Unknown Location, about 20 years ago...

It was pitch black as the hedgehog made his way through the lush jungle, rain falling upon the entire island. From what he could see, the plants had started to regrow from what could only be described as a forest fire. As he traversed the fallen trees that lay before him, the hedgehog thought about how he got here. He had woken up in a hall of some kind surrounded by 7 strange gems, with his memory being a mess. The only things that he could decipher from said mess were the words 'Hyper', 'Sonic' and 'Chaos'.

"Ugh... Just what the heck does this all mean? I don't even know where I am..." he pondered.

While deep in thought, the tree trunk he was walking along gave way, causing him to plummet into a river that ran underneath. As he got pulled downstream, he attempted to fight the current, his body weakening with each second he tried. Because he was not used to so much physical activity, he got pushed down the river and was left trying to stay afloat with what little energy he had left. After regaining his bearings, he noticed he was quickly approaching a waterfall. What he didn't know, was that this river lead to a horrifying drop into the ocean below.

Fearing for what could be at the bottom of the approaching drop, the hedgehog made one final attempt to escape the current. He noticed a nearby tree that had fallen over the side of the river and tried to swim towards it. However, the moment he grabbed onto the trunk, it snapped and pulled him downstream. As he tried to get on top of the log, the hedgehog saw a vast ocean before him. Putting that information with the current situation, he feared that he was in grave danger. He climbed onto the log and jumped for a nearby branch. Knowing his recent luck with breaking trees, he jumped towards another branch the moment he grabbed the first .

He continued to do this until he reached the last one that could get him to dry land. The hedgehog leapt from the final branch towards safety, when another tree fell down, blocking his path.

"Are you kidding me!?" He shouted aggressively.

Suddenly, his instincts kicked in and he launched himself off the tree into another, leaping branch to branch until he eventually landed on safe ground by the river.

"What is with this place?" he thought as he tried to catch his breath, "It almost seems like something is out to get me..."

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind started pushing him towards the edge. The hedgehog tried to fight the breeze, but the wet grass beneath caused him to slip and fall face first onto the ground. As he tumbled, the hedgehog began to curl into a ball and somehow started spinning rapidly on the spot.

"What the heck is going on?!" he shouted as he continued to spin.

A few seconds later, steam appeared to be coming off of the hedgehog's body. It seemed that the hedgehog was starting to spin faster, but he was also losing traction as he began to get pushed back towards the edge.

"Maybe if I spin faster, I can push past this wind." He thought.

The hedgehog began to push himself harder, spinning even faster with each passing second. As he continued, he started to feel nauseous.

"Ugh... I can't... keep... this up. *gag*" He said.

The hedgehog instantly broke out of his roll and sprawled out onto the grass. Attempting to stabilise his rising urge to vomit, he had forgotten about the strong winds pushing him and was sent over the edge. As he fell, his vision became blurry until he slowly slipped into unconsciousness.

Old Tower, 9:21am...

The building was fairly silent, with the two Mobians sleeping soundly. Hyper had decided to crash on the bed downstairs, while Galactic had fallen asleep whilst reading a book. As the two continued to sleep, a knocking sound spread through the tower. Galactic's ear began to twitch, causing her to slowly awaken from her slumber.

"Huh...? Is someone there?" she said sleepily.

Galactic eventually got to her feet and slowly headed downstairs to the entrance. Upon opening the front door, Rarity was standing outside with a smile on her face.

"Good morning Galactic. Did you sleep well?" the fashionista asked.

"I've slept better... I was up late reading up on Equestrian History..." Galactic replied with a yawn.

"Where's Hyper? Celestia said that he would be staying here with you." Rarity wondered.

As if to answer her question, the hedgehog began to stir in his sleep, catching the girls' attention. The two headed towards Hyper and saw he was rolling back and forth, as if trying to find a comfortable position. Suddenly, he rolled off the bed, falling onto the floor with a thud and waking up as a result.

"Owww... How'd I end up on the floor?" He wondered, still half asleep as he rubbed his aching head.

"You rolled over the edge of the bed and fell off." Galactic explained.

"Oh, hey Galactic..." Hyper greeted before turning to the fashionista, "Morning Rarity. Didn't expect you here so soon."

"I came by to see if you two were ready to head out, but it would seem that you two just woke up." She said, taking note of the hedgehog's sleepy state.

"Hey, don't blame me! This is the first time I've had a good night's sleep since we arrived in Equestria." He replied, with a hint of aggression in his voice, "I slept way better here than in Twilight's castle."

"Either way, we promised Rainbow Dash that we'd accompany her at the practice session today." Galactic stated as she helped the hedgehog up.

"Okay, okay. Just gimme a sec to get ready." Hyper said.

"But you don't have anything with you." the vocaloid pointed out.

"Shut up, I'm sleepy." He retorted, "Rarity, can you lead the way?"

