> Equestria meets the Vasto Lorde.
>  by Phoenix Archangel
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Rough Landings, and Rougher Meetings (2.0)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Darkness....Where am I... Who am I?"



=================================


It was the time of year for Nightmare Night once more, and all the little colts and fillies were out gathering candy while others played naughty little tricks (Rainbow Dash, particularly). Twilight Sparkle was at her library looking through her telescope since Celestia had told her that Luna was going to create a meteor shower for them all to enjoy. While Twilight waited, she noticed Spike was getting irritated.

"Hey, Spike, is something wrong?" asked a semi worried Twilight.  

"Well, Twilight, I actually kinda wanted to get some -" Spike was cut short by a sudden meteor shower. Twilight immediately shushed Spike and continued to watch in amazement by the beauty of the shower. However, something was off, that something being a blood red meteor that was going towards the Everfree forest. The colour didn't interest her, but the fact that its landing was in that specific area had given her the idea to go study it, despite the dangers that the forest contained. "Spike grab some scrolls and quills, and pack some gear, we're going to the Everfree!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"But, Twilight..." Spike whined.

"No buts. We can get some candy when we come back."

"You promise?" He asked eagerly.

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." She responded while going through the motions, before turning to a nearby quill and parchment to write a quick note to her friends should they stop by.

"Oh, boy!" Spike exclaimed while grabbing the equipment.


__________________________________


‘What’s… happening...? Why am I warm.... and it's windy...,’ I looked to see that I'm falling with a strange red aura around me. Why I was falling is something I don't know, or how I was supposed to deal with this situation.

‘Maybe I should just-‘

*KR-KSSHHH*

Those were my last thoughts before I plummeted into the ground, a crater framed by smoke marking the ground. I got out of said crater and noticed that I was in a forest.  

"Might as well explore, I guess…" I glanced around the demolished area around me as I wandered, and noticed a sword, black as onyx with a short chain dangling from the pommel, stuck in the ground not far away. I reached out to grab it and was surprised as the blade just flew, spinning, straight into my right hand. Upon closer inspection, the guard comprised of four prongs that angled to form some kind of a slightly broken square or diamond. The hilt was wrapped in a cloth as black as the blade, which shone slightly in the moonlight shining through broken trees.

I was so interested in my blade that I didn't notice the wooden wolves surrounding me until I heard a sudden growl and looked up.

I just looked at them in curiosity until one jumped towards me. Completely by instinct, I reached up and out to my right before swinging my sword down and back to the left, slicing it in half.  The corpse of the once live wolf lay still on the ground behind me, with sap splattering in all directions and small little glowing insects flying out of the dead corpse. This seemed to have caught most of the wolves by surprise, since they have most likely never seen one of their comrades killed so effortlessly. When I looked back at the wolves, they growled and barked, poised to attack. I wasn't having any of it.

So I promptly obliterated them all by swinging my blade back the right. I didn't even need to move from where I was standing, as with that one single swing not only were the wolves destroyed in a big wooden sappy mess, but the land around me was a mess and the trees in a 15 meter radius were either uprooted or sliced in half. The results were… satisfying, for some reason and I probably would have smiled but I didn't know if I could, as somehow, without knowing, I had a mask on which seemed to act as my face.

As I looked upon my handiwork, a sudden, deafening scream echoed out, causing me to spin around to identify what it came from, and to see if I could tell it to shut the hell up.

When my eyes met with that of the voice's source, I stood paralysed in shock; some kind of horned, big eyed, purple equine was staring horrified at me.

'When the hell did she get here?'


=================================


As a Dragon Applebloom, Ninja Scootaloo and Alicorn Sweetie Belle happily raced around with a group of other costumed colts and fillies, Applejack, dressed as a knight, and Rarity, a nurse, followed at a more sedate trot towards the Golden Branches Library to trick-or-treat while chatting about the various costumes they saw. Upon coming to the Library, the foals all argued amongst one another on who should knock. They seemed to come to a decision just as the two mares walked up behind them, as Pipsqueak tapped loudly on the door with a large conical drill, while focusing on not losing the fishbowl on his head or the oversized saddlebags, a small grey filly doll with a light blue dress hanging over his shoulder. Stepping back eagerly, the foals waited for Twilight to open the door.

And waited, though some of them were becoming confused or antsy about the door not opening.

With a chuckle, Rarity levitated the note that had been stuck on the door, catching some of the foals attention. Reading quickly, Rarity's face fell into shock, before hitching a false smile on her face before reaching into the pumpkins on the left of the door and pulling out some treats to drop into the bags. Turning to Sweetie Bell as she did so, she said, "Sweetie Bell, I'm terribly sorry but we have to meet Twilight. Would you be alright on your own?"

The filly in question nodded a bit too quickly for Rarity's taste, so she added, "And no troublemaking, am I clear?"

Sweetie rolled her eyes before intoning a Pinkie Promise, "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. C'mon, let's go!" She shouted as she took the lead of the others in the search of more candy.

"Alright, where's Twahlight gone?" Applejack asked exasperatedly the moment the children were out of earshot. Rarity sighed as she started moving towards the centre of the town before replying, "Well, we need the rest of the girls - Twilight's gone into the Everfree."


=================================

Twilight couldn't believe what she saw; there was a huge, smoking crater, thankfully not too far into the Everfree, but that wasn't the problem. The fact that nothing was there was what was troubling her.  On top of that, there were remnants of some odd type of magic that she has never felt before. She was going to tell Spike to record this, but was stopped by a very loud slicing sound followed by an explosion.

*SSSSSSSHING-KIRRSSSHHHHH*

"Wh-what was that sound?" Asked a startled Spike.

"It seems to have come from the north somewhat deeper in the forest. Spike, go back home."

"Okay, if you say s-so T-T-Twilight but please be careful, o-okay?" Spike said worriedly.

Twilight led the way over to where she heard the sound, and what she saw through the trunks was horrifying: a large amount of the area beyond was completely destroyed. She'd taken a few steps past the tree line of the new clearing, before she saw it. It was a bipedal being with skin as white as snow marked with black lines, black claws on its strange, five digit hand, and red tufts of fur on its wrists, ankles, and neck. Its face was like a skull with long, pointed horns, with a mane of orange hair, and was wearing what appeared to be a black robe held at the waist by a white sash, and, most horrifying of all, a hole she was sure was a little bigger than her hoof lay in the middle of its chest that ran through its body. Whatever it was, it looked like it came from Tartarus itself; a being of pure death.  Whatever it was, it was terrifying so she did the most logical thing she could think of.

She screamed.

When she stopped screaming the creature turned around and looked at her with its glowing yellow eyes, which only made her shrink back. The creature just stared, doing nothing else, so, just to break the silence, she said the stupidest thing in history of stupid things… "Um... h-hello, how do you do?" It just kept staring. "Um, what are you, uh, doing?"

=================================


"Tell me again just WHY Twilight would come into the Everfree alone?" Rainbow asked, keeping a hoof on her pith helmet as she kept pace above her galloping friends.

"Apparently, a meteor fell inta tha Forest," Applejack called back, having taken point, "So o' course Twahlight's gonna wanna study it."

"I do wish that we didn't- Spike!" Rarity called, having caught sight of the purple dragon stumble out of the brush just ahead of her, the others having stopped at her call.

"Um, Spike, wh-where's Twilight?" asked Fluttershy nervously, her eyes looking over the minor scratches on the dragons scales.

"She's up ahead," panted Spike, out of breath. Looking up, his eyes caught sight of Applejack in her knight armour, Rainbow as Daring Doo, Pinkie, incredibly, balancing on a forehoof as a seal, Fluttershy as herself and Rarity...

Rarity as a nurse. Images swam unbidden into his mind of her taking care of him sick, before he shook them away. Not the time, Spike, he chided himself, before explaining why he was headed back. At the part about the noise, Rainbow disappeared in the direction he came from, ignoring calls to wait.

=================================


After hearing it talk, I was speechless since I didn't know that this equine could talk.

"I don't know," was all I could manage to think of, and that was basically the pure truth; I didn't know what I was going to do, and I didn't know what to do. I was about to ask the little thing for some help, when I felt something tapping my back. Looking over my shoulder, I saw a cyan, winged equine, in some kind of costume, apparently punching my back saying something along the lines of, “Don't hurt my friend, you-”. With only a slight, but forceful, push of my hand, her face showing shocked surprise at it being on her chest, I sent her back a few meters into a tree stump, unconscious but otherwise unhurt. I felt like it should've been more severe but something about this place made me think otherwise. The lavender one quickly ran over the cyan equine along with four more differently coloured equines, in various costumes, that had appeared behind the first and immediately went to help their friend. 'Where did they come from?'

"She's alright, just unconscious. Nothing seems to be broken, which is good," said the yellow one with pink hair, the only one not costumed. After making sure their friend was alright they turned over to me.  The one with the armour was glaring at me for some reason.

"What makes yah think that ya'll can go around hurtin’ mah friends," she continued, saying it wasn't a nice thing trying to hurt others, yet I really wasn't even trying; I just wanted her to stop hitting me. So I simply walked away, with the one speaking before saying something like, “you better run”, but I ignored it. I was about to exit the large circle I made, when a sudden bear-like roar the caused the equines to become startled and even scared. I looked over to see a bear that was about 7 stories tall and a bluish-purple. The thing was huge and the ponies seemed quite scared and were muttering something amongst them. All I could make out from the hushed conversation is that this thing was called an Ursa Major.

I just stared at it, as it stared at the creatures with hunger in its eyes. Strangely enough, for some reason that look just made me irritated. It lifted a paw to crush the equines while they, for some reason, sat in a large group hug. As the paw came down, I sprinted at it, crossing the clearing in seconds before launching myself into the air with a kneeling jump just as I reached the group. I grabbed the end of the paw as I reached it, before swinging my sword back, upwards and across in a blur of black motion.

The bear seemed confused as to what I'd done, until a line of blood sprayed from the fissure that angled across its whole left paw, causing it to roar at the sudden agony. Spinning to my left, I ripped the half of the paw I had a grip on off the main body, a small explosion of blood following the action, before throwing it at the bear itself. It collided with its face with enough force to send it back a few steps. I fell a few metres before landing on top of a tree in a crouch, before kicking off with enough strength to turn said tree to splinters as I charged back to the fight.

The bear reacted faster than I thought, swinging its uninjured paw to swat me mightily to the right. Spinning wildly, I crashed solidly through several trees that were shattered then toppled in my wake before slamming into a cliff-side, a rock-slide to form from the stone fragments that resulted. Forcing my way out of the rocks, I bellowed in rage. Glaring at the huge bear rumbling towards me on three legs, I took off, causing another landslide as the already broken stone was pulverised. Sticking my sword across the small of my back, secured by the sash I wore, I slammed legs first into the shoulder of its damaged leg, breaking the bone if the loud crack and agonised roar following my landing was any indication. Pushing off and to the side, I slammed my right hand into it's jaw, digging my claws deep to ensure my grip.

The bear bellowed as its head jerked to the side, followed by its body, into the air in a shoddy cartwheel. The moment its head slammed into the ground, I shoved my feet into the dirt and, exerting more pressure on my grip, braced myself before  dragging its head, and its body into a circle before throwing it, letting it tumble into the air.

As it flew its erratic path, I jumped once more, except a burst of muted static accompanied me and I instantly found myself above the bear. Despite minor confusion on what'd just happened, I kicked off the air into the chest of the bear, before slamming a fist into it that changed its flight path instantly into the ground.

Landing on its chest, I leaned forward, horns pointing straight at the Ursa Major below me as red energy swirled from a small point in between them, into a large ball within seconds, accompanied by a warbling noise before releasing a large red beam that blasted into and through its chest, leaving a huge, slightly smoking hole. Striking the ground beneath the creature, the beam caused an enormous explosion that flipped the bear, with me on top several metres into the air. Pushing off the bear, I landed on the ground, bending my knees as the bear hit the ground more heavily, causing a small tremor. Looking around, I blinked when I saw that I'd, somehow, ended up back in the same clearing I'd begun this fight, with the ponies in the same spot, except with shocked horror in their eyes.

I started walking towards the ponies and that's when they started to all stagger away, cower and hide behind their hooves, sobbing all the while. All I could see when I paused, however, was the faint overlying image of a white face framed by black with streaks of the same colour seemingly running down from yellow irises on green eyes.
> Walking, Pinkie Pie and Thoughts
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

After my strange vision faded away, I looked at the group of equines that had huddled back together once more with eyes hidden by hooves, apparently crying. The few eyes I could see reflected terror and horror at what I'd done. However, something was... strange. As I ponder on what that was, I noticed that there was a pink one in a strange grey costume there that, for some reason, had a large smile that seemed to be almost stretching the borders of her face. I put that thought aside for now, and, deciding that talking to them now was out of the question, turned and walked away in the forest.

