Hello, fellow readers! Surprised to see me back here? Yeah, it's been awhile. But this time, it's NOT with a new project?
That's right, I've returned with a different intention this time. After reaching a point of little activity, I wanted to return to some of my previous projects and perhaps do a rewrite to show how far I've come. And since some of you want more of this story, it lines up.
However, I want to make this clear. My rules have changed slightly since the last time, so let me list down what I'll be doing this time around:
1. The timeline on Sonic's side now involves the games up to Frontiers. To clarify, while those stories did happen, I will be changing past events to keep character consistency as best as I can. Plus when I include more Sonic characters later on, I'll have the games to explain their backstories.
2. The MLP G4 timeline will now be Season 3 to Season 9. I've thought about it for the longest time, but I decided to do the shorter season as a jumping point. Main reason being that while I do enjoy the first two seasons, it makes sense to have those focus on the Mane Six's development instead of an outside factor.
Same clarity as the first rule, certain things will be changed to keep character consistency. I'll also bring up that if I have to, I have the option to change an episode to focus on other characters learning the lesson instead of repeating them to the same characters.
3. The biggest problem I had with the original was including too many characters too fast. It felt like I had to remind myself about certain plotlines to avoid any big errors in the story. So I'm streamlining this to avoid confusion and inconsistency.
4. I'm still including OCs, as this will be very important later. I understand some of you don't like OCs in general, but I'm confident enough with my writing to keep it from feeling boring. Only difference is their introductions will be properly spaced out.
With all of that said, let's dive back in with a new perspective!
Prologue: Unexpected Arrivals
The sky was dark with a howling winter wind, the snow covering the land for miles on end. A light soon appears in the dark clouds, revealing a portal that drops off two familiar hedgehogs before vanishing. The duo quickly recover to land safely, surveying the area as the blue blur was casual about it:
"Alrighty, I wonder what world we got sent to this time."
"Better be an emergency if it's on my day off." The black blur mentions.
"Really? I'm surprised you take days off."
"Says the jobless hedgehog."
Sonic smirks at that, "And yet the 'Ultimate Life Form' is held down by a nine to five."
Shadow kinda ignores that as he sees something in the distance, "Is that fog?"
The two look to see a dense black fog with what appears to be a face of sorts. It was chasing down some colorful ponies heading in their direction, which is enough for them to get the picture:
"Guess that's why we're here." Sonic deduces, "Ready?"
"Always." Shadow answers.
The hedgehog duo went into action, seamlessly moving past the ponies to cut off the dark fog. Before it processed their presence, they fire off a combination attack of Sonic Wind and Chaos Spear, dispersing it in a blast of electric wind. It was enough for the ponies to get some distance, but the fog reemerged once more to give chase.
Sonic and Shadow caught up with the ponies to get some context:
"Hiya! I'm guessing this guy is some ancient evil or whatever?" The former asked.
"Yeah! I'll explain when we get to the empire up ahead!" The stallion unicorn answers, referring to the force field.
They then hear the fog howling as it approaches, soon to be stopped by Shadow using a condensed blast to push it back. That was enough for them to reach the barrier safely, entering the empire as they stop to catch their breath.
"T-Thanks for the help." The purple unicorn said.
"No problem." Sonic casually said before Shadow gets right into it:
"Any of you know what that was?"
"That was the former king of the Crystal Empire." The unicorn stallion answers, "He was brought back along with the kingdom, so we're trying to seal him away again."
"We'll help you with that part."
"Thank you. But first, we should introduce ourselves."
"Oh! Oh! I can do it!" The pink pony chimes in before suddenly zooming around, gesturing to who's who:
"This is Shining Armor, his sister Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy-!"
She then pops in between the hedgehogs with a burst of confetti, "And I'm Pinkie Pie! Nice to meet you!"
Sonic smiles at her positive energy, "Likewise! Name's Sonic, and my partner here is Shadow."
