//------------------------------// // Chapter 10 // Story: Tales of Harmony // by Starwind Dood //------------------------------// Just when you look death in the eye... You come to appreciate all the relationships you've made.   New Game >Continue Options Extra Rainbow Dash ogled the mystical golden spear before her. It was the first thing she saw when she flew in through the window opening and she had never seen a more finely crafted weapon other than King Steel Wing's Eternal Sword. "Wasn't expecting to see something this cool with how run-down this place is." "Who's there?" came a regal and feminine voice. A tall white unicorn with pink hair appeared from the shadows of the room. She wore pure white robes that flowed behind her. "A pegasus, here in Caballus? Care to explain yourself, trespasser?" "I'm Rainbow Dash from the cloud kingdom," she explained, reaching for her double-blade. "I was ordered by King Steel Wing to come here and warn you that Nightmare Moon is on her way here, and believe me when I say what she brings won't be pretty." "Nightmare Moon? The same one from the mare in the moon legend?" the unicorn asked. Rainbow Dash nodded her head, leaving the unicorn with a stomach full of uneasy feelings. "I see, yes that would make the most sense, oddly enough. I thank you, Knight Rainbow Dash." She bowed respectfully. "Yeah, uh, no problem." Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head. "And your name is?" "Fleur de Lis, head of the unicorn council. I will go report to Blueblood at once. If you would, please follow me." Twilight examined the halls of Caballus carefully as she walked past each corridor. "Nothing's ringing any bells," she sighed dejectedly to Spike, seated on her back. "Then Blueblood was lying, just as I thought," Spike answered her. "Well, case closed. Let's go meet back up with the others, I don't like this place anymore than you do." "Yeah, I guess we should..." "Hey, egghead!" cried out Rainbow Dash's cracking voice. She appeared from behind, accompanied by a tall white unicorn. "So, you managed to get in even with those cruddy guards? Well, no need to worry. I informed Fleur de something here and now we're going to go inform Bluestuff that he's going to have a demonic moon-spawn on his doorstep soon. Yep, no need to thank me." She spoke with an entirely smug expression. "Good for you, Rainbow Dash, but Blueblood already knows," Twilight informed her, straight-faced. "In fact, he's probably known for a long time." "Then where's the army, the resistance, all the magical gatling rays I heard rumors about?" "Gatling rays?" Fleur de Lis sighed. "Our practice of using harmo-tech for wartime purposes must be greatly exaggerated. We have some tools for fending off chimeras and an outdated defense grid, but an invading army is going to have to traverse the cold harsh lands of Caballus before they reach the city. It's our true the ultimate deterrent." She turned back to Twilight, her eyes falling on Twilight's back. "I have not seen you around the Cathedral. Your name?" "Twilight Sparkle," she answered her. "A Twilight! After all this time?" Her tone became jubilant. "Though, it's somewhat hard to believe. I don't suppose you have any proof?" Twilight stared at her in confusion. "And how do I prove that?" "Well, I hope you'll think of something," Fleur de Lis replied. "I hope we get a chance to talk later when I'm done with Blueblood." She strode past Twilight gracefully, disappearing into the hallways to Blueblood's little chamber. "Well, looks like this mission is taken care of," Rainbow Dash yawned, stretching her repaired wings. "I say we hightail it back to Heaven before Nightmare comes and blows this house down." "You're just going to leave everypony here?" Twilight asked. "And what would sticking around do? We have no chance against Nightmare Moon and neither do any of these sadsacks. Nopony here stands a chance, and I'm not risking my neck for someponies I don't know." "Yet you said we," Twilight pointed out. "We barely know each other." "I guess I owe you for saving my rump back there," she angrily answered her. "Do whatever you want, I don't care. One piece of advice, if you're going to die, try not to do it stupidly." "Duly noted," Twilight shot back. "And good luck out there without a cold-shield to protect you." "I'm working on it," Rainbow Dash huffed. She didn't wait for Twilight to reply. She stormed off in a flurry of angry feathers. "She's not going anywhere anytime soon," Twilight sighed, returning to her investigation of the cathedral. "You know, I think I'm getting pretty tired, Spike," she sighed. "I wonder where the sun would be right now." "Let's forget what Blueblood said and get back to the others. Nightmare Moon can show up any minute, right? We've gotta fight!" "You saw how well that usually goes, Spike. Our only hope is to find the fifth element." "Then what are we waiting for?" "Maybe a clue? I have no idea where the last element is other than that it was taken to form the earth-pony state." A light lit up on Twilight’s head. "Which means it's most likely where their capital was!" "So what's the capital of the earth-pony state?" "There's only one place to find out!" she giddily replied. "To the library!" She took off like one of Spike's arrows, gleefully anticipating the number of archaic and enlightening tomes. "There you go," Applejack sighed as she tightened the bandage on another filly. "Now, don't you go pushin' yourself. This is just a temporary fix. Go have a real doctor see it sometime." The filly bowed graciously and hopped along, putting more work on the injured hoof than Applejack said she should. "Oh well." "Isn't this place great, Applejack!?" Apple Bloom squealed in delight as she rolled in the snow. "Snow angels and snow-ponies and snow fights all year long. I bet this place is a real hoot on a good day, eh, Sweetie Belle?" "Not really; It gets kinda old when you have it all year long," Sweetie Belle sighed. "Plus it can get really cold when the shield weakens or even goes out." "But we almost never get weather back home! If we're lucky, we get a little rain. Say, Scootaloo!" Apple Bloom yelled out. "Why you pegasi gotta charge so much for weather?" "I don't know; I don't make the rules," Scootaloo retorted passively. "It's just how it always is." "Hi girls!" Pinkie Pie exuberantly yelled out as she appeared from seemingly nowhere. "This place is gloomier than a day at a rock farm. So what's everypony been up to?" "Helpin' hurt ponies. You should try it sometime, bandit," Applejack groaned as she wiped beads of sweat from her forehead. "Colder than a two-day old fritter too. Although, just what were you up to? Ever since I've met you you've been stuck on me like you've had roots, and now you're off somewhere else." She stared accusingly at Pinkie Pie, who seemed more suspicious than usual. "What are you up to, bandit?" "W-well I was just looking for somepony," Pinkie Pie answered her. "You know somepony here in Caballus, which I now know might as well be in the middle of nowhere? Explain." "Oh, I know ponies all over Equestria. It just comes with having a magnetic personality." Pinkie Pie smiled sweetly, and it disgusted Applejack. "I'll believe that after I've bucked my own brains out," she snorted. "I bet you’re plannin' to steal some kind of priceless artifact with some mane-brained scheme. See how well that goes." Pinkie Pie smiled and ignored Applejack, turning her attention to another pony. "So, Fluttershy, what have you been up to. Hiding in the shadows again?" "Just trying not to get in anypony's way," Fluttershy whimpered. "You can at least help us bandage the wounded," Applejack berated her. "If you can show sympathy for a chimera than you can show sympathy for other ponies, so get your tail over here." "I-I'm not good with other ponies..." "Nice excuse," Applejack sighed as she got to work on bandaging another pony. "Wish I had the same kind of luxury." Pinkie Pie squirmed a little as the mood became tenser. "C'mon, girls. No need to argue. I mean, that gets us nowhere. Applejack, can't you show a little more patience with Fluttershy?" She placed a comforting hoof on Applejack's back. "Bandit, don't touch