I don't know why but I felt wrong just leaving them there, yet I also feel fine about it; like I don't care whether they live or die. I walked for fifteen minutes or more and finally thought something that I didn't expect to think.

‘I...well I...I hope they make it out safe.’

‘What are you saying? You shouldn't care about those things. They're pathetic weaklings.’

The sudden ‘voice’ caused me to spin around to look for another, my sword drawn from my sash and held up to cut whoever spoke to pieces.

"Who are you?"

‘Who, me? I have no name. But if you want to call me something... call me… Instinct. More precisely, yours.’

'Whoever this guy is, it’s like I’ve met him before. And something tells me I'm not going to like him very much.'

‘Well that's not very nice; you hurt my feelings.’ This thought carried a severe amount of sarcasm with it.

"Show yourself, I’d rather not seem crazy," I called out, looking around to try and spot whoever the mystery person – or creature – was, “And how do you know what I’m thinking?”

'Tch, well, to the second, of course I know. I live in your head, dumbass, so getting out is something I’d like as well. So the first is out too.'

While I was having my short talk with my so called Instinct I was so engrossed I barely sensed the presence of something behind me.

"SURPRISE!!!" Was all I heard after turning around, sword already mid-swing, before getting a face full of confetti and balloons and freezing in place to avoid killing whatever snuck up on me.

‘WHAT THE FUCK!!!’

"Now watch your language there, mister" said a bubbly, yet somewhat stern, female voice. At least, I was pretty sure it was female.

'I wonder how she could hear that so called "Instinct" guy in my head?'

"I read this chapter, silly," The confetti cleared and revealed the pink pony that was missing from earlier looking at the sky, "and by the way, thanks for taking over from Bradledew, Phoenix! It was getting boring in that place!" Now I was confused; she was talking towards the sky and sounded somewhat rather happy. My guess is she's not right in the head.

"Why...are you talking to the sky?"

"IwastalkingtotheauthorsillyandbythewaymynamesPinkaminaDianePiebutyoucancallmePinkiePie. Ialsowanttoknowwhatyournameis?" She seemed to have said all this in one breath which to me seems… pretty much impossible. But I’d caught the last of it and it caused a question. What is my name?

"I don’t know my name...I'm really confused, it almost makes me angry, yet....I also feel somewhat content without knowing my past." Why do I feel these mixed feelings? Why am I unhappy yet content with the loss of my memories? I'm so, so very much confused. I need to take a walk to try and blow off some steam, even.

"Well don't worry! I'll give you a name, mister!" The pink equine chirped happily, “And we’re all ponies, not just equines!” I blinked at this, as I’d not asked her anything about either. Though I still filed the term ‘ponies’ away into my mind.

"Why would you do that?" 

"Because I don't want someone to be sad, plus I need to know who I'm throwing a party for." A massive gasp cut the air. “Wait, do you like cupcakes? I mean everypony lovesmycupcakesbutyou’renotaponysoIhopeyoudolikecupcakes-“

"You would really do that?" I interrupted, feeling that, for one, she wouldn’t stop, and two, as she nodded rapidly, I felt somewhat happy that she is doing this for me. Almost  makes me feel like a new person, or... whatever I am. "Just don't make it stupid, or I'm leaving."

"Okie dokie lokie!"

‘I liked it better when you only tried to kill stuff like you used to do but...this place...it's making you soft. I want you to go destroy stuff, kill, obliterate mountains, I DON'T CARE! Anything but this talking and talking. Just get it over with already, I just can't take it.’

'Shut it.'

'Tch, fine,' 'Instinct' muttered before disappearing to wherever it was it came from for the moment.

"Okay Pinkie, tell me the name."

"Let’s call you Big Meanie Skull-face." I was not amused.

"That's it. I'm leaving." I said as I walked away from a confused party pony.

"Did I say something wrong? I was only kidding, please don't walk away! We could call you Horns maybe? No? Okay, well, I'll let you know when I figure something out,” she called out before turning back the way we came, muttering under her breath all the while.

After a few minutes, 'Instinct' returned.

‘It's about time you left, now what should we fight out here besides weak little ponies, wooden wolves, and an over sized bear?’

‘How am I supposed to know? I don’t even know where here is.’ We walked on for about a few hours and still nothing.

*MEANWHILE*

=========================



Back at the spot of the Ursa Major’s corpse, the Elements finally recollect themselves and notice they're not dead. Well, except Fluttershy, who sadly is just too scared to even dare move, let alone speak - only small “eeps” were heard - even when they try to calm her. The rest tried to avoid the sight of the Ursa's burnt, bloody corpse.

"Now it’s alright now sugarcube, the monster is gone, wherever it went." Said Applejack trying to calm Fluttershy and failing.

"Eep!"

"Yah she's not gonna to be movin’ from that spot for awhile Twahlight. Ah suggest we stay here or at least try t’ move her somehow."

"Well, Applejack, before we could move her we need to find Pinkie - she seems to have gone missing."

"Well Ah think that the creature with them horns has gone an’ took her, but that's just what ah'm thinking. Plus the creature’s gone as well, that has to be some proof that it took her."

"Applejack, you might be right, yet also wrong since I think Pinkie followed it."

"Why's that?"

"There's hoof prints leading in the direction of the creature’s magical energy."

"So why would she follow that thang?"

"My guess it was Pinkie being Pin-” The sound of Pinkie’s infamous Party Cannon sounded out in the forest, “and there's Pinkie." Twilight gave a groan followed by a face-hoof.

"Ah'll go wake up Rainbow and get the others on their hooves. Y'all go get Pinkie before she gets hurt." 

"Okay. I'll bring Pinkie back as soon as I can.”

"Ah'll be right behind yah, Sugarcube." As Applejack said this, Twilight galloped off toward the direction of Pinkie Pie and the creature had gone.

Applejack watched the librarian disappear into the trees, before turning to the unconscious speedster. With a series of pokes, Rainbow slowly regained consciousness with a groan while holding her head in her hooves.

“Seems all them times hittin’ the library shelves paid off, huh?” Applejack chuckled when Rainbow opened her eyes.

“Ugh, didja catch the chariot that hit… Wait! Where’s that monster?!” Rainbow exclaimed, looking around and privately thinking to give it a real pounding the next round before staring at one point. “A-Applejack?”

“Yeah?”

“What happened to the Ursa Major?” This question gave Applejack pause as she thought back to what she'd seen. Deciding to do as she always had, she told the truth.

"The monster happened, RD. Knocked 'round like Ah buck apples. Horseapples, that thang went and flipped it," Applejack answered gravely, looking at the destruction caused in the battle.

"W-well, at least we can take it now!" Rainbow exclaimed, the confidence in her voice growing, "The Ursa had to had done some serious damage, all we gotta do is- "It walked away, sugahcube," Applejack cut in, Rainbow giving her an irritated stare that melted into disbelief, "without so much as a splinter or a scrape, that thing took down an Ursa Major."

Rainbow's mind struggled to comprehend this as she stared at the corpse once more, almost missing what Applejack said next.

"Let's just hope tha' the Princesses can handle this thang."

=========================


"Hmm, Bones? Maybe. Spike? Wait, no, that names already taken. How about Skullhead? Oh wait, he can talk and isn’t wearing a suit. Hmm this is a tough one,” Pinkie muttered to herself, sitting against a tree when Twilight ran into view.

"Pinkie, there you are!"

"Oh, hey Twilight, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine, but what about you? Did that thing hurt you in any way?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine. All we did was talk a bit and then he walked off for no reason."

"Okay… but what are you doing exactly?"

"I told him I would give him a name since he doesn't have one and then I'm going to throw him a party." Twilight rose an eyebrow at this.

"That’s… very nice, Pinkie, but first we need to meet up with the rest of the girls and head back to the library to inform the princesses."

"Okie dokie lokie." 

center]========================


Once Twilight and Pinkie returned to the group, they were met with the sight of Applejack carrying a fainted Rarity and Rainbow guiding Fluttershy, who had her eyes closed tightly. Before Twilight could ask what was going on, Applejack, carefully, set Rarity down before leading her back to the clearing.

“Brace yaself, it ain’t pretty,” Applejack warned before directing their gazes to the Ursa. Twilight went silent at the sight, her mind working overtime to comprehend. Deciding to wait until they were out of the Everfree, Twilight turned and picked Rarity up with her magic before using a locater spell to direct them to Ponyville.

Twilight and friends made it out of the Everfree within thirty minutes without any problems; most likely because of the new creature scaring the other inhabitants away. When they got to Ponyville, all was as they had left with little fillies and colts going around getting candy. With a silent agreement, they split up, Rainbow taking Fluttershy home, Pinkie racing off to get candy while Applejack shouldered Rarity again and trotted to the fashionista’s home.

As Twilight walked to the library, there were many others just playing games or talking to each other to pass the time. Then there was Spike and the CMC holding bags full of candy, mainly just enjoying themselves and having fun. Twilight chose to let Spike have his fun and continued on towards the library to make a note to the Princesses to inform them of the creature she found.

"Dear Princess,

I must inform you that I have found an unknown creature that seems to have fallen along with Princess Luna's meteor shower. This creature seems to have an unknown type of magic that not only seems dark, but is extremely powerful. This creature seems to be bipedal with what seems to hands or claws like Spike’s, except with five digits. It is rather tall, has tufts of red fur at its wrists and ankles, along with what appears to be a collar, a orange mane, black markings on its body and, perhaps most scarily of all, it has a hole through its chest.

I should also point out that this creature appears to wear a skull-like mask over its face, with carnivorous teeth and large horns similar to a Minotaur, that covers its eyes.

The creature, for some reason, actually saved me and my friends from an Ursa Major, though killing it in the process, but only I and probably Pinkie saw this, before walking away into the Forest. Everypony else was too scared to look and from what I saw, I wish I hadn't. The creature just released so much energy, its attack could probably match an S-class offensive spell and not even I can do that class yet. I hope this information can help you figure out what this thing is and what we should do.

Your Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle."

"Now, I just need to wait for Spike so I can actually send this." Currently it was about 8:36, close to Spike's bedtime of 9:00 so he should be back shortly.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

"I wonder who that could be at this time of night," Twilight mused as she went over to the door to see not only Spike but somepony she didn't expect. "Princess Luna!"

> Answers and Dreams
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It’s been about a half hour since I was talking to a weird pink pony called "Pinkie Pie", and now I'm walking in a forest, looking for something to use for stress relief. So far, I've been in this forest for close to an hour or so, total, finding nothing but those wooden wolves and I'm not even finding those now. There’s also the current questions that have been nagging me for a while, that I feel like I should know, but I can't remember. Like the fact of where am I, who am I, what am I, and where’d this Instinct voice come from anyway? These questions have been bothering me for a while now and I need some answers, but who could tell me?

"Hmm....wait a second. I do know someone, and he's right in my head." Despite being able to talk to Instinct in my head, it felt… weird.

‘I don't have to tell you a damn thing,' Instinct snapped.

"I need these answers and you know that."

‘No.’

"Will you please do this?"

‘I said, no.'

"Just do it."

‘I told you, no, and I'll keep it that way.’

"Look, will you just answer my questions? It's all I want right now."

‘You know what? How about this: go fight something strong and then I'll tell you.’

"No, I've already killed some wolves and now I'm distracted by some questions I have no answer for, so answer them now."

‘Tch, fine. I'll answer your questions cos it’ll get you off my back, so ask.’

"Where are we right now?"

‘No damn clue, I've wondered the same thing. Maybe you oughta make the 'ponies' tell you.’

"Okay, I'll think about that later. Now, next question would be, who am I?"

‘Truthfully? Even with your memories you didn't have a name.’

"No wonder I felt somewhat happy when Pinkie offered me a name."

‘And then, she gave you a shitty one.’

"I remember, I was as happy about it as you were, but I don't think she meant harm." She was probably just trying to be funny yet I didn't really feel much emotion other than confusion and irritation. "Now I just want to know one more thing for now."

‘Well spit it out, we don't have all night you know.’

"What am I?"

‘You're a Hollow.’

"A what?"

‘A Hollow. Check your chest.’

Confused as to Instinct’s instruction, I looked and saw something… odd. Almost like a part of my chest was sunken in or something. Curious, I brought my hand up to feel it, but my hand kept going and going… and going… and felt something hanging. Grabbing it, I pulled only to experience pain in the back of my head and my vision swinging going from my chest to the sky.

‘Loosen your grip, you fucking dumbass!’ Instinct laughed, almost choking on his words. I did as he said and the pain stopped, allowing me to lower my head and feel something sliding between my fingers. More gently, I pulled… orange hair through my chest. The same orange hair I could just see to the sides of my vision. My orange hair. My silence lasted for a full ten seconds, or so Instinct later told me before I reacted.