After their greetings, the hedgehog duo were filled in on the way to the empire. Speaking of which, it was quite the sight to behold as Rarity puts it rather elegantly:
"It's gorgeous! Absolutely gorgeous!"
Applejack had to rein her friend in a bit, "Focus, Rarity. We're here to help, not admire the scenery."
"Yeah. I don't see what the big deal is." Rainbow agrees, "Just looks like another old castle to me."
Rarity was taken aback, stammering to find the words. "Another old- have you lost your mind!? Just look at the..."
She stops herself as Rainbow and AJ chuckle at her reaction. Realizing their joke, she just smiles at it. "Very funny."
Sonic and Shadow were understandably confused, but summed it up as an inside joke between the ponies. The group soon enter the castle itself, where the crystal structure was somehow more impressive. It was clear that time didn't touch the castle at all, no wear and tear anywhere they can see.
Upon reaching the throne room, they meet an alicorn sitting on said throne. She looked to be rather tired, her horn emitting magic continuously to use her barrier spell on the kingdom. When she sees them, her face showed happiness as Twilight approaches her:
"Cadance!"
The two meet halfway and do a... strange greeting, to say the least.
"Sunshine, sunshine! Ladybugs awake! Clap her hooves and do a little shake!"
"...Is that how you greet royalty here?" Sonic was honestly curious.
"No, that's just between them." Shining Armor clarifies, unknowingly assuring Shadow.
Cadance took a moment to reinforce her barrier before speaking, "We have to meet under better circumstances."
"Are you all right?" Twilight asks her.
"Her magic is spreading love and light, which is what's repelling that dark fog." Shining answers, "Though she almost never sleeps, even eats at times. I've been doing what I can to help, but my barrier isn't strong enough on its own. It also takes time away from finding out what we need to stop this."
"That's why we're here. Keep that barrier up, we'll look around for any info."
"Shouldn't be long." Sonic chimes in, "Give us a minute and we'll find that boss battle tip you need, princess."
"You go on ahead." Shadow clarifies, "I'll stay here for a bit."
"Oh? What for?"
"I'm curious to see if my Chaos powers can help with the barrier."
The ponies were rather curious on what he means, but that's a question for another time as Shining smiles at the idea:
"Thanks for the help, Shadow."
"All right then." Sonic then turns to Twilight's group, "Let's go mingle with the locals!"
And they do just that. Sonic went alone as the others split up to cover more ground. However, all of them had the same answer:
"I don't remember, and I don't want to remember."
Other than that, they managed to learn the dark fog's name was King Sombra. The locals' reaction to his name gave context to the common line they gave, so asking them was a bust.
Sonic regroups at the castle where the others had met up, only to come in right as Fluttershy... unzips herself? It was actually a suit, revealing Pinkie underneath!
...He has questions, but something tells him he won't get answers.
"My cover has been blown! I repeat, my cover has been blown!" Pinkie loudly whispers to Twilight, who was still processing the disguise.
"Sorry ya'll, but it seems like the ponies here have some sort of collective amnesia." Applejack summarizes.
"Sounds like it." Sonic agrees, "Although, the only thing different I got from one of them was mentioning a library."
If light could shine in a pair of eyes, Twilight's was the closest upon hearing that. "A library!? Why didn't you say so!? Let's go!"
Thankfully, it was easy to find among the buildings in the main district. When they enter, it was massive with books upon books on three floors worth of shelves. If Twilight wasn't excited enough, she was now awestruck:
"There are no words!"
"Ironic comes to mind." Sonic mutters.
They heard someone clear their throat nearby, seeing the librarian as she greets them:
"May I help you?"
"Yes, we're looking for a book!" Twilight answers.
"We have plenty of those."
"Yes, you do. You really do." Like a dog chasing its tail, she moved around in a circle in childish glee. It was actually cute.
Sonic takes the conversation back on track, "We're looking for any history books on the Crystal Empire."
"Yes, of course. History, history... ah, yes." The librarian then stood there in silence, confusing the group.
"So, that's in the history section?"
