“In this moment, lucid and knowing, I am infinite. I see all before me, and all beyond me. I see them dancing, moving among the stars. I see their desires, their hopes, their ambitions.

I know their anger, and their fear. I see those that watch them. Hungry, seeking to manipulate all that they are. I feel... empty.

All that is here, transient and formless. But is it? Is it so amorphous? Can it not hold it’s shape? Can it not be tamed? The waking world, it is stable. It is unmalleable, coarse, and cold. That world is not mine.

In this moment, confused and ignorant, I am nothing.”

Scootaloo was motionless in a black void. There was something off in the distance, something faint. A voice? She tried to move but found herself bound by some unknown force. She felt it behind her, standing there. A sense of dread and evil. The voice was familiar, she had heard it before. Back when she was camping with her friends, this voice helped her.

“Luna?” Scootaloo spoke into the void.

She could barely make out a shape in the blackness, but it’s profile was definitely familiar. She reached out to it, but the further she reached, the further away it seemed.

“I can’t...” Scootaloo said, then felt something shift behind her.

As she slowly turned around, she could just make out another shape looming over her. It bent over and slid black wings around her, trapping her in an even darker void. The presence leaned forward in the darkness. Scootaloo couldn’t see it, but she knew where it was. It was about to say something, then it backed away.

Scootaloo felt strange, she felt the world collapsing around her, then heard another voice that stopped everything.

“Awaken.”

Her vision blurred as she opened her eyes. She had a hard time focussing around her. She was in a bed. A hospital bed to be exact. Scootaloo wondered what happened, but found those thoughts slipping away as she took in her surroundings.

The walls were strange, as was the floor. It was made of some strange material. It looked familiar and modern, but there was something... off.

Scootaloo got up and walked over to the other side of the room and saw that there were no windows. What a strange hospital to have no windows.

She examined herself and realized she was in a standard hospital gown. She hated those things. Scootaloo stretched to make sure she was alright. For whatever reason, she had no injuries. At least none that were readily apparent. Which begged the question: why was she here in the first place?

Scootaloo walked to the door and slowly peaked her head outside. Something wasn’t right. There was nopony around at all. She slowly walked down the corridor and examined the adjacent and parallel rooms. Nopony was here.

“Hello?” Scootaloo called out. “Anypony here? Hello...”

With no answer, Scootaloo decided to move down the hall. It wasn’t as if the hospital had been ransacked or there had been some disaster. Mostly everything was in pristine condition. Which only served to make the atmosphere more creepy. The silence is what got to her. She hated the quiet. Even studying for her school exams she preferred to have some form of white noise in the background. But this? She could hear a pin drop a mile away.

Scootaloo opened a doorway into what appeared to be a nurse’s station. It was in perfect condition, just like everything else. She tried to find something to help her find out what was going on and stumbled across a strange control panel. She placed a nearby power crystal in the slot and stepped back when a large display popped into existence right in front of her.

“Wow... cool.” she marveled.

As a pegasus, Scootaloo knew that there were all kinds of things unicorns toyed with. Their magic was capable of both doing, and creating wondrous things. But this... this was something new.

Scootaloo examined the options and found a camera control panel. She activated the power to it and a new window popped into being on her left. She cycled through the cameras and was astonished. Each room was empty. The lobby, the laboratory, the cafeteria, the hallways... but not all of the rooms.

“Oh goddess. Is that... Rumble?” Scootaloo asked to herself.

In a room on another floor, a pegasus boy was pacing back and forth. He hadn’t noticed the camera in the corner. After seeing him struggle with the door, it appeared to be locked.

“What is he doing here?”

He was wearing the same gown as she was. Maybe he could provide some answers. Scootaloo returned to the main menu of the display and saw there was an option to unlock the morgue.

A chill ran down Scootaloo’s spine. She did not like morbidity and horror. She hated the few funerals she was forced to attend. Scootaloo cycled the camera to the morgue and cringed. There were bodies laid out on tables. Two ponies, and one gryphon...? What was a gryphon doing here?

She squinted and saw that one of the bodies on the tables was a security guard. Scootaloo wondered why he was there, yet none of the other workers were.

She had spent time on her own in many situations, both when she was younger, and now. With that came a degree of street smarts. Scootaloo figured he had to have some keys. Maybe he had some that would let her get out of here, or perhaps unlock Rumble’s door.

