“So this is Mt. Aris, huh?” Smolder asked as she gazed out the window of her train car, slouching on the plush velvet seating. She fidgeted around, finding it impossible to get comfortable. Her thick, fatty tail couldn’t bend as easily as the tails of the friends she was traveling with.

“Yep! Isn’t it just beautiful?” Silverstream exclaimed, pressing her face up against the window to drink up the sight of the tall mountain as it jutted strikingly up from the horizon. “I can’t wait to show you all around!”

Smolder rolled her eyes. Back in the Dragonlands, if a mountain was impressive enough to be named, it was some sort of volcano, or at least a dark and ominous spire. You know, something cool, she thought. Mt. Aris looked more like a picnic stop compared to the imposingly desolate desert that the train had taken them through. At least it shouldn’t have any of those seedy-looking lizardfolk trying to hawk her souvenirs like the ones at the last place the train stopped to refuel.

“It’s great. Open skies, sheer cliffs, this place looks like a flyer’s dream,” Gallus said, cooly leaning around Silverstream to get a better view.

“It looks a lot nicer than endless sand,” Sandbar added. “The lushness reminds me of the time Ocellus took us to the Changeling Hive for Gorbfest.”

“You’re right, it does remind me a lot of home,” Ocellus replied. “I can’t wait to sip nectar from flowers I’ve never seen before.”

“It’s good, but Yakyakistan still best place to visit!” Yona interjected. “Yona cannot wait to bring friends, show them many great traditions and culture.”

“Yeah, I think after this, Yakyakistan and the Dragonlands will be the only places left to see,” Sandbar continued. “I’m glad the school has been sponsoring these trips for us. It’s great seeing the world. I bet you can’t wait to show us the Dragonlands, huh Smolder?”

Smolder’s eyes shot open, and she put an uneasy smile on her face. “Y-yeah…can’t wait…” she said. She loved her friends, but they were total softies compared to the folks where she was from. She wasn’t really looking forward to having to babysit them, but as the train lurched to a halt, she put such musings thoughts out of her head.

“LAST STOP! MT. ARIS STATION!” Shouted the conductor as he trotted from cabin to cabin, waking those few passengers who had been put to sleep by the suffocating homogeneity of the Bone Dry Desert.

“That’s our stop, come on students! I can’t wait to stretch my wings,” Rainbow Dash said, hopping up off her seat and almost galloping towards the exit. She was trailed by Spike, running as fast as his little legs could take him.

The rest of the Student Six got up and proceeded down the aisle at a leisurely pace, stepping out into the bright sun. It was nice to feel some heat after being in an air-conditioned train car for most of the day, and those students who had wings unfurled them and gave them a few quick beats to stretch them out after having been cooped up for so long. The group picked up their luggage from the luggage car, saddling up all the things that they’d need to have a pleasant stay.

“You still looking for your bag, Smolder?” Gallus asked when he noticed that she alone wasn’t carrying anything.

“Huh? Nah, I didn’t bring anything,” she replied.

“Not even toiletries?” Ocellus asked.

“Scales don’t sweat and breathing fire keeps my mouth nice and sterile, I’m fine,” Smolder assured.

“Mmm…alright…” Ocellus acknowledged. Smolder had always been rough around the edges, but dragon biology didn’t need much maintenance. At least, that’s what her anatomy books told her.

“Everycreature got their bags?” Spike asked, walking up to the group. He seemed a little winded; Smolder wanted to remind him that he’d have an easier time getting around if he was more willing to use those new wings of his, but she held her tongue. “Let’s head out then.”

“Where’s Ms. Dash?” Sandbar asked as he looked around. He couldn’t spot her distinct rainbow mane anywhere.

Spike groaned. “Well, she said that she couldn’t wait to do a few laps around the mountain and left me the directions to the hotel. I mean, it shouldn’t be too hard to get around with Silverstream around.”

He handed over a slip of paper to Silverstream, who took it in her claw and brought it up to her face. “Oh, they turned that place into a hotel? Huh, must be recent. It’s hard to believe I’ve been gone so long from here. Yeah, I know exactly where this place is. It’s near a cliff face overlooking Basalt Beach. Great view, it’ll be a nice place for everycreature to stay. It’s not far by flight, but walking up there will take some time, so I guess we should get going.”

“You won’t mind if I let you lead the way?” Spike asked.

“Oh, not at all!” Silverstream replied excitedly. “Follow me!”

