Chapter Text
Sun shined brightly in Maretime Bay as everyone prepared for a festival to celebrate the heroic Ponies' fight with Opaline, which happened a few months ago. Every pony from all lands came to the Maretime Bay. The Pegasi were flying overhead with Zipp and Pipp's help. They were also led by queen Haven. The Earth ponies came together, lead by Izzy and Haven's newlywed husband, Alphabittle. Meanwhile, the unicorns led by Misty used their magic to set everything up. Controlling the safety and the volounteer helpers was Hitch Trailblazer. Sunny prepared her smoothies and equipped her rollerskates. It was time to drive to the cliffside for an outdoor picnic for all Ponykind. As she prepared herself, the weather only got better. The only wrong thing with it were a few clouds. But either way, everything looked perfect. Perfect enough to sing one's heart out while going towards the festival. Sunny did just that, and so did everyone else.
In the Maretime Bay
(Upbeat music, Sunny riding down Maretime Bay with her smoothie booth attached to her)
[Sunny] Gotta rush, gotta go fast, gotta anjoy this day!
Every pony I pass is wearing a happy face!
The festival that celebrates the victory of friendship!
Me and my squad, and everyone! The party's never ending!
Waving and wagging and cheering for everypony!
Today all of us are writing a completely new story!
My smoothies will be delivered - smoth like in their name!
They are gonna be balloons, smiles and a parade!
Oh what a perfect day... In the Maretime Bay!
Wo-oh! In the Maretime Bay!
Oooooh! In the Maretime Bay!
(Music picks up as we come to see Pipp working to fix and prepare many ponies' hair in her salon)
[Pipp] Oh what a rush, plenty of flush, there's no time to waste!
Everyone wants to look down for the happy parade!
I've been at work since I woke up, I barely manage!
But it will be worth it, I will not screw it up, no, it's my image!
Cutting here, trimming there! In likes I'm a millionare!
Snip, snip, snip! Do it, breathe, then go back to it!
But in the end I know! A time since long ago...
Where we all disagreed, it's long gone, now we're here!
Oh it's a perfect day... In the Maretime Bay!
Wo-oh! In the Maretime Bay!
Oooooh! In the Maretime Bay!
(We cut to Izzy preparing dresses and decorations and giving them to other ponies. The music gets bouncy)
Hey, hey! Today Izzy's in chage!
The outfits will shine with glitter at a glance!
Every decoration made with a big heart!
Me, my friends and everyone! We will shine like sta-ars!
So come on, come on, put some glitter with me! Life's gotta be dazzling!
So come on, come, put cool outfits like me! Don't you wanna be charming?!
With everyone here to laugh and play!
It's going to be a perfect day... Here, in the Maretime Bay!
Wo-oh! In the Maretime Bay!
Oooooh! In the Maretime Bay!
(We cut to Misty an Posey overlooking the festival on opposite sides of it. Music becomes tender)
[Misty] Opaline... you made mistakes. You never realised realised how much it means to care...
I have my friends, a new family, and life is finally great!
I'm where I belong... I hope nothing bad comes along!
We'll all improve, and lives are good!
We're all friends and family, the thought of it is comfy and insane!
Oh it's another awesome day... in the Maretime Bay!
Wo-oh! In the Maretime Bay!
Oooooh! In the Maretime Bay!
[Posey] Some time ago, I was just a blind fool so scared...
But now I've opened my eyes and made a few friends.
I've learned to accept my magic, and finally got brave.
But am I brave enough to admit that there's someone, and that that's a girl?
Someone who truly fixed my life...
Someone, with whom I can maybe make things right.
It's all so different and so weird. Sometimes I want to disappear...
But sometimes, the new feelings are so strong...
Almost like I truly can't do any more wrong.
Oh I know this will be anothr great day... In the Maretime Bay.
Wo-oh! In the Maretime Bay!
Oooooh! In the Maretime Bay!
(We cut to Zipp flying above the heads of Hitch and Sparky, who sat on his caretaker's back. Music becomes faster)
[Zipp] Hey, sherrif, everything looks good up there!
The day and parade will be more then safe!
[Hitch] Hey, deputy, thanks for the help!