“HOLY FUCKING SHIT!”

If Instinct could die, he would’ve died laughing right then and there.


========================


“Why the goddamn hell, do I have a hole in my chest?!” I roared at the pond I’d found, after about three minutes of frantically running around the damn forest, to see the hole in my chest. The sheer force of said yell was actually vibrating the water into a bowl-shaped depression as I used it for a type of medium to talk to Instinct.

‘I told you – You’re a Hollow,’ Instinct smugly replied, ‘You really gotta learn to listen, dumbass.’

“What the hell’s a Hollow got to do with it?!”

‘Calm the hell down, I’ll tell ya. See that mask on your face?’

“What about it?” I asked, marginally more calm than earlier.

‘That’s what Hollows get – a hole in the chest and a mask on the face. Basically, souls stay too long, become negative for something or other, and boom – new Hollow.’

Wait. Wait wait waitwaitwaitwait. “What do you mean by… souls?” I was nervous about this answer, ‘cause if it meant what I thought…

‘Simple. You died, and went through something of a rebirth. Not alive as in flesh, but alive.’ Somehow, that didn’t make me feel better. I had too much on my mind… and more questions than I started with. Instinct cut through my musing by actually suggesting something… in his way, as I’ve quickly learned.

‘So, gonna keep sulking, or you gonna get a damn camp happening, I ain’t answering anymore questions.’

“Fine by me,” I agreed, glad for something to distract my mind, “But how are we gonna get a fire started?”

‘Just leave that to me, you just grab firewood,’ Instinct ordered.

“But how are-‘I already told you I ain’t answering questions,’ Instinct interrupted. I grumbled, but decided to go with it.


========================



Sometime later, I had quite a few big logs of wood, a large armful of sticks and branches, and a pile of twigs and bark, while the forest was a tree or three smaller. Instinct wanted the fire right there and then, but I asked about the forest burning with us in it, and he reluctantly agreed to a firepit, as long as it was his way.

“His way”, as it turns out, was using a controlled stab from my sword to blast the ground apart to create a hole.

Now, with all the right amount of firewood in the pit, Instinct showed me how to light it. Apparently, I had to use my ‘Cero’, which turned out to be the laser thing from earlier. All I had to do was charge it, he assured me, and he’d tell me when to release.

Needless to say, we got it on the third try. The first made the pit about two feet deeper and bigger (not to mention wasted the firewood) and the second went wild into the trees after a stick fell from a branch above me and smacked the side of my head. The third was successful by using said stick as a big match.

With a nice fire going, a good night and a silent Instinct, I fell asleep soon, my sword planted into the ground within arms reach.


========================


After the sight of the Princess of the Night appearing on her doorstep stopped shocking her, Twilight fell into a brief bow before looking up with a stammered, "P-Princess L-Luna w-what are you d-doing here? I haven’t even sent the letter yet!"

"We are not here because of thy letter; we sensed a large amount of magic appear out of nowhere and chose to investigate."

"Why didn't you just send the royal guard?" Twilight asked, regaining her posture as best she could. After all, the Library was messy (a cushion was flat on the couch, the curtains were half-drawn and her quill, ink and letter were on her table). At the thought of the letter, she quickly levitated it over to Spike, who quickly sent it on its ashen way before walking up the stairs to the bedroom.

"We were afraid that the being that possesses this power, may be too strong for our guard. That and we also wanted to stop by," Luna said, with a gentle smile on her face at the last statement.

"Well… actually, I think I can help you, since I saw the source of this power, along with my friends."

"Wait. You and your friends investigated the scene?" Luna asked, concern in her voice as she did a quick scan of Twilight to ensure that the lavender mare was unharmed.

"Yes, and what I saw was both amazing yet horrifying at same time." Twilight replied, shrinking a little as she remembered.

"Very well, Twilight Sparkle, tell Us what you saw."

---30 minutes of explaining what happened earlier that night---

"So thou art telling me, that there's a bipedal being, which appears to be wearing some sort of mask that obscures most of its face. That's also strong enough to obliterate an Ursa Major, without a scratch, am I correct?"

"Yes."

"These events… really disturb Us, We think we should find this creature before it hurts somepony."

"I'm not quite sure about that since Pinkie says he's alright, but then there's the fact that it's Pinkie Pie, and she's fine with almost anything."

"So will thou come and help Us find thy creature or do thou not wish to come along this journey?" Luna asked of the still nervous mare.

"Yes, I think we should find it and possibly negotiate with it, but first I'd like to wait for Celestia's response, so you can go on without me if you wish."

"Alright. We hope to see thee soon, Sparkle"


---5 minutes after Luna's departure---


"When is she going to write back?"

*BURP* The slightly opened door to the bedroom glowed green for a moment.

"Twilight, the letter's here!" The dragon yelled from his bed.

"Quickly, Spike, bring it down!"

"Okay!" The little dragon ran as fast as he could without tripping before Twilight used her magic to bring him downstairs. Luckily for him he made it down just in time to find Twilight full of excitement, nervousness, and anxiety.

"Give it to me Spike!" Twilight grabbed the little scroll out of the dragon's claws, nearly sending him onto his face, and opened the letter and read.

"Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I am afraid that the creature you explain may be more dangerous than you think it currently is. I extremely recommend that you do not search for this creature as it could possibly harm you and that's something I don't want.

You have already seen Luna come by as she sensed the being’s power just a while ago and is now looking for the creature. She may ask you if you would like to search with her, but even though I wish that you don't, I know you will. So please, be careful, my student.

Your mentor, Princess Celestia."

"I know that it's dangerous, but I can't just sit around." Twilight muttered to herself as read the letter three times now, just in case and prepared to leave and catch up to Luna. Meanwhile Spike is quietly sleeping in his small bed since it's about his bedtime. Twilight walked upstairs to say a silent goodbye before she went to go find the creature. "Goodbye, Spike. I'll be back soon, I promise."


---30 or so minutes trotting toward the Everfree's entrance---


Luna had now reached the entrance to the Everfree Forest and is currently waiting in Fluttershy's cottage. Currently, she was wondering where Twilight is right now and didn't wait long for her to get her answer as knocks were heard from the door and Twilight walked in when Luna opened it with her magic.

"Twilight, what took thou so long?"

"I just needed to read the letter a few times and say goodbye to Spike, plus it's a long trot without wings." Twilight looked around and saw Fluttershy sitting down on her couch, drinking some tea. "Hi, Fluttershy. How are you doing?"

"I'm still a little shaken from what happened earlier with the monster and the Ursa Major," Fluttershy whispered, shaking lightly. She would’ve been the most affected by the death of the large ursine, Twilight reflected quietly. 

"Don't worry, Fluttershy, everything will be alright. Luna and I will take care of the creature."

"Thanks Twilight."

"You're welcome, now,” Twilight turned to the Princess standing by the door, “are we ready, Princess?" The alicorn nodded before she opened the door.

"Twilight?” At her name, she turned back to Fluttershy as she whispered, “Please come back safely, okay?" Twilight just nodded and told Luna that she's ready to go find the creature. They all said their goodbyes as Twilight and Luna entered the forest in search of a being of untold power.


========================


‘Does he really need to friggin’ snore?’ Instinct grumbled, ‘It’s a pain in the arse tryin’ to sleep to this.’ Within his host’s head, Instinct tried to find a metaphorical comfortable position while attempting to tune out the snoring.


---Inside our hero's dream---


I was looking down upon a strange creature that looked similar to me, but with pinkish skin, shorter orange hair, a white shirt, dark pants and no mask. Yet I was also looking up at an older looking creature that had paler skin, brown glasses that hid his eyes, a white shirt, black hair and a black coat of sorts that wavered and flickered, at the same time.

And all three of us were falling down alongside some giant buildings as boxes fell around us.

“Among the countless ***** **** are falling, your ********* powers are hidden in just one,” The older one said, some of the words blurring so I couldn’t hear them. “Find that one.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” the younger retorted.

“I won’t ****** to excuses. There is no time.” As the two argued, I spotted surrounding buildings crumbling into boxes. “If you don’t find it before **** ***** crumbles… then you will become * ******.” Become what? I couldn’t hear it… it was too blurry. As I was thinking, I didn’t notice the distance between the elder and the youth until a sudden splash brought my attention out of my thoughts and to the sudden watery world around me/us.

The youth seemed lost in thought, until suddenly he seemed to have an epiphany or something. He yanked on something I couldn’t see and a box at the corner of my eye, inexplicitly, opened on its own accord to show blackness. As I turned to view it, it suddenly got larger as a pair of glowing yellow eyes shone abruptly before bone-white teeth lunged at me with a wavering scream.


---Our hero's awakening---


"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!" I screamed as I snatched my blade from its improvised stand while shoving myself to stand in a battle position.

‘Oi! Calm the hell down, damn it!’ Instinct snapped.

"Wha-what, I...what happened?” I frantically asked while twisting my head back and forth, looking for the bone-white teeth from my vision, my sword following my gaze.

'How would I know, I may live in your head but I have my own mind. I don't see YOUR dreams.'

"Oh… well, sorry for bothering you,” I said, calming down as nothing leapt out to attack me.

'Tch, yeah, well, now I can't sleep because of you,'  He snarled.

‘What was that? It felt too… real, to just be a dream. Could it have been… a memory?' I was once again brought out by a sudden rustling to my left.


========================


"Luna, I see a light coming from over there,” Twilight whispered to her companion.

"The beast might be over there," Luna mused quietly.

"Or it might be Zecora, since she lives nearby."

“Hm, alright, well, lets-” The sound of a scream ripped through the air, interrupting the pair.

"Let's go check it out now," Twilight suggested, hoping it wasn’t a pony or some other poor creature.

"Yes, that would be a good idea, Twilight." Princess Luna agreed as she and Twilight ran towards the direction the scream came from. After five minutes, they reached the source of the scream. To their surprise, it really was the creature but they didn't expect it to be talking to itself. It was somewhat distracted, but swung its head towards them when it heard a frond that Twilight brushed rustle, so Luna and Twilight quickly hid behind a tree and a bush, respectively, to keep out of sight. "I knew it was here," Luna whispered.

"Yes, you were right. But now is not the time to gloat," Twilight cautioned the alicorn of the night,

"Right, now how are we supposed to approach the creature?" Luna asked, her eyes on its sword as it continued looking around.

"Well, so far it hasn't been hostile to me and my friends, but I bet if....Luna?" While Twilight was giving her answer Luna completely ignored her except for the word "hostile" and confronted the creature.

Twilight knew this by the Royal Canterlot Voice speaking the word, "CREATURE!" with the wrath of thunder.


========================


‘OH GODDAMNIT, MY EARS!’

‘You don't have ears,’ I reminded Instinct mentally as I looked at the owner of the ear-bleeding scream.

'Well, as I said, I hear what you hear. So, it still friggin’ hurts in here.'

‘Whatever,’ I finished my discussion with him and turned to the winged, horned pony in front of me, “Now, what do you want?"

“We -” I looked around at this, before realising it was her (at least I hoped it was a her) way of speaking, “-have heard from Twilight that thou art extremely dangerous and hostile so we have come to negotiate." Whoever this blue pony is she seems to be quite powerful I can literally feel it. Instinct apparently did as well, as he was urging me to fight.

"So far, I haven't been hostile to anyone, all I've done is fight a bunch of animals trying to kill me for food," I answered, reflexively tightening my grip on my swords handle. She noticed.

"Thou are still a danger to many so all we ask is that you go back to wherever thou came from."

"To tell the truth, I don't know where I've come from or how to get back, so I think I'll have to stay." The look on the blue pony's face was that of agitation.

"Thou think thou can lie to us?! We know thou came here from going through our meteor shower. So tell us why are thou here?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" I roared at her, suddenly losing my composure. ‘What the…’ 

Instinct snickered. ‘Sometimes, you just gotta to do things yourself.’

I was numb at what must’ve happened. ‘Wait, you mean…’

"IF THOU SHALL NOT LEAVE, THEN WE SHALL FORCE YOU TO!" The pony roared back. 

"Wait!-" Was all I could say before she blasted me with some sort of attack. It was almost like a Cero, but not as intense. Whatever it was, I was lifted off my feet for a few feet, before shoving my clawed toes back into the soil. I still skidded back a few more metres, though.

When I looked back at my now opponent, she had wide eyes at my brushing her attack off so easily before spreading her wings wide and flew towards me, a sword of blue light suddenly being made and floating ahead with its tip stabbing towards me.
> Everfree Battle; The Night and the Hollow!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Last time, in Equestria meets the Vasto Lorde


"Wait!-" Was all I could say before she blasted me with some sort of attack. It was almost like a Cero, but not as intense. Whatever it was, I was lifted off my feet for a few feet, before shoving my clawed toes back into the soil. I still skidded back a few more metres, though.