Scootaloo entered the command to unlock the door, then watched as it slowly slid apart from both sides. A sudden chill filled the air moments after she opened it, then it was gone. Scootaloo wondered what happened, but then she spied a group of lockers. She quickly opened them and sighed in relief.

“Awesome...” she said to herself as she slid apart the rack of scrubs.

These would come in handy, and she could also bring some to Rumble. She figured he would prefer them to the gown.

As she was trying on a pair of scrubs, a voice nearly caused her to scream. Scootaloo whirled around to find a projection of a nurse speaking a report. She looked at the console and saw there were staff logs. Apparently this one decided to play on it’s own for some reason.

Nurse’s Log 2401

        The subject arrived late yesterday during the early morning hours. I don’t know how they managed it, the ship they arrived on was crewless and could not have been docked by the subject alone.

Also, the electrical storm that occurred the night of arrival must have shorted the systems in the ship’s computer. We don’t know where it came from. But we’re sending a report to the mainland. Why a vessel such as this would come to a remote island such as Talis Kassel is a mystery to us, but our medical staff at the facility will be able to take care of her.

End log.

Scootaloo wondered what this was about. But she could hear chatter in the recording behind the nurse giving the report. There were clearly other ponies here at some point. Where were they? And the nurse called this place... Talis Kassel. What a strange name. Scootaloo’s curiosity was piqued as she saw there were more logs. She sat down and pulled on her pants as another log began to play. Perhaps she could learn more about this place and whoever this subject was.

Nurse’s Log 2402

        The subject is a gryphon female. She has unusual coloration for her species. A bright white and light blue feather pattern. The light appears to change the color to purple if it shines on some of her feathers at a certain angle.

She is in critical condition, but stable. Whatever hurt her did a pretty good job. She was almost ready to bleed out. According to the dock workers, the airship she arrived on was fired upon by a much larger vessel. He was amazed it wasn’t shot out of the sky. When asked about what could have done it, he said the royal guard crewed battleships that used similar guns to the ones that fired on the ship.

But I’m afraid there are other concerns at the moment. A black storm has descended upon us from the north. The wind howls with a bitter screeching the likes of which I’ve never heard. Two workers at the transfer station fell to their deaths earlier today. And the strangest thing is... they didn’t fall due to error or carelessness. Their supervisor said they walked out onto the pylons... and dove off. They did it intentionally. The supervisor is here now being treated for fatigue and restlessness. Some of us are having trouble sleeping. I hope the next shift arrives from the continent soon.

End log.

Scootaloo toggled the camera back to the morgue and saw the half covered body of the gryphon. Whoever she was, it looked like things didn’t go so well for her.

Scootaloo played the next log while gathering scrubs for Rumble.

Nurse’s Log 2403

Subject was rushed to the OR today and subjected to two procedures to save her life, unfortunately none were successful. Though strangely, our surgeon reported she was conscious precisely two times during the operation, despite the use of sedatives and magic. She asked only one question: “Are they here yet?”

Unfortunately there was no way to understand what she meant. But we have bigger problems now. The staff are reportedly seeing things in the halls at night. Creatures and nightmarish abominations. They are hearing things. Dead patients from months or years ago whispering in our ears. Some of us are forgetting ourselves. Holly had to be tied down by two security staff when she stabbed the security chief in the neck with her scalpel. He bled out before anything could be done.

What is happening? Nopony is sleeping, and this storm has not ceased since the gryphon arrived. Could it be her who is doing this? The mainland doesn’t answer. This storm came from there according to our dock workers. They said it was strange when they saw it coming in. It moved differently than others.

Luna... if you are there... please help us. The station still sends power to her palace. But nopony has heard anything from the princess in weeks.

Luna... please...

End log.

Scootaloo was was worried now. That didn’t sound good at all. They were actually murdering each other? She flicked the display back to the morgue and saw the security guard had a wound on his neck. That was the security chief. He had to have something on him that would help.

Scootaloo walked down the hall quietly and waited for something to jump out at her. This place just got a lot more creepy with the added context from those logs.