me. I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now." The air grew colder. "Sorry, Applejack," Pinkie Pie glumly answered her. "Uh, Fluttershy, you want to go do something? I bet there's some fun to be had in this place." "No," Fluttershy answered her, drawing a dry chuckle from Applejack. "Oh, then, has anypony seen Rarity?" "Eenope," Applejack said disinterestedly as she finished bandaging another pony. Twilight giddily opened a pair of tall doors into a cold stone room covered from wall to wall with shelves of books and reams of scrolls. "Not as cozy as the one in Canterlot, but just think about all the different kinds of books they have!" "Twilight, how did you find this room so quickly?" Spike asked after collecting his stunned thoughts. "You've never been here before, right?" "Right," Twilight uneasily whispered. "We can ponder how I knew about this place another time. Go get down the maps stacked along the wall over there and I'll comb over the history section." "Yes, ma'am," Spike teased as he scurried off of Twilight's back. Twilight trotted over to the ancient history section instinctually. There were numerous gray books buried in the lonely alcoves, a task that would seem daunting to most, but for Twilight it felt like a second calling. She took five ready books from the racks, carrying them in her saddlebags along with the four elements. "This is starting to get heavy," she groaned as she sat down at a table in the open. "Is there anypony here?" she asked aloud. "Coming!" came a feminine voice. A light blue unicorn appeared from one of the sections of the library. "So, we meet again?" "You're the pony from the tournament!" Twilight blurted out astonishingly. "I didn't mean for that to come out so rude. What are you doing here?" "I work for the Lezerano Company, which does a lot of work here in Caballus. That and I live here, big surprise for a unicorn," she joked. "But, what are you doing here?" "Looking for maps," Twilight groaned. "What's the oldest map you have that's was after Celestia's time?" "Let me see what we have back here," Minuette sang as she gleefully rummaged through a series of shelves on the back wall. "After Celestia time, but the oldest. I take it you're looking for a map of the old pony-states?" "You know about those?" Twilight faltered. "How?" "I spend a lot of my time studying history, and the library here has some very ancient tomes." She dropped a series of scrolls on the desk. "Here we are. Some of our oldest maps in just the time period you asked for. Rarity pouted and fumed as she trotted past the cathedral guards and straight into the hollow building. She hated this place she was so familiar with. She knew every inch of the cathedral, because she had probably had to clean every inch of it. "With any luck, I can coax a few bits out of that pig of a unicorn," she growled angrily to herself. "Rarity," Amethyst Star's voice broke the silent hallways, "it's been awhile." "A-Amethyst! So good to see you," she stammered, fidgeting under Amethyst Star's contemptible gaze. "So, how did things go for you after the events at Fillydelphia? I mean, no hard feelings right? That pink pony just grabbed me and forced me to do those awful things." "I've already reported you to Blueblood," she barked back coldly. "However, he seems more than willing to let your transgressions go. I should warn you though not to mess with our business again, do you understand?” "To think that swine is willing to let me go?" Rarity whispered under her breath. "Who are you calling swine?" "Nopony, dear," Rarity sighed in relief. "Well there go my plans to ask for an advance... by the way, what is the plan to deal with Nightmare Moon? You're aware of the situation, right? She's probably marching to us now as we speak. She made nearly all of Canterlot into her army." "I have not received any orders from Blueblood," Amethyst Star replied monotonously. "Until I have my orders, I suspect we are on standby." "Standby? Standby!" Rarity felt her heart sink. "What do you mean standby? Did you not hear the part where she tore Heaven out of the sky! I should know, because I was there! I almost died in that fall for star's sake!" Amethyst Star groaned. "I repeat, standby." "But she's on her way! How will we protect ourselves?! We don't have the same kind of army the pegasi have! We're sitting here defenseless!" "Standby, Rarity." "Standby for what? Our deaths!?" Rarity pleaded, mortified. Amethyst Star offered her little comfort, simply standing there, staring at her as if she were foreign object. "Useless," Rarity whispered as she turned and galloped off to town, heaving in anxiety. Twilight pored through the ancient maps, deciphering expertly the ancient letters and lines. She traced her hoof along the borders of the states intently. "The earth-pony state was initially the biggest," she sighed. "They had enough fresh water to find that they could expand almost indefinitely. But, which of these cities was the capital?" "You're thinking about it all wrong," Minuette replied. "The earth-ponies didn't stay centralized like the pegasi. They had a very strong romantic-pioneer concept when it came to branching out. With most of the unicorns locked up in Caballus or Canterlot and the pegasi keeping to themselves in the sky, most of Equestria was pretty much free to be colonized, which is ultimately why they couldn't and wouldn't stay centralized." Twilight turned back to the earliest map available. There were just a few dots on it to symbolize towns and they were very close together and just bordering the Everfree Forest. "One of these cities, the very first earth-pony cities, is then most likely where the element is then." One name caught her eyes. "Ponyville, that sounds familiar." "It's where Pinkie Pie's from," Spike told her. "She's told us a few times." "And you paid attention?" "Well, kinda," Spike shrugged. "She is our friend, right?" "I... guess," Twilight sighed. "Ponyville is as good as place as any to start and is close to the rest, but how do we get there?" "You're standing in one of Equestria's greatest bastions of harmo-tech, and you're wondering how you're going to cross the sky?" came Fleur de Lis's commanding voice. "We meet again, Ms. Sparkle, or are you fine with just Twilight?" "Twilight is fine," she answered her. "Uh, how did your meeting with Blueblood go?" "Terribly," she remarked harshly. "With Blueblood, I fear for Caballus' future." Fleur de Lis took a seat at the table, glossing over the open ancient maps. "Planning a vacation in the middle of our twilight, Twilight?" she joked. "I'm looking for the element of honesty. I was thinking that these cities are my best shot..." "The element of honesty, of the Elements of Harmony?" Fleur de Lis asked, stunned. "You're looking for them?" "I have four of them already." Twilight opened her saddlebag, revealing the four powerful stones within. "The sixth will show itself when the others are gathered, and these elements were used to defeat Nightmare Moon before—" "You truly are a Twilight," Fleur de Lis interrupted her. "A Twilight? Is there more than one of me?" "Your mother, and all your grandmothers before you. All named Twilight, and all of them have been remarkable ponies in their own right, especially when compared to Blueblood's line of power-abusing shut-ins," she spat. "I wouldn't call myself remarkable," Twilight insisted while blushing. "I'm just a student from Canterlot. I still need to finish my studies." "And then what, Twilight? What will you do when your studies are done?" "I, uh, don't know," she admitted, feeling uneasy. "Studying is just all I'm good for." "All that studying could serve Caballus well. You are, assuming you are the real daughter of Twilight Velvet, one of the rightful rulers of Caballus, and one with a lot of power compared to our council of unicorns." She placed a comforting hoof on Twilight's back. "Just think about it for now. You don't need to take on any responsibility you're not ready for, but I'm sure Caballus would welcome you with open hooves." She soothingly said with a genuine smile. Pinkie Pie kicked a few rocks at her hooves boredly, leaning against one of the many broken homes that now made up the old city. "Hey, uh, Applejack, need any help?" "Pass me