When I looked back at my now opponent, she had wide eyes at my brushing her attack off so easily before spreading her wings wide and flew towards me, a sword of blue light suddenly being made and floating ahead with its tip stabbing towards me.

I jerked my head to the right, allowing the strange sword to pass my head and through my hair, before stepping forward and slamming my left fist into the attackers chest, or at least what passed for it, sending the winged, horned creature soaring back into a tree with an explosion of splinters, all strangely moving around her. I hoped I'd not killed her, but my fears were eased when she groaned and shook her head. Said fears were immediately turned to concern when I saw her horn light up before she sent a blast at me.


========================


Luna couldn't believe her eyes when the monster had not only withstood her initial attack, without a scratch no less, but also struck back with enough force to warrant a shield spell to minimise the damage of her landing. Shaking her head to rid herself of the stars that spun in her eyes, she spotted the monster staring at her and, assuming it must be thinking of the best way to kill her, sent another, stronger Class F Solid Force spell to send him flying.

Only to see him barely skid a few feet.


========================


Twilight was shocked at what she was seeing - This creature had not only fought and killed an Ursa Major, but also took two F Class offensive spells, spells that would shatter the magically strengthened stone of Canterlot Castle, without any damage.

Not to mention that it'd punched Luna, of course.

But something was off from when they spied on it. It had been looking around rapidly, with its sword in hand, before they turned up. Twilight could only ask herself, why?


========================


As the dust settled from the Blue's (as I chose to nickname her) last attack, I decided I'd enough of this.

"Oi." That one word got Blue's attention quickly.

"If you want to continue," I said, seeing her stand up on momentarily shaky legs, "you're gonna get hurt." Her eyes narrowed at this as she let out a scoff.

"Nay, monster," Blue spat, "It will be thee who shalt be harmed most severely."

I narrowed my eyes at her, before replying, "Have it your way." With that, I leaned forward before charging into a sprint. She responded by flapping her wings to get above and behind me, her weird sword reappearing out of nowhere before she swung it down to my head. Spinning around, I raised my own to meet hers in a clash of blue and yellow sparks before parrying it and striking myself. She attempted to defend in the same manner I had, but found herself tumbling backwards from the force of my swing. Recovering just before landing on the ground, she rose her head in time to propel herself backwards to dodge my sweeping slash, throwing her sword forward. I grabbed it in one hand and held it as I swung my blade to slash her chest, blood spraying from the gash before she slammed a hoof into my face that forced me to let go of her blade as I stumbled back from the unexpected blow.

With a toss of her head she sent her blade at me once more, and again our blades spat sparks of blue and yellow. We continued in this fashion for minutes, me always forcing her back with each swing, until she dodged a vicious upward swing of mine and riposted with a slash. Raising my blade to intercept, I found it wrapped in a blue aura, the same colour, I noticed, that Blue's horn was glowing this entire fight, before her sword slammed into my left shoulder. With a tightened jaw and narrowed eyes, her focus was flickering between my arm and her blade which caused my arm to inch towards her. I wasn't expecting her to release my arm any time soon, so when she ducked down and released it my swing went clear over her head. Rearing up, she stomped both hooves, now glowing with magic, on her blade at my shoulder, forcing it to the muscle, before giving a mighty push down.

Only for it to spark as the blade shattered. Staring at the spot that she'd attacked, she slowly turned her gaze to me.

"Oh, fuck," she whispered before I launched myself at her once again with an overhead slash that she attempted to block with a new sword, only to find it shatter into pieces. Eyes wide in shock and new desperation, a translucent, blue sphere covered her body before my blade slammed against it and drove it into the ground, a cloud of dust billowing up from the impact, which was quickly blown away as Blue flapped her wings and took to the skies. She continued her ascent before turning and, with a moment of charging that left her eyes glowing and mane and tail floating with star-like lights within, sent a barrage of blue-white bolts the size of my head down at me. Staring up at the raining attacks, I heard the same sound as when I was fighting that bear earlier just as the first bolt slammed into the ground.


========================


Luna breathed a little hard as she gazed down on her handiwork, the several dozen bolts throwing up dust clouds with each impact. 'There's no way that monster could have survived,' she thought, as the last one struck.

And then something crashed into her back, right between her wings, sending her rocketing towards the ground at incredible speeds. Turning back in terror, she saw the monster crouching on her back before it kicked off with both clawed feet, causing her to shatter the sound barrier before slamming into the ground, the sound-wave clearing the dust cloud in a ring. Forcing herself to stand back up on shivering knees, she looked back up at the creature still falling, before closing her eyes in preparation of her most powerful spell.


========================


'I gotta figure out how to do that,' I thought, as I fell, in a crouching position, 'That sound-speed thing could come in handy.'

'Sonido, dumba- WATCH IT!' Instinct interrupted himself as Blue's horn started glowing a deep blue before what looked to be night-blue lightning shot from it at me. Before I could react, my head shot forward before charging the laser attack almost instantly before releasing.

Red and blue met in a purple clash that was evenly matched. Then a few seconds later, the beam obliterating through the lightning and struck Blue as well as the ground she stood on, causing a fiery explosion that was equal to the one with the bear.

Landing on the ground in a small crater, I looked at the smoke, before swinging my blade towards it, causing it to billow away and disperse almost immediately. Staring at the bottom of the large crater, I spotted Blue, out cold, before I heard a noise that took my attention off her.


========================


Twilight cautiously poked her head out of the brush, before gasping at the sight of the battlefield. A quick glance around located the creature standing by a crater looking down into it. Without hesitation, Twilight lit up her horn and teleported herself, with a *BAMF*, near the edge of the crater to lay horrified eyes on Princess Luna. Her coat was burnt, some sections burnt away to reveal seared skin, with a grievous slash across her chest. Scratches and cuts covered her wings and legs, with feathers bent, missing or burnt away. There were nasty gashes over her head that leaked blood, one of her eyes were heavily bruised and Twilight suspected some cracked bones. Suddenly feeling eyes on her, she turned to look up at the creature that held its blade ready.

Backing away nervously, she stuttered, "Um, I-I w-won't hu-hurt y-you, I p-promise." To her surprise, the creature simply stared at her a moment before relaxing its grip. Glancing back to the injured Luna, she began calculating the distance to Ponyville's hospital.

"She needs help, doesn't she?" That sentence knocked Twilight out of her thoughts as she stared up at the strange voiced creature. She'd likened its voice to something Vinyl Scratch'd produce. Then she caught its eyes. The glowing yellow did little to dissuade her from the thought that the creature didn't want to hurt Luna this badly.

"Yes, but I don't know if I can get us to Ponyville Hospital. It's kinda far from here and Luna is in no shape to travel," Twilight answered, looking down at the ground. A sliding sound alerted her to the creature that was skidding down the craters embankment to the still figure of Luna, before it picked her up easily.


========================


Shifting Blue gently into a more comfortable position, I jumped back up to the lip of the crater where the other stood waiting.

'Tch, you wanna help 'em? After they attacked ya?' Instinct asked, a metaphorical eyebrow raised.

'I didn't meant to hurt her that bad. I'm to blame for her injuries, and you are to blame for the fight in the first place,' I replied, snapping the last part.

'Yeah, I am, aren't I?' Instinct laughed, 'But, she wasn't too bad. So, fine. Let's help these two.'

'And how are we gonna get to this 'Ponyville'?' I asked, sceptical of Instinct.

'Guess,' he shot back with a smug smirk, 'Now, pick up Purple, and jump.'

Confused, I did as he said, startling the little pony when we found ourselves miles above the ground.

'Now, land on the air.'

'HOW THE HELL AM I MEANT TO DO THAT?!' I roared back.

'Look down.' Despite my misgivings, I looked down at the ground speeding towards us, the little equine under my left arm screaming. 'Now, think of standing on stone.' As I followed the instruction, with no shortage of confusion, we slowed until we stood just above the treetops.

Thanking Instinct, I looked around until a cluster of lights at the edge of the forest caught my eye.

"That it, this 'Ponyville'?" I asked the still terrified pony, who looked up from staring at the trees and empty air below up, looked at the same cluster and nodded. Before hanging her head and throwing up, just missing my foot.

'Now, I ain't gonna bother tellin' ya the next part, so here.' As Instinct finished, I winced as a brief headache ripped through my head as, with a burst of static, we appeared over the town. I blinked the spots away from my eyes as I slowly became aware of the knowledge Instinct evidently shared with me. Looking down at my passengers, the purple one had glazed eyes, and, if not for them shifting around, I'd have thought she fainted.

Asking the purple one for directions, which were mumbled dazedly, I found myself above a building with a red cross on the front. Walking to the ground, I placed them both down, Purple staggering before shaking herself awake. Turning away, I planned to go get help when something forced my head forward and caused me to feel a little tired. Spinning around, I saw Purple back away with a nervous look when I felt something on my leg. Looking down, I met the half-opened eye of Blue as her horn glowed. I was instantly overcome by waves of lethargy as I stared into the eye.

"Now, Twilight!" she called, and both her and 'Twilight' launched bolts that struck both the front and back, knocking me out of the strange trance, and feeling like the bear had slammed my head between its paws. I stumbled back and forth dizzily, until a muted cry made me look into the sky and into the pair of cyan hooves that slammed into my face, knocked me off my feet and slammed the back of my head into the ground. I saw naught but black after that.


========================


Rainbow Dash rolled on the ground in agony. 'Celestia damn it, that's a tough head!' she managed to think, as her hind legs felt shattered from the speed-filled buck she'd delivered. Twilight picked herself up from where she collapsed on the ground out of magical exhaustion, having spent almost everything in that last knock-out spell. Staggering drunkenly to the doors, she immediately caught the attention of the nurse that was quivering behind her desk when she collapsed onto the tiled floor with a thump, groaning, "Please... out...side... help..." before she succumbed to the bliss of unconsciousness.


> Hospitals, Stories and Captive.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight twitched slightly in her sleep, before slowly fluttering her eyes open only to squeeze them shut with a groan, as the harsh light stabbed at her eyes.

"Twily, you awake?" A familiar voice asked in concern, "You okay?"

With a low moan, Twilight carefully blinked her eyes to adjust them to the light above her, before tilting her head left to spot her B.B.B.F.F, Shining Armour, as well as a unicorn mare with a dark-blue, colt-like mane and tail, a reddish-brown coat and a heartline for a Cutie Mark, who looked happy to see her awake.

"As I said, Prince Armour, all that Miss Sparkle suffered from was magical exhaustion," the doctor stated, before looking at Twilight, "My name is Doctor Beating Heart. I have to say, I've seen some cases of magical exhaustion but you certainly take the cake," she said with a chuckle.

Twilight frowned in thought, before exclaiming with a gasp, "Princess Luna! Is she...?"

"I spent the last half-hour performing surgery on Princess Luna. Thank Faust for alicorn healing abilities, otherwise..." Dr. Heart answered, a serious look adorning her face, "Second degree burns, several dozen fractures all over her body, some bones even holding four, a slash wound that cut clean through her left scapula, both humerus at different points and ribs as well as nearly opening her lungs, and internal haemorrhaging? A normal pony'd be dead in a minute if they're lucky enough. She's currently being looked after by the best we have."

"And... the creature...?" Twilight hesitantly asked, hoping that Luna's plan had worked.

"I knocked it out cold, Twi!" A new voice jumped in, making Twilight spin her head to the right so fast her neck cricked. Rubbing her neck with a wince, she looked over to see Rainbow Dash in the bed over, surrounded by the rest of the girls, with both hindlegs in a cast and held in traction ropes, "Though you do get credit for softening it up for me," Rainbow continued, a grin on her face.

"What Ah wanna know is how ya'll brought that thang down when an Ursa Major and Princess Luna couldn't," Applejack interjected. Twilight looked around to see her friends, her brother and the doctor looking at her expectantly. Taking a deep breath, she began,

"Well, you see..."


========================


Flashback; Over the Everfree


Twilight couldn't believe her eyes. The creature, carrying an injured Princess and herself, was standing in midair like it was nothing. Then, with a burst of static that echoed painfully in her ears, she found herself dangling over Ponyville.

Suddenly, she felt somewhat lethargic before an image of Princess Luna swam before her eyes. Twilight, the image called, Listen carefully. When you have the chance, strike the beast with a Sleeping Spell."Dimly, she heard the creature ask her something... the Hospital? Hoping it was that, she gave the directions while trying to focus on the plan the Princess was laying out, Though chances are the beast will not fall, I'll use a Hypnosis Spell to weaken his mental defences. Then, we shall strike with all the magic we have. Understood? With a mumbled affirmative, Twilight waited until she was placed on the ground before giving a silent apology and following the plan.

