//------------------------------//
// The Shadow King: Part 1 
// Story: The Alternate Adventures of the Power Ponies 
// by DisneyFanatic23 
//------------------------------//

"...our impulses are too strong for our judgement sometimes"
- Thomas Hardy



In a laboratory in Sparkle Labs, a dark unicorn stallion in a lab coat was looking at a test tube through his safety goggles. Closing his green eyes, he concentrated his magic on the serum inside. Purple bubbles emitted from his horn as the serum turned from red to dark purple.

Smiling, he turned to the white mice squeaking in a cage nearby. As he opened the cage with his magic, the mice scurried into one corner. The unfortunate mouse that was picked up by the unicorn's blue aura squealed and wriggled.

"Don't worry, little one," the unicorn said, magically sucking the dark purple serum into a syringe. "This won't hurt a bit."

The mouse squeaked as the needle was brought closer to her and pierced her skin. She went still. The unicorn then quickly switched the camera filming them to night mode, turned off the lights and waited. With the use of night-vision goggles, he watched the mouse as she suddenly sprang to life and began twitching uncontrollably. There was a loud squeak and a flash of light that momentarily blinded the unicorn.

When his vision returned, he saw nothing.

He searched the dark room through the greenness of his goggles. Then he heard the sound of glass breaking. He looked over at the racks of test tubes and saw that one rack had fallen over, shattering the tubes within it. But that wasn't all he saw.

Standing near the shattered glass was the silhouette of a mouse.

Gasping, the unicorn illuminated his horn. The mouse's fur had darkened greatly, but that wasn't all that had changed. For a split second, he saw that her eyes had become red. As soon as the light was lit, the mouse hissed like a cat and then the most miraculous thing happened.

The mouse went right through the wall and disappeared.

The stallion laughed as he removed his goggles and turned to the camera.

"Did you see that?" he said joyfully. "I did it! The mouse has become pure shadow and was able to pass through that wall!" He turned on the lights. "This is even better than what I had imagined! What, with this serum, I could do…"

He stopped when a knock came at the door. Switching off the camera and levitating the test tube with the remaining serum into his coat pocket, he faced the door.

"Come in."

His secretary opened the door, saying, "Miss Sparkle and her assistant are here for a progress report."

"Oh, yes," he said, clearing his throat. "Of course."

Twilight and Spike, who was carrying a clipboard, entered the laboratory.

"We just wanted to see how things were going, Dr. Sargon," Twilight said with a smile.

"Yeah, with the," Spike said, checking his notes, "dark magic?"

Dr. Sargon rolled his eyes. "It's shadow magic. And I can assure you, Mr. The Dragon, it's much different from what ponies call 'dark magic.' You see, while any evil or harmful magic is called 'dark,' shadow magic merely deals with the nature of darkness, as in the absence of light rather than the absence of good."

"He's right, Spike," Twilight said. "You know I would never hire some pony involved in dark magic."

"I didn't say you did," Spike said. "But what's the point of shadow magic if it's not…well, dark?"

She turned to the stallion. "Why don't you answer his question by explaining the purpose of your research, Sombra?"

"Gladly," Sombra said. "You see, shadows can be seen as two-dimensional copies of three-dimensional objects or beings. Unlike us, however, our shadows have the freedom to transcend reality."

"What does that mean?" Spike asked.

"Allow me to demonstrate."

Sombra switched on a desk lamp and pointed it at the wall. He placed his hoof in front of the light.

"You see my hoof's shadow there?" he asked.

"Yes," Spike said.

"Notice what happens when I move my hoof closer to the lamp?"

As Sombra did this, Spike nodded and said, "Your shadow gets bigger."

"Correct. But my hoof in actuality hasn't changed at all, only my shadow. Now watch this."

He twisted his front hooves together and made a shadow on the wall that looked like a ribbon tied in a knot.

"Nice shadow puppeteering," Spike said in awe.

"You see?" Sombra said. "For a moment I let you think my shadow was of something else entirely." He switched off the lamp. "If only ponies had the same abilities as their shadows', it would solve many of the world's problems."

"Like what?" Spike asked, scribbling on his clipboard.

The scientist looked at them seriously. "It could cure ponies of their physical disabilities."

The tip of Spike's pencil snapped.

"It's true," Sombra said. "With my serum, ponies would be able to morph their shape as a shadow would, be able to move in ways they have only imagined."

Spike turned to his guardian. "He serious about this?"

Twilight nodded. "Have you had any luck with the serum so far?"

Sombra bit his lip. "I've, um, ran a few tests on some lab mice, but…" He glanced at where the shadow mouse had disappeared. "I haven't had much success yet."

