Friday, June 22nd
8:53 A.M.
Canterlot (Against the Odds)
Princess Celestia paced nervously around her throne room, as her mind struggled to come up with a strategy. She knew that Ponyville was under attack at that very moment, yet she was at a loss as to how she could help. The train was out of order, so she couldn’t send troops. She could try an aerial attack, but the invaders were rumored to have weapons able to kill at any height. Truly, it was a no-win situation for the princess of Equestria.
“Your Majesty,” a servant piped up from the hall, “shall I send for your sister?”
“Yes, please,” Princess Celestia urged him. “I need to see her right away!”
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Unknown to Princess Celestia and the nobles of Canterlot, one of the invaders had already kidnapped the younger royal. Now Princess Luna was dangling from the roof of a cavern deep below the palace, tied to an incredibly sturdy rope. She could hear footsteps approaching, followed by a deep voice singing a mocking song:
Well well well, what have we here?
Nightmare Moon, huh?
Ooh, I’m really scared!
So you’re the princess everypony’s talking about, ha ha ha ha!
You’re joking, you’re joking
She’s gotta be a phony
You’re joking me, you gotta be
She’s just a silly pony!
She’s loud, she’s scrawny
I don’t know which is worse
I just might split a seam now
If I don’t die laughing first!
When Mr. Oogie Boogie says
There’s trouble close at hand
You’d better pay attention now
‘Cause I’m the Boogie Man
And if you ain’t whinnyin’
There’s something very wrong
‘Cause this may be the last time
You hear the Boogie Song
Ohh
Ohh
Ohh
I’m the Oogie Boogie Man!
“Silence!” Princess Luna shouted, cutting him off in the middle of his song. “We demand to be let go!”
“But the game’s just getting started,” Oogie Boogie said, as he tightened her bonds.
“The… game?” Luna squeaked in fear.
Oogie Boogie flashed a sadistic grin, and continued his song:
Oh, the sound of rollin' dice
To me is music in the air
'Cause I'm a gamblin' Boogie Man
Although I don't play fair
It's much more fun, I must confess
When lives are on the line
Not mine, of course, but yours, my dear
Now that'd be just fine
He pulled the rope then pulled the rope tight, and tied it to a boulder nearby. He then kicked the pile of rocks out from under Luna, revealing a pit of naturally boiling water. With all this done, he pulled out his dice and a sharp knife; for it was time for the game to begin. “Sorry about the hasty setup,” he falsely apologized to his captive. “Shall we begin?”
“Release me, demon,” Princess Luna uttered, as her eyes slowly started to turn black. Something was rising within her…
Oogie rolled his dice, and came up snake-eyes. He slammed his foot on the floor, and it changed to a three. “Three cuts,” he observed. “That’s not a bad start.” He held the knife menacingly over the rope, and slammed it down three times. The rope started to fray, and Luna was lowered even further toward the dangerous pit.
“Last chance, monster,” Luna roared, as her voice started to distort. “We demand to be released at once!”
“Oh, Luna, you’re really somethin’,” Oogie laughed heartily, as he rolled the dice again to get a twelve. “Looks like our game ends here.”
“Indeed,” Luna uttered, as her mighty wings ripped the ropes open. She flew into the air, and charged her horn threateningly. “Now you shall see our true power!”
Oogie’s jaw practically dropped to the floor, and he threw the knife at her. Luna effortlessly blocked it with her hooves, and she picked him up with her magic. “Come on,” he begged her, as she held him over the pit. “We could be a great team. Oogie Boogie and Luna, partners in evil, whaddya say?”
“Luna isn’t here,” Princess Luna hissed, as her old armor started to grow back. “The name is Nightmare Moon.” She held him over the pit, and then let him go. Oogie Boogie’s reign of terror was at an end.
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Princess Celestia looked out over the courtyard, and felt a great despair wash over her. This quickly turned to fear, as Nightmare Moon burst out of the ground. “Luna!” she cried. “What happened to you?”
