still around, don’t tell them I said that.”

Pinkie giggled. Then Sun Cloak straightened back up and continued his recorded speech.

“Anyways, my days as a professor were good. I had many promising students. Of course, I also had some who were not so promising, but that’s life. I remember the first time I helped a student compose an orchestra arrangement. Oh…what was her name?” He paused and thought for a while, scratching his chin but finally gave up. “Silver something or other, I think. Unfortunately the name slips my mind, but her music was incredible! Listen to me though, I’ve gotten myself off on a tangent. That would be the teacher in me coming out again. Bah! Once a professor always a professor.” He laughed and waved a hoof through the air. “But, you know, I also composed an orchestra piece or two of my own, I published some books, and I lead Small to three consecutive Merring championship games! However, that’s not what I remember most about Small. Oh no! What I remember most is…her.”

His eyes looked off dreamily. Perhaps at the time he was recording he had looked at the same silver moon as the one out that night. “She was the best thing to ever happen to me.” He stopped speaking, but continued to gaze at the moon. A tear trickled down his face and splashed against the ground below. “And she was my biggest failure.” Another tear fell to the ground below and the ancient stallion tried to regain his composure. He looked back at the group, blurry eyed. Despite the tears, he smiled a kind and genuine smile. “Yes…those were good days.”

His image faded and he left the ponies.

“Quick, Spike!” shouted Applejack. “Ask him who he was talkin’ ‘bout!”

Spike fumbled around with the ruby, but kept his grip and asked the question. The gemstone lit up again and the ponies leaned in close with expectation.

“I am sorry,” declared Sun Cloak, “but you have not gone far enough in the treasure hunt to hear this information. Please, ask again later.”

They all groaned.

“It seems like every time we get an answer, we come away with two more questions!” Rarity complained.

“It’s like Twilight and those science books she reads!” added Spike.

“Hey!” defended Twilight.

Applejack stepped in between them all. “Alright, I think it’s ‘bout time to call it quits with that thin’.” She pointed at the ruby. “How ‘bout we call it a night and enjoy the rest of our ride home?”

“Sounds good to me!” Spike agreed and plopped himself down happily.

As soon as he sat down, however, the chariot lurched forward and flung him out. He sailed through the air and landed headfirst in a pile of fresh hay.

“Welcome back to Ponyville!” declared Rainbow Dash as the chariot came to a halt on Sweet Apple Acres.

* * * * * * * * *

Morning. Trixie had never been a morning pony. This was even more so when she was stressed, hurt, confused, and had sunlight trying to pierce through her closed eyelids. She turned over grumpily, but the light wouldn’t let her rest. Finally, she relented and opened a half-lidded eye.

The showmare had managed to find a small patch of rough grass in the open plains between Canterlot and Saddleback. Her head was lying on her saddlebag and her hat was lying by her side.

Trixie groaned and slowly pushed herself onto her hooves. She picked up her hat and dusted it off then placed it back on her head. It shaded her eyes and gave some small bit of relief.

Trixie took a good look at the sky. There were only a few straggling clouds here and there and, in fact, the moon was still visible. It must have been even earlier than Trixie had thought. Then, her stomach growled.

“Oh calm down,” Trixie chided her own stomach. “Trixie will eat breakfast soon.”

She flipped open her saddlebag and tipped it over. Some of its contents spilled onto the ground: a few bits, some packaged oatcakes, her cape, and a small diamond. Trixie looked at the small amount of bits disapprovingly, that hospital had been more costly than she was expecting. She looked even more disapprovingly at the oatcakes.

“Joy of all joys,” she mumbled sarcastically. “Oatcakes again…Trixie’s favorite.” She rolled her eyes.

Trixie unwrapped one of the hard cakes and munched on it. It was dry and mostly flavorless, but it was food. As she ate, she pushed her few belonging back into her bag, however, she kept the diamond out. Trixie gazed at the gemstone as it glistened in the early morning light. Finally, her stomach appeased, Trixie swung her saddlebag onto her back and picked up the diamond. She was still feeling wobbly, but she pressed on nonetheless. As Trixie walked, she started up conversation with Sun Cloak’s crystal.

“So, your talk of the Dragon Wars got Trixie to thinking yesterday. You see, Trixie is having a little bit of trouble with a dragon of her own. It would seem that you know a thing or two about dealing with the creatures. Perhaps you’d care to elaborate on dragons? Hmm…?”

The diamond in her hoof brightened and Sun Cloak appeared at her side.

“Dragons?” Sun Cloak asked. He scratched his chin in thought. “Why in Equestria would you want to know about…Oh! Oh yes! The Dragon Wars.” He smiled. “I can probably only tell you as much as a book could. They can fly. Or most of them can at any rate. Their scales are incredibly tough and act as natural armor. They breathe fire. I would highly recommend not getting torched if you ever run into one. That tends to end poorly. Um…there’s not really anything else I know.

There really wasn’t much time to ask them how their lives were going over a cup of tea, seeing as they were sort of trying to kill us and all. Sorry if I’m not much use on this subject but I don’t anticipate you running into any trouble from dragons on this treasure hunt. However, I have supplied you with a handy shield to keep you safe from any kind of mortal danger. But, try to stay out of trouble, hmm?”

Sun Cloak disappeared and Trixie kept walking.

“That wasn’t much help,” mumbled Trixie.

She continued her march toward Canterlot. When Trixie rounded a hill, the white city finally became visible. Trixie stopped to enjoy the view for a second. Canterlot gleamed like a white light on its mountain perch. She smiled.

“At least Trixie is making progress.” She shrugged and kept walking.

The trip was lonely at times, but Trixie was used to it. At least, that’s what she told herself. She had been on the road for a long, long time entertaining the masses. But praises from unknown ponies are only fading memories when on the road and alone. Trixie sighed and pressed on in silence.

The day carried on and she became tired. Tired of the walk and tired of the silence. She found a small pool of water and stopped to take a break. She leaned down and drank the cool, blue liquid.

“Ah!” she sighed happily. She wiped her mouth and then looked back at the diamond. “Trixie wants to hear something other than her own thoughts,” she declared. “Now, what’s a good question?”

Trixie took a seat by the pool and rested.

“Trixie believes you said something about ‘mortal danger’? Care to elaborate?”

The diamond flashed and hummed. That was always a good sign. Soon, Sun Cloak appeared.

“I have made a protective shield for each of the seven teams,” explained the old unicorn. “Should your team get into trouble of some sort, it will hopefully be of assistance. However, my magic does have limitations. The shield will only appear if my crystal senses some kind of threat. If anything moves too quickly toward you, such as a rock being thrown, the shield will appear. If anything of high magic power gets too near, the shield will also come up. A warning message will also be played when the shield appears.

An incredibly important note, the shield originates from your crystal. If you are standing too far away from the crystal, it cannot protect you. Now then, this protection was made to protect all of the teams from the normal dangers inherent in travel and also to keep foul play down to a minimum. If your team is one involved in said foul play, stop it!”

Sun Cloak’s image dispersed. Trixie placed the diamond gently in the top of her pack and then rose to her hooves.

“Limitations to the shield?” she mused.

Trixie leaned down and picked up a small pebble. She hefted it up and down a few times.

“Well, at least it’ll give Trixie something to do for the rest of the trip.”

Trixie then threw the stone as hard as she could. It pinged off the inside of a quickly formed yellow bubble and Sun Cloak’s warning message played. Trixie smiled.

* * * * * * * * *

Afternoon sunlight trickled onto the tired faces of three unicorns. The Society of Sun had just awoken from a rough sleep. The day before, they had marched toward Ponyville at a much faster speed than they were accustomed to. It was well into the night before Chaser had finally stopped them. The three remaining members had slept fitfully at the foot of a small hill. Grallix had landed on the other side of the hill, where he now slumbered peacefully.

“Cumulus, you need to eat.” Sun Chaser held out an oatcake to the stubby unicorn.

The three were seated in the shade of the hill. Chaser and Sight Seer held half eaten oatcakes, but Cumulus hadn’t even touched his breakfast.

“I’ll eat when we get to that Everfree Forest and get Rose back,” replied Cumulus.

“You’ll do Rose no good if you don’t eat,” said Seer.

“You need to keep up your strength,” Chaser added. “We still have a good deal of marching ahead of us.”

The leader gulped down his last bite and then stretched. Cumulus relented and hungrily bit into his food.

“Chaser.” Sight Seer walked over to his leader and friend. “I’m going to scout ahead.”

“Go ahead.” Sun Chaser nodded his head.

Seer cantered over another hill and out of sight. Chaser stood and closed his eyes. A cool breeze blew his mane to the side and he breathed in deeply. Behind, he could hear Cumulus devouring the oatcake. To his left, he could hear Grallix’s heavy snoring. In front, he heard hooves approaching. Chaser opened his eyes and, to his surprise, saw Sight Seer returning.

“What is it?” Chaser asked. “Is something wrong?”

Seer came closer to his friend. He was smiling.

“Nothing is wrong. Quite the opposite. It would seem that we traveled further than we thought yesterday. Just over that hill I caught a glimpse of the Forest.”

Chaser’s eyes brightened at the news and he broke out smiling. “Excellent work!” he praised.

Cumulus walked up to the two, seeing as he had finished his breakfast and didn’t want to be left out of the loop. “What’s got you two in such a good mood?”

“Ah! Cumulus!” Chaser said happily. “Why don’t you go and wake up Grallix for us? There’s something I want him to see.”

Cumulus gave Chaser a funny look.

“We’re getting Rose back today,” added Sun Chaser.

Cumulus’ face visibly brightened at the news.

“Now quick! The sooner Grallix is up, the sooner we get Rose back,” Chaser urged.

“No need to tell me twice,” Cumulus said with a nod. He raced off to wake the great beast.

The stout unicorn rounded the hill they had slept under and found Grallix. The dragon was snoring and pouring out fumes of smoke. Cumulus looked at the dragon, sleeping so soundly, and scowled. Cumulus trotted up to the beast’s face and smacked him across the face.

“Get up!” snapped the unicorn.

Grallix snorted and his eyes flew open. The dragon’s first sight was that of Cumulus glaring at him. Grallix closed his eyes and rolled over. Cumulus snorted threateningly and prepared to give the dragon another wake up call.

“It is unwise to wake a dragon when he is sleeping,” said Grallix without opening his eyes.

Cumulus stepped back. Grallix raised his head from the ground and looked down on the short pony.

“Especially with a slap to the face,” snarled the dragon.

They both glared at each other.

“Yeah? Well, Chaser told me to get you up,” snorted Cumulus. “He said there was something he wanted you to see.”

Grallix rose to his feet and stretched. His spines prickled on his back menacingly and he blew out a puff of hot smoke into the air. The dragon took a look around. There weren’t any other creatures around except for the little pony standing at his feet.

“But while we’re alone,” Cumulus spoke up suddenly. “There’s something you need to know.”

Grallix leaned down.

“If you don’t keep your word. Nothing in Equestria, not even Princess Celestia herself, will keep me from giving you back a hundred times what you brought on Rose. Are we clear?”

Grallix raised an eyebrow at the boldness of this tiny pony.

“I will bring her back when I am taken to the location of the next puzzle,” replied the dragon calmly.

“‘She’ has a name, you know,” snarled Cumulus. “It’s Rose Shine and you’d better not forget it.”

Grallix was taken aback. Never before had he met a pony with such tenacity. Of course though, he hadn’t met many ponies in his life.

“You know what?” continued Cumulus. He began to pace around the dragon’s feet. Never once did Cumulus stop glaring into Grallix’s eyes. “Tell me one thing. Why Rose? Why not me? Why not Chaser? Why Rose Shine?”

Grallix watched the pony pace at his feet. Just to frustrate the irate pony, he didn’t speak for a while. It was actually quite fun for Grallix to watch Cumulus’ temper get the best of him. Finally, the dragon spoke.

“She was a threat to me.”

“A THREAT!?” roared Cumulus. “Rose wouldn’t harm a fly!”

“She de-animated me and three griffins. I wouldn’t exactly call that harmless.”

“De-animated? You think that’s an attack?” fumed Cumulus. “Let me ask you something. Did you feel any pain when you awoke? Did it hurt at all when the beam first struck? Were you injured in any way whatsoever?”

Grallix only snarled in reply.

“Do you even know what she uses Animation Magic for, you big lizard?” huffed Cumulus. When Grallix didn’t respond, the unicorn continued. “She owns a toy store. A toy store for children! She makes the toys come to life. All of the fillies and colts love Rose Shine! She always finds a way to put a smile on their faces!” His voice became much softer as he continued, “And…And she makes me smile too.” Then, his eyes lit up with anger. “And you!” He pointed accusingly at Grallix. “You took all of the joy she brings away! You cruel monster!”

“ENOUGH!!!” Grallix roared into the unicorn’s face. The force of his voice alone shook the ground, but Cumulus remained steadfast. The unicorn would not turn his harsh gaze from the dragon. “I have given my word, pony.” He spit the last word out like it left a bad taste in his mouth. “Now, take me to your leader before I do something that you will regret.”

Cumulus did not move for a few seconds, he would not be intimidated even by a dragon. Then, he turned around in one sharp motion and led the dragon to Sun Chaser. When Grallix saw Chaser smiling, he snarled and blew a stream of smoke into the unicorn’s face.

“Good morning to you too,” said Chaser sarcastically. He brushed the smog from his eyes.

“I have been rudely awakened and berated by your underling,” snapped Grallix. “I hope for your sake that this is important, because you sure don’t know how to get on a dragon’s good side.”

“I assure you,” replied Chaser with utter confidence, “this is well worth your slight discomfort. Come,” he began to walk, “follow me.”

He, the other unicorns, and Grallix all walked up a large hill and stopped. From this vantage point a small pony village could be seen as well as a dark forest.

Grallix pointed. “That village is the answer to the puzzle?”

“No,” stated Chaser sharply. This earned him another snarl from the dragon.

“Then what was the purpose of waking me?”

“For your information, that village is called Ponyville,” Chaser continued like he hadn’t heard anything. “And the large forest you see next to Ponyville is known as the Everfree Forest. That Forest contains the answer you seek.”

Grallix’s eyes lit up and he smiled. “The Everfree Forest,” whispered the dragon to himself.

“And now, you will return Rose Shine to us,” demanded Chaser. He planted his front hoof squarely onto the ground.

“Only after we reach our destination,” Grallix replied curtly.

“But we’re already at our destination,” Chaser chuckled.

Grallix looked around, but they were still on the hill top. “I may have thought that you were an idiot, but I never took you for a lunatic.” However, he didn’t like the way that Chaser was grinning.

Without warning, a bright flash of violet engulfed Grallix and the ponies. The dragon roared and Chaser started to laugh. Grallix swatted the purple light from his eyes and blinked. When he could finally see again, he found himself standing at the edge of the dark Everfree Forest. He blinked and rubbed his eyes.

“What’s the matter?” taunted Cumulus. “Never been teleported before?”

Grallix looked down at the tiny ponies. The tall one, Sight Seer, was pulling in heavy breaths. But they were all smiling at him.

“And now, you will return Rose to us,” demanded Chaser.

Grallix stood still, trying to regain his bearings. He peered into the Forest, but could only see a few feet into the inky blackness. However, something felt wrong about that place.

“I do not sense the unicorn’s magics,” he said at last. “And that forest feels…off.”

“Whether it feels ‘off’ or not, that it the answer to the next puzzle,” Sun Chaser snarled and stepped toward the towering dragon. “We have done what you have asked and now you will return Rose to us. Is that clear?”

Grallix looked over each of the unicorns slowly. Cumulus’ horn was practically sparking with deadly magic already, Chaser looked steadfast but a trained warrior could see the steel in his eyes, and Sight Seer was completely emotionless.

“Very well,” murmured the dragon at last. He pointed a grizzled claw at Seer. “But I will need your help, Teleporter.”

“Hey! That wasn’t part of the deal!” Cumulus snarled and pawed at the ground like he was about to charge.

“Can it!” snapped Chaser.

Cumulus was taken aback and lost his momentum.

“Seer, are you alright with this?” Chaser turned to his friend.

“We’re about to find out,” replied Seer. He stepped up to the dragon and took in a deep breath. “What do you need me for?”

“I want you to think on your friend,” replied Grallix. “Think about Rose and nothing else, is that understood?”

Sight Seer nodded.

“Good.” Grallix grinned.

The beast then took in a breath of air and shot out a green flame. The emerald fire touched upon Seer’s horn and engulfed it. Seer grimaced and lost the balance in his front hooves. He fell down into a kneeling position and screamed as pain surged into his head.

“Seer!” shouted Cumulus in worry. He leaped toward the Teleportation master, but was held back by a hoof from Sun Chaser. Chaser shook his head “no” and Cumulus backed off.

Sight Seer continued to scream in pain, yet he continued to think on Rose Shine. He closed his eyes and remembered her laugh, her smile, the way her soft voice sang the most beautiful melodies he had ever heard, and he found the strength to press on.

Then, a brilliant violet glow erupted from Seer’s horn. The purple magic and green fire intermingled and danced in a glorious display of fire and light. This strange mix of dragon fire and unicorn magic grew upward until it formed a beam of purple and green light. The light flew into the heavens like a spotlight for the stars themselves.

After this, a second beam of light fell down from the sky. It formed a pillar of fire and magic just large enough to contain a pony. From inside this column, Chaser and Cumulus could see the faint outline of a mare forming. The shape was dull at first, but became clearer with each passing second. At long last, the fire went out as did the violet magic.

Sight Seer shakily pulled himself up to his hooves and pulled in raspy breaths. He was drenched in sweat but he couldn’t help but smile at the sight before him. For before him stood Rose Shine. She looked around in utter confusion until her gaze came to rest on the faces of her friends. Her face lit up like Hearth’s Warming Eve tree and she smiled.

“Rose!” shouted Cumulus happily. He flung himself at the mare and hugged her tightly.

She gasped, but then began to laugh. She hugged Cumulus back. The other two came up and hugged her as well. After a long embrace, they all backed off to let Rose catch her breath.

“What happened?” asked Cumulus with worry. “Are you alright?”

“I’m just fine.” She chuckled at Cumulus’ antics.

Cumulus started to rattle off questions at hyper-sonic speed until Chaser stopped him.

“Rose,” said Chaser. “I’m sure that we all have questions for you, but perhaps this isn’t the best place for it?” He motioned to the Forest they were standing by. “How about we find some lodging and take it easy for the rest of the day, hmm?”

“That sounds wonderful,” replied Rose.

The four walked at an easy pace toward Ponyville. But Sight Seer stopped. The others halted as well and turned back see what was wrong.

“Grallix,” said Seer. “Where’d he go?”

All but Sun Chaser looked up at the sky. They couldn’t see heads or tail of the dragon.

“Oh, I wouldn’t bother looking,” stated Chaser. “He’s long gone.”

Chapter 19: The Story

Chapter 19: The Story

Twilight was seated comfortably at a large mushroom shaped table. The sun above was shining brightly. She mumbled as she looked over a large menu.

“Hmm…should I get the-? No. Oh! Maybe the-? No, not that either.”

“Why not just go for what you usually get?” asked Spike. He pulled his own menu down so that he could look at Twilight. Of course, her menu blocked his view, but it was the gesture that counted.

A fancy looking server walked over to the table and asked what the two wanted.

“Why not?” Twilight sighed. “I’ll take the usual.” She told the waiter.

The waiter turned to Spike. “And you, Sir?”

“I’m guessing you still don’t have any gems?”

The server shrugged apologetically.

“Yep, thought so. Ok, I’ll take hay fries the usual way: extra crispy.”

“But of course.” The waiter took their menus and walked off to place their orders.

For a while, the two were content to sit. It was afternoon and it was looking to be a good day. The Clover Café was busier than usual with many groups of ponies and even a few griffins eating and chitchatting with each other. Some were sitting outside, like Twilight and Spike, while others had been seated inside. A Royal Guard walked by the Café, his armor shimmered in the noonday sun. It would seem that there were still a lot of visitors in Ponyville.

“I wonder what’s taking Applejack so long,” Twilight spoke at last. “She said that she and the others would meet us here at noon.”

“Yeah,” agreed Spike. “It’s not like Applejack to show up late.”

“Hi!” said a soft voice from right behind Twilight.

