by G. M. Berrow
Applejack was about to protest, when Twilight surprised everypony. “Pinkie’s right,” Twilight said with a nod. “We do have time to do one small thing with Skystar!” Twilight’s eyes darted around.
“Say what, now?” Rainbow Dash asked, suspicious.
“Well, we still need to come up with a plan to get back. A few minutes won’t make a huge difference. And if there’s anypony who can cram a lifetime of fun into a blink of an eye, it’s Pinkie Pie. So go ahead and show Skystar the best time ever!” Twilight chirped. She threw up her finned hooves and gestured for them all to go. “I’ll catch up with you.”
Once they’d swum off to entertain Princess Skystar, Twilight was finally alone with the jellyfish. She scanned the room to make sure she was truly by herself. Luckily, the Seapony guards had followed Queen Novo to her appointments. It was Twilight’s chance to do something sneaky. She was going to steal the Seaponies’ pearl!
“Come on,” Twilight said softly to herself, and approached the jellyfish just as Queen Novo had. She reached out her finned hoof and gently tapped on one of the tentacles. Instead of parting to reveal the pearl for taking, the tentacles reached for Twilight and curled around her hooves! She was trapped. The more she struggled against their grasp, the tighter they wound around her. “Ahhh!” Twilight screamed. She hadn’t meant to cause a commotion, but it was too late.
Within seconds, the Seapony guards returned to find the thief tangled in the scene. They looked furious, but not as angry as Queen Novo, who swam up after them. “All this so you could sneak in and take the pearl? See, Skystar? This is why we don’t bring strangers to our home!”
Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Spike hung behind the horrified Princess Skystar. She looked so hurt and betrayed. Twilight felt awful for causing Skystar and the Seaponies distress, but she was still determined to get the one thing that would save the ponies of Equestria. Twilight reached out one last time.…
FLASH! A blast of white light blinded her.
The next thing Twilight saw was the shore at the base of Mount Aris.
CHAPTER TWENTY
The bedraggled ponies rubbed the water out of their eyes as they peeled themselves from the ground. Once they were back on their hooves, they wasted no time. Applejack marched right up to Twilight and stomped her hoof in the sand. “What were you thinking?! I mean, stealing their pearl?”
“It was the only way to save Equestria!” Twilight explained.
“Except it wasn’t!” Pinkie Pie added, her bottom lip jutting out in a pink pout. “The queen was going to say yes! We did what you told us, and that’s what made her realize we were ponies worth saving.” She began to pace around, thinking. She stopped dead in her tracks, coming to a realization. “Unless… you didn’t really want us to show her the best time ever! You just wanted us to distract her!”
Everypony stared at Twilight in horror. Was it true?
Twilight let out a frustrated growl. “I never would have done it, but this isn’t Equestria! We can’t just dance around with con artists, make Rainbooms in the sky, and expect everything to work out! It’s not enough; we are not enough!”
Pinkie Pie shook her sad pink mane. “No, Twilight. We stuck together. We were gonna get the help we needed. The only thing that stopped us was you.”
This was ridiculous. Why couldn’t Twilight’s friends see that she was doing the best she could? The pressure of this entire situation was all on Twilight. She was the one Tempest Shadow was after, and she was the last princess of Equestria. “I’m the only one they want!”
“You’re also the only one who doesn’t trust her friends!” Pinkie Pie retorted. The other ponies nodded in agreement. Twilight wasn’t being a team player.
That was enough. Twilight looked up to the spiky, desolate Mount Aris, and something snapped inside her. This was all too much, and her friends had been nothing but trouble for her. She spun around on her hooves and narrowed her eyes. “Well, maybe I would have been better off without friends like you!” Twilight yelled angrily. A spark of magical energy spit out of Twilight’s horn, almost like Tempest’s.
Twilight watched, but the sight of Pinkie Pie and the rest of her friends trotting away was blurry from the tears in her eyes. She had ruined everything by trying to steal the pearl. There was no way to save Equestria now. Twilight fell into a sad, crying heap of a pony. She didn’t even notice the ominous dark clouds gathering above her.
