‘’Mom!’’

Cadence smiled as she looked up at her twelve-year old daughter. ‘’Yes, Flurry?’’

‘’I learned a new spell! Can I show it to you?’’ Flurry gave her the best look-at-me-I’m-adorable face.

Cadence chuckled. ‘’Sure thing, sweetheart. Show me your spell.’’

‘’Yay!’’ Flurry cheered. ‘’Okay, I’m gonna cast it, and then I need you to touch me, okay?’’

Cadence, curious, nodded. ‘’Got it.’’

‘’’Kay!’’ Flurry closed her eyes and scrunched her face up in concentration. Her horn was engulfed in a white light, which then briefly shimmered across her entire body. Flurry opened her eyes again and smiled brightly. ‘’Now touch me!’’ she stuck out her hoof towards Cadence.

Cadence obliged.

The moment she touched Flurry’s hoof, however, she knew something was wrong. Flurry’s hoof didn’t feel like hoof at all, instead it felt like glue. Cadence tried to pull her hoof back but found she couldn’t.

‘’Flurry, what-AAAH!’’ she screamed as her hoof and then the rest of her leg rapidly vanished into Flurry’s hoof. She tried to pull away, flapping her wings and kicking back with all her might, but to no avail.

‘’Don’t resist it, mommy,’’ Flurry chirped, still smiling brightly.

‘’Sweetheart-’’ Cadence was cut off as the spell decided it had had enough and rapidly sucked up her entire body all the way to her neck. ‘’Please-’’ her plea was never finished as she disappeared completely.

Flurry looked at the empty air and smiled, before trotting over to the mirror. ‘’Now to cast the second spell,’’ she muttered to herself. Her horn lit up again, this time in it’s usual light yellow aura.

A moment later, her reflection changed. She shot up in height, suddenly standing a little taller than her mother. Her curly mane grew out until it reached to the end of her neck, blowing slightly in a magical wind and sparkling like stars. Flurry nodded seriously at herself, tucking her now-fitting wings to her side. She could feel how her magical power had increased, but it hadn’t even doubled.

She sniffed. Mommy really had been weak.

Well, Flurry wouldn’t be weak. She would be the strongest pony ever! She just needed to absorb her (grand)-aunts first.

The Elements of Harmony, old and new, would be good too, she thought. Sunset and Starlight as well, and the CMC. Those last three weren’t powerful or anything, but Flurry liked them.

‘’Cadence, what-’’

Flurry spun around to see her father was staring at her, open-mouthed. ‘’Hi daddy!’’

‘’Flurry?’’ her father croaked, before frantically looking around. ‘’Where’s your mother?’’

Flurry didn’t answer, instead considering what to do with her father, and the other stallions she cared about. The spell only worked on beings of the same gender, so she couldn’t just absorb them like she had done with her mother. 

An idea came to her, and she smiled widely as she trotted over to her father. ‘’Don’t worry, daddy,’’ she said as she placed a hoof on his shoulder, looking down at him. ‘’Don’t worry, your mother is here.’’

‘’Flurry, what-’’

Flurry cast another spell she’d read about in the secret stash of books behind her bed. Her father turned completely turquoise for a second, and then there was a cute little alicorn colt, no more than three years old at best, sitting on the floor.

‘’Mommy?’’ he squeaked, looking up at Flurry with big blue eyes.

‘’Mommy’s here,’’ Flurry said, as she scooped him up in her forelegs and hugged him to her chest. ‘’Mommy’s here, my little darling.’’

The colt hugged her back. 

-x-X-x-

In a mansion on the Spa Islands, off the shores of Equestria’s southeastern coast, a blue stallion suddenly stopped in the middle of his walk down the stairs. After a few seconds, he chuckled.

‘’Oh, that is interesting,’’ he said to himself. By the time he’d gotten down the stairs, the unicorn was an alicorn, flowing magical mane and wings included. He set himself down on the magnificently comfy couch in his living room and clicked on the TV. Instead of a normal channel, it showed Flurry Heart hugging her father-turned-son.

‘’Perfect entertainment for a Wednesday morning,’’ the stallion decided after a moment, before linking the broadcast through to a couple of his friends.

