• Published 13th Feb 2012
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Escape from Castle Midnight - Gojira007



Twilight and her friends must embark on a dangerous quest to a dark new world to save Equestria.

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Chapter 2: The Raid

Escape from Castle Midnight

Chapter 2: The Raid



"Beware the black clouds which bear no rain, for they are the harbingers of cataclysm.

From their depths, a world of evil may emerge into our own, and all Equestria shall be at risk. Only in the long-ago times of Queen Eternia have these clouds ever been seen, and though nopony who saw them ever stepped forward to tell the tale, the scars left on our land from their appearance speak for themselves.

If ever the clouds return to Equestria, you must hide. Find safety however you can. For evil lurks within them, and it shall take you back into their dark depths if it can."

Twilight Sparkle read the book's brief but powerful description of the black clouds with growing tension. Beneath the words were images…pictures depicting rocks ripped apart, large clawed footprints in the ground. If this was true…if the clouds were some sort of gate as the book described…!

She gave a sudden turn from the pages to her fellow ponies, the dread she felt in her heart written all over her face. "Fluttershy, find the Mayor and tell her to instruct everypony to get inside," she instructed urgently, "Spike, I need you to send a message to Princess Celestia immediately. If what I've just read is true, Ponyville is in terrible danger."

Fluttershy gave a gentle gasp, wings flapping with nervous speed. "W-w-what d'you mean, Twilight…?" she squeaked.

"There's no time, Fluttershy!" Twilight insisted, not without sympathy but with clear seriousness. "Please!"

It took the soft-blonde Pegasus a moment, but with as solemn a nod as she could give, she flew off like a bullet out of the library. "I'll get the parchment!" Spike yelped, rushing up the stairs to the upper levels.

"Gosh, Twilight, what'd you read?" Applejack asked cautiously.

"I'm not entirely sure…" Twilight answered, eyes locked on Spike as he fetched the parchment from the study upstairs. "The book only says the clouds signal terrible danger for Equestria. How that works and what exactly that danger is, it doesn't say, but if the pictures are anything to go by…"

Peering over Twilight's flank, Rarity spotted the very images the purple alicorn spoke of. "…oh dear…" she gasped, "whatever left those prints must have been most unpleasant, to say the least…!"

At that point, Spike hurried over to Twilight, pen and parchment in hand. "OK, Twilight, tell me what you want the message to say," he said quickly, a gleam of worry in his eyes.

"Ponyville Emergency," Twilight answered, waiting a moment to let Spike write her words down. "Black Clouds containing no rain have appeared near the town. Research indicates they could pose a grave threat to our home. Please respond with all due haste."

"…with all…due…haste," Spike repeated as he finished his write-up.

Giving the letter a quick look-over, Twilight nodded her approval. "Perfect. Send it to Celestia immediately," she said.

As Spike took a deep breath and readied the burst of magical flame to send the letter to Canterlot, the whole group felt a light shaking on the ground. With a gasp, Twilight looked to find its source: Pinkie Pie, vibrating so wildly it was if she were a self-contained earthquake. "G-g-g-guys?" she managed to stutter out from her shaking mouth, giggling a bit but aware of what her reaction meant, "M-m-m-my Pinkie Sense is t-t-t-t-tingling! L-l-like BIG t-t-t-time!"

In a fit of panic, Spike swallowed the magic burst he'd meant to release. "Oh man, not that!" he yelped, smoke trailing out of his mouth. "If we weren't sure trouble was coming before, we are now!"

"Spike!" Twilight snapped. "That's all the more reason to send the note now!"

"R-right…!" the young dragon replied, hastily taking in a new breath and just as quickly releasing it, the swirls of fiery green mist consuming the scroll before both vanished.

Twilight gave a curt nod once the scroll was fully gone. "I suppose the only thing left to do is wait…?" Rarity asked gently.

Even as Twilight nodded, however, Applejack was making her way to the door. "S-s-silly!" Pinkie, still jittering wildly, called to her, "T-t-that's how you go outside, n-n-n-not inside!"

Sure enough, Pinkie's giggling observation drew everyone's attention to her fellow Earth Pony. "Applejack…?" Twilight ventured curiously.