With you I can achieve more than with anyone else!
Let's gather everyone, and the volounteers, too!
It's time to meet ponies - the old and all the new!
[Zipp] Can't catch up to me, Hitch, I fly so fast!
So trot along, and bring Sparky for a ride!
[Hitch] Crime waits for nopony, and so doesn't the fun!
With Sparky I follow and at last I'm done...
With the work, with the chores, not it's time to let go!
Come Sparky, let's go, a little rodeo!
Let's follow Zipp, what a treat! With everypony we will meet!
(Every pony around is now at the cliffside and they all sing together)
It's another perfect day... In the Maretime Bay!
Everyone was now happily grouped around the main stage at the cliffside. First, Pegasi performed a musical number about friendship. Earth Ponies followed that up by creating fresh vegetables for everyone to enjoy together. Then, the unicorns united together to launch fireworks with their magic and changing their shape to represent symbols of the three pony types. Sunny stopped serving smoothies just to fly around in her Allicorn form, putting on a show which boosted everyone's morale. The hours of the festival were plenty of fun and games for everone. Alphabittle and Haven hung out with their blended family of Misty, Zipp and Pipp. Hitch was also close by, playing with Sparky. Posey watched Pipp smiling from afar, hiding behind trees of her magic's creation. Sunny kept selling her smoothies to various ponies. Izzy was right there with her, cheerfully making pony bracelets full of glitter. Even further away, all the volounteers were cheering themselves on as they helped clean everything up. everyone other than Sprout, who was forced to be part of this.
"All of them are so... goody-goody and friendly... Why is no one like that towards me? I've served my sentence and all... Well, mostly..." he said to himself.
But then, he saw something in the sky. Everyone saw just the fireworks, the setting sun and a few white, calm, fluffy clouds. But he notied somethig unusual. There was a pure-red cloud, and the color wasn't like anything covered in sunset light. Confused, he rushed through the festival, but no one really wanted to talk to him. So, when he saw sherrif Hitch giving some food to Sparky with Zipp overlooking the two, he rushed up to him.
"Hitch, Hitch! Please, you have to listen!" Sprout spoke.
"Sprout? What do you want?" Zipp asked.
"Wait, you look scared. What's going on?" Hitch chimed in.
"Look up there" he pointed his front right hoof at the red cloud. "This isn't normal, even for all the magic around us!" he commented in panic.
Hitch and Zipp squinted their eyes and looked at the cloud.
"Huh... you're right..." Zipp commented. "I'm surprised" she added a snarky comment.
Sprout rolled his eyes, but then panicked again.
"So... what do we do?" he asked.
"Have no fear! Sherrif Hitch will make sure everyone is okay!" Hitch promised. "Zipp, take care of Sparky for a sec, please" he pleaded to the marshmellow-colored Pegasus.
"Of course" she agreed.
Hitch rushed on all four hooves to Sunny.
"I need your help. Please, work with Haven and Alphabittle to get all of ponykind away from the cliffside" the sherrif said.
"Huh? But everyone has so much fun! Why would we stop it, friend?" Izzy asked, as she was still right next to Sunny's smoothie stand.
Hitch pointed the two friends to the red cloud.
"Sprout noticed this. I want to take Zipp and Sparky to the Brighthouse to get a better view at it all. But just in case, I want everyone to be safely away from this weird cloud" Hitch explained.
"Oooo, shiny red cloud!" Izzy was mesmerised.
"Yea... a very menacing one at that" Sunny commented. "Sure thing, Hitch!" she agreed and left her stand.
She flew towards the scene to use the microphone. Izzy started happily cleaning up Sunny's stand for her. Meanwhile, Hitch came back to Zipp.
"I need you. We have to go to the Brighthouse and check this thing out from the telescope" he said.
"On it, sherrif!" Zipp agreed and flew with Sparky oh her back, and Hitch rushed after as fast as he could.
Alphabittle and Haven looked at each other in confusion. Meanwhile, Misty and Pipp giggled together.
"Those two are rushing off again" Pipp commented with a wide smile.
Just then, Everyone noticed Sunny on stage.