the gauze over there," Applejack told her. "Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie Pie replied as she dropped a nearby pack of gauze into Applejack's hoof. She watched Applejack bandage an elderly stallion. His mane had fallen out years ago and were it not for his glasses he would be as blind as bat. Applejack smiled as she waved him off, and welcomed another mare her own age and started applying bandages. "You're really good with this stuff!" "First aid is a skill everypony should know. It's just as simple as that," Applejack told her. "I know the heimlich!" Pinkie Pie grinned. "Well, I guess that something..." "Hey, Rarity!" came Vinyl Scratch's booming voice. Next to another collapsing building stood Rarity, crestfallen. "Rarity, what's the deal? Couldn't get that advance?" Rarity strode past her and approached Applejack. "I just spoke with Amethyst Star." "Who?" Applejack bleated. "The pony that kidnapped Spike, but that's not important right now because she told me that there is no plan to deal with Nightmare Moon!" "No plan? Doesn't that mean that all these ponies, who don't know about Nightmare, are as helpless as a newborn piglets?" Rarity nodded. "But ponies are going to die!" she nodded again. "But—" "You can quit that now," Rarity interrupted her. "I have one suggestion for us: run, and run fast." "And abandon everypony here? Are you crazy or incapable of thinking of anypony but yourself?" "I am perfectly capable of thinking of my family in this, and I did give you some headway for whatever reason, but this isn't a problem that can be solved with brute strength." "So, what, you're goin' to run and hide in that frozen wasteland that nearly did us in?" "While I may still be hazy on some details of escaping with our lives, the fact remains that staying here is certain death after the events we saw at Heaven. If you're so against the idea, fine. But, dare I ask, what do you plan to do?" "The only sensible thing," Applejack huffed. "Stay and fight." "Fight for what? Untimely death?" Rarity argued back. "Just what are you two talking about?" Vinyl Scratch butted in-between the two. "I heard lots of stuff about running and death. So, care to explain?" Applejack looked at Rarity, who looked back at her. Rarity talked first. "Remember how I was appointed to go represent Caballus at the Summer Sun Festival? Well, at the event, Nightmare Moon appeared." She waited for the words to sink in, but Vinyl Scratch only stared back at her blankly. "The mare from the legend, that one that tried to plummet the world in Eternal Night and Celestia nearly killed herself stopping." "Isn't that all just a foal's story? I mean, some of the stuff I heard about Celestia is hard to believe anyway. Move the sun? I'm not five anymore." "Well, Nightmare Moon is real and the sun was supposed to rise hours ago! She's just torn down Heaven, quite literally, and she won't stop until all of Equestria is under her gaudy boots. We're counting down the hours until she marches in here with her army of Canterlot's enslaved. Vinyl Scratch, to put it simply, unless we get out of here we are utterly screwed because Amethyst Star has informed me that Blueblood has put the guard on standby." Rarity gasped for air and threw her head back. "She's a monster and there's nothing we can do against her." "I told you what we can do, we can fight." Applejack stared at Rarity, her ear twitching. "Are you goin' to stand and let your home and kin be destroyed by some Princess whose britches are older than my granny? Fightin's the only hope we have ‘cause there ain't no runnin' from this. The fact that I can see the moon when it's lunch time is proof of that." "Applejack..." "Rarity, do we really have something to worry about?" Vinyl Scratch asked her anxiously. "I mean, what's really coming?" "Exactly what I said earlier, a monster." "It's just kind of unbelievable. I mean really..." Vinyl Scratch was ready to go on about the absurdity of Nightmare Moon; how it was ridiculous to believe that such a being was actually in Equestria and razing the land, but the solemn looks in Applejack's and Rarity's face stopped her. "You're... you're serious?" "Yes, very," Rarity told her. "Then, I guess we better start rounding up all our spears," she sighed. "Vinyl! Are-are you serious?" Rarity babbled in disbelief. "Dead serious, because I don't want to wake up dead tomorrow, assuming there is a tomorrow. So, start spreading the word, and let them all know that the schmucks in the cathedral aren't doing hay against it. Maybe a little rioting will get them off their tails." "No rioting." Applejack scorned the notion. "We've got to start organizing. Bandit, Fluttershy, you overhead everything, right?" "Loud and clear!" Pinkie Pie squealed as she jumped into their private planning circle. "Okay, I'm thinking hot sauce mortars on the roofs, some baked bad tossers in the windows, a barricade of week-old baguettes along the perimeter—" "Shut up or make sense," Applejack groaned. "We're not going to win with food. Scratch, what do we have to work with?" "An old self-defense grid." "A what-now?" "Listen," Rarity huffed, "we have sentry towers scattered around the city. The problem is that it's powered by unicorn magic, and our strongest unicorns are all busy locking themselves up in what might as well be a citadel now." "You've got a mess of other unicorns, why not use them?" Applejack questioned. "Most of which are injured and barely capable of casting intermediate level spells," Rarity expressed in exhaustion. "Do you think all unicorns are capable of breaking boulders and calling forth meteors from space?" Applejack nodded her head. "You're wrong..." "Well then we'll make them!" Vinyl Scratch shouted. "C'mon, girls! We've got a town to save." "This is our hangar," Fleur de Lis announced as she led Twilight and Spike to the top of the cathedral, Minuette taking up the rear. In the center stood a Flying Chariot. "You can use this, right?" "We can crash it," Spike answered for Twilight. "Nopony knows how to drive one of these things." "Well then, how about Minuette drives it?" Fleur de Lis suggested, pointing to the startled blue unicorn. "Is this acceptable?" "I guess," Twilight muttered. "I mean, if you're okay with it and all?" "Help save Equestria from eternal night? I think I can handle that," Minuette joked. "You can count on me, Twilight." "Well then, now that that's all settled, do you think you could follow me, Twilight?" Fleur asked gracefully. "I don't see why not. I mean, you've been so generous, how could I say no?" Twilight answered back, bowing awkwardly. "Between Blueblood and Trixie I was beginning to think everypony in this place was crazy." "Well, I guess we do have a few eccentrics." "Is that what I am, eccentric?" Trixie stepped out of the shadows, wearing a malefic scowl that seemed to spark with rage. "You, of all ponies, are going to call me 'eccentric'." "Trixie, I order you to back to your living quarters," Fleur de Lis shot out quickly. "I will deal with you later for your brazen attitude. Leave, quietly." "Oh, that's going to be fun," she laughed as she strolled past Twilight. "We're not done, not by a long shot," she whispered pointedly just before leaving. Twilight remained silent and still for a moment. She found herself growing more anxious of Trixie every time she met her. "What is with her?" she asked the other two. "Is she like that with everypony here?" "Trixie is... difficult, but ignore her," Fleur de Lis answered her. "Minuette, keep an eye on Trixie. I want to finish giving our guest a tour." Minuette saluted her and galloped off. She led Twilight back into the mass complex of hallways that anyone could get lost in. SKIT: Worries Twilight: Spike, I've been thinking. Spike: Is this different from the typical thinking you do? Twilight: Ideally, we'll find the last element in Ponyville, and then the sixth element will reveal itself. When that happens, I'll need to confront Nightmare Moon with the elements, and it's going to be very dangerous. Spike: So, you're worried about me and don't want me around... Twilight: I don't know what I would do if something bad happened... Spike: Twilight, I'm not helpless, and I'm just going to get really anxious