"I'm real sorry t'leave in such a hurry, Twi," Applejack answered hastily, looking to her friends with regret, "but Apple Bloom 'n' Big Macintosh're in town sellin' apples, I gotta make sure they get t'safety."

Twilight gave the cowpony a warm smile. "We understand completely, Applejack. In fact, we'll come with you to guarantee that's exactly what happens. Right, girls?"

"R-r-r-right!" Pinkie answered, trying to shake her way closer to her friends.

"But of course!" Rarity added enthusiastically. "What kind of friends would we be otherwise?"

Applejack's worry eased slightly, a friendly grin coming to her face. "Thank y'all kindly," she said sincerely.

"Um…you'd better hurry," Spike interjected, his eyes seemingly magnetized to the nearest window.

Before the others could ask what he meant, the young dragon gave a dramatic point to the outside…and the growing mass of black clouds that had gathered there…


"Remember Tirek's orders, my Stratadons!" the winged ape-beast cried to its companions as they began their descent toward Ponyville, lion-like tail swishing back and forth in anticipation. "Take as many ponies as you can! Do not turn back 'til your claws are full!"

The Stratadons bore down on the village with incredible speed, swooping down with claws open and teeth bared. Despite the heavy winds the black clouds seemed to be generating making it impossible for the Pegasus Ponies to fly, the dragon-beasts moved through the air like blades. It did not take long for panic to make its way through the populace, and soon the frantic ponies' desperate attempts to run somewhere-anywhere-the Stratadons could not reach them turned the area into a disarray of terrified actions. "The horror…THE HORROR!" one pony was heard to shriek before fainting to the ground and being taken in claw by a nearby monster.

"No no no!" Rainbow Dash cried in frustration, surveying the scene swiftly; Trixie was already gone, disappeared into the crowd. "Everyone has to stay calm! Get inside, lock your doors, don't just gallop around all over the place!"

"Oopsy-daisy, I don't think anyone hears ya, Dash!" Derpy, sprawled out on her back, observed with an oddly bemused tone.

Suddenly, a Stratadon appeared from above, roaring furiously as it came toward them. Dash firmed her stance, ready to buck the beast back, but found the effort unnecessary when the creature's attack was deterred by another force: a thick pair of red forelegs slamming into the side of its head and knocking it down to the ground. Both Pegasus ponies turned to see Big Macintosh, a truly imposing sight reared up on his hind legs, looking to the fallen dragon-beast with quiet anger. "We've got an apple cellar at Sweet Apple Acres," he said with surprising calm to Rainbow Dash, slipping back down into a four-legged stance and making sure to keep Apple Bloom close. "That qualify as a safe place t'hide?"

The rambunctious Pegasus nodded, grabbing Derpy by the tail with her mouth and hauling her wall-eyed companion upright. "You go with Bic Macintosh 'n' Apple Bloom, OK, Derpy?" Dash asked.

"I hear what sounds like a good plan," she replied glumly, "but I don't hear what happens to Rainbow 'n' all her Dashing."

Nudging the soft-gray Pegasus toward the Apple siblings, Dash gave a confident grin. "She stays behind to take care of crowd control, but comes home safe 'n' sound," she said with her usual boisterous attitude.

"And they all live happily ever after!" Derpy giggled gleefully.

A sudden shriek pierced the air, however, and three more Stratadons took a sharp dive toward the group from behind. "Get moving!" Rainbow Dash urged, leaping toward the attacking trio, front legs boxing ferociously as she did.

The central Stratadon was knocked back by Dash's strike, bumping into one of his companions and distracting the third long enough to give the rambunctious Pegasus time to leap out of its way. Even as it ascended into the air to prepare for another strike, however, the one knocked down by Macintosh earlier was getting back up. "MAC, LOOK OUT!" Apple Bloom cried, pulling on her elder brother's tail desperately as the risen dragon-beast spread its wings and lunged at the Clydesdale, dwarfing even Big Macintosh in its shadow.

This time, the Stratadon proved the faster of the two, scooping Macintosh into its claws as it took the air. "BIG BROTHER!" Apple Bloom shrieked in fear, instinctively galloping after the retreating monster.

"Apple Bloom, no! Stay close to us!" Rainbow Dash snapped urgently, trying to follow the filly only to find her path blocked by another Stratadon. Only barely leaping back in time to avoid its claws, Rainbow could only watch as Bloom ran further and further away. "PONYFEATHERS!" the Pegasus shouted in frustration, readying herself for a tough tussle.