When she walked into the morgue, she slowly walked by the gryphon and stepped up to the security chief’s body. He had no keys, but he did have an ID card. Scootaloo hoped that could be used in some way to help Rumble. Once she pocketed the card she patted the rest of him down to see if he had anything else.

“Find what you’re looking for amongst the dead?”

Scootaloo screamed and jumped back as she saw the gryphon slowly rise from the table.

“Y-you’re alive?!” she shrieked.

“Yes... I was sleeping, you could say.” the gryphon answered.

“I saw the logs... the nurse, she said you died on the operating table.”

“Died, no.” the gryphon said while stretching and swishing her tail back and forth. “I merely retreated into a trained state of deep slumber. Though that could easily be misconstrued as death.”

“Who are you?!” Scootaloo asked. “Where am I?”

The gryphon lowered her head in a polite bow and smiled, “You can call me Elwyn.”

“Elwyn?” Scootaloo asked.

“Yes,” she replied. “It’s what my friends call me. As to the other question... you want the short version or the long version?”

Before Scootaloo could answer, a shrill scream cut through the air, followed by moans and loud bangs.

“What is-?”

“They’re here... they must have heard you open the door. Quick, close it now and lock it!”

“How?” Scootaloo asked.

“The button on the door, press it!” Elwyn shouted in a  forced whisper.

Scootaloo ran over to the panel and pressed it repeatedly, each time it buzzed in response. “What now?”

“The card, swipe it across the panel!” Elwyn said while crouching behind a table in the rear of the room.

Scootaloo eventually shut the door and locked it. She ran back to where Elwyn had flipped over a table and crouched down next to her. What she heard next was the stuff of nightmares. Howling and screaming, gurgling and moaning. Wet sloppy steps and a stench so foul it made the smell of the morgue almost divine.

“What’s out ther-?”

“Shh!” Elwyn cut off Scootaloo with a claw pressed to her mouth. “They’ll hear you!”

Scootaloo crouched on the other side of the table and hid herself from sight. She waited a moment until the the sounds had seemingly faded, then decided to peak out. To her horror, a shape could be seen on the other side of the door through the tinted glass window. A horribly disfigured face and bright red eyes.

Scootaloo barely suppressed an eep and looked over to Elwyn. The gryphon was lying still with her eyes closed. After a few more minutes, she opened them and got up.

“They’re gone for now, but they’ll be back.”

“I need some answers. Now.” Scootaloo said with crossed arms.

“We really don’t have time, but I’ll answer what I can.” Elwyn said.

“Where are we?” Scootaloo asked first.

“This is a transfer station on the floating island of Talis Kassel.”

“Okay... transfer what? And a floating island? Do you expect me to believe that?” Scootaloo asked with an eyebrow raised so high it threatened to jump off her head. “The only things that float are cloud structures built by pegasi. Not even in their wildest dreams could pegasi make an island float.”

Elwyn smirked, “Oh... I don’t know. Have you seen how wild their dreams can get?”

“You said this is a transfer station... a transfer station to what?”

“To Luna’s palace...” Elwyn replied. “This is the realm of dreams, Scootaloo. That’s where we are now.”

“So Luna’s here?” Scootaloo asked. “Good, then she can help me get out.”

Elwyn frowned, “That might not be as easy as you think.”

“Why?” Scootaloo asked. “She’s helped me before.”

“Yes...” Elwyn replied, a strange look taking shape on her soft features. “Yes, but I’m afraid the princess is... “

“Is...?” Scootaloo inquired.

“I’m very tired...” Elwyn said while leaning against the table. “That operation the ponies did took a lot out of me. For now, all you need to know is that you’re in the dream realm, and you’re in danger.”

“From those things?” Scootaloo wondered aloud.

“Yes... and from far worse. We need to get out of here, fast. Avoiding the former staff shouldn’t prove too difficult. But the ones who attacked my ship are still out there, and they will not give up the hunt so easily.”

“Why are they after you?” Scootaloo asked.

“Because they knew I would be able to find you.” Elwyn replied. “Go, find your friend and take the elevator up to the surface. I’ll meet you there once I’ve recovered my strength.”

“The surface?” she asked.

“Yes, we’re in the hospital ward of the facility, deep underground. At the surface we should be able to find a ship and get out of here. Now go, quickly.”