without you. Twilight: I know, but that doesn't change that I'll still be worried. Spike: But... but... Twilight: Do you really like fighting that much? Spike: No, I'm just going to get worried if I'm away from you... Twilight: I promise I'll be fine, Spike. Twilight: I'll definitely come back in one piece. Spike: Then I'll need to start planning your epic victory feast. Twilight: Make sure it has daisies in it. SKIT: End   Under Caballus: Chamber of Clover Fleur de Lis lead Twilight deep underground, well below the bottom of the cathedral. The deeper they went, the colder it grew. Ice lined the walls of the cavern, and even sweat on their foreheads froze into crystals clinging to their bodies. At the end of this journey, Fleur de Lis presented a stone-wall monument, inscribed with the impression of a four-leaf clover. "Is this symbol familiar to you?" "Other than being a four-leaf clover?" Twilight replied. "Well, I know that Clover the Clever used the four-leaf clover as her personal seal... does this wall have something to do with her?" "Precisely," Fleur de Lis responded. "Behind this wall, Clover sealed something of great power. It's quite the mystery though." "Why would you show me this?" Twilight asked. "Is what's behind this wall capable of defeating Nightmare Moon?" "Possibly," she sighed, "but the wall in impenetrable. At least, theoretically impenetrable. As for why I showed you this, well, I think that, maybe, with you at the helm here Caballus has some brighter days ahead." "I still don't know about all that." "Get those walls reinforced! Double-time on the barrier! Get all able-magicked unicorns to the grid towers pronto! And someone get me a cup of joe! Dark like the night sky!" Vinyl Scratch barked order after order, ponies hanging on her every word. "C'mon, ponies! Let me hear you sweat!" "How did you get them to all start listening to you?" Applejack asked in disbelief. "I don't think I could ever get Apple Acres to start moving this quickly." "Well, some of them heeded the warning about a mad god coming down on us like bird turds, others took some coaxing... which may or may not have involved the selling of my good friend Rarity." "What!" Rarity cried out. "What do you mean selling?” "Relax, nothing major. Like, a kiss on the cheek. Stallions would do anything for a beautiful mare." "You are the worst..." Rarity groaned and held her head in shame and to sooth her slowly growing migraine. "I still can't believe we're doing this." Applejack chuckled weakly, fighting against the gravity of the situation. "Life is like that, I guess. I'm gonna go check on this around town. Scratch, keep doing what you're doing." With an affirming nod from the eccentric mare, Applejack galloped into the more ruinous portions of the town, where many ponies were breaking off bits of broken walls to build the barrier. "Follow me, single-file everypony," Pinkie Pie giggled as she led a troop of colts and fillies along. "The adults are working hard to make sure the city is safe for when that evil Black Snooty shows up to eat everypony. Rargh!" Her fake guttural growl elicited laughter from the little ones as she continued to lead them along. "You heard the crazy pink lady, get goin'," Apple Bloom chimed in as she helped Pinkie Pie along with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. "So, here's where you are, bandit," Applejack sighed. "Corallin' children?" "When the fighting starts, we need them all to be safe, right?" she pointed out as clear as day. "So, you're actually going to stick around and fight?" "Of course, Applejack." "And you're not scared?" "I'm as scared as a snake on a spit, but I can't let it get to me with everything on the line like it is," she told her sincerely. "Neither of us want anypony here to die, right?" Applejack looked down to her sister, working hard for the good of a town she knew nothing about. "I guess you're right, bandit. I don't want a single pony to die here, so, for once, I'm gonna trust you when I'm in the thick of it. Got it?" "Really!" Pinkie Pie gushed, getting uncomfortably close to Applejack. "Well, you can count on me!" Pinkie Pie saluted. "With all of us working together, Nightmare Moon doesn't stand a chance." "You got that right!" Applejack whinnied while jumping up on her back hooves. "You take care of the young'uns. Meet you back with Scratch?" "Okie Dokie Lokie!" Fleur de Lis led Twilight back to the entrance hall of the cathedral. "I hope you've enjoyed this little tour. Caballus may not seem like much at first, but it's just teeming with exciting little secrets." "Thank you," Twilight bowed graciously, "for everything. I'll go round up the others immediately and get ready to depart." "You're quite welcome. Until we meet again, Twilight. I look forward to it." She turned, and left. Twilight took a deep breath, readjusting her posture to one of fierce determination. "Alright, let's get going, Spike." "And go where?" came a deep and cold voice. A grayish-purple unicorn with a golden mane came from behind Twilight. He wore the same purple robes nearly all the other Caballuns wore. "So, you must be the Twilight everyone around here is whispering about." "Do I know you?" Twilight asked, uneasily. "You can call me Goldstar," he informed her. "Right, well I don't have time; I really need to get going." "Go where?" Goldstar asked quickly, cutting her off. "Where are you going, any why?" "I'm going to gather my friends—" "You have friends?" he interrupted her. Twilight paused, mulling over the word she said so instinctually and never thought about. She used to believe for so long that friends were too much of a hassle to make, let alone maintain. "I guess I do... well, I need to go gather them." "Why?" he asked again, almost viciously. "To save Equestria! Our home, where we live!" Twilight couldn't stand Goldstar. He kept staring at her, eyes full of contempt, and almost pity. His face would never say any emotion other than condescending stoicism. "And how is it that of all the ponies here in Equestria, you're the one that would come to save it." "What?" Twilight bleated. "I don't understand." "How are you so sure you can stop Nightmare Moon?" "I found out how, in this book." She pulled out her copy of Predictions and Prophecies, turning the book instinctively to the page on Nightmare Moon. Goldstar started chuckling to himself as he tried to turn his eyes away from the book, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not. "Well, that's an interesting book—" "Goldstar!" came Blueblood's bellowing voice. "Why don't you go bother somepony else, now." "Pleasure as always," Goldstar chuckled before turning to Twilight. "Until we meet again, Miss Twilight Sparkle. He finally pried himself away from the book, and slowly walked away, still chuckling to himself. He shot Blueblood a look of indignation before disappearing from view. "And who was that?" Twilight asked. "Another eccentric, as Fleur puts it." "Eccentric? Much nicer than what she used to say. Sure, let's call Goldstar another eccentric. An eccentric you should stay far away from." "I don't think you need to warn us about that," Spike commented. "He's creepy!" "Noted," Twilight told Blueblood. "I guess you do leave that little office." "When the need arises. By the way, could you follow me to the dungeons? It seems your rainbow-maned friend has gotten herself into a little trouble." Applejack and Vinyl Scratch strained to put the last barricade in place. Firmly secured, they leaned against it and exchanged a smile. "You're fired up now," Vinyl Scratch commented. "Before you were so gloomy. What gives?" she asked while wrapping a hoof around her to pull her closer. "Well, I just remembered that I'll be fightin' for pony lives, not just the ones I know back home. And, quite frankly, if that bandit can pull more than twice her weight and smile about it, than what kind of example am I setting?" "Hah, you all sure are something! Waltzing into our frozen city and getting us all fired up to fight a war? You need to visit more often!" Vinyl Scratch stood up and motioned to Rarity. "Think we can get some help here?" "If I must," Rarity sighed as she focused the light of her mirrors into a beam to weld the barricade. "I don't