Chapter 11: The Royal Blacksmith
Deep within a desert, behind of a large serpent statue lies a pyramid. The Serpentine had already arrived and have used the keys to open the way inside. Pythor and the Serpentine made a turn at a corner and down a hallway till he stopped and hold up his arm to make the rest of them halt. Skales was looking at the map as he bumped into Pythor. "Why musssst we sssstop when the next Fangblade it's just ahead of us?" he asked Pythor before the Anacondrai used his staff to hit the ground, causing the path in front of to crumble into a pit below.
"What good is unlocking the Great Devourer with the four Fangblades, if we're not around to see it?" Pythor scolded Skales, subtly reminding him about what happened to them when they went after the key in the jungle. "Get the colt."
"Bring the colt!" Skales ordered a Serpentine from behind. A Venomari and a Fangpyre was bringing Lloyd wrapped in chains to them before they released him from the chains.
"Oh! You're letting me go?" Lloyd asked Pythor hopefully, causing him to chuckle a little.
"Only to fetch, my dear foal." Pythor told him as he led Lloyd to the side of the pathway. "Do step lightly."
Lloyd carefully walked across the narrow walkway, pressing himself against the wall to avoid falling into the pit. But when he tried to jump across, he stepped onto a weak stone and almost dropped. He screamed and grabbed on to the ledge, looked down before pulling himself up onto the other side.
He turned to Pythor, "Bring me the Fangblade, and I'll let you go," he promised.
Lloyd whimpered and took a few steps but then stepped on a trap stone and galloped across the floor as it fell to pieces. He jumped to safety but set off another trap as spikes from the ceiling started moving to squash him. Lloyd crawled as fast as he could, narrowly escaping the spikes. As he stood up however, he set off another trap and swarms of arrows shot out from the walls and he rushed down the hall, miraculously he managed to get to the other side, without a single arrow in him.
Lloyd leaned against a pole to catch his breath, and then noticed the shrine room ahead, with a beam of light shining down on a pedestal. The Fangblade was just ahead, but then as he went to get it, he pushed the pole he was leaning on out of alignment, causing dirt and rocks to rain down on him, he managed to avoid them as a pile of sand and stones pushed him face first into the room. Lloyd got up, walked up the stairs, and towards the pedestal but all he found was a layer showing an indentation of where the Fangblade once laid. Lloyd turned back to the exit and called back to Pythor, "It's gone!" he yelled.
His echo was heard by Pythor, who was left shocked by this revelation. "It's gone?!" he repeated, all that hard work to find the keys, for nothing?!
"Where issss it?" Skales asked him, Pythor though furious, thought for a moment. But then remembered that when they went after the second key, Gaia's grandfather had already found it, so if the Fangblade was not here, then somepony else must have found it first. But his thoughts were interrupted when Lloyd asked.
"Do I still get to be free?"
"NO!" Pythor shouted back immediately.
Lloyd heard that and grunted.
Back in the Boral Family mansion, the ninjas, the Mane Six, Spike, Cozy Glow, Starlight, Trixie, and Blueblood were looking in a photo album where they saw Gaia's grandfather with a young Pegasus mare and earth pony stallion holding the two keys and the Fangblade and standing in front of a large pyramid in one of the photos.
"Incredible," Gaia gasped, "So these two are the ones who helped Grandfather find the keys and the Fangblade."
"Indeed," Rose said.
Rainbow then realized something, "Hey, I know that mare!" she spoke.
Pinkie looked and gasped in shock, "Your right! That's Daring Do!"
"Ah yes, she was one of my father's pupils." Rose told them. "Her and, and what was that colt's name?... Dutch? No… Clutch! It was Clutch Powers. They both learned from him about adventuring and treasure hunting. Together they found those keys and that blade you all are looking for."
"So, Grandfather took one of the keys and kept here in the mansion," Gaia said.
"And Daring Do must've given the other key to The Crystal Empire when it returned." Twilight added.
"So that means, this Clutch Powers must've hidden the Fangblade somewhere as well," Flash stated as Landrush blinked and remembered something, "But now the question is, where did he-"
"That's it!" Landrush exclaimed, surprising everypony.
"What's it?" Flash asked as Landrush was running out of the room.
"I finally remembered where I've seen the Fangblade before! I have a picture of it!" Landrush explained. After a bit, he came back with his own photo album and opened it up. He then showed them all a picture of a trophy with the Fangblade on top of it.
"Oh, that's it!" Thunder shouted when they saw the picture.
"Back where I grew up there's this pretty big competition, where every year the winner gets the Blade Cup," Landrush explained as the others looked at him, "My dad's won it, multiple times, even once with my mom."