"That's alright, Sombra. I understand this is very complex magic. Given how valuable your research has been so far, if you need more time to…"

Twilight was interrupted by a crackling voice in her ear, "Mare-velous to Power Ponies! Mare-velous to Power Ponies! Requesting backup! Repeat, requesting backup!"

Spike tapped his claw to his earhole, indicating to Twilight that he had heard the message too.

"I am…so sorry, would you excuse me, Dr. Sargon?" Twilight asked sweetly. "I just remembered I'm running late for a meeting."

"Of course, Miss Sparkle," Sombra said with a grin of understanding. "I'll let you know if there's any progress."

Twilight smiled as she shut the door. Then she put her hoof in her ear and whispered, "Mare-velous, did you say you were requesting backup?"

"Yup," Mare-velous said, grunting as if she was throwing a punch at someone.

"But…you never ask for backup."

"Well I am now!"

"I thought you didn't usually work during the day."

"I don't. I was at my apple cart when…hey!" There was a crash. "This mechanical elephant stomped by and…" There was a trumpeting sound. "Look, I'm on Pachyderm and Kipling! Just send some pony over here!"

Twilight sighed and looked down at Spike. "What's our schedule look like?"

He flipped through his clipboard. "Well, we still need to check up on the other researchers in this department, read seven research proposals, and you have a lunch date with that cop in half an hour." He looked up at her. "You sure it's a good idea to be dating when you have so much other stuff going on?"

"Just because I live a double-life doesn't mean I can't have a social life. Besides," she said with a blush, "Officer Sentry seems nice and it wouldn't hurt to get to know him a little better."

"Yeah." Spike glanced back at the clipboard. "But if you want to finish your work today and keep that date…"

"I can handle it, Spike."

"I know you can, and I like fighting crime as much as you, but…didn't you start that whole superhero team for a reason?"

She sighed. "As usual, Spike, you may be right." She pressed into her ear. "Matter-Horn to Power Ponies, any pony copy?"



Rainbow Dash was at the museum when she received the backup call from Mistress Mare-velous. Unfortunately, since there were too many ponies around, she was not able to answer the call until Twilight reported that she was too booked to add anything additional to her schedule.

"I'm in the middle of a presentation," Rarity's voice whispered harshly into Rainbow's ear.

"I'm neutering a dog," said Fluttershy's voice.

"I'll be right there!" Pinkie said.

"I'll be there too," Rainbow whispered. "Just give me a minute to slip away."

She was passing through the sculpture gardens when an angry voice called, "Miss Dash!"

Closing her eyes with a grunt, Rainbow turned to face her boss. "Mr. Fetlock, I was just heading for the bathroom…"

"Hold it in," Mr. Fetlock said, grabbing her hoof. "I need to show you something."

He dragged Rainbow Dash to the middle of the sculpture garden where the statue of Discord stood.

"Look!" he exclaimed, pointing to the statue.

Rainbow stared blankly at it. "I give up. What am I looking at?"

Groaning, Mr. Fetlock brought out a magnifying glass and shoved it into Rainbow's hooves.

"Look at its chest," he said gruffly.

Flapping her wings, Rainbow went up to the statue's chest-level. She looked through the magnifying glass and examined the chest.

"There, do you see it now?" Mr. Fetlock demanded.

"See what?" she asked.

He groaned. "The crack! The two-inch crack in his chest!"

Rainbow looked through the magnifying glass again and saw that there was indeed a small crack imbedded in the statue's chest. "Huh. So small I didn't see it."

"It wasn't there before!"

"How can you tell?" she asked, lowering herself back to the ground.

He huffed. "I know this museum like the back of my hoof! Every peel in every painting, every faded letter on every parchment, every crack in every statue! And that was not there when I checked it last week!"

Rainbow shrugged. "The statue's at least two thousand years old…"

"Statues don't just start cracking for no good reason! We have a saboteur!"

She rolled her eyes. "If it'll make you happy, I'll check the surveillance footage…"

"See that you do! Just find out who's responsible for desecrating this historic work of art!"

"I'll get right on…"

"Hello?!" Mare-velous said in her ear. "Still needin' that backup!"

"Uh…" Rainbow backed away from her boss. "I'll get right on it once I get back from the bathroom!"

Mr. Fetlock frowned. "Didn't you take a bathroom break fifteen minutes ago?"

She forced a laugh. "You know how we mares are! We spend half our lives in the bathroom!"

When her boss turned away, Rainbow broke into a run, muttering under her breath, "Mare-velous is gonna kill me."



"I'll be right there!" Pinkie said to Mare-velous through her communication device.

Pinkie began walking out of the rock quarry, planning to speed up once she was out of view of her family, when her father grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going?" he demanded.