“I am free once again,” Nightmare Moon hissed. “As your kingdom burns all around you, the night shall rise to glory once again.”
“This isn’t right, and you know it!” Celestia snapped back.
“Isn’t it?” Nightmare Moon asked, feigning confusion. “Did you not want this to happen? You were the one who created Nightmare Night; you were the one who wanted to keep my other self locked in the past, and you were the one who sent me away when Chrysalis attacked. You wanted all this to happen, so that the rightful ruler of Equestria could ascend to the throne.”
“Rightful ruler?” Celestia answered her. “There is no single ruler! Luna and I rule as sisters, and as friends!”
“Luna will never be your friend,” Nightmare Moon snapped back. “How could a prisoner come to love her captor?”
As the royal sisters carried on with their fight, the force of their argument grew to match the intensity of the battle in Ponyville. This would be a war fought on many fronts…
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Back in Ponyville, the Fearsome Five were thoroughly enjoying terrorizing the town. Negaduck revved up his chainsaw, and held in threateningly towards Town Hall. “Okay boys,” he cackled, “let’s tear up the town!”
“What a refreshing idea,” the Liquidator said, as he sent waves washing over hordes of terrified ponies.
“Yeah,” Bushroot agreed, as he caught a pair of Earth ponies in his vines. He pulled them toward him, and came face-to-face with Vinyl Scratch and Octavia. “Hello, little ponies,” Bushroot taunted, as he tickled Vinyl under her chin with a flower. “Looks like you’re a little… tangled up in all this.”
“Keep laughing,” Vinyl sneered. “I’ve got something for you too.”
“Oh yeah?” Bushroot giggled. “Like what?”
“Nothing special,” Vinyl snickered, as she nodded off towards a nearby house. “Just some awesome jams!”
As if on cue, the speakers in the windows started playing dubstep at full volume, causing the Liquidator to lose control of his waves and Bushroot to lose concentration. The two villains collided at a very high speed, and then smashed into Negaduck and his chainsaw; shorting it out instantly. Vinyl Scratch rolled out of her vine bonds, and she freed Octavia with her teeth. “Come on, Tavi,” she urged her best friend. “We gotta go help the others!”
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Quackerjack had separated from the opening attack, and had decided to storm the library with the help of Alameda Slim and Rico. He threw a jack-in-the-box grenade at the door, blowing it open to reveal Twilight and her friends. “Oh, is it playtime already?” he asked in mock confusion.
“Game’s over, you bozo,” Rainbow Dash answered him in defiance. “Come on, put ‘em up! Let’s fight!”
“I didn’t forget you, my friend,” Quackerjack sneered, as he pointed behind her. “That’s why I had a special present made just for you.”
“What?” was all Rainbow Dash could say, before she was taken down by an electric shock from Quackerjack’s partner Megavolt.
“What an electrifying surprise,” the lightning-filled villain giggled in delight, as he charged up his next attack. “Who would like to be next?”
“Y’all are gonna pay for that,” Applejack hissed, as she looked down at her stunned friend. “Y’all are gonna pay!” She charged toward Megavolt with the force of ten buffalo, catching him in the gut with her head and knocking him down.
“Now that’s not very nice,” Quackerjack scolded her. “Rico, show her the correct way to play.”
Rico lined up his shot, and slowly started to pull the trigger… only to find his finger frozen in place by a purple magic forcefield. This was met with a buck to his face from Pinkie Pie, knocking him down to the street. She growled in frustration, and Alameda Slim ran away in fear.
“Coward,” Quackerjack shouted after the deserter; before turning back to the ponies with a cruel grin. “Oh, well. More fun for me!”
Suddenly, a barrage of cupcakes flew out the door; followed by an attacking Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Perry the Platypus. They quickly overwhelmed the giggling jester, and sent him running away in defeat as well.
“We did it!” Fluttershy happily announced, as she emerged from behind a couch. “We did it!”
“Yeah,” Twilight admitted, “but I think they’ll be back.”
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