Interexistential Councillor’s Councilling Council Couch Chat Unit (I.C.C.C.C.U)

Priority Alert

Star Tower: Otorno, you need to see this.

Priority Alert deactivated

General Response

Star Tower: Especially you, Equus, you twisted fuck.

General Response

Form: Star, it’s your daughter.

General Response

Star Tower: I am well-aware of that, thank you.

General Response

Form: Just checking. Anyway, have fun with that. It’s your vacation.

General Response

Equus: You know Star

General Response

Equus: While I appreciate the heads-up

General Response

Equus: Keep it in DMs.

General Response

Star Tower: Now where’s the fun in that?

General Response

God-King: Children, both of you.

-x-X-x-

Eventually, Flurry stopped hugging her little colt and put him on her back. Shining nestled into his mother’s fur.

Flurry strode out of the room, head held high. Guards and servants stared at her as she passed, but no one dared to say anything.

Flurry had a destination: the Crystal Heart. Once she had received it’s blessing, she could teleport to Silver Shoals and absorb auntie Luna and auntie Tia, before teleporting to Canterlot and absorbing auntie Twilight and her friends.

The Crystal Heart was in the same place it always was: in the literal heart of the Empire. There were a few ponies milling about, but that was it, and none of them tried to approach Flurry as she walked towards the Heart.

It pulsed brightly at her, as if recognizing her presence. Flurry smiled, before pressing her hoof against it.

The Crystal Heart wasn’t truly sentient. It did, however, possess some level of intelligence. And it recognized that the alicorn pressing her hoof against it didn’t really need anything from the Heart.

But the Heart was bored.

Flurry blinked as the Heart pulsed again, but instead of sending a shockwave of magic and temporarily turning everything into crystal, it just… vanished.

She reeled back as a massive amount of magic settled into her. After a moment, she steadied herself and looked around.

Despite the Heart vanishing, there didn’t appear to be any storms approaching. But that didn’t mean they weren’t coming.

An idea popped into Flurry’s mind. She turned her head and smiled at her son.

-x-X-x-

All-the-corns

General Response

Star Tower: That’s inventive.

General Response

Aenoraran: She certainly has the power for it. And it is a pretty logical solution.

General Response

Arcanus: This Flurry has a sort of cold logic vibe about her, at least to me. Anyone else?

General Response

Equus: Seconded.

General Response

H-Star: You’re incorrigible.

General Response

Equus: We’re all a bunch of old geezers stuck in time, so your point means precisely nothing.

General Response

Aenoraran: Shut, I’m trying to watch.

-x-X-x-

By the time Flurry had made sure the Crystal Empire could never be bothered by the unnatural storms of the Frozen North again, a crowd had gathered around the spot where the Crystal Heart used to be.

In a flash of light yellow magic, Flurry reappeared. Shining, who had been patiently waiting at the foot of the Heart’s former resting place, jumped up from the floor and rushed over to her.

‘’Mommy!’’ he squealed as he hugged her leg.

Flurry smiled as she hugged him back, before lifting him onto her back. She cleared her throat and righted her back.

‘’Ponies of the Crystal Empire,’’ she said, making sure her voice was heard everywhere through a simple spell, ‘’do not be afraid. I, Empress Flurry Heart, have made sure that the Crystal Heart will never be needed again.’’

‘’What did you do to it?’’ somepony yelled.

‘’I absorbed it,’’ Flurry replied, ‘’just like I did with my mother, and plan to do to my aunts and their friends. When I have absorbed them into me, I shall be Empress of all Equestria, and you shall never have to fear anything again.’’ She smiled, projecting an aura of strength and protection.

The cheers that met her speech were resounding, ‘’Flurry! Flurry! Flurry!’’

-x-X-x-

Star chuckled. ‘’Her charisma is as inspiring as always.’’

A scroll flamed into existence. Star raised an eyebrow at it, and the scroll unfolded itself. Smiling, Star read it.

Star,

Something’s gone terribly wrong. Please come to Canterlot as soon as possible.

Signed

Twilight

Star chuckled again, then chucked the scroll into a bin. He wasn’t going to do anything against this.

But he was going to get some tea. This needed to be enjoyed properly.