"I was, just um…" Pinkie said, shifting from hoof to hoof. "Lunch break?"

He shook his head. "You're not going anywhere until you finish breaking that boulder there."

"But…"

She looked back at the ten-foot-tall boulder which so far she had only chipped with her pickaxe. Of course, the process would go along faster if she could go at full speed, but she had not told her family about that yet.

"No buts," Igneous Rock said, shoving her pickaxe at her. "Every pony pulls their weight around here. The sooner you get done, the sooner you can have lunch."

Sighing, Pinkie took the pickaxe and walked back to the boulder. "Be done in a sec, Pa."



Meanwhile, Mistress Mare-velous was doing her best to keep the giant robotic elephant currently tearing up the town at bay. She wished her lasso worked the same on objects the way it did on living beings. She had already attempted to tie it up, but since it was not a living being that struggled, she could not get a tight enough grip on it, and the rope would slip off. She had never had to face obstacles like this in Appleloosa.

"Where are y'all?!" Mare-velous said into her communication device, ducking as a metal trunk swung at her. "The one time I ask for help and none of y'all show up?!"

"Zapp and Fili-Second haven't shown up yet?" Spike asked.

The elephant's trunk swatted at a stallion with a baby carriage. Thinking fast, Mare-velous lassoed the trunk, holding it long enough for the father to get away with his foal. Just as it had last time, the rope slid off the sleek metal.

"No," Mare-velous said in answer to Spike's question. "And I can't hold off this fella much longer!"

"I would've thought Fili-Second would at least be there already," Twilight said.

"If you're so concerned," Mare-velous said, rolling out of the way before the elephant could step on her, "feel free to lend a hoof!"

"How 'bout a wing?" Zapp asked as she flew in.

Mare-velous scowled up at her. "What took ya so long?!"

"Couldn't get away." She whistled when she saw the robot. "That's one big elephant. Any idea whose it is?"

The earth mare shrugged. "Some loony scientist who lost her job. Now, I think we should…"

"Don't worry!" Zapp said, holding up a hoof. "I'll just short-circuit this baby with a little lightning!"

Mare-velous' eyes widened. "No, Zapp, wait!"

But Zapp didn't listen to her. She just zoomed up above the elephant and raised the Lightning Bolt in her hoof.

"By the power of Zeus…" she shouted as storm clouds began to form overhead.

"Zapp, don't!" Mare-velous called from down below.

"…King of the Olympian Gods…"

"Zapp, there are ponies around, and that robot's just gonna…"

"…I smite at thee!"

A great bolt of lightning struck the elephant. Strings of electricity circled it and the robot wobbled and shook. Ponies screamed as the asphalt beneath the elephant's metal feet suddenly exploded.

"What the…?" Zapp said.

"I tried tellin' ya!" Mare-velous yelled. "Lightning doesn't just strike metal, it…"

She stopped as another bolt struck, this one hitting a lamppost. Shrieking, Mare-velous quickly lassoed it before it could hit an old stallion.

"Zapp, stop that thing!" she shouted.

"Okay, right," Zapp said, hyperventilating. "Just…breathe and…"

But the storm continued, and that wasn't their only issue. The robot elephant was falling. It was falling towards a school bus of foals on a field trip.

"I'm here!" Fili-Second exclaimed as she appeared at Mare-velous' side.

"Fili!" Mare-velous cried. "Get those foals out of here!"

"Okay!"

She zipped over to the back of the bus and began pushing. Unfortunately, super strength was not among her powers. Mare-velous smacked herself in the forehead.

"Fili!" She spoke her next words slowly. "Get them out of the bus!"

"Oh, right!"

Fili-Second immediately abandoned her plan and zipped into the bus. She began bringing all the foals out one-by-one, but not fast enough as the elephant was inches away from the bus' roof.

"Oh, for cryin'…" Mare-velous said.

She threw her rope to the lamppost on the other side of the robot, tightened it, and suspended the elephant from the bus.

"Fili!" Mare-velous called, gripping her rope. "Can't hold on for long!"

"All clear!" Fili-Second said, coming to her side and saluting. "They're all off the bus!"

Grunting, Mare-velous released the rope, allowing the elephant to fall onto the bus. Above, the storm was still brewing and growing larger by the minute. Screams were heard when a bolt struck the windows of an office building.

"Happy place, happy place…" Zapp repeated over and over with her eyes closed.

"Breathe, ya dummy!" Mare-velous shouted.

"I'm trying!" Zapp said, clutching her head. "It's hard to calm down when you're yelling at me!"

Suddenly, a blue beam was shot and the storm cloud was replaced with a block of ice. The ice came hurtling towards the street.

