Rainbow Dash found herself twitching as she sat on the desert sand waiting for ponies—a lot smarter than her—to answer the first riddle of the sphinx. She itched to fly again, to have her wings back. She knew that regardless of what this sphinx claimed about being a match for Rainbow when she did have her power, it was a boast, nothing more.

Rainbow had never, never known defeat by any foe, not even a god. Just the opposite in fact: She had defeated a god, given, there had been extenuating circumstances, but those didn’t change the scoreboard.

“You okay, Rainbow?” Radiant asked.

“I’m fine,” she said.

“I can make it warmer,” Ataxia pointed out. The sun had set an hour ago, and only her magic was keeping them from freezing in the desert’s night.

“I said I’m fine!” Rainbow shouted, startling the group of ponies.

“Rainbow,” Twilight said from across the way. “Come over here.”

The cyan pony mumbled something under her breath, something that was was unheard by all save the sphinx, and she’d only tell if that was the question asked of her. “Rainbow, what’s wrong?” Twilight asked.

Rainbow glared over to Dayspring, a clear indication that her son should leave so she could talk to her wife alone.

Twilight nodded to him, Dayspring nodded back and left. Of course with him gone, their protection from the cold left as well. Rainbow instantly started to shiver, something Twilight soon copied. “Rainbow what’s wrong?” Twilight asked as she walked over to the mare and wrapped her up in a wing.

“This is what’s wrong, Twi,” Rainbow said as she looked in her wife’s eyes. “All of this!”

“This situation?”

“No, this delay, this riddle, this… ugh, everything! I should have my wings, you should have your magic, and this shouldn’t be an issue.”

“Rainbow, we’re going to fix this. I promise you,” Twilight said.

“Really? I mean come on, you’ve been thinking about this riddle for hours now, back when you were a nerdy librarian this wou—”

“Wait… what did you say?” Twilight asked.

“I said I can’t take all this waiting around.”

“No about me being…”

“A nerdy librarian?” Rainbow asked.

Twilight’s eyes went wide and she shot forward, grabbing Rainbow by the muzzle and planting one hell of a kiss upon her lips. “Rainbow, you’re a genius!”

“Um… okay?” Rainbow stated, looking confused to all Tartarus as Twilight ran over to her son.

“Dayspring, I know the answer!”

The sphinx watched in mild fascination as the ponies worked it out amongst themselves. It was always comical to her when ponies would come seeking her knowledge; even knowing the risks, it didn’t stop them from trying. She didn’t relish the horror on their faces when they realized they were wrong, though. It wasn’t something she wanted to do: eating ponies. Rather, it was just her nature to do it, her lot in life.

When she had been caught, and banished by Celestia, that was something the alicorn understood. Celestia had understood that the sphinx had no control in this, any of this; but as long as ponies sought her knowledge, it’d keep happening. So, rather than slay her, she merely put the sphinx out of reach of her little ponies, forevermore.

Or that had been the plan anyway. The death of Tartarus was simply too good an opportunity to pass up. Say what you will about doing the right thing, several hundred years locked in that place and you’ve gotta stretch your wings.

She grinned as she saw the two ponies approach: one, a miss Twilight Sparkle, the other Dayspring Gleam, her son. Both had long destinies in front and behind them. Well, provided they didn’t screw it up that is.

“We have your answer,” Twilight stated.

“Oh? You sure you don’t need more time?” Not that you have that much left.

“We’re sure,” Dayspring replied. “Your riddle was: If it’s information you seek, come and see me. If it’s pairs of letters you need, I have consecutively three. Who am I? The answer is…”

Twilight answered. “A bookkeeper. You go to one for knowledge, and the word has three consecutive sets of letters; two ‘o’ two ‘k’ and two ‘e’ letters.”

“That is correct,” the sphinx said with a smile. “Although I must admit, I had thought you, of all ponies, would’ve gotten the answer a lot sooner, Twilight.”

Twilight blushed. “It’s been decades since I was last a librarian. The demands of raising foals, and running a country, keeps me more than busy. Not that I’d change it for the world.” At those words she wrapped a wing around her son and kissed him on the cheek.

“First time a mare’s kissed you in a while, huh Dayspring!” Ataxia called out.

“Would you stop?” Radiant said.

“If Night can’t change me, what makes you think you can?”

Rainbow chuckled. “Oh I’d say she’s changed you quite a bit.”