"You never told us your father was an accomplished athlete," Frost pointed out, "What sport?"
Landrush then became a bit sheepish, "Oh, uh, he's a, uh um, a Blacksmith."
Trail and Aqua looked unbothered, "Nothing wrong with that, our father was a blacksmith too," Trail said as Aqua nodded.
"Yeah, but I've never heard of a competition for-" she started before Landrush interrupted her.
"That's because he's not a 'blacksmith' Blacksmith, he's a 'Royal' Blacksmith." Landrush explained as he turned the page to show a photo of a grey coated, black maned stallion holding the trophy.
Some of the others snickered, "Haha, that's your dad?!" Rainbow almost laughed.
"But how did that Fangblade become a trophy?" Applejack asked.
"When my father and his two pupils found these items, they must have split the finding three ways." Rose told them. "My father and Daring Do both kept the keys, while Clutch Powers turned the blade into a trophy."
"And Daring Do must have sold the key and it got turned into a chandelier." Twilight theorized. "That must explain why it was in the Crystal Empire."
"While my father kept the one that was here for safe keeping," Rose finished as Landrush walked around them.
"Anyway, The Blade Cup gets passed on to each year's winner," he told them.
"Well don't leave us in suspense~ Who has it now, darling?" Rarity asked.
Landrush looked down as he remarked, "I don't know. I haven't talked to my father in years."
Spike then held up a scroll and quill, "So let's send him a letter and ask," he suggested.
"No!" Landrush shouted as he snatched both the scroll and quill. "My dad doesn't know I'm a ninja! He thinks I'm at the Moulin Operatics School of Performing Arts! But when I couldn't sing or dance, I ran away," Landrush told them, "and if he sees that I can't dance, he'll know I've been lying in all the letters I've been sending him."
"So, your father isn't aware of your occupation as a Ninja," Gaia asked, seeing this as familiar.
"Neither did your own mom, but mine is a completely different reason as to why he doesn't know." Landrush told her, as Gaia rubbed the back of her head blushing and Rose gave her a side hug. "Anyway… now you all know. So what? Are any of you gonna crack some joke that my old stallion wears a tutu?"
Flash walked up to him, "No, but if we're gonna get the Fangblade before they do, we might need to get our own act together." He said as Landrush still looked concerned.
Meanwhile back in the Darkness Realm, the Spinjitzu brothers and the royal sisters were reaching the peak of the Mountain of Madness as they climbed over a few rocks. "There," Garmadon pointed to the blue glow at the top of the mountain, "Once we reach the top, it's just a hop, skip and jump back home," he said.
"Yes, now that we've made it this far, there's nothing to worry about," Celestia said with confidence.
Luna however stopped and turned seeing Rock rolling up past them. Celestia and the brothers saw them too and looked ahead to the clumping up together to become giant Rock Golems, "Oh you just had to jinx it, didn't you sister?" Luna asked.
As the Rock Golems approach them, they took a few steps back as they were outnumbered before Sensei Wu nearly fell back as they were near the edge of the cliff. Garmadon then drew two swords and yelled as he charged at them, striking them down. The Royal Sisters and Wu nodded to each other before drawing their own weapons and charging after their brother.
As all for them charged, one by one they knock down each Rock Golem. Just as they were making their way up the mountain, one of the Rock Golems grabbed both Wu and Celestia. Wu and Celestia were knocked off their hooves and were about to be crushed until Luna and Garmadon rushed to their younger siblings' aid.
"Watch out, you two!" Garmadon said as he and Luna took down the Cragling.
"Thanks," Wu said as he and Celestia stood up and the four regrouped. They were soon cornered by a horde of Craglings, but were not afraid as they stood back-to-back.
"Just like old times," Wu and Luna said as stood ready for battle.
"Just like old times," Garmadon and Celestia repeated. Then the four did Spinjitzu, Garmadon was a tornado of Purple and black, Luna's was Blue and silver, And Celestia was White, pink, green, blue and yellow.
"NINJA-GO!" They shouted as the Craglings back away from the four tornadoes.
Back in Equestria, the Destiny's Bounty seals over a town where Landrush used to live. The Ninja (Wearing casual clothes), jumped down, summoned their vehicles, landed just outside of Landrush's home.
Landrush then pulled out the case for their weapons and held it out for his friends, "Alright, hand them over," he told them, after placing his Scythe inside it.
"If you dare make that joke about one mortal and the six weapons again, Thunder, I will not hesitate to punch you in the face." Gaia told him as she placed her sais in the case.
"Okay, okay, Sheesh… somepony can't take a joke." Thunder complained as he placed his nunchucks in the case.