-x-X-x-

Once she had made sure that the Crystal Empire was in her hooves, Flurry made her way back into the palace, to her old room. Servants were already clearing out her mother’s room for her, but Flurry’s room would now be for her little Shining.

‘’Mommy, I don’t wanna go to bed!’’ the colt whined.

‘’You need your nap,’’ Flurry countered easily as she lifted him off her back and placed him in the bed. ‘’I’ll be back in time for dinner, sweetie, and after dinner I’ll read you a story.’’

Shining pouted. ‘’Two stories,’’ he demanded.

‘’Two stories,’’ Flurry agreed. ‘’Now lie down so I can tuck you in.’’

Shining sighed, before laying down in the bed. ‘’Bye, mommy.’’

Flurry placed a kiss under his horn. ‘’Sleep well, my little darling.’’

She gently pulled the covers over him, then closed the curtains, turned on the night light and left the room.

Once outside, she focused her magic and teleported away to Silver Shoals.

-x-X-x-

By the time Star had finished making his tea, there were over a dozen unopened scrolls blocking his TV. With a sigh he sent them off into a pocket storage, because you never knew when you might need those things.

As he settled back on the couch, hot cup of tea cradled in his forehooves, he redid the ward scheme around his little private mansion to make sure no one could enter it. He didn’t put it above Twilight to teleport to him.

He flipped open his comms again.

General Response

Equus: And that was when everything exploded.

General Response

Star Tower: Gentlecolts, what did I miss?

General Response

Aenoraran: Flurry tucked her kid in, it was adorable. Also, Equus told us all how he blew up Geonosis.

General Response

H-Star: WITH A FUCKING SCREWDRIVER?

General Response

Equus: It was a very nice screwdriver. Was.

General Response

H-Star: IT WASN’T EVEN SONIC!

-x-X-x-

Flurry reappeared in Silver Shoals, just outside the house Celestia and Luna shared. She cast a spell to hide her new appearance, then trotted up to the door and knocked on it.

After a few seconds, it swung open in a blue aura, courtesy of the alicorn standing in the hallway. ‘’Flurry!’’ Luna greeted.

‘’Hello, auntie,’’ Flurry greeted back as she entered the house. ‘’Where’s auntie Celestia?’’

‘’She’s off surfing,’’ Luna replied. ‘’Why?’’

‘’Oh, nothing,’’ Flurry lied. ‘’I was just curious.’’

Luna nodded. ‘’Did you come yourself?’’ she asked, tilting her head.

‘’Yeah,’’ Flurry admitted. ‘’I wanted to see if I could make it, and well…’’

Luna’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. ‘’Extraordinary,’’ she complimented. ‘’Now come and give your auntie a hug.’’

Flurry grinned. Perfect.

She jumped forward, undoing the spell as she did so, and wrapped her aunt in a tight hug.

‘’Wha-’’ that was all Luna could say, before she was absorbed into Flurry.

Flurry took a few unsteady steps back as her magic surged to another level. Despite retiring, Luna was still well over a thousand years old and an alicorn, and it showed in how much magic she still had.

Flurry groaned as she had another growth spurt. This time, she increased in general size, not just in height. She was now taller than any equine ever had been, and as broad as Rockhoof. The stars in her mane were even brighter now, and the turquoise streaks had a slight darker blue tinge to them.

Right then. Time to find Celestia, and then it was off to Canterlot.

-x-X-x-

Star had to appreciate Flurry’s practicality. She wasn’t doing anything truly harmful, but Luna could have easily held her off long enough for Celestia and then Twilight to join in, and the technically-twelve-years-old wouldn’t have been able to fight all three of them.

Pop.

Only one being could get through those shields.

‘’Discord,’’ Star greeted without looking away from the screen.

‘’Interesting, isn’t it?’’ Discord asked, leaning from the ceiling onto the basement floor, his head peeking out of the couch.

‘’Very interesting indeed,’’ Star agreed, taking another sip of his tea. Damn, he was good at making tea.

‘’Of course,’’ Discord drawled, his words coming out of a pan flute made of plasma, ‘’she’s essentially pulling Tirek’s trick with some additions for the horny people in the crowd.’’