"Should be, yes... if only I knew where exactly."
Yeah, they should have thought the amnesia thing applied to her too.
"Thanks for the help. We'll just look around." Sonic politely tells her.
As the librarian is left pondering, the group head to the ground floor to start their search.
"There must be thousands of books here! We'll be here forever!" Rainbow complains, but makes a good point.
"I personally enjoy a good reading session." Sonic retorts, "But we don't have time for that."
Before they knew it, the blue blur became just that. Each and every book he touched, he read in milliseconds as he ran through the bookshelves. In ten seconds tops, he was back sitting down on the steps as the group fully processed the event:
"Did... he just..." Spike starts before Rainbow blurts out, "WHAT WAS THAT!?"
"Speed reading." Sonic casually answers with a book in hand, "Found it by the way, titled 'History of the Crystal Empire'. Go figure."
"N-No, that speed! How are you that FAST on your FEET!?"
"Years of practice. Now focus, we got an empire to save."
As tempting as it was to challenge Sonic to a race, Rainbow knows the empire's safety is their main priority. Calming herself down with a deep breath, she shifts the topic back:
"Fair enough. Now, what about the book?"
"It has various artifacts and traditions archived. If we're lucky, we might find-" Sonic stops on a page, "Oh? What about this?"
He turns the book to the group, with Twilight reading the title of the page. "The Crystal Fair?"
"Yeah. It was established by the first queen and is the empire's most important tradition."
Fluttershy then chimes in upon reading a sentence, "Wait, didn't Shining say that the barrier stops Sombra from coming in?"
"Yes." Spike confirms, "He said it was... something about 'love and light'."
"That's right!" Twilight pieces together, "It says that this fair helps to renew love and unity in the empire! This might be the spark we need!"
Sonic closes the book upon hearing that, "Then let's back pronto!"
As the group was searching for clues, Shadow was helping in the throne room. Through some testing, they found out that Chaos energy and Magic might have different properties, but can work together in small amounts. By channeling a bit of his own energy, Cadance was rejuvenated to not look as tired as before.
Though, the barrier only got a small boost in longevity.
"Considering the low quantity, the boost should extend your spell a bit longer." Shadow estimates.
"I'm just glad I'm not so exhausted." Cadance admits.
"Either way, we appreciate the help." Shining chimes in, "And knowing my sister, she's likely found something by now."
Funny he said that right before the doors open, revealing her group entering as Sonic was the first to reach them:
"Found a clue in their history book. They held a special fair each year to renew the empire's love and unity. We pull this off, the locals' newfound love will blow that king sky high!"
"That sounds promising!" Cadance cheers, "Please, get started as soon as you can."
"No worries, we got this!" Twilight assures her.
They waste no time in getting to work. Along with a neat little song number, the group got the fair up and running by following the book. Twilight was double checking the place to make sure they were just right:
"Alright, I think we're about done..."
"Hey, Twi? What's this thing for?" Applejack questions, gesturing to a makeshift crystal sculpture of a heart.
"The last page of the book mentions the 'Crystal Heart' as the fair's center piece. All I did was cut one out of a crystal block."
"Ah, makes sense. Well in that case, everything should be ready. It's your call."
And that she did. Thanks to a funny intro by Pinkie's flugelhorn, Twilight extends an invitation with Cadance and Shining to the locals. They notice that upon hearing the announcement, the ponies literally brighten up with a shine, restoring their color.
"Huh. So that love stuff is more literal?" Sonic wonders.
"Appears so." Rarity answers, "Frankly, they look much better now."
The festivities went underway as the group show the locals what's in store. Although things didn't stay smooth for long, due to a certain oversight Sonic catches:
"Weird. The book doesn't really specify why the Crystal Heart's so important..." He comments while scrolling through the book.
"The fair can't exist without it." A familiar voice said, belonging to the librarian.
"Really? Why's that?"
"The whole purpose of the Crystal Fair is to lift our spirits, restoring the light in our hearts to power the Crystal Heart to protect the empire."
