Final Twilight

by Zeg

Chapter VII

Final Twilight

by Zeg

Chapter VII

Twilight took up the golden Tiara of Magic, the glow of her magical power shining around it in a vibrant aura. It felt good to be able to once again use her magic for something as simple levitation. Spending just a few days without it had lead her to appreciate her gift just that much more. Levitating the tiara to her head, she placed it atop her mane and then turned her attention to the two princesses standing before her.

“I'm ready,” Twilight said with no hint of hesitation in her voice.

“Very well,” Luna nodded before glancing over to her sister. Celestia also nodded to confirm that she was ready to enter the Gateway spell.

The two regal sisters and the dark purple unicorn had gathered themselves in the sun princess's bed chamber. They stood around the remains of the glowing green magical circle upon the floor. Just outside of the room a squad of guards had been gathered to watch over the spell while Twilight and the princesses ventured inside in search of the missing mares.

Luna closed her eyes and concentrated on calling up a form of magical power she had not touched since she had returned to her true form as the princess of the moon. She dug down deep inside her, lifting the emotes up that she knew would be needed to power the entry into this spell; anger, fear, and hate. Grasping hold of the dark emotions inside her, her eyes opened with a dark green glow that left wisps of green light flickering from the corners. Focusing her power upon the dim remains of the circle before her, she let her horn light with an eerie green light. As her power built, a bright light centered at the spell circle between the mares flared up. It was so blinding that closing one's eyes didn't even block out the light.

Among the brightness, the forms of the two princesses and the dark purple unicorn faded out.

---

Twilight opened her eyes after the brightness from the moon princess's spell died down. Blinking and focusing her sight, she found that she and the regal sisters were still standing in the same bedroom. “Did.. it work?” Twilight asked as she glanced around.

“Yes. Do not let your surroundings deceive you. This is just on the other side of the Gateway spell,” Luna confirmed as she moved to walk out of the room. Just on the other side of the doorway was a long hallway that stretched into endless darkness both left and right. While the interior of the bedroom looked familiar, this hallway defiantly did not.

“Wow,” Twilight commented as she walked out into the hallway as well, her voice echoing into the seeming endless distance. Both to her left and right was a stone walled and floored hallway that tapered off to darkness. The passageway was more than twice as high as Celestia, and wide enough that all three of the ponies could stand side by side across it with a little room to spare. The ceiling of the hallway rounded off in a half-cylindrical shape.

“The spell will be unstable. Try to remember that your mind is both your greatest asset and hindrance in this place. Stray thoughts can cause changes in the spell's structure that could be devastating,” Luna explained as she chose one of the directions and began walking. Twilight and Celestia followed closely behind the indigo alicorn that lead the way. Their hoof steps caused clicks that echoed through the still air as they began their search for the missing five.

After traveling down the endless hallway for a short time, Twilight glanced back over her shoulder. The door they had come from had vanished into the distant darkness behind her. Now all that remained was a hall that looked no different than the one before her. She drew in a deep breath, letting it go with a hum as she tried to calm her nerves.

Celestia noticed her student's uneasiness and leaned her neck down to speak as she walked along side Twilight. “You have nothing to fear while my sister and I are here with you. We will protect you.”

“I know,” Twilight said as she smiled back to her mentor. “We're going to find them, and then this nightmare can be over.” Twilight then turned her head forward leaning it to the side as she looked to the moon princess with a question. “What are we looking for in here exactly?”

Luna kept walking a few more steps and then nodded her head at something ahead of them. “That is what we are looking for,” she said as she cantered over to a closed doorway on the right side of the hallway.

“Is this where they are?” Twilight asked, the hope in her voice climbing as she too quickly approached the door.

The moon princess looked back to Twilight. “This door can serve as a connection. Through it we may find your friends, but you need to lead us to them.”

Twilight stared at the door, furrowing her brow before glancing back at Luna. “What do I need to do?”

“Think of your friends; only of your friends. And then open it,” Luna said before stepping back from the door, giving the young unicorn room.

Twilight faced the door, looking it over. It was a simple wooden door with a circular iron loop for a pull handle on the left side, and it crested at the top in the shape of a half circle. The door itself was barely higher than Celestia. It was almost hard to believe that something so simple and plain could open a pathway to finding her friends.

No, think positive Twilight. You are going to find them. Twilight nodded to her thought and closed her eyes to concentrate. She needed to focus on her friends and nothing else. She thought of the bond that she shared with them, how they had gathered their strength together time and time again to keep Equestria safe. She knew she could count on her friends, and right now they were counting on her. They were waiting for her to save them from the darkness.