"Of course I can. Perhaps we should get something to eat first." Rarity suggested.

"Sure. I could go for a meal after all the reading I did last night." Galactic answered.

Canterlot, 9:40am...

The sun was high as the three made their way to the local tea and cake shop, with Hyper still slightly drowsy from his abrupt awakening. Along the way, the mobians noticed that most of the shops in Canterlot were sophisticated establishments. While a bit uneasy about the large amount of them, Hyper didn't find it too surprising.

"I can't be the only one who feels out of place here, right?" the hedgehog asked as he continued to look around, "Besides us not being ponies that is."

"Well, what else could you mean?" Rarity wondered.

"This whole city is made up of royalty and high class ponies. Hyper and I are nowhere near that... 'proper'." Galactic replied, comparing her attire to that of nearby ponies.

"I suppose you're right..." the unicorn thought.

"While it's most likely because you are from around here, I feel as though it has something to do with those 'Elements of Harmony' that were brought up the other day." Hyper pondered, still curious about the elements.

"What make's you say that?" the vocaloid asked.

"Not only do Twilight and the others know of these items, if that's what they are, but the princesses do as well. I'm also still curious about this energy they hold." The hedgehog replied.

"I doubt I'm the best pony to explain such things, but I suppose I can tell you the essentials." Rarity said as they arrived at their destination, "First we should find a place to sit."

The three made their way to the nearest table, but just as they got there, Hyper noticed a lack of chairs. However, in place of chairs were cushions that lay on the ground, which kind of concerned him.

"That's... odd. Out of all places in existence, a city like this is the last place I'd expect to lack chairs." He commented as looked at the cushion's design.

"Remember, things probably don't work exactly like they do where you're from." The fashionista reminded before heading inside, "I'll be right back."

As they watch the unicorn enter the building, the mobians finally took a seat at the tables, with Hyper sitting with his legs crossed and Galactic with her legs to her side.

"So, didja find anything else in those books last night?" he asked.

"Nothing too major. Just stuff about magic and various other subjects." Galactic replied, "However, from what I read in that one book, it seems the Elements of Harmony can be used for imprisonment."

"Really? While interesting, I doubt that's all they can do if their power could rival that of the emeralds." The hedgehog thought.

As the two continued to discuss their findings, Rarity returned with a cake and 3 cups of tea. As the unicorn levitated them onto the table, Hyper looked at the food, curious as to it's taste. The cake was covered with chocolate frosting and it was obviously decorated with a lot of care, as not a single item was off balance or misplaced. Just looking at it made him want to dig in.

"Are you sure it wasn't any trouble for you to get this?" Galactic asked as she grabbed a cup for herself.

"Not at all. I felt bad for waking you two up and I wanted to make it up to you." The unicorn replied.

"Not to mention you woke us up at least 30 mintues early." Hyper added as he grabbed a slice of cake, "Now about the Elements?"

"You already know that they are powerful, right?" Rarity started as she reminded them of their likeness to the emeralds.

The two nodded in reply as they continued eating and drinking.

"Well, the Elements of Harmony each represent an essential quality of Harmony. There is Generosity, Honesty, Laughter, Kindness, Loyalty and finally, Magic." She explained.

"So, they are more than just powerful objects..." Hyper thought, "But what about their connection to you and the others?"

"Almost 2 years ago, Twilight had come to Ponyville to help with preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration and just when Celestia was meant to make her appearance, she had gone missing." Rarity began, "No one knew where she went, but before anypony could go and look, Nightmare Moon showed up and vowed to make the night eternal."

"Nightmare Moon? Eternal night? You wouldn't happen to mean 'The Mare in the Moon', would you?" Galactic wondered, curious about the tale's validity.

"I'm surprised you know of the tale. Anyway, after Twilight ran off to find information on the Elements, the six of us went into the Everfree Forest to get them." The unicorn continued, "When we got to castle where they were being held, Nightmare Moon took Twilight and the Elements to another tower and broke them into pieces."

"Surely more happened, right? I mean the sun is high in the sky right now." Hyper commented, looking up at the ball of light.

"When the rest of us caught up to Twilight, the broken Elements began to surround each of us and we defeated Nightmare Moon with them." Rarity finished.

"So, where are they now? You don't look like you have them with you." Galactic asked, curious of their whereabouts.

"We had to return them to the Tree of Harmony. If we didn't Equestia would've been overtaken by the Everfree Forest." The fashionista replied.

"Okay, okay. WAY too much exposition. While I would like to know more about the Elements and this Nightmare Moon, let's save it for when we get back to Ponyville, 'kay?" Hyper suggested as he finished his slice of cake.

"Where are you going?" Galactic asked, seeing the hedgehog get to his feet.

"I'll meet you guys at the stadium!" he replied, before sprinting down the street.

Once the hedgehog had left the area, Rarity looked over at Galactic and sighed.

"Must he be so impatient?" she asked.