The purple mare leaped out of her seat. “Ah!” She turned around to find Fluttershy.

The yellow pegasus blushed. “Oh! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Spike began to chuckle and then it was Twilight’s turn to blush.

“No. No,” Twilight reassured Fluttershy. “You’re fine. I just didn’t hear anypony behind me.”

“I suppose that would startle me too then,” Fluttershy said. She smiled warmly.

Soon, Twilight couldn’t help but to smile as well.

“Well,” Twilight spoke. “It looks like you’re the first one here, Fluttershy. Why don’t you take a seat and make yourself comfortable?”

“Sure.” Fluttershy took a seat around the table next to Twilight. “So? How’s the library holding up?”

“The library’s doing fine,” Twilight replied. “It seems that the Mayor asked Quill Tip to stand in for me while Spike and I have been away. Quill told me last night that everypony seems to have suddenly gotten an urge to read. I would have to agree with her. It seemed like half of the library was checked out and there were still a few ponies looking for books when I went to bed.”

“Ah…bed,” sighed Spike contentedly. “I had forgotten how nice it felt to sleep in my own bed.”

“So, how was your first night back in Ponyville, Fluttershy?” asked Twilight.

“Actually, it was quite relieving,” expressed Fluttershy.

“Why do say that?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“We took off for Canterlot so suddenly that I didn’t have time to find anypony to look after my animal friends. So, I was nervous when I got to my cottage. But everything was fine! It turns out that Angel Bunny kept everything running while I was gone.”

Spike’s eyes went wide and his mind flashed to a scene of the white fluff ball wearing a Drill Sergeant’s uniform and glaring at neatly formed rows of woodland creatures.

“To tell the truth,” Fluttershy continued, “I didn’t think that Angel had it in him. He’s not usually one to do something like that, but it looks like he took a step out of his comfort zone to help me out.”

“That’s great!” Twilight smiled, sharing her friend’s happiness.

“Ah, Mam, your food.” The server had returned and was holding a flower sandwich and a plate of extra crispy hay fries.

“Oh!” Twilight turned her attention to the waiter. “Thank you.”

The waiter placed the food on the table and walked away.

“Great! I’m starving!” Spike declared and grabbed up a handful of the crunchy fries, stuffing them quickly into his mouth.

Twilight levitated her own sandwich to her mouth and took a quick nibble.

“Twilight!” Applejack called and ran up to the table. “Sorry, I’m late. I got held up at the farm a might bit longer than I expected.”

Twilight placed her sandwich back on her plate and greeted Applejack. “Hi Applejack! What held you up?”

“I tell ya’ the farm hasn’t seen this much business since the Zap Apple harvest. Apparently a lot of the visitors who came lookin’ for Sun Cloak’s treasure haven’t left yet! And guess where they started comin’ to get food?”

“Sweet Apple Acres?” Twilight asked.

“Sweet Apple Acres.” Applejack nodded. “Granny Smith, Big Mac, and even Apple Bloom have been workin’ like crazy. I hardly even had time to chat with ‘em last night, they were all jus’ plum tuckered out.”

“Sorry that you haven’t had much time with your family Applejack,” Fluttershy said.

“It’ll be alright,” Applejack replied. “Big Mac managed to tell me that the crowds are startin’ to thin out a little so I’ll probably get some time with ‘em before we solve the next puzzle.”

“Oh! That’s good.” Fluttershy grinned.

“Care to take a seat while we wait for the others?” Twilight asked.

“Don’t mind if I do.” Applejack plopped down by Fluttershy.

The mares kept up conversation, but were distracted from time to time as Spike continued to devour his hay fries loudly.

“Yoo Hoo!” Rarity called from the street.

The group turned to her and Twilight waved her over. Rarity walked over and sat down by her friends.

“Howdy Rarity!” greeted Applejack. “Say, what’s with your getup?”

Rarity was wrapped, head to hoof, in clothes. She still somehow managed to look elegant and refined under the bundles of clothing, but she also looked very warm in the noonday sun.

“We are going into the Everfree Forest are we not?” she replied with a question of her own. “Therefore I have decided to go in prepared for anything. And I’m certainly not letting that nasty Poison Joke play any tricks on me this time.”

Spike, by this point, had frozen in place and couldn’t take his eyes off of Rarity. Even bundled under a ridiculous amount of clothing she looked gorgeous. One could practically see the hearts in Spikes eyes.

“How has the Carousel Boutique been holding out?” Fluttershy asked.

“I seem to have somehow lost a dress or two while I’ve been away, but-” Rarity was suddenly cut off by a rainbow blur.

Rainbow Dash landed next to Spike and set herself down at the table. She winced and rubbed her wings soothingly.

“Are your wings sore too?” Fluttershy asked with concern.

“Yep,” replied Dash. “Even that short flight was a struggle. After carrying you all in that chariot, I think I may need a few days before I’ll be at top performance again.”

“Welcome RD!” Applejack greeted as Rainbow Dash continued to massage her wings. “I’m sorry to hear ‘bout your wings.”

Dash looked up and noticed Rarity. She stopped rubbing out her wings and tilted her head. “I knew that you were excited about getting back to your dresses and everything, but did you really need to wear your entire wardrobe?” Dash giggled.

Rarity gave a mock chuckle. “Make fun if you must, but you won’t be laughing when you touch Poison Joke and I don’t.”

“Yikes! Take it easy, it was just a joke,” Dash huffed.

“Hiya!” Pinkie Pie greeted as she waltzed up to the group.

“Pinkie!” Twilight smiled. “Welcome! How are the Cakes doing?”

“They’re doing alright, but they seem really tired. They’ve had a lot more business than usual at Sugarcube Corner and they’ve had some trouble getting a babysitter while I’ve been gone.”

“Sounds a lot like Sweet Apple Acres,” Applejack said.

“Yeah, so I stayed up until Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake fell asleep and then stayed up all night baking stuff for them!”

“You pulled an all-nighter right before we go into the Everfree Forest?!” gasped Rarity.

“It’s fine. I don’t feel tired at all.” Pinkie smiled. “Besides, the Cakes made me a special muffin this morning.” She pulled out a muffin with brown sugar crumbles on the top. “They said it had loads of coffee in it. Whatever coffee is.”

Twilight’s eyes sudden got much bigger. “Um…you haven’t eaten any of those muffins yet, have you?”

“Nope!” Pinkie balanced the muffin precariously on her nose. “But it looks like you’re having lunch, so now seems like a good time.”

Twilight gulped. “How about we trade?” she asked.

Pinkie plopped the muffin on the table. “Sure. If you really want breakfast for lunch go ahead! I do it all the time!”

Pinkie gave the coffee muffin to Twilight and Twilight gave the rest of her sandwich to Pinkie Pie. Pinkie flipped the plate the sandwich was on and the sandwich flew into the air. It came down in her mouth and she ate it in one large gulp.

“Yummy!” Pinkie rubbed her belly.

Twilight levitated the muffin and plopped it into her saddlebag. She was fairly confident that she had just saved her group from a coffee induced disaster.

“Well, it looks like everypony’s here!” Rainbow Dash said. “So what are we waiting for? Let’s go.”

“Right,” Twilight agreed. She shouldered her bag and left a tip for the waiter. Then, Twilight levitated Spike onto her back.

The others also placed any bags they were carrying onto their own backs and headed out for the Everfree Forest.

* * * * * * * * *

A waiter was busy clearing off a mushroom shaped table at the Clover Café. He had just brushed up a few fallen hay fries and flower petals when a group of four unicorns walked up.

“Give me one moment and you may have this table,” the waiter told them. “Or, you could take a seat inside if you’d prefer.”

“This table will be fine, thank you,” said Sun Chaser. “It’s such a nice day out after all.”

“Of course,” the waiter said. The server wiped off the last of the crumbs and smiled. “There you are. I’ll be back with menus shortly.”

The waiter walked off and the Society of Sun sat down. They had come to eat and to celebrate Rose Shine’s return.

“Welcome to Ponyville,” Sun Chaser said to his group. “After this meal, we’ll have to find a place to stay for the night and then we can start for the Everfree Forest bright and early tomorrow. That is, if you’re up to it Rose.”

All heads turned to Rose Shine. She smiled warmly and nodded her head. “Yes. I would be fine with that.”

“Excellent!” Chaser returned her smile.

“So Rose,” Cumulus put his hooves on the table and leaned in closer to the mare, “What happened exactly? What did that dragon do to you?”

“Cumulus! Hooves on the table are bad manners you know.” Chaser chuckled in mock concern. Still, Cumulus pulled his hooves off the table. “And besides,” continued Chaser, “one should never tell a story on an empty stomach.” Chaser motioned with his eyes to the server, who had just come back with menus.

The group each took a menu and the waiter walked off to attend to other customers. The Society each found what they wanted, Sight Seer taking the longest to decide, and placed their menus down. The server came back, took their orders and their menus, and went to tell the chef.

“Now then,” Chaser spoke, “Rose, I do believe that we’re all curious as to what happened.”

“It’s a bit of a long story.” Rose looked each of her friends in the eye. “You sure that you’re up for it?” she teased.

“Try us,” Seer chuckled.

“Alright then.” Rose leaned in over the table and started her tale. “It all started with that green fire. I was taken completely off guard when it hit. At first, I was scared stiff. Then, I braced for the heat that I knew was sure to overwhelm me, but it never came! Instead I felt a warm kind of tingling feeling. It wasn’t completely pleasant, but it wasn’t painful either. In confusion, I opened my eyes. But what I saw was something far scarier than mere fire. My legs had started to dissolve! And what’s worse was that I could still feel them somehow. It was like they were being stretched and pulled away from me. I screamed in horror as more and more of my body began to melt until even my mouth had vanished.

I thought I was done for. I heard you all screaming and then I was gone. And yet, I wasn’t gone. I suppose the closest feeling I can use to describe what happened next is that feeling you get when Sight Seer teleports us. It was as if my body was being moved from one place to the next, but it felt so different too. I felt my entire body stretched out, into a sort of thin line. I was still intact but I was spread thin, like butter spread over too much toast. In this state, I also felt like I was flying through the air on some invisible current that shouldn’t have existed. I was conscious of all these events, but it was blurred. It was almost like looking through a piece of warped glass.

I really have no idea how long I was in this state, but it eventually came to an end. I felt myself being put back together. Suddenly, I was whole again and I gasped for air. Needless to say, I was shocked to find that I hadn’t been harmed in any way whatsoever. I spun around and checked from the tip of my horn to my hooves, but nothing in me had changed. What had changed, however, was where I was standing.”

“Terribly sorry to interrupt,” the server’s voice cut through Rose’s story, “But here’s your food.” The waiter plopped down a large salad in front of Rose Shine and gave the others’ their orders as well.

Rose took a nibble on a large lettuce leaf and then ravenously began to devour the rest of her food. Seer blinked in shock at her antics.

“I know that you’ve never met a salad that you don’t like,” Seer mentioned, “but what’s gotten into you Rose?”

“I haven’t eaten for an entire day!” Rose explained and then dove in for another bite.

“Haven’t eaten-?!” gasped Cumulus with obvious concern. “Why?”

“Now, now,” Chaser chastised. “In situations like this we need to keep our priorities straight: food first, story second.”

Cumulus’ cheeks brightened and he smiled in embarrassment. “Oops. Sorry Rose. Um…What I meant to say was that if you want some of my sandwich, you’re more than welcome to it.”

Rose slowed down to giggle a little when she heard the offer. “Thank you, Cumulus.”

Soon Rose had eaten her food, leaving little left, while the others had barely started. She sighed in contentment and wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“Now then,” she said. “Let me continue because I was just getting to the good part.

So, as I was saying, I was in a completely different place than where I had started. Somehow the green fire had teleported me far, far away. I was first clued in to this fact when I began to calm down and look at my surroundings.

I was standing in a dark room; from the rough appearance of its surface I guessed that it was some kind of large cavern. I looked up, but could barely make out the outline of a ceiling. It was that tall. Then, I noticed that, lining the walls, were these gigantic ice statues! They were carved in the shapes of griffins and dragons and sea serpents. In the dim light, they glimmered both beautifully and maliciously. I gasped when I first saw one of the dragon statues glaring at me and backed up into another statue. To be completely honest, I was scared spitless until I realized that they were only statues.

I marveled at the intricate detail of these monstrous sculptures and wondered who could have made them. It wasn’t until I touched one that I found out that they were made of ice. I also hadn’t realized how cold the cavern was until that point.

I began to shiver and looked around for the source of the light in the room. To my surprise, no light came in through the ceiling. It instead was coming from two large braziers sitting near, what I assumed, was the entrance to the room. What was even more surprising was the color of the fire that was lit in the braziers. It was purple!

The purple flames licked the air and cast a soft violet glow along the walls of the cave. I had never seen any kind of fire like this before and went over to investigate. To my shock, the fire was not burning off of wood but instead was using snow as its fuel source! All around the edges of the brazier, ice had hardened, like the snow had melted and then frozen as it spilt over the edge. The bottom of the brazier was covered more thickly in ice than the top, making a sort of stalagmite formation around the brazier’s outer edge.

Needless to say, I was intrigued. I cautiously moved a hoof up to the flame, but I felt no heat emanating from it. I slowly moved closer and closer until my hoof was inside the purple fire. It was cool to the touch, but not freezing. It was kind of the same feeling as grabbing a hoof full of snow and holding it. I withdrew my hoof and wondered as to what bizarre place I was in when something else caught my attention.

It was, to the best of my knowledge, a curtain of sorts. I know that you’ve seen those beaded curtains that some ponies use in their homes. Well, it was kind of like that, but instead of beads it had been made from scales! Even in the dim light I could tell that it was immensely colorful. It was also beautiful and I thought that, perhaps, it held some sort of insignia on it but I couldn’t make it out. The curtain itself was absolutely gigantic! It covered the entrance to the room I was standing in so that no light came in through the outside. I had walked up to investigate when I was suddenly stopped by a rumbling noise from behind me.

I turned around and I stopped breathing. I shook in fear as I came face to face with a live dragon! Luckily, he was sound asleep, but his snoring sounded like an avalanche. He was resting on a bed of gold and jewels the likes of which I had never seen before. What’s even more terrifying is that he was easily three times the size of Grallix!

I took a step away from this terror and was just about to walk out through the scaly curtain when I heard a pounding noise from the other side of the curtain. It took all of my courage to sneak a peek out the curtain and what I saw filled me with more dread than I knew was possible.

Outside the curtain, a bright orange fire lit a long hallway. Down this hallway, another dragon was walking. Just the rumble of the dragon walking felt like a miniature earthquake! This dragon, too, was three times the size of Grallix. My stomach began to churn and I found it hard to breath. I finally knew where I was. I had been teleported to the Dragonlands!”

Those sitting with Rose gasped. Half a bite of Cumulus’ sandwich fell from his mouth and onto his plate.

“The Dragonlands?” said Sun Chaser in shock.

“You’re absolutely certain?” Sight Seer asked.

“I am,” Rose replied with a curt nod. “But my story isn’t over yet.”

“Then go on,” pleaded Cumulus. He had suddenly lost his appetite.

“So,” continued Rose. She smiled at her captive audience. Story telling had always been one of her favorite things to do with the kids that visited her store and she certainly had a knack for it. “The dragon came closer and closer. Not knowing what else to do, I ducked back into the dim cavern. I snuck along the side walls, trying to stay in the shadows as much as possible. My heart beat faster and faster as the pounding feet came ever nearer. I closed my eyes and silently hoped that the dragon would pass by.

The footsteps stopped and I could feel myself trembling. Then, I heard the curtain open. The scales clinked and clacked as the dragon stepped into the room. I gulped and looked to my right and to my left, searching for some way of escape. There was none. So, in desperation, I dove behind one of the ice sculptures. I tried my best to remain still and keep my breathing to a minimum.

I watched the dragon from my hiding place. She was a dragoness I soon came understand, a female dragon. Although I really couldn’t tell the difference until she spoke. Her scales were a light blue in color and the spines running down her back were thin and sharp. The spines themselves were a deep blue and I saw only the briefest glimpse of her eyes. They were a grey so light that they almost looked white.

She waltzed up to the sleeping dragon and gave him a smack with her tail. He roared and his eyes flew open. He glared at the dragoness for only a moment, and then seemed to recognize her. He snorted a tuft of smoke out his nose and then lifted himself into a sitting position on his bed of gold. He smiled a big toothy grin and beckoned the dragoness to come nearer. It wasn’t until she was standing next to him that I saw their resemblance.

They were almost the inverse of each other. While her scales were light blue, his were a blue as deep as the ocean and where her spines were dark and thin, his were thick and lightly colored.

Then, the dragoness bowed before the one on the hoard.

‘Master,’ she said reverently.

‘Glacier,’ replied the dark dragon from atop his bed. He smiled and gestured for the dragoness to rise.

The dragoness, Glacier, lifted her head and met his gaze. Then, the one on the hoard sniffed the air and furrowed his brows.

‘Is that a new perfume?’ he asked.

‘Is what a new perfume?” replied Glacier.

The dark one’s head twisted from side to side and his eyes scanned around the cave.

‘Lilac perhaps?’ he teased. ‘Or maybe…rose?’

I stifled a gasp and remained motionless. I thought that I would surely be found out. But, luckily, the dragoness interrupted his search.

‘We have more important matters to discuss than perfume scents,’ she chided.

The dark one stopped his searching and rested his gaze back on Glacier.

‘Very well, then tell me why I have been woken.’

‘It is Shadow, Master,” whispered Glacier.

The dark one’s eyes shrunk into little slits at the mention of ‘Shadow’.

‘Has he been found?’ he asked.

‘No,’ replied Glacier, ‘we sent him another message and he still has not replied. Most believe that he is dead.’

‘I assume that you are also part of this ‘most’?’ said the dark one flippantly.

‘Yes, I am.’ She glared at him until she got his attention. ‘I do not understand why you care so much about bringing him back.’ Glacier accused and pointed a sharp claw at her Master. ‘He ran off like some coward! Let him go I say! And good riddance to him too! He’s been nothing but a thorn in both my side and yours.’

‘Oh Glacier, Glacier, Glacier…’ clucked the dark one as if chiding a small child. He chuckled to himself and moved her pointed claw down gently with his tail. ‘Shadow is unruly, this much is true. But I have seen him, I have fought him. Though he may not look it, he has great strength. It is that strength that I desire. If only he would let me teach him. If only he would submit to me. With his help I could expand my kingdom thrice over! But in order to do this, I need him here. And he is not here. Do you understand?’

Glacier turned from him and snarled. ‘Perhaps he would be easier to control if you had not killed his father,’ she whispered with venom in her voice.

‘And what does that have to do with it?!’ growled the dark one. He wrapped his tail around Glacier and spun her to face him. He pulled her in close to his face and spoke. ‘That was necessary and you know it.’ He then uncoiled his tail from her body and she backed down. ‘Besides…’ he continued, ‘what do dragons care for their parents? What do I care for my father?’ He paused and looked Glacier in the eyes threateningly. ‘What do you care for me? I am confident that, should I die this very night, you would take over my affairs without batting an eye.’

‘It is true father!’ roared Glacier in anger. This outburst silenced the dark one and she continued. ‘But Shadow has always been…different.’

The two glared at each other for a long while. Finally, the dark one smiled evilly and sat back on his golden bed. ‘Yes,’ he admitted, ‘I know this. But I know something else too. If he is alive and I let him go free, he will return some day with an army and come knocking at my door. Then he will claim his revenge for that scar I gave him and for taking his father’s life. That is why he must be found!’ He pounded a clenched claw on his treasure. ‘He will either become my greatest ally, or my most hated enemy. And so, my daughter, that is why I need you to find him. Out of my entire kingdom, you are one of the few I can trust who will not fail me. So go! Take whoever and whatever you need and find him.’

Glacier snarled, but bowed and turned to leave.

‘Oh, and Glacier,’ cooed her father. She did not turn back around. ‘If he will not come back with you peacefully, then kill him where he stands.’

‘Yes, Master,’ said Glacier. She walked out of the room and through the clinking curtain.

The dark one lay back down and closed his eyes. Soon he was snoring, but for a long time I didn’t dare to move. It was the hunger that first made me come out of hiding. My stomach began to growl and I decided to search the room for food. I couldn’t find anything to eat, but I could melt the ice for water. I was too scared to leave the cavern and every time I looked out the curtain I saw more dragons walking about. I decided to take my chances with a sleeping dragon over ones who were awake.