"Remind me again why we're doing this," Trail asked placing his sword in the case.
"Yeah, last time we tried something like this, it almost didn't end well," Flash reminded as he and Frost placed their weapons in the case.
"I told you; my dad can't find out I'm a ninja. And I don't feel like making up excuses why I'm carrying a giant scythe around." Landrush explained before they walked up to the door. "Just remember the plan: we find out who has the Fangblade trophy, we snatch it, and then we get the heck out of town."
Landrush then went up to the door and knocked. "Just a moment," a stallion called before he opened the door.
"Hey, Dad!" Landrush greeted with a smile, "How long has it been?"
Landrush's father however was not amused, "What, you too good for the doorbell?" He asked sternly, before slamming the door. Landrush was confused before his father called, "Use the bell, son."
Landrush did as his father asked and rang the bell.
"Welcome~!" a recording sang as the door chime.
Landrush's dad then open the door with a bright smile on his face. "Come on in, son. It's been forever." They hugged as the older stallion saw Landrush's friends, "What did you bring? A sextet? Come in, come in. I've got a kettle of lemon honey tea on the stove right now." He welcomed as they all walked in.
Inside, music was playing over a gramophone as the ninjas were handed cups of tea and they could see posters of The Royal Blacksmiths on the wall. "Did my son tell you I broke my back hoof? It was the cha-cha, but I swear the percussionist had it in for me." Landrush's father said as Landrush sighed.
"No dad, I didn't tell them about your silly stories." Landrush retorted.
"'Silly stories'?" His father asked when he heard him say that.
Trail decided to step in, "Oh, what he meant was, we've been busy training at the...uh..." He struggled to remember the name of the art school Landrush told them about.
"Uh, The Martha Oppenheimer, yeah." Thunder chimed in.
Steprush stopped the music as he turned to the group, " Martha Oppenheimer?" he repeated with suspicion.
"What he is trying to say is the Moulin Operatics School of Performing Arts." Frost quickly corrected.
"Yes, we've all been so busy with our reports and practice that he forgot to tell us about the tales of your and your group's performance on stage." Gaia added.
"After he told us you lead the Royal Blacksmiths, we knew we had to come to you to help out with this problem we have at school," Flash explained.
"Right. Well, um, see, we have this final research paper we're doing on the History of Equestria Talent, and we really want to know was, how can we get our hooves on the Blade Cup?" Landrush asked.
Steprush took a sip of his cup and looked at them seriously, "You're talking about getting your hooves on the Blade Cup? The most prized and heavily guarded award in all of Equestria, the symbol of excellence in harmony and grace?" He asked them, "You can't just get it, you have to earn it. You have to exhibit style. Perfect pitch. Push the boundaries of artistic license and win this year's Equestria Talent Show!"
"Um, perhaps there's an easier way?" Frost asked
Suddenly, Steprush's eyes widened with a sudden realization. "Is this why you came? You knew I was injured and when my quartet insisted we shan't go on, you six have come to take our place." Steprush asked. "Haha, ingenious! My son, bringing forth the next evolution of the Royal Blacksmiths! Let me hear the sweet, sweet sound of harmony."
There was a moment of silence before Thunder jumped up and sang before the others (except Landrush) jumped in.
Thunder: Harmony…
Frost: Harmony…
Gaia: Harmony…
Flash: Harmony…
Trail: Harmony…
Landrush face-hoofed himself as his dad cringed his face at the awful, off-key singing he heard. Landrush then stood up, "Look, dad. We just need the trophy." he told his father.
"Yeah, we're bringing home the gold and we want you to train us." Trail said as Landrush looked shock.
Steprush made a happy sob and sniffled. "I've never been more proud. If you'll excuse me, I need to write a song about my feelings." He said as left the room.
"What are you doing?" Landrush asked the others.
"Look, we enter this competition so we can get close enough to the Blade Cup." Flash explained it to him. "Once we get the Fangblade, we leave town. How hard can this be?"
"Uh, last time one of us said that, we were worked down to the bone." Thunder reminded him as he looked pointedly at Trail.
Meanwhile In Appleloosa, some Serpentine were causing trouble around town as the ponies ran away in fright. then a Hypnobrai and a Constrictai walked by a tree and noticed a poster on it.
"Hey, get a load of that!" the Hypnobrai said as she points to the poster.
The poster showed a picture of the Blade Cup with the words 'Equestria's Got Talent' on it "Ooh, look. A ssssinging competition. I like ssssinging." The Constrictai said in eleation, clapping her hands before the Hypnobrai hit her on the head.