"He's like Sonic, at least from what I know." Galactic said.

Cloud Stadium, 9:51am...

As Hyper raced past the many buildings that made up Canterlot, he noticed they all had one thing in common.

"Jeez. Why must all the buildings be so similar. Sure the cities back home had the same issue at times, but at least they were exciting." He stated as he thought of the many loops and corkscrews that were in those cities.

As he continued, Hyper eventually arrived at the stadium. From what he saw, it was just like it was yesterday, except there were more Wonderbolts flying around the place. Also like yesterday, he noticed the trails of smoke that they left in their wake. Hyper eventually spotted Rainbow Dash sitting in the bleachers, watching her idols train.

"How's it going?" Hyper asked as he sat down beside the Pegasus.

"Oh, hey Hyper. Where are the others?" Rainbow Dash wondered, looking for Rarity and Galactic.

"They're just finishing up with breakfast." The hedgehog explained, "You been here long?"

"Not exactly. I mean I was kinda worried that you wouldn't show up." She replied, looking at the training Wonderbolts.

"Why should you be worried? When you've got speed on your side, it's harder not to show up." Hyper said with a grin.

"I guess you're right. I'm just glad you're here right now. I don't know who I'd be talking to if you weren't." Rainbow Dash admitted, feeling somewhat better.

"You'd be talking to me." A Wonderbolt said after landing behind the two.

"Soarin, is something wrong?" the pegasus asked as she turned to the pony.

"Spitfire's mom sent a letter saying she was sick, so she left to take care of her." Soarin explained.

"Man, that sucks. I hope she gets better soon." Hyper commented.

"Same here. In the meantime, we need you to fly in her place." The wonderbolt stated.

"Wait, you mean, like in the actual show?!" Rainbow Dash asked, slightly confused.

"Unless Spitfire comes back, then yes." Soarin confirmed.

As the conversation unfolded, Hyper could she the excitement in Rainbow's eyes. From what he could gather, this was a huge deal for her. Performing alongside the Wonderbolts and a living legend must be a dream come true for her.

"I won't let you down, Soarin!" the pegasus replied before flying into the sky and squealing with excitement, "This is the best thing ever!"

While she was up there, Hyper and Soarin saw that she appeared to be dancing and singing.

"Uh... Rainbow Dash?" the Wonderbolt began.

"Perhaps it's best to let her get this out of her system." Hyper suggested as he watched Rainbow Dash with a nervous smile.

3 minutes later...

It had been a while since Rainbow Dash had gotten into the air and from what Hyper could see, she was enjoying every second of it. As she flew alongside Wind Rider, the hedgehog felt like something was off. While he dwelled on the thought, Rarity and Galactic arrived, snapping him out of it.

"There you are, Hyper. What's Rainbow Dash doing up there?" Galactic asked, looking up at the cyan pegasus.

"Turns out Spitfire's mom is sick and she went to take care of her." Hyper explained, "So for the time being, old Dashie is filling in for her."

As the three caught up, Rainbow Dash noticed the other two and waved their way, not realising she was breaking formation. After getting a look from Wind Rider, she regained her focus.

While Hyper was filling his friends in on what they missed, he noticed a yellow pegasus sitting beside them.

"Someone you know out there?" he asked, trying to start a friendly conversation, drawing Rarity and Galactic's attention toward the pegasus.

"Yes. My daughter's a Wonderbolt, but I can't seem to spot her." She replied, "Do you know Spitfire?"

"You must be her mother. Hold on a sec, I heard from Soarin you were sick." Hyper wondered.

"Sick?" the pony replied, quite confused.

"From what I heard, Spitfire got a letter from you saying you were unwell, so she went home to look after you." The hedgehog explained.

"But I never sent any letter." She stated.

As the two were talking, Soarin noticed the commotion and immediately thought something was odd.

"Stormy Flare? Aren't you supposed to be sick?" he asked, "'Kay, what's happening here?"

"I have no clue, but I am certain I didn't send my daughter any letters." Stormy Flare replied.

"What are the chances of someone having sent a fake letter?" Galactic thought.

"Who would do such a thing?" a fellow Wonderbolt wondered.

"Somepony who wanted her out of the show, I suppose." Soarin suggested.

As the Wonderbolts were thinking of who was responsible and why they did the deed, Rainbow Dash overheard the commotion and decided to find out who was responsible.

"But who would want that?" she asked.

"Maybe so they could take her spot." Wind Rider said as he looked at Rainbow Dash, with the other Wonderbolts doing the same.

As the group's gaze grew stronger, the pony in question began to grow worried.

"Something doesn't add up... I smell a set-up." Hyper thought as he looked at the scene before him closely.

With such a scene unfolding, why wouldn't I end it off here? I mean, at this point, it's a commercial break. Anyway, Spitfire has been falsely led away and all suspicion falls upon Rainbow Dash. Can they find the TRUE culprit before the show? Find out next time!