"Fili!" Mare-velous exclaimed.

"I'm on it!"

She zipped off and returned with a trampoline which she placed under the incoming ice block.

"Fili, no!" Mare-velous shouted, rushing towards her. "That's just gonna…"

But before she could stop her, the ice block bounced off the trampoline. Fili-Second had unintentionally held the trampoline up at an angle, so that the block flew into the pet store nearby. Cats screamed, birds shrieked and fish's tanks were shattered.

"Oops," Fili-Second said with an awkward grin. "Uh…better not tell Saddle Rager about that."

The Matter-Horn lowered herself to the ground, carrying a panicking Zapp in her hooves.

"H-Had…" Zapp stammered. "n-no idea you could freeze…c-c-clouds…"

"Neither did I," the Matter-Horn said, turning to her other colleagues. "Now what the heck happened here?"

Crossing her hooves, Mare-velous glared between Fili-Second and Zapp. "Ask them."



To avoid giving the press something to gossip about, the four Power Ponies took their argument to headquarters.

"I called y'all for backup!" Mare-velous exclaimed, looking directly at Zapp and Fili-Second, who were shifting uncomfortably on the couch. "Not to make things worse!"

"Mare-velous, calm down," the Matter-Horn said. "Any pony can make a mistake. I've made mistakes sometimes."

"But y'all said you were gonna come help, and yet ya took yerr sweet time with it!"

"My boss caught me," Zapp said. "It took a few minutes for me to get away."

"We all have other commitments," the Matter-Horn said. "Don't forget I was much later than they were."

"I can forgive Zapp for bein' late," Mare-velous said, darting her eyes at Fili-Second, "but what's Miss Fastest-Thing-Alive's excuse?"

"It wasn't my fault!" Fili-Second said. "Pa saw me leaving and wouldn't let me go until I'd broken up this boulder…"

"And ya couldn't've used your super speed for that?!"

She furrowed her brow. "No! My family was watching! And it wasn't like I could be in two places at once! I'm not that fast! And even so I really needed to grab lunch cuz I burn so many calories running so fast that I needed to make sure I ate before the fight…"

"Bein' late doesn't even begin it!" Mare-velous threw her hooves in the air. "Zapp, ya started up that storm cloud without thinkin' about the civilians that might've gotten hurt in the process!" She looked back at Fili-Second. "Not to mention a whole bus of fillies and colts was nearly made into a pancake!"

"I got them out, didn't I?" Fili-Second said.

"And we defeated the robot!" Zapp said.

"There," the Matter-Horn said, clearing her throat, "was some collateral damage…"

"Thank ya!" Mare-velous said, turning back to Zapp. "And how," she pointed to the bolt, "have ya not gotten control of that thing yet?!"

"Gimme a break, will ya?" Zapp said, clutching her pendant. "I've only been at this for a few months!"

"Exactly! You two are just too new at this!"

"AJ…" the Matter-Horn tried to say.

"No!" She held up her hoof. "They don't take this job seriously! They're too impulsive, doin' whatever they want without thinkin', to a point where they nearly jeopardized the entire mission!"

"You never treat Fluttershy like this," Zapp grumbled.

Mare-velous pointed at her. "Don't ya dare start with that! Fluttershy at least knows the seriousness that comes with this job! Why did y'all even sign up in the first place?! Rarity was triggered by her friend's injury, Fluttershy and Spike stepped up to save us!" Pointing to herself, she thrust her face in theirs. "I watched my parents' murder for cryin' out loud!

"And you? Why are y'all in this?" She looked at Zapp. "Cuz it's thrillin'?" Then she looked at Fili-Second. "Cuz it's fun? This isn't a freakin' game! Ponies' lives hang in the balance! Does that matter to ya at all?!"

"Applejack!" the Matter-Horn shouted, using her magic to pull Mare-velous away from the other two. "That's enough!"

At this point, Zapp was scowling hard at Mare-velous and Fili-Second had tears welling up in her eyes.

"Look," the Matter-Horn said, stepping between them to avoid further conflict. "Mistakes were made, but the upside to mistakes is that we can learn from them." She faced Zapp. "Conjuring that storm with civilians present was a reckless decision." She turned to Fili-Second. "And I know we need to act fast, but we also need to take the time to think."

Glancing at Mare-velous, who had her hooves crossed, she said, "As we are a team, constructive criticism is always appreciated. Yelling isn't. If we're going to work together, we have to help each other through our mistakes rather than reprimand each other for them."

She waited for one of them to respond. When none did, she let out a sigh.

"Maybe we should plan some teambuilding exercises." The Matter-Horn glanced between them. "Or, at the very at least, you three should strive to spend more time together. Go to a movie, get a coffee…"

"Last thing she needs," Mare-velous grumbled, tilting her head towards Fili-Second, "is more caffeine."