A loud thud resounded through the hallway as the door in front of Twilight cracked at the force of something on the other side slamming into it. Twilight's eyes shot open at the sound as she scrambled away from the door. The wall around the door heaved forward from the force of the hit, causing some of the mortar around the stone wall to fall to the floor.

“RUN!” Luna cried out as she took off in a gallop down the hallway. Celestia quickly ran to Twilight's side, nudging her to urge the unicorn to escape in the direction that Luna had taken off in. Twilight scrambled to gain her footing and started galloping down the hallway after the moon princess with the sun princess close to her side.

Another sound of something wrecking the closed doorway echoed through the hall behind them. The door and much of the wall surrounding it collapsed into the hall in a heap revealing and endless void of nothing on the other side. From this pitch black emptiness something sprung into the hall. It appeared to be a mass of black that nearly took up the entire hallway, part of it oozing onto the floor underneath it as wisps of shadow hung in the air just above forming shapes that appeared to be like many clawed arms. Among the darkness and shadows, two slits that glowed with green flame peered out of the black mass near the top narrowing at the sight of the ponies escaping down the passageway. Clawing at the floor and walls around itself, the darkness began to pull itself down the hallway toward its next victims ripping the hall to pieces as it did.

Twilight tried to glance back over her shoulder when she heard the rumbling sound of stone caving in behind her. She caught a very short glimpse of something tearing down the hallway toward her, but her view was quickly obscured by Celestia's pure white feathers.

“Keep going! Don't look back!” Celestia shouted as she urged her student to continue running.

Twilight turned her head forward and urged her body to gallop faster. A burning sensation was already creeping into her legs as she pushed herself, but the fear of being caught by what was behind her kept her going at full speed. Just up ahead, she could see a change in the hallway as it sharply turned to the left. Luna had just disappeared around the corner and now it was coming up very quickly. Sliding her hooves on the floor, Twilight leaned away from the wall as she tried to make the turn. Her side slammed into the wall, doing a good job of knocking her breathless, but she still managed to urge her legs to continue running. However just on the other side of the the turn Twilight tumbled as her hoof missed the first step to a downward stair that she hadn't expected there. Hitting her chin hard on the rock stairway, she tumbled head over hoof down the unforgiving stone steps.

Celestia rounded the corner quickly afterward, using her wings to slow herself and slide to a stop in the corner and then propelling herself with a kick off the wall. Just a second after she had left the corner, a large black mass of claws made of shadow slammed into the wall pulling back a fist full of stone and brick and causing a partial cave in of the hallway. Celestia's wings unfolded partially in the narrow hall as she sailed down the length of stairway to the bottom. There she skidded to a stop when she landed at the bottom finding Twilight sprawled out on the floor struggling to push herself up.

“Keep going!” Celestia yelled trying to urge her student to continue running, but it was obvious that the unicorn was struggling to even stand. Celestia turned to face the stairway when she heard the sound of stone being crushed and saw the shadow clawing its way down, pulverizing the stone steps with each claw that it used to pull itself closer.

Celestia readied herself, placing her body between the shadow and Twilight with her wings defensively spread at her sides. Her horn quickly ignited with golden magic that increased in intensity until her horn was glowing a bright white. Just as the shadow reached the bottom of the stairway and began reaching out for the sun princess, golden chains ripped through the walls of the hall crisscrossing diagonally, vertically, and horizontally in front of the shadow. The touch of the chains seemed to cause the shadow to burn away, but it pressed itself to reach through the chains at Celestia as it roared with pain and anger at her. Urging her magic to give just a little more, Celestia let go a strained yell as she willed the chains to pull tight. The wall around the black monstrosity suddenly collapsed inward as the chains forced the hallway to constrict in an instant, crushing the black mass and causing it to let loose an unholy scream that echoed through the hallway.

“Hurry!” A voice called down at the end of the hallway. Twilight managed to pusher herself up to look toward the voice and could see Luna standing a short distance away. Forcing her body to stand, Twilight took a shaky step toward the moon princess but then stopped when she realized something was wrong. Where was it? She couldn't lose it. Without it she wouldn't be able to find her friends! She frantically shot her glance around herself and then located the Tiara of Magic laying beside the wall. Quickly dashing over to the tiara, she ignored the pain in her body as she grasped the tiara with her teeth and took off down the hallway.

Celestia wasn't too far behind the unicorn. Keeping her gaze turned to watch the shadow behind them, she could see it trashing in the collapsed hallway, destroying the stone walls as it fought to free itself. She slid to a stop next to her sister's side just on the other side of a stone archway.