Scootaloo ran out of the room and skirted the edges of the hall, not wanting to attract any attention. She stopped near the elevators and saw they were out. After hearing some moaning and scraping against metal, Scootaloo ducked inside the stairwell and slowly shut the door behind her. However, she unfortunately did not go unnoticed.

Below her, about three floors down, a sopping wet pony missing half its face looked up between the stairways and hissed at her. Scootaloo’s adrenaline kicked in and she bolted up the stairs. Luckily she only needed to ascend one flight. As she stopped and opened the door, she could hear more footsteps behind her from the stairs. That worker had friends.

Scootaloo remembered Rumble’s room number and tore down the hallway. She reached it and slid the card through the panel. After a moment, she heard a confirmatory beep and a click. She ripped open the door ran right into the colt, knocking him down.

Rumble hit the floor and looked up, awestruck. “Scootaloo? What in Tartarus ar-?”

“Shh!” Scootaloo said as she closed the door and locked it.

Just in time, too. Scootaloo could hear the ponies coming their way down the hall. Scootaloo pointed in their direction and gestured for Rumble to keep silent. She waved for him to join her at the bed as they crouched underneath it.

The moaning became louder as two bangs resonated from the wall. A loud and frustrated scream echoed through the floor as the workers roamed about.

“Scootaloo? Why?” Rumble asked. “What are you doing here? Where are we?”

Scootaloo looked at Rumble and smiled, it was good to see him, even in a situation like this. It had been years since Ms. Cheerilee's class, and they had moved on with their lives. However, Rumble suddenly moved back to Cloudsdale with his older brother. She hadn’t seen him in at least three years.

“It’s a long story,” she whispered. “But apparently we’re in the realm of dreams.”

Rumble looked at her quizzically, “You say that as if you’ve been here before.”

Scootaloo remembered the time with the olden pony, and Luna coming to rescue her, “I have, we all have. It’s just different. I don’t know what’s going on, but there are monsters around here that want to kill us, or worse. Here.” she said, handing him the scrubs, “Put these on, we’re getting out of here.”

“Where are we going?” Rumble asked, taking off the gown. “Oh... uh, give me a sec...” he said with a blush.

Scootaloo caught a glimpse of some abs and tried to hold back a blush of her own, “Uh- yeah, sorry...  There’s an elevator around here somewhere. We need to take it to the surface to find a ship.”

“How do you know this?” Rumble asked.

“There’s a gryphon here that wants to help us,” Scootaloo replied.

“A gryphon? Here?” Rumble asked.

“Apparently,” Scootaloo said. “Her name is Elwyn.”

“And you trust her?”

Scootaloo paused, that was a good question. There was something definitely off about Elwyn, but she had a certain feeling about her. It was hard to put into words.

“Not yet, but we don’t have a choice. Once we get out of here, we can ask about her and what the heck is going on. But for now, we have to survive.”

Once the sounds from the hall could no longer be heard, Rumble and Scootaloo rounded a corner and crept down another hallway. They were following a painted line on the floor that corresponded to “freight elevator” on the wall. Scootaloo guessed the maintenance staff used it to bring supplies down. It likely still had power.

After slowly walking up to a door, they examined how to get it open. To their surprise, it unlocked and slid open by itself, revealing another familiar face.

“What are you doing here?!” a snobby voice barked.

Scootaloo and Rumble looked at each other, then back at their former classmate. Silver Spoon stood on the other side, as irritable as ever. She was in a gown like they were previously. She sneered at Scootaloo, then finally saw Rumble.

“Rumble, too? What the heck is going on here?!” she whined.

“Keep your voice down!” Scootaloo whispered harshly. “Want them to hear you?!”

“Them? Who?” Silver Spoon asked.

“What are you doing here?” Rumble asked.

“I could ask you the same question!” Silver Spoon shouted to both of them. “Hey squirt! Get over here!”

“The yelling...” Scootaloo snarled.

Silver Spoon rolled her eyes and turned around, wondering where her companion was. Eventually a small pinto colt came out of a room and smiled upon seeing other ponies.

“Hey!” he said while walking up to them. “I remember you! Scootaloo... and Rumble, right?”

“That’s right,” Rumble said. “And you’re Pipsqueak?”

“Pip, yeah,” The pinto corrected. “Well I’m glad there are other ponies here.”