"Mare-velous…" the Matter-Horn said warningly.

"No," Fili-Second said, shaking her head. "She's right."

"Twilight!" Spike said through the communications channel. "Your lunch!"

The Matter-Horn gasped. "Um…"

"We heard," Zapp said bluntly. "Go."

"Right." She looked at them all once more. "At least promise you'll try to get along."

They all mumbled their agreements as she flew out of the room. Mare-velous stared at Zapp and Fili-Second for a long time with her condescending glare. Finally, she shook her head and stomped out. Once she was gone, Zapp angrily pounded the couch cushion.

"We screw up one time," she said between her teeth, "and she hammers down on us like we're a couple of fillies!"

"She's," Fili-Second said, twiddling her hooves, "not wrong, you know?"

The pegasus stared at her. "Whaddya mean?"

Fili-Second bit her lip. "Why did we become heroes? I mean I have no tragic backstory like dead parents or watching my friend get severely injured or growing up with an extreme case of dissociative disorder or…" She frowned. "Hey, has Twilight every told us her backstory?"

Zapp opened her mouth and then froze. She turned back to where the Matter-Horn had exited.

"She," she said unsurely, "must've told us at some point. Right?"

"Anyway," Fili-Second said, looking down at her hooves, "what are our backstories? I drank some radioactive coffee and decided it would be…fun to be a superhero."

"But I have a good reason!" Zapp insisted. "When I first picked up the Lightning Bolt, Daring Do was in trouble and it was so thrilling that I wanted to hold it again and feel awesome and…" She trailed off and groaned as she leaned back on the couch. "Ugh, she's right. We have no idea what we're doing, do we?"

Fili-Second neither agreed with nor contradicted her. Instead, they sat there in silence for quite a while.

"I…better get back to the museum," Zapp said, flapping her wings, "see about some sculpture vandals."

"And I better get back to the rock farm and," Fili-Second said with a heavy sigh, "chip at some rocks."



At a café, Flash Sentry, still in uniform, was sitting at a table by the window. Every now and then he would check his watch. Soon, Twilight Sparkle in her purple pantsuit came rushing into the café.

"Sorry I'm late," she said, seating herself across from him and setting her purse down. "Meeting went on longer than I thought."

"I get it," Flash said with a grin. "I'm a cop. I know more than any pony that when duty calls, you answer it."

She smiled back. "Thank you for understanding."

"With the duties you have, you're probably called for all the time."

Twilight frowned. "W-What do you mean by that?"

"You know." He leaned back in his seat. "Running such a big business all by yourself."

"Right." She let out a sigh of relief. "Well, I'm not running it entirely by myself. There's Spike."

"Your dragon," he said with a nod. "You know, I always wondered, how did you get a dragon to be your assistant?" His expression was suddenly one of worry. "Or…is that too personal to discuss on a first date?"

"No, no," she said, waving her hoof. "It's fine." She brushed back a loose bang. "I was eighteen, in my first year of college."

"Oh, where'd you go?" He winced. "Sorry, I interrupted."

"You're good." She giggled. "Canterlot University. My roommate and I were coming back from an off-campus party." She twirled a lock of her hair with a blush. "I…wasn't much of a party girl back then. My roommate had practically dragged me over there!"

She frowned. "We…we were walking by an alley when we saw these ponies loading crates into a truck. They looked a bit shifty, glancing nervously over their shoulders. Thinking they were up to no good, my roommate and I ducked behind a dumpster.

"She was saying we should get out of there and forget we ever saw this, that we might get in trouble, but then one of the loaders dropped a crate and it spilled. We heard…cracks." She closed her eyes, breathing in sharply. "They had eggs, Flash. Not chicken eggs, but dragon eggs."

Flash's eyes widened. "Dragon traffickers?"

Twilight nodded.

"You should've just reported it in."

"I was about to, but then…they saw us and…"

"And what?" Leaning forward, he grabbed her hoof. "Were you hurt?"

Glancing down at his hoof, she smiled softly at his concern. "Would you believe I fought them off?"

He scoffed. "You?"

Her smile vanished. "You don't think I can fend for myself?"

"No, no, no!" he said, holding up his hooves. "I just…took you as more of the intellectual type than the fighting type."

She blushed. "Well, I had studied magic my whole life, so I knew a few defensive spells." She sighed sadly. "Unfortunately, I was still outnumbered. My roommate shouted at me to get out of there. There was this purple, polka-dotted egg that was next to me. It had fallen out of the crate but hadn't broken. I figured…if I couldn't save them all I could at least…save one.