And so, I sat there, behind the statues, trying to think of a way to escape. But my stomach continued to growl. The sound of it echoed in the cavern and I heard the dark dragon begin to stir at its sound. I couldn’t leave and I most certainly couldn’t afford to wake him so I did the only thing that came to my mind. I de-animated myself.”

“You did what?” Cumulus practically leaped across the table.

“Calm down Cumulus,” commanded Sun Chaser coolly. “As you can see, she’s right here and is unharmed. Let’s let her finish her story, shall we?”

Cumulus grumbled something under his breath, but backed away and allowed Rose to continue.

“I didn’t de-animate myself for too long, but I did cast the spell so that it would last for a good few hours. When I woke up, the room hadn’t changed. The dragon was still sound asleep and the room was just as dreary as before. The only way I could tell that time had passed at all was that, when I looked out from the curtain, the orange fire had been put out.

I didn’t notice any dragons moving around, and so I took my chance and left. The corridor I found myself in was absolutely massive, to accommodate the size of the dragons. Still, there was no natural light coming from anywhere. I had to risk lighting my horn. Down the dark passage I walked, jumping at the sight of every shadow, but I was completely alone.

I walked and walked for what seemed like hours. There were more gigantic caverns I saw; these ones didn’t have curtains however. Some were filled with piles of gold while others held sleeping dragons. I tried to keep my distance from these rooms and always put out my light until I had passed by.

I was beginning to grow weary and my legs were starting to give way when I finally saw sunlight. It poured through a large exit at the end of the corridor. The sight gave me new strength and I pushed on. I was now standing at the exit, but to my utter horror I couldn’t leave.

The entrance had been carved into the side of a tall mountain. The dragons, with their wings, could enter or leave as they saw fit but I could not. A biting wind also blew into the corridor from the outside. Much of the mountain was covered in snow and ice.

I backed away slowly and fell to the ground in hopelessness. I was trapped. Then, to make matters even worse, I heard a noise which chilled me to the bone. Some dragons had awoken and were walking toward me. I could hear their pounding footsteps echoing through the corridor even though I couldn’t see them.

My mind was reeling, my stomach was growling, and my legs were trembling. I stood to my hooves and looked for hiding spot, but there was none. The dragons were coming closer, I could hear it, and I was in no shape to even try and fight them. So I did the only thing I could do, I hoped for a miracle and jumped out of the exit.

I went into a freefall. Not seeing any way out, I closed my eyes and prepared for the worst. But I never hit the ground. Instead I felt myself being pulled up. I opened my eyes and found that a pillar of green fire had surrounded me! My legs were dissolving, as before, and I felt them being stretched out and flowing away on an invisible wind. The rest of my body was soon to follow and I was quickly whisked away.

The next thing I remember, I was standing on the ground. I heard Cumulus shout and practically bowl me over. I was too shocked to say anything more than, ‘I’m fine.’ And, well, I guess now we’re here.”

“Then it looks like we got you back just in the nick of time,” Sight Seer whispered.

“Rose…” Cumulus gasped. “I’m so sorry. Is…Is there anything else we can do for you?”

Rose Shine smiled and then spoke. “Actually, yes! There is one thing.”

“What is it?” asked Cumulus. “Anything. Just name it!”

“Cumulus,” Rose said. The stubby unicorn leaned in closer, with concern written all over his face. “I think I’ll take you up on your offer.” Rose levitated Cumulus’ sandwich over to her plate and took a bite of it. “Mmm…This is delicious!”

Cumulus had leaned too far in and fell over, which made Sun Chaser laugh.

“There really is no keeping you down for long, is there Rose?” asked Chaser with a smile.

Sight Seer shook his head in wonder at Rose Shine.

Chapter 20: The Everfree (Part 1)

Chapter 20: The Everfree (Part 1)

The Everfree Forest. A gargantuan wood settled precariously close to Ponyville. Under its shaded branches great and terrible magic could be felt. The clouds moved by themselves, the plants grew on their own, and the creatures who lived there fended for their own wellbeing. The Everfree was truly a strange and wondrous place, but also one of great peril for any who dared enter.

Before Sun Cloak’s challenge, few ponies had ever even considered entering the dark Forest. But the allure of great treasure had pushed many beyond their normal boundaries and a host of brave adventurers had made their way to Ponyville, believing the Everfree Forest to hold the treasure they were after.

This is the same Forest that the Royal Treasure Seekers stood at the edge of. Fluttershy looked up until she could make out the tips of the tallest trees and then moved her eyes down to the dark path at her feet. Her legs trembled and she swallowed hard before taking a deep breath. She followed her friends into the dim lit woods.

All was strangely quiet. Only the sound of the ponies’ hooves clacking on the small dirt path and the chitter of a loud bug or two could be heard. Fluttershy moved her head at the slightest crack of a stick under her hooves, but Twilight and the others hadn’t seemed to notice that anything was off.

“So, the plan is to get to Zecora’s house,” Twilight was explaining to Rainbow Dash as they walked along. “We can take a quick break and maybe grab a snack. After that we’ll have our work cut out for us. It’s a long walk to the abandoned castle.”

“Right!” replied Dash. “That’s why I want to skip the stop at Zecora’s and head straight to the castle. It’ll give us more time to solve the next puzzle.”

“Yes…” Twilight nodded her head reluctantly, “but I haven’t seen Zecora for a while and I really wanted to drop by while we were in the area.”

“How about we put it up to a vote then?” asked Rainbow.

“Alright,” agreed Twilight. She turned her head to the side so she could see everyone behind her. “Ok everypony. What do you want to do? We could either stop by Zecora’s house and take a break or we could march directly to the abandoned castle and have some extra time to solve the next puzzle.”

A quiet murmuring came from those behind Twilight as they scratched their heads and thought about their options.

Rarity was the first to speak her mind. “I, for one, would like to stop and take a breather.” She was sweating under her bundle of clothing and panting.

“So that’s one for stopping,” Twilight counted. “Anypony else?”

“I’d like to get to the castle,” Applejack piped up.

“Noted.” Twilight nodded.

“I’m fine either way!” Pinkie said.

“So we have one for the castle, one for Zecora’s, and one for either,” Rainbow recapped. “That doesn’t help much.”

“I’d like to take a break,” Spike announced. “My back is killing me!”

“Spike,” said Twilight. “You’re riding on my back.”

“Exactly!” he replied. “Sitting on your back for too long gets to my back.”

Twilight gave him one of those looks. Spike didn’t notice as he sat happily on Twilight’s back.

“What about you Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash flew over to the yellow mare. Dash nudged her gently with a hoof. “Come on, the sooner we get to the castle the sooner we can all go home.”

Fluttershy was standing still. All of her friends turned to look at her and she froze.

“I…um…uh…I…” she stammered. Rainbow Dash smiled at her, silently urging her to choose the castle. “…I…” Fluttershy closed her eyes and took a calming breath. “I think that I’d like to see Zecora.”

“Zecora’s it is!” said Twilight happily.

“Fine, but let’s not stay too long. Ok?” pleaded Rainbow Dash.

The group continued into the thick foliage. They were headed to Zecora’s house. For whatever reason, the zebra had taken up residence in the untamed Everfree Forest. Perhaps it was because Zecora was a potion maker and the Forest provided many unique plants or perhaps it was for other reasons entirely. But, heedless of her reason for living there, the friends made quick time and soon were standing outside Zecora’s house.

Her house was actually a hollowed out tree. The tree had grown up twisted, but it was incredibly thick which made for a good living space. Zecora had adorned her house with many wooden masks and other such items from her homelands. Those masks bid welcome to the Royal Treasure Seekers as they knocked on her front door.

The sounds of bubbling water were coming from inside the hollow tree and the clack of hooves could be heard coming ever closer to the door. Soon, the door was opened and Zecora was standing before the seven travelers.

Zecora smiled warmly at the group. “Welcome my friends! Come in and rest. From what I have heard, you are on quite a quest.”

The friends walked inside Zecora’s house. They marveled at the numerous potions which lined the cupboards and cabinets and they noticed the many petals and leaves which were drying on her tables. They all took a seat in the one area of the house that wasn’t cluttered with papers, bottles, and plants.

“I am sorry about the mess,” Zecora apologized. “But I have been busy, I must confess.”

“Busy sounds like an understatement,” Applejack gasped as she looked at the clutter. “What have ya’ been up to?”

Zecora walked over to a bubbling pot in the middle of her house and started to stir and throw in ingredients as she replied. “Many ponies have been to the Forest of late. They did not know of its dangers so great. It has been my goal to these dangers abate. And so I’ve made potions for those met with poor fate.”

Spike looked around at all the potions lying on the table and a few broken vials which littered the floor. “So, you’re making potions to help the ponies who got hurt in the Forest?” he asked.

Zecora nodded and continued her work. “But my greatest work has been in curing Poison Joke. Many walk into it blindly, those poor pony folk.”

Rarity tilted her head toward Rainbow Dash and smiled a smug little smirk. “Ha! I knew this outfit would be useful!”

“Yeah, but we already know about Poison Joke,” Dash brushed her remark off. “We’d have to be stupid if we ever walked into those blue flowers again.”

Rarity crossed her front hooves and snorted. “Hmph.”

Zecora stopped stirring and took in a long sniff of the bubbling brew. She seemed pleased and ladled some of its contents into a vial. She swirled the potion in the vial and gave it one final look over. Then, she smiled and placed it on her crowded table.

“Now then,” Zecora turned around and truly looked at her guests. “Tell me, why are you here? Is the treasure you seek perhaps so near?”

“Not that we know of,” Twilight spoke. “We believe that Sun Cloak’s next clue is leading to the ruined castle here in the Everfree Forest, but I don’t think that the hunt will end there.”

“Ah, I see,” Zecora nodded her head. “Then there’s something you should know. Some ponies never left, though they entered long ago.”

The room became strangely silent. Only the small annoying buzz of a lone fly could be heard as the little insect tried vainly to exit through one of Zecora’s windows.

Spike gulped. “W-What do you mean, ‘never left’?” To help put his mind at ease, he walked over and opened the window a crack for the fly.

“I mean what I said,” replied Zecora sadly. “They never left; their fate I dread.”

Spike tried not to pay attention to the fearful words, but they only become more potent as he watched the little fly buzz out of Zecora’s window only to get gobbled up by a carnivorous plant. Spike shrieked and slammed the window closed. He began to shiver uncontrollably.

“Spike, are you ok?” asked Twilight, who hadn’t seen what happened to the fly.

Spike ran over to Twilight and looked at her with big, scared eyes. “T-Twilight. What if we never leave?”

Twilight chuckled at his antics. “Oh Spike. Don’t be silly! We’ve been in the Everfree Forest plenty of times now and we’ve always come out just fine.”

“But,” Fluttershy interrupted and raised a hoof to get everyone’s attention. “What about that time that you got turned to stone?”

This comment did not help Spike who began to whimper.

“Well yes,” agreed Twilight nonchalantly, “but I got out in the end. Thanks to you of course, Fluttershy.” She nodded toward the yellow pegasus. Then, Twilight placed a caring hoof around Spike and looked him lovingly in the eyes. “So don’t worry. We’ll be alright.”

“Y-You mean it?” stammered Spike.

“Absolutely.” Twilight smiled.

Spike started to breathe normally and he stopped trembling as much as before.

“It is true that you have braved the Forest and returned,” Zecora entered the conversation in a very stern voice. “But let not this warning be spurned.” She quickly got the attention of those seated in her home. “The Forest of late has been acting quite bizarre. It has grown more deadly than you think, by far. The many ponies who entered have disturbed this place. It will surely give even you seven less grace.”

Now it was everyone’s turn to gulp.

“S-So the Everfree is acting even m-more strangely than usual?” stammered Fluttershy.

Zecora nodded with a deadly serious look in her eyes.

“You know what?” Spike huffed nervously. “I think that I’ll just wait here while you guys go out and search.”

“And I’ll keep you company!” Fluttershy added quickly. She smiled, but her teeth were chattering.

“Come on you two!” Rainbow Dash groaned and dashed behind them. “Don’t be so scared of everything! We’ll be fine! Now come on, we’ve got a puzzle to solve!” She gave them each a good shove and they lurched forward and out the door.

Dash followed them out quickly and also blocked their way back into Zecora’s house. “Hey! Are you guys coming?” she shouted back into the house.

The others soon came out.

“Thanks for lettin’ us take a breather.” Applejack nodded gratefully as she stepped out the front door.

Twilight was a bit more hesitant to leave than the others. “Zecora, thanks for the warning. We’ll try to be careful. Just stay safe yourself, ok?”

Zecora chuckled softly. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be just fine. But one more thing, stay no later than nine.”

“We won’t stay in the Everfree a minute longer,” Twilight promised before walking out the door to join her friends.

She shut the door behind her and quickly readjusted her pack until she was happy.

“Did I hear Zecora say something?” asked Rarity.

“Yes,” Twilight replied. “She said that we shouldn’t stay in the Everfree Forest past nine o’clock.”

“But it’s already three!” screamed Rainbow. “Come on then!” she urged and ran off. “We’ve only got a few hours to get to that castle!”

* * * * * * * * *

Rarity was puffing, panting, and sweating beneath her bundle of clothes but a single sight before her made her smile. It was the sight of a lone bridge, suspended over a vast canyon. On the other side of this bridge lay the rubble of a long crumbled structure. This structure was once the proud castle of the Royal Pony Sisters.

“Finally, I can take a breather!” huffed Rarity. She sunk to the ground in happy bliss. “My hooves have been killing me!”

“Not yet Rarity!” corrected Rainbow Dash sternly. “We need to get inside the ruins first. Then you can relax.”

“Oh fine!” grumped Rarity as she stood to her feet.

The seven friends started across the dangling bridge. Dash was in the lead, followed closely by Twilight, with Spike riding on her back. Rarity was dragging her hooves and generally overacting how much her hooves were getting to her. Then came Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy crossed next, with Applejack in the rear. The old boards creaked and groaned as the ropes stretched taunt. But the workmanship must have been sturdy because the group made it across without any problems.

Finally on the other side, Rarity fell to the ground in contentment and sighed a long, dramatic sigh. “Ahhhhh…” She sunk into the tall, lush grass. “This is more like it.”

“Come on Rarity,” Applejack said with a nod of her head. “The castle’s only a few more steps away. Let’s all get inside and then ya’ can get comfortable.”

“But I’m already comfortable!” whined Rarity. “And besides, I don’t know if I could take even one more step.”

“Oh! Oh! I’ll help!” Spike jumped off Twilight’s back and ran to Rarity, his hand waving in the sky. “Here,” he turned around and pointed to his back, “I’ll carry you. Then you won’t have to walk.”

“Oh…well…” Rarity blushed ever so slightly. She reached out a hoof and touched one of Spike’s sharp spines. She drew it back instantly and winced. “Actually, I don’t know if you should go to all that trouble for little old me.” She stood back up to her hooves. “I think I can make it a few more steps.”

Applejack chuckled under her breath and Spike walked away with his shoulders slumped. The group walked into the decrepit ruins. Large grey stones littered the tall grass and vines clung to the few walls which had managed to stay standing over the long years. The windows were mere holes in the crumbled walls now, with twisted black bars showing where glass had once been placed. However, the further in the Royal Treasure Seekers moved, the more the ruins started to look like a castle.

Where the outskirts held mostly fallen bricks and cracked stone, the innermost sections tended to stand tall and proud. Most of the roofing had fallen apart and light would pierce through the shadowy interior of the once grandiose building. Two great doors still somehow clung desperately to the main entrance of the ancient castle. The ponies swung them on their rusty hinges and entered into the first chamber.

They all stopped as soon as they entered. They were looking at a single structure situated in the center of the room. It was large table-like statue, carved from stone. This statue held five pedestals with one large column in the center. The center column held an enormous sphere with moss and vines climbing over its surface, but the other pedestals were empty. Fluttershy’s eyes started water.

“It seems like it’s been so long,” Fluttershy whispered. A smile formed on her face as distant memories came flooding back.

“So long since what?” asked Spike.

“Oh! That’s right!” Twilight said in shock. She turned her head to Spike. “You were sleeping when it happened.”

“When what happened?” he pried.

“Spike, this is where we first found the Elements of Harmony,” Twilight announced proudly. She swung a hoof through the air, pointing at the large stone structure. “Five stone balls sat on those pedestals. We came here to get them in order to stop Nightmare Moon.”

“Five?” Spike puzzled. “But aren’t there six Elements?”

Twilight giggled. “That’s right!”

Spike looked utterly confused.

“Let me try to explain it to ya’ Sugarcube,” Applejack cut in. “Those balls represented the Elements of Harmony. It wasn’t until Twilight realized that the spirit of the Elements lived in us that the real Elements revealed themselves. Laughter, Generosity, Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty, and Magic.” As Applejack spoke each Element, Spike looked at the mare who represented it. They all smiled when their Element was spoken. “But that’s not why we’re all gettin’ teary-eyed over this here structure. Nope. Spike, this is where Twilight first announced to Nightmare Moon- No! To the world, that we were her friends.”

Rarity started sniffling and a tear plopped to the ground at her hooves. “That was a good day.”

“I love you girls!” cried Pinkie, who then grabbed them all into one gigantic bear hug.

They all started crying and hugging each other. Spike slipped out of the hug and stuck his tongue out. “I’m all for friendship and stuff, but I think I’ll skip on all this mushy gushy stuff.”

He walked over to the statue and, wanting to get a better view, began to climb it. Suddenly, his stomach started to growl. It startled him and he lost his grip, falling a few feet to the ground.

“Oof!” he rubbed his head and shook off the shock. “I didn’t realize that it was dinner time already,” he mumbled to himself. The mares were still busy hugging and crying with each other. Spike shrugged. “I guess Twilight wouldn’t mind if I got some food out of her pack.”

Spike walked over to Twilight’s saddlebag and started to rummage through it. “Hmm…come on, I know that Twilight threw a gem in here for me…but where is- Oh!” He stopped searching and pulled out a tiny ruby. “Sun Cloak’s ruby. I’ll bet that we’re going to need this.” He stuck it between one of his scales and continued searching for his dinner.

A few seconds later, he came out clutching on to a big shiny sapphire. He licked his lips and a big grin grew on his face. “That’s more like it!” He kicked the bag flap shut and then sauntered over to the statue. He took a seat at its base. He lifted the sapphire into the air and opened his mouth. “Dinner is served,” Spike murmured happily.

A sudden flash of blinding light shocked him into closing his mouth and the sapphire bounced off like it had hit a diving board. A haunting humming noise filled the castle and the mares broke from their hug. All of them were looking around and Rainbow Dash got into a boxer pose, ready for danger.

“Welcome!” Sun Cloak’s voice cried.

Spike screamed and leaped to his feet. The ruby clinked against the ground and Sun Cloak made his appearance at the base of the statue.

“Welcome to the castle of the Royal Pony Sister! This is the renowned castle of Princess Celestia herself.” His transparent image began to trot back and forth as he continued talking. “This grand castle in the renowned Evergreen Forest holds the fabled Elements of Harmony themselves! Though some claim that the Elements are merely a legend, I believe that there is more to that legend than meets the eye.” He stopped pacing and stood tall and proud before the group once again. “But I did not bring you here to discuss legends and stories. Instead, I have another puzzle for your team to solve.

So far you have proven your strength of will in a game of Merring, you have proven your dedication by following the light through a baffling tunnel, and you have proven that when faced with a problem you can sit down and quiet your minds before taking rash actions. All of these are good qualities. But, in order to get my treasure, there is something even more important and something much more difficult that you must do.

And so this is my next challenge for you: You must learn to see life with the wonder of a child. Yes, the answer to the next clue is hidden somewhere in this castle, but you will not find it until you are able to see this castle like a child would. Good luck.”

His form faded from view and the haunting crystal grew dim and silent. Spike scrambled to his feet and moved across the uneven flooring until he retrieved the ruby.

“Wonder of a child?” Fluttershy pondered aloud.

Rainbow Dash smirked. “I guess that means that you’ll have to find the answer for us Pinkie.” She nudged the pink pony jokingly.