At least Spike had hung back to make sure Twilight was okay. Or no one might have ever seen the princess get carted away in a cage by Tempest and her guards.
“Twilight!” Spike cried as his friend disappeared into the hull of the skiff. He shot a sad blast of fire at the ship in a feeble attempt to do something to help. But it made no difference. Without her good friends, Princess Twilight Sparkle hadn’t stood a chance. The ponies had been officially divided and conquered.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Tempest Shadow paced around Twilight’s cage with pep in her step. It was the first time Twilight had seen her look anything resembling happy, which was very sad. “Aw, the Princess of Friendship…” Tempest chuckled. Her hooves clanked noisily on the floor. “With no friends! And no way out.”
“Why are you doing this?” Twilight slumped down. “You’re a pony! Just like me.”
Tempest spun around. She cantered over to Twilight’s cage and leaned in close enough for Twilight to see her broken horn. It was jagged and scarred. It looked so painful. “I’m nothing like you,” Tempest growled with disdain. “I’m more than you’ll ever be.”
“Why are you so hateful?” Twilight’s eyes searched Tempest’s. “I don’t understand.…”
Maybe it was time Twilight Sparkle learned a little lesson and got some perspective on what it was like for somepony who hadn’t had a perfect life like hers. She was just a little, pretty princess with every chance handed to her on a silver platter with cupcakes next to it.
“I once hoped for friendship, like you.” Tempest took a deep breath. “But that was stupid and childish. Because, when things got difficult for me, my so-called pony ‘friends’ abandoned me.”
Twilight’s eyes grew large. “You had pony friends?”
“Of course I did,” Tempest replied. “Fillies don’t start out this way.” She motioned to her broken horn and sneered. “But they certainly don’t want to be around a Unicorn with a deformed horn. Even if they were playing in the forest with you when the ursa minor attacked, too.” A tiny spark emitted from Tempest’s horn. She hung her head low. “My friends didn’t care about me after that. I was too revolting, and I couldn’t play their little Unicorn games.”
“I’m sorry you felt so alone,” said Twilight tenderly. She put her hoof up to the bars of her cage to reach out for Tempest, who shrank away.
“I saw the truth. My ‘friends’ abandoned me when times got tough. Looks like I’m not the only one.” Tempest smiled and began to trot to the door. She turned around and added one last sting before exiting. “Face it, Princess. Friendship has failed you, too.”
Alone in her cage, Twilight realized the actual truth. Friendship hadn’t failed her. Twilight had failed friendship. She’d grown selfish and put her friends in danger instead of working together to solve the problem, as she’d vowed she’d always do. And there was nothing Twilight could do about it now. The fate of Equestria was in somepony else’s hooves now.
Hours later, Twilight was wheeled into the familiar castle throne room by fellow ponies with chains around their hooves. It was an awful feeling to enter her old home as a prisoner. But it was worse to see the other princesses frozen in stone and the Storm King sitting on the throne.
“Wow, it’s a good thing they’re stone, right? So you don’t have to see their disappointment in your complete, utter failure.” Tempest laughed.
Twilight whimpered at the nightmare. “Tempest, don’t do this! Give the Storm King—”
“Your magic?” Tempest’s horn crackl
ed. “Did you think you’d keep it all to yourself? Time to share.” The evil Unicorn smiled and looked out the window dreamily. “I’d love for everypony out there to know what I can really do!”
“Oooh, fascinating!” the Storm King bellowed. “Tell me, sparky, what can you do?! Light a little candle with that sparkler of yours?” He cackled at his nasty comment as if it were the funniest thing ever uttered. Tempest shrank back in embarrassment. Twilight again felt a tiny bit bad for her. The Storm King gestured his staff at Twilight. “Why is this one still moving?!”
Tempest gathered herself and remained professional. “She and her friends put up a bit of a fight, but she’s alone now. She won’t be a problem.”