Luna wasted no time when both Twilight and Celestia had managed to escape the hall. Letting her magic flare, the moon princess began casting a strong telekinesis spell, gripping the very walls of the hallway between her and the darkness that thrashed in the distance. Pulling loose the foundations of the walls, Luna used her magic to cause the length of hallway between her and the shadow to collapse. The cave in caused the floor beneath the group of ponies to shake, and the rumbling sound carried in the hallow hallway they had found refuge in. The distant roars from the shadow creature and panting breaths of the three mares was all that echoed through this new stretch of hallway for a time afterward.

“I said to only think of your friends,” Luna firmly spoke after she caught her breath, her hard gaze locked on the dark purple unicorn.

Twilight didn't look up at her princess. She kept her gaze on the tiara laying on the floor near her hooves. She knew this had been her fault. At the last moment she had let her mind think about the dark shadow. Twilight then noticed a red dot appear on the floor next to the tiara, and then shortly another. Bringing her hoof up to her face, she touched the back of her fore-hoof to her nose, and then looked at the streak of red blood.

“Let me see,” Celestia calmly said as she hooked a hoof over Twilight's shoulder. Twilight glanced up to her mentor who gently took the young unicorn's chin up with her hoof. Twilight cringed slightly at the touch, feeling a burning pain on the bottom of her chin from the wound she had received when she'd tumbled down the stairs. But the pain would soon subside as she felt a warm glow washing over her. She could see Celestia focusing her gaze on her as the sun princess's magic flowed over her. After a few short seconds, the complaining aches in her body began to fade as well.

“I'm sorry,” Twilight quietly said as she closed her eyes and allowed herself to be treated by her mentor's magic.

“We just need to try again,” Celestia reassured as she finished up her spell. Twilight glanced over to the moon princess next to her, her look seeming to ask the question of if that were possible at this point.

“We should keep moving,” Luna said as she stood to continue down one direction of the hallway. “It knows we are here now. We can not waste any time.”

Twilight looked down to the tiara laying at her hooves. Willing it into the air with her magic, she looked it over before placing it atop her head. She knew she had to do better for her friends. No more mistakes. She lifted herself to walk, falling in just behind Luna to continue the search for her friends.

---

Twilight found herself staring at another closed door that the moon princess had located. It looked exactly like the one from before. Just like the one that had..

No! Twilight shook her head. She was not going to let her fears ruin this chance. She had to focus on her friends, and only her friends, just at Luna had told her. Closing her eyes, Twilight sat there just before the doorway reaching out to the connection she had with the five mares. As she did, the facets of the magenta star-shaped jewel in her tiara glinted in the dim light. This has to work.

Twilight reached out with her magic and pulled the door open.

Just on the other side, a group of five mares huddling together in a dark room shrunk back from the doorway. Twilight almost couldn't believe what she saw before her. She had found them. She had actually found them all.

Twilight began to walk into the room, but stopped her steps when she noticed that her friends pulled back in fear, pressing themselves against the back wall. She tried to speak to them, but found it hard to find any words to say. She wondered if they no longer trusted her; if they would ever trust her again after what had happened between them.

“You found them!” Celestia called out just behind Twilight as she peered into the doorway. Both her and the moon princess were now standing shoulder to shoulder just outside of the door's frame.

“... Princess Celestia?” Rarity's weak voice called out from the group of mares.

“Is it really them?” Fluttershy squeaked quietly.

“It is... it is!” Applejack called out as she stood to canter over to the open doorway.

“We're saved! I told you guys! I told you!” Pinkie squealed as she pranced about the room in a circle.

The group of mares all began to gather up near the doorway, stopping just short and looking over their dark purple unicorn friend who stood there. Twilight tried again to find something to say. “I'm sorry it took so long,” she managed to say as her voice strained under her stress.

“Are you... OK now?” Rainbow Dash asked as she eyed Twilight somewhat suspiciously.

“Well.. I'm doing better than I was,” Twilight offered back as she shrugged her shoulders.

“What happened before was outside of Twilight Sparkle's control,” Luna spoke from the doorway. “She was being controlled by a dark power.”

“Oh! You mean that nasty dark shadow thing?” Pinkie asked as she crouched to the floor looking like she was about to pounce at something.

“Yes,” Luna confirmed with a nod. “That darkness is an evil from the realm of Tartarus. A part of Tirek himself.”

“Wow, that's a real doozy of a shadow thing,” Pinkie replied back seeming somewhat surprised.

“Did it hurt any of you?” Twilight asked her friends, the concern in her voice causing it to shake.