Apple Bloom followed the Stratadon that held her brother as fast as her little hooves could carry her, even as it was lifting up higher and higher into the sky. "Not Big Mac…!" she pleaded in her mind, "Please, don't take Big Mac away too!"

As if he had somehow heard his sister's thoughts, the crimson Clydesdale renewed his struggle against the beast, thrashing as fiercely as he could within its grip, bucking and boxing and giving the increasingly-annoyed Stratadon as much trouble as he could. "THAT'S IT, BIG BRO!" Bloom cheered as she continued her pursuit. "SHOW 'IM WHAT THE APPLE CLAN'S MADE OF!"

One true strike to the base of the creature's throat proved sufficient, winding it and causing it to at last release him. It proved a mixed blessing, however; Apple Bloom could only watch as Macintosh fell through the air, landing with considerable force into a shopping stand on the ground. The young pony gasped in shock, increasing her pace as best she could. "BIG MACINTOOOSH!" she cried, but that proved a mistake.

The Stratadon had already begun to come back down in pursuit of its lost prey, but turned its attention in a new direction at the sound of Apple Bloom's voice. It grinned toothily at the stroke of luck; why bother with such a fiery catch when a far easier one was presenting herself to it right there? Changing course, the dragon-beast opened its claws anew. Apple Bloom was too focused on the unnervingly-still Big Macintosh to notice…until it was too late.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Rainbow Dash could hear that scream, could tell what it meant, but as much as she wanted to take action, her hooves were full enough as it was keeping one step ahead of the pernicious pair of Stratadons dogging her and Derpy. Though she could not fly, Rainbow was still as swift a pony as any in Equestria, and able to read her attackers' moves keenly enough to keep one step ahead of them, but only just. "Besides," she thought angrily, even as she ducked another tail lash, "just dodging around won't do me any good, 'n' I dunno if I can keep it up as long as these creeps can…!"

Another distressed cry caught Rainbow's attention, but this one was far closer than Apple Bloom's had been. "DERPY…!" the rambunctious Pegasus called out to her companion, recognizing her frightened voice.

Sure enough, the Stratadon that had gone for Rainbow's wall-eyed companion took wing once more, this time with the unconscious Derpy Hooves in its grasp. "No…!" Dash hissed in frustration; how many more innocent ponies would these freaks take? She had to do something!

Rolling out of the way of her enemy's newest slash, the fiery Pegasus decided to take a risk, opening her wings up. Buffering winds or not, she had to get Derpy back, or at the very least follow these monsters to where they were taking the other ponies. With sharp eye and sharper resolve, she waited for the Stratadon to take another swipe at her, but this time, rather than dodge to the side, she leapt straight over its claws, flapping her wings as strongly as she could. "C'mon, c'mon…!" she thought, putting everything she had into her effort.

It was not enough.

The moment she was in the air, Dash was at the wind's mercy. She fought as best she could, each wing-beat a desperate struggle just to stay airborne, but that was the best Dash could muster, and the effort required for even just that was quickly tiring even for her. Worse, the Stratadon had quickly found where she had gone and was readying itself to pursue. Yet just as its jaws were about to close around Rainbow's tail, it found itself blocked by a translucent purple bubble that encircled the blue Pegasus. Even as her enemy was repelled, Dash looked to the ground below to find the source of her rescue: sure enough, there was Twilight Sparkle, her horn shining. Spike was on her back, with Applejack at her side and Rarity and Pinkie Pie following behind them.

"Gracious, Twilight, what are these monstrous things?" Rarity asked, watching the rebuffed Stratadon fly off in frustration even as her alicorn friend brought Rainbow Dash back to the ground.

"I'm not sure," Twilight answered, releasing Dash from the bubble, "I think they're the creatures the book was talking about, though…!"

The moment she was free, Dash leapt forward with panicked energy. "They're bad news, is what they are!" she blurted out. "They're snatching up everypony they can get their claws on!"

That caught Applejack's attention. "Apple Bloom!" she snapped hastily, "Have ya seen Apple Bloom?"