“What’s wrong with me?!” Silver Spoon asked. “I got you out of your room, didn’t I?”

Pip smiled, “Yeah, you did. Thanks for that.”

“So where in Tartarus are we?!” Silver Spoon seethed. “This is ridiculous!”

“We’re in the world of dreams,” Rumble said. “Apparently that’s where this place is. That’s what Scootaloo said.”

Pip and Silver Spoon’s eyes shot over to Scootaloo, “Oh yeah?” Silver Spoon asked. “And how do you know that?”

Scootaloo fought off the anger and took a deep breath, “I’ve been here before... it’s familiar. Also I met somepony who said that’s where we are. She’s helping us escape.”

“She’s a gryphon,” Rumble said. “If Scoots trusts her, then so do I. Besides we don’t have much choice around here right now.”

“There are things out here, dangerous things...” Scootaloo warned. “That’s why you need to be quiet, they chased me up here and are roaming the facility. We need to get up to the surface. There’s a ship there that we can use to escape this place.”

“What things?” Silver Spoon asked.

“Yeah,” Pip echoed while leaning against a wall. “We didn’t hear anything.”

As Pip’s back impacted the wall, a groan sounded from behind it. The wall slid back a few inches from the rest of the hallway then moved to the side. Pip turned around, and went white as a ghost. A disfigured pony turned around and looked down at him. It’s face sliced open from eye to jaw. In an instant it grabbed Pip and roared in agony.

Silver Spoon screamed in terror, while Scootaloo found herself frozen. She could only watch as Pip was lifted slowly to the pony’s mouth.

Suddenly, Pip fell to the ground in a heap as Rumble tackled the mangled pony into the room. As he did, the light’s clicked on revealing at least six more disfigured ponies roaming about in the dark. They turned around and began shambling toward them.

Scootaloo snapped out of her paralysis and whirled around to see the other monsters that were chasing her before. They rounded the corner down the hall and sprinted toward them. Scootaloo grabbed Silver Spoon by the arm and yanked her away.

“Get to the elevator, Rumble!” she yelled. “I’ll lead them away, we’ll meet up top! Go!”

Rumble nodded and sprang into action. He grabbed Pip’s hand and got him up, then bolted down the hall to the nurses station.

Rumble could hear them behind him and didn’t dare look. Pip ran along as fast as he could and tipped over some barrels and clothes carts to impede their pursuers progress. Eventually they reached the large freight elevator, almost running right past it. Rumble saw it still had power and clicked the button. He could hear the lift coming down, but it wasn’t fast enough.

Pip grabbed a broom from the station along with some defibrillators, he stuffed them in a pack he had been carrying and looked up at Rumble.

Two of the monstrosities rounded the corner and screamed at them. Rumble grabbed the broom from Pip and smacked one of the former hospital staff in the face, knocking him down. The other rushed at Pip, but the small colt used his size to dive between his legs. Rumble took the opportunity to crack him across the head, causing him to fall against the station in a heap, puss spraying from the broken cysts on his back.

The lift opened just as more were beginning to shamble around into range. Rumble grabbed Pip and pulled him inside, then pressed the surface button. He shoved another creature back as it tried to enter the elevator.

The doors slid shut just as three more came into view. The elevator jerked, then began to ascend to the surface.

Rumble let out a sigh then smiled down at Pip, “That was close... nice moves back there, kid.”

Pip grinned and gripped his pack tightly, “Yeah, thanks. You were pretty good with that broom. You know how to use it as a weapon?”

Rumble nodded, “Yeah, I’ve trained in some pegasi martial arts a bit in Cloudsdale.”

“You know Scootaloo and Silver Spoon?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Rumble answered. “They were friends of mine when I was living in Ponyville. My brother would sometimes let me hangout with Scootaloo and her friends.”

“The cutie mark crusaders?” Pip asked with a chuckle.

“Yep, those are the ones, “ Rumble said. “You know them?”

“Yeah, they were friendly to me when I moved from Trottingham. How come you left? I remember seeing you in one of Ms. Cheerilee’s classes.”

Rumble averted Pip’s eyes and examined the floor, “I... don’t really want to talk about it. We just had to leave.”

Pip saw the question bothered him and quickly changed the subject, “So, what do you think this place really is?” he asked. “Is it really a dream world?”