It seemed that the first and second stages went well, but even with both high powered spells striking, the creature refused to fall. Collapsing from the fatigue that overcame her, Twilight barely registered Rainbow Dash before blacking out.

========================


End Flashback; Back at the Hospital


"And, that's how it happened," Twilight finished, sipping at the glass of water the doctor offered partway through, before asking a question, "But how'd you turn up in time, Rainbow?"

"I, uh, couldn't sleep," the cyan pegasus admitted with averted eyes, "Kept thinking about that monster. So, went flying 'round Ponyville to clear my head, and BOOM!" she threw her forelegs out wide to emphasize her point, "There's that thing, with Princess Luna looking all beat up and you, running in midair. So, I took off after it, saw you two hammer it, and came down to finish the job," she finished, buffing a forehoof against her chest before admiring it.

"In any case, the creature's locked up in the hospital. Got it bound with magic draining cuffs and magic reinforced chains. Not even the Princesses could break out," Shining stated, a small amount of boast coming through at the last part, before becoming serious. "Twily, I know that you're curious about it, but please - stay away. I don't wanna see you as bad, or worse, as the Princess."

Twilight tried to argue, but found her brothers gaze and stature unyielding. "Alright, Shining, I promise." With a grateful smile and nod, Shining gave her a short nuzzle, before turning and leaving the room, Doctor Heart in tow, as her friends came over to comfort her. Even as they did, Twilight still couldn't help but think about the creature.


========================


As I stood within a black void, pink lines flashed into existence to show that I was somewhat bowing before a creature, similar to the two in my last dream, standing in front of me. Looking upwards as much as I could, I saw that it had long, black hair held with angular pieces of silver, a white sleeveless coat, marred by specks of blood, laying over black robes, and a shocked expression on its face. In my left hand, I held a silver blade which I presume to be the other's.

"I told you that I'd be in trouble if you died," a voice, familiar yet not, echoed calmly, "You idiot."

"Impossible!" the creature softly exclaimed, before demanding, "What are you?" As he continued talking, I felt an itching sensation, that I'd taken no notice of before, end.

"What am I?" the voice taunted, "HA! I don't have..." My view jerked upwards to view him entirely as I felt a psychotic grin twisting my face.

"A NAME!" My hand, as I seemed to be tethered to a body, clenched around a sword that was disturbingly similar to mine before sweeping upwards to cut the other from hip to shoulder, forcing him to release his blade. With a demented cackle, I watched him skid back from the slash as I jumped.

"You ****** do suck at this, ******!" I shouted in that strangely familiar voice, the blurring from my last dream returning, "You got beaten by your ******** reiatsu, cracking the ****** throughout your body. You're so pathetic." Reiatsu? I wondered, before deciding to ask Instinct later.

Charging forward, I yelled, "I'll show you!" as I shattered his sword into... petals?

"I'll show you... how to use a ******!" As I neared my opponent, he held out his hand. A sliver of pink fell from the walls and reformed into a sword. Rearing back, I wound up my sword arm before swinging it in a circular motion, a spiralling, fang-like wave of black flames, edged with a dark crimson, racing at the other. Just before it struck, however, he vanished only to reappear some distance away, perched on a rock before disappearing again as I destroyed the same stone with my attack from above.

When he reappeared again, I sprinted at him, while releasing three of the black fangs. He attempted to disappear again to avoid them, but in an instant I was behind him, a hand on his shoulder to hold him in place as I cackled. The next second surrounded us in darkness and dark red.

When the smoke and darkness cleared, we both stood there, as shattered pieces of his headdress fell with some blood from his forehead.

"The way this reiatsu feels..." he panted, "and that mask..." As he spoke, I felt more of the light itchiness return.

"Are you a Hollow?" As he asked his question, I gave a light chuckle and replied, "Who knows? There's no need to know. With this you are going to-"

Vanish. To my shock, my hand shot up and grabbed at something that was over my left eye before seemingly straining what was there. My opponent was as shocked as I was at what was happening, as I began flailing around, grunting and exclaiming as pain and panic swelled within me.

Don't interfere! Leave! As what I suddenly recognised as the voice a mere few seconds ago ordered me, I faintly noticed my body emitting a light-ish blue glow as I replied, "You're the one interfering! Can't you tell **** I'll win if *** leave me like this?!" I attempted to ward off whatever it was with wild swings, screaming out against it. My efforts seemed pointless, as with a scream of pain and a shattering of something like ceramic, as shards of what must've been the mask my opponent commented on fell towards my feet, the entire scene fading away as they did.


========================


I jerked awake as my dream ended, only to the sound of chains clattering as my arms only moved partially. Shaking my head as best I could to clear my vision of bleariness, I gazed around as much as I could to find that I had been shackled...

Though that would've been an understatement.

My ankles and wrists bore black-ish silver manacles, connected to chains that ran to the wall for my hands and shorter chains into the floor for my feet. My calves, thighs, forearms and upper arms were solidly wrapped in chains, the ones around my legs forcing me into a kneeling position with the chains around my arms holding them at an angle above and away from my body. More chains wrapped around my waist and crossed over my chest that I assumed led either into the wall behind me or the floor again. Attempting to look caused me to feel that even the base of my horns held the manacles, with chains leading into the roof, and my neck had a chain that was anchored in the floor.

What was strange though was...

I felt more....

Well, solid.
> Interrogation and Escape
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Shining Armour and Beating Heart made their way towards the creature's makeshift cell, an Earth Pony Guard trotted up beside them from another hallway.

"What's the news on that sword, Lieutenant?" Shining asked the guard, idly stepping aside to allow nurses to continue their duties, ignoring the wanting gazes they directed his way.

Lieutenant Steady Shield glanced askance at his superior, sighed and replied, "It's nothing we've ever seen before, sir." "We know that," Shining stated, a little irritated at the obvious answer that was given. Steady Shield looked more directly at his commander this time.

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Granted," was Shining's reply with a raised eyebrow. Surely, he could answer a question to a simple matter without a request like that, right?

Steady let out an explosive sigh, shook his head and looked up at Shining before saying, "It should be damaged, sir. According to the Elements of Harmony, and your sister, that monster used that same blade on the Ursa first, then Princess Luna. And yet, there's not even a stain on it. Tartarus, we even got the local blacksmiths, as well as the Royal Blacksmith, to have a look at it. All of 'em gave the exact same report and I agree with it.

That sword... it isn't natural. It's not just made out of a metal we don't know about, it feels... well...," glancing aside before returning his gaze to him, Steady unsteadily asked, "Sir, do you promise not to laugh or anything?"

Concerned for the Lieutenant, who was known as a solid poker player, Shining nodded.

"It feels... alive."

"That's not all it is," a new, gruff voice stated from behind them, revealing a dark-tan Pegasus stallion with an anvil for a cutie mark, as he trotted up behind them, extending a curled wing, "It's made of the toughest metal I've ever seen." Uncurling his wing showed a most eye-opening sight - a standard steel mallet, as would be expected of a blacksmith. With a chisel embedded into one face, the sharp end surrounded by shards of its wooden grip. "Tried swingin' with every Celestia-damn thing I had," the blacksmith explained, "Even got one'a the unicorns to cast a weighing spell on the mallet. Even with all that..." he nodded to the fused tool in his wing, "Not even the smallest scratch."


========================


Twilight mentally counted to thirty, to ensure that Shining was far enough, before closing her eyes and focusing, her horn sputtering to life as she fed what magic she had into the spell. Applejack, glancing at the odd light that appeared from the corner of her eye, looked over and asked, "Whatcha doin, sugahcube? The doc said ta not use yer magic."

"Well, it's not a spell," Twilight said, eyes flickering under their lids, "Not entirely anyway. I'm just looking for the creature's magical signature." When she found what she was looking for, she released the magic with a relieved sigh before throwing back the sheets. That got the whole groups attention.

"Um, Twilight, where are you going?" Fluttershy asked, sinking slightly into her mane, "That is, if you don't mind me asking..."

Smiling a little at her friends concern, Twilight slid out of bed, swaying slightly as dizziness overtook her, before responding, "I just have a few questions about the creature, that's all."

At this, Rainbow and Applejack let out a scoff, shaking their heads, while Rarity sighed, Fluttershy nodded and Pinkie just grinned. "Was wondering how long that'd take," Rainbow said, a cocky grin on her face, before turning to look at Rarity, "Rares, you reckon you can snag a wheelchair?"

Twilight looked at her bedridden friend in confusion, asking, "Why do you need a wheelchair?"

"You aren't the only one with questions, darling," Rarity explained, a wheelchair encased in a light sapphire glow being wheeled next to Rainbow's bed, "And we simply can't let you see it alone, now can we? Good heavens, it may even try something."

"Well, Shiny said that they had it chained up," Twilight began, before a full smile formed, "But I'd love to have all of you there beside me."

"Heh, well, while I'm there, it won't try anything," Rainbow grinned, wincing as Fluttershy and Applejack manoeuvred her into the wheelchair, "Cos if does, I'll give it a face-full of awesomeness!" she finished, throwing in a bit of shadow-boxing at the end.

Applejack, looking at her with a deadpan stare, said, "Just like ya did when ya'll bucked it in tha face and busted yer legs up?"


========================


Jerking on my chains seemed to do little, aside from making a rattle echo throughout the room. I growled as I settled back down.

'Well, look at this FINE mess you got us into,' Instinct spat, 'All because you wanted to save a stupid horse.'

"You started that fight and you know it," I muttered darkly, "so really, this is YOUR fault." Any further conversation was put off when the door opened, revealing a group of the ponies. One of them, a unicorn, strode up to me.

"Now then, creature," he said, his armour gleaming in the light, "I want to know your name, where you're from and what's under your mask. But I think I'll start with," his horn began to shine, a chair dragging itself from the side of the room to behind the unicorn, who sat down, "Why you attacked Princess Luna."

'She was a princess? Heh, was a pretty good fighter for a weakling shit title like that. Makes me wonder how good the Queen is,' Instinct muttered in my head.

Lifting my head, I glared at him with eyes brimming with anger as I spoke, "I didn't. She did. I don't have one and I don't know."

Confusion flickered across my interrogator's face before settling back to neutral. "Then, what reason did you give to attack her?"

"I didn't."

"Well, she wouldn't have attacked you for no reason. What did you do?" he pressed for answers that I had given him.

"Nothing," came the snarling reply.

The unicorn sighed, before continuing, "Well, I suppose if you want to keep to that load of minotaur manure, fine by me. Just makes it harder for your trial."

"MY WHAT?!" I roared, surging at him only to slam the chains straight as my horns came to a bare foot from his cocky, smirking face.

"Your trial," he repeated, his smirk staying exactly where it was, "For assaulting Royalty."

"SHE STARTED THAT DAMN FIGHT!" I roared at him, my unusual voice coming through clear, "I DID NOTHING TO PROVOKE HER INTO ATTACKING ME!" The knocking on the door interrupted the interrogation, as it swung open to reveal another pony in similar armour as my captor as well as six ponies, minus costumes, that I'd seen before.

My enraged eyes, however, landed on one in particular, who backed up a few steps as she began trembling in her purple coat when she saw the raw fury, that grew upon sighting her.

"You," I hissed, "you are the one who did this. The one that broke their word!" That caught all of their attention as they stared at the object of my ire as she stared at the floor. I felt a slight buzz, or hum perhaps, that directed my attention up and to the right. Focusing hard, a vague image of something straight and black wavered in my sight. My sword.

"I've had it," I stated as they all whipped their heads to look at me, "I've had enough of your shit," I said, looking at my interrogator, "I've had enough of your lies," I continued, looking at the one responsible, "And I've had it with being chained," I finished, twisting my hands to wrap the chains around them before gripping tightly.

The unicorn still seated in front of me scoffed, "Like you have a choice. Not even the Princesses could get out-" I interrupted him as, with all my rage behind the action, I clenched my hands tight and wrenched them away from the walls, shattering chains into fragments and yanking blocks of concrete out of the wall.

"Of... those," he finished weakly, as I shoved myself to a standing position, the chains around my legs, waist, chest and neck snapping. Taking a forceful stomp forward released my right foot , while a toss of my head to either side broke the chains from the manacles around my horns. Reaching down, I squeezed the chain around my left ankle before twisting it violently to the side, freeing myself of the last binding to this cell.

Twisting my head to where I felt my sword, I concentrated. My ex-interrogator noticed before assuming some of his earlier bravado, "Even if you broke those chains, there's no point doing magic - those cuffs around your horns will keep you from performing any magic."

He was stunned, as was I (though not as much), when the red ball reached its average size in seconds.

'I thought you didn't wanna hurt any of these weakings?' Instinct questioned, 'Not that I give a shit, but it's a hell of a step from saving 'em.'

'Things change,' I coldly replied, to his amusement, as I let my Cero free.