The explanation was enough to restore her shine and memories, "I do work at the library!"
Sonic was more focused on what she just said, "So, your love fuels this Crystal Heart like a power source?"
"Of course, I can't believe you found it! King Sombra said he hidden it away, so that we'll never see it again! I hope it's still as powerful after all these years."
"Uh yeah, I hope so too."
"Ooo, funnel cake."
The librarian trots off as Sonic runs to go find the others. When they were told the issue, most of them stayed to distract the locals until they find the Crystal Heart. Sonic, Shadow, Twilight and Spike went to inform Cadance and Shining of the news.
"I didn't know it was an actual relic!" Twilight admits, "The book didn't say that it was the source of their power!"
Sonic was looking through it himself before noticing something, "Looks like King Sombra had time to edit it before disappearing."
Turning the book around, he shows them that the last page was torn out.
"A missing page? How did I miss that?" Twilight mutters.
"Either way, we need to find the relic before the locals catch wind of this." Shadow said.
"How? Without any clues, we don't know where to find the heart." Spike points out.
The group were thinking through any possible places, until Shining chimes in with a possibility:
"Wouldn't it make sense that he hide it where only he can access it?"
"...Of course!" Twilight agrees, "It must be in the castle itself!"
"In that case, we split up." Sonic suggests, "Me and Shadow got downstairs, you two search the upper levels."
They were thorough in their search, but haven't found anything that lead to a secret passage. Eventually, it only left the throne room where the four regroup:
"This is our best bet. There's gotta be something here." Twilight said, mainly to stay positive.
As Sonic and Shadow examine the walls, Spike looks behind the busts and under the carpets. Twilight was just looking around, wondering what could be something King Sombra would use as a hidden place. But then a thought pops into her mind:
If he ruled the castle long ago... then why does it look like he was never here?
Her eyes move towards the throne itself, right up to the crystals on top. The shape of them reminded her of her meeting with Princess Celestia:
"If the empire is filled with hope and love, that is reflected across all of Equestria. But if hatred and fear takes hold..."
That gave her the answer, "...That's it!"
"What? Did you find it?" Spike asks, looking around for it.
"No, because this isn't King Sombra's castle."
Sonic and Shadow walk over upon hearing that, "What do you mean?" The former wonders.
"He must have used the castle when he ruled, didn't he?" Spike adds.
"Yes, but it didn't look like this." Twilight answers.
The three were left puzzled before seeing her conjure up magic, or rather dark magic, in her horn before firing it at the throne's crystal. They see it channel the dark energy, spreading down onto the floor like a shadow. The four move as it reveals a hidden passage beneath the floor they were standing on:
"Whoa." Sonic simply said.
Twilight was giddy that worked as Spike had to ask, "When did you learn to do that?"
"That was a little trick Celestia taught me." The unicorn answers.
The four look down into the spiraling staircase, leading to who knows where. Twilight conjures a small ball of light on her horn, acting as a flashlight, before going down. Sonic and Shadow were about to follow when she stops them:
"Oh, uh... I know this is a bad time to mention this. But I'm afraid it's best that you guys stay up there."
This obviously didn't sit well with the hedgehogs as Shadow was the one to question this aloud, "And the reason is?"
"I've been assigned an important task by Princess Celestia to save the Crystal Empire. I can't risk failing if I had help to do it."
As you would expect, they ain't having it. Sonic just rolls his eyes at the rather... stupid reason. Shadow unknowingly agrees as he was blunt with the unicorn:
"Twilight, this situation is NOT a test. This is a mission that if you fail, there will be severe consequences. One of those will be the loss of innocent lives. So I'll ask again... Give me a VERY good reason to stand by and not help you right now."
Sonic was kinda surprised at the wording, Spike was floored at his words, and Twilight...
She was frozen. She didn't even think about that until now, but this actually isn't a test. Her failure now will lead to the empire falling into darkness like before. Her friends either captured or worse, leaving Equestria vulnerable to threats...