Dash looked at the orange earth pony, but found herself unable to keep her gaze there, turning slowly to the ground. "She…she was with me, before…!" she said, feeling guilt rush through her. "I…I'm sorry, AJ, I tried to keep up with her, but…!"

Applejack reared up on her hind legs, face a mask of sheer panic which soon hardened into one of determined ferocity. "Which way?" she asked Dash sharply, who stepped back in surprise, brows knitted in concern. "Which way was she goin' when ya saw her last?"

Twilight, however, stepped in front of the cowpony with as much calm as she could muster. "Hold on, Applejack!" she urged, "Running off on your own won't help Apple Bloom, it'll just put you in danger!"

"She's my sister, Twi!" Applejack replied, legs still poised to speed her off. "I have to find her!"

"And we have to do something about these creatures," Twilight answered, not callously but compassionately. "For everypony's safety, including Apple Bloom's. We're all better off if we handle this as a team."

Applejack opened her mouth to argue, but to the earth pony's surprise, she found herself comfortingly flanked by Rarity. "There there, Applejack…" she whispered soothingly. "I know how you feel. If it were Sweetie Belle, I don't know what I'd do. But you simply must keep your wits collected, for all our sakes."

With a sigh, the earth pony relented, knees relaxing and ears folding back. "Aww hey, it'll be OK, AJ, you'll say! Er, I mean see!" Pinkie Pie cooed sympathetically, cuddling up to her friend's side.

"Um, girls?" Spike piped up. "Monsters? Attacking Ponyville? Kind of needs our attention?"

Twilight glared a little at her dragon friend for his lack of tact, but knew he had a point. "Rainbow Dash, have you seen Fluttershy at all since the creatures appeared?" she asked.

It took Dash a moment to realize she'd been addressed, distracted by frustration. "Eh…? Oh! No, no I haven't," she answered, a frightful possibility popping into her head as she did. "Oh no…! You don't think these things got her too, do you?"

Twilight shook her head. "No, if you haven't seen her then she should still be at Mayor Mare's office where we sent her, which is where I believe we should go next. It's the best vantage point to get a full feel for the situation, and we do want to be sure Fluttershy and Ms. Mare are alright."

"Then let's get moving!" Rainbow Dash said with renewed vigor. "The sooner we get there, the sooner we can start trying to fix this mess!"

The obvious question of how exactly they would do that went, for the moment, unasked, and the five bold ponies soon set out for their new destination, keeping their senses sharp for the ever-present predators which continued to swarm the skies above them.


"N-now please, mister…um…well, mister kind-of-dragon, I don't wanna have to get…um…assertive…"

The pink-haired Pegasus was backed into a corner, the unconscious Mayor passed out behind her. It had been mere seconds after her arrival at the office when the clouds had appeared, and even as she had tried to pass on Twilight's message the monsters had appeared over the town. The Mayor had tried to make her way to the loudspeaker system to issue a warning, but her attempt was thwarted when one of the beasts had smashed through a nearby wall, knocking her out cold. Even though terror had swept through every inch of her body at that moment, Fluttershy could not abandon the Mayor to the likely nonexistent mercy of these attackers, and so she now found herself the one thing standing between Ms. Mare and the vicious monster, locked in as intense a staring contest as could be imagined. "Don't run away…don't run away…!" she continued to urge herself, finding the empty yellow eyes of her opponent a constant reminder of the piercing fear still setting her hooves atremble.

Thus far, the bulbous green creature seemed as locked by Fluttershy's gaze as she was by its, but where normally her stare could send a wild beast retreating at her command, here it seemed only to hold it in place, and the particularly powerful panic beating in her heart likely was not helping matters. Yet still she held her ground as best she could, wishing she could afford to move her eyes even an inch to look for openings through which she could escape with the Mayor but knowing that loss of focus for even a split-second could mean the end for them both. "D-don't make me ask again…please…?" Fluttershy tried once more, though she was starting to wonder if these creatures could even understand her.

A cracking sound from behind caught her ear just then, and before Fluttershy knew it she could feel a breaking blast of wind come from behind her with a crash. At long last, she looked away, seeing the wall behind her had been torn away by another of the dragon-beasts, which had promptly reached in and taken Ms. Mare in hand. The timid Pegasus realized her mistake immediately, and was only barely able to leap out the hole in the wall before the creature she had been staring into submission earlier lunged forward. Shrieking in terror the whole way, Fluttershy nevertheless landed safely outside, though the dragon-beast with Ms. Mare had taken off and its companion was in hot pursuit behind her.