“Well, not really,” Applejack mentioned. “It seemed to leave us be after we got here, just left us all and wandered off. But we did notice these.” The farm mare reached her hoof up and lifted the jeweled necklace that was clasped around her neck. The facets of the apple shaped jewel had multiple cracks that crisscrossed the jewel. It had been fractured all the way through.

“Sister,” Luna quietly whispered to Celestia.

“I see them,” Celestia whispered back. She had taken notice of the jewels set in the necklaces that the five mares wore around the necks. Every single one of them had been fractured.

“What does it mean?” Luna asked back quietly.

“For now, lets worry about getting them to safety,” Celestia said nodding her head down the hallway.

---

The clicking sounds of the group's hooves echoed through the length of the hall. Luna took up the lead, guiding the rest forward while Twilight and Celestia kept toward the back of the group.

“Well, I'm going to visit Aloe and Lotus first thing when I get back to Ponyville. My shoulders are aching something fierce!” Rarity complained breaking the silence, already making plans for her return home.

“Oh that does sound so nice,” Fluttershy agreed.

“I'm sure everypony at the farm is worried sick. I ain't gonna hear the end of it for a while I'm sure,” Applejack mused.

“I'm going to need to sleep for a week to recover from this 'vacation',” Rainbow Dash said shortly before letting go a gaping yawn. “I thought these things were suppose to help a pony relax.”

“Or get energized!” Pinkie quickly added. “Vacations are suppose to help a pony recharge. But I'm not sure I'm feeling it.” Pinkie then attempted to hop once, giving a short 'hup' sound as she did. She seemed to contemplate the quick hop for a second before continuing to walk along with the group normally. “Nah, not feeling it.”

Twilight was happy that her friends at least seemed to be well considering they had been trapped inside the Gateway spell for over three days now, but she still couldn't shake the feeling of guilt that was weighing down on her for the part she had played in all of this. “I really am sorry guys, for everything,” She mumbled from behind the group.

“Now we done said it was alright,” Applejack mentioned as she glanced back over her shoulder. “You couldn't help what happened, and you came all the way here to get us out.”

“Yes, and you should worry about yourself, you poor thing,” Rarity said as she stopped long enough to let Twilight walk up beside her. “Black really isn't your color darling. We will have to see what we can do for your mane and coat when we get you back home.”

“Yeah is that permanent?” Rainbow Dash asked as she looked back toward Twilight, garnering a few glares from the other mares around her as she did. “What?” she asked confused at the glances.

“Do ya even think before ya shoot yer mouth off?” Applejack asked as she cast a one eyed side glare at the rainbow pegasus.

“I didn't mean anything by it!” Rainbow Dash complained as she ruffled her wings.

“It's OK,” Twilight said as she tried to put a smile on for her friends. “It might be.. I don't know yet.” The conversation seemed to die down afterward. Each of them had experienced horrible things recently, but it was hard for the mares to imagine what Twilight had been put through having her body twisted by a dark shadow.

“Here,” Luna called out to the group as she cantered up to a tall set of white double-doors. The doors looked very similar to the same doors that use to hang from the doorway of her sister's bed chamber.

“Is this the way out?” Rainbow Dash asked as she quickly dashed up to the doorway and eagerly fluttered her wings at her side.

“It should be, but I need to focus my thoughts first before I attempt to open it,” Luna said as she glanced up the height of the doorway.

“Alright, give the princess some room ta think, then we can all get outta here,” Applejack said as she walked over and nudged the rainbow maned pegasus to turn around.

The group stayed together with Celestia to the side while Luna calmed her thoughts. The moon princess attempted to think back to the room they had entered from; her sister's room. She had visited it many times, and knew it well enough that she should be able to bring its image to her mind. Opening her eyes to look up at the tall doorway again, Luna lit her magic to take hold of the massive double-doors. Giving them a shove with her power, the doors groaned as they opened wide into the room on the other side.

The other side of the doorway lead to a darkened room. It was a large room, much larger than it should be. Filtering in though many stained glass windows, low levels of moonlight brightened the opposite side of the room giving form to a stairway that lead up to a throne at the far center.

“Is this... the throne room?” Celestia asked as she walked up to the open door and gazed inside. The rest of the group had gathered there as well, glancing into room that was covered with heavy shadows.

“It shouldn't be. I'm sure I pictured your bed chambers in my mind,” Luna said confused as she shook her head.

A low growling noise echoed out of the darkness of the room. All attention snapped forward to look at the source of the noise. At first there appeared to be nothing there, just the shadows stretching though the dim moonlight. However, two green lights appeared at the center of the room. The narrow green flames stared back at the group as the rumbling sound of the growls shook the floor that they stood on.