"I was on my way to turn it over to the police, but…it hatched before I got there." She smiled a little. "The minute I looked into his big, reptilian eyes I…we…we connected."

She wiped away a small tear. "Eventually, the police were able to dismantle the dragon trafficking ring and return the surviving eggs to the Dragon Lands. But…the dragons wouldn't take back the one that had hatched, saying that he had already," she coughed, "well, imprinted on me, and Dragon Law prohibits that any hatchlings be taken away from their attachment figures, as it would devastate them.

"So in the eyes of the dragons, I was Spike's legal guardian, and, thanks to a lot of court proceedings, I'm just that in the eyes of ponies too. He's hardly left my side ever since."

"That's quite a story," Flash said. "To think, you helped take down a whole dragon trafficking ring!" He winked. "You're about as heroic as the Masked Matter-Horn."

"Excuse me?" Twilight said, her voice squeaking slightly.

"The Masked Matter-Horn, she's my favorite of the Power Ponies." He sighed as he stared wistfully up at the ceiling. "She's so brave, so fearless, so smart." He looked back at her. "But you're like that too, except you help ponies in your own way. What with your scientific and magical research, your volunteer work, funding the library and museum…"

She turned away to hide her flushed face. "Thanks. But I'm sure it's nothing compared to the police work you do."

"Eh," Flash said, waving his hoof. "To be honest, we don't get that much action, what with the Power Ponies handling all the big stuff. Oh, not that I don't appreciate their help! But I'm sure their work is a lot more exciting than what we cops do. For instance," he suddenly became excited, "did you see that robot elephant fight on the news? That thing was swinging its trunk everywhere! Almost crushed that school bus! And when Zapp's storm cloud spun out of control and all hope seemed lost, the Matter-Horn just swooped in and saved the day! She froze that cloud like whoosh! And did you see her in her first battle with the Great and Powerful Trixie? They got into this epic magic duel and…"

"Have you decided on what to order?" a server asked.

"Yes!" Twilight exclaimed a little too excitedly. "Yes, yes! Why don't we order our food and," the rest she mumbled under her breath, "talk about something else?"



It was very late when Sombra returned to his apartment. He unlocked and opened the front door to find his roommate asleep in front of the television, an afghan over her body. She was a crystal unicorn with a shimmering purple coat and blue mane. Smiling, Sombra used his magic to switch off the television and pull the afghan over her shoulder.

She must have felt the movement, for she grumbled, "Sombra?"

He sighed as he stroked the top of her head. "I didn't want to wake you, Radiant Hope."

The eyelids over her bright blue orbs slowly lifted. "What time is it?"

"Late," he said apologetically. "I'm sorry, but it was for a good reason." He leaned forward to whisper into her ear. "I did it."

Her eyes popped open. "You did it?"

He laughed. "I did it! I did it, Hope!"

She smiled brightly. "Oh, Sombra! That's wonderful!"

"I haven't officially tested it on ponies yet, but it worked on three lab mice!" He took her hoof. "This is it, Hope! Soon all our trouble will be over!"

"What did Miss Sparkle say?"

"I haven't told her yet!"

"You haven't?" She frowned. "Why? She's your boss, and the one funding your research."

"I haven't told her, because I wanted the pleasure of telling you first! And," he said, using his magic to take a test tube filled with dark purple liquid out of his coat pocket, "to have you be the first pony to test it."

Hope stared at the dark purple serum. "S-Sombra, I…I know you're trying to help me, but…" She lifted her hoof and slowly pushed the tube down. "Don't you think you should run more tests first? See if it's safe on ponies? I mean…we don't know what it'll do to me."

He frowned. "You're right." He stepped back to look at the tube. "You're right. How…how foolish of me. Ponies have a much larger mass than mice. You could be injured."

"It's alright, Sombra," Hope said, grunting as she tried leaning onto her foreleg. "I can wait a little longer."

"But of course," he murmured, mostly to himself. "What pony would willingly test themselves on a formula like this? It could turn their molecules into anti-matter. Would…would Miss Sparkle approve a test so dangerous?"

"Sombra?"

He turned to her with a smile. "Sorry, my friend. I was just thinking out loud." Tucking the serum away, he asked, "Would you like me to help you to bed?"

Sighing in satisfaction, she flopped her head onto the couch cushion. "I'm comfortable here, but thanks for the offer."

He readjusted her blanket and then planted a soft kiss on her forehead. "Sleep well, Hope. You'll get your life back soon, I promise." He glanced at the tube sticking out of his pocket. "No matter what it takes."



Rainbow's eyes were tired from watching the security footage of the gardens from last week. She had been staring at the computer screen for hours, watching ponies come and go. The only interesting thing she had seen was the night janitor taking selfies with all the statues and making silly faces.