She snaps out of this when Shadow places a hand on her shoulder, which actually gave a feeling of comfort:
"No matter how capable you become, there will be times where you need others to help you succeed. You don't need a test for that."
"He's right." Sonic adds, "Besides, I'm sure this might be why we were sent here in the first place."
She looks at Shadow, Sonic and even Spike before relenting. "You're right, this isn't the time for tests. We got a mission to succeed."
"Then let's get going!"
With the group on the same page, the four made their way down the spiral staircase. It didn't take too long, as Twilight and Spike took the express route thanks to Sonic's and Shadow's speed. Upon reaching the bottom, they see a door nearby and go to open it...
Only for it to move. Literally, it moved along the wall away from them.
"What in the world?" Twilight questions.
"I got it!" Sonic confidently said before giving chase.
Despite his speed, the door was surprisingly fast to stay just out of reach. That is until Sonic activates his boost, timing it just right to grab the knob:
"Gotcha!"
He tries to pull it open, only for it to not do that. "What!? It's locked!"
"You can't be serious!" Twilight shouts in annoyance, briefly conjuring dark magic. "Wait..."
Channeling the dark magic again, she fires a beam to the crystal on the door frame. That was the key as the door unlocks, allowing Sonic to open it:
"Nice, Twilight!"
The four run inside into a bright light, though where it lead was anything but good.
"Huh?"
Twilight finds herself back at Canterlot, inside the throne room where Princess Celestia was. Though the princess' tone was rather unwelcoming:
"What are you doing here?"
"I-I don't know. I opened a door and it lead me here-"
"And now you must go!"
"Huh? Go where?"
"It doesn't matter to me. You failed the test, Twilight."
That shocked her to the core, as such words from the princess herself was something she never wants to hear. Processing this, she tries to rebuke this:
"I-I don't understand! The test-"
"Not only will you not move on to the next level of your studies, you will not continue your studies AT ALL."
"Y-You... you never said anything about this if I failed!"
"Didn't I? I thought it was clear." The princess actually tries to shoo her away, but the student persists at correcting this:
"But, what do I do... now..."
Her words became stuck in her throat upon seeing the new stained glass mural. It was King Sombra, looming over her as she falls with the Crystal Heart into the abyss.
"What? Why is this-" She was speaking to no one now, as the princess had disappeared.
The throne room was now completely different, having dark red decor with the walls covered in black crystals. The throne itself had said crystals on top, where a familiar dark fog was starting to emerge. Its glowing green eyes and red horn materializes, making her back away.
Though she holds her ground to fight back, a ring of crystals shot out from the floor to trap her. She tries firing her magic at them, but it wasn't strong enough to even land a scratch. The dark fog soon seeps in the cracks as the king's head looms over her, much like the mural depicted.
BOOM!
She then hears a faint sound before seeing a blue streak of lightning fly at the king's head:
"Sonic Storm!"
A blast of electric wind blows the fog and crystals away, freeing her from the trap as Sonic lands by her.
"Sonic!? Where did you-"
"Had to deal with an illusion myself, but made it in time. Come on, let's find the others!"
Realizing what really happened, she shakes off her shock and follows the blue blur out of there.
"What the? Ponyville?"
Spike finds himself back home, where he sees himself at the edge of town. Twilight and even the others were there, who gives him a traveling sack on a stick.
"Twilight? What's going on?"
"Don't you remember? Today's the day you leave Ponyville."
He was dumbstruck. Not only by the answer, but the way she coldly said it.
"L-Leave?" He repeats.
"Yeah, dude. We already talked about it." Rainbow was annoyed by this.
"Dragons just can't fit with ponies!" Pinkie adds with a rather angry growl.
"We do not need their filthy claws stealing our valuables!" Rarity huffs, backed by an affirmative nod from Fluttershy.
"Our vote was unanimous! Now skedaddle!" Applejack shouts.
Spike turns to Twilight as tears start to well up, "Twi? Please, tell me this isn't true!"