Luna quickly took hold of the doors with her magic to pull them shut, however a strong whoosh of air seemed to push her away along with the rest of the group, all accept one.

Twilight let go a scream as a large black clawed arm closed itself around her body. The claws pulled back into the doorway, plunging the terrified unicorn into the dark chamber. The doors slammed closed behind her, and as she craned her neck around to look back she could see the doorway seeming to fall off into the distance until it was so far away it vanished from sight.

You will never reach them again.

Twilight snapped her attention forward at the green flames that stared back into her soul. “Let me go!” she screamed in panic as she attempted to thrash in the grasp of the dark claws.

And what good would that do? The damage has already been done.

Twilight eased her struggle when she realized she couldn't free herself. She stared back at the glowing eyes, panting heavily.

Look at you, so pathetic. You allowed your friends to be broken; their connection to the elements to be severed.

Twilight listened to the voice echoing through her mind as she leaned away from the dark creature. “I didn't want this. I never wanted any of this,” she pleaded.

You never deserved the power you wielded!

“But.. we never asked for any of this,” Twilight cried as her panic began to change over to sadness.

And in your charge to wield the ancient power of the elements, you and your friends have failed.

“No.. we..,” Twilight weakly tried to defend herself.

You failed!

Twilight couldn't take it any longer. The guilt of what she had done to her friends was too much. She had allowed this darkness to overpower her mind and attack her friends, and now she would never see them again. There was nothing left that she could do. With this final realization that it was all over, the magenta star shaped jewel in Twilight's tiara fractured all the way through the center.

The darkness holding Twilight let a victorious sneer creep across it's dark visage.

At last...

Twilight could feel her vision fading as her entire world seemed to be consumed by a bright white light.

---

“Should this be happening?” A concerned white unicorn guard asked nopony in particular. Before him and the rest of his comrades the bed chambers of the sun princess were now emitting a very bright green glow, and a strong gust of wind appeared to be coming from the source of the light.

“Hold steady!” A gray pegasus guard called out at the front and center of the group of assembled guards. The guards formed up on their superior officer, preparing themselves for what may be coming through the spell. The gust was picking up in intensity causing it to be hard for the group to stay standing.

A blinding flash accompanied with a loud rumble exited the spell. The concussive force of the blast threw the guards back, scattering them across the floor of the hallway as it blew out many of the windows throughout the hall. The gray pegasus tried to quickly push himself to stand using his wing to guard against the bright glow and harsh winds. Looking out over the room, he could see his comrades struggling to stand as well and noticed something else that seemed out of place. Scattered through the group of guards were multiple mares that had seemed to appear from no where. Among them, he recognized the princesses.

“Your majesties!” The pegasus guard called out as he struggled to approach them through the gale.

Celestia found her way to her hooves first, trying to steady herself against the forceful wind. She lent her hoof to her sister to pull her up speaking over the loud noise of the air rushing around them. “What happened?”

“I am not sure, but it seems we have been pushed out of the spell!” Luna called back through the gale's noise. She then noticed the guard approaching them.

“Your majesties, something is happening to the spell!” The guard called out.

Celestia glanced around herself, noticing the other guards scattered about the room as well as the mares they had gone in to rescue. However she didn't see her student. “Twilight! Where is Twilight!?”

Just then another concussive explosion came from the glowing spell, this one blowing the walls and roof of the spire around the room out. The shattered remains of the spire rained down to the ground below as the gale died out leaving nothing but a wide open platform attached to the tattered ends of the hallway that the ponies stood within. At the center of where the spell circle had been the floor was starting to fall out as the stones plummeted into it, however the scene on the other side of this pit was not the lower levels of the spire. Instead an inky darkness filled the depths of the hole that was growing wider. And there above the gaping opening, Twilight hovered high above it all in the sky. Her wings were spread wide to her sides and her horn was glowing a pitch black as her eyes seemed to emit bright green flames.

A roar that had the sound and force of an avalanche echoed out of the black darkness of the gaping opening. The force of the noise seemed to cause the earth around everypony to shake, and as if answering a call the sky began to darken. Glancing upward, Celestia could see a large dark heavenly body fading into existence as it eclipsed the light of the sun. The skies continued to darken to the point that they changed to a blood red.

“Get everypony away from here!” Celestia barked to the guard next to her. “Evacuate this spire! The entire castle! Just go!”

The guard quickly bowed to his princess and then rallied a call to his fellow comrades. “You heard the princess! Evacuation! Lets move!” With that, the pegasi guards among the group took to the winds as the unicorn guards quickly blinked themselves and their fellow earth pony guards out of the area with their magic.