"No, you idiot! The trophy!" She told him, noting at the silver blade contrasting the gold trophy, "It's the Fangblade!"
The Constrictai saw it as well, "Wait, that'sss what Pythor'sss looking for!" She said as the Hypnobrai took off the poster.
"We have to tell the otherssss." She said as the two rushed off to report what they found.
Back with the ninjas, they all were in a dance studio while Steprush was in behind a piano. "Okay, from the top. Five, six, seven, eight," he said as he started playing.
"Bop till you drop," Trail sang as he posed.
"Pace it till you race it," Flash sang as he posed
"Shake it till you break it," Thunder sang as he posed.
"Wail it till you nail it," Gaia sang as she posed.
"Move it till you lose it," Frost sang as he posed.
"Spin it till you win it," Landrush finished as he posed.
"Stop! Stop! Ugh!" Steprush shouted as he walked around the piano. "If my ears weren't attached to my head, they'd be running away! Trail, love the energy, hate the hair." Trail groaned as Steprush moved to Thunder. "Thunder, you're giving a lot, but I need more." He then moved onto Gaia, "Gaia, you're a mare, not a stallion. Act like it!" Gaia shot a glare at him as he moved over to Flash and Frost. "Frost, Flash, you both are like a machine and a soldier. Don't change anything." They both smiled as Steprush moved to Landrush. "And Land, try to act like you wanna be here."
"He's worse than Sensei Wu and your mom put together." Thunder whispered to Gaia.
"I know and I didn't even think that was possible," Gaia whispered back.
"Okay, moving forward." Steprush told them. "Let's take a look at the big show-stopping climax. Landrush, we can't have history repeating itself."
"Dad, it was the Triple Tiger Sashay. I was seven." Landrush complained.
"What is the Triple Tiger Sashay?" Flash asked.
"Only the most difficult dance move ever created." Landrush answered.
"It's true." Steprush confirmed. "Many professionals have dare tried, but it's never been successfully completed."
"Hence, my father thought a seven-year-old could!" Landrush shouted agitatedly. "But I ended up falling on my face, humiliating myself, and letting my quartet down."
"If you're going to win, you have to go big!" Steprush said before walking out, "Alright, time for a break. Take five." he closed the door as the Ninja talked amongst themselves.
"Uh, I'm starting to see why Landrush is so closed off. It's cause twinkle-toes here couldn't deliver the goods," Thunder snarked before Gaia elbowed him.
She then turned to Landrush, "Is that the real reason why you ran away? Because you're afraid to embarrass yourself again?" she asked him.
"No. I could deliver the goods-" Landrush defended before realizing what he was saying and returned to the subject at hand, "look. I'll deal with my father, but let's stick with the plan. All we have to do is keep this charade long enough until we can get our hooves on the trophy."
Thunder however looked confident, "I don't know. I'm starting to think we can win this thing." He said before Landrush grunts at him. "Okay, okay. We'll stick to the plan." he relented as they all went outside to 'practice'. Outside, a man hold cover was pushed up as Skales and Pythor poked their heads out.
"It'ssss here I can feel it," Skales said as he and Pythor looked around.
"Calm down. There's no need to attract unwanted attention." Pythor told him as they pulled our binoculars and looked around
Skales then noticed something, "Look, the ninja." He said as he pointed the Njnja practicing their routine to Pythor.
"Patience. We're snakes, remember. They'll never see us coming. Hmm." Pythor said before he got a look at the flyer the two Serpentine found and gave him. "'Open audition'?" He chuckled as they slithered back down the sewers.
Back in the Realm of Madness, the Spinjitzu Brothers and The Royal Sisters were finishing off the last of the Craglings. Once they stopped, they had reached the top of the Mountain of Madness. "The vortex back to Equestria is just over that bluff." Garmadon told them. "Please, ladies first."
"Though we live in two different worlds, I still see good in your heart, Garmadon." Celestia said as she, Wu and Luna looked down and saw a blue swirling vortex in the mouth of the mountain.
But while they had their back turned Garmadon crept up behind them, "The battle between our worlds is inevitable." Garmadon said as turned around and reared his back legs, "You put too much trust in me." He then gave the Royal Sisters and his brother a strong kick in the back but they grab onto the ledge.
"But we came for your help to save your son," Wu said as they struggled to hold on. "Did you lead us here to destroy us?"
"See you the other side," Garmadon told them before he gave one Blast from his horn and destroyed the ledge they were holding on to. Celestia, Luna, and Wu then fell into the vortex before Garmadon laughed and jumped in with them.