"Attention, everypony! We have unforseen weather circumstances. For your own safety, please gather everyone and leave this place. We'll stay right there to help and chase away any potential danger" Sunny explained.
Her friends in Pipp, Misty, Izzy and Posey instntly helped some ponies evacuate. Just then, the red cloud suddenly got closer. Unnaturaly closer, as if it could move on its own. Because it could and it did. Its look was distorted, beng all messy and something in its particles was moving inside, almost as if it was glitching. The four ponies prepared for anything to come. Surprisingly, the first lighting struck the running Sprout. But instead of getting damaged or pushed back, he just... vanished, screaming in terror as he did so.
"What was that?!" the remaining ponies asked.
Thankfully, the other ponies managed to evacuate.
"Where's... Sprout...?" Misty asked in shock and horror.
Meanwhile, Zipp and Hitch made it to the Brighthouse. Hitch instantly grabbed a telescope to look at the cloud.
"Uh... it just got much closer to the cliff... And the inside of it looks... like a glitched video game?!" he commented.
Zipp took her turn and got really unsettled.
"I don't like this one bit..." she commented and then looked down at Sparky.
The cute dragon was a few months older, but was still a kid. He couldn't be left alone.
"I'll go there faster and help our friends! Pipp is there, too! I won't leave them!" Zipp announced.
Hitch knew he couldn't stop her, and yet he really wanted to, looking behind her with worry. But he didn't speak, just rubbing Sparky's back. His worried eyes basically spoke for himself. If they could talk, the would say 'Please, let her and everyone else be okay'. He kept observing the weird cloud.
Zipp dashed through the air, even flying above her mother's head. But as she got closer to the cliffside, so did the cloud to her friends. Now its shape inside looked like a horse's muzzle, and the openings at the top were like two angry eyes. Hitch saw that through the telescope, and he could barely watch. But when lightnings started hitting his friends, starting with Sunny, he took Sparky onto his back and rushed down Maretime Bay. This time, no one was singing or playing around. The people were terrified. Alphabittle and Haven looked towards the cliffside.
"Our children... what's with them?" Haven asked Hitch as he rushed past them.
"I don't know" he shouted back while galloping towards his friends. But all he found there was the sad, sobbing Zipp looking at the cloud. Their friends were gone. Not dead, just... disappeared. Hitch rushed with Sparky to hug her gently with his hooves, but he was tearing up as well.
"W-what just... Where are..." Zipp tried asking through tears.
"I don't know... I..." Hitch tried answering, also to no avail.
Sparky felt something was wrong. His little body jumped down Hitch's orange back and hugged his hoof before doing the same to Zipp. He looked up at both of them, cooing as if he was trying to calm them down without the ability to speak. The ponies both rubbed his little back. Soon, they were also comforted by Alphabittle and Haven. But soon, the three pony types surroinded them.
"What happened? And what sorcery is this?" they asked.
"We don't know" Hitch said, brushing off his tears with his hoof before making it come back onto Zipp's back for comfort. "But we know that it made Sunny, Izzy, Pipp, Posey and Sprout disappear. And we'll get to the bottom of this, somehow..." he added.
"All ponykind mourns the day... The heroes celebrated today mostly disappeared. But we'll hope for their return. Meanwhile, we must make sure to keep stability" Alphabittle spoke out.
"You're right, dear Alphy. We know our children and their friends. They will be back" Haven agreed before huggung her only remaining daughter tight. "Your sister is strong... and you have our support" she told Zipp.
"Thanks mom... really... thank you..." Zipp answered, crying into the side of her mother.
Hitch watched as the storm slowly backed away, it's 'eyes' looming over the gathered crowd. When it was away enough, it raged again, creating loud rumbles of thunders. For Hitch, it sounded almost like worlds.
Thunder... Rain... Strom, Pour...? No... It was something else.
Thunder Reigns Supreme!
Right after that, the cloud vahished, casting a blinding red light before just... erasing itself in less then a second. The early night sky was quiet now. Zipp and Hitch looked at each other, exchanging determined glances, making a silent promise. No matter what it takes, they will get to the bottom of this weird situation and find their friends, no matter how much research and myth busting it takes.