Silverstream stepped proudly, puffing out her feathery chest as she boldly led her friends (plus Spike) out of the Mt. Aris station towards the mountain. Her claws crunched on rough gravel as she stepped off of the wooden platform; the train was situated on an artificial land bridge that connected the mainland with the base of Mt. Aris. It saved non-flying races the trouble of procuring transport across the small expanse of water that isolated the mountain, and also facilitated trade for the very same reason. It was much easier to re-establish connections with the outside world when one could reach the sunny shores at the base of the mountain with a hop, skip, and a jump, Silverstream explained to her friends. In fact, she was filled with such enthusiasm that she didn’t even notice another young hippogriff calling out to her until she had almost bumped into him.

“Yo sis!” Terramar said as he surprised Silverstream with a warm embrace. “Good to see you.”

“Whoa! Terramar! Sorry, I didn’t see you. How have you been?” Silverstream replied, hugging her little brother for a moment before breaking the embrace and looking around as if she was trying to find someone else. “Are mom and dad here?”

“Nah. A big shipment of chiseled granite came in this morning and they’re busy with the restoration effort. It’ll be the new floor of the High Palace, so they both wanted to make sure that everything is installed right. They want to see you as soon as they get done, though!” Terramar continued.

“Cool, maybe we can all go out for dinner! I don’t think they’ve ever met my friends from school,” Silverstream yelled. She gestured behind her, where Terramar was met with waves of varying enthusiasm. “We were just on the way to check in at the hotel. Well, they are, I’ll be staying at our house while I’m down.”

“That’s wonderful. I tell ya sis, both homes just aren’t the same without you,” Terramar added.

“You have two homes? What are you, rich?” Smolder asked, poking her head out from behind Silverstream.

“Yeah! One on the mountain, and one under the sea,” Silverstream said. “Oh, Terramar, this is Smolder. Smolder, meet Terramar. He’s my younger brother.”

“By only two years though,” Terramar said, extending his claw. “So you’re Smolder huh? I’ve read a lot about you from my sister’s letters. You seem like a cool dragon.”

“Thanks, nice meeting you too,” Smolder replied as she gripped Terramar’s talons with her claw and gave them a good shake.

“I guess I’ll introduce you to the rest when we have time. We have to get up to the building by the old Orrery before check-in time ends,” Silverstream continued.

“The old Orrery? Isn’t that at the top of the mountain?” Terramar said, eliciting a few groans from Silverstream’s friends.

“H-ha ha…yeah…guess I was so excited that I forgot just how far up it was…” Silverstream said, nervously laughing.

“Uuuuuugh, we can’t just fly up?” Smolder said, unfurling her wings and taking to the air. “It’ll be easy! I’ll get Sandbar and Ocellus and Gallus can grab Yona. Watch!”

Smolder expertly dove through the air, swooping down and gripping Sandbar in her claws before flying back up with him in tow.

“N-NOT AGAIN!” Sandbar screamed as his limbs flailed in the air.

“Oh fine, ya big foal,” Smolder said, gently setting him back down on the sandy beach as she pouted.

“It’ll be fine Smolder,” Silverstream continued. Her eyes shot wide and her beak opened up into a smile as an idea hit her. “Hey, if you don’t want to walk up there, why not hang out with Terramar? You don’t have any luggage to worry about. I bet he could show you around!”

“Wait a second, she can’t go off on her own unsupervised!” Spike interjected running to the front of the group. “I’m responsible here!”

“Oh, you can go with her!” Silverstream added. “I mean, I was leading the group to the hotel anyway.”

Spike grumbled. “Hmm…I guess…can you all promise me to wait at the hotel until either I or Rainbow Dash come to get you?”

“Oh, trust me Spike,” Gallus said from way in the back, “…once we walk all the way up there, we’ll all be too worn out to do anything.”

“Well…I…alright. We won’t be long,” Spike said. He was a little bit hesitant about the whole idea, but Silverstream did have a point. Besides, he didn’t quite feel like walking up a mountain either.

“Excellent, we’ll see you at dinner then. Bye Terramar!” Silverstream said as she waved goodbye and began to lead her friends across the beach and towards the base of the mountain.

“Bye Silver! Have fun!” Terramar called out, waving her goodbye before turning to Spike and Smolder. “So, what do you two want to do?”

“Whatever you want, Terramar, we’re your guests and don’t want to impose,” Spike said.

“I want to see the sea homes,” Smolder said bluntly. “You guys, like, live underwater? That’s crazy.”

“Not really crazy when the kingdom’s prized treasure gives us the gift of transformation,” Terramar said. “Come on, let’s go for a swim then.”