“Sounds good to me!” Pinkie Pie smiled.

Spike walked back over to the group and handed Twilight the crystal. “Um…sorry to interrupt your hug.”

“That’s alright,” Twilight replied as she accepted the ruby. “We needed to get started anyways. We don’t have a lot of time after all.”

“That’s right!” Applejack said. “We’ll need to split up into groups and search the castle from top to bottom.”

“Why would we do that?” Fluttershy asked. “How does that solve the puzzle?”

“It’s simple,” replied Applejack. “Sun Cloak’s got us on a scavenger hunt. I set em’ up for Apple Bloom and her friends every now and then. What better way to see this castle like a child than by playing a child’s game?”

“Oh! That makes sense.” Fluttershy smiled and nodded.

“Yipee!” shouted Pinkie. “I love scavenger hunts!”

“So is everyone agreed on searching the castle like it’s a scavenger hunt?” asked Twilight. The others nodded. “Great! Then let’s make groups.”

“Oh fun! A competition!” Pinkie voiced with excitement. “I call Rainbow Dash for my team!”

“Alright,” agreed Twilight. “Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash will be our first group.”

“Yes!” Pinkie shouted happily.

“Let’s win, partner!” Rainbow shouted back. They pounded their hooves together.

“Um…let’s see…” Twilight scanned over the others. “Fluttershy and Rarity you two can be our second group. Which leaves me, Applejack, and Spike for the last group.”

Everypony split into their respective groups. Pinkie and Dash were ready to take off, but they stayed as Twilight relayed one last instruction.

“Ok. To make sure that we cover the most ground in what limited time we have left, we’ll need to search different areas of the castle. So-”

“We’ll take the back of the castle!” screamed Rainbow. She then took off in a rainbow blur with Pinkie bouncing after her.

“Wait! I wasn’t-!” Twilight yelled after them, but it was too late. She sighed. “Too late now. Ok then, Rarity and Fluttershy you two will take the front section of the castle, including this room. That means that my group will search the middle of the castle. We’ll meet back here at 7 and then we need to leave or else we won’t get out by 9 like Zecora warned.”

“Right.” Rarity nodded her head. “Come on Fluttershy. Let’s solve this puzzle!”

They began to search, Fluttershy flying up and looking high and Rarity using her magic to search under the dense vines and clumps of grass.

“We’d better get looking too,” Twilight said to her group. “Come on.” She waved a hoof and charged off. “We’re going to solve this puzzle today! I can feel it.”

* * * * * * * * *

Wind and branches whipped past the face of the black dragon, Grallix. He flew under the boughs of the massive Everfree Forest in search of Sun Cloak’s magic. But things were not going as well as he hoped.

“Curse this Forest!” roared the beast as he sped on. “I can feel strange magics everywhere.”

He looked to his left and then to his right. A branch scraped across his face. The sound of the bark on his scales was like that of nails on a chalkboard, but Grallix paid it no heed. His scales were strong and soon the branch snapped without even leaving so much as a scratch on him. Grallix snarled impatiently and continued to press onward.

“It should have been simple,” he growled to himself. “Enter the Forest, sense the unicorn’s magics, and beat his foolish puzzle. But these other magics are interfering! I can’t even figure out which way is left and which way is right in this cursed woods!”

Finally, he stopped flying and allowed himself to simply hover above the forest floor. Long tendrils of grey smoke streamed from his nostrils in anger. He glanced all around, but couldn’t seem to find what he was looking for. At last, he set himself on the ground.

“Fine, Forest! You win!” he screamed to the heavens. “I hope that you’re satisfied! A bunch of lousy trees have bested a dragon.” He murmured to himself and then smashed a tree with one flick of his tail.

Then, his stomach began to growl. “I can’t think straight on an empty stomach!” he moaned. Grallix sighed in frustration and then lay on the ground, clutching at his belly. “I can’t remember the last time I had a decent meal. The few gems I’ve managed to find in these vile pony lands haven’t been nearly enough.”

His stomach gurgled again. It sounded like an earthquake. Grallix only groaned again. His head hit the ground in dismay and he closed his eyes. A few seconds passed by in silence and then, his nose began to sniff. It sniffed and sniffed until Grallix opened his eyes. He began to grow excited and the hunger diminished as a familiar scent touched his nostrils.

“Dragon…” whispered Grallix. His mouth twisted into a grin. “And where there’s a dragon, there’s a hoard.”

Grallix rose to his feet and allowed his nose to lead him. Past bizarre plants and twisting foliage trundled the great beast. He blazed his own trial, caring little for the plants and trees he smashed and not even noticing the thorns scratching across his scaly armor. Then, at last, he came to a stop.

Grallix lifted his head and saw a small rocky outcropping. It was like looking a miniature mountain. But what interested Grallix the most was the cave leading into the large rock. The stench of dragon was now overwhelming; if this wasn’t a dragon layer then Grallix wasn’t a dragon.

With a chuckle, he stepped into the dark cave mouth and made his way through a short tunnel. At the end of the tunnel was one room. The room was large and open, the perfect size for a dragon to rest comfortably and with leg room to spare. But the sight that drew Grallix’s gaze was the mass of gemstones piled nearly to the ceiling.

Grallix released a contended sigh and quickly stuffed a few of the shiny morsels into his mouth. They crunched in his strong teeth and he laughed as he savored each precious flavor. “Ahh…Now that’s good…”

He continued to eat and eat until he was content. He let out a loud belch and then released a great booming laugh. “Perhaps this Forest isn’t so bad after all! Ha! Ha ha! Ha ha ha ha!” He snuggled up to the pile of gemstones and rested his back on them like they were a gold throne.

“I wonder though,” he mused with his eyes closed. “When I’ll meet my host. That scent was fresh, but the other dragon is not here. Oh well,” he shrugged. “I guess that I’ll just have to wait then. Besides, I have a favor I need to ask.” He laughed again.

Grallix didn’t know how long he rested there, with his back on the other’s hoard, but he did know that it was exactly what he had needed for quite some time. But, like all good things, his rest came to an end when he heard the sound of stomping feet echo throughout the cavern. Grallix opened one eye, but remained sitting as a large green dragon entered the room.

“Greetings!” said Grallix. He stretched, but continued to rest by the pile of jewels.

The green dragon looked quite shocked to find another dragon sitting on his hoard. His orange eyes shrunk to slits as he glared at this intruder and his lime green spines seemed to arch a little further out of his back.

“Who are you?” he demanded. “And what are you doing on my hoard?”

Grallix only smiled and made himself more comfortable. “Your hoard is it?” smirked Grallix. “Last I checked, it’s only yours if you can defend it. And you sure weren’t here when I helped myself to some dinner.”

This had the effect of making the green one snarl and puff out a blast of smoke. “You did what?!” he roared. He unsheathed his razor sharp claws and brought forth the barbs in his tail. “Get out NOW!!!”

Grallix got to his feet, but stood his ground. He looked perfectly calm even facing a foe easily thrice his size. “And if I refuse?” He stared the much larger green beast square in the eye, daring him to make the first move.

“Then you will pay for it with you life, Pintsized!!” screamed the green one. He thrashed his sharp tail at Grallix, aiming for the black dragon’s head. Grallix stood completely still, not flinching an inch.

Suddenly, the tail slammed into a yellow wall and bounced off. The green dragon was dumbstruck, but Grallix only laughed harder when Sun Cloak’s voice boomed throughout the cavern. “My magic will protect the seven teams until the end of the hunt. Let this be a warning to you!”

The green one’s eyes went wide and he backed off. “That voice…”

Grallix couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh, you know that voice?” he mocked.

“But how did you-?” gasped the other dragon.

Grallix snickered evilly and plucked a tiny amethyst from between his massive scales. It was glowing brightly and its small hum filled the cavern. “This gemstone holds his power,” explained Grallix. “And it’s all mine.”

Grallix noticed the green one’s eyes light up as he looked at the amethyst. Grallix knew that look, he had seen greed many times before and a plan began to take shape.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did you want this?” he teased.

The other dragon tried to keep his cool by not speaking, but his body language betrayed him.

“Because you see, you have something that I need.” Grallix waved a claw behind him, over the pile of gems and jewels.

The green one glanced between his hoard and the small amethyst until his eyes came to rest solely on the tiny gem in Grallix’s claws. “That jewel for my hoard? Never!” But his eyes did not move from the amethyst.

“How about half?” asked Grallix. The yellow shield finally fell and the amethyst became dull.

“A fourth,” countered the dragon.

Grallix chuckled. “Catch,” he said.

Grallix threw Sun Cloak’s crystal through the air and the green dragon grabbed at it joyfully. But the green one’s joy was short lived for, as soon as he touched it, a powerful magic surged into his body and shook him violently. The dragon screeched and dropped the amethyst to the ground. Taking this chance, Grallix lunged at the much larger creature and tackled him to the ground.

He clawed his way up the green one’s neck until he could glare into the other’s eyes from only a few feet away. Reacting quickly, the green dragon opened his maw and blew forth a powerful stream of blazing hot orange fire. But Grallix countered just as fast with a purple flame of his own.

Both fires were mere inches from the dragon’s faces as they battled for supremacy in a fiery tug of war. The battle did not last long though, for Grallix’s purple flame pounded through the orange fire until it entered into the throat of the green dragon. Down his mouth the purple blaze roared and the green dragon’s eyes grew wide. The green one began to cough and choke and he convulsed on the ground.

Grallix leaped off his prey and allowed the dragon to roll around and spasm as he tried to breath. The coughing was severe and the green one could barely seem to haul in enough air to keep himself conscious, but at last he began to breath normally. He lay still on the ground with his eyes closed, pulling in huge gaping breaths of air.

“Wh-What did…What did y-you do to me?” he sputtered.

“Don’t be so scared. It’s not fitting for a dragon,” said Grallix nonchalantly.

“You…You’re gonna…pay for this.” The green one struggled to his feet and glared at Grallix. He pulled in an angry breath, ready to smite the midget with one powerful flame. But Grallix didn’t budge. In fact, the fire never came. Instead, a sorry puff of smoke lurched from the green dragon’s mouth and then he collapsed again on the floor.

Grallix sauntered over to his enemy’s face and looked him in the eye. “I took away your ability to breathe fire for a few hours. Now, now, don’t worry. It’ll come back. But for the time being you’re powerless to fight me.”

The green dragon closed his eyes in utter defeat. “You cheated,” he accused.

“Cheated? Me?” chuckled Grallix. “I did not cheat. I simply used your own greed against you. You’re really the one who did yourself in.”

“So then, what do you want from me?”

“It’s quite simple really. I’m hungry and I don’t know how long I’ll be stuck in Equestria so I need food. I need your hoard.”

The green dragon lay on the ground, struggling to just breathe. He didn’t speak.

“However,” continued Grallix. “I almost feel sorry for you, being stuck in this pony infested land and all. So I’ll only take half of your hoard. I’ll even let you keep your cave but you’ll have to help me move my half to wherever I see fit.”

The green dragon spit at Grallix’s feet. “If you feel so sorry for me, why not just kill me?”

Grallix held up his claw and his sharp nails grew out an inch or two. “If that’s what you want.”

The green one’s eyes grew wide. “No! No! Stop!” he pleaded.

Grallix put his claws down. “You must be a rouge then,” he snarled in contempt. “If you had been banished you would have seen death in combat as a blessing compared to living with these ponies.”

“I don’t need a lecture from a dwarf,” spat back the green dragon. He slowly rose to his feet. “But fine. In exchange for my life I’ll give you half of my hoard and I’ll help you move it. However, I never want to see your ugly face in my cave again.”

Grallix smiled. “Agreed.”

The green dragon lifted a large stack of jewels onto his back and grabbed more in his tail. “Where do you want it then?” he asked.

Grallix also picked up a large portion of the hoard and then faced his foe. “Follow me,” he stated.

With a powerful flick of his mighty wings, Grallix blasted out of the cave and then above the Everfree Forest. The green dragon followed closely behind. Grallix scanned over the woodland, but found nothing suitable. He then turned his gaze beyond the Forest. He saw Ponyville but frowned at it and moved on. Finally, his gaze came to rest on a wide open plain land to the south of Ponyville. It was full of open fields and of tall grasses. But, the best news of all, not a single pony in sight.

“There,” said Grallix. He nodded with his head toward the grasslands. He took off and the green dragon followed.

When he believed that he had gone far enough away, Grallix set himself down in a clump of the grass. It bent under his weight. He then set his gems down beside him. The green dragon piled his jewels on top of Grallix’s.

“Hand me that long emerald,” Grallix pointed to a jewel by the tip of the other dragon’s tail.

The green dragon complied and coiled the gemstone in his tail, which he then gave to Grallix. Grallix took the emerald and began to scratch it with his claws, making indents on its surface.

“What are you doing?” asked the green dragon.

“Keeping a promise,” replied Grallix. Now done scratching up the jewel, Grallix breathed out a puff of green fire. The flame enveloped the emerald until the gemstone had disappeared and its ashes were sent flying in an invisible breeze. Grallix and the other dragon watched until the ashes were out of sight.

“You are now free of my service,” Grallix said without looking at the other. He climbed atop his new pile of wealth and closed his eyes.

“Farewell, Pintsize,” hissed the green dragon before taking off.

Grallix cracked one eye open and watched his enemy fly back to the Everfree. “You remind me of another dragon I met here,” he mused to himself. “But he is not yet a rouge and he might even prove to be a valuable ally when I take back my throne.” He smiled and closed his eyes. “Yes, young one. You’re a dragon among ponies.” Soon afterward he was snoring peacefully.

Chapter 21: The Everfree (Part 2)

Chapter 21: The Everfree (Part 2)

Twilight lifted a slab of thick stone that had fallen to the earth and left an indent. There was nothing under it. She sighed and put the stone down. Twilight was sweating and her eyelids were drooping ever so slightly. Spike soon walked up and tugged at her mane. He too seemed beat.

“Hey Twilight, can we take a break?” Spike asked.

The purple scholar looked up at the sun. It had started directly above them when they had begun the search, but it was now only visible through the broken windows and cracks in the wall.

“Well,” she replied, “judging by the shadows, I’d say that it’s almost 7. So, yes Spike, we’re going to take a break. In fact, we need to leave.”

“Thank goodness!” sighed Spike. He let himself fall to the ground. He closed his eyes and stretched. “I’ll just rest here while you gather up the others,” he mumbled.

Twilight smiled and trotted off to do what Spike had suggested.

“Applejack! Hey Applejack!” Twilight shouted as she moved through the old ruins. Soon Applejack’s Stetson appeared around a corner of decaying brick. “Come on, it’s time to go!” Twilight cried.

“But we haven’t found anythin’!” Applejack called back. She rounded the corner and Twilight could tell that Applejack was just as tired as she was.

“It’s ok,” Twilight said. “We’ll just come back tomorrow. Now, can you get Rarity and Fluttershy for me? I’m going to round up Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie.”

“I’m on it.” Applejack nodded and then trotted off past Twilight.

Twilight continued her walk. She passed by once great bronze sculptures and once proud towers until she came to the back of the ancient castle where Rainbow and Pinkie were searching. She was about to call for her friends, when Twilight saw a rainbow blur pass in front of her face.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called.

The blur stopped and turned around. “Oh, hi Twilight!” greeted Dash. “Did you find the answer?”

Twilight shook her head. “Nope. I’m afraid not.”

“Drat!” Dash kicked at the ground. “We haven’t had too much luck either.”

“Sorry to hear that,” replied Twilight, “but we need to get going or we’ll be stuck in here past 9.”

“But we can’t leave yet!” Rainbow pleaded. “Come on! We know that the answer is in this castle. We only need a few more minutes. Please?”

“We need to leave,” stated Twilight.

“Please?” Dash gave Twilight her cutest look and blinked her eyes pleadingly.

Twilight sighed in resignation. “Fine. How about you show me what you’ve explored today. You’ll get one more look and we can pick up Pinkie Pie on the way.”

“Done!” Rainbow agreed. She motioned for Twilight to follow her. “Come on! We’ve got a puzzle to solve!”

Dash took off quickly, making it hard for Twilight to keep up. The two reached the far end of the castle. Like the rest of it, most of the ceiling had fallen apart and the walls were in shambles on the ground. Long vines grew up the bricks that remained standing and tall grasses hid the fallen stones.

Twilight noticed places where many hoof prints had patted down the grass. “It looks like we weren’t the only ones to come searching here,” she thought aloud.

“Yeah,” said Rainbow Dash as she took one last look around the room, “I remember Zecora told us that other ponies had come into the Everfree Forest. My guess is that they searched here, but they didn’t have the crystal.”

“That sounds about right,” Twilight agreed. Then, she looked at the quickly falling sun. “Alright Rainbow, we’ve got to move on to the next room.”

Dash nodded and then rushed to the room adjoined to the one they currently stood in. Twilight followed behind, taking notice of the few bricks which told that once, long ago, a door had connected the rooms.

The two mares continued in a similar fashion as they moved through the back portion of the ancient stronghold. None of the rooms they entered seemed to hold a clue to the answer that they were looking for.

“I wonder what all of these rooms were used for?” Twilight pondered as they crossed into a crumbled hallway.

“Beats me.” Dash shrugged. “The only one I could make out was the throne room. And that’s the last room we have to check too.”

Just then, the mares came up to a large arch. Remarkably, it was still standing, though the paint had faded and the brick was chipped and cracked. They passed under the arch and found themselves standing in a very open room. Some of the tiled floor could still be seen among the grasses and dirt. The wall was lined with windows, perfectly aligned with each other, and a few resolute bronze sculptures still retained their basic shapes along the walls.

At the far end of the room sat a single solitary throne. Vines covered it and it was nicked and scratched. The padding had long since been torn out and worn away, but still it stood proudly before the mares.

Twilight gazed around in awe. She tried to imagine what it must have looked like before the castle fell. Surely it was a place of unrivaled beauty where a kind ruler sat long ago. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, was busy doing a quick once-over as she flew around the room.

“Nope,” huffed the pegasus. “Nothing. Alright Twilight, I’m ready to go now.”

Dash’s voice broke Twilight out of her thoughts. “Huh? Oh yeah. But, where’s Pinkie Pie? We searched every room and never ran into her.”

“Oh! That’s right! Pinkie’s in the garden.” Dash slapped herself on the head. “Come on! This way!” She took off, leaving Twilight in the dust yet again.

Twilight barely managed to keep up, but after turning around a few corners and heading down the old hallway she came to a stop. Before her lay a large open space at the very back of the ancient palace.

It must have been a gorgeous garden at one point, but now weeds and tall grasses grew from the fertile ground and vines had entrenched themselves on a fallen statue of an alicorn. Twilight looked to her left and saw a massive tree stretching high into the heavens. Its roots had grown over large chunks of fallen wall. It was the only tree remaining in the entire garden. Finally, her sight came to rest on a pink pony at the farthest end of the garden. Pinkie Pie was busy sniffing a large stone fountain. The fountain was empty and dry. Rainbow Dash and Twilight walked over to their friend.

“Pinkie Pie!” called Twilight. “Did you find something?”

The two reached Pinkie just as she was scraping a hoof across the inside of the old fountain. She licked her hoof and smacked her lips a couple of times.

“Yep,” Pinkie said in absolute seriousness, “it’s definitely a fountain.”

Dash planted a hoof into her forehead.

“Well, yes it is,” Twilight agreed. “And it’s really old too. I don’t think that it’s seen more than rainwater in maybe hundreds of years.”

“Come on Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said. “I told you that you wouldn’t find anything out here. It’s not part of the castle.”

“Sure it is!” Pinkie declared. “It just happens to be outside instead of inside.”

“Part of the castle or not,” Twilight said. “We’re already behind schedule by about half an hour. We need to leave.”

“Ok.” Pinkie agreed. The three walked out, but Pinkie turned around and waved. “Bye castle garden! See you tomorrow!”

Dash rolled her eyes.

The three quickly made their way back to the others. Everyone reported that they had searched both high and low, but not a trace of the elusive answer was to be found.

“I suppose that means we’ll simply have to come back and look again,” Rarity concluded reluctantly. “And I was really hoping we could find it tonight too. I’ve never particularly liked the Everfree Forest.”