========================


Scootaloo, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Pipsqueak were walking towards the Ponyville General Hospital, three to visit Rainbow Dash and the last for Princess Luna. They had been going over ideas for cutie marks, Pipsqueak giving out some ideas while pointing out the dangers of some of the CMC's, until they came to a stop when a strange sound filled the air.

And a bright red light lanced out of the Hospital into the sky.


========================


I raised my arm in the direction of the hole I'd created, ignoring the screams of panic that followed my Cero, and opened my hand. As my sword flew towards me, I felt something trickling into my mind, even as the other occupants in my cell tried to wrap their minds around what I'd done. As I felt the handle of my sword slap into my palm, I allowed it to carry my arm in a wide circle above my head, missing my horns. As it swung its arc, black flames, edged in a dark, blood-like red, streamed from it to hang in the air.

"Getsuga," I stated darkly, the term coming to my mind as hundreds upon thousands of sensations ran through my mind. The unicorn closest to me seemed to understand the danger they were in, as he rose what was apparently some type of magenta shield to encompass himself and the rest of the group.

"TENSHOU!" I screamed, slamming my right foot forward in a step that cracked the ground around it and bringing my blade down in a slash, Instinct cackling insanely. And I felt that I recognised that cackle somewhere, as the flames that roared forward from my swing surged against the shield, carrying all of them with it as said shield fell.


========================


The CMC, plus Pipsqueak, stared in open-jawed horror as an explosion tore a large hole out of the front of the building, black flames rimmed dark red billowing with the smoke as several shapes arced to hit the ground in skipping rolls, barely missing the four foals on the roadway.

As they only had eyes for the injured ponies, as the shapes revealed the smoking, wounded Elements of Harmony, five Royal Guards along with a few doctors, nurses and previously lightly hurt ponies from wards, all missed the last shape that left a trail of smoke as it flew out of the destroyed building before it expanded, the figure it was following vanishing.

All, that is, except for a pair of eyes that witnessed it before hurrying to make its report, chittering all the while.
> Slaughter! Dragon's Scale is broken?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some time later...

The quiet of the forest was broken when I landed in a skidding crater, the sound sending all the animals, asleep or not, scurrying for better shelter. Looking around, I realised I must've been held captive longer than I thought, as when that purple unicorn had betrayed me it was still night. Now, as I stared around me at silent, spacious trees, early morning light illuminated everything. I still felt the manacles on my ankles, wrists and horns, though vaguely, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with them.

'A single 'Sonido', I thought as I picked a random direction that wasn't towards Ponyville, Just a single one got me this far?

After some minutes, I felt more calm after my escape. The silence of the forest itself, mixed with various notes of birdsong, was doing something to improve my mood.

*Crack-splat*

Until it was broken again, by that sound and several voices laughing. I flicked my eyes between the path I was taking, and the direction to the voices that were now talking excitedly. In the end, I felt I had nothing better to do, so I strode over to them, cutting down bushes that were in my way. Reaching the clearing, I saw about seven reptilian creatures, that stood on their back legs and had horns and wings, standing in a circle looking at something on the ground while exclaiming things about it. I ignored the babble as I began walking closer.

One of them, a lightish blue with a heavy build, thick tail, small wings and dark blue fins, looked up as I approached before directing one of its friends attention to me, grabbing all of theirs in the process. The friend in question looked up at me, befuddlement on its red scaled face before it twisted into a sneer.

"Hey, whatcha want, freak?" he, judging by the voice, shouted, his friends chuckling darkly as I stepped closer, all of them rising as I came near. As they stood, I saw that they were laughing at a broken egg, its contents soaking into the ground. Looking back up at them, I snorted derisively before turning and walking away. Or tried to, as the brown, fat one landed in front of me. Looking around, I saw them surrounding me in a loose circle with the red that spoke earlier in the middle.

"Hey, I asked you a question, freak," he spat as he came right up to me, looking down as he was about a foot and a half taller, "And I don't remember you answering."

My answer was simple; "Get lost before I kill you." This, strangely, sent the creatures laughing.

"Don't you know what we are, punk?" the red asked, chuckling, "We're Dragons; there's no way you can harm us! On the other hand... Hey, Crush, why not show this freak to not mess with us?" Crush, the heavy blue that noticed me, gave a stupid grin as he loped towards me. Before grabbing one of my horns and smashing his fist into my body. I blinked at the impact, to the shock of all present, while his hand gave a nasty crunch followed by a pained scream.

I sighed, before grabbing his now broken hand at the wrist and lifting it with my left hand, before saying, "Now, I think that THIS," I stabbed my sword into the ground before winding my right back slightly, "Is how it's meant to go." Thrusting my hand forward and up while stepping forward, it smashed into Crush. And reappeared in a spray of blood out of his back, up to my shoulder piercing the dragon. Stepping back, I pulled my arm out of his body, letting the corpse fall to the ground with a tremor-inducing thud. Flicking my arm to the side to rid it of blood, grimacing unseen as it soaked the tuft of fur on my wrist, I picked my sword up once more.

"That... that... that..." spluttered the red, who seemed angry and afraid, "That's impossible! Nothing can get past dragon scales! Boulder, get him!" The fat brown behind me launched at me as I browsed who would be dumb enough to 'get' me. Twitching my head to the side to view the approaching mass attempting to tackle me, I raised my blade, took a half step to turn my body sideways to the martyr and brought it down in a short arc.

The dragon fell to either side of me, a mist of blood hanging momentarily in the air from the slash as his organs slithered out or fell with a splat from both halves. Turning back to the still shocked, and now horrified, group, I asked a simple question, "Who's next." As one, all but the shell-shocked red charged at me.

'How ya gonna handle this?' Instinct lazily asked.

'Quickly,' I replied, 'But not too quick.'

A charging, skinny purple, blonde hair covering his eyes (I had decided at this point to just label them males), went to body slam me with his dark green, and more muscle-bound, friend. I intercepted by ducking to my right before slamming the claws of my left hand into the dark green, said claws sprouting from his back as his ribs caved under the force of my attack. Clenching my claws around what flesh I had, I spun to the left and flung his body into an approaching, tall beige that was knocked back by the cadaver. Continuing my spin, I raised my blade before sending it clean through a dark grey with a large chest that was attempting to crush me from above. Hitting the ground caused his corpse to split diagonally from the hip to the shoulder, a hand flopping away with blood splashing from the wrist.

Twisting the other way with a jump, I struck out with a kick that bent the approaching beige in half, the clear sound of his spine snapping music to my ears despite having kicking him in the stomach, blood, bile and saliva flying out his mouth as he flew backwards into a tree that fell onto him, only to be destroyed when I launched a Cero at it, the beige's burnt carcass rolling a few more metres before smoking on the grass. Turning back to the purple, who was now trying to run away, I threw my sword at him. In seconds, it caught up to him to pierce clean through his head and carry him to a thick tree several metres away where the blade sank into the wood until it stopped, partially crushing the dragons head between the tree and the guard.

Hearing the sound of wings, I looked to see the red flapping away in abject terror. Raising my hand, my sword responded to my call as it let the purple fall to the ground, blood streaming from its flight until it snugly fit into my hand as I threw it into an arc.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" I yelled, a spiralling wave of red-edged black flames racing through the sky to consume the red's right leg and left arm, as well as both wings at different points, sending him screaming from the sky to slam solidly into the ground. I walked over to him, the fire my Cero caused, spreading to the forest around us, at my back giving me a demonic look. Reaching where he was pitifully trying to crawl away, I kicked him onto his back before reversing the grip on my blade and holding it above his throat, stepping onto his chest to press him into the ground.

Ignoring his begging pleas, I rose the blade higher and higher, until I surged it down into his thro-

Don't do it, ********!

In an instant, my vision changed to a shaky, static-y view of a white ground, some kind of creature below me, as the dragon was, and a white void was holding my arm, faint outlines showing fingers.

If you do this, you'll ***** be one of ****, the void said, It's enough!

Jerking my head in shock at my vision, I looked down to see that my sword pierced the ground. The dragon's eyes opened shakily, glancing between my blade and me in terror and utter confusion. Pulling my sword out of the ground, I turned and continued walking the way I was heading, leaving the forest to burn.

As I lengthened my walk into a stride, I absent-mindedly noted that I was much calmer than when I'd landed in the forest.  


==========================


Garble couldn't believe it. How could a day of egg smashing have turned into this.... monster turning up and killing them all so easily before letting him live?

Grunting, he looked down his wounds before spraying fire on his leg and arm, cauterising the wound shut. Flipping himself over, he angled his serpentine head back as much as possible before repeating the process to his wings. Looking back ahead, he swallowed everything he had as he left his friends' bodies, dragging himself one claw at a time to the place he hated most. And in doing so, hating that monster with everything in him for not only killing his friends and disabling him, but forcing him to do something he loathed the idea of doing.

He, Garble, a proud and mighty dragon, was going to Ponyville, home of the weak, prissy ponies and Spike... for help.
> Celestia is involved; Decisions are made.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two days later...

Twilight felt her eyelids flutter as her brain slowly woke up, pain making itself known in vague, dull aches as well as a dryness in her mouth and throat. Dragging one eyelid slowly open, she winced as the hospital light blinded her once again. Squeezing it shut momentarily, she opened it again before blinking to allow her vision to adjust. As she did, her hearing seemed to synch in with her still-drowsy brain, assaulting her with beeps, hoofsteps, breathing and various volumes of chatter. After opening her other eye and adjusting it, she blinked owlishly before trying to push herself up, relenting easily and wincing when a soft force pushed on her tender ribs.

"Easy, my faithful student," a familiar voice soothed, "You must rest." Blinking a little harder to rid herself of stars, Twilight angled her head to her blurry mentor.

"Prin...cess... Cel...es...tia?" Twilight rasped, the cool, sterilized air wreaking havoc on her desert-like throat, before a glass of water held aloft by a golden glow guided itself to her side, the straw poking towards her mouth.

"Take a few sips, Twilight. Then, we shall talk," Celestia said in a gentle tone, much softer than the motherly tone she usually spoke, pleased as the bedridden, bandaged unicorn did as she asked. When the glass was nearly half empty, Celestia pulled it away and set it on the bedside stand before setting a neutrally stern, yet tender gaze upon Twilight.

"Now, Twilight. I wish to hear everything you've seen of the one that did all of this. Please, leave nothing out," she said, the statement from Luna and, through her sister, the statements of the Elements of Harmony, Shining Armour, Doctor Beating Heart and Lieutenant Steady Shield fresh and swirling in her mind. Twilight swallowed a few times, as the IV, as yet unnoticed, continued to drip the painkiller into her bloodstream to remove the searing agony that her half-burnt coat and skin, to say nothing of her internals, sent to her brain. By her mane, Celestia could've sworn she'd spotted a few cracked ribs through the raw flesh when the doctor had pulled the bandages away, the non-sticky spell interwoven into the cloth preventing it from possibly doing more harm, to change them.

With a shuddering breath, Twilight began her story of the creature. In her drug-addled mind, she never took note of what she said. Nor the slight guilt over her teachers face, nor the subtle glow of her horn as the truth spell did its job. From the first encounter in the forest; to fighting and killing the Ursa Major (based on Twilight's description, Celestia guessed that it was an adolescent); to it leaving, only for Pinkie to follow; to searching with Princess Luna, which led to the fight and the trip to Ponyville Hospital, along with the events leading to the Hospital having two holes blown out of it.

After her pupil's story was done, Celestia cast a spell to lull Twilight back to sleep before leaving to meet with her sister. On the way, she passed the other rooms holding the victims of the creatures attack. Though the ponies that were in the path of the blast suffered blunt force trauma from the concussive wave as well as the debris, the ones truly affected were those in the room. As she made her way to her destination, she snuck glances in to ensure that they were doing well, despite having made that her first priority. What she saw burdened her heart with grief, just as the first time she bore witness.

Rainbow Dash; Young Fliers winner, athlete and future Wonderbolt. Laying on her side with little more than a stump of her left wing remaining and both hind legs being pieced back together with magic. She was demanding to see what was behind the sheet that shielded her gaze from her new disability. As Celestia continued, she heard a shrieking howl of agony and despair.

Applejack; hard-working, dedicated and farmer. With a severe amount of damage to her forelegs that could mean never bucking apples again. She lay almost comatose, clouded eyes hidden and withdrawn under her mane as her family tried to console her.

Rarity; polite, well-meaning and an excellent eye for fashion. Her mane and tail burnt away, and her right side bore intensive scarring from debris kicked up from the explosion. She was sobbing quietly as she hugged her sister, her mother and father standing close for support.

Fluttershy; meek, compassionate and lover of all creatures, great and small. Never able to see again from her left eye, with barely a fifty percent of seeing at all. She was still asleep, some of her smaller animals, including her pet rabbit Angel and Celestia's own Philomena, standing vigil on her bed.