Defensively, Ataxia asked, “What do you mean? I’m still the same-old me.”

“Ataxia, you haven’t been the same-old you since before Blood Dawn,” Radiant said.

That was the wrong thing to bring up. Mentioning that revenant’s name made Rainbow feel her back muscles twitch and spasm. Blood Dawn was a psycho killer that drank his victim’s blood and slaughtered her first grandfoal while he was still in Aurora’s womb. He was also—baring none—the toughest fight Rainbow had ever been in. She had won though, she had drop kicked his ass into the sun.

Nevermind that ‘that’ very act is what caused Red to get free; rather, it still brought back a smile to her muzzle every time she thought about it—even if it did crack the moon in half.

“I still say I’m me,” Ataxia snorted.

“Never said you weren’t,” Radiant said with a chuckle. “You’re just a more mature you.”

“Watch it buster, them’s fighting words.”

Radiant laughed at that, but said nothing more. Truly, he didn’t know if he could take her like this or not. Sure, in terms of pure skill, he was the superior unicorn; but skill implied some knowledge of what one’s opponent could do, and against a mare like Ataxia—chaos incarnate— assuming you knew what she could do would be your first mistake.

If she’d transform, it wouldn’t even be a challenge, but that was one fight Radiant never wanted to have, again.

“Are you ready to receive the next riddle?” the sphinx asked, her voice coming in a normal tone, but seemingly from everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. Needless to say, it grabbed their attention.

“No time like the present,” Dayspring said with a small chuckle.

If only you knew, the sphinx thought. She spread her wings and roze into the air, her voice becoming a booming sound as she spoke the words:

Ataxia froze. “What the buck? This sounds a lot harder than the first one!”

The Sphinx smiled. “Nothing is as it seems at first. You of all ponies should know that. And besides, what would be the sense of an easy riddle?”

“Great, now it’s gonna take even longer for this shit,” Rainbow said.

“While there is no deadline for answering these riddles, I must warn you, time is running out,” the sphinx said.

“What? What does that mean?” Radiant asked as he jumped up and ran to her. “Are you changing the rules?”

“No, swordmaster, but come the rise of the sun, you’ll find it too late, for either question.”

Ataxia felt like she was about to choke on her tongue. Tears started falling from her eyes in a unstoppable flow. “How… long… is… that…”

“Two hours,” somepony answered. She had no idea who.

A loud cry overtook the camp, one that Vela almost recognized instantly. She reached out, shooting up and grabbing her spear from where it lay along the side of the tent. The thin fabric never stood a chance as she cut the top away and leapt out, ready to kill whatever had caused her younger brother to start crying in the middle of the night.

Unfortunately for the pegasus she had been laying up against, her concern had not been for him at that moment. Flash was awoken to a huge amount of pressure suddenly put on his chest as Vela used him as a springboard. But before he could do more than grunt in pain, his ears picked up the sound of Dayspring’s crying.

“Who the fuck dares‽” Vela shouted as she waved the god weapon around her head, waking up anypony that might have still been asleep.

Blaze stumbled out of his tent with the young crying hippogriff held tightly to his chest. “It’s okay, he just had a bad dream!”

In a practiced motion, Vela sheathed the spear and ran over to retrieve her brother from Blaze’s grip. She held him tightly to her chest. “Shh, it’s okay, sis has got you.”

“W-what’s going on?” Taz asked as he crawled of his tent, walking a little bowlegged. Nighttide followed right behind him. If Taz’s walk had been bad, she was walking far worse, which was saying something, considering her regeneration.

“False alarm, just a bad dream,” Flash said.

A grey bat-pony landed right next to them. “Scouted the perimeter, nothing to report.”

Taz blinked. In the time she’d heard Dayspring cry, Echoside had managed a complete fly over to check for any enemies. Well, she is in the Night Guard, who’s to say she’d even been asleep yet, Taz thought.

Starlight teleported out of her tent. “So I take it we’re getting an early start?”

“I vote we go back to bed,” Nighttide said.

Taz was about to agree, he was about to until he saw the condition of Vela’s cut-in-half tent. “No, let’s get moving, who knows how much time we have left.”

“You heard him, pack it up!” Ana shouted, almost like she was playing at being a drill instructor.

Starlight giggled and turned her attention to Echoside’s tent. It took her a whole five seconds to tear it down and put it away, something most of the others were infinitely jealous of.

“Somepony really thinks he’s the boss, doesn’t he?” Echoside asked as she looked back at the large black stallion.