Star didn’t bother to acknowledge the truth of Discord’s words.

General Response

Star Tower: Dis Cord has joined me, lads.

General Response

Equus: Condolences, otorno.

General Response

Cord Dis: Do remember who made you Alicorn King.

Star finally raised his head at Discord, eyebrows rising even further. Discord just grinned back.

-x-X-x-

Flurry strode out of the house, looking out from the veranda onto the waves. Celestia was less than a blip on the horizon, white flashing between blue waves.

She definitely hadn’t noticed Flurry then, or she’d already been heading back to shore. Flurry spread her wings - which were massive again, but now the rest of her body was similarly massive, so it evened out - and flew.

She crossed the distance between her and Celestia in less than a minute. ‘’Auntie!’’

Before Celestia could react, Flurry bodily slammed into her. And before she could open her mouth, she was already absorbed into Flurry.

Again, her magic spiked. Her mane was completely magical now, and she near-doubled in size again.

Flurry smiled, idly vanishing the surfboard with a thought. She didn’t even need to light her horn, her magic just reacted instinctively. She looked up at the sun.

-x-X-x-

General Response

Arcanus: Anticlimactic.

General Response

Star Tower: Hold on. I know that look.

General Response

Equus: Oh

General Response

Aenoraran: She’s not gonna do it

General Response

Aenoraran: SHE FUCKING DID IT

General Response

Equus: I love this mare

General Response

Star Tower: apoa hfa bfa[ ka hfi8a gfn8ai fb8a f

General Response

H-Star: Translation of the above: dying of laughter

General Response

Arcanus: He’s not the only one.

-x-X-x-

‘’Your majesty?’’

Twilight was already panicking. Flurry’s announcement hadn’t gone public yet, but she had already heard it from an informant of hers in the Empire. Flurry had to be possessed by some sort of dark magic. Twilight could not, would not believe otherwise.

Star Tower wasn’t answering her scrolls. She’d tried sending a warning to Silver Shoals, but it hadn’t been answered either.

‘’What?’’ she snapped at Gallus.

‘’Look outside,’’ the griffon suggested.

What-WHAT THE FUCK!

Twilight stared at the sun. The turquoise, crystallized sun. 

After five seconds of complete mental chaos, she managed to pull herself together somewhat.

‘’Lock down the city, gather the former and current Bearers in the throne room, mobilize every guard and send out notices to every city in the nation,’’ she ordered rapidly. ‘’Spike, take a letter to Discord.’’

‘’Already tried that,’’ Spike said dryly. ‘’I coughed up a bird.’’ He held out a claw, in which a little emu rested.

Twilight glared at the emu as if doing so would solve all her problems, before sighing. ‘’Fucking Tartarus.’’

‘’Quite,’’ Gallus agreed, before scattering at the sight of Twilight’s withering glare.

-x-X-x-

Flurry supposed she could go to Canterlot and solve all her problems immediately. But she wanted to gather the CMC first, before her takeover. It wouldn’t make a difference in the long run, but it was a matter of whim.

And so, Flurry teleported to the Everfree Forest. Because the CMC were in Ponyville, but teleporting into Everfree first would help mask her magical signature from aunt Twilight.

Flurry appeared at the edges of the forest, next to Fluttershy’s cottage. The blue light of the sun did weird things with the shadows of the trees.

Flurry was glad she’d cast an invisibility spell, because as soon as she exited the forest Sunset and Starlight appeared in the distance, hurrying towards Fluttershy’s cottage.

Flurry wasn’t going to let this chance go. She crouched forward.

Sunset came to a screeching halt in front of the door. ‘’Fluttershy!’’ she called out.

The door opened and Fluttershy peeked her head out. ‘’You’re here to take me to Twilight.’’

Starlight nodded. ‘’We need to solve… this.’’ She gestured at the sun.

Flurry pounced.

With her size, she was able to easily grab both Sunset and Starlight in one swoop. The unicorns both let out quick screams before being absorbed.

Fluttershy squeaked and tried to back away, but Flurry was too fast, and ten seconds later the first of the original Bearers joined Flurry.