Pinkie Pie; giggling, random and the best party-thrower she's ever seen. With an extensive and intricate device wiring her jaw shut to heal, along with her ribs. Despite the discomfort she must have felt, she continued playing with a pair of foals that the Cakes brought with them.

Beating Heart and Steady Shield took varying hits similar to the aforementioned Elements, but Shining Armour took the full brunt, as he had been the closest to the explosion, as well as protecting Twilight at the last moment. His entire left foreleg was gone at the knee, massive scarring was all over his chest and, worst of all for a unicorn, a crack ran the length of his horn, small chips already having fallen away. Cadance sat next to his bed, stroking his remaining forehoof as her lip quivered while they talked quietly.

Screwing her eyes shut, Celestia paused momentarily to take a deep, calming breath before blinking away tears. Once she was as calm as she could be, she entered Luna's room. Her sister looked up from where she sat, her injuries almost entirely recovered as the door was closed and a soundproofing spell cast.

"Well, sister? Did thou find what thou were looking for?" Luna asked, rising up with a slight wince.

"I did, Luna." Celestia's tone surprised and confused Luna momentarily; why was it so full of disappointment?

"Sister? Whatever is the matter?"

"Twilight told me the whole story, Luna," Celestia said, fixing a steady gaze at her younger sister, willing herself to stay calm, "and while I'm unhappy that she broke her word, something I never imagined she'd do, I can understand that. What I cannot understand," and here, her voice coloured with slight anger and sorrow, "is why you attacked that creature for no reason?"

"N-No reason?!" repeated a shell-shocked Luna, spluttering like a fish before declaring, "It refused to tell Us of it's intentions, it refused to leave when We asked it to, and it raised its voice at Us! It was clearly as hostile as Twilight described it!" Luna continued on her rambling, Celestia patiently waiting for her to finish.

Once her sister pantingly paused for breath, Celestia spoke, "And did it not occur that, perhaps, it was telling the truth, dear sister? And that it yelled because it was frustrated?" Seeing Luna prepare to launch another speech, she cut it off, "Much as you, yourself, have done since your return?"

Her mouth still open to retort, Luna's mind whirled as it grabbed at thoughts, reasons, arguments, excuses; anything to prove her sister wrong. Yet, Celestia's undeniable logic cut clean through each and every one with surgical precision. Seeing that Luna was still fighting logic, Celestia continued her attack.

"If it wanted to harm Twilight and her friends, why not do so when they met? Or even allow the Ursa to continue unopposed? If it wanted to harm you, why did it answer? Why not simply attack?" Seeing Luna waver, Celestia moved another piece closer, "If it was truly a monster as you, and the others call it, why did it leave Ponyville alone?"

Luna's mind grabbed at this last piece before working it over and delivering. "If it weren't a monster, then why destroy Ponyville Hospital? Why not simply jump out the window?"

Celestia's eyebrow rose. "This, from the filly who, a few thousand years ago, decided to try and level the maze to find the centre for the prize?" Luna's cheeks flushed at the memory.

Celestia struggled to keep her emotions under control as she moved her next piece in her strategy, "Luna, if you had spoken to the creature, rationally, what could have happened?"

Luna hesitated as she thought it over. We could have learned about its home, its culture. We could have sent it home, with a sinking feeling as truth slowly dawned in her eyes, to Celestia's sorrowful approval, We could have avoided this mess.

"Luna," Celestia gently intoned, eyes closed to hold back tears as she claimed checkmate, "All the ponies that are injured today are the result of your actions." With a choking sob, Luna threw herself into Celestia's hooves as she began to bawl into her mane while her sister patted her back and let her own tears slip almost silently.

"Tell me, Lulu," Celestia whispered, "Why?"

"Be-because w-we wh-where... af-af-afraid," Luna said, gulping air between sobs, "Th-the cr-creat-ure... th-there wa-was so-so much... p-power a-and i-it was s-so... c-cold and s-sc-scary, w-We f-felt th-that... it cou-could only be da-danger-rous..." As she spoke, Celestia stroked her mane soothingly. When she seemed to run out of things to say, Celestia pulled her head back after a few minutes of silence.

"While I am upset with you, Luna, I do not blame you. If you had known this would happen, would you have fought that creature?" Luna shook her head, unable to speak through the sniffles escaping her mouth, tears reddening her eyes and streaking down her face, "Then you are not at fault for the events that led to this. However," Celestia looked her nocturnal counterpart in the eyes, "We will be discussing punishment later." Luna nodded slightly in agreement.

A loud knocking at the door interrupted the moment. Motioning Luna to the bed, Celestia opened it, keeping the bed obscured with her body and disabling the spell, not bothering with the tears that dripped down her face still. The Royal Guard that stood at the door said nothing, but a sympathetic look let Celestia know the mare understood what had happened.

"Yes?" Celestia's voice came out a little rough.

"Your highness, some of our scouts have spotted a dragon approaching Ponyville. He seeks an audience with you."

Celestia nodded, stepping through and, sending one last look at her sister's quivering back, closed the door with a soft click.

"What can you tell me of the dragon?" Celestia asked as they walked towards the entrance of the Hospital, resolutely keeping her eyes from the doors of the Elements of Harmony. Rainbow Dash's room still yielded harsh sobs, however.

"He said he was attacked by the same monster that did all this," Flower Storm said, her wings subtly relieving themselves of an itch on the armour she wore, "And I'm inclined to agree." They remained silent until they reached the stairs, the elevator having been damaged in the creature's escape. As they made their way down, Celestia glanced at her guide before asking, "Do you have any siblings, Sergeant Storm?"

Flower's pace paused momentarily, before continuing on. "Yes, ma'am. Younger brother, just out of school," Her eyes misted over slightly, "Little Hard Head, heh, we'd always get into so much trouble... and he'd find his own brand of it sometimes too. We call him Headbutt or Ram, he's always charging head first, literally..." The two mares shared a brief chuckle before Celestia noticed something.

"You're not as formal as the other guards."

"No, ma'am," Flower responded with a slight smirk, "I figure that you get enough flank-kissing from the prissy nobles and some of the other guards, that I can be a bit more... relaxed." Celestia allowed a small smile to lift her mouth as she nodded with, "Thank you. It means more than you know that you act this way."

At Flower's blushing face at being thanked by the Princess of all ponies, Celestia remarked, "Just make sure to keep in line; I wouldn't like you to be thrown out for something so trivial."

Flower nodded, a small grin breaking the stoic Royal Guard face as she said, "Will do. And anyway, I'm no good at keeping up the whole 'stern Guard' look."


=========================


Garble growled as he slowly dragged himself towards the heart Ponyville, having become more or less used to the pain by now, surrounded by so-called Royal Guard. What he wasn't happy about was that here he was, a Dragon, dragging himself to a town of pansies. He should've been diving from the sky before crashing into the ground feet first to show all those weak ponies that Dragons are superior, before giving his demands.

Instead...

"Oh, dear. You truly did meet it."

Garble snapped out of his internal raging to glare up at Princess Celestia, his rage at not standing above her adding itself to the list of things he was pissed about. At the sight of his eyes, Celestia rose an eyebrow before stating, "For a dragon of your stature, being angry at me isn't going to help you."

Garble huffed before spitting to the side, a small pout on his mouth as he avoided Celestia's gaze. Thus, he didn't notice as her horn shone gold. He certainly noticed the gold light surrounding him as they teleported, and when the light faded, he found himself in a white room reeking of sterility and medicine.

"Where are we?" he asked, confused and embarrassed as Celestia's magic encased him before lifting the dragon onto the bed which creaked alarmingly until the Princess cast a spell.

"Ponyville Hospital. I felt that you would prefer not being seen by my, what was it?" Celestia said, tilting her head a little while looking off the side, "My 'weak, prissy, pansy" ponies?" As she finished, she looked at Garble with a slightly steely gaze.

Garble was a little taken aback by this, and so had no answer while Celestia spoke, "Yes, I know of your species' thoughts on my subjects, Dragon. While I am not happy, nor can I do anything, about it outside Equestria's borders, here you will treat my little ponies with the mutual respect that is deserved of all creatures. Otherwise, this as far as this meeting goes. It that agreeable?" Garble could only nod dumbly in agreement.

"Excellent," a smiling Celestia said, "Now then; I am Princess Celestia, Solar Monarch of Equestria. What might your name be?"

"G-", Garble began before coughing to clear his throat so that it didn't crack, "Garble."

"Garble?" Celestia's eyebrow rose at this, "As in Garble, that Spike wrote to me about the time of the Dragon Migration? The one who ordered him to smash a phoenix egg? That Garble?"

"Yep," was the response she received, along with an undercurrent of smugness. While she was interested to hear why a dragon would request an audience outside of diplomacy, nevermind what the situation was, this was something she felt she had to address.

"Now, while I'd like to know why a dragon was crawling to Ponyville after supposedly meeting with the creature, I feel I should make something clear," Celestia, speaking her mind, intoned before giving a slight glare that Garble returned.

"Phoenixes are somewhat rare enough in that world, that Equestria is effectively a safe haven for them. They are calm, they do not attack unless provoked and are rather friendly. Therefore," and here, Celestia's expression changed from slightly angry to calmly staring, "While you are within Equestria's borders," her eyes closed as she spoke, "You will not harm them, nor their eggs." Her mouth slid into an easy smile as she opened her eyes slightly to view Garble. "Is that understood?"

Garble was currently pale as he lay trembling under the Princess's gaze. How anyone could seem so terrifying while smiling contentedly was beyond him.


=========================


Retsu Unohana sneezed, a somewhat dainty sound, as she and Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu walked towards the First Division.

"Unohana-taicho, are you alright?" Isane asked worryingly as she handed her superior a handkerchief. Thanking her Lieutenant with a nod, Unohana took the offered cloth before quietly blowing her nose.

"I am, Isane. I suppose Shunsui and Jushiro are talking about me again."


=========================


After hearing Garble's story, and then, to her scepticism then disapproval, the whole story, of meeting with the creature, Celestia left him with the doctors to tend to his wounds. While Dragons had naturally regenerative abilities, the damage was still extensive.

As she walked, she reflected on what she'd learned of this creature; Not only was it something completely unknown, it was strong enough to bring down both an adolescent Ursa, her sister Luna and seven dragons, to say nothing of the magically strengthened chains she herself tested. It had also, inexplicably, used its 'magic' while having no less than six magic draining cuffs on its body with no sign of being even slightly stopped. She was even starting to doubt that it even could be described as magic, after she examined the traces back at ground zero where the creature had been chained.

Absentmindedly, she glanced around to find that she had ended up in the corridor housing the rooms the Elements of Harmony, Shining Armour, the three Royal Guards, Doctor Heart and her sister. Staring contemplatively at the wall at the end of the hallway, she made up her mind.

She needed to meet the creature. From there, she only dared hope what would happen.


=========================


As a Changeling zipped towards a gleaming onyx fortress, it was stopped by a set of four guards decked in spiked iron armour that intimidated even the Changelings that lived within the mountain. After delivering its message, the Changeling was granted access. After flying at full speed the past two days, it was relieved to have made it home. It gradually made its way through the forts courtyard to the throne room, towards the series of spikes that made up the throne where it collapsed just inside the formidable set of three doors. Rising to its feet, it stumbled the rest of the way.

Kneeling down in front of the throne, the Changeling, panting, buzzed in it's tongue, "My... Queen, I... have news."

Chrysalis, the Queen of the Changlelings, strode from behind her throne to take her seat, lounging in the softness of the black velvet that the Changelings had acquired during her... brief stay in Canterlot.

"What is it, my dear Changeling?" she asked, feigning interest while admiring her hoof. Which changed to full attention when she heard of what had happened in Ponyville. Thinking it over as the Changeling began to feel the fatigue catching up, she came to a decision. Looking at the Changeling, she said, "You may go now. And as a reward for your loyalty, I, Queen Chrysalis, hereby name thee..." Delving into the Hive Mind that connected all Changelings, she browsed quickly through who he was, before finishing her statement, "Whisper Wing."

The newly dubbed Whisper Wing stared in awe of his Queen, before falling to his knees and thanking her profusely before turning and walking out of the throne room to his quarters.

Chrysalis sat upon her throne, thinking hard. As ideas and plans began to click into place, she gave a smug smirk.

"Well, well, well. 'Twould seem that I have a soldier to recruit... and a ponydom to conquer."
> Stupidity and a Damage Report
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day...

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo slowly trotted out of Ponyville Hospital. The normally happy-go-lucky CMC were each sad for the ponies that were being treated inside after the explosion three days ago, and silent as they brooded whatever was on their respective minds.