Starlight looked over at him. “Well… he kinda is.”

“Why?” Echoside asked.

“Why? Why what?”

“Why is he the boss? Did you all elect him, is he the oldest? Does he have the most power?”

“No on all of those accounts actually. Nighttide’s the oldest, I’d say Vela has the most power, and we never really elected him. He just kinda… I don’t know, stepped up?”

“I can make him step down again, quickly if you want.”

“Yeah, nevermind that, he’s a prince, and my uncle. And besides, Nighttide would skin you alive if you touched a hair on his coat.”

Echoside chuckled and sat beside Starlight as they watched the rest of the ponies break camp. “You respect him, don’t you?”

“I do,” Starlight replied as she watched Taz and Nighttide tear down their tent together. “He’s been through so much, and he’s done so much, all in the name of following what he believed was the right thing to do. How many of us can truly say that?”

“He’s kinda hot too.”

“Echoside!”

The bat-pony chuckled. “Hey, I’ve got eyes. Not that I’d personally be interested in him, but I can see why Nighttide likes him.”

“Your eyes better stay on me.” Starlight rolled her own eyes with a pout that Echoside found rather cute.

Echoside pecked the mare on the cheek. “Anyone tell you that you’re sexy when you get all pouty like that?”

“S-sexy?” Starlight asked. She had never heard of herself referred to like that before.

“Hey, if you’re done romancing my sister, we could use your help!” Ana shouted from behind them.

“Let’s just ignore the interpreter.”

Starlight nodded her head in agreement and rested it on Echoside’s shoulder. The older mare just giggled and leaned against Starlight’s head. “You know, I never imagined in a million years I’d ever be in this situation, but now that I am, I kinda don’t want it to come to an end.”

“Who said it has to end?” Starlight asked.

“In my experience: everything does, eventually,” Echoside replied with a regretful sigh.

“Yeah, well, I doubt you have much experience dating a princess. Else you’d know that we always get our way.”

“Your sister might disagree.”

“Echoside, shut up,” Starlight said.

“Yes, your highness.”

Ana huffed as she used her magic to finish tearing down her tent. Starlight could have done the entire camp three times over by now, but of course she had to spend her time making kissy faces with Echoside.

The mare groaned with the effort of pulling down her tent, and then helping Blaze with his. How earth ponies and pegasi accomplished this, she had no idea; but she got a good view of it as Vela simply bodychecked what was left of her tent down, destroying the rest of it without effort.

“That’s not how you put a tent down, Vela,” Flash said, trying to reason with the hippogriff.

“Then you can do it yourself!”

“Uhm… you know what? Your way is just fine… and… interesting on top.”

Velva grinned before moving on to help Taz with his.

All in all, it took the group five minutes to completely tear down their camp. It was another seven minutes of arguing and fighting, and then four minutes of looking around aimlessly before Taz got the bright idea to ask Starlight which way to go.

“Is it always like this?” Echoside asked her marefriend.

“Pretty much,” Starlight said with a smile as she pushed her head against Echoside’s coat. “Think you can get used to it?”

“Honestly?” Echoside said, her expression serious—for a second or two anyway. “I feel right at home.”

Starlight found herself doing something she never thought she’d ever do in her life, she purred at Echoside’s words. They were exactly what she wanted to hear.

“Where are we going anyway?” Echoside asked.

“She didn’t tell you?” Blaze replied.

“Nope, I pretty much just got a quick make-out session in the shower, and lets face facts, after that I didn’t really care.”

“Starlight, you dog!” Nighttide replied to the blushing blue unicorn.

“Why should you be the only one that gets to have fun?” Starlight replied sheepishly. “And it was just… touching, NOT sex.”

Taz chuckled. “Methinks thou doth protest too much.”

“Stop it. I don’t need that from you too. Besides, after catching you two rutting in the kitchen last week, you’re not in any position to judge.”

“I-I was trying to teach her how to cook,” he muttered weakly.

“Yeah, by licking whipped cream of my teats.” Nighttide laughed, making all others around them blush except for Vela and Echoside.

Blaze took over, quickly growing uncomfortable with where the line of questioning was going. “We’re going to the Tree of Harmony. It’s located under the former location of the Castle of the Two Sisters in the Everfree Forest.”

“I’ve never heard of this castle,” Nighttide replied.

“Doubtful you would. A titan kinda fell on it,” Starlight said. “Or on the remains of it anyway.”