“Sorry, but you’re right,” Twilight agreed. “We will need to come back until we find the answer. But we need to get a move on. If we don’t hurry then we won’t make it out of here at 9 like Zecora warned us.”

“Then let’s get a move on y’all.” Applejack turned and started a quick march back across the old wood bridge.

The others followed and kept up with her pace. However, the ponies were tired from their long walk to the castle and also from their constant searching. Soon they began to slow down without even realizing it. Nevertheless, onward they pressed as the sun gradually sunk.

* * * * * * * * *

The Forest became ever darker, without even a hint of sunlight left to glimmer through the branches. But what unnerved Fluttershy the most was that the Forest, while mysteriously quiet during the day, was starting to come awake. The sounds of scuffling paws could be heard passing through thick bushes and the chirps of nighttime bugs began to stir the air. The other ponies seemed not to notice much, seeing as how exhausted they were, but Fluttershy flinched at every twig that snapped. However, whatever was making the noises managed to stay just out of sight.

“Annnndddd…nine o’ one!” Rainbow Dash announced right in Twilight’s ear. The cyan pegasus glanced this way and that, but could see nothing out of the ordinary. “See Twilight? We’re going to be fine.”

Twilight turned to face Dash. “We still have about half an hour before we reach Ponyville…but I think you’re right. It looks like we’re in the clear. The most dangerous stuff is located further into the Everfree.”

“And we didn’t even run into a trace of Poison Joke!” Dash turned to Rarity and smirked.

“I still say that one is better safe than sorry,” retorted the white mare.

A bush to the party’s right ruffled ever so slightly and Fluttershy turned her head toward it. The others hadn’t noticed.

“Whoa!” Rainbow Dash waved a hoof in front of her face and scrunched her nose. “Spike, try and hold it in next time. That smells nasty.”

“What?” replied Spike. He then took a whiff of the air and started to gag. “Ugh! That wasn’t me!”

“Huh?” Dash stopped and turned around. The others also stopped. “Well then, who was it? Come on. Fess up.”

All Rainbow Dash got in response was some shrugs and shaking heads. Suddenly, Fluttershy gasped. The yellow pegasus began to shiver and shake as she pointed directly behind Rainbow Dash.

“G-G-Girls…w-what is that?”

They all turned to look where Fluttershy was pointing and saw a pair of glowing eyes staring at them from the darkness of the path ahead.

Spike’s eyes went wide and he gasped. “Timberwolf.”

The timberwolf stepped forward. The ponies could now see the barky hide of the magical wolf. He growled and showed them his sharp, wooden teeth. His rancid breath filled the air. The Royal Treasure Seekers stared on with wide eyes, but Rainbow Dash charged forward. With a battle cry and a powerful kick of her hind legs, the timberwolf collapsed into lifeless sticks. The surprise attack was a success.

Rainbow waltzed back to the group with a huge grin on her face. “Piece of cake. Now come on, we need to keep moving.”

Dash trotted forward a few steps, but quickly realized that the others were not following her. She turned back around. The others had huddled together, back to back, and were looking all around.

“What’s the matter? I took care of the timberwolf, now let’s go!” Dash urged with a wave of her hoof.

“Uh…RD…” Applejack said without turning her gaze from the dense Forest foliage. “Timberwolves always hunt in packs.”

Rainbow Dash turned to look where Applejack was watching. Suddenly, the brazen pegasus seemed to lose her nerve. Staring at her from behind the dark trees were three more pairs of glowing eyes. She turned her head to the left and saw more and more eyes. Everywhere she looked, the glowing spheres were watching her.

“Rainbow! Get over here!” Twilight called through gritted teeth.

Dash understood and slowly, ever so slowly, made her way back to the safety of her friends. The glowing eyeballs followed her every movement, yet the wolves remained hidden in the shadows. It was as if they were waiting for some unknown signal before they struck.

Rainbow Dash merged into the tight circle her friends had created. Now all seven were pushed up against each other’s backs and fearfully watching the glowing specks. Neither side seemed willing to make a move. The long seconds ticked on. Fluttershy shivered, Spike tried to keep his cool, and Rarity fell into a cold sweat.

“Alright,” Applejack finally whispered into the tense silence, “it doesn’t look like they’re attackin’ yet. Let’s all take a small step forward on the path and see if anythin’ happens.”

The others nodded slowly. Then, still in formation, they inched forward on the path. The timberwolves growled, which made the ponies cringe, but they didn’t move to attack. The Royal Treasure Seekers let out a collective sigh and then took one more small step forward. Again, the wolves growled but refused to move.

“Alright y’all. It looks like we’re gonna be ok. We’ll jus’ keep easin’ along the path until we reach the edge of the Forest. Then we’ll book it into Ponyville as fast as our legs’ll carry us,” Applejack said.

“R-Right,” squeaked Fluttershy.

Step by painstakingly slow step, the group inched ever closer to Ponyville and to freedom. However, their hopes were soon dashed to pieces when a lone timberwolf walked onto the path, blocking their movements.

The timberwolf seemed slightly larger than most and his hide was not the same brown oak wood as the rest. Instead, it was a pale white birch. His eyes were also glowing red instead of the green color of the other wolves. The ponies halted before this wolf.

“Shoo!” urged Applejack. “Go on, git!” She motioned with her head and glared at the aggressive wolf.

Instead, the white wolf calmly strolled back and forth along the path. He eyeballed the foolish group before him and then came to a rest in the dead center of the trail. The timberwolf puffed his chest out and cocked his head high into the sky. He let loose a howl which made the Royal Treasure Seekers shiver and quake.

“Ah…girl-…um…ehhh…” Twilight spoke in a speechless jumble. She was pointing a shaky hoof at the path behind them. “Th-the t-timberwolf…”

The timberwolf that Rainbow Dash had bucked to the ground now shook and quivered. His branches began to reform. They snapped back together and the wolf popped a crick in his neck before turning a harsh eye to glare at the ponies.

“Whoa!” Pinkie Pie said. “I wish I could do that!”

The newly reformed wolf slowly walked up to the group and circled them over and over again. He sniffed them and snarled in their faces. The ponies didn’t dare move a muscle. Finally, the wolf came to rest by the side of the white one.

The white wolf nodded his head. Then, the remade timberwolf showed the Royal Treasure Seekers a wicked, toothy grin. He raised his head into the sky and howled three times. On the third cry, the other wolves joined in. They howled long and hard, a piercing and discordant screech that shook the very bones of all who were unlucky enough to hear it. Rainbow Dash gulped.

Then, as if on cue, the howling stopped and the wolves all walked forward until they completely surrounded the seven travelers. There was no way around the wicked creatures.

“Fluttershy,” pleaded Twilight, “now would be a really great time to use the Stare.”

The wolves began to inch closer to the mares, some of them were smiling and others were snarling. The white wolf stood his ground, however, and watched.

“B-But I can’t!” Fluttershy stuttered. “I can’t control it.”

The reanimated wolf licked his lips and his eyes bore into Rainbow Dash.

“Well try anyways!” shouted Rainbow.

“Ok…here I go.” Fluttershy forced her body to stop shaking. She then gave the sternest look she could muster to one of the wolves edging closer to her.

The timberwolf halted and his grizzly smile faded as he looked deep into Fluttershy’s eyes. The effect did not last long, however, as the wolf simply shook his head, blinked his eyes, and then continued to walk forward.

“I-It didn’t work!” shrieked Fluttershy.

“Then-Ahh!!!” Rainbow Dash yelled and flinched.

The reborn wolf had lunged forward, aiming for Dash’s throat. The other wolves followed suit, leaping at the others with teeth barred.

“AHHH!!!!!!” screamed the Royal Treasure Seekers. They closed their eyes and cringed. But the horrible end did not come. The timberwolves collided with a shimmering yellow barrier mere inches from the ponies’ faces. Off bounced the wolves, who then slammed into the ground and slid through the dirt.

““My magic will protect the seven teams until the end of the hunt. Let this be a warning to you!” shouted Sun Cloak forcefully.

The wolves were stunned. A few yelped and ran back into the safety of the dark woods, but most were too shocked to move an inch. They stared for a long time at the magnificent golden barrier. The ponies all breathed out a sigh of relief. The party’s little ruby was now aglow in the dim woods. Its familiar tune hummed and calmed their nerves.

“Thank goodness.” Rarity wiped the sweat from her brow. “Sun Cloak, you’re not a moment too late.”

“He could have showed up a few moments earlier if you ask me,” grumbled Rainbow Dash. She looked out of the translucent barricade and glared at the reanimated wolf. The wolf stared back and growled. Dash stuck her tongue out.

The timberwolf did not like Rainbow’s taunting one bit. He snarled and then flung himself against the yellow shield. He scratched and clawed and battered the yellow wall, but it did not yield. Then, the wolf began to bite the bubble. It made a terrible screeching noise.

“Since you will not listen to reason I am forced to put my warning into action.” Sun Cloak’s voice once again echoed through the dark Forest.

Suddenly, powerful sparks began to leap off of the yellow barricade. The sparks shot straight into the timberwolf’s mouth and surged through his woody body. The wolf shook and trembled against the great power until he could no longer take it. First one stick dropped, and then another, and yet another until his entire form was lying lifeless on the Forest floor.

The Royal Treasure Seekers gasped and the other wolves took a fearful step away from the golden wall. All across the surface of the bubble, sparks of yellow lightning could be seen leaping to and fro. It was truly a sight, to behold Sun Cloak’s power.

The once fearsome looking wolves now appeared frightened. They continued to back away, and many looked almost ready to run with their tails tucked between their legs. One turned and bolted, but was stopped when his body was slammed into the dirt. The white wolf had pinned him against the forest floor and his strong forelegs held him in place as the coward squirmed and writhed.

The white one barked and glared at the entire lot of timberwolves. The timberwolves stopped backing away and instead began to form behind the white wolf. The white creature then released his hold on the coward, but made sure to growl at him. The scared wolf quickly formed behind the others.

The electrified timberwolf started to tremble and his hide once again formed into a solid being. He shook himself and then fell in line with the other, head down to the ground. The ponies watched as the white wolf started to circle the yellow barrier. The other wolves stayed put.

“There’s no way those timberwolves can get in here!” shouted Spike. “Uh, right Twilight?”

“As long as Sun Cloak’s shield holds, we’ll be fine,” Twilight replied.

At last, the white leader seemed content. He stopped circling and marched back to the front of his pack. For a few seconds, he simply stared at the ponies behind their barricade.

“What’s he waiting for?” Rainbow Dash whispered.

“I think he’s going to sit there until the shield goes down,” said Fluttershy.

But, the white wolf lifted his head into the sky. The rest of his pack did the same. Then, the ferocious leader smiled evilly before letting forth a powerful howl. Soon he was joined by the entire force of the pack behind him.

A terrible cacophony of howling and moaning split the skies. The murderous noise clanged against the warm thrum of Sun Cloak’s ruby. The mares covered their ears as the howl roared louder and louder. The sound threatened to drown the very Forest itself.

Then, the unthinkable began to happen. The shield began to waver. First, the electricity shorted out. Soon after that, the protective bubble started to fade. The ruby itself began to vibrate erratically until its internal glow popped in and out of focus.

“Ooo. It’s like a Hearth Warming Eve light!” Pinkie pointed at the spazzing crystal.

“Not good! Not good!!!” shouted Twilight.

The white wolf continued his terrible cry, but urged the others toward the ponies with a flick of his tail. Some timberwolves continued to howl with their leader, but many licked their lips and walked toward their prey. Within a matter of seconds, the ponies were surrounded and their shield was fading fast. It would only be a matter of time before it was gone completely.

“T-Twilight! Do somethin’!” shouted Applejack.

“Hold on!” Twilight yelled back. “Let me think!”

“We’re gonna have to fight our way out,” stated Rainbow Dash with determination. She snorted and prepared to charge.

“Th-There’s no way we can fight that many of them!” Fluttershy shivered.

“I’m not overly fond of scuffles,” Rarity said. She appeared oddly calm for the situation. “But if we must fight, then so be it. Bring. It. On.”

“Well girls,” Pinkie Pie said. She grabbed some mud and slathered it under her eyes like war paint. “It looks like it’s time to organize a chorus line. ‘Cause there’s going to be a lot of kicking.”

“J-Just tell me when it’s over,” stammered Spike. He was clutching Fluttershy and both of them were shaking with fear.

The timberwolves growled and circled the ever dimming shield. Finally, their moment came. The shield dissolved into nothingness and they all struck as one.

“RD,” whispered Applejack. “It’s been nice knowin’ ya’.”

A single, bitter tear fell from Rainbow Dash’s eyes, but the pegasus stood firm and resolute. The mares turned and wound up for a powerful buck, but there were far too many wolves to be stopped with only a single attack.

“ENOUGH!!!” roared Twilight above the terrifying howls. Her horn suddenly ignited into a fiery purple blaze. Instantly another barrier formed around the group, but this one was a shining lavender color. Once again the wolves bounced harmlessly away and were sent sprawling into the dust.

“Twilight?!” yelled Applejack. She cocked her head around to look at her friend.

Twilight’s eyes were closed tightly shut. She was obviously putting forth a great deal of power and effort to keep the large blockade up.

“Sorry…” grunted Twilight through clenched teeth, “but this is…all I could come up with.”

The timberwolves were now furious. Such measly prey should not be giving them so much trouble. They quickly picked themselves off of the ground and immediately began to bombard the lavender barricade with fangs and claws and teeth. Twilight grimaced with each blow against the bubble.

“Will the shield hold?” Fluttershy asked Twilight.

“I’ll hold it as…long as I can but…it won’t hold…forever,” Twilight replied.

“Isn’t there anything else you can do?” Rainbow Dash grabbed Twilight’s face and pleaded. “How about teleportation?”

“I can only…teleport where I can see. And the Everfree is…too dark,” Twilight huffed. Rainbow Dash released her grip and began to pace back and forth nervously. “Besides…” Twilight continued. “I’m exhausted from all of the walking and…searching we did today. I just don’t…have enough in me to teleport…all seven of us.”

“So that rules out magic gettin’ us out of this.” Applejack kicked up a small dirt cloud.

“I’m sorry I can’t do…more.” Twilight grimaced. Another wave of timberwolves had begun to beat upon the shield; small cracks were forming on its pristine surface.

“Twilight, you’re doing as much as you can,” Applejack thanked her friend. “You’ve given us some time to find a way out of this pickle.”

Rainbow Dash smacked her head as she trotted back and forth. “Come on brain! Think! Think!Think!Think!Think!”

Larger crevices were starting to form on the shield and sweat from Twilight’s brow was plopping to the ground in large droplets.

“Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness!” shouted Fluttershy. A snout of one of the timberwolves had pushed its way through a particularly large crack and was trying to bite one of the shy pegasus’ wings. She leaped closer to Twilight.

“Girls…” said Twilight. Her voice seemed unnervingly quiet. “…I…can’t keep it up much…longer.” Her legs were trembling. No, her entire body was trembling. Large spurts of sparks were also flying off of her horn.

“But we don’t have a plan yet!” cried Rarity.

“Then I guess it’s back to Plan A,” replied Rainbow Dash. She growled back at the timberwolves and prepared for a fight. Rarity’s face fell, but she too grounded herself and prepared for combat.

“Let’s show these sticks who’s boss!” Pinkie cried.

Twilight grunted and collapsed on the ground. Her horn had stopped glowing and she was covered in sweat. She was still breathing, but appeared unconscious.

“Twilight!!!” yelled Spike. The dragon rushed to her side and gently brushed her mane. She did not open her eyes.

“Everypony!” roared Applejack. “Surround Twilight. We ain’t gonna let those wolves get close to her.”

They did as told and surrounded Twilight. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity stood watch while Fluttershy checked for a heart beat. Spike kept brushing her mane. A tear welled up in his eye.

“She’ll be ok,” Fluttershy told Spike. “She’s breathing normally and I hear a steady heart beat.”

“But first we’ve got to make it out of here!” Rainbow Dash yelled back. She sent a timberwolf flying through the air. The beast collided with a tree and crumbled into nothing more than a pile of twigs.

Applejack lashed out and took down two wolves, one with each leg. Pinkie Pie jumped on a wolf’s head. He collapsed and a pixilated 100 flashed through the air briefly. Rarity gave a wolf a sharp hoof to the mouth. “Back! You ruffians!” she shouted.

“Spike! Fluttershy!” called Rainbow Dash as she gave a wallop to another wolf. “We need your help!”

Spike and Fluttershy looked up from Twilight and glanced all around. Piles of sticks and twigs littered the Forest floor. Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash were all breathing hard, but had fortunately only taken some minor injuries. Still, rows upon rows of ravenous green eyes peered at them from the darkness. It looked almost endless.

Then, the white wolf gave a sharp bark. The wolves formed behind their leader once again. The ponies remained in their battle formation, but were glad to take a quick breather as they waited. The horrid howling from before quieted until not a wolf was making so much as a peep.

All eyes, both pony and timberwolf, were locked on the white leader. He snarled and bore his threatening red pupils into each and every one who had dared to defy him and his pack. The piles of lifeless sticks around the ponies all started to shake as one. Slowly, the sticks began to reform themselves.

“What do we do now?” Rainbow Dash whispered to Applejack.

Applejack was speechless. Spike spun around, but couldn’t believe his eyes. The Forest floor seemed to be coming alive with floating sticks as far as the eye could see. Each and every wolf taken down by the ponies was coming back to life and he was helpless to stop it. He crashed to his knees in despair.

“Look out!” cried Pinkie suddenly. She pointed at the white wolf and all eyes turned to look.

The leader surged forward in a blur of speed. Applejack was standing directly in his way, and he didn’t look amused. The ferocious wolf let forth a battle howl and then leaped into the sky.

Applejack prepared to take down the big brute. Her hind legs shot out with precision and might, but the wolf was expecting the attack. That’s why he had not been aiming for Applejack, but for the pony who was standing behind Applejack. Applejack had miscalculated the wolf’s trajectory and both legs missed their target. The wolf snickered as his claws swiped at the unprotected back of the unsuspecting pony.

“AAAHHHHH!!!!” shrieked a white unicorn.

“RARITY!!!” shouted Spike in horror.

Rarity bucked hard and the timberwolf was sent flying off of her back. However, he landed on all fours and slid neatly through the leaf covered Forest floor, still smiling.

Rarity winced in pain and collapsed to the ground. Red trickled from the wound inflicted by the cruel wolf. Her thick garment had been ripped to pieces and blood now soaked into her beautiful cloth.

Spike rushed to her side. “Rarity. Are you alright?”

She grunted and writhed on the ground.

“Spike!” cried Applejack. “Move her by Twilight. Fluttershy, protect them.”

Tears fell down Spikes cheeks every time he tugged Rarity along the ground. Fluttershy stepped up to take Rarity’s place. She was shaking, but her gaze was firm and even. The white wolf showed her a grizzly grin. Then, he cocked his head into the sky and howled loud and clear.

The rest of his pack howled back, and began to move toward its prey. Wolves from every side and angle leaped into the fray. They bombarded the ponies like an ocean wave, but the mares held fast. Kick after kick, blow after blow, they fought tooth and nail. Piles of twigs began to heap up around the ponies, but they couldn’t keep defending forever.

Then, something in Fluttershy snapped. She grew unimaginably still and her eyes blazed like a furnace. “Go back to the shadows from which you came!” she screamed. Her gaze flashed all around. Any timberwolf unfortunate enough to catch even the slightest glimpse of her Stare immediately began to tremble in uncontrollable fear. They bolted from the scene, abandoning even their fearsome leader.

The white wolf barked sharply at the cowards, and even tackled one to the ground. But he squirmed out and ran off, yelping like a frightened pup. The white one was now enraged. He turned his gaze upon Fluttershy and their eyes locked.

Blazing red eyes stared into Fluttershy’s crystal blue ones. The wolf snarled and Fluttershy bore into his very soul. “Back!” yelled Fluttershy angrily. The leader barked his defiance and stood his ground. Stare met Stare, but neither side was willing to budge. The few timberwolves lucky enough to not be caught by Fluttershy’s gaze regrouped behind their leader.

Suddenly, the white wolf decided that he had seen enough. He charged at Fluttershy, blood red eyes blazing in the cool shade of the Everfree. Fluttershy kept her Stare fixed upon him, but the heartless beast could not be turned.