"Ohdearohdearohdearohdear…!" she squeaked, galloping away as fast as she could; with the Mayor already caught, not running away was no longer a concern.

Just as it felt like the pounding of her heart would break her chest, however, Fluttershy spotted a most welcome sight up ahead in the distance: Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash, all heading toward her! Mentally thanking Celestia for her friends coming to the rescue, she made sure to keep her head low to the ground as Twilight and Rarity's horns lit up, twin streams of blinding light shining forth from them and bursting upon the beast that pursued behind her. Even with everything else that had happened, Fluttershy felt her caretaker's heart twinge with sympathy as she heard her attacker's cry of confusion, but fear proved the stronger emotion and she did not hesitate to continue running until she was safe again among the company of her friends. "Are ya alright, Fluttershy?" Applejack asked, protectively flanking the visibly-terrified Pegasus.

"I'm OK…" she answered, voice quivering as the full weight of her experience began to catch up with her, "…but…the Mayor…one of those things took Ms. Mare…"

"Among many others, I'm afraid," Rarity said, "but at least you're safe, dear."

"OK, we've got Fluttershy, now what?" Rainbow Dash asked, carefully watching the blinded Stratadon thrashing about in the air.

Twilight looked to her friends seriously. The Mayor's office was a wreck, a frustration to her original plan as it left the group without a safe place to take action from and one that only furthered her concern about the risk she would be asking her friends to take. Yet Rarity was right; the Mayor was simply the latest of an ever-growing group of abducted ponies, and drastic action was needed to protect those who were left. "Now," she said as firmly as she could, "we summon the Elements of Harmony."

Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash all exchanged worried glances with each other, Fluttershy simply curling a little more into herself with anxiety. Pinkie Pie, however, burst out laughing. "Oh, Twilight, that's a good one!" she giggled. "The Elements of Harnmony were sealed away with the Tree of Harmony, remember?"

"Which means we can't use them anymore," Rainbow Dash added sharply. "We can't take 'em out of the Tree now, or it'll die, and that'd be a disaster!"

"I know, I know," Twilight told her friends, "But I also knew that we needed to be ready in case the Elements were ever needed again. So I've been studying their properties more thoroughly in my spare time, and I think I might know a way to summon their power to us without removing the actual Elements from the Tree."

"Um…'think'? 'Might'?" Fluttershy gulped, trying to continue but finding only frightened mewls coming out of her.

"I believe what Fluttershy is trying to say," Rarity picked up the train of thought, "is that magic as powerful as the Elements of Harmony can be quite dangerous if misused, and it could be risky to try if you are uncertain it will work."

A nearby screech reminded the group of the still-nearby Stratadon, still struggling with its disorientation but slowly recovering nonetheless. Knowing that if they were going to try this, they had to do it now, Twilight stamped her hoof emphatically, looking to her friends sympathetically but sharply. "I know it's risky," she said, "and I wish there was some other way, but I don't see an alternative; if we don't do something quickly, there won't be anypony left in all of Ponyville!"

Unsurprisingly, Rainbow Dash came up to Twilight first. "I'm in!" she said, "It's time to pay these jerks back!"

It took her a moment, but eventually Applejack joined Rainbow. "Me too," the cowpony added, "I just hope ya know what you're doin', Twilight."

"Ooh, ooh! My turn, my turn!" Pinkie Pie giggled, bouncing up to Twilight's growing group. "I'm all for crazy and unpredictable plans!"

Rarity and Fluttershy exchanged a cautious look with each other. After several seconds of hesitation, however, the white unicorn relented with a sigh. "I believe in you, Twilight," she said assuringly. "I know you won't lead us wrong."

The five gathered ponies looked to Fluttershy, who visibly wanted to be with them but found it a struggle to go there. Step by step, however, she made her way over on trembling hooves. "M-me t-t-too…" she stammered, giving as good a smile as she could to show her sincerity.