“A titan?” Echoside asked.

Starlight filled her in. “Huge, rock-like monster. They use to rule the planet before the gods banished them to Tartarus.”

“Gods?”

Ana rubbed her temples. “Oh dear Luna, we’ll be here all day.”

Starlight gently bumped Echoside’s flank with her own. “I’ll explain to you everything, but not now.”

Echoside nodded. The group walked in silence—well, as quietly as a group of teenage mares and stallions can be—after that. Blaze took it upon himself to get a laugh from just about everyone in the group during their trip. The hardest was of course Vela, but that changed when he started to poke fun of Flash—in a nice way. She was quickly laughing and blushing at some of the more… personal stories he’d tell about his twin brother.

Flash really wanted to kick his brother’s ass. Especially when he told the story of his last bedwetting problem two years ago.

It was an hour into their journey when Taz stopped at a tall venue overlooking a chasm in the ground. “Is this it?” he asked.

Starlight walked up to stand beside him. What was weird was that she simply knew the answer, without casting a spell. It was as if some force had been pulling her here, a force she didn’t understand but simply knew. It had been like this all journey. She had made a show of directing them with her magic, but anyone with any real spell knowledge would have known she was simply casting a light spell around her horn. “Yes, it’s down there.”

Taz looked where she gestured. It was an old, dug out cave in the remains of what he assumed to be the body of a titan. It looked decades old. “So, we go.”

“Let me go first,” Echoside cut in.

“Why?”

“Because I’m the only one here with military experience, that’s why,” she growled back, but quickly stopped as Starlight nuzzled her.

“She’s right, you know,” Nighttide said, making Taz jump as she nudged him.

“I know,” he whispered back. “But I should go, because—”

“You’re not invincible!” Nighttide growled, her form wavering. “Echoside, you go. I don’t want to hear anything anymore.”

“Night—”

“Stop acting like you have to protect everyone from everything. My mom proved that others can bypass your ability to hurt you. So don’t say more, Echoside is going first.”

“Fine.”

Nighttide blinked. “Come again?”

“I said fine,” Taz replied before turning to Echoside. “Alright, you go first, give us a call if everything looks safe.”

Echoside nodded and smiled while Nighttide gently kissed her soon-to-be-husband.

The mare was quick: She dropped her bag, flew up, and darted to the top of the cave, electing for more of a stealth entrance.

“What was that about?” Flash asked Vela.

“I think Nighttide’s worried about him.”

“Yeah, but I’ve never seen Taz back down from something he thought was right.”

“Me neither,” Vela admitted.

“Maybe he’s taking his new responsibility seriously?” Starlight commented.

They both turned to her. Everyone in the party had lost track of the bat-pony as soon as she landed at the mouth of the cave. The primal aspect of being a bat-pony was that night was their natural habitat, something she more than took advantage of. While Nighttide had been able to follow her longer than the others, even she quit looking when Echoside entered the cave. Starlight, on the other hoof, had no desire to turn away. As she spoke she never took her eyes off the cave, the cave that told her to enter, that her marefriend had just entered.

“What do you mean?” Vela asked.

“He’s going to be a father. I think he’s slowly starting to learn that he has to be there for his foal, to be there for her and Nighttide once the time is ready.” Starlight smiled.

Flash turned to look at Taz who was standing right by Nighttide in a fully-erect sitting position. He could see the conflicting nature in him; Taz wasn’t passive; he wanted to be down there, to do everything he possibly could for them all. It was just his way to put himself in danger first. This was proof he was learning and maturing.

What if Vela was having my foal? Would I be that grown up? Flash asked himself as he turned to the hippogriff. She held a grip on her spear, her brother riding on her back. She looked ready to take on the entire world, and, he suspected, she would if given the opportunity.

“Yeah, I think I would.”

“What was that?” Vela asked, looking at him confused.

“Nothing, just commenting how beautiful you look in the moonlight.”

“Don’t make me hurt you,” she growled.

“Love you too,” Flash whispered as he turned back to the cave. Not that he could actually see anything, but it gave him something to do.

Starlight walked over to Vela. “Can’t you be nicer to him?”

“Why should I?”

“Because we all know it by now. Be nicer to your coltfriend, or do you want to be alone again?” Starlight asked with an raised eyebrow.

“I can do what I want.”

“So you want to be alone? What if he leaves you?”

Vela stopped dead in her tracks. “He’d never do that.”