Back in Equestria, just outside of Ponyville as the night was beginning, a blue vortex opened over Equestria. Some ponies were startled by this and were blown back and off their hooves as Wu, Celestia and Luna dropped out of the portal and landed on the ground.
They groaned and stood up, "Well, we've arrived," Luna said, rubbing her head.
But they weren't the only ones who returned. Garmadon then stood back up, his wings fanned out and his horn glowing with magic. "I'm back, Equestria." He said as his shadow fell over some of the ponies as they sat up and he howled with evil laughter.
The greatest evil Equestria had ever known, had returned.
Meanwhile in Equestria City, the Equestria Talent Show was about to begin, the Mane 6, Spike Cozy Glow, and Aqua were sitting in the VIP seats.
"You think Landrush and the others can win the blade?" Spike asked Twilight.
"I don't know Spike I hope so," Twilight said before she noticed something about one of the judges, "Oh no, Look," The others looked and saw that first judge was a white-and-green-feathered Griffon, the second a beige-coated and red-maned stallion, and a third one Pythor wearing a fake beard and in the front row was Skales and some Hypnobrai also wearing fake beards.
"You gotta be kidding?!" Rainbow retorted, ruffling her mane. Wasn't there any place in Equestria they could get away from the Serpentine?
Starlight groaned, "How in world is those beards actually fooling everycreature?!" she asked.
"Those snakes are as stubborn as a mule," Applejack said before she heard a bray next to her and turned with an apologetic smile, "Uh, no offense," she said to an actual mule who was serving snacks and refreshments to the guests.
"None taken," he assured her.
Backstage the performers were preparing their acts, even the Ninja were doing one last practice before the show. "Then kick ball change, barrel roll, barrel turn, and we all do the double wings-" Landrush said as he did the dance steps and they follow along but when they did the double wings, Trail accidentally hit Thunder.
"Ow! Dude, you gotta follow me." Thunder told Trail.
"Follow you? You're two beats off." Trail told Thunder.
"Actually, 2.72 off of the beat." Frost corrected.
"I feel like this Stage Showmare outfit is a bit too breezy." Gaia complained as she stretched out her exposed legs.
"Guys, guys!" Landrush cut in. "Let's not make this harder than it needs to be. Just stick to the plan and keep up the charade until the trophy's revealed. Once we steal the Blade Cup, we can argue all we want once we get back home."
"Oh, so when I wished to steal the key back in my hometown, it was very bad?" Gaia asked sarcastically. "But when you choose to steal a priceless trophy from a competition, it's just fine?"
"Yeah, this is your hometown, Landrush." Flash told him. "Don't you wanna try and win?"
"Ugh. The only dance step I wanna perform is called "'get-me-out-of-this-nuthouse-and-let's-burn-these-memories-from-my-head.'" Landrush told them.
"What?" A familiar voice asked. Landrush turned around to see his father with a shocked look on his face.
"Dad. I..." Landrush try to come up with a excuse.
"You-? You were going to steal it?" Steprush asked, sounding a bit heartbroken.
"Dad, I didn't mean for you to hear that, but- But I'm glad you did." Landrush said as he walked over to his father. "There's something I want to tell you. All these years, I haven't been training to be a singer or a dancer. I found something new that I'm really good at. Dad..." Landrush then did Spinjitzu and was in his gi. "I'm a ninja."
Steprush gasped in shock as Landrush went over to the case with their weapons in it and got out his scythe while the rest of them took off their hats.
"And the truth is, if we don't steal that Fangblade- I mean, Blade Cup. There are other creatures that will. Dangerous creatures. Serpentine. And we need it to save the world. I know how ridiculous the sounds, but I'm proud of who I am, and I want you to be proud of me, too."
He placed a hoof on Steprush's shoulder, but the older stallion brushed it off, "I can't be proud of a son who thinks stealing is right, and I'm not going to watch abandon everything your mother has taught you about being an honest stallion… or watch you make a mockery of our family's legacy!" he said to Landrush before marching out the door.
"Dad, I-" Landrush trying to explain, but Steprush was already out the door. Landrush groan in shame as the others gathered around him.
"I'm sure he didn't mean that," Flash comforted him.
"Maybe if he saw you in action," Thunder guessed.
"Take it me dear, parents don't stay mad at you forever," Gaia assured him.
"No, it's- It's okay," Landrush told them before they saw a Constrictai, a Hypnobrai, a Fangpyre, and a Venomari coming out of a dressing room with wigs on their heads and sunglasses. The door to the dressing room closed and they could see a name on the bottom of the star on it.
"'Treble Makers'?" Trail read the name.
"Wait a minute, what are they doing here?" Thunder asked
Then Flash realized something, "Wait if they're here then…" he said before they heard a familiar voice.