A set of three unicorn guards approached the group of mares that had been recovering from being ejected from the spell. “Hold on, we'll get you all to safety,” a unicorn mare among the guards said as she began to cast her magic.

“Hold up there!” Applejack said as she raised her hoof at the guard. “We ain't goin no where unless Twilight's goin with us!”

The guards stepped back and took a questioning look toward their rulers.

“Just go!” Luna said quickly to the guards, “We'll see to them ourselves.” With a quick nod, the three unicorn guards blinked themselves out of the area, leaving only the regal sisters and the five Ponyville mares looking back to the dark sky that Twilight was hovering in.

“We have to put a stop to this!” Rainbow Dash said as she began to lift herself off the ground.

“You can not go out there!” Luna quickly ordered, stopping the rainbow pegasus shortly before she took off on our own. “The Gateway spell is open. If you fly into that you'll never find your way back here.”

A rumbling sound echoed out of the large black pit. The sight of an enormous red hand with black clawed fingers pushed its way out of the darkness of the rift. It was followed by an arm bearing a solid black leathered wristband. The hand found a partially destroyed wall and grasped it, sending a shock-wave through the spire that nearly toppled the mares over. The muscular arm flexed, and two gigantic black horns came into view from the inky darkness. The rest of the head they were attached too rose from the pit afterward, revealing the red visage of the Lord of Tartarus.

“Tirek,” Celestia said as she let go a whispered gasp. “Everypony behind us!” Celestia rushed to her sister's side, readying herself to attempt protect the five mares along side the moon princess.

“But Twilight's in danger!” Rainbow Dash said as she pointed up at the sky above. Just below Twilight's form hovering high in the sky, the centaur demon lord continued to hoist himself out of the Gateway spell. Pushing the upper half of his torso out of the spell with both of his arms, his enormous pitch black fore-hoof raised out of the edge of the pit and landed just on the edge, shaking the foundation of the spire.

Applejack looked down to the necklace fastened around her neck, touching her hoof to it. “We have ta use these,” she said as she galloped past the protection of the princesses toward the demon lord.

“Will they even work?” Rarity called out as she followed close behind.

“Ain't gonna know if we don't try!” the farm mare called back as she stopped near the edge of the shattered platform. The rest of the Ponyville mares lined up on either side of her, all of them staring up to the towering form of the centaur demon before them. Tirek took notice of the group that had approached him, and seemed to ponder their actions as he squinted down at their tiny forms.

Each of the mares tried to concentrate on their connection with the element they represented. They had to reach out, to try to find it. If they could find the connection they had once had again, they may be able to reach out to their friend and save her.

---

Twilight laid in an endless field of white light, crying into her forelegs. She had failed her friends, and everypony else in Equestria. She couldn't stop him, and now he was going to destroy everything she had ever known. Tirek was right about her; she really had been a failure.

“Please don't cry,” A gentle voice called out. Twilight immediately recognized it as belonging to her shy pegasus friend. Glancing up Twilight saw her five friends standing in this endless void of light looking back at her.

“I... I don't understand, why are you all here?” Twilight asked as she looked between the gathered mares with confusion.

“We all need yer help,” Applejack said simply.

“Yeah, and we are not leaving you behind either,” Rainbow Dash asserted with a stamp of her hoof.

“But.. this is all my fault,” Twilight said as she pushed herself up with her fore-hooves. “I did all of this.”

“No you didn't,” Pinkie said as she shook her head, “it's all that big meanie Tirek.”

“Yes, and if we do not stop him, that ruffian is going to tear Canterlot apart,” Rarity added.

“But.. everything that's happened..” Twilight could barely find her words. She couldn't believe after all the pain she had put her friends through, and through all of her failures, they were still here.

“We want to forgive you Twilight,” Fluttershy spoke as she approached the dark purple unicorn, lightly placing her hoof upon Twilight's shoulder. “But how can we if you won't even forgive yourself?”

“None of this was ever your fault dear,” Rarity added as she walked up shoulder to shoulder with Fluttershy. The rest of her Ponyville friends joined in, standing in a shoulder to shoulder semi circle before her.

Twilight smiled back to her friends. She had been foolish to think that they would ever abandon her, no matter how bad things would get. “You guys really are the best friends ever,” Twilight said as she dried the tears from her eyes.

“Yeah? Well lets show Tirek what the best friends ever can do,” the rainbow maned pegasus said as she punctuated the last word stamp of her hoof.