The trio stepped across the shore, their claws tilling the loose sand as they stepped. Warm dust soon gave way to cool and wet sand, and then to the lapping waters of the ocean surrounding Mt. Aris. It was a calm day, with the water gently lapping on the shore. It was easy for the three to wade out into the shallows such that their claws only narrowly scrapped the sea floor.

“Alright, now what?” Smolder asked.

“Well, you’ll need fins and gills to get around underwater,” Terramar said as he began to fiddle with the mysterious pink jewel hanging around his neck. “Fortunately, this shard of Queen Novo’s magic pearl has enough power for all three of us. I’ve never transformed dragons before, give me a sec to work out the spell.”

He fiddled around with the pearl shard, furrowing his brow as each tap made light pulse through it. Some of the pulses flickered in a way that Smolder felt they shouldn’t, but Terramar looked completely unworried about what he was doing. A deep unease began to well in her stomach; Smolder wasn’t a fan of magic, especially if it was some kind of spell being cast on her by some sort of overconfident kid.

“But I already have fins. Won’t they do? I like being a dragon,” Smolder said, grabbing her own tail and pointing at the measly little fin at the tip.

“Don’t worry so much,” Terramar said. With a click of his talons, the pearl shard on his necklace began to shine with a bright light. It quickly grew in intensity until it was almost blinding. As Smolder closed her eyes, she felt her whole body seized with a powerful force. Every fiber of her being felt like it was being burned away, twisting and morphing beyond her control. It was over in a flash; the sensation left her body before she could even yelp in shock. She wasn’t surprised when she saw Terramar had lost his beak and feathers when the light vanished; she had seen Silverstream transform many times before. What did surprise her, though, was the look of concern and confusion on his face.

“Scootaloo?” Terramar asked, running his eyes up and down Smolder’s new body.

It was at that point that Smolder noticed that she felt…different. Her body felt like she was hunched over with her neck craned too far back, but it was totally comfortable for her. She tried to wiggle her claws, but they now felt fused together into solid objects. This wouldn’t have been a problem if they were fins, she thought. However, craning her head back, Smolder took note of a distinct lack of anything that would help her swim. In fact, her new body looked uncomfortably familiar. It seemed like Terramar’s spell neglected the ‘sea’ part of ‘seapony’.

“…Why am I a horse?” Smolder asked flatly. The expression on her face clearly conveyed just how unamused she was at the whole situation.

“I have so many questions,” Spike said. He glanced over his own body, finding it quite different from the fishy form he experienced Seaquestria in last time. “Mostly, why do you look exactly like Scootaloo?”

“Scoota-who?” Smolder said, brushing away her new mane as it dangled in front of her vision. “Oh yeah, that kid who I always see hanging around Ms. Dash. Do I look like her? She’s looks pretty dorky. In fact, she looks almost as dorky as you do right now, Spike.”

“Hey!” Terramar said defiantly. “She doesn’t look dorky!”

“I don’t either! And besides, Smolder, to be honest,” Spike began, splashing around his hooves idly. They felt so foreign, and yet the spell had rewired his brain so that he could control them just as well as his old claws, “…you do kind of look like her, even as a dragon.”

“What do you mean?” Smolder asked.

“Well, your orange scales and purple fins like exactly like Scootaloo’s colors,” Spike continued.

“What? They’re totally different!” Smolder spat back. “Ugh, you know what? Forget swimming. Just change me back so I can go to the hotel and hang out with my friends at least.”

“Sheesh, fine. I’m sorry, I’m still learning how to use the magic of the pearl,” Terramar said. “It’s really finicky.”

“You can change me back, right?” Smolder asked.

“Yeah, sure!” Terramar said, before his voice grew quiet and hushed. “…I think…”

He turned his head down, focusing on his pear shard while his finned hoof rose up out of the water. His fin closed in around it, lightly gripping it while it flickered with varying intensity.

“Let’s see…dragon to pony…dragon to pony…pony to pony…” Terramar muttered as he fiddled with his necklace. “If it wasn’t dragon to seapony…then…pony to dragon…maybe…yeah…”

The pearl shard shone brightly, and Smolder felt herself filled with the same searing energy as before. Yet, she didn’t feel her body burning and shifting. Rather, the energy well up inside her, and then felt like it was suddenly snuffed out. When the light subsided, Smolder saw that her body hadn’t changed a bit.

“HEY! WHAT GIVES?” Smolder yelled, both annoyed and concerned. “I thought you said you could change me back!”

“I can! I just…” Terramar began, fiddling with his pearl shard again. It sparked to life, but then suddenly went completely dull. “…Uh oh.”

“What do you mean, ‘uh oh’?” Smolder and Spike asked in unison.