"I can't help it if I offend anyone, My only job will be to tell the truth!" Trail peaked through the curtains and saw Pythor was one of the judges.
"You don't look anything like your photo," The Griffon judge said.
"Ah, sadly, but the camera adds a few pounds." Pythor explained with a smile, "I'm just happy to have the opportunity to judge this prestigious competition."
Then suddenly a muffled voice spoke up, "Wait a minute. I'm still here!" The voice said from, inside Pythor's belly?! "He swallowed me! He's not a judge!" The real judge exclaimed while the other two judges gasped in shock.
"Quiet!" Pythor demanded, hitting his stomach, "Or else I won't let you out."
"My apologies." The real Judge replied. He then turned to see two guards, holding the Blade Cup Trophy and carried it over to its pedstal on next to the judges.
"The Fangblade." Pythor said in awe.
The unicorn judge then made an unsure chuckle, "Uh, yeah. You mean the Blade Cup." he asked.
"Yes, yes. Whatever." Pythor said absently, as Skales and the Hypnobrai sat down and the former readjusted his beard. Trail pulled back from the curtains and turned to the others.
"It looks like we aren't the only ones here to steal the Blade Cup," he said to them as he puts his hat back on, "Pythor's here too,"
"This complicates things," Frost said nervously.
Gaia raised a brow at him, "If Pythor is one of the judges, there's no fathomable way we'll get perfect tens!" she told him.
"Then I say we make our move." Thunder suggested, "We can't risk losing out again. I say we steal it."
"We're not gonna steal it." Landrush said as the five turned to him in surprise, "We're gonna win this competition, but we're gonna do it our way." He said with a grin under his hood.
There was a pause before they all said in unison, "Our way?" Thunder and Gaia raised a brow, Trail and Flash tilted their heads and Frost shrugged his forelegs.
On stage the four Serpentine were doing their song, quite terribly.
"My poison lies over the ocean, my poison lies over the sea~." The Treble Makers sang, and as Pythor enjoyed their singing, everypony else had their ears covered from the terrible sound of their singing.
"My poison lies over the ocean, so bring back my poison to me!" The Serpentine cheered while the rest of crowd boo'ed.
"Boo you stink!" Pinkie shouted while Pythor whistled and gave them a ten. The other two judges gave them sixes, before Pythor saw them and snarled , making them flip their score cards, turning the sixes into nines. The four Serpentine on stage gave a bow to them before they walked off stage.
"And last but not least, the Royal Blacksmi-" The announcer was about to call out before a unicorn walked up to him and whispered into his ear. "Uh, hold on. Uh, this just in. There's been a switch. Taking the stage next is Spin Harmony!" Backstage, the ninjas were back in their ninja gis instead of their stage show outfits.
"If we're gonna do this, I want everypony to see who we are." Landrush told his team.
"I have butterflies in my stomach." Frost told them.
"Aw, come on, that's just nerves." Thunder assured him.
"No, I really do have butterflies." Frost pointed out as he lift up his top, opening his chest to reveal butterflies flying out.
"Okay. Glad he got that out of his system." Thunder said as he was weirded out by what he just saw.
"How did butterflies end up inside of you?" Gaia asked Frost.
"I was helping Fluttershy take care of some of her Caterpillars last week and I suppose some of them got inside me," Frost explained.
"Last call for, Spin Harmony!" The Announcer said but the Ninja still hadn't appeared yet and the girls and Spike were getting concerned.
"Let's do this!" Thunder declared, "For Landrush and his father."
"If we can do the Tornado of Creation, we can score perfect tens out there!" Trail declared with a confident smile.
"But with Pythor being one of the judges, I doubt it," Gaia reminded them that this wouldn't be as easy as they thought.
"Well, I can say anything" Frost assured, "And it will only go to elevate our team unity."
Landrush smiled at his team, "I'm glad you're my friends." he said.
"Alright guys, Let's do The Whip!" Flash declared.
"NINJA-GO!" All six ninja shouted in unison and doing Spinjitzu. As everypony waited for Spin Harmony to come out, the main six and the others grew worried that they were taking too long.
"Well, it looks like the last act is no longer performing." Pythor told the other judges with glee as reached for the trophy. "Ha, ha. That means I can give it this to the winners-"
But just before he could finish, "Fillies and gentlecolts, Spin Harmony!" The announcer interrupted him, sliding in and then stepping off stage as the unicorn judge clapped and Pythor crossed his arms.