The Storm King lumbered across the room, looking around at the beautiful stained-glass windows and tapestries. “Yeah, so speaking of problems. This place. It seems… a little too—oh, I don’t know—cute! I don’t like cute; I never did like cute—doesn’t really go with my whole big, bad, powerful-magic-guy thing, does it?! Deliver the punchline, Tempest, because this has gotta be a joke!”
The beast slammed his staff to the floor. Instantly, it began to rattle and shake with power as streams of magical energy started to sap from each princess statue. Twilight gritted her teeth, trying to resist the magical pull of the object, but it was so strong. Her horn sputtered and glowed as the magic swirled around the floor and rose to dance around the Storm King.
The staff glowed brightly. It was fully charged.
“Wow! Let’s get this storm started!” he yelled with glee. “Ooh, hey, that’s good—I should trademark that.” He shot a jolt of energy at the wall, and it came crashing down. Debris flew across the room and into Twilight’s cage. She ducked and squinted, feeling pain from the destruction of her beloved castle.
“Not bad. Actually, kind of first-rate! What else does it do?” he asked Tempest, admiring his new toy.
Tempest followed him and approached him meekly. “Your Excellency, you promised to restore my horn and give it even greater power—”
“You gotta be kidding me!” he interrupted, waving the staff around with reckless abandon. “I can move the sun?! AH HAH HAH! Whoa, and the moon!” The Storm King moved both heavenly bodies around in the sky, creating a continual, hyperfast dance of day and night.
“Day night, night day, night day night day night sunrise sunset… de de bup bup bup bah bah bah bah…” the beast sang. Tempest looked annoyed and impatient. But Twilight realized all this dawdling could be useful. Maybe she still had time to come up with a plan.
If only her friends were with her.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity had been shocked when Spike came running breathlessly up to them to deliver the horrible news of Twilight’s foalnapping. But it had been even more of a shock when Capper, Captain Celaeno, and Princess Skystar, transformed back into a Hippogriff, had appeared at Mount Aris shortly after, hoping to help the ponies. Once everycreature had been brought up to speed, they all seemed even more fired up and ready to take back Canterlot. The Storm King just couldn’t go on terrorizing them—not without a fight! Plus, there was no chance they weren’t going to save Twilight.
Between the cunning skills of Capper, the swashbuckling abilities of the pirates, and Princess Skystar’s unwavering positivity and Hippogriff agility, the ragtag team had been able to put together a solid plan for infiltrating the enemy headquarters.
And it was time.
When they arrived at Canterlot, two Storm Creature guards stood in front of Canterlot’s main gates. They appeared to be of the standard oaf variety—fond of holding spears and grunting a lot, but that was about it. Capper adjusted his baker disguise, pushed his gigantic “cake” along, and smirked at his own genius. If this little plan didn’t work, then he wasn’t a cat named Capper. The ponies, who were bound in “shackles,” with him really sold the whole story.
As soon as they got close, the guards blocked them with their spears. But Capper was unfazed. He pretended to consult his delivery clipboard.
“All right, then. Can one of y’all go and tell your boss he’s not getting his ‘Congratulations on subduing defenseless pastel ponies’ cake?” Capper tapped his toe impatiently. “’Cause I don’t want to be the one responsible for the big guy missing his special dessert, you know what I’m saying?”
The two guards looked at each other for an answer, shrugged, and stepped aside. It was working! Pinkie Pie couldn’t help but smile as they trotted into Canterlot. It was easy as pie!
“Pinkie, quit lookin’ so happy! Y’ain’t foolin’ nopony!” Applejack barked under her breath.
Pinkie nodded and put on a dramatic sad face for the rest of the trip to the center of Canterlot. The plan was to go straight to the castle and attack from the inside, but once they’d arrived at the main plaza, Grubber happened to see the giant cake. The treat-loving creature ambled over greedily.
“Hello, cake!” he said, climbing onto the cart to snag a taste of the confection. “Don’t mind if I do.” His little paw grabbed a fistful of icing and cake, revealing a set of eyes behind it! “Who puts eyeballs in filling?” he wondered aloud.