understand you. How can you fight for us all like this? What are you trying to gain from this?" she asked Applejack menacingly. "Your kind of altruism is completely unheard of." "Altruism? You're forgetting that I'm doing this to save my own fur too." Applejack laughed. "But, if I can help it, I've decided I'm gonna stop Nightmare Moon from harming any more ponies." "That's what I like to hear," Vinyl Scratch added. "You gonna drop the ice queen act any time soon, Rarity?" "When I stop getting roped into idiotic antics." "That's what I need!" Applejack suddenly shouted. "Rope. Lots of uses for rope. I'll be right back." She galloped off back into the busy streets, leaving behind two confused ponies. "I guess country ponies like rope," Vinyl Scratch joked with shrugging. "I'm ba-ack!" Pinkie Pie sung out as she jumped out from behind Vinyl Scratch and Rarity. "All the young and old-timers have been collected and are trying to get the guards to open up that big citadel place, so it’s up to us to go stir-crazy and buck that meanie-pants back to the moon! Can I get a hooah!?" "Do you ever stop talking?" Rarity groaned. "Hooah!" Vinyl Scratch yelled as loud as she could into Rarity's ear. "War is one-half psychological, one-half surprise, one-half tactics, and one-third preparedness." "I'm not even going to bother to correct that..." "By the way, has anypony seen Fluttershy?" Pinkie Pie inquired. Vinyl Scratch motioned to the crest-fallen pegasus, sitting in the shadow of a rock out of view and out of the way. "Fluttershy, what are you doing over there? Everypony's doing their best, we've got to too!" "I'm fine," Fluttershy replied. "Fluttershy—" "So are you just going to prove Rainbow Dash right?" came Applejack's stern voice. "Consarn it, nopony is going to help you if you can't help nopony." "But," Fluttershy squeaked, "I'm no good at anything, really. It's best I just stay out of trouble." "Ponyfeathers, that's not true," Applejack cursed. "C'mon, you gotta try." Fluttershy remained silent. "How about I take Fluttershy to that cathedral place?" Pinkie Pie suggested. "We can't force her to fight if she doesn't want to." "Fine," Applejack sighed. "I got too much work to do here than to bother with this. Scratch, point me to the next task." Pinkie Pie escorted Fluttershy off to the cathedral, leaving the three exhausted ponies to return to their preparations of turning Caballus into an impenetrable fortress. "Ponyfeathers," Rarity inquired. "Is that some kind of colloquialism?" "Colloqui-what?" SKIT: To Defeat Fear Itself Pinkie Pie: It's not in the dusk every day to carry you ♪ Pinkie Pie: I ain't so strong, I ain't so strong to go on ♪ Pinkie Pie: Living in the past is not the way to live ♪ Pinkie Pie: I wish you could hear me say that I miss you ♪ Fluttershy: … Pinkie Pie: What's that matter? Fluttershy: How, how can you stay so strong in all this? Pinkie Pie: It's a Pie family special secret! Fluttershy: … Pinkie Pie: I mean, well, it's not that hard. You just take any scary predicament you're in, and make it funny. Fluttershy: And how do you do that? How do you find this funny? Pinkie Pie: I'm pretending it's going to be like one big party. Pinkie Pie: Only, instead of drinking punch, I'm going to be giving punch! Fluttershy: That's... violent... Pinkie Pie: Yeah, well, uhh... Pinkie Pie: I know! The next time you see that Nightmare Moon, remember... Pinkie Pie: She's naked! Fluttershy: She's... what? Pinkie Pie: I mean, all she wears is a few pieces of armor. Fluttershy: My gosh, you're right. Fluttershy: Doesn't she get cold, or embarrassed? Fluttershy: It... actually is kind of funny. Pinkie Pie: Exactly! Fluttershy: Thanks. I'll try your 'pie family secret' next time. SKIT: End Rainbow Dash idly sat in her cell, hooves tied behind her back. "Lame, so lame, total lameness, am I going to be let out of here anytime soon, or die of lameness!?" she yelled as loud as she could. A muscular white unicorn led a smaller lavender one into her view. "Twilight, you get busted too?" "I didn't sneak in here," Twilight pointed out. "You, on the other hoof, did." "Really great at facts there, egghead, but think you can get me out of this?" "That's exactly why I'm here," Twilight smugly replied. "Maybe if you said please." "Oh, you're good," Rainbow Dash chuckled with no intention of ever saying please. Blueblood chuckled at the pair as he opened the door with his magic. "Off with you two, you have an element to find and a world to save, right?" "Mind telling me how we're supposed to leave?" Rainbow Dash shot back. "We have another chariot and a pilot for it this time. Let's go round up the others quick and leave before Nightmare Moon shows up." "Sounds like a plan to me," Rainbow Dash added in. Blueblood led them back to the entrance, where to guard ponies were frantically trying to keep out a mob of elderly and children. "What's going on?" Blueblood commanded from the guards. "It seems that word of Nightmare Moon has reached the ears of the lower-ponies," the guard answered him. "They're demanding sanctuary in the cathedral, sir." "So, you wanted to keep it all a secret," Twilight asked Blueblood, eying him suspiciously. "What did you have planned for when she showed up?" "I have my plans, Twilight, and you have yours," Blueblood harshly threw back. "Are you honestly going to stick around here and risk everything? What's important is stopping Nightmare Moon." "Well, that's true..." "Twilight!" Pinkie Pie squealed from behind the guards. "Hey, Twilight, over here! You've got to convince these guards to let everypony in! Applejack and Vinyl Scratch are busy fortifying the town, but we need a safe place for all these ponies." "Miss Twilight, what are your orders," the guard ponies asked. Twilight stared at the crowd, and back to Blueblood. His face was unreadable. "Why are they asking me?" "You're the daughter of Twilight Velvet, do I need to repeat that?" Blueblood answered her boredly. "Since she's missing, and you're here, you have every right to order anypony you want around. It's great for when you're hungry. Speaking of which, where is Octavia with my lunch." "Then, let them all in," Twilight ordered to the guards. To her bewilderment, they complied, lowering their spears and letting all the ponies in. "That worked?" "Wow, Twilight, are you royalty?" Pinkie Pie asked in bewilderment. "I'm not too sure." "Well, thanks, but I need to get back and help Applejack. Take care of Fluttershy!" She zipped off in a blur of pink before Twilight could stop her. "Wait, but... ugh," Twilight groaned, slumping to the floor. "We need to get out of here." "So why don't we?" Rainbow Dash added. "Forget the others, we've got a chariot!" "I suppose we could," Twilight wondered. "If we can return with the last element before Nightmare Moon returns, then it won't matter, right?" "How heartless," Blueblood laughed as he trotted off. "Leaving your friends behind and all." Twilight took a deep breath and sighed, throwing her head back. "He has a point." "If we... work together... maybe?" Fluttershy squeaked. "They're all working really hard out there." "And yet you're here with the old farts and the little kids," Rainbow Dash added dryly. "Guess that shows how hard you've been working." "You're right," Fluttershy answered her, her tone strong and unwavering. "But so are you." "Yeah, but I don't care about anypony here. My loyalty is with the Cloud Kingdom, that's it." "Applejack and Pinkie Pie don't owe these ponies anything, but they're working harder than anypony." "What's your point?" Rainbow Dash's eyes narrowed on Fluttershy, not angrily, but intrigued. "You're lazy," Fluttershy said flatly. Rainbow Dash threw her forelegs back and jumped into the air, laughing as loud as she could. "I'm lazy, eh? Well, it's about time you stood up to something. Maybe there's some pegasus in you after all." "I am a pegasus..." "You will be yet," Rainbow Dash chirped as she dragged Fluttershy into the air. "Stick with me and I'll make you one." "What? But? Huh? I... you're not mad?" Fluttershy asked, confused. "I mean, I called you something terrible." "Lazy is far from the worst thing I've been called." Spike jumped up between the two, standing on their shoulders. "Well, you