“Fluttershy!” Rainbow Dash turned her head toward her friend. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion.

The wolf leaped, fangs unsheathed and maw open. Fluttershy stood her ground.

“NO!!!” came a fearsome roar from behind Fluttershy. “You’re not going to hurt my friends again!!!!” Suddenly, Spike hurled himself into the battle. His small body collided with the white wolf’s and both crashed to the ground.

Fluttershy’s lip trembled and released a thankful gasp. However, the fire in her eyes was now gone. The remaining wolves moved forward to attack once again, but Fluttershy fanned her wings out high above her head. “You’ll not touch my friends!” she shouted at the ravenous beasts. The other mares moved to Fluttershy’s side and prepared for round three.

Spike and the white wolf tussled on the ground. They rolled and struggled to pin each other. The wolf bit and clawed at Spike, but his thick scales took the blows with ease. Spike whacked the beast with his sharp tail and scratched with his own claws.

However, the wolf would not relent. Even with chipped bark he fought on, pressing his greater mass against the tiny dragon. Finally, the timberwolf toppled Spike and held him by all fours, pinning Spike to the ground. In a moment of panic, Spike breathed forth a flurry of small green flames.

The timberwolf dodged a few, but then began to laugh. He let the green fire hit him square in the face and only laughed! Not a single twig on his head was singed, not even a leaf. Spike looked at the beat, dumbfounded. The wolf barked a command, and soon four more timberwolves were on Spike, holding his tiny frame against the ground.

“Let me go!” screamed Spike. “Let me go!” He squirmed and writhed, but couldn’t get free.

The white wolf released his hold on Spike and turned his attention back to the mares. They were so busy holding off the assault from the rear that they didn’t even see the white creature approaching from their side.

“Rainbow Dash! Look out!!!” yelled Spike.

Dash turned her head just in time. The white beast was already mid air, but Rainbow was ruler of the skies. Dash flew up and met him in the air. In a flurry of kicks and punches, Rainbow sent the despicable creature hurtling back. He crashed in a bush well off to the side of the Forest path. He emerged and shook himself.

“Girls,” huffed Applejack. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up. They jus’ keep comin’!”

As if to prove her point, the piles of defeated timberwolves began to reform into their solid forms again. The white wolf also circled back to the front of his pack and started to rally his troops for another assault.

All seemed hopeless. Spike was trapped. Rarity was wounded. Fluttershy had lost her nerve. Applejack was exhausted. Rainbow Dash was sweating. And even Pinkie Pie seemed to be loosing some of her pop. But then, when all seemed lost, Twilight opened her eyes.

The purple unicorn groaned softly to herself as her vision came back into focus. She was lying on a dirt path in a dark forest. Sound started to come back into her life. Cracks of sticks being smashed and fierce growls rushed into her ears. She could hear heavy breathing and the sound of wincing with every twig that snapped. She smelled the sticky smell of blood nearby, along with an unspeakably horrid odor. Then it all came rushing back to her: Timberwolves!

Twilight tried to struggle to her hooves, but every fiber in her body screamed at her. So Twilight laid there and decided to do what Twilight did best, make a plan. She lifted her head up and saw four sets of legs in front of her: orange, cyan, yellow, and pink. Past these legs were the snarling maws and claws of the timberwolves.

At least her friends were still standing, that much was good. But then why did she smell blood? Twilight turned her head and froze. Rarity was lying on the ground beside her, an open wound cut into her side.

More sticks cracked and Twilight knew that she was quickly running out of time. She looked everywhere, searching for some way out of this mess. But there was something biting into her side and it was making it hard to concentrate. Twilight shifted and looked at where the sensation was coming from. It was her saddlebag. In all the confusion its latch had come undone and some of its contents had fallen out.

For a long while, Twilight stared at the open bag. Then, her eyes came to rest on a single item that had made its way to the very lip of the pack, a muffin. Twilight got an idea.

She tested her magic to see if it would work. She levitated a single leaf from the Forest floor. Her head burned like fire, but the leaf held steady. Twilight let the leaf float back to the ground and she inhaled a slow, deep breath.

“Celestia, forgive me,” she whispered under her breath. She levitated the muffin into the air and then cried, “Hey! Pinkie Pie!”

Pinkie turned around instantly. “Twilight! You’re awak-urmf!”

Twilight shoved the muffin into Pinkie’s mouth. The pink pony chewed slowly and then swallowed. She said nothing more. For a few seconds, Pinkie stared straight ahead blankly. Then, it began to happen.

First, her eyes went huge. Next, her body started to tremble from the tip of her nose to her tail. Then, she began to bounce and pop like an old motor engine starting up. She hopped off the ground, though she hadn’t used her legs, and her hair started to frizz up even more so than usual.

The timberwolves stopped and stared. Pinkie began to mumble an incomprehensible jumble of words and noises. Then, the bouncing became more severe. Soon, Pinkie was bounding 10 feet into the sky like some rubber bouncy ball on steroids.

Every eye was glued to the peculiar scene. The white wolf growled and charged Pinkie. He jumped at her, but was shocked when he bounced off her like she was made of rubber. He was flung into a tree, but he also sent Pinkie into a tree. Pinkie rebounded off of the tree and came back, knocking the timberwolves over like they were bowling pins.

Suddenly, Pinkie’s legs came back to her and she started running. She ran faster than should ever be possible. Up trees, down trees, upside down through thin air, she ran. Timberwolves here, there, and every which way were bowled over like they had been hit by a runaway train.

Applejack looked over at Twilight, and found the unicorn smiling. “What did ya’ do to her?” she whispered.

“I gave Pinkie coffee.”

Applejack gulped and looked back up at the comedic carnage. Piles of sticks lay strew everywhere and even the heartless white wolf was busy running for his life from the caffeine induced horror that was Pinkie Pie. Applejack couldn’t help but chuckle despite herself.

“Ok everypony,” announced Twilight. Her voice was wheezy, but still carried strongly. She shakily rose to her hooves. Rainbow Dash and Applejack helped support her with their necks. “I think it’s time we left.”

Twilight’s horn sputtered to life and a very faint violet haze surrounded the ponies. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Twilight, and Rarity lifted a few inches off the ground. Then, Twilight grabbed Pinkie Pie’s tail with her magic and the levitated group shot off like a rocket.

“Wait!” Twilight cried. “Where’s Spike?”

Fluttershy pointed to a pile of timberwolves holding down a small, scaly bundle. Twilight nodded and then grabbed hold of Spike with her magic. She zipped him out so fast that the timberwolves fell over themselves and planted their faces into the dirt trail.

“Whew! Thanks Twilight,” said Spike.

Then, the group collided with a tree branch, luckily it snapped. Twilight managed to keep her hold on Pinkie’s tail, but her levitation spell was growing steadily weaker.

“Pinkie’s out of control!” screamed Rainbow Dash. “Look out!”

The group almost slammed into another tree branch.

“Spike!” grunted Twilight. “Steer!” She levitated him onto Pinkie’s back.

“But how do I-?” He called back.

“Just do it!” Twilight replied.

Spike grabbed Pinkie Pie’s hair. “Um…sorry Pinkie.” He tugged left and the group ran left, he tugged right and the group went right. Pinkie didn’t seem to notice.

“Spike! We need to get to Ponyville before Twilight loses consciousness again!” Applejack called.

The group was getting closer to the ground with each passing second.

“Got’cha!” Spike looked back and gave them a thumbs-up. He then got walloped on the head by a small branch while his head was turned.

“And keep your eyes on the road!” Rainbow Dash yelled.

“Hey! No backseat driving!” Spike retorted. He rubbed his head where it had been walloped.

The Royal Treasure Seekers blasted past bushes and trees at blindingly fast speeds. Spike narrowly avoided crashing Pinkie into trees and rocks. Onward they pressed, leaving the howling timberwolves far behind. Even so, Twilight’s magic was fading rapidly. The real question that remained was whether her magic would be able to hold until they made it back to Ponyville. Suddenly, Pinkie’s legs stopped moving. She bounced and sputtered until she came to a crashing halt. Twilight’s magic finally gave way and they all fell to the ground.

“Whoa!” Pinkie exclaimed. “That stuff was goooood!”

The others picked themselves off the ground and brushed themselves off. Applejack and Fluttershy carefully lifted Rarity onto their backs. Rainbow Dash hoisted Twilight onto hers.

“Hey everypony! Look!” Spike called back. His finger was pointing straight ahead. “It’s Ponyville! We made it!”

Rarity squirmed on Applejack and Fluttershy’s backs and whimpered, but she didn’t open her eyes.

“Come on y’all. We’re not quite out of danger yet.” Applejack motioned with a bob of her head and they all marched toward the glowing lights of peaceful Ponyville.

“Hang in there Rarity,” Fluttershy whispered into the white mare’s ear. “We’re almost home.”

Chapter 22: The Troubles

Chapter 22: The Troubles

The lights in Ponyville twinkled brightly in the dark evening. They sang of hope and relief to the tired seven who emerged from the Everfree Forest. Twilight managed to crack her eyes open. She bounced up and down on Rainbow Dash’s back and her head was throbbing like someone had decided it would be a good idea to light a bonfire in her brain. Even still, she smiled at the comforting lights and then closed her eyes in rest.

“We need to get to a hospital, ASAP,” Applejack told the others. The hard working farmer moved along as gently as possible for Rarity’s sake.

The white unicorn shifted and grimaced as she rode on Fluttershy and Applejack’s backs. While the others all had cuts, scrapes, and bruises from their tussle, Rarity’s wound was much more severe. The gash on her side was large. The blood had dried by now, but it was still unsettling to look at. The thick clothing she had worn was tattered, shredded, and now dyed red. Her eyes were closed and she had yet to talk.

“Look!” exclaimed Pinkie. She pointed to a large, white building filled with windows. Many of the lights were on. It glimmered like a ray of sunshine in a dark world. “There’s the hospital!”

“Come on y’all!” Applejack urged the others along. “Jus’ a little further.”

The group all seemed to brighten up as they came closer to the hospital. Their faces might have been bruised and their eyes tired, but never before had they been so joyful to enter a hospital.

The front door swung open and the seven friends walked inside. The main lobby was relatively quiet. Only one or two other ponies were lying around on couches, waiting to see a doctor. One of them coughed, sniffled, and wiped her nose.

The Royal Treasure Seekers carefully set Twilight and Rarity down on the couches. Then, they moved over to the front desk. The desk worker looked up from her paperwork and gasped.

“Goodness me!” she cried as her eyes looked over the battered ponies. “What have you all been up to?”

“Mam’,” stated Applejack. “We had a run in with some timberwolves. Our friend needs some medical aid immediately.” Applejack stepped out of the way and the worker got a look a Rarity, lying on the couch.

The desk worker gasped again and brought a concerned hoof up to cover her mouth.

“Miss Featherplume,” said a gentle voice from behind the ponies, “I’m heading out for the evening. Tell Doctor Pane that I said- HOLY HOT TAMALES! What have you ponies been up to?!” A kindly unicorn stallion, dressed in a doctor’s garb, trotted over to the front desk. His eyes scanned over the group with worry.

“Oh! Doctor Heartseed!” the desk worker, Fleatherplume, cried. “Thank goodness that you’re here! These ponies were attacked by timberwolves.”

“Timberwovles?!” replied Heartseed with shock. “You five had better come with me.”

“Um, sir?” Fluttershy said. “There’s actually seven of us.” She pointed at Twilight and Rarity.

Doctor Heartseed’s eyes went wide. “We need to get them into a hospital room. Miss Featherplume, come and help me move these two.”

“Right away, Doctor!” Featherplume pushed aside a swinging door and quickly made her way over to the Doctor.

It was hard to tell from behind the desk, but Featherplume was a pegasus. She looked Twilight over with her gentle blue eyes and then lifted the purple unicorn onto her back. Her soft pink wings held Twilight steady. Featherplume brushed aside any of her brunette hair that fell over Twilight’s mouth.

Doctor Heartseed nodded to Featherplume and picked up Rarity in a levitation spell. His steady brown eyes looked at her caringly. His strong, orange hind legs began a quick walk further into the hospital. He motioned for Applejack and the others to follow him with a flick of his black tail.

The Royal Treasure Seekers followed without uttering a word. They wound down a long hallway and hung a right. The seven soon found themselves in a large, open room. Featherplume was lying Twilight down in a soft bed and Doctor Heartseed soon did the same with Rarity.

The room was plain. It held two beds, with light blue sheets, and was painted a comforting shade of purple. The floor was tiled and there was a window set in the far left wall. A curtain separated the two beds, but was pulled back at the moment. Each bed also had an end table sitting beside it.

The Royal Treasure Seekers, those still walking at any rate, moved up to Doctor Heartseed.

“Miss Featherplume, I’ll be a while in here,” the Doctor said. “Could you make sure nopony disturbs me?”

“Of course,” Featherplume replied. She nodded and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

“Now,” Heartseed turned his attention to the mares surrounding him, “timberwolves you say?”

“That’s right,” Applejack replied. She bowed her head and looked down at the floor. The fight was still fresh on her mind. “It sure wasn’t pretty. We barely managed to get out of the Everfree Forest.”

“Hmm…” Doctor Heartseed mumbled. He turned his attention to Rarity. As he inspected her, he continued to speak to the others. “The Everfree Forest? I wonder whatever you could have been doing in there?” he said with a glint in his eye.

“Actually, we were looking for Sun Cloak’s treasure!” Pinkie told him.

Heartseed’s gaze continued to look Rarity over evenly. “Yes…I thought as much.”

The others were a bit surprised at his mild reaction.

“Now…” the Doctor turned from Rarity. He met Applejack’s eyes. “I think that your friend is going to be ok.” The Royal Treasure Seekers let out a sigh of relief. “It was lucky that she had on all that clothing, it stopped the bleeding before it got too serious. However, some of the cloth is also lodged in the wound. I need to remove it.”

“But,” Spike lifted a hand. Heartseed looked at the baby dragon. “She’s going to be ok?”

Heartseed smiled kindly. “Yes, Spike, she’ll be fine. In fact, with my medical skills, and a pinch of magic, the scarring shouldn’t even be visible. But, she took a nasty blow from a timberwolf. There’s a good chance that the wound has already been infected. I will need to keep Rarity here for a few days.”

Fluttershy’s facial expressions changed with each word the doctor said.

“Now, wait just one minute.” Rainbow Dash lifted an accusing hoof up to the kind Doctor’s face. “How did you know their names? We never told you Rarity or Spike’s name.”

Doctor Heartseed only smiled again. He gently pushed Dash’s hoof down and then moved over to inspect Twilight.

“Hey! Answer my ques-!”

“Rainbow Dash, please, I am inspecting a patient,” Heartseed hushed Rainbow.

Dash’s jaw dropped open and she stood with a blank look on her face as Heartseed looked over Twilight. His competent hooves felt around her head and neck. His eyes grew quite large as he came near her horn.

“How much magic has she been using?” He practically shouted.

“Will she be alright?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well…yes.” Doctor Heartseed replied slowly. “But.” He turned around to face the mares. “I wouldn’t recommend her using magic again for a few days. Also, she’s going to have a splitting headache when she wakes up. I’ll get some pain medication for her when I get the chance. She’s going to need it.”

Spike’s lip quivered and his eyes watered up. He looked at Rarity and then at Twilight. The only motion he could see was their chests breathing in and out. He walked over to the room’s window, pulled up a stool, and sat down. He looked out at the town. Then, he lowered his head into his lap and began to sob.

The mares were busy talking with Doctor Heartseed, but Fluttershy noticed. She walked over to Spike and placed a comforting hoof around his neck. She began to cry too.

“It’ll be ok,” she managed to whisper after a few minutes. “They’ll both be ok.”

Spike looked into Fluttershy’s eyes, but he didn’t stop crying. “I know,” he replied. “But I just feel so…useless.”

“Don’t say that.”

“No! I will say that!” Spike replied vehemently. “It’s my fault!”

“Spike!” Fluttershy was shocked. “This wasn’t your fault!”

By now, the others had taken notice. They walked over to the blurry eyed duo. Pinkie Pie threw her hooves around them both.

“Please don’t cry,” Pinkie whispered. “Twilight and Rarity are in good hooves.”

“That’s not what this is about!” Spike threw Pinkie’s hoof off his shoulder and looked away.

“Spike,” Fluttershy pleaded, “this isn’t your fault.”

“Yes it is.” He covered his face with his claws.

“Hey!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “You don’t have the right to say that!” She spun the little dragon around and pried his hands away from his eyes so that he was looking right into her face. “If this is anyone’s fault…” She choked up, but held back the tears. “…it’s mine!”

“RD-” Applejack started.

“I don’t wanna hear it AJ!” Rainbow shouted. “If we would have left on time like Twilight wanted, then we wouldn’t be in this mess! It’s my fault that we left late. I…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” The tears began to fall freely from Dash’s eyes.

“But that shouldn’t matter!” Spike yelled back. Rainbow Dash looked up and met his gaze. Spike was no longer crying, but was standing on his stool. “I’m a dragon! A dragon! I may not know much about dragon culture, but one thing I do know: dragons are supposed to be tough and strong and brave! And…And I wasn’t!” He started crying again. “When we were attacked I was hiding!  Instead of defending my friends, I was cowering. Even Fluttershy was quicker to hold her ground than I was.”

“But ya’ did help,” Applejack was quick to respond. “You were the one who tackled that white wolf to the ground.”

“Yeah,” snorted Spike angrily, “a fat lot of good that did.”

Applejack was taken aback.

“Do you know what happened during the fight?” Spike continued quietly. His head was down and he wasn’t looking anypony in the eye. “He won. He pinned me. So, I tried breathing fire. I figured, you know, that it would scare him or burn him or something. But…But it didn’t. And then do you know what happened?” Spike paused and a tear fell to the ground. “He laughed at me! Laughed! Like I was a big joke. What good is being a dragon if I can’t defend my friends?”

The room was quiet, but for the sound of sniffling noses and shuffling hooves.

“And that, Spike, is where you are most certainly wrong.” Doctor Heartseed’s calming voice boomed into the silence. The doctor lifted Spike’s head until the dragon’s eyes were looking into Heartseed’s smiling face. “I’m going to prove to you that being a dragon is exactly what your friends need at this very moment.”

Spike wiped a tear from his eyes. He was confused, but he didn’t turn away.

“I will also explain to Rainbow Dash how I know all of your names,” Heartseed continued. The mares wiped their eyes and noses, ready to listen. “Now, what you may not hear often is talk of you six mares. But believe me, you are the pride of Ponyville. Everypony here knows of your great deeds: Nightmare Moon, Discord, the Changeling debacle in Canterlot, we know about all of it.”

“Y-You do?” Fluttershy asked.

“Of course I do! I read the newspaper,” replied the Doctor. “In fact, I’m sure that a lot of ponies in Ponyville know your names. But, this is getting us off topic. This hunt that you’re all involved in, Sun Cloak’s treasure hunt, is all over the news. Beyond even that, almost all of the seven teams are known to all of Equestria.

Anypony who’s anypony has been reading about your travels. Every day the papers report new developments: team sightings, possible locations where you’ll travel next, conspiracy theories, who they predict will win, the list goes on and on!”

“Ooo! You hear that? We’re famous!” Pinkie said.

“Took ‘em long enough,” Rainbow Dash huffed.

“Now, hold up,” Applejack replied. “What does the media have to do with this? We’ve done some pretty big stuff and it’s never affected us before.”

“The media has a lot to do with it,” Heartseed declared. “You see, the media has created incredible amounts of hype about this treasure hunt. Sun Cloak’s Equestria-wide message was amazing publicity and the media has jumped on this treasure trove of a story. The papers are sold out every single day. Even I keep up with the ‘Great Hunt’. Everypony does! So listen here, if the media finds out that you’re in Ponyville, you’ll get swarmed.”

Fluttershy gasped. The other’s eyes went wide.

“But what does being a dragon have to do with it?” Spike asked.

“I was just getting to that,” Hearseed replied. “You see Spike, the news is a few days behind your travels. Beyond even that, they don’t know everything. One of things they still don’t know is whether or not you’re a part of one of the teams.

Most everypony in Ponyville knows you’re Twilight’s helper, and that’s as much as the media knows too. If your friends walk out into Ponyville without disguises, the reporters and fans will swarm them. But you, Spike, are perfectly situated to help.