Which was abruptly broken when Scootaloo stomped on the dirt road, a child's anger coursing through her as she said, "I say we find whatever the hay did this and make it apologise."

This, naturally, drew looks of exasperation from Apple Bloom and confusion from Sweetie Belle as the former replied, "Ya mean find the critter that wen' an' beat Princess Luna up and make it 'pologise? How ya'll gonna do that?"

This stumped Scootaloo momentarily, before she smartly (to herself, anyway) stated, "The Everfree, duh. That has monsters, so whatever hurt Rainbow Dash and the others is obviously there." Apple Bloom gave a facehoof at this, sliding it down her face to retort when she noticed Scootaloo already buzzing off on her scooter with a determined glare.

"C'mon, Sweetie, better make sure she don't git herse'f eat'n," Apple Bloom sighed, trotting lightly before looking back to see Sweetie Belle looking nervously between the distancing figure of their friend and the Hospital. "Sweetie Belle?"

"Well," Sweetie started, fidgeting slightly, "Rarity and Mum and Dad are in the Hospital, along with everypony else, so shouldn't we, you know, try and stay out of trouble?" Apple Bloom gave thought for a moment, before agreeing with a nod.

"Well, then let's git Scoot so we can tell 'er that." Sweetie Belle nodded to that plan before the two raced off after the orange speck that'd just crested the last hill before the Everfree boundaries.


=========================


"So," Applejack hesitatingly started, "Yer sayin' these brace doohickeys'll help me buck apples?"

The doctor sighed before repeating himself, "No, Miss Applejack, these braces will help you walk by taking..." he took a quick glance at the report in front of him to reaffirm his guess before continuing, "roughly 80% of your weight off your hooves so that they don't hurt as much, and heal as fast as possible. Which won't happen if you strain your legs."

The braces in question were surprisingly simple despite the intricate look about them, not to mention fairly sturdy. They enclosed Applejacks hooves at four points, extending down slightly to touch the ground instead of her hooves, and ran up her legs to her shoulders. A series of straps and rings ran up entirety of it. With the bandages that wrapped around them, along with most of her body from lacerations due to debris as well as slamming through a wall, it almost gave her the appearance of having a Zebra's legs if not for the alternating black cloth and silver metal of the braces.

The doctor cut in before Applejack managed to open her mouth, "And yes, Miss Applejack, bucking apples counts as straining them. Too much strain and your legs healing will be set back even longer than it is now." Granny Smith, who'd blatantly refused to leave, to Applejack's mixed feelings of gratitude, annoyance and nervousness, spoke up.

"Whatcha mean, 'longer than it is'? Jist how long?"

He took a deep breath, before speaking Applejack's sentence calmly, "At least... six months." At these words, the room went quiet. Taking this as a cue, the doctor levitated a file beside him and withdrawing several sheets of black plastic. "Now, these," he began as he cast an illumination spell behind the sheets that showed a pair of bones with some mild cracking, with plenty of healed 'scars', "Are your hind legs about five weeks after attempting to buck a rock set in the ground some months ago." Applejack blushed in embarrassment to that, thinking, 'Stupid RD an' her drunk'n dares...'

Levitating more sheets out of a separate folder, the doctor performed the illumination spell again.

"And these... are your legs now." Granny Smith's inhale was audible to the doctor as she took in the shattered mess that was her granddaughters forelegs. How they were even in one piece...

"Any unnecessary stress will cause the fractures to completely shatter your legs and delay the healing process to as far as two years," here, the doctor's eyes looked at Applejack with a sympathetic plea in them; he had heard, of course, about the time Big Mac hurt himself and Applejack took over his share. "Please. For the sake of your legs, take it easy. Before you know it, six months are gone and your back to bucking apples."

Applejack's mane hid her eyes as she nodded, a tell-tale glimmer on her cheeks informing the doctor to say, "I'll give you time to get used to this," before leaving the room.

'I don't get paid enough for this,' Doctor Calm Report lamented internally as he sighed, before making his way to the next mare on his rounds; one Fluttershy. Crossing the distance between doors was too quick for his liking, as he knocked softly on the door to the patient's room. After a brief second to allow him to take a calming breath, he strode in to see Fluttershy sitting up; a broken wing set in a splint and a bandage wrapping around her head covering her eyes, with a few more around her barrel to protect the stitches beneath from being infected.

'Turns out her shyness is her saving grace,' Calm Report noted to himself as he browsed her medical chart, 'although the animals are a bit unexpected,' he added as he threw a quick glance around to spot a rabbit, a few mice, some birds of varying species and Princess Celestia's phoenix. Whom, he just noticed with a raised eyebrow and a slight smile, were currently rehearsing by the sound of it. He stood there and allowed the birdsong to relax him as it filled the room. As it ended, he made a note to find her after she was healed in the hospital and see if she was open to a date.

"Miss Fluttershy?" This announcement of his presence sent her flinching and trying to make herself as small as possible under the covers. Though this sight warmed his heart by the sheer cuteness of it, he was more preoccupied by the rabbit beside her rolling its eyes before hopping forward and dragging the covers off her head. The now red-cheeked mare turned her head left and right as though vainly attempting to find something to hide behind.

"Please, take it easy, Miss," Calm said, closing the distance between the himself and the bed, "I'm here to see how you're doing. Is that okay?" At the pegasus' hesitant nod, he cast a few spells to check that her wing was mending properly and the wounds on her sides were healing right. Once all was done, he looked at her bandaged face.

"I'd like to see if your eye...s," he said, catching himself at the end - she didn't need to know that she was permanently half-blind yet, "are able to see, if that's alright?" At her mumbled assent, he began slowly unwinding the bandage, a hazel aura wrapped around it, while keeping the pads in place while saying, "Please keep your eyes closed, they won't be used to the light just yet. When I say to, cover your eyes with your hoof."

As he neared the end of the bandage's length, he told her to hold her hoof up which was done. Removing the pads gently, he turned his attention to the curtains and light switch at the door, throwing the room into darkness that was illuminated by his horn. Taking a simple candle out of a cabinet, he lit it and placed it to the far side of the room which chased the darkness into shadows. Taking another calming breath, he turned back to Fluttershy.

"Now, open your eyes and lower your hoof, slowly."

~

Fluttershy gingerly lowered her hood, her eyelids flickering open. When they did, she felt panic when all she saw was black.

And then, she noticed a dim orange glow to her left. Blinking seemed to bring more and more focus to the world around her, until she could clearly see the light-hazel coat and ponytail styled mane of sea-green of the unicorn doctor at her bed, wheat coloured eyes apprehensive until he sighed.

~

Calm Report couldn't help but give a sigh of relief when he saw the teal eye that gazed at his own, iris and pupil reacting to the light the candle emitted. He quickly sobered when he remembered her other eye, a horrific flame-shaped scar continuing the pattern that crossed half her face. Her mane had been reduced to almost coltish, and her coat had suffered some extremely light burns.

Steeling himself, he gave a slight smile before beginning his job anew, "Well, it is certainly a blessing that you're able to see, miss," he allowed his smile to drop into a mild frown, "but unfortunately... your left eye was too damaged to be saved. I'm sorry we couldn't do more, but..."

"T-to be honest..." The mumbled stutter got his attention as she continued, a little louder than she started with, "I'm glad that I can see. Th-thank you so much..."

The gentle smile he got from her at the end would've required him to restart his heart if it'd been sudden. Coughing into his hoof and grateful for the darkness that hid his blush, he excused himself in order to get more candles to bring her sight up to normal and to continue his rounds before exiting the room calmly.

Only to lean against the wall to prevent collapsing outright onto the floor. 'Being that cute should be made illegal,' he dazedly thought, 'provided that only she be that cute.' Straightening himself, he flagged down a nurse and asked that Fluttershy's room be gradually brightened every half an hour. Shaking his head to clear it of daydreams of seeing that smile again, preferably with a garden background and a chequered cloth beneath them, he made his way to Shining Armour's room. On the way, he asked a nurse to bring up the equipment needed.

Giving a solid knock before entering, he saw Princess Cadence of the Crystal Empire sitting next to her husband, with, surprisingly, Twilight in the room. All three seemed in a serious discussion as they hadn't noticed. Grumbling a little to himself, he opened the door again before directing a pair of nurses inside.

Clearing his throat loudly, all three of the rooms occupants looked up to see Calm giving them a stern look before asking the nurses to return Twilight to her room. As they left, the nurse he'd tasked with grabbing the equipment came back before disappearing to do another duty. Taking a moment to wonder where they'd be without such hard-working staff, and not liking the scenario his mind conjured, Calm turned back to the couple with visible irritation.

"While I'm sure what you were talking about was urgent," he sarcastically started, "I'm afraid that, though you're royalty, while you are patients in a hospital, what I, a doctor, says is what you, the patient, does. And I expressly remember telling Miss Sparkle that she is not to leave her bed. And, by law, no one, not even the Princesses themselves, can counteract that," he raised an eyebrow at the now sheepish, and slightly offended, couple, "understood?"

With a nod from the two, he visibly brightened as he said, "Very good. Now then, Prince Shining, shall we get the measurements for your replacement leg?"


=========================


"Well, this is great," Sweetie muttered as she brought up the rear of the three as they clambered around the Everfree. Naturally, they'd gotten lost.

"Get out here, you weird monster!"

And worries of Manticores, Timberwolves or Cockatrices where growing larger with every yell Scootaloo gave in order to find the creature. Sweetie's eyes dejectedly rose from the back and looked around nervously before spotting something to the left, directing the other, now bickering, two to what she found. "Hey girls, what's that?"

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo put their argument on hold in favour of seeing what it was that Sweetie had found, which was a clearing through the trees. Trotting over somewhat excitedly, they emerged from the trees into what could only be described as a battle zone. Craters pocked the ground, splinters lay around trees both fallen and cracked, a weird substance was stuck to the grass and a weirder smell was in the air. While the Crusaders stared around in wonderment, they slowly began wandering around.

Applebloom found what appeared to be a fire pit, judging from the charcoal inside. Sweetie stared at a tree, seeing a vague outline of a large pony, which set her mind into overdrive. Scootaloo trotted over to a particularly large patch of the weird substance, which was where the smell was strongest. She tilted her head at the sight of it; it was dried, that much she could tell, but it had a slightly jelly-like look too it. As focused as she was on the stuff, she didn't fail to notice the shifting behind the trees. Looking up and squinting, she took a step forward only to feel something like mud.

Whatever she was looking at left her mind as she looked to see a reddish smear on her orange hoof.

"That is on what carnivores have long fed,
And what Princess Luna bled."

The sudden voice, no matter how familiar, sent all three jumping with a yelp before recognising Zecora. Who had a stern expression on her face, though offset by a weary smile. As what she said registered in Scootaloo's mind, she began furiously trying to get the blood off her hoof.

"Now, let's get you fillies three,
Out of the Everfree.

Your sisters are already very sore,
They need not your mischief weighing them more."

Looking at each other, the Crusaders began to speak. Only for Zecora's eyebrow to raise in a clear message that told them she wasn't accepting anything but a yes. So, the four began the route back to Ponyville.

As such, none noticed the shadowed figure that moved through the trees. It continued on its path until it found what it had searched for. Upon spotting its sought desire, it laughed to itself.

Before making its way into the Castle of the Pony Sisters.
> A Second Report, Part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Calm Report sighed as he entered the staff lounge, ready to clock out for the night. Trotting wearily over to his locker, he began to put away the various things that marked his position.

"Good evening, Report," a mockingly serious voice sounded from the doorway.

"To you as well, Precise," Calm chuckled, turning his head to glance at his colleague, as well as tonight's replacement. With a jovial grin, an olive green unicorn trotted over to a locker nearby to Calm. With unnecessary flourish, Precise Incision's horn lit up with a light tan aura to remove the red robe he wore and replace it with his own doctors coat that he'd had modified for plenty of pockets, into which various things were floated.

"So, who do I have the pleasure of helping tonight, eh?" Precise asked as he settled a stethoscope around his neck.

"Hmm... Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Rarity," Calm replied after a moments thought, "I asked Casual Burn to look after the other patients."

"Poor souls," Precise said with a wince.

"Yeah, it musta been terrifying seeing that monster..."

"I meant the ones that Burn'll be looking after."

Calm gave Precise a deadpan glare that was shortly ruined by a chuckle at the comment and at Precise himself.

"Well honey, I'm off to work," Precise said in a slightly nasally voice as he waddled away comically, the flippers on his hooves slapping the floor with each step, his raven hair pressed under a cowcolt hat and a pair of Grouchy Mark glasses over his somewhat piercing tan eyes.

Calm shook his head as he wondered, as well as most everyone in that hospital did, just how that pony became a doctor with a Martini glass cutie mark.


=================================


Rock. Dirt. Grass. Rock. Shrub. Tree.

God, I