two seem to have made up, really awkwardly anyway." "Everything is ready," Vinyl Scratch whispered as she stood tall on the tallest wreckage she could find, a purple scarf dangling in the wind. "What the hay are you doing? Get down from there," Applejack admonished her from a ditch. "Stay up there and you'll give away our location!" "Jeez, jeez, can't a mare have a moment?" Vinyl Scratch jumped down from the wreckage and landed softly on Applejack's back. "By the way, you're very soft." "Get down!" Applejack roared as she bucked her off. "Quit playin' and grab a spear." "Oh, I'm no good with those things. I got something even better!" She pulled out a couple of black razor-sharp disks from nowhere, keeping them floating mystically at her sides. "Without my sunglasses to buff my magic score, I'll be relying on these babies." "Whatever works." "I'm ba-ack!" Pinkie Pie sung as she jumped into the ditch. "So, what did I miss?" "The cutting of our last strings of sanity," Rarity dryly answered her. "And yet you're still here, mind explaining that, Rarity?" Applejack shot back, grinning. "It's really quite simple, I live here and you've managed to corral my family into this mane-brained scheme. What can I do?" She leaned back against the trench walls, staring up woefully at the moon in the sky. "And when this all comes tumbling down, I'll be there to give you a piece of my mind, I do hope you know." "Well we won't let that happen," Pinkie Pie giggled, pulling Rarity into a hug. "Because we're all going to defend your home! Right, Applejack?" "That's why I'm here, right?" "You two, are honestly going to defend this city, which you owe no fealty or favors with your lives?" Rarity asked, bewildered. "That's the plan. Not a very smart one." Applejack shrugged, calming herself before the worst part "Thank you," Rarity whispered to herself as she steeled her nerves. A column of darkness erupted in the distance, a signal courtesy of Nightmare Moon herself. The ponies of Caballus readied their spears and slings, the unicorns in the tower defense grid charging it with all the magic they could muster. A troupe of ponies of every kind appeared at the front gates, led by a sea-green unicorn who stood on her hind legs. She magically raised a large broad-edged lyre into the air. "Under the orders of her majesty, Princess Nightmare Moon, you all have been condemned to execution on the ground of harboring weapons for usages against her majesty's regime!" she announced loudly and solemnly. "Please, surrender." One of the towers of came to life, and fired a beam of light at Lyra. She narrowly escaped its scorching ray, jumping back at the last moment. "Please, surrender and there will be less casualties." "Casualize this!" one of the Caballun unicorns roared as he let loose a catapult filled with building debris. It showered into the makeshift army, injuring many. Lyra raised her lyre overhead, and swung widely, enchanting her weapon with water magic. "Pesante!" she screamed as she crushed one of the flying rocks. "Attack!" she unsteadily cried out. Nightmare Moon's army flooded into the town. Hundreds of ponies flooded into the town, and even some pegasi took to the skies, swearing their allegiance to the moon princess. They weaved through the beams of light, trying to penetrate the towers with just their blades, some succeeding, some being shot out of the sky. "Hold your ground!" Applejack roared. "Hold the walls; release the rest of the catapults!" The sound of catapults firing echoed through the air and ponies fell with the rocks, but Nightmare Moon's army had the advantage of numbers. When one fell two would take her place. The first set of barricades fell soon enough after the initial invasion. "Ponyfeathers!" Applejack cursed as she jumped out of the ditch. She galloped right into the fray of the fight, and reeled back a hoof. "Skyward Shot!" she yelled out as she drove her hoof into another charging pony and shot her into the sky. She turned around and leapt at another pony. "Autumn's Fall!" she roared as she landed right on her, knocking her out. "Applejack, duck!" Rarity threw her mirrors into the air. "Arching Light!" Light from the mirrors shot out and converged on a pegasus flying at Applejack. "Cover me!" Applejack threw herself at another pony, light from Rarity's mirrors hailing behind her. She knocked out her target with a swift buck to the head, and scanned the area for her target. "Where is she?" "Aquatic Cadenza!" Applejack couldn't react in time as Lyra came down on her, driving her weapon into the ground and creating an eruption of gushing water that shot Applejack into a stone wall. "Dang it..." "This could have been avoided if you had surrendered right away," Lyra lamented. "Now look what you forced us to do." "Like hay that nightmare mare would do that. She wants blood!" "Enough!" Lyra cried as she raised her blade. "Deluge—" "Surprise Infliction!" Pinkie Pie cried out as she raised her pinwheel on Lyra, knocking her away from Applejack. "Prism Shot!" Rarity yelled as she fired a bullet of light from a mirror. "Pulse Thrust!" Vinyl Scratch announced as she magically tossed one of her discs. Lyra raised her lyre to defend herself, but was forced to retreat. Pinkie Pie took Applejack and slung Applejack over her back. "Let's go, they're pushing back the line everywhere else," she announced to the other two. With a nod, they all galloped back, all the way back to the cathedral. Nightmare Moon's army continued to advance on the city, pushing back ponies further and further till they were at the cathedral's steps, but only half as strong. "Set me down, bandit," Applejack groaned as she saw the crowd come into view. "I'll tear right through them." "Not in your health," Vinyl Scratch warned her. "Rarity, get charging!" Vinyl Scratch ran straight into the crowd, flinging herself into the crowd while rotating her disks around her. "Turntable Whirlwind!" The disks turned into a small black tornado around her as she tore through the crowd. "How do you like that," she chuckled before the army caught her. "Oh shoot." "Ethereal Rift!" Rarity chanted out her spell, the ground under Vinyl Scratch lighting up and flooding up with light, flinging all the ponies into the air. "Vinyl Scratch!" "I gotcha! Grand Mixer!" Vinyl Scratch threw her disks mid-air against the other ponies, flinging herself backwards as her enchanted disks, calling lightning from the sky as they struck the ponies. Vinyl Scratch landed right at Rarity's hooves. "Four down, four hundred more to go?" "Very efficient," Rarity groaned. "Look!" Pinkie Pie squealed, pointing to the front of the cathedral. Octavia appeared in front of the army, standing between them and Caballus' last bastion. "Representing army of Nightmare Moon, I have orders that state if you take another step I am to take drastic measures to remove you from Caballus. You have been warned." The army continued to advance, forcing Octavia to play. "You were warned," Octavia smugly snickered as she brought her broad-sword to her cello. "Symphonic Choir!" She played a string of notes, and swung her sword, shooting off cascading bolts of light that crashed down on the army, halting their advance. From out of the shadows, Amethyst Star jumped into Nightmare Moon's army and lashed at the nearest pony with her double-headed scythe, bringing with her a squadron of Caballus' strongest unicorns. "Lotus Flower!" she screamed as she flicked one of her targets into the air, jumping up and flicking them away with powerful swings. Twilight couldn't believe her eyes as she watched the ensuing battle from the gates of the cathedral. "Are you just going to stand there, gawking?" Trixie asked her, appearing from nowhere. "How do you keep doing that?" Twilight asked, disturbed. "It's something you'll never know," she snidely commented as she charged into the invading army and jumped over it. "Empress Throne!" She threw three cards into the chaos, creating a magical pillar of water that gushed upward, lashing out against any nearby ponies before forming a solid column that Trixie stood atop of. "Greetings all you lower-class foals! I am the Great and Powerful Trixie, and boy do I have a show for you!" She raised a hoof to the sky