...Nothing. Her eyes were indifferent as she turns away, walking off with the others in tow.
"Please! Don't send me away!"
Despite him running to reach them, they only got farther and farther away. Tears started to fly as he shouts in sorrow:
"TWILIGHT! EVERYONE! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!"
Overwhelmed by his emotions, his tunnel vision didn't notice a creeping fog approaching him from behind. It would have gotten him, if not for interference:
"Chaos Burst!"
Shadow appears, blowing the fog away with a concentrated blast of chaos energy. The fog was destroyed, along with the ground as a crater was left from the impact. Spike was knocked back from the shockwave, landing on his belly as he continues to cry.
Shadow was quick to reach his side, "Spike? Are you all right?"
The baby dragon said nothing as he helps him up, only to be taken aback by a sudden embrace. The dragon's face was buried in his chest fur, followed by muffled words:
"They were... leaving me..."
Shadow just held him in his arms, allowing him to let it out as he tries some comforting words:
"I... understand that feeling. I may not have known your friends for long, but I can assure you. They love you."
"...You think so?"
"Yes." With that said, he holds the dragon close as he skates off. "When we find them, they'll tell you the same thing."
The four reappear back at the spiral staircase, where Sonic was the first to speak up:
"Illusions for you guys too?"
"Yes." Shadow answers before letting Spike down.
Spike immediately runs to Twilight, hugging her for comfort as he recounts his nightmare:
"I-I was in Ponyville, Twi! You were sending me away! You didn't want me anymore..."
"That will never happen, Spike." Twilight assures him with a warm embrace, "We'll never abandon you."
The warm feeling reminds her again of what the princess told her, which gave away what the door meant:
"That door, it was made to show our greatest fears."
"Is that right?" Sonic smirks at that, "That explains why me and Shadow broke out easily."
"How did you-"
"We've faced enemies that tried the same thing." Shadow answers, "To no avail, obviously."
Twilight was impressed at the hedgehogs' strength. She then looks at the door, and then at the crystal on top:
"I won't fail our mission."
Her statement was enforced by a magic beam, positively charged as she fires it at the crystal. A rainbow sheen shines off as the frame glows, revealing the true path.
"Nice, Twilight!" Sonic compliments.
The four enter to find themselves at yet another spiral staircase, though this time it was going straight up with no clear end in sight.
"Great, more stairs." Twilight comments, "Lots and lots of stairs."
"No problem! Just hop on the hedgehog express!" Sonic quips.
Twilight and Spike agree that it would be easier, as well as be faster. The four head on up the stairs in a blur, going up and up and up...
And up...
And up...
And UP...
And UP-
"I'm starting to think the stairs are actually endless!" Twilight worries aloud.
"This might be another illusion!" Spike brings up, which makes much more sense.
"Then how do we escape this loop?" Sonic questions, "Running backwards?"
Twilight looks up at the pillar, noticing how smooth the underside of the staircase was. At the right angle, it could work like a makeshift slide.
"Stop!" She calls out, which the hedgehogs do just that. "I got an idea!"
Levitating the group in her magic grip, she then casts a spell that flips them over onto the underside. Spike held on tight to Shadow as he, Sonic and Twilight slid down rather fast down the makeshift slide.
"I actually studied gravity spells, thinking it was on the test!" She mentions, "Turns out, I was prepared for this! Woohoo!"
"Always a thrill to defy gravity!" Sonic adds.
The three soon reach the end, sliding off into the air as Twilight changes them back. The group compose themselves from the adrenaline, noticing that they were actually at the top of the castle, where the Crystal Heart resides. This kinda annoyed Sonic a bit:
"Wait, its hiding place was up here the whole time?"
"Maybe an illusion was placed to have it not be seen outside." Spike answers.
"Still... uh, Twilight?"
Sonic notices the unicorn was approaching the heart, which Shadow's instinct kicks in:
"Don't touch it!"