“Because you’re threatening him and acting like he’s nothing? If you think you know anything about love, you’ll know that he will leave you if you don’t change.” Starlight looked sympathetic to her. “He’s a nice stallion, Vela. Most mares would be lucky to have him. But if you don’t show him the respect he’s due, he won’t stay around you forever. And that is a fact you will learn the hard way if you don’t start to appreciate him.”

As Starlight walked away, Vela was left in confusion and worry. He’d never leave me, would he?

Starlight walked up to Taz and Nighttide. “Any sign of her?”

Nighttide took another look at the cave. “No, not yet.”

“Starting to get worried?” Taz asked.

Starlight chuckled, then sighed. “Yes.”

“Ahh that’s sweet, my marefriend’s worried about me,” Echoside said as she all but appeared right next to them from the shadows.

“Echoside, you’re back!” Starlight jumped into her hooves.

“Woah there princess, not that I really mind, but I wasn’t gone that long.”

“She did say she was worried about you,” Taz said.

“Mhh, already grew that fond of me?” Echoside chuckled.

“You want an answer to that?”

“Yep.”

“Stop calling me princess or last night was a one night stand.”

“Sure thing, Starlight.”

“I love the way you pronounce my name.”

“Would love to do that every single time,” Echoside purred back.

“Okay, you lovebirds, save it for tonight,” Nighttide said with a giggle.

“Echoside, what’d you find?” Taz asked.

“Not much, just a big fucking magical tree growing out of the ground. Otherwise the cave was empty.”

“Let’s go then,” Vela stated as she flapped her wings, ready to take off.

“We go together, Vela,” Taz said, stopping her.

“Together,” Flash replied, rubbing up against her.

Vela huffed at him, but then stopped when she saw the look Starlight was giving her. “Fine.”

“Alright, let’s go,” Nighttide stated as she lead the way down. The others followed suit, trusting Nighttide to lead the way, which in and of itself was strange, especially for Ana, who found herself resisting the urge to go another way simply because Nighttide chose this way.

The path itself was rocky yet steady. Placing one hoof in front of the other, Nighttide found them the safest way down, something she had to do because the very next pony after her was her soon-to-be husband, Taz.

They reached the mouth of the cave without incident, and, less than a minute later, saw exactly what Echoside had reported.

The cave itself was massive, with huge crystals lining the walls in a purple hue. On either side of the cave, life itself seemed to be growing—lily pads and flowers the most abundant. But the ponies barely registered any of that. Rather, their attention was focused on the object in the center of the cave.

It was a crystal tree. A huge one at that, at least twenty ponies tall. The most obvious feature was a six pointed star dead set in the middle of it. It had twelve branches, each with flowers dangling from them. On its five most prominent branches were gemstones in different colors.

“The Tree of Harmony,” Starlight said in a gasp. This was her first time physically laying eyes upon it.

“It looks just like your cutie mark,” Blaze said.

Ana did a double take, and then a triple. “He’s right…”

“Starlight?” Taz questioned.

“I… I-I, I don’t… I never…” she tried to answer their inquiry, but she just couldn’t form the words.

Ana was the first one to really catch on. “Starlight, what have you been keeping from us?” She knew her sister well enough to know a half-truth when she heard one.

Starlight took a step closer. “It’s like it’s been calling to me. That it wanted me to find it. I-I…”

“This is what we’re here for, right?” Echoside asked. “What’s the problem?”

“Things never tend to work out that well for us,” Vela answered. “Especially when it turns out to be part of a greater plan.”

“No… this isn’t like that. We have nothing to fear,” Starlight said as she took another step. The tree itself seemed to radiate as she walked closer, as if it were responding to her very presence.

“Taz… it’s up to you,” Flash said, his eyes glued to Starlight, his wing tense and ready.

Echoside had to bite back a retort. She remembered that strange power the earth pony seemed to have. In a way, that one comment confirmed a lot of what had been obvious. They really do look to him to lead. Hmm… maybe I misjudged him? She took another look at the stallion. He was big, muscular, that’s for sure. If she had to guess his age, just from his looks and attitude, she’d put him at around twenty-three. But Starlight told me he’s only fourteen… her respect for him increased ten-fold.

“We go forward. Starlight says it’s fine, and I trust her.”

The group collectively walked forward. They followed behind Starlight as she got to within twenty hooves of the tree and stopped. She cocked her head back and smiled at them. “You all ready for something amazing?”