and started giggling wildly. "Thunder Sword!" Blades of pure lightning shot down from the sky, piercing the sky and dispersing the mob. "Isn't this a bit much?" Applejack groaned. "We want them gone, not dead..." Twilight watched Octavia, Amethyst Star and Trixie tear through the makeshift army with ease, but she grew uneasy as the fight went on longer. "Where is Nightmare Moon? Why hasn't she shown up yet?" "Maybe she's going for a sneak attack?" Spike answered her without thinking. He nearly fell of her when she turned and started galloping into the Cathedral. "Slow down!" Rainbow Dash turned and noticed Twilight galloping off. "Huh? Hey, Fluttershy, double time!" "What?" Fluttershy bleated. "Just follow me!" Rainbow Dash led Fluttershy after Twilight as she galloped further into the cathedral. They all stopped at a pair of broken double doors, a pitch black mare inside magically holding up Blueblood. "So, you're the leader of this rabble?" she snidely asked him. "How should I break you? Perhaps your horn?" "Orbital Raid!" Twilight threw her spear, spinning in mid-air and struck Nightmare Moon's back, the spear magically rebounding back to her. Nightmare Moon threw Blueblood to the back of the room, turning malevolently to the mare that dared to strike her. Her piercing sharp eyes, burning with anger, caused Twilight to freeze up in fear. "And who are you?" she asked dryly. "I... didn't think this through too well," Twilight whispered, scared. Nightmare Moon took a step forward, sending out little waves of darkness every time her hoof hit the floor. "You two, yes I remember you two," she said maliciously. "You two were at the festival. The pegasus who attacked me, and the unicorn in the crowd. Isn't this interesting, my little ponies." "Got another bright idea, Twilight?" Rainbow Dash asked before gripping her sword in her teeth. "C'mon, snap out of it." Twilight shook herself. "Stay on the defensive and don't take your eyes off of her." She could feel her heart in her chest racing away, driving her blood through the icy fear beginning to suffocate her. "Twilight," Fluttershy whispered, "run." "What?" Fluttershy jumped at Nightmare Moon, three chained scythes flying behind her. "Flailing Pain!" "You're kidding, right?" Nightmare moon raised herself onto her back legs, narrowly avoiding the flying blades. An aura of darkness began to materialize behind her, arching over her and coming down on Fluttershy in a tide of scornful magic. "Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash cried as she flung her sword, catching the wave. The scythes coming out of Fluttershy's robe reeled in, leaving only the edges revealed. Fluttershy took a deep breath and swung upward. "Painful Presumptions!" Nightmare Moon's darkness tried to catch Fluttershy at her back hooves, but she shot upwards at the last moment, and nicked Nightmare Moon's face. "Fleeting Dream!" She swung downward, and nicked Nightmare Moon again. "Little foal!" Nightmare Moon screamed as her aura of darkness swirled around her. She directed the dark magic at Fluttershy. "I will tear out your breath!" Fluttershy jumped over the converging magic and kicked Nightmare Moon with a fourth hidden sickle. "Repeating Misery." She spun in air and lashed out with another sickle again. "You need to run!" she cried back to Twilight. "Go!" "I'm not leaving you!" Rainbow Dash cried as she plunged herself in Nightmare Moon's dark aura. "Dankuuken!" She spun her body, gathering the misty aura, and shot upwards to dispel the malefic magic. "Do you think that is enough to stop me?!" Nightmare Moon's tail roared. Her tail snaked around Fluttershy's hooves as she raised a hoof over the helpless pegasus. "Die!" She tried to crush her, but Twilight grabbed her and winked the both of them away at the last moment. Her hoof slammed into the ground with enough force the shake the entire cathedral. "Little— AGH!" "Gotcha," Spike smirked as he knocked an arrows. "Gale Salvo!" He fired five arrows all at once with the howl of raging wind. The arrows pierced Nightmare Moon's side, but drew no blood. She was scrapped, nicked and pierced, but no blood poured from any wound. "Monsters... monsters all of you!" Nightmare Moon screamed as her body dissolved into a whirling vortex of dark magic. "I'll consume you!" came her reverberating voice from the center of the chaos. "Nothing will be left! Not even bone!" "Any bright ideas now?" Rainbow Dash asked Twilight. "There's nothing to hit!" "Then we'll make something to hit. Start charging a really strong spell!" Twilight magically held her spear overhead, spinning it overhead as she channeled her magic into it. "Oh comets that cut across the sky! Rain down upon this bedlam and create a path for my victory!" The spinning spear turned into a wormhole encased in a sheet of ice. "Trail Blazer!" A massive comet erupted from the wormhole and crashed into Nightmare Moon's dark hurricane, freezing it solid. "Rainbow Dash, crush it!" "I've gotcha!" Rainbow Dash threw her hooves forward and released a powerful gust of wind from her armor. "Cyclone!" The winds tore into the frozen twister, shattering it to pieces. "Did we... win?" Fluttershy asked incredulously. "Probably not," Twilight answered her as she placed her spear in front of her defensively. Almost on cue, the vapors that composed Nightmare Moon freed themselves from the icy coffins and converged back into the diabolic form of the dark Princess. "Is that it?" she sneered. "I've barely started." "Eat this!" Spike yelled out as he tore his bow apart into daggers. "Glimmer—" Nightmare Moon caught Spike mid-attack in her aura of magic. She held him up by his tail in triumph. "This is the best Equestria can give me! A thousand years to prepare for my arrival and not even a properly trained army! Instead I get fillies playing games and this shrimp!" she shot Spike into the nearest wall, reveling in the destruction she was causing as each step she took out let out a cascade of darkness that swelled over the cracks of the floor. She wanted to engulf everything in her darkness, especially the pegasus that first dared to attack her. "You're first." "Rising Dragon!" Spike roared as he cut across Nightmare Moon's legs and then leaping off into the air and thrusting his daggers at Nightmare Moon's face. She drew away at the last moment, taking away the smallest scar that a small droplet of red blood slipped out of. "Don't you dare touch them!" Spike threatened. "Such fortitude," Nightmare Moon dryly commented. She stomped a single hoof and another pool of darkness erupted forward, directed right at Spike. Spike clenched his daggers and lept into the air, just over the tide. "Diving Dragon!" He propelled himself out of his momentum and right at Nightmare Moon again, clenching his teeth hard enough to draw blood from his own mouth, but he gasped when he felt the dagger sink into her side. He clung to her, scared for his and everyone else's life. "Insolent little whelp!" Nightmare Moon kicked and bucked as she tried to shake him off. "How dare you! How dare you!" She screamed and a terrible wind erupted upwards around her, pulling Spike into the air. She caught him with her magic and smashed him against a wall. Spike, barely conscious, flailed in vain trying to reach his daggers still sitting in Nightmare Moon's body. "Surrender and die!" She crushed him into the ground and started stomping on him. "Die! Why won't you die! Break and die!" "Get off him!" Twilight cried as she reeled forward with her spear, engulfed in a roaring inferno. Nightmare Moon ducked under the strike, but Twilight reeled back and thrusted again. "Binary Star!" Nightmare Moon backed away from the second hit, but a star erupted from the tip of the spear and struck Nightmare Moon's face. Her helmet flew off. "You," Nightmare Moon wheezed as she held her head between her hooves. "You," she seethed as she pitifully grasped around for her helmet. "You," she cried meekly as her mane flailed around madly. "You!" she finally yelled as loud as she could as her mane turned into a vicious cyclone of ethereal and dark magic. The stars in her mane blinked madly in and out of existence, trying to communicate hatred at Twilight and Spike. "How dare you do this