“Uuuh, my shard is out of juice. Transforming others takes a lot of energy. It’ll take some time to recharge,” Terramar said, still fiddling with it. His eyes lit up when he was able to elicit a spark, but it quickly faded out, just like the optimism on his face.

“How long will that take?” Spike asked.

“Uh, a day or two,” Terramar said. “…Or three.”

Smolder sighed heavily, inadvertently slipping into a whinny which made her quickly shut up. She turned around and began swimming to shore. “Ugh, let’s just go up to the hotel. At least Silverstream can fix me,” she groaned.

“…Maybe,” Terramar said in a hushed voice.

“What was that?” Smolder spat, craning her head back.

“NOTHING! Just head up the mountain. I’d join you, but until my shard recharges, I’m stuck like this too,” Terramar said, waving them goodbye and diving into the sea before he said anything that would make life harder for him.

Spike and Smolder both dogpaddled onto shore, stepping out onto the sandy bank. Instinctively, both new-ponies shook their bodies like dogs to get the salt water out of their fur. Smolder stomped angrily across the sand, grumbling all the way. Spike closely followed, able to see how tense she was as trotted.

“Uh, Smolder, maybe you should calm down,” Spike said.

“Calm down? I look like a dork, I can’t change back, and to top it off, I don’t even have fingers in this form!” Smolder yelled as she spotted a seashell next to her hoof. “How am I supposed to grab stuff like this sea…shell…”

To her surprise, the seashell seemed to magically stick to her hoof. She looked at Spike, who seemed equally shocked at this brazen display of lazy animation. She quickly shook the shell free before trotting along.

“Well, with ponies it just kinda happens,” Spike said.

“Let me guess, things stick to my hooves through the ‘magic of friendship’, huh?” Smolder said sarcastically.

“Yeah pretty much,” Spike replied, completely oblivious.

“…Just tell me how to get to the hotel,” Smolder groaned.

“…And that’s how I completed my first mission out of the hive!” Ocellus said happily as she leaned back into her seat in the hotel lobby. “…Which was also my last, because I didn’t get a second assignment before the old queen was overthrown and King Thorax ushered in a new era!”

“That’s…interesting,” Sandbar said before taking a quick look at the clock. “Hey, shouldn’t Spike and Smolder be getting back soon?”

“Yeah, I can’t wait to hear what they thought of the underwater city,” Silverstream added.

As if on cue, the jingle of a bell heralded the opening of the hotel door. There, standing in the entryway, were two young ponies. They wasted no time in trotting towards the group of students lounging in the lobby.

“…Is that Scootaloo?” Gallus asked. “Who’s the other pony with her?”

“No Gallus, I’m NOT Scootaloo,” the orange filly said in Smolder’s voice.

“Whoa! Smolder, is that you?” Gallus asked.

“Yeah, it’s me,” Smolder said. “Silverstream, your brother botched the transformation spell and didn’t have enough magic left to try again. I need you to fix it.”

“Fix it?” Silverstream asked.

“Yeah, you got one of those pearl doohickies too. Just make it turn me back into a dragon,” Smolder continued.

“Uh…huh huh...yeah, about that…” Silverstream said nervously, averting her eyes and scratching the back of her head.

“You don’t know how to change me back either?” Smolder asked, unable to hide her worry despite her best efforts. She gulped at the thought of having to be a pony for the rest of her life.

“No, no, I do!” Silverstream assured. “It’s just that things can get a little delicate with transformation magic. It’s always best to have the reversal spell cast by the same thing that did the transformation in the first place. I’ll spare you the details, but things can get a little messy when you daisy-chain transformations. Trust me. But, don’t worry, I can teach Terramar the specifics of the spell pretty easily. All we just need to do is wait four days for his shard to recharge.”

“Four days? Terramar said one or two!” Smolder huffed angrily.

“Yeah, well, things like this don’t usually come up. I don’t blame him for not knowing,” Silverstream said. “I guess dragons react differently to this flavor of magic.”

“Yeah, I was turned into a full fish the first time around,” Spike chimed in.

“It’s just…I’m probably going to have to spend the whole trip trapped in this body…” Smolder said forlornly. Gallus hopped up out of his seat and walked over, patting her reassuringly on her withers.

“Aww, don’t worry Smolder, we’ll still have a lot of fun here, even if you’re stuck in a different body for a while. Besides, now that you’re a pony, we can play a fun game to pass the time.”

“What do you…” Smolder asked, stopping herself when she realized exactly what Gallus meant. She tried to leap back, but Gallus expertly nabbed her with his claws and lifted her up like a football.

“FILLY TOSS Y’ALL!” Gallus shouted.