Twilight wished she could return the expression, but with the nearest Stratadon almost back at full strength and the shadows of its comrades still racing to and fro through the sky, she knew there was no time. Still… "Thank you, girls. All of you…"

Her horn then began to shimmer with soft purple light. "Now…close your eyes…" she said with surprising calm. "Everypony, close your eyes and concentrate. Concentrate on what you felt when the Elements first entered your body as we faced Nightmare Moon…find that emotion, and let it fill your thoughts. Do not think of the outside world…do not listen to any other sound, see any other sight, feel any other emotion than what you find deep inside your thoughts."

Each of the girls did as they were asked, closing their eyes and trying to find that feeling…that rush of purity that had come over them when the Elements of Harmony merged with them. Spike, meanwhile, kept a shaky-legged watch over the ponies, ready to alert them in case of approaching danger. "Please be quick, Twilight…" the young dragon thought anxiously, hiding behind a nearby rock.

What I'm sayin' to you is the honest truth: let go, 'n' you'll be safe…sometimes we all just need to be shown a little kindness…so giggle at the ghostly, guffaw at the grossly…I simply cannot let such a crime against fabulosity go uncorrected…thank you for the offer, but I'm afraid I have to say no…yes, Twilight could feel it through her horn: her friends' memories, the emotions which had allowed them to tap into the Elements of Harmony. All that was left now was to focus those feelings into her horn's magic and use that to summon the Elements themselves. Firming herself, the purple alicorn lifted her head upward, the light of her horn growing bigger and brighter, its colors shifting into a glimmering rainbow. Twilight could feel the growing weight of its intensity, gritting her teeth and opening her wings as she struggled to keep it under control.

Like a blanket, its light began to envelop the whole group, save Spike who gave a yelp of surprise as he stepped aside from the growing sphere. "Holy guacamole…!" he whispered in awe, watching the mounting spell come alive. An angered roar caught the young dragon's attention, however, as the stunned Stratadon, at last recovered, immediately charged at the ponies. "TWILIGHT, LOOK OUT!" Spike called, getting out of the charging beast's path and taking safety behind a nearby rock.

Though the young alicorn did not seem to hear him, his concern proved unwarranted: when the Stratadon met the sphere of light around the six ponies, it was repelled. Roaring in defiance, it tried again, and was again blocked. Within the dome's protection, Twilight continued her strenuous work. Sweat began to form around the young alicorn's brow; the spell was holding, but it was proving more and more difficult to do, and its progress was slower than she wanted it to be. "Honesty…Laughter…Generosity…Kindness…Loyalty…" she thought to herself over and over, continuing to draw on her friend's memories to light the final spark that would complete the spell and summon the power of the Elements.

Unfortunately, her efforts had drawn unwanted attention.

Hovering high above Ponyville, guiding his Stratadon army as it continued its raid, the ape-beast leading the attack surveyed the area with solemn silence. All was going as his Master wished so far, and the ponies were proving easy prey. Yet as he surveyed the area, he saw an unnaturally bright light emanating from below near the town square. "Pony magic…" he growled lowly, though he could tell even from afar this was no ordinary spell; no unicorn had yet put up such a defense, and that told him this was a problem which required his personal attention lest it get out of hand.

Diving toward it with frightful speed, he landed just in time to witness the Stratadon ram the barrier a third time, still unable to break it fully.

Twilight, however, could feel her knees start buckling as the dual pressure of building up her magic to summon the Elements and holding the spell steady to protect herself and her friends began to become too intense to handle much longer. She was close, she knew it, but…!

"Stand down!" the ape-beast ordered his Stratadon servant, "Re-join the raiding team and get back to work. I will deal with this problem myself."

The Stratadon grunted in frustration, but ultimately did as it was ordered and took to the skies. The ape-beast then focused his attention on the sphere of energy in front of him. It was impressive magic, unquestionably, but he could tell it was unstable. All that was required now was to put the right pressure on the right point…and it did not take long to do so. The winged unicorn…she was the source.

Baring his fangs and drawing his fists back, the ape-beast gave a monstrous howl and ran full-force at the dome, slamming both fists into it at exactly the point where Twilight stood.

The blow sounded off like a bell, sending arcs of electricity flowing around the sphere. Horn flickering, Twilight gasped as if the wind had been kicked out of her. Sinking slowly to the ground, she felt it all slipping away…the spell, her sense of the others' emotions, the Elements…and soon, cracks began to appear in the energy around her and the others. "What in tarnation…?" Applejack yelped, no longer able to keep her focus as the situation spiraled out of control around her and opening her eyes at last.