“You're right,” Twilight said, finding her confidence among the fire mares she trusted the most. Turning herself around to face the sky before the group of six mares, Twilight arched her neck upwards. “You hear that Tirek!” she called out in a yell. “You can never break the bond we have!”

---

A bright flash of light beamed from each of the five mares that faced down the demon lord. At each of the golden necklaces upon their necks, the jewel representing each of their elements pulsed with vibrant light as the cracked facets fused back solid. Each of the five mares concentrated on using their element as their hooves gently left the floor. They all hovered there momentarily until a brightly colored beam of energy shot out from each of them, merging into a five colored rainbow that arched its way high into the sky up to where the dark purple unicorn was.

Twilight gasped when the power of the elements cast from her friends reached her. The bright green flame in her eyes died out, and instead was replaced with a bright glowing white. The black pulsing aura surrounding her horn slowly changed to a deep magenta. And the six pointed star jewel upon her tiara glowed brightly as the cracks sealed, restoring the last of the six elements.

Twilight could feel the radiant energy of the elements washing over her, burning away the corruption from her body. The dark streaks of hair in her mane and tail faded away, and her coat returned to its vibrant lavender color. The wings stretched out to her sides slowly disintegrated into a fine glowing dust until they vanished completely. Twilight's own magical power added to the rainbow and completed it as it cascaded down to the Gateway spell below. Twilight had never actually felt the power of the elements directly like this, but it felt soothing and warm. It made her feel safe, but she was so exhausted. She allowed herself to be enveloped in the magical energy as she closed her eyes, consciousness slipping from her.

Tirek let go an earth shattering roar of anger as the power of the elements collided with him. Where the elements had been like a protective blanket cradling Twilight's body, the same power harshly punished the Lord of Tartarus, forcing him back through the Gateway spell. His massive hoof broke through the edge of the floor and slipped back through the gaping hole. Grabbing at anything he could, Tirek clawed at the stone floor of the shattered spire but the elements would not relent. Further and further they pressed the demon back into his own realm, his grip failing as his claws shredded the stone floor around him.

Sensing that defeat was imminent, Tirek looked to the sky. There he could see the body of the one responsible hovering above him; the one who had denied his return. She was the one who had defied his power and ruined his plans after he had patiently waited for centuries. At the very least, he would take her as his prize. Swiping one of his clawed hands through the air above him, Twilight disappeared into Tirek's grasp. The demon lord grinned as he felt the small body of the unicorn trapped within his hand.

A golden chain wiped into existence, wrapping itself around the arm that held Twilight captive. The coils of golden links caused dark wisps of smoke to rise from where they touched the dark lord's flesh. Tirek stared down the length of chain to see the sun princess scowling back at him.

“Let her GO!” Celestia screamed as she dug her hooves into the stone floor and forcefully pulled back on the chain with her magic. The sudden jerk of the chain caused Tirek's body to lurch forward against the edge of the Gateway spell, but he would not let go his grasp on his prize. Putting his strength into his arm, he pulled back shattering the links of the golden chains. The sun princess lost her footing at the raw force that had ripped the chains from her magic stumbling forward face first into the ground hard. The stinging pain in her jaw as she tried to push herself back up kept her there on the ground, and all she could do was stare back in a dazed horror as she saw Tirek let lose his hold on the stone floor to return to his own realm.

An indigo blur streaked just over Celestia's body causing a rush of air that ruffled her feathers. The sun princess watched as she saw the streak head strait for the dark lord, recognizing her younger sister's form. “Luna,” Celestia quietly whispered.

Luna closed on her target as quickly as her wings would allow. Tirek was quickly vanishing back through the Gateway spell, and the floor around it was sealing back up as stones seemed to magically lift back into place on the floor. Focusing her magic on the hand that gripped the young unicorn, Luna's horn lit with an explosion of dark blue sparks. She strained her magic to pry at the clawed fingers, forcing them back with all of her strength that she could call on.

Luna hit the palm of the demon's hand forcefully, casing an explosion of her magic to radiate out from the hit. A pain filled roar echoed from the Gateway spell as the hand fell back through, disappearing over the edge of the black pit. The last of the stones that had fallen out of place when the spell opened found their way back, and with a white blast of energy the spell was sealed.

Just above where the spell had closed, Luna's form sailed through the sky. Her wings were enclosed around her body as she turned her back to the ground. She landed with a grunt as she slid across the stone floor, coming to a sudden stop when her side hit the remains of a nearby wall. Her body complained to her about the rough landing as she shifted herself to stand up. As she rolled over, she unfolded her wings, and laid the silent body of the lavender unicorn there on the floor.