She was about to drift off when a glimmer of light caught her eye. Squinting, she paused the video. Leaning closer to the screen, she focused on the statue of Discord. Using her mouse, she enlarged image and saw something peculiar on the statue's chest. It was a dark spot. Had a fly caught on the lens or something?

She pressed play and watched as the dark spot went away and then returned, shining like some tiny beacon. When the light went away, she paused the video and zoomed in further. She couldn't be certain, because the image was so pixelated now, but she could've sworn there was a tiny crack where the dark spot had been.

Rainbow picked up her cell and dialed. She tapped her hoof nervously on her desk as she listened to the tone.

"Hello?" a disgruntled voice answered.

"Daring?" Rainbow asked. "It's me, Dash!"

"Dash?" Daring Do said with a groan. "Do you have any idea what time it is over here?"

"Oh. Well, I never know where you are, so…"

"And it's best you don't. Whatever you want, it better be important."

"Actually, I have a, uh, question about one of our museum exhibits."

"Is it one of mine?"

"Well, no, but…"

"Then I'm not the pony you should be talking to…"

"Wait, wait, wait! It may not be one of your exhibits, but we did do a lot of research on Ancient Grace and I just wanted to check with you."

Daring sighed. "What is it?"

Rainbow glanced at the image onscreen. "What do you know about the statue of Discord?"

There was silence on the other end. "The one you have in the sculpture gardens?"

"Yeah, well…isn't there a legend that this statue might be…how you say, possessed by the God of Chaos?"

"Not so much possessed as it is the God of Chaos."

"What do you mean by that?"

Daring groaned. "Dash, don't you remember that amphora of the God of Chaos holding a pendant in his claw?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

She grumbled. "I really wish you would pay more attention when I'm telling you things. That pendant in the image is the Amulet of Chaos. Legend has it that it was given to Discord by someone powerful, but no pony knows who. Anyway, it granted him the power to have free reign over the mortal realm. Gods were not permitted to interfere with mortals directly, you see, at least outside of their affiliations."

"Meaning…?"

"Poseidon could not control the sky, Zeus could not control the dead, Demeter could not make ponies fall in love. Get it? As such, Discord, while in control of chaos, was not allowed to corrupt the balance between chaos and order, but he was able to do that with the Amulet of Chaos.

"He was completely out of control, wreaking havoc on the mortal realm. It took the power of all twelve Olympians and their gifts to defeat him, sealing his essence in stone."

Rainbow gulped as she touched her pendant, which was hidden beneath her shirt. "And…is there anything in those legends that says…what would happen if the statue…broke?"

"There is a prophecy that Discord would one day be released by…well, the ancient Gracian text roughly translates to 'The Keeper of His Core.'"

"What does that mean?"

"No idea. Why do you ask?"

Rainbow bit her lip. "I guess…it would just be good for Mr. Fetlock to know…should we be worried if the statue is…cracking?"

There was a long silence.

"Daring?"

"How did the crack happen?"

"I don't know. The security footage just shows this light or something and then this crack appears."

"No pony was around when it happened?"

"Nope. Unless you count the janitor and night guard, but not even they were in the exhibit at the time."

"I wouldn't worry about it too much. The prophecy speaks of this Keeper being a mortal pony. But if you're really concerned, I would recommend moving the statue to a secure location, away from other ponies, just for a little while."

Rainbow cringed. "Mr. Fetlock's not gonna like that. That statue's like the centerpiece of the garden."

"Tell him I suggested this. And hey, it might just be a regular statue and not the God of Chaos at all. You never know."

"Thanks for the advice." Rainbow shifted in her seat. "Hey, Daring? Can I ask you a personal question?"

There was a pause. "Make it quick. I have somewhere to be in the morning."

Rainbow sighed. "Do you think I'm…reckless?"

Daring said nothing for a moment and then chuckled. "Dash, you worked for me for years. Of course you're reckless. Comes with the job description of being a hero."

"No, I mean do you think I'm…impulsive to the point that I could jeopardize an entire mission?"

"Okay, I know you're not smart enough to put all those words in one sentence. Are those new partners of yours giving you a hard time?"

"One of them more than others." She groaned. "I kind of screwed up while battling this giant robot elephant today. Let's just say my Zeus storm got out of hoof."

Daring laughed.

"Glad you find it funny," Rainbow said sarcastically.

"No, no, Dash. Look, every pony makes mistakes, and sometimes, when we're in the heat of battle, we do things without thinking. Sometimes, being impulsive, reckless, pays off when you need to act quickly. Yes, sometimes we make the wrong choices in the process, but that's what makes us ponies. Heck, I've made a lot of mistakes in my time."