to me! After I've trounced you into the ground! Who are you! Answer me!" "Just a student," Twilight proclaimed. "And a dragon," Spike added as. "A student and a dragon," Nightmare Moon whispered angrily, as her eyes scanned Twilight and Spike. She froze, and her mane dissipated back to its natural haze. She stood still, save for her heaving chest as she gasped for air. "It's a dragon?" "Twilight, is she... okay?" Spike asked as he watched Nightmare Moon begin to twitch around madly. She turned in every direction, as if expecting something. "Where is she?" "Where is who?" Twilight asked. "Where is Celestia?!" Nightmare Moon roared as loud as she could, her voice shaking the earth and calling cries of thunder. "Where is Celestia?! I know she's here! She's been waiting! That's the only reason! I won't let her! I won't let her take me back! I'm not going back! No! I did not spend one-thousand years suffering with little belief of an end to lose now!" Her rambling became more frantic and rapid as she went on. She turned back to Twilight, confused, afraid and angry. "Where is she?" Twilight backed away, startled by the sudden shift in mood. She corralled Spike behind herself. "Celestia," Twilight started, "disappeared a long time ago... not long after she sealed you away." "After my... what? No, no, no!" She started shaking her head and backing away. "No! I don't believe that!" She rose into the air, tearing the roof to pieces with a vortex of magic as she rose. She kept rising till she was the highest thing in Caballus. She could see all the carnage her machinations had caused, and it still wasn't enough to get her sister's attention. She cried. Where are you? The entire city stopped to marvel as the mad-mare began to glow even brighter than the moon. Where are you! "Twilight, what's going on!?" Rainbow Dash yelled as the howl of wind began to tear at Caballus. "I don't know. Maybe she's gone crazier?" Celestia! The name of the past ruler of Equestria began to cut through everyone in Caballus. Show yourself! I won't let you send me back! Celestia! The earth shook as the princess' fury shook the moon in the sky. For a few minutes, the world was filled with light again, but from the moon. Its pale hue gave no comfort, but heralded a macabre castle of twisted design, floating down from the moon, casting a shadow across all of Equestria. "What the hail?" Rainbow Dash cursed as she watched the tiny spec descend into Equestria. "Where did that come from?" "I have a few guesses," Twilight muttered, keeping her eyes on the Princess in the sky, twitching and convulsing wildly. She had gone silent, but her presence could still be felt, stronger than ever. The twisted moon-castle landed in the middle of the Everefree Forest, directly in front of the ruins of Old Canterlot. Nightmare Moon disappeared in a wild flash of light, taking her army with her, leaving behind all the carnage and violence she reveled in earlier. Caballus was left nearly in ruins, but with only a few bodies littered in the streets. "Thank goodness you're safe!" Pinkie Pie bawled as she latched onto Twilight, staining her cloak with her. "I was so wo-oried!" "I'm glad I'm safe too, Pinkie Pie," Twilight replied, trying to push away from the clingy pony with little results. With a sigh, she gave in and let Pinkie Pie cry her puffy eyes out. Minuette stood at attention and saluted the rest of them. "I am Minuette, though, I think you all know that from our fun at the tournament. Anyway, I'll be driving the Flying Chariot for us, so just tell me our destination and I'll fly us there in no time." "Well, I'm kinda disappointed," Applejack sighed. "I wanted another chance to drive this thing." "You keep your hooves away from the controls!" Twilight shot back as Pinkie Pie strangled the air from her lungs. "You girls have a whole lot more guts than I gave you credit for," Rainbow Dash mused as she looked over Applejack and Rarity. "You know, for a prissy snob and a stubborn mule, you two can be kind of awesome when you want to." "Kind of awesome?" Rarity pouted. "I had to fight an army to get 'kind of' awesome." "Yeah," Rainbow Dash grinned. "Now if you want to see real awesome, you should have seen Fluttershy attacking Nightmare Moon! She was all 'shing' and Nightmare Moon was all 'I'm Nightmare Moon, despair and junk' but then Fluttershy jumped and kicked her in the face!" "Fluttershy... did that?" Applejack expressed in disbelief. She turned to Fluttershy, who had taken to hiding within the confines of her robe. "Rainbow, are you pulling my leg?" "Nope, I can vouch for her," Spike added. "Fluttershy's got some real moves when she wants to. C'mon, say something!" Fluttershy, in an uncharacteristic moment, lifted her with some air of assurance. "I can, uhh, really kick butt." The stares she received in response were enough to send her back into her fuzzy haven. "Oh, I wish I had seen it!" Pinkie Pie giggled, finally letting go of a suffocated Twilight. "C'mon, let's spar!" she squealed in delight as she drew her giant pinwheel. "Party Destruction!" "False Pretenses," Fluttershy shrieked as she took off." Everyone started laughing as they watched the pink blur chase the helpless yellow one. It was the moment and feeling they needed after so much fighting and anguish. "You're all such good friends," Blueblood laughed as he strode into the hanger. "I hope I'm not interrupting a moment." "Don't worry, you already have," Rarity groaned. "Now go ruin something else, please." "Still as cute and feisty as ever," Blueblood gushed at Rarity. "Say another word, I dare you," Rarity threatened darkly. "I don't suppose you have a nicer younger sister?" Rarity drove her hoof into Blueblood's smiling face, a satisfying crunch followed by an eruption of blood playing out. "You are the absolute worst kind of pony imaginable!" Blueblood continued to smile as he magically healed his broken nose. He strode past Rarity and approached Twilight. "Equestria, neigh, the whole world is depending on you. I don't mean to pressure you, but the stakes are high, I hope you understand." "Yes, I do." "You have managed to surpass my expectations in many ways, Twilight. A shining new hope for Equestria is surely at hoof." He chuckled to himself, but noticed Twilight’s continuing unease. "What I'm trying to say, is that I believe in you. You're the only one that can save us." "Thanks," Twilight smiled. "I'll try not to let you down." Equestria: The Dark Skies Twilight, sat over the top of the flying chariot, holding her spear tightly close to her body as if it was the one thing keeping her from flying off, and the book that had been delivered to her in the other. It would be awhile before Nightmare Moon's castle would appear in the distance. "Who delivered you?" "Need some company?" came Rainbow Dash's cracking voice. Even before Twilight could answer she took a seat next to her. "Isn't it dangerous for you to sit up here?" she playfully teased while poking her in the back. "It's splatsville from up here." "If I sensed any danger of falling off I would wink inside the chariot," Twilight replied. "Gutsy, aren't you," Rainbow Dash laughed. "Well, a gutsy leader is better than a scared one." "What? Leader? When was that decided?" Twilight became exasperated and flustered. Just the idea of trying to lead everyone into what could be their graves left her feeling woozy. "I'm not a leader." "Well if you talk like that you aren't," she groaned. "Fluttershy can't do it because she's afraid of her own shadow somehow. Pinkie Pie can't do it because she's pretty much insane. Rarity can't do it because she's too prissy. Minute is the new girl. Applejack can't do it because she's too dumb—" "That's really mean." "She broke the original chariot by bucking the controls. And, finally, Spike is a shrimp. Nopony is going to follow him." "And what about you? Why can't you lead?" Twilight asked with mild curiosity. "Isn't it obvious? I'm just too awesome to lead!" Rainbow Dash shrugged her shoulders, laughing at Twilight for missing something so painfully obvious. "So, that just leaves you. You're leader by default." Notice: Twilight has gained the title Leader of Ponies! Because you're one by default.   Would you like to save your game?