"You can say that again!" Rainbow Dash said, following suit.

Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie had also opened their eyes, just in time to see the sphere of energy around them shatter with a blinding flash of white light so forceful it floored all six of the ponies.

As the light faded, the girls, groaning in pain and barely able to move, were sprawled out at the ape-beast's feet. "Interesting…" he thought to himself, "I did not know there was another young Princess to deal with. Her power is most impressive...."

Indeed, he could still feel his body tremble from the force of the broken spell, though he did not allow that to deter him. Kneeling down, he looked over the fallen ponies before him, trying to choose who to take now and who to leave for the Stratadons to retrieve later. "The purple one seemed to be the source of the spell," he reasoned, reaching out for Twilight, "and such a tremendous power makes her ideal for my Master…"

"LEAVE HER ALONE, YOU BIG BULLY!"

Hopping out from behind his rock, Spike rushed toward the ape-beast, leaping out at him with his teeth bared and clamping them down on his outstretched hand. Hissing in pain at Spike's bite, he instinctively whipped his arm from side to side in an attempt to get the young dragon off. Despite his tenacity, Spike was unable to hold on long and was dislodged before long, hitting the ground and losing consciousness.

"Insolent filly…!" the ape-beast hissed, rubbing his bitten hand and stomping over to the fallen Spike to finish the job.

Once he got a good look at his attacker, however, he froze dead in his tracks. "A baby dragon…?" he whispered in disbelief, kneeling closer to Spike to confirm it. "Living in a Pony village? But…why…?"

Gently, he scooped Spike up into his hands, holding the motionless dragon close to his chest. Watching helplessly nearby, Twilight Sparkle tried fruitlessly to get back on her hooves. "No no no!" she cursed herself mentally. "I should've known…! Should've been stronger…! Now Spike could get hurt for MY mistake!"

Desperate to draw the monster's attention but too weak to move, she gave as good a cry as she could. "D-don't touch him…!"

The ape-beast tensed visibly at her words, turning back to the winged unicorn angrily. "Scorpan does not take orders from the likes of you, little pony," he hissed, "least of all when he is ready to take you prisoner."

Carefully, he wrapped Spike up in his tail and began to move toward Twilight, ready to take her in hand.

As he did, however, panicked shrieks cut into the air from above. "My Stratadons…?" Scorpan exclaimed in surprise, looking up to see what was the matter.

The thick black clouds still held strong in the sky, but they were being pierced by pillars of brilliant sunshine which kept dotting their dark mass one by one. From within these cones of light, troops of armored Pegasus ponies flew toward the Stratadons, attacking with incredible precision and speed despite the strong winds still blowing about. "The Royal Guard…!" Rainbow Dash coughed as she looked up at the action above. "About time…they showed up."

Scorpan hissed in frustration, again trying to grab Twilight. His attempt was again stopped, however, this time by a streak of flame which swooped through the air between him and the winged unicorn. "Ph-Philomena…!" Fluttershy cheered weakly as her phoenix friend revealed itself, hovering protectively in the air above Twilight.

"A-and if she's here…!" Rarity realized.

The ground began to tremble. The winds turned their wild whipping into a single centralized current swirling at the center of the black clouds. The streams of sunlight above were joined by a shimmering star of brilliant orange and gold. "It's like…the sky's throwing a party…!" Pinkie observed with a giggle (and a cough).

Twilight, however, knew exactly what she was looking at: the sun, rising at dawn.

From within the radiance came a solar flare, striking down to Ponyville and landing right in front of Scorpan, who stepped back with his teeth bared, moving Spike in his tail close to his back defensively. The flame from above soon took form, revealing four strong legs, two wide wings, one long horn, and a flowing rainbow mane glimmering like the morning dew. Princess Celestia had arrived.

"Intruders in the land of Equestria," she spoke to Scorpan, voice reverberating with an echo of authority, "turn back. NOW."


To Be Continued…

Author's Note:

NOTE: This chapter has been edited to match the show's current canon. You can read the original, unedited version here: http://sta.sh/01il96ahmes2