"You?" Rainbow scoffed. "Like what?"

"I made you think you couldn't be a hero."

Rainbow was quiet.

"Don't try to argue, you know it's true. Listen, Dash, it is important to trust your instincts, but sometimes, if you have the time, you need to take a moment to think. Just don't take too long, otherwise you might end up getting pounded into the ground."

That made Rainbow chuckle a bit. "Thanks. It's good to know at least one of my mentors believes in me."

"Yeah, yeah. Now feel good about yourself and let me sleep."



Meanwhile, at the rock farm, Maud Pie was awoken from her slumber when her bedroom door creaked. Her sister Pinkie peered into the room.

"Pinkie," Maud said in her monotonous voice. "It's the middle of the night."

"I couldn't sleep," Pinkie said, hanging her head. "Can I sleep with you tonight?"

Maud nodded and scooted over in her bed so that Pinkie could have room. Pinkie closed the door, climbed into the bed and snuggled next to her sister.

"Something's wrong," Maud said, not really asking a question.

Pinkie sighed. "What am I for, Maud? I mean…am all I good for is farming rocks all my life? Don't get me wrong. I love you and Marble and Limestone and Ma and Pa, but…"

"You don't think farming rocks is the life for you." She looked at Pinkie with her expressionless eyes. "I know. I see how miserable you are whenever we're out in the quarry. You're always staring off at someplace else, because you'd rather be someplace else."

Pinkie smiled softly. "You know me so well."

"Weller than you think." She tapped Pinkie's glasses. "Don't think I don't know why you suddenly started wearing glasses when you clearly don't need them. Those lenses aren't even real. And you definitely don't need to wear them to bed."

Pinkie bit her lip and glanced around nervously. "W-What are you talking about? What glasses? What lenses?!"

"Pinkie. We may not have a TV, but we still have a radio, and get the paper. I've seen your picture. I know you're that Power Pony, Fili-Second. You started wearing glasses so ponies wouldn't recognize you. That's also why you were always making excuses to get out of the quarry."

Pinkie's mouth was wide open. Maud, still not showing emotion, gently closed her sister's jaw with her hoof.

"I don't blame you for wanting to leave," Maud said. "Why do you think I want to get my Rocktorate? As passionate as I am about rocks, I have your desire to seek happiness elsewhere. Besides, I'm proud of what you're doing with your new super speed. Helping ponies is a noble cause. And no matter where we are," she said, laying a hoof on Pinkie's shoulder, "we'll always be sisters."

Pinkie was on the verge of crying as she hugged her back. "Thank you, Maud!"

It was good to know that at least her best sister friend forever believed that she was a hero.



The next day, Sombra was in his laboratory, staring at a tube of his serum. He turned to his camera and switched it on.

"Test Number Eighty-Seven," he said. "After the last few successful tests with the mice, I've decided it's time to see if this serum will have the same effect on ponies." He got his syringe and poked it into the test tube. "Unfortunately, it is highly unlikely that ponies would…volunteer for such a…potentially dangerous experiment."

He stared at the syringe, which was now filled with the serum. "And so, I have no choice but to test it on…myself."

He rolled up his sleeve and, using his magic, brought the needle close to his foreleg.

"This is for you, Hope," he murmured.



Half an hour later, Twilight and Spike entered Sombra's laboratory.

"Dr. Sargon?" Twilight said. "You said you wanted to meet with us about something im—"

She trailed off when she realized the laboratory was empty.

"Dr. Sargon?" she called again. "Dr. Sargon? Sombra?" She turned to the secretary at her desk. "I thought you said he was in?"

"He was," the secretary said, rising to her hooves. "He went in there about an hour ago. I haven't seen him come out, and I haven't left my desk except for a few minutes in the bathroom. Maybe he slipped out then."

"Twilight, look!" Spike said, pointing to the camera with the red light. "The camera's still on!"

Twilight switched the camera off and then accessed the most recent recording. Spike heard muffled sounds as she watched. Her eyes widened as a horrifying shriek was heard.

"Call the police," she said to the secretary. "Tell them there's been an accident."

As the secretary went for the phone, Spike asked, "What happened?"

She showed him the camera. "You need to see this."

On the tiny screen, Spike saw Sombra holding a syringe up to his face.

"And so," Sombra said in the recording, "I have no choice but to test it on…myself."

Spike and Twilight watched as Sombra injected the serum into his foreleg. A few seconds later, he collapsed to the floor, twitching and heaving as he struggled to breathe. His body twisted and convulsed. Twilight covered Spike's eyes as Sombra let out a horrifying cry. There was a flash of light and when it diminished, Sombra had vanished.