Luna could make out the sounds of hooves galloping on the floor toward her, but her gaze was focused on the unicorn she had rescued from Tirek's claws. Twilight appeared completely motionless, her eyes closed as she laid there on the floor. Luna tried to stir the unicorn from her sleep with a gentle nudge from her hoof at first, but began to feel uneasy when she noticed that Twilight's body was completely limp. Ducking her head close to the unicorn's muzzle, Luna listened as she rest a hoof upon Twilight's chest.

“She's not breathing,” Luna whispered as she glanced back up at the unicorn's face. “She's not breathing!” Luna repeated frantically as she took Twilight up in her forelegs and glanced back to the mares that had gathered nearby.

“W-What? No..” Rarity said as she shrunk back a step.

“This.. this can't happen,” Rainbow Dash said as she shook her head. “Do something!”

“Come'on girl,” Applejack said as she tried her best to keep heaving of her chest under control. “You've come this far, COME'ON!” She yelled as tears started streaming down the sides of her face.

Fluttershy had already broken down, being unable to take the thought of losing her friend. She quietly moaned into her forelegs as she hid her face, laying there on the ground. Pinkie tried to offer the pegasus some support by cuddling Fluttershy under her neck, but she was having just as much difficulty accepting this as everypony else.

Celestia limped in behind the group, her bruised form quietly staring at the silent body of her student being held in Luna's forelegs. She wanted to tear her eyes away from the sight as if doing so might change it.

A silent sadness overtook the air around the group, interrupted only by the sad sounds of sobs and sniffles. This wasn't what they wanted; they had wanted their friend back. They had all tried so hard to save her, too hard for this to happen.

A loud clang followed by a few metallic clattering sounds drew the attention of the entire group away. Nearby, the Tiara of Magic had fallen to the floor from the sky, resting where the center of the Gateway spell had been. The mares all stared at it until they noticed the sky beginning to brighten. Looking up, the dark sphere that had blocked out the radiant light of the sun began to fade, and as it did the sky recovered to its beautiful blue.

Twilight's body silently laid there in Luna's embrace, the light of the sun glistening off of her lavender coat. Luna looked down at her sadly, knowing that this unicorn had paid the price that she herself should have to rescue Equestria from its end. The final day had been avoided, thanks to her sacrifice. Luna closed her eyes, causing the tears that had built up to roll down her face, and silently thanked the young unicorn for what she had done as she hugged Twilight close to her.

Twilight's eyes shot open as she let go a gasp. She coughed as her forelegs flailed about and her lungs quickly tried to take in air. Luna nearly dropped Twilight in shock at the sudden noise. The unicorn grasped to hold on to the moon princess with her forelegs as she attempted to catch her breath.

“Oh.. that was crazy,” Twilight weakly spoke between breaths as she held on to Luna.

The group of mares shouted out to their friend, calling her name as they crowed around her and the moon princess. Behind the group, Celestia watched with a joyful smile on her face as she tried to dry the tears that were streaming from her eyes.

She had made it.

“OK OK! Let me up,” Twilight complained with a laugh as she tried to push the suffocating group back a step. Luna helped Twilight to her hooves, careful to make sure that the unicorn was stable before letting her go.

Applejack pulled her the brim of her hat down to her face with her hooves, quickly using it to dry at her eyes. “Twilight..” she started as she pushed her hat back atop her head. “Just where do you get off scarin every pony like that!”

“Yeah, not cool,” Rainbow Dash added as she sat back on her haunches crossing her forelegs.

“I'm sorry guys. I've been a real pain lately,” Twilight said as she smiled sheepishly to the group around her.

“Are you kidding!?” Pinkie screeched as she waved her hooves above her head. “You were amazing! I mean sure you were all like grrrr at first but then the rainbow went whoosh and BLAM and Tirek was all like ack!” The pink pony rambled on without even taking a breath as she went through a myriad of facial expressions and hoof-gestures to compliment her sound effects. She finished off her reenactment by rolling to her back and reaching a twitching hoof to the sky to portray the demon lord's final downfall.

Luna chuckled at Pinkie's display. “That was a rather accurate account of what happened.”

Fluttershy dabbed at her eyes with the back of her hoof. “I'm just glad you're OK,” she said as she smiled to her lavender unicorn friend, the other ponies around her nodding in agreement.

Twilight smiled as she looked around herself. Her two princesses had risked themselves just to bring this group of friends back together. Her five Ponyville friends had managed to bring her back from the brink of despair when it had seemed that there was no hope left. And together they had ensured that Equestria would see another day.

As she had declared so boldly before, their bond had proven to be unshakeable.

THE END