The lights turned on as the music of the Weekend Whip turned on the Ninja started their dance. So far, the crowd and two of the judges were enjoying their dance as they all cheered and clapped for them. Pythor however looked at Skales in the crowd and gave a nod. Skales then gestured to the Serpentine sitting next to him to go and ruin their performance.
But the Ninja were not deterred and instead used their fighting in their act. Frost jumped onto to Thunder's back and kicked away one Serpentine, Landrush held onto Trail's hooves and spun him around knocking away four more, and Gaia and Flash flipped over each and punched away two more.
"Wow, dancing really is like fighting!" Spike commented as they watched the performance.
"I'll say! These guys are awesome!" Rainbow cheered.
Twilight then had an idea turned turned to the crowd, "Come on everycreature, let's sing along!" she declared as the whole crowd, minus the Serpentine sang to the lyrics of song.
"Jump up, kick back, Whip around and spin~!" They all sing as the ninjas did Spinjitzu on stage. "And then we'll jump back to it again! Ninja," From above a Fangpyre cut the ropes of 2 Sandbags and tried to drop in on Thunder and Flash.
"GO!" The crowd shouted as Frost and Gaia kicked the sandbags away.
"Ninja," The crowd kept singing as Flash, Thunder, Trail and Landrush kicked away some more Serpentine while posing with the light Flashing.
"Go! Come on, come on and do the Weekend Whip (-end Whip)!" Frost and Gaia did some free style dancing.
"Ninja, GO! Ninja-!" The song went on until Landrush saw three Fangpyres jumped up from behind Frost and Gaia and charged.
Everything went in slow-motion as he jumped into the air and then stomped on the first one with his right back-hoof, pounded the second on with his left front-hoof and then butted his head against the third one's. He landed on all four legs as the three Fangpyres fell down, "Rawr~" he growled and curling his front leg.
The others gasped in surprise as they could only guess what that move was "The Triple Tiger Sashay!" Gaia gasped.
The crowd was silent for a moment before it erupted with cheers and applaud from everycreature. "Oh! He did it!" The announcer told the audience before he bowed down repeatedly to Landrush. "The Triple Tiger Sashay! He's danced the impossible!"
"THE TRIPLE TIGER SASHAY! HE DID IT! HE DID IT! WHOO! YEAH!" Fluttershy cheered, much louder than she ever did while jumping up and down in her seat, the crowd gave no notice and continued clapping. The Ninja gathered around Landrush, Trail and Gaia hugged him, Thunder bumped his shoulder, Flash winked at him while Frost waved to the crowd.
The Unicorn and Griffon judges gave them two perfect tens for their performance. The Ninja, Mane 6 and the others turned to the unimpressed Pythor as he held up a zero on his score board.
"Oh come on!" Cozy Glow retorted as the crowd boo'ed Pythor, "They did good and you know it!" Pythor only gave a smirk in response before something traveled up his throat and forced his mouth open. A hoof with a pencil came out of his mouth and Drew a one next to the zero, making Pythor's zero a perfect ten before going back down.
"What? Wait!" Pythor shouted when he saw the score has been changed. "I didn't write that!" he retorted.
"It's a perfect score!" The Announcer declared as some of the staff swept away the Serpentine and the two guards brought forth the Blade Cup, "Spin Harmony wins the Blade Cup!" The guards bowed to Landrush as they handed him the trophy. He looked at the trophy both his parents had one for years in his hooves before he held it up with a beam of light shining down on it and the crowd cheered even louder.
Pythor however was less then pleased, "Oh, this is a travesty of epic proportions! I demand for there to be a recount!" He demanded as he threw away his score board and the Griffon judge clapped.
As the crowd applauded the Ninja, Landrush looked from left to right and noted that there was one empty seat in the VIP section. He sighed, saddened that after all this time he finally learned to perform the dance move that had embarassed him in front of so many ponies all those years ago, and the only family he had left was not there to see it.
After the show, the Mane Six, Spike, Cozy, and Aqua went backstage to congratulate the ninjas. "You all were amazing!" Twilight shouted as she jumped into Flash's hooves.
"Now that's what I like to call stealing the show!" Rarity said, flipping her hair.
"I've never felt so alive before!" Frost said as he and the others laughed and mimicked their dance performance.
"Ha, ha! We did it!" Thunder shouted as Landrush walked up with a sad look while he carried the trophy.
"No, Landrush did it." Flash spoke up. "Because of you, Equestria will sleep safely tonight."
"I'll have the Fangblade sent to our most secure vault until we find a way to destroy it," Twilight told Landrush as he passed the Blade Cup to her.
"Thanks, but go on and celebrate without me." Landrush told them. "Winning this doesn't feel the same without my dad being able to-"
"Landrush!" Steprush called out. Landrush turned to see him at the entrance with a bright smile on his face.