Before he could call for the guards, a gaggle of giant birds sprang from the cake! They burst forth and lunged for the Storm Creatures, entangling themselves in a full-on battle! Skystar, in Hippogriff form, accompanied Pinkie Pie and the other ponies, flinging cupcake ammo and taking out several Storm Creatures on their own. The entire kingdom looked like a big mess of hooves, fur, and feathers, and soon the Storm Creatures were retreating in fear from the ferocious band of ragtag scalawags!
Capper had done it. They had begun to take back Canterlot.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
The commotion down below reached up to the tallest towers of the castle. When they heard the sounds of the Storm Creatures surrendering, Tempest Shadow darted from the throne room to the balcony in disbelief. “What?!” she cried, watching the destruction. “How?!”
Twilight gasped. “It’s… it’s the Magic of—”
“Yeah, yeah!” the Storm King mocked, making his voice high-pitched and silly. He leaned down and pulled Tempest and a freshly uncaged, but magic-less Twilight into an insincere embrace. “Friendship and flowers and ponies and… bleeeehhhhh!” He straightened up, a menacing look in his eyes. “I’m so totally over the cute-pony thing!” The Storm King raised his staff to the darkening sky. “THIS ENDS NOW!”
A zap of lightning shot straight up from the end of the staff to the heavens. The black clouds moved in, covering the entire sky above Canterlot. A whoosh of wind barreled through, kicking up dust and twisting it into a gigantic tornado. “Yeah!” The Storm King cackled. He was a maniac! And he had nothing in the world to lose.
Twilight wanted to do something, but it was as if her hooves were frozen in place. With the Staff of Sacanas under his control, the Storm King was so powerful. All Twilight was managing to do was look on in horror as her home was about to be destroyed.
On the ground below, Capper and the crew ran for cover. “Move your hooves, ponies!” he shouted as the tornado began to pick up Storm Creatures and all kinds of other debris.
Rainbow Dash couldn’t tear her eyes away from the twister. “You’d have to be faster than a speeding Pegasus to break through that wind!”
Pinkie’s eyes widened with intrigue. “Excellent idea, Rainbow Dash!” She whipped out a helmet and secured it over her curly fuchsia mane. If there was ever a time to attempt something like this, it was now. All Pinkie had to do was find some helpers first….
The sound of the Storm King’s booming voice echoed right through the chaos. “Now I truly am the Storm King!” He threw his hairy white arms out in triumph. “And the entire world will bow to my va va va VOOM, BABY!” His laughter pierced Tempest’s ears, and she shuddered. She had endured his behavior with no compensation long enough. It was her time now.
The plum pony stepped forward to make her case.
“Yes, yes, you are every bit as powerful as I promised, sire. Now, restore my horn and I swear to use my magic to serve you!” She bent her foreleg and bowed down to the beast. But her request was met with maniacal cackles.
“Who cares about your dinky little Unicorn horn?!” the Storm King bellowed. He pushed Tempest aside as if she were yesterday’s trash.
Tempest shook her head in disbelief. Tears began to well up in her eyes. “But we had an agreement.…”
“Get with the program.” His broad chest bounced up and down as he laughed. “I used you. It’s kinda what I do!” The Storm King raised his staff and pointed it at Tempest. Blasts of magical energy shot toward her, and the pony stumbled back, straight into the tornado! Tempest grabbed on to the balcony railing and gripped it for dear life, but it was no use. It was a fitting end for a pathetic, useless Unicorn without a horn or a single friend in the world.
This would be the last of Tempest Shadow.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Hold on!” Twilight Sparkle shouted over the roar of the worsening storm. Tempest may have been working against her and all Equestria this entire time, but there was no way Twilight could stand by and watch this happen to the other Unicorn. The princess galloped over and reached her hoof out to her captor.
Tempest’s big aqua eyes searched Twilight’s. “Why are you saving me?”
“Because this… is what friends do!” Twilight reached both hooves out to Tempest and yanked her back onto the balcony. The ponies tumbled to the surface with an unceremonious crash.
By the time the two ponies picked themselves off the floor, the Storm King was back. He towered over them, pointing the staff directly at their terrified faces. But he was interrupted by a strange sound.