Chapter 5

After scouring the imploded once-safe house, we set off into the now unknown streets of Ponyville with a shortened supply of tools. We had obscured nine cans of food, wretched-tasting food, by the way, a machete, a gun, vials of various mysterious liquids S had been testing for a cure, two refillable containers of freshwater, and two tents. I wish I hadn't damaged the bunker.

Two days had passed since the destruction of our home, and the stakes were much higher now than they ever were before. A tent to keep us away from the dangerous Zomponies lurking around, we constantly had a watch guard.

"My hooves hurt!" RJ whined.

Tired of her continuous complaints, I snapped, "THEN FLY FOR CELESTIA'S SAKE! YOU HAVE WINGS, DON'T YOU?"

RJ recoiled, shocked at my rude suggestion. "Jeez!" she muttered, then, clearly thinking of the wisdom in it, began to flap her wings, barely hovering above the ground.

S turned to me. "Cyclone, what's gotten into you? Why are you being so sour?"

I scowled. "Just mind your own business!" I shot at her.

RJ and S exchanged a glance, and then continued walking. Pinkie stalked gradually behind them, obviously slow with fatigue. "We should rest," I declared defiantly, waiting for an opposing statement from the others. All I received was three nods from sleep-deprived ponies.

…

Moaning sounded from outside of the tent. "S," I whispered. She shuddered and turned, but did not wake up. "S!" I whisper-shouted. Moaning.

"What!"

"Ssshhh!" I hushed her. "There are Zomponies. Come help me drive them off."

S looked confused. "That's you and Rj's job."

"RJ's in the other tent, it's too dangerous to try and get her without attracting more Zomponies."

"Fine," S said.

I leaped up onto my hooves and began to unzip the tent with my magic. I signalled to S with three hoof stomps to jump out in "1, 2, 3!"

I launched out of the tent, S flanking me. There! A Zompony lingered in the well-trodden streets of Ponyville. I sent a volley of thundering, raining clouds to the Zompony. It ran in circles, until a flash of lightning took it out instantly.

I saw S swallow hard. "You okay?" I questioned.

She looked nervous. "Yeah. I just… they were once just like us. It's hard for me to accept that we have to… do the unthinkable."

I glared at my hooves. "I know what you mean. But we have to."

S nodded solemnly, turning towards the tent. I followed her, but before her or I reached the tent, we heard a LOT more moaning. We both whipped around, staring at the dozens of Zomponies that had formed ranks around us. "Attack!" I said to S.

I raced to a clear area so that I could whip up a storm. I created miniature tornadoes and sent them hurtling towards a team of Zomponies, sending them farther away from S and I. I was just about to create a break in the earth, when I fell to the ground.

My eyes were closed in the feeling of a large absence. How was this happening? I wondered. "My chaos magic!" I shouted. "It's gone!"

Glancing around, searching for S, I realized she was gone.

…

"Attack!" Cyclone said. S charged forward, unsure what to do in the situation. Cyclone was stronger in chaos magic, and usually battled enemies with weather of some sort. Rainbow Jewel, if she were up, would either battle using some weather moves, or try to get in the minds of the Zomponies. S had no strategy.

Scanning the groups of Zomponies lurking around, S decided on a tactic.

She squeezed her eyes shut and teleported herself to another location, launched her hoof rapidly to strike a Zompony, and then transmitted herself to another section. She repeated this strategy once more before something strange happened. She readied herself to beam to a site only a few yards away in order to fight the Zomponies with her new technique, but, before she did, all of the Zomponies stopped in their tracks.

The mares and colts with rotten flesh had just… halted. S was bewildered. She then turned to where Cyclone was standing, and, not to her surprise, she was also frozen. Am I doing this?

In an instant, she was no longer in the streets of Ponyville.

"S."

S turned to the voice, and was instantly shocked to see her mother staring back at her.

"Mom…" Selena wanted to say so many things to her deceased mother.

"No. This is a time of listening, Selena Star." Luna said solemnly.

"You will not be Selena from this day on. You will not be just the weak-link of the princesses." Just because I don't have strong chaos magic does NOT mean I am the weak-link! "You will be granted stronger chaos magic, even if I did believe that it should've been disposed of.

"You will be the first of your sisters to transform into a new symbol of hope throughout the Zompony age." S's body began to shimmer with a strange glow. "You will be a new pony from this day forth."

Selena became enveloped in a red light. She couldn't even see her body through the blinding rays. "Luna, I don't want to be a different pony!" she shouted helplessly into the body of light.

The light finally died out, and when it did, Luna no longer stood in S's path. But her voice remained.

"You will become Crystal Leaf, the princess of time and space." 'Crystal Leaf' looked down at her blue body. Luna was lying! She had to have been, for she was the same pony as before. What a relief! She thought, as a strand of red hair fell into her vision.

"Wait a minute," she said in bewilderment. "I… don't have red hair!" she said overwhelmed. Also, where was she? She looked around, and was even more shocked to find that she was on the surface of the moon. Then, she wasn't.

She was back with Cyclone, in the midst of some Zomponies. Adrenaline ran through her and she charged towards them. Once-again, they stopped in their tracks. She froze as well, in confusion, before continuing. Luna had said she was the princess of time. She would be able to control when this happened, eventually.

She struck the Zomponies, causing them to fall to the ground. Then everypony began moving again. Finally at ease, she turned to where Cyclone was standing.

"S!" Cyclone shouted.

S whipped around. Cyclone's eyes grew wide. "I do not think I am meant to be 'S' anymore." Cyclone recoiled in shock at the news. "I… think that I am supposed to be Crystal Leaf."

"Um, Sel – er, Crystal Leaf, there's something you should know…"

"S!" RJ shouted, scrambling out of the tent. "You're an earth pony!"