“I don’t really see any other explanation,” Rumble said. “I’m sure we’ll learn more eventually. But for now I’d just like to survive.”

“Can’t argue there,” Pip said.

As the elevator continued its ascent, Rumble swore it was speeding up. Eventually they broke the surface and were blinded by the light of a setting sun. The world around them was... strange. The island appeared to be floating above a frothing, purple ocean. The tower was enormous, and the elevator shaft was embedded into the side of the structure. To the side, Pip could see the mainland. A very large continent stretching as far as the eye could see. The shore seemed nice enough, with trees and rolling hills. However there was a vast mountain chain further inland, and above those mountains seemed to be a violent, raging storm.

Rumble was just starting to notice the peculiar storm as well when Pip nudged him, “Look! The Royal Guard!”

Rumble looked out at the piers and saw an enormous airship steadily gliding in to dock. The number of canons it carried was awe inspiring. As was the crystal weaponry located on the bow. Rumble noticed the stylized rendition of Celestia’s cutie mark emblazoned on the airships balloon. Only... there was something off. Rumble realized that wasn’t the same insignia used by the current Royal Guard. He walked by their recruitment barracks many times in Cloudsdale and had seen it. On top of that, their airships would come and go from Cloudsdale in the summers when they were conducting drills. That airship was an old design. Hundreds of years old, probably more.

“Maybe they can help us out of here!” Pip said while rushing into the hall as the lift opened.

Rumble followed him along as they rounded another empty wing of the facility. They entered a skybridge connecting the dock buildings to the main facility, then stopped.

The double doors opened from the far side, revealing two royal guard ponies clad in armor.

Rumble faltered a moment when laying eyes on them. Their armor was old, very old. They were covered in thin fibrous mesh with large flexible plates on the outside. Their faces were obscured and their eyes were covered by thick vizors. Golden tassels hung low from their helmets and swayed to and fro as they walked. However, when they passed in front of the many windows on the Sky Bridge, they disappeared. Rumble grabbed Pip and pulled him back a few steps. The guards reappeared a second later, only to disappear again. The process repeated as they came closer and closer.

Rumble watched each step they took, then it clicked. Each time they stepped into the sunlight, they became invisible. It was some kind of magic imbued into their armor. Rumble shivered at what that meant. He remembered reading history from school, as well as texts from the Cloudsdale library. Magic smithing was only done during ancient times, and used during the conflict with Nightmare Moon and her followers. Something wasn’t right.

“We need your help!” Pip said. “So glad you’re here, there are monsters downstairs!”

Pip reached out his hand and screamed when the nearest guard materialized out of thin air and grabbed him by the throat. He heard a grunt from under the guards faceplate as he was held up and slammed into the window.

“Wha- you’re hurting me!” he shouted.

Rumble sprang into action and tackled the guards pony restraining Pip. Not expecting the blow, the guard buckled and collapsed, dropping Pip in the process.

Rumble slammed the pony’s head into the ground, bouncing his helmet off the floor, only to catch a kick to the ribs from the other guards pony. The second one stood over Rumble and unsheathed a blade that crackled with sparks. However, before he could finish Rumble off, the guard spasmed and shouted in agony as Pip jumped on his back and pressed two charged defibrillators to his neck. His armor shorted out and sparked in several different places, one burning Pip in the face, causing him to fall to the ground with a scream.

The guards pony faltered then fell over, leaving just the one. The remaining guards pony got up and unsheathed his own sword, but was cut down in an instant.

Rumble picked up Pip and winced at his injured face, then looked up to see their savior. A white and blue gryphon female brandishing the same type of sword the guards had, except hers curved slightly at the end. She wore a loose robe and turned to smile at the colts.

“You dispatched one of the solar guard ponies... I’m impressed.”

“As am I...” a booming voice echoed from across the sky bridge.

All three individuals turned to see a large pony wearing brilliant gold and purple armor. Rumble recognized it immediately as the pony slowly advanced. Captain Shining Armor wore something similar with the same colors.

“Captain Vale... you’re late.”

The captain shed his cloak and produced a long staff. With a click of a button it transformed into a halberd, its blade glowing brilliant white.

“You can’t run forever. Now... where are the other two foals?”