Nopony knows if you’re part of a team and you’re also a dragon. Most ponies, except those in Ponyville, will keep their distance from a dragon. You can walk into town without fear of being mobbed. That means that your friends will need you to get supplies and help them communicate with each other.”

“Wait,” Rainbow Dash said. “So if we go out into public, we’re going to get mobbed?” She kicked at the floor. “Man! Being famous stinks!”

Heartseed chuckled. “Oh don’t worry. I’m sure that when this treasure hunt is over you’ll be able to go back to your normal lives. But, as long as the media keeps up the hype, you need to be careful in town.”

“Hayseed!” Applejack stamped a hoof on the ground.

“What’s wrong Applejack?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Earlier today we were jus’ sittin’ at the Clover Café. Some ponies already know that we’re in town.”

“Oh, that’s not good,” Doctor Heartseed replied. He began to pace back and forth. “You’ll most likely have reporters and fans coming to knock on your front doors in about a day. There might even be some looking for you right now.”

“What do we do?” Fluttershy asked.

“You’ll need to hide,” said the Doctor. “You can’t stay in your houses. Everypony knows where you live.”

“So then,” Spike spoke, “my job is pretty important.”

“Yes it is Spike,” Heartseed replied with a smile.

“Then consider it done!” shouted the dragon happily. “I won’t let you girls down!”

“I know ya’ won’t.” Applejack patted him on the back.

“But where are we supposed to hide?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Not even the sky is safe! And we’re certainly not hiding in the Everfree Forest.”

“For tonight I can let you stay in this room,” Heartseed said. “Besides, I’d like to get those cuts of your treated. However, you can’t stay here forever.”

“Why not?” asked Pinkie.

“Because,” Heartseed turned to the pink pony, “if Spike starts carrying in a boatload of food and games, ponies are going to get suspicious. However, I can keep Rarity and Twilight in here without arousing any suspicions. I’ll keep their presence in this hospital on the down low. They need plenty of rest to recover and getting bombarded by reporters will not help them.”

“Thank ya’ Doctor Heartseed,” Applejack nodded respectfully. “That’s mighty kind of ya’, but I have jus’ one question. Why are ya’ helpin’ us like this?”

“Oh, that’s easy!” Heartseed smiled. “I’m rooting for your team.”

* * * * * * * * *

The beautiful rays of morning sunlight fell down into Ponyville. On the edge of town, a small motel in the Trotts-Along hotel chain held a group of sleepy unicorns. Well, some of them were sleepy at any rate.

“Cumulus!” giggled Rose Shine. She poked the snoring stallion on the cheek. “Get up sleepy! We’re going into the Everfree Forest today!”

Cumulus kicked around on his hard bed and snorted. He cracked an eye open and immediately saw Rose’s sweet, smiling face. He blinked his eyes and stretched.

“Morning already?” he said. His voice was still groggy.

He looked around at the small room he and his friends had been able to get for the night. Cumulus had taken the bed closest to the door, the one at the far right side of the room. Sun Chaser was closest to the room’s only window, on the far left side. Next to Chaser, in the middle-left, was Sight Seer. Which left the middle-right bed for Rose Shine.

There was one table in the room, between the two middlemost beds. It held a small lamp, some paper, and a quill. There was one cabinet in the room where extra bed sheets had been placed in case any motel patrons desired to use them. The bathroom was opposite Cumulus’ bed. The walls in the room had green striped wallpaper, which matched the color of the bed sheets.

All in all, space was tight. However, the Society of Sun was somehow able manage. Each one had placed their saddlebags somewhere around the room. Sun Chaser put his under his bed, Sight Seer placed his by his bed, Rose Shine set hers by the cabinet, and Cumulus just sort of dumped his bag somewhere. He didn’t really know where at this moment.

“So…” Cumulus yawned and slid out of bed. “…what time is it exactly?”

“It’s 6:30,” Sun Chaser replied. The group’s leader slowly walked over to Cumulus. “AM to be precise.”

“6:30 AM!?” Cumulus roared. “Why in Equestria am I up that early!?”

“Shhhhh…” Sight Seer whispered. The lanky stallion was busy tightening his saddlebag. “Do you want to wake the other guests?”

“Other guests!?” shouted Cumulus furiously.

“Shhh…” Rose and Chaser both hushed Cumulus at the same time.

Cumulus blushed slightly. “Other guests?” he whispered.

“Yes,” replied Sun Chaser quietly. He too, walked over to his bed and slung his bag over his shoulder. “It’s very early in the morning and there are other guests sleeping behind these paper thin walls. It’s quite rude to wake them by shouting.”

“No pony should be up at this ghastly hour!” replied Cumulus. “And that includes me!”

“Now. Now. Cumulus,” Rose teased. “We’ve got a big day ahead of us. Besides, we said that we would start for the Everfree Forest bright and early. Remember?”

“And you!” Cumulus threw a pointing hoof at Rose. “If anypony should be sleeping right now, it’s you! You were just in the Dragonlands for crying out loud! You should be resting and recuperating!”

“Oh yeah.” Rose rolled her eyes and picked up her saddlebag. “Like I’d miss on today’s adventure. We’re going to the castle where Sun Cloak met with Princess Celestia! There’s no way I’d miss that!”

“Wait. We’re- And- Castle?” Cumulus blubbered. His hoof came to rest on the ground. The others turned to face the stubby unicorn; they were all packed and ready to roll. “Then what are we waiting for!? Let’s get a move on!” Cumulus ran over to the door.

“Um,” Sight Seer said. “Don’t you want your saddlebag first?”

Sun Chaser had found Cumulus’ pack and threw it to him. Cumulus turned around a second too late and it smacked him in the face.

“Thanks,” mumbled Cumulus.

* * * * * * * * *

The ground beneath the hooves of the Society of Sun was cool in the Everfree Forest. A gentle breeze rippled through the leaves and whipped around the ponies’ hair. Even in the morning, the Forest was somewhat dark with all of its thick foliage. The unicorns had been traveling for about an hour. They had lost sight of Ponyville quickly.

“So, Chaser,” said Sight Seer, “where exactly is this castle again?”

The clip clap of hooves against hard earth could be heard with every step.

“To be completely honest,” Sun Chaser replied, “I have no idea.”

“You what?!” roared Cumulus. The stubby stallion ran in front of Chaser and stopped. “You mean to tell us that you dragged us into this Forest without even knowing where we’re going?”

Chaser smiled and then brushed past the upset Cumulus. “No. I know exactly where we’re going,” teased the leader. “We’re going to the castle. It’ll just be a little bit of an adventure getting there.”

Rose Shine chuckled. “This isn’t like you Chaser.” Rose pulled up beside him as they walked along. “You’re usually so organized!”

“It’s not like I didn’t try to do some research,” Chaser defended. “But there really aren’t any maps of the Everfree Forest in Canterlot. Few ponies dare to even come into here now days. Much less any map makers.”

Cumulus’ stomach growled.

“What happened?” asked Rose Shine.

“I’m hungry,” replied Cumulus grumpily.

“No,” said Rose, “I mean, what happened to the Forest? Sun Cloak obviously came in here and even Princess Celestia lived in here hundreds of years ago.”

“That’s a good question,” Sight Seer said. “I don’t know much, but I’m sure from that grin on Chaser’s face that he knows something.”

The others turned to face Sun Chaser.

“Well,” Chaser said, “how about we stop here for breakfast and I’ll tell you what I know?”

“If food’s involved, then I’m all for it!” Cumulus agreed heartily.

The ponies cleared some leaves off of the floor and found suitable places to sit. Cumulus found a large stump and rolled it over for Rose to sit on. It made her smile, and her smile made Cumulus blush.

They all opened their saddlebags and pulled out what they had packed for breakfast. Most had packed oats of some kind, but Rose had managed to buy a few leafy greens the day before. They all munched away happily, but looked at Chaser expectantly.

“I suppose I’ll begin then,” he said between bites. He swallowed down a mouthful of oats. “I think I’ll start with something that we’re all familiar with. You all know that Sun Cloak came to the castle in the Everfree Forest where Princess Celestia honored him for his service in the Third Dragon War. What you may not know is that when Sun Cloak came in, it was not called the Everfree Forest but the Evergreen Forest.

Back in Sun Cloak’s day this Forest was just as magical and mysterious as today, but not nearly as dangerous. The Evergreen Forest was hailed as one of the natural wonders of the world. It was a place where unique and incredible magic flowed freely, unlike anywhere else in Equestria. Perhaps that is why Princess Celestia and Princess Luna decided to build their old castle here countless years ago.

Because of the Forest’s affinity for unique and strange magic, it became a hotbed for magical research. Highly esteemed scientists and magicians from all over Equestria once came to the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters where they would perform their research.

It was during the Forest’s hay day that Sun Cloak, along with many others from the Third Dragon War, was invited to come. Princess Celestia was reigning alone at that time. It must have been difficult for her to continue living in the castle where she had banished her own sister to the moon from.

But regardless, Princess Celestia held a grand ball for the victors of the War. There was plenty of food and dancing as they celebrated the defeat of the dragons after three years of border fights. However, the merrymaking and research in the Evergreen Forest would soon come to an end.

It was, from my best estimate, around 40 years after Sun Cloak visited Princess Celestia that something terrible happened. A group of researchers from Old Trottington came into the Forest with high hopes and great ambition. But, their meddling would change the Forest forever.

Nopony knows what exactly they did, because none of them survived. But, whatever they did, it destroyed a fragile balance in the free magic of the Evergreen. Suddenly, the Evergreen began to act strangely. No longer was it a safe place to perform research. Instead, bizarre creatures unlike any ever seen before began to emerge. These creatures were deadly and wild. Even the Forest’s plants began to act in strange manners. And that’s to say nothing about how the magic changed.

Needless to say, the Evergreen became a place of great peril for all who entered. Princess Celestia, fearing for the lives of the researchers and other visitors, made the difficult decision to leave the Evergreen and build a new castle.

She left the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters and cautioned against entering the Evergreen until the Forest became tamer. At that time, Canterlot was still rebuilding after facing a terrible earthquake years before. So, Princess Celestia decided that she would have a new castle built on the mountain city. That is what we know today as Canterlot Castle.

However, some ponies decided against the Princess’ advice. They went in; attempting to fix whatever had caused the Forest to lash out. The few that came out, came out with stories of horrors the likes of which had never been heard of before. In order to calm the masses, the League of Science placed a quarantine on the Evergreen Forest. However, by this time, the Forest had been given a new name by those who heard the terrible stories: the Everfree Forest.

Year after year, the League sent in scientists to see if the Forest had become calm again, but to no avail. After near on 30 years, the League finally stopped sending ponies in. The Everfree was warned against as a place of extreme peril and ponies were warned to keep their distance.

Perhaps that is why it confuses me why Princess Celestia allowed Ponyville to be built so close to the Forest. But, after living there for who knows how many year, maybe she knows things that even we don’t. After all, Ponyville is thriving. Maybe the Forest has finally settled down.

Whatever the case, it is ironic that the Everfree Forest is technically still under quarantine. The League of Science was disbanded 150 years ago and they forgot to lift the ban on the Forest.

Unfortunately, that’s all I know about the Everfree. Ponies don’t come in here to do research anymore. So I don’t have any way of knowing what we’ll face. I don’t know about the plants, animals, or magic that we could encounter. All I know is that in order to get to Sun Cloak’s treasure we have to brave the Everfree Forest.”

Cumulus swallowed hard on his last bit of food and Sight Seer had stopped eating. He was deep in thought. But Rose Shine seemed strangely calm.

“Tell me why again we’re in here again?” Cumulus asked. He turned his head at every twig that snapped and bug that chirped.

“To solve Sun Cloak’s next puzzle!” Rose Shine replied. “What fun is a treasure hunt without any adventure?”

“Rose, you scare me sometimes,” Sight Seer said. “But. I trust Chaser. We’ve been friends for as long as I can remember and he’s never lead me wrong before.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence.” Sun Chaser smiled and nodded. “Now, just let me finish my breakfast and we can get going.”

As Chaser munched on his food, an annoying buzzing sound came near Cumulus’ ears. He waved his hooves in the air and turned his head, trying to find the source of the buzzing.

“Shoo! Shoo! You pesky bug!” Cumulus yelled.

The noise stopped and Cumulus breathed out a sigh of relief. Then he heard, “Oh! How cute!” Cumulus turned to Rose Shine. A small, round creature with bug-like wings and big eyes was hovering around the mare. It was blue with green eyes.

The bug-thing danced playfully around her head. Rose laughed. Then, the creature’s stomach rumbled. It looked at Rose Shine with it’s big, pleading eyes.

“You hungry, little guy?” Rose asked the bug. The bug seemed to nod. Rose reached into her saddlebag and pulled out some fruit she had been saving for lunch.

“Rose? What are you doing?” Cumulus asked. “What is that thing?”

“He’s hungry,” Rose replied. She handed the bug an apple. The round creature looked it over for a moment and then devoured the entire fruit in mere seconds.

“Whoa!” Sight Seer exclaimed. “He must be really hungry.”

Rose Shine turned to Seer. “I guess so.” She then turned back to the bug, only to find that there were now two. The other one was pink and also had big, pleading eyes.

“Oh!” Rose gasped. “Now where did you come from?” She pointed at the pink one. “Are you hungry too?” The pink creature buzzed around Rose’s head happily. “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.” She got out another apple and laid it on the ground. Again, it was devoured before her eyes.

“Rose, are you sure that feeding them is such a good idea?” Seer asked.

“There’s only two of them. What’s the harm?” Rose turned to Seer.

“Um…” Chaser mumbled with food in his mouth. “Don’t you mean four?”

Rose Shine turned back around and, sure enough, there were four of the cute creatures. “What? Where did these two come from?”

One of the round bugs belched out something brown. It hovered in the air for a second and then formed into one of the bugs.

“Gahh!!!” screamed Rose. “What are these things?!”

Two of the five bugs flew over to Sun Chaser. The stallion had a hoof full of oats and was bringing it up to his mouth. The two creatures devoured the food before he even had a chance to taste it. His teeth bit into his own hoof.

“Ooo!!! Ow! Ow! Ow!” He shook his hoof. It was throbbing slightly. “What was that?”

More of the cute creatures began to appear around the four adventurers. They zipped around the ponies’ heads. If even one caught a glimpse of food, they would gobble it down before the unicorns even had time to react.

“C-Creatures from the Everfree Forest!!!” yelped Cumulus. “When we run out of food they’ll eat us!!!”

“Ahhhhhh!!!!” screamed the entire group.

“Quick! Retreat! Run away!” Sun Chaser shouted.

The four got to their hooves and began to sprint in the direction they had come from. They didn’t close up their saddlebags, and the top flaps flailed around as they ran. The round creatures followed them, however. The Society of Sun screamed. They would turn their heads around from time to time, only to see the creature’s cute, green eyes mere feet away.

“We’ll run all the way back to Ponyville if we have to!” Sun Chaser shouted to his group. The others nodded in agreement.

Through the thick Forest ran the Society. They past large trees and jumped through dense bushes, but the creatures were still hot on their tails. The unicorns even ran through a large patch of very peculiar blue flowers. The flowers almost seemed to laugh whenever one of the ponies touched them, but the Society of Sun had no time to waste. Onward they galloped until at last they could see Ponyville.

They burst out of the Everfree with all the speed they could muster. Worn from the extended sprint, the ponies came to a halt and took in large breaths.

“There…” Sun Chaser panted. “…we made…it. We’re…safe.”

But, the creatures followed them out of the Everfree Forest! They landed on Sun Chaser’s back. “Gah!!!” He screamed and tried to buck them off. “Get off! Get off!”

“Quick girls!” shouted a female voice. “We’ve got trouble!”

Four mares came rushing over to the Society of Sun. They each had various instruments strapped on them.

“And a one, and a two, and one, two, three…” A cream colored mare with green eyes and two toned red hair counted off. Suddenly, all four mares began a cheery polka.

The little bugs became caught up in the music and flew over to the mares. The four ponies lead the creatures back into the Everfree and then retreated out as quickly as possible.

“Whew!” sighed the cream mare. “Crisis averted.” She wiped her brow.

The Society of Sun stared at the strange performers and blinked.

“Uh…thanks,” Sight Seer said.

“Sure!” replied the cream mare. “That’s what we’re here for.”

“And…who are you exactly?” Sun Chaser asked.

“Oh! Silly me!” exclaimed the lead mare. “I’m Rose Luck.” She pointed to herself. “On the accordion is Bon-Bon.” She pointed to another cream mare, but this one had pink and blue hair. “On the tuba is Lyra Heartstrings.” A sea-foam green unicorn with amber eyes smiled and waved. “And on the cymbals is Lily.” Rose Luck nodded to a pink mare with blond hair. “Together we’re the Ponyville Philharmonic Protectors! And it’s a plum peachy pleasure to meet you.”

“The Ponyville Protectors?” Sun Chaser repeated. “You mean you keep the town safe from those things?” He pointed back to the Everfree Forest.

“Yep!” Rose Luck nodded. “Those pesky pilferers are called parasprites. Ever since a plethora of perky ponies showed up in search of Sun Cloak’s treasure, they’ve been bringing them into Ponyville. The playful pests plundered our food! So we, the Ponyville Philharmonic Protectors, formed together to chase the persnickety parasprites out of Ponyville.”

“Uh…I see,” Chaser said. “Well, thank you again. I don’t think we’ll be heading back in there for a while.”

“Probably a good idea.” Rose Luck nodded. “Those parasprites prefer to puruse the parameter of the Everfree for a few hours after being brought back in.”

“I see,” Chaser said. “Well team,” he turned to face his friends, “it looks like we’ll be stuck in Ponyville the rest of the day then. We’ll have to try again tomorrow.”

“Aww…” whined Rose Shine.

“Thank goodness,” sighed Cumulus.

The Society slowly walked back to their motel.

Chapter 23: The Show

Chapter 23: The Show

Sniff. Sniff sniff. Sniff sniff sniff.

“Hey, does anyone smell something burning?” Jay Pennsworth opened her eyes and sat up. She regretted it immediately. Her brain felt like it had been hit with a sledgehammer. She lifted a talon to her head and began to massage her temples, but something was off… Were her talons supposed to be glowing?

“Ah!!! Fire! Fire!” shouted Jay. She leaped out of a comfy bed and began to dance around, flailing her talons through the air. “My talons are on fire!” Sure enough, a green blaze danced gingerly around her sharp talons.

“Jay!” shouted Sly. The muscular griffin burst through a door to Jay’s right. “Jay! What’s wrong?”

“Fire!!!” screamed Jay. She hadn’t even noticed Sly enter.

“Hold on Jay!” yelled Slick. “I’ll save you!” The scrawny, black griffin ran into the room with a bucket full of water. He flung the liquid at Jay.

“Gah! Pthibit!” Jay spat water out. She was now drenched from wing to tail, but the fire was still burning as if nothing had happened.

Jay slipped on the wet floor and landed on her rear. Now her brain was burning, her bum was aching, she was wet from head to toe, and her talons were on fire.

“Slick!” Jay screamed from the floor. “You- Urmf!”

A long, green gemstone had materialized between Jay’s talons. Unfortunately, seeing as how Jay was on the floor, the gem fell into her mouth. She plucked the emerald out of her beak and noticed that her talons were no longer on fire.

“What in Equestria is going on here?!” Jay demanded.

Sly walked over and helped Jay to her feet.

“Hey J, what’s that?” Slick was pointing at the emerald in Jay’s talons.

“What’s? What?” Jay looked down at the crystal. “Whoa! Where’d this thing come from?”

“It appeared between your talons when they were on fire,” Sly said.

“It did what now?” Jay asked as she turned the emerald over.

“Hey! There’s something scratched on its back.” Slick moved up and looked at the gem.

Jay pulled the emerald away from Slick’s face. “It’s my gem, thank you very much!” But, she rolled it over and looked at what Slick had found. Sure enough, it had been scratched. Jay squinted her eyes as she looked at the marks.

“What is it Jay?” Sly asked.

“There’s something written on it.” Jay replied without looking away. “It says…Ponyville.”

“Ponyville?” Slick scratched his head.

“Looks like our dragon has been busy,” Sly stated. He smiled to himself.