“You know what’s going to happen?” Little Dayspring asked.

“Didn’t you listen to the stories from Twilight and Rainbow? I do know what will happen, and trust me, it’ll be beyond your imagination.”

Dayspring hugged his sister tighter as Starlight turned back to the tree. She powered her horn and shot out a beam directly to the center of the tree.

At that one action her words were proven to be prophetic. Something amazing did happen.

The Tree of Harmony resonated with power. They all watched as, out of nowhere, Starlight was lifted up into the air. Taz’s every instinct shouted at him to stop it, to use his ability to prevent it. Instead he forced his instinct down and let what was going to happen, happen.

The center of the tree opened up and a bright purple six pointed star flew out, straight to the levitating unicorn in front of them. They all watched in a gasp as Starlight threw her head back and was overcome with bright light.

Flash was levitated next. His entire form overcome in much the same way as Starlight’s. He let out a small shriek in surprise as the red stone from the top of the tree did likewise to him.

Dayspring felt his pull next, albeit, to his credit, he didn’t gasp as Flash did. Rather he let out a small whimper as the purple stone flew to him.

Vela felt the pull soon after, she grasped her spear in a threatening manner.

“Vela, let it happen,” Taz stated.

She glared at him, but, in the end, relaxed, and let what was about to occur, occur. Much like the others, an orange stone soon flew to her.

Blaze, unsurprisingly, giggled and laughed as he felt himself levitated into the air. A blue stone flew out of the tree and to him.

Taz turned to Ana and smiled. Fully expecting the last stone, the pink stone to lift her into the air and go to her.

“Taz, what’s going on‽” Nighttide yelled out as she was pulled into the air.

Ana’s eyes widened as she saw Nighttide selected instead of herself.

Taz looked up at her, confused. “What the…”

The pink stone flew out and to his soon-to-be wife. A bright flash of light overtook the entire cave, almost blinding Echoside, and forcing the rest to hide their eyes. Before the first pony could recover, the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony landed. Flash and Blaze each looked down at their new golden necklaces, Flash’s in the shape of a red lightning bolt that matched his cutie mark, Blaze in the shape of a blue one.

Whereas the rest got necklaces, Starlight admired the dark-blue chest armor she had been gifted with. The six-pointed star was nestled nicely into the center, around it, an almost exact replica of the tree of harmony. However, the real strange part wasn’t the armor, rather, it was the two holes in either side of her barrel. “Are these… wing holes?”

Dayspring and Vela each looked at their necklaces. Being that they didn’t have cutie marks, their stones were unordained, save for the fact that they seemed to reflect each other, almost as if just being close to one another caused them to resonate.

Nighttide landed last. She looked down at the strange necklace around her. The pink stone around her neck was in the shape of a large heart. “W-w-why?”

They all looked around, seeing each other’s new accessory, new power. “You were right, Starlight. This is something amazing,” Blaze said.

“Why her?” a voice cut through.

All turned their heads at Ana, who scowled. “Why her, and not me?”

Taz looked at her. “M-maybe because your behavior lately?… That wasn’t kindness.”

“What about her behaviour‽” Ana shouted, Her voice echoed throughout the cave.

“She’s acted better to you, than you to her,” Vela said. “I really have to admit that.”

“No, she’s right, I’m not kindness, there was no reason it should have—”

“Y-you… You stole it from me,” Ana cried.

“Ana, no I didn’t.” Nighttide tried to plead with her.

“You did! You stole Taz, you stole my life, my foal, and now this. I-I hate you!”

“Ana!” Starlight shouted.

“I hate you!” Ana’s shout was leagues louder than Starlight’s. “I hate you, and I wish you were dead!”

“Ana!” Taz shouted. But it was too late. The dark-blue unicorn teleported to the mouth of the cave and ran.

“I’ll go get her!” Starlight shouted as she teleported after her; it was to no use though. As soon as Starlight appeared at the mouth, Ana had finished a long-distance teleportation spell.

Starlight paused as she gasped that her sister had just accomplished something so advanced. She concentrated, seeking out her location. Starlight got back nothing.

Taz ran up to her side. “Where’d she go?”

Starlight looked up with tears in her eyes. “I-I don’t know. She hid her location. Taz, she… she could be anywhere.”

He said nothing, he simply stepped forward and hugged her. “I never expected this. But I think that, for her, this was just the last straw.”

Starlight didn’t reply, she just cried.