"Dad?" Landrush said in surprise.
Steprush stepped towards him, "I saw it all son, I saw it all," he said as Landrush ran to him and gave him a hug.
"You saw me dance?" Landrush asked, flipping up his hood.
"More importantly, I saw you fight." Steprush told him. "Those Serpentine were up to no good, trying to steal the show, and I saw you stand up for what is right, just as your mother once did for me." He then looked down in regret, "I was wrong. I shouldn't have pushed you so hard to follow in my hoofsteps. Everypony is born with a special talent inside that's just waiting to get out. And you were born to be a Ninja. Your mother would be proud of you, just as I am."
"So you're not mad?" Landrush asked hopeful.
"How can I be? My son's a hero." Steprush said proudly before a familiar voice cut in.
"Ehh, sorry to interrupt your little family reunion, but did you know, it's me, Pythor?" He asked as he came around the curtains and ripped off the fake beard.
"You couldn't fool us, Pythor." Landrush told him as he puts his hood back on and the ninjas approached him.
"Yeah, the fake beard didn't fool anypony." Flash told him.
"Yeah we got the Fangblade and all you got is a whole lotta nothing," Rainbow said, preparing herself for a fight.
Pythor however looked unbothered, "Perhaps, but I didn't want you to miss our big show stopper!" He said as he signaled two Constrictai to push a large crate across the room, causing it to crash into some lights and metal, knocking them down towards Steprush.
Step tried to run but he fell and Landrush ran to save his father, "Dad!" He called as he dove for his father just as the rubble crashed down on them. In the smoke and dust that followed, Pythor struck Twilight and snatched the trophy in her magic before slithering off laughing.
"They took the Fangblade." Applejack said through all the coughing from the dust that was kicked up while Flash helped up Twilight.
"Landrush!" Both Twilight and Flash shouted as they ran over to the pile to see if they can get them out. Then they noticed a glow coming from the Golden Weapons' case.
"Hey, the Scythe of Quakes," Spike said as they saw Landrush's weapon glowing and that meant one thing.
"He found his True Potential," Frost said as they saw an orange and brown glow inside the pile. They all then heard Landrush grunting as he was levitating the rubble off him and his father while he was glowing bright. He then tossed the pile off and helped his father up.
"Wha-? What? How did we survive that?" Steprush asked before he saw his son glowing. "Son?"
"Landrush's found his True Potential." Frost said as Landrush hovered a little in the air.
"His relationship with his father must have been holding him back." Gaia theorized.
"He's indestructible!" Thunder shouted with enthusiasm.
"And super strong!" Flash added.
"Ugh. Great. Now I'm the only one who hasn't figured out his special power." Trail complained before the light surrounding Landrush vanished and he shook his head after setting down.
Landrush powered down but felt very winded, "Is everypony alright? What just happened?" He asked as Steprush placed a hoof on his shoulder.
The next morning, they all gathered at Landrush's house and were laughing and talking about Landrush's True Potential. "I guess the scorecard now reads, Pythor: two Fangblades. Ninjas: zero." Thunder complained.
"I'm sorry. It's my fault we lost the Fangblade," Twilight said, feeling bad that Pythor cheap-shot her.
Flash comforted her, "Don't worry Twi, if there's anything we've learned, it's that Pythor is willing to do anything to get what he wants." he assured her.
"Yeah, but all we need is one, and there are still two left to find." Landrush reminded them.
"Then we must find out where the third Fangblade is," Rarity declared.
"Who knows, maybe when I unlock my True Potential, I'll turn into the destined Light Ninja." Trail bragged the others laughed.
"Yeah, right!" Thunder said.
"You wish!" Flash said.
"Dream on!" Landrush added.
Gaia then rested a foreleg on Trail's shoulder, "The only thing you are destined for is an even more inflated ego." she snarked. Steprush then walked in with a picture in hoof.
"It may not be the trophy, but it sure will look good on my wall." He then placed it on the wall. The others gathered around and saw it was shown to be a picture of the Ninja winning the Blade Cup and it was right next a photo of younger version of himself with a silver coated, black-maned mare in a bun and wearing a dress, both holding the Blade Cup.
"All right!" Landrush, Gaia and Flash declared.
"Excellent." Frost and Rarity added.
"Awesome!" Trail, Spike and Rainbow said.
"Nice." Thunder said as Steprush turned to them.
"As far as I'm concerned, you're all my family now." He said as they gathered around.
"Yeah," Landrush said.
"Group hug!" Pinkie declared as they all hugged each other.