Twilight stops upon hearing that, but not before her hoof touches the floor under the heart. It pulsed with dark energy like a makeshift alarm system, making her think fast and jump for the heart. Her hooves made contact, pushing it away as dark crystals shot out around her.
The heart flew through the air until Sonic catches it, "Got it!"
The three find themselves avoiding the floor as dark crystals began to emerge, running over to the windows as Spike worries for Twilight:
"Twilight, can you get out!?"
"I'll try!" She performs a teleport to escape, but actually gets sucked back into the trap. "Oof! Uh, I don't think the crystals will let me!"
"Look! Outside!" Shadow points to where the barrier is, or rather was as it starts to fade.
They see the dark fog start to invade, corrupting the environment it touches as it crawls closer to the empire.
"We're running out of time!" Spike starts to panic, "Twilight, you have to get out!"
Twilight looks out the crack between the crystals and sees the room becoming a trap itself. Running the options through her head, only one can be done:
"You three have to go! Get the heart to Cadance!"
"B-But-" Spike was cut off as Shadow picks him up, who jumps out alongside Sonic to the tower nearby.
The room was now filled with dark crystals, which were still growing as more were sprouting out faster. Before they get any footing, they were knocked off the tower by a massive one into the air. The impact was enough to separate them, with the heart falling down to the ground below.
Sonic was knocked the farthest away from the castle, spinning a bit in the air before recovering to see something approaching from below:
The dark fog was manifested into a physical form now, that of a unicorn stallion with black armor and even a red cape suited for royalty.
He turns back to see Spike reaching out for the heart and Shadow much higher up than them, who was shaking off the impact. Remembering one of Shadow's tricks, he quickly shouts up at him:
"Shadow!" The black hedgehog finally snaps awake, "Chaos Control!"
Without waiting for a response, he spins into a ball and launches off the momentum towards the king. Spike was still not able to grab the heart as much as he tried, made worse as Sombra inches closer on a large crystal. Sonic was going fast to intercept, but might have went too fast for something else!
"Chaos CONTROL!"
A burst of blue aura cloaks Shadow as his surroundings slow down to near stillness. Activating his hover shoes, he stabilizes himself and sees the sight before him:
King Sombra at the top of his mountainous crystal, Sonic diving down towards him, and Cadance catching Spike to grab the heart.
He grabs her and the heart before teleporting away, just in time as everything started to move again. Sombra was expecting the heart in his grip, but instead got a full-on shoe to the skull. The king was hit hard, flying down through the crystal into the ground below. Sonic lands a few feet away, smirking at hitting his 'Sonic Eagle', as he calls it, dead on.
Back with Shadow, he reappears with Cadance and Spike back on the ground:
"You two all right?"
"Yeah, I think so." Spike answers.
"I don't know how you did that, but thank you." Cadance adds.
The trio then hear the surrounding ponies, all along the lines of:
"Can it be!?"
"It is!"
"The Crystal Heart!"
"With a new princess!"
Cadance holds the heart up high, "Everyone! The Crystal Heart has returned to your home! Now use your love to power it and stop King Sombra!"
She then tosses it at where the false one was before, where it was caught in a magical force to hold it in place. The citizens return to their shiny forms with smiles in tow, bowing in place as the streets soon glow.
King Sombra had recovered from the attack, only to be shocked at what he's seeing:
"What!? No, stop!"
"Too bad, 'king'. You've been dethroned." Sonic quips.
The dark unicorn felt his body crack from the surging positivity and explodes from the heart's burst of power, disappearing along with his corruption. Along with the citizens, Twilight and her friends find themselves having a shiny form of their own. This included Sonic and Shadow, who felt the positive energy that came with it.
The rejuvenated Crystal Heart's power surges through the castle, creating what the hedgehogs recognize as 'Northern Lights' in the skies above.
From the top of the castle, Twilight let out a sigh of relief at their success:
"Good job, guys."