“You’re saying that fire was Grallix’s doing?” Jay turned to Sly.

The muscular griffin nodded.

“I’m gonna kill him for waking me up like that,” Jay remarked sarcastically. “Nearly gave me a heart attack.” Jay glanced around and realized that she had no idea where she was. “By the way…where are we exactly?”

She was in a small room, furnished with a comfy bed and plenty of lights. A little table sat in the corner closest to the room’s only window. It had a candle on it as well as an ink bottle and a quill. The room was a soft cream color and a picture of the ocean hung on the wall opposite the bed.

“We’re still in Hooverdale,” Sly replied. “After our last game of Merring, you fell unconscious. One of the pony doctors who helped Slick decided to take us in for the night.”

“Hmph.” Jay snorted. “I didn’t ask for no charity.”

“Come on J!” Slick spoke up. “Don’t be like that. They’ve been real nice to us. Besides, they left their refrigerator open last night. We’re now fully stocked.” He smirked.

“Sly, you sneaky dog you.” Jay couldn’t help but grin at her friend’s cleverness. “Alright. We’ll have to give them a ‘thank you’ or something one of these days. But for now, we need to get a move on. If this message is from Grallix, then the next clue is somewhere in Ponyville. Wherever that is.” Jay shrugged and scratched her head.

“It shouldn’t be difficult to get directions,” Sly said. “Most of the ponies here seem very cooperative.”

“Great!” Jay clapped her talons together. “Then let’s get a move on! I ain’t waiting for some other team to beat us to Sun Cloak’s treasure.”

She walked over to the room’s large window and opened it. The early afternoon sunlight hit her face as well as a gentle breeze.

“Ahhh…” she sighed happily. “Slick, grab our bags. We’ll meet you outside.”

Slick turned to do as Jay had asked.

“Oh! And,” Jay added, “see if you can swipe something extra for breakfast too. I’m starving.”

Slick nodded and left.

Sly walked up to Jay and put a comforting talon on her shoulder.  “Are you sure that you’re able to fly after last night? You’re rubbing your head an awful lot.”

Jay brushed his talon off and turned away from Sly. “Don’t be getting all sentimental on me now. You’re my body guard, not my father you know.”

Sly nodded, but seemed sadden by Jay’s reaction.

“Anyways,” Jay continued, “I’ll be fine. A little headache doesn’t mean that I can’t fly. But before we leave…” Jay walked over to the table in the room and grabbed a quill. She dipped it in the ink well. “They got any paper in this place?”

Sly pulled open a drawer built into the table. It was full of blank pages. He handed one to Jay. She nodded her gratitude, then got to work.

“Let’s see…hmm…‘Thanks’,” she wrote. “That ought to do it. Hey, Sly, put this on the bed for me would ya’?”

He took the Thank You note out of Jay’s talons and walked over to the bed. Not wanting to be rude, the griffin straightened out the sheets and then placed the letter artfully on the pillows.

“Sly! You coming or what?” Jay called from outside.

Sly held his talons to his face and measured whether the note was placed straight or not. Finally satisfied, he smiled and then slipped out the open window.

* * * * * * * * *

Canterlot, the mountain city. Trixie now stood at the foot of the great mountain upon which it had been built. She looked high into the sky and gazed upon its shimmering white buildings. The sunlight was quickly fading. It would surely be very dark by the time Trixie managed to climb the gentle mountain slopes. She pulled in a deep breath, readjusted her bags, and then began to slowly walk upward.

Trixie’s legs were much steadier than when she had left Saddleback and her horn didn’t feel like it was about to punch her in the face whenever she even thought about performing magic. Of course, that didn’t mean that the unicorn was in the best of shape.

She had eaten and slept of course, but she hadn’t eaten and slept enough. After going for about two days without food and water, a normal pony would need a steady amount of both food and water plus a good amount of sleep to be back in tiptop condition. Trixie didn’t have any of those luxuries.

The showmare was low on supplies, having little more than hard oat cakes and sometimes filling a canteen whenever she walked by a pool of water during her travels. She could have gotten rest, but just the knowledge that even one team was ahead of her made her sleep fitful. She would win if it killed her!

And so, up the mountain she climbed. It wasn’t exactly difficult work. Trixie was used to traveling. She normally pulled a small show cart behind her when she moved from town to town with her one pony magic act. Walking, even without being fully recovered, with only a light pack on her shoulders was not hard.

The trek up was boring however. Few ponies traveled the mountain path this late. In order to entertain herself, Trixie pulled out Sun Cloak’s diamond and gripped it in a levitation spell. She winced slightly, but the pain quickly abated. It would seem that her ability to do magic was coming back to her. She smiled and sent the gemstone spinning around her large wizard’s hat.

Around and around went the crystal. It reflected a beam of moonlight and the light refracted into a myriad of colors. Trixie looked at the gorgeous display before it vanished. She laughed genuinely. Being on the road, Trixie had learned to appreciate the little wonders of the world: the dawn of a new day, the first chirp of a baby bird, the brave flowers that pushed through a field of snow. Many times she observed these things alone. And if she didn’t appreciate them, then who else would?

Trixie moved the diamond back into her saddlebag and closed the flap. Looking back up, she found that she had already come a considerable distance. The first buildings would soon be in reach. The unicorn took in a deep, determined breath and quickened her pace.

Light spilled out of guard house window. The building was now a mere leg’s reach away. A Royal Guard pony walked out of the small structure and up to Trixie. His armor clinked with every step he took.

“Evening Mam,” greeted the soldier. He nodded his head.

Trixie looked him over with apathy. From the way the candlelight reflected off of his shiny armor, he must have been a new recruit.

“What brings you to Canterlot?” asked the guard.

“I am the Great and Powerful Trixie,” replied Trixie with pomp. “And I have business with the Royal Archives.”

The guard’s eyes widened in shock. He began to shake and a goofy looking smile grew on his face. “Y-You’re T-Trixie?” He couldn’t hold back his excitement. “Trixie Lulamoon? The one in the ‘Great Hunt’?!”

Trixie gave him a blank stare. “The what?”

“Oh! That’s right.” The soldier blushed. “You probably don’t know what’s going on.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “The Great Hunt. Everypony’s talking about it! The newpapers are reporting where the seven teams on Sun Cloak’s treasure hunt are and what they’ve been up to. A ton of ponies went searching for the answer to Sun Cloak’s first riddle-.”

“Riddles? I love riddles! A good puzzle always seems to brighten up my day!” Sun Cloak’s diamond said from inside Trixie’s saddlebag.

Trixie kicked her bag. “Hush up!”

The guard’s mouth seemed like it wanted to fall off.

“Now,” Trixie turned back to the guard, “please continue. You were telling Trixie something interesting.”

The solider composed himself and saluted. “Yes Mam! Sorry Mam!” He then realized that Trixie wasn’t an officer and awkwardly pulled his salute down. “As I was saying, after I- We- Equestria found out that only seven teams could solve the first rid- err…puzzle the citizens became very…rambunctious. Then, it was announced that seven teams had solved the puzzle. Of course, a lot of ponies didn’t want to believe it and kept searching, but eventually they gave up. Things have settled down considerably since then, but the media is having a hay day! Oh! Wait here one second!”

The soldier trotted into the guard house and then came back with a newspaper in between his teeth. He handed it to Trixie. She read the front header: Griffins VS Sun Cloak. Beside the title was a black and white picture of three griffins standing around a golden ring.

“Every day the newspaper talks about what the teams have been up to,” said the guard. “However, we only know about five teams so far: The three griffins, a dragon, six mares, a treasure hunting couple, and you. There’s some speculation about the other two teams, but nothing has been proven yet. Although, I would bet money on that weird Society being one of the teams.”

Trixie’s eyes scanned over the story. She looked up at the guard and then back down at the newspaper. “You mean to tell Trixie that everything that’s happened so far has been reported to all of Equestria?”

“That’s right Mam!” The solider smiled and nodded. “Of course, you kind of went off the radar. Last report said that you were stuck in a hospital in a small town called Saddleback a few days ago. But obviously you’re here.”

“Obviously,” retorted Trixie. She rolled her eyes.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds. The guard was smiling from ear to ear.

“Ah…well,” Trixie spoke. She smacked her lips. “Do you think that Trixie could enter Canterlot?”

“Huh?” The guard shook his head. “Oh yeah, right! Sure thing!” He ran into the guard house and lifted a bar that was blocking the path ahead, then walked back out to Trixie.

“There you are Mam. But, um, before you head into Canterlot…would you mind signing my poster?” He brought out a poster and showed it to Trixie. On it was Trixie, hooves high in the air, standing on a stage with fireworks going off in the background. It was one of Trixie’s traveling posters.

Trixie was surprised. Never before had a stranger pulled out one of her advertisements and asked her to sign it. She smiled.

“Why of course Trixie can give you her autograph!” She levitated the poster up to her face. “Do you have a quill by chance?” she asked after realizing that she didn’t have one.

“Yeah, just one sec.” The guard ran back to the guard house for the third time that night. “Here you go Mam.” He handed Trixie a freshly dipped quill.

Trixie scrawled out her signature in large, flowery letters. “The Great and Power Trixie to…”

“It’s Buttons Mam, Brass Buttons.”

“…to Brass Buttons. May your adventures be magical.” She spoke as she wrote. “There you are.”

Brass took the poster back. His hooves were trembling with excitement. “YES!!! Trixie Lulamoon signed my poster! Thank you Mam!” He gave her another salute. “I’m rooting for you to win!”

Trixie smiled and nodded. Then, she walked past the ecstatic guard. The bar slowly fell behind her as she stepped into the outskirts of Canterlot.

“So…the other teams and their whereabouts are known,” mused Trixie. “Perhaps Trixie will not need to visit some dusty Archive after all. However, Trixie still needs supplies and knowledge.” She grinned as a thought entered her head. “Trixie believes that it is time to put on a show.”

She pushed her hat up and chuckled happily.

* * * * * * * * *

Lights.

Trixie came upon a crowded square near the edge of Canterlot. Even at this hour of the night, a swarm of ponies was gathered. The street lamps were paled by the huge spotlights and neon signs that pointed to various news stands, food stands, and other stands.

Camera.

A flash went off as some reporter took a picture of the gathering. A group of griffins was hovering around a stand and shouting. Come to think of it, even the ponies gathered around the stand were shouting. Trixie listened carefully.

“Come on! The Globetrotter already has its next paper out! What’s the hold up?!” roared an angry customer.

“Sorry,” replied a young worker. “We’re getting the paper printed as we speak, but it takes time.”

Trixie raised an eyebrow. Things were certainly getting interesting. Instead of mobs turning the town upside down in search of a clue to Sun Cloak’s riddle, they were bombarding the media in search of knowledge.

“Place your bets folks!” a gruff voice called from another stand to Trixie’s left. “You!” Trixie turned around. “Yes you! Come on over and place your bet! Tell old Short Change where you think the next team will appear.” Trixie walked up to the middle aged stallion. She liked his style.

“What’s going on?” Trixie acted like she was clueless. “Something about a bet?”

The stallion looked Trixie in the eye and squinted. “You must be from out of the country or somethin’. Everypony knows about the Great Hunt! And right here, for a limited time only, you can place a bet on where you think the next team will show up at. If you’re right you get back twice as much as you wagered.”

“Oh really?” Trixie’s eyes glinted in the bright lights. “Twice what is bet?”

“That’s right Mam!” the stallion nodded with a big, plastic smile on his face. “I figure that if the media can turn a profit on this Hunt, then why not me? And if I can turn a profit, then why not you? Just place your bet and you can get back double!”

Trixie looked at the small stand. Space seemed tight and the whole thing was plastered with posters, newspapers, pictures, doodads, and trinkets all pertaining to Sun Cloak’s treasure hunt.

“Say…” the stallion scratched his chin. “…I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before.”

Trixie pounded her saddlebag on his counter and took out all of the bits she had left. The stallion was taken off guard.

“237 bits on the next contestant showing up in Canterlot!” declared Trixie.

The stallion smiled and greedily took the money. “237 on Canterlot it is then,” he declared. “Though I would say that sounds like a bit of long shot, most ponies have their money on Hooverdale. You’re either really confident, or you really are from out of the country.”

“Oh, don’t doubt Trixie.”

Action.

The stallion’s eyes went wide. He looked the blue unicorn over, blinked, and did a double take. “What did you just say?” But it was too late, Trixie had already brushed past his stand and was now lost in the crowd.

Without warning, a red flare shot into the sky. Then, it exploded into a million sparks of light. The noisy crowd was quickly silenced as everypony turned to look.

“GREETINGS CANTERLOT!” shouted Trixie. She had found a statue of a Royal Guard and had climbed on top of the statue’s head. All eyes locked onto Trixie. She smiled. “I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE!!!” Two more fireworks exploded. “ONE OF THE TEAMS IN THE GREAT HUNT!!!”

Hushed whispers began to stir throughout the crowd. Some looked up at Trixie and then back down at their newspapers, while others were left speechless.

“I-I-It’s really her!” screamed a pony in the crowd. “It’s Trixie Lulamoon!”

“She could be a fake!” declared another. “There have been plenty of look-alikes trying to get attention!”

“No! It’s really her!” defended yet another.

Trixie huffed. The nerve of these ponies. Did they not realize that someone great was before their eyes? “Can you not tell who Trixie is? I am the Great and Powerful Trixie!!!” she shouted. This time three fireworks blasted above her head. She was feeling dizzy from using her magic so much, but it would be worth it in the end.

“Prove it!” shouted a griffin.

“Yeah! Prove it!” agreed a pony. Soon the whole crowd was chanting. This was not the uproar Trixie had been hoping for.

“Fine!” retorted Trixie. The crowd slowly hushed as she levitated Sun Cloak’s diamond out of her saddlebag. She floated it above the crowd and then shot a beam of light into it. It burst into a plethora of bright, beautiful colors that seemed to dim even the spotlights. “Behold! Sun Cloak’s crystal!”

The ponies gasped. A pegasus flew up and touched it, but was sent back down clutching her hoof as sparks jumped through her hair.

“It’s the real thing!” shouted a unicorn in disbelief. “That really is Trixie Lulamoon!”

The crowd split into hushed murmurs. Many pointed at the showmare atop the statue. One ambitious pegasus flew up to one of the spotlights lighting a newsstand and pointed it at Trixie. A reporter fumbled around with a camera, until she managed to take a photograph.

“What’s she doing in Canterlot?” whispered someone in the crowd.

“I don’t know. I thought she was injured in Saddleback.”

“Citizens of Canterlot!” Trixie finally shouted again. Another resourceful pony had decided to move one of the spotlights so it illuminated Trixie. “Trixie was held up in Saddleback for a few days! But nothing can hold the Great and Powerful Trixie down for long! Not even a dragon!”

The crowd gasped again. More whispers spread through the masses and more cameras flashed.

“However,” Trixie continued. The whispering stopped. She paused for dramatic effect and slowly looked over the entire crowd. “Trixie is in need of help. It pains Trixie to admit it, but the fight with the dragon cost Trixie valuable time and money. Trixie is in need of supplies and information. Would anypony be willing to help?”

Hooves shot into the air like fireworks. Murmurings of “I’ll do it!”, “Pick me!”, “I’m your mare!” flew into the sky. Trixie grinned. All was going according to plan.

“Why should we?!” shouted Short Change from his booth. His hooves were crossed over his body and he wore a scowl. “You’re in last place, Trixie Lulamoon! Helping you wouldn’t do anypony any good!”

Some of the excited audience put their hooves down and discouraging whispers bled into the crowd like a virus. The excitement was wearing off and they were losing faith. Trixie glared at Short Change, but quickly got herself back together. She was a professional entertainer after all. And there were always neigh-sayers.

“So…” Trixie’s voice traveled over the crowd and silenced them. “…You think Trixie is down?” She leaped from the top of the statue and onto the ground. The spotlights followed her. “You think Trixie is out?” More spotlights swiveled to follow the showmare. “You think Trixie cannot win?” The crowd parted as Trixie began to walk. “You doubt the Great and Powerful Trixie?” She stopped and stared at Short Change. “Then you are most certainly wrong.”

In a blinding flash of light, Trixie disappeared. The crowd was stunned and looked all around.

“Citizens of Equestria listen to me!” shouted Trixie. The crowed looked above Short Change’s stand, where Trixie was now standing. “Trixie has something to say!” she continued.

“You say Trixie is last and that she’ll never win.

And helping her is pointless, what would you gain in the end?”

Trixie leaped from the roof and into the crowd.

“But worry not, for Powerful Trixie is here!

And when all is done, you shall have no fear!”

She began to strut around the speechless ponies. The spotlights continued to follow her.

“Listen to Trixie and stand back in awe!

For underestimating her is a pony’s greatest flaw.”

A thick blue mist arose from the ground and covered Trixie’s body.

“Some have doubted and others not believed,

But Trixie is Great and will always succeed.”

Her words came out from the mist. Then, the fog cleared but Trixie was not standing in it!

“In Saddleback stood Trixie as she faced down a beast,

A great dragon from Frostbluff appeared from the east.”

The crowd looked around until they finally found her. She was standing on the roof of a nearby building. A twinkling mass of light and sparks of fire began to form two shapes on the side of the building. One shimmering image bore a resemblance to Trixie, while the other fiery apparition looked akin to a massive dragon.

“He snarled and growled and breathed forth his flames,

But Trixie stood steadfast, her spirit could not be contained.”

The fiery image shot forth a wall of sparks at the twinkling unicorn. A powerful shield erupted in front of the shimmering shape and held off the sparking fire.

“Then magic fought fire in a duel to the death,

As smoke and lightning met great dragon’s breath.”

Soon, the shining unicorn shot out a beam of glittering lights to combat the flaming sparks.

“And though it was short, still Trixie stood tall.

The dragon flew away from Trixie in awe!”

The beam pushed away the dragon’s fire and the dragon’s image disappeared in a swirling twist of sparks and light. Then, the shimmering unicorn condensed into a ball of blue energy and flew into the sky where it exploded into a thousand drops of light.

“If this tale is not enough for you,

Consider the fact of finding the clue.”

Suddenly, Trixie’s voice was not coming from atop the building, but from the crowd. Those near her parted as she casually strolled among them.

“Seven teams, seven alone,

Were smart enough to make the first puzzle known.”

She smiled as she walked back to the stone statue from before.

“So ask yourself now, does Trixie still stand?

Can she solve old Sun Cloak’s puzzles and his mysteries disband?”

She hopped onto the statue once again and paraded herself onto its head.

“I am the Great and Powerful Trixie! Now listen to my call!

For Trixie is the one who will win, after all!”

Her head moved right and left as she scanned the crowd. She looked into their eyes with confidence.

“So if you strive for greatness like Trixie, it’s true!

The one who you wish for, is me to come through!”

A great flash of light erupted behind Trixie as two ground fireworks shot off beside the statue.

“Watch in awe! There is no room for doubt!

Great and Powerful is her name, Trixie does not back out!”

All spotlights were now pointed at Trixie. The showmare was beaming from ear to ear. But she was also sweating heavily from how much she had exerted herself and her forehead was feeling quite warm.

The crowd couldn’t tell, however, as they were busy cheering. Shouts of “Encore!” and “Trixie is the greatest!” erupted from the enthusiastic audience. Photographers began snapping pictures as quickly as they could of Trixie standing victoriously atop the statue.

Finally, Trixie hopped down and walked back over to Short Change’s booth. She looked him in the eye and said, “That’ll be 474 bits, if you please.”

Short Change scowled but, true to his word, forked over Trixie’s winnings. He slid the money across the counter and Trixie gathered it up in her hooves. She counted it as she placed the bits into her saddlebag.

“TRIXIE LULAMOON!!!” a rough feminine voice shouted into the night sky.

One of the spotlights swiveled over to the sound. The light stopped on a fierce looking unicorn mare. She was decked out in full Royal Guard armor. Her eyes were a fiery purple. Her mane was also purple, but it had a thick stripe of black running through it as well. Her hair was cut in a short military fashion, yet still remained feminine. Her coat was red and she wore a frown on her hard face. Behind this hard set mare stood a squad of Royal Guards, also fully suited with armor. Trixie turned around as the crowd parted for the Royal Guards.

“This show is over,” spat the mare.

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