Now the size of Tirek in his final form, Flurry recast her invisibility spell and added a sound-masking spell to it, before walking as softly as she could towards the Crusaders’ Clubhouse.

The three of them were just filing out when Flurry caught them. They stood no chance, but they also had almost no effect on her magic or her size. Flurry had grabbed them purely for sentimentality.

Grinning, she spread her wings and took off for Canterlot.

-x-X-x-

Twilight nodded absently as she felt the emergency war wards settle into place. All of the Young Six and four of the original Bearers were gathered in the throne, five if she counted herself, plus Spike and a host of guards.

‘’Where’s Fluttershy?’’ Rainbow asked, worriedly glancing at the windows.

‘’Sunset and Starlight were going for her next,’’ Twilight replied, her face set in a grim look.

‘’INCOMING!’’

-x-X-x-

Star was somewhat amused that seeing a massive Flurry Heart dive-bomb Canterlot Castle wasn’t even in the top ten of weirdest things he’d ever seen.

Discord chuckled. ‘’I have to admit, it’s an interesting sight.’’

Star glanced at him. It wasn’t worth the effort.

Sighing, he looked at his comms instead.

General Response

Equus: That’s a wrap on Twiggles and her frens

General Response

Aenoraran: All hail Empress Flurry Heart!

General Response

Arcanus: You two are the ones fucking Flurrys.

General Response

Aenoraran: Mine isn’t the Empress though.

General Response

Equus: Mine isn’t either.

General Response

H-Star: Gentlecolts, please.

General Response

Star Tower: Ten bucks she doesn’t stop at Equestria.

General Response

Arcanus: No one’s dumb enough to take that bet.

‘’He’s got a point,’’ Discord commented from the screen.

-x-X-x-

‘’Hello, auntie,’’ Flurry greeted as she gracefully landed, having flown through a window that vanished as soon as she would have crashed into it. Damn, having this much magic was epic!

‘’Flurry, you need to fight it,’’ Twilight said, as she stepped in-between the others and Flurry.

Flurry raised an eyebrow. ‘’Auntie, I’m not possessed or anything. I just found a spell to absorb all of you.’’ She grinned. ‘’No one will ever have to worry again! There’s nothing in this world I can’t defeat already.’’

‘’Flurry this isn’t you,’’ Twilight tried again. She, apparently, really didn’t get it.

Flurry shrugged to herself. Not a problem.

She focused the pegasi part of her magic, and blasted forward at a speed that was just under that necessary to create a Sonic Rainboom. She slammed into Twilight.

The older mare tried in vain to pull away, but she was already stuck. ‘’Flu-’’

And that was the last word of Twilight Sparkle.

Flurry rose to her even-more increased height, towering over the others in the room. Her magic was like an infinite ocean, just waiting to be called upon, even on a flimsy whim.

‘’I promise you,’’ she said, lacing her voice with persuasion and protecting trust, ‘’that everything will be alright. I will not turn into an evil dictator. But I need you to sacrifice yourselves for the good of all.’’

And they did. They all did.

-x-X-x-

General Response

Star Tower: And it’s done.

General Response

Equus: Just like she promised her son: back in time for dinner.

General Response

Aenoraran: Back to your regularly scheduled programming it is.

General Response

Arcanus: For you. I’m gonna keep watching this.

General Response

Star Tower: Ahem. Vacation.

General Response

Arcanus: you little fucker

General Response

Star Tower: I’m sorry, I can’t seem to find the fucks to give.

General Response

Arcanus: don’t you dare

General Response

Arcanus: STAR

General Response

H-Star: Fucking hilarious.

‘’You’re evil,’’ Discord stated, finally deigning to appear to Star in full, unobscured glory.

‘’I’m on vacation,’’ Star corrected flatly. ‘’Concept or not, you have seven point five three seconds to get out now that the fun’s over.’’

Discord waggled his eyebrows. ‘’And what are you going to do?’’

Star hummed. ‘’I’m probably going to pay Flurry a visit after she’s settled into her new role as Empress.’’

Discord blinked, as if suddenly realizing something. ‘’You made that spell.’’

Star’s humming intensified. ‘’I don’t know what you mean.’’

Discord cackled, before deflating like a balloon and then - literally - popping away.