After the defeat of the fallen king, the Crystal Empire was flourishing after many long years. The group was now heading back to Canterlot, which Sonic and Shadow tagged along as they find themselves wondering something:
"Think we might get pulled back home soon?" The former questions.
"Honestly, I think this is just the beginning." The latter admits, "In the meantime, best that we adapt for our stay in this world."
"Fine with me. I'm way too curious to leave so soon."
The two start to overhear the group conversing, just in time to catch Rarity complaining:
"I do so wish the form was permanent! Did you see how my mane just absolutely sparkled?"
"But good things are better when they're a 'Rarity'." Applejack's wordplay was a nice compliment, which the unicorn appreciated.
Shining spoke up as he sees his sis was looking a little down, "Everything's gonna be fine. You keep on saving my rump like this, it'll start being embarrassing."
"I know. I'm just thinking about how I'm gonna explain this to Princess Celestia."
"You keep mentioning this princess." Sonic calls out, "What is she like?"
"Oh, that's right! You two aren't from around here! Well, she is..."
From this point on, Twilight gave them an exposition dump as she spoke on and on and on like a fangirl. All the way from the train station, on the train, to Canterlot, even all the way to the throne room. Surprisingly, Sonic and Shadow were rather patient as they listen to her rambling.
Finally, Sonic places a finger on her mouth to politely stop her:
"OK, motor mouth. I'm sure she can tell us herself." He casually said.
Twilight literally didn't realize where she was until now. Princess Celestia just blinks at all she heard as they came in, but leaves that for later:
"I see my student has made new friends. May I ask for your names?"
"Sonic the Hedgehog."
"Shadow." The black blur simply said, "We helped her save the Crystal Empire."
"I've noticed. It's beautiful." Celestia glances out the window, where the northern lights still shine in the sky.
Twilight remembers her 'test' and had to ask, "Then, why did you say that I had to do it alone?"
"That was the test, and this is the result."
The princess gestures to the newest stained glass mural. Spike, Sonic and Shadow were near the bottom as Cadance was at the top. The Crystal Heart shines in the center with other ponies surrounding it like a frame. The hedgehogs question how their new mural had their likeness spot-on, despite just meeting in person right now... which will likely never be answered as Celestia continues:
"You weren't sure if you were able to escape the trap in time, so you told the others to go on without you. Thanks to their efforts, Cadance received the Crystal Heart and the citizens have regained their home back. That decision shows that you weren't willing to sacrifice their future for your own."
"So, the test was about self-sacrifice?" Sonic narrowed down.
"Correct. I'm proud to say that she's passed it, with flying colors to boot."
Twilight was overwhelmed with relief and joy, "O-Oh, great! I gotta tell the others!"
The purple unicorn runs off, leaving the hedgehogs with Princess Celestia as she shifts the subject:
"Thank you very much for helping my student and her friends. I'm Princess Celestia, one of two rulers here in Equestria. Tell me, where are you two from?"
"Long story short, we're from a land far far away." Sonic answers.
"Unfortunately, we can't leave it at that." Shadow clarifies, "We're from another world, warped here without warning and unsure if we'll get a way back home. In exchange for stories from our world, we'd like to learn about Equestria to adapt in the meantime."
"I'd very much like that." Celestia agrees.
The day was spent with the duo learning about the new world, unknowing of what's to come in the near future.
And done! So, I should clarify two of the rules here:
When I said streamlined, I mainly mean any scene that has either a major change or characters not from the original scene. If neither of the two are there for said scene, I leave it alone. It doesn't mean it never happens, it just goes unchanged and will likely get mentioned afterwards.
I should also throw this out there, I'm mainly testing the waters this time. My current goal is making it to the end of Season 4, as that has my biggest idea to put into words. If I can get there, then I'll do the other seasons.
So, I hope I ain't too rusty from my long hiatus. I enjoyed writing this chapter, but I feel this was a bit sloppy for a prologue. Then again, I struggle with those nowadays as they're just the blueprints for the overall story.
So with that said, I'm glad to be back and thanks for reading. See all of you next chapter!