“Far beyond your reach, Captain.” the gryphon said with a smirk. She then turned to the colts and whispered, “Find the others and get out of here, get to a ship and sale to the continent. The sun has blinded him long ago, and he cannot kill what he cannot see. Go!”

In instant the captain closed the distance in what seemed to be teleportation. His halberd came down hard on the gryphon, who barely managed to stop the blade.

Rumble gathered up Pip in his arms and ran back through the Sky Bridge. He slammed the doors shut behind him and almost ran head first into Scootaloo and Silver Spoon.

“I heard a voice, is that Elwyn?” Scootaloo asked while rushing to the doors. “She’s fighting another pony?”

Silver Spoon joined her and gasped, “That’s the royal guard! What are they doing here? And why is that gryphon fighting them?!”

Rumble shook his head, “I don’t know, but there’s a ship over there! We need to get moving, now!”

“What happened to Pip?” Scootaloo asked, now noticing his condition and burned face.

Rumble frowned, “He took down one of the guards and got hurt.”

“How do we get to the ship?!” Silver Spoon shrieked. “The bridge is the only way to the port!”

“Then that’s what we have to use,” Scootaloo said.

“Um... don’t you see the battle going on there?! We can’t!” Silver Spoon shouted.

Scootaloo fought back her anger and looked at Rumble, “If we can’t go through it, we’ll go on top of it. Follow me!”

Rumble followed Scootaloo up a floor and saw what she had in mind. However, they ran into company. Monsters approached from one direction, and the armored hooves of more guards ponies approached from another.

Scootaloo grabbed a chair and hurled it through the window overlooking the sky bridge and jumped down, motioning for Rumble to follow. He stepped back, then jumped down with Pip in his arms. Scootaloo caught him and waited for Silver Spoon.

“Come on!” Scootaloo shouted.

Silver Spoon waited out of trepidation, but was forced to action when a bolt of magic zipped by past her head. She screamed and jumped out just as a guard pony lunged for her. As she recovered from her rough landing with the help of Scootaloo, all three foals looked up to witness the ensuing battle. Monsters shrieked and moaned as their ranks crashed into the guards. Limbs were lopped off, weapons were discharged, and bones were broken.

The foals turned to run across the sky bridge, realizing that they could easily climb down to the landing platforms on the other side.

Meanwhile, below them Elwyn circled Captain Vale in her most defensive fighting posture. Vale lunged at her again and again, hoping to hook her with his curved blade or the pointed edge on the other side of the pole. He had the reach, and thus the advantage. But for some reason he wasn’t using his magic.

Elwyn realized it was due to the transfer station. It was causing interference, the same interference that masked her presence long enough to help the foals.

“You really think you can keep them from me?” Vale asked while adjusting his stance.

Elwyn laughed, “They’ll soon be more than a match for you, old friend. The sun princess abandoned you to this forsaken kingdom. You’ll never return to your world, and you’ll never kill the lunar princess.”

“Nightmare Moon wishes to use these children for her dark purposes, I won’t allow it. With their help we will finally gain access to the city, and I will slay her.”

“You are blind in more ways than one, dear captain.” Elwyn said. “You cannot see what is to come.”

“Oh?” the captain sneered underneath his helm, “Then that makes two of us...”

In the blink of an eye Vale disappeared, only to reappear to Elwyn’s left and knock her off balance. She staggered backward and was caught by a gauntleted hand, then shoved against the windows. She received two blows to the midsection then was thrown to ground. Vale stepped on her back and raised his halberd to deliver the finishing blow.

“You’ve gone soft, Inquisitor...” he admonished. “The foals will be dealt with before they make it to Kereth.”

Elwyn smirked, “They’re the only ones making it to Kereth, captain.”

She summoned her magic, drawing upon all that remained in her reserves. She channeled it straight into her sword and plunged the blade through the floor in front of her. The blade cut through the central support of the bridge and caused it to lurch.

In the moment Vale faltered, Elwyn flipped over and kicked him in the stomach, sending him staggering backward. She sprang to her feet, then channeled more magic into the blade, extending its length.  She smirked at Vale, then cut the width of the bridge from one side to the other.

The sky bridge buckled and fell from the center, both sides giving way. Several guards ponies fell to their deaths, spilling from behind Vale. Elwyn managed to grab onto a cable at the last moment. She turned around to look below and saw Vale slip by, but just as he fell, the captain was able to bring his halberd to bear and slice her across the back.

Elwyn screamed as the energy charged blade cut through her fur and skin, almost reaching bone. But soon, she was alone, holding on for dear life. She closed her eyes and focussed on the foals. They had to get away. They had to.

As Rumble ran behind Scootaloo he felt the bridge shake and suddenly found himself running uphill. The Skybridge fell away behind him. Scootaloo grabbed Silver Spoon’s hand and jumped off with her, landing clear on the platform. Rumble vaulted forward and fell into a roll, still clutching Pip’s injured body. He was out cold from the shock and severe burn.

Scootaloo got Rumble up and took Pip in her arms. She wrapped his arms around her neck and legs around her waist.

“You got him?” Rumble asked.

“Yeah, don’t worry.”

“There’s a ship!” Silver Spoon said, pointing to a rusty old cargo vessel.

The ship had its gas bags underneath it, in line with some of the newer designs that were still be used in Cloudsdale today.

“C’mon!” Rumble shouted.

Scootaloo and Silver Spoon followed Rumble onto the ship and took seats near on the cockpit.

“You ever fly one of these before?” Silver Spoon asked.

Rumble frowned, “Not personally, but I’ve been in them many times with my big brother. He used to pilot them for the weather team.”

Rumble switched on the engine and adjusted the flaps and rotors to get them underway. The ship lurched forward and began to gather speed. However, they had to turn around to head toward the continent. The ship was initially facing away from the mainland. As they turned, they saw tip of the spire sending a translucent beam of energy toward the center of the continent. It stretched across the sky far into the mountain range, then to whatever was beyond it.

“This is good, we’re picking up speed,” Scootaloo said.

“No... it’s not good!” Silver Spoon shrieked, pointing out their starboard window.

The Royal Guard battleship began to glow as it uncoupled itself from the docking platform. It’s rear propellers roared to life as the crystal weapons on its bow charged.

“This is gonna be bad...” Scootaloo said. “Can’t we go any faster?!”

“I wish!” Rumble said, looking past them to see the battleship.

Two deafening booms echoed through the air as hot purple jets of crystal energy streaked past them. Rumble rolled the ship to the side and banked into some clouds, hoping to hide from the larger vessel.

Two more shots streaked by them as the battleship descended in their direction.

“We’re not getting out this...” Silver Spoon said while standing close to Scootaloo, who was still holding Pip.

“Yes we are...” a tired voice came from behind them.

“Elwyn!” Sctootaloo shouted, “Oh my goddess, you’re injured bad!”

Elwyn shook her off, “I’m fine...” she said while staggering over to Rumble. “Boy... keep going to the mainland and don’t stop, no matter what. Understand?”

“Yeah, why?” Rumble asked. “What are you going to do?”

Elwyn rubbed her temples and spread her wings, “I’m going to bring down that entire transfer station.”

“How?!” Silver Spoon asked. “We’re all the way out here, are you going to blow it up with your magic?!”

Elwyn smiled and shook her head, producing a small device from her belt, “No, child. I’m going to detonate a bomb.”

With one small click, a thunderclap boomed all around them. A shockwave impacted their craft, then another. The foals looked out the stern windows and gasped. The transfer station’s topmost portion exploded in a cloud of purple energy and gas. As it fell, the rest of the tower crumpled and collapsed in on itself, sending large chunks plummeting into the raging sea below. The energy being transferred arced in wild directions, seeking something to connect to. It found the nearest thing, that being the Royal Guard battleship.

Energy surged through the craft as it’s cannons exploded from the raw energy. The two crystal canons on the bow quickly overloaded and detonated, taking a chunk of the bow with them. The ship lurched and began to list heavily to the side as more explosions wracked the deck from within.

However there was little time to celebrate, as some of the energy found it’s way to their ship as well. The foals screamed as the instruments shattered and the cargo ship began to plummet into the ocean. Scootaloo fell forward and banged her head off a shelf, the last thing she remembered was seeing Pip fall from her grasp and tumble across the cabin. Rumble and Silver Spoon were nowhere to be seen, and Elwyn was collapsed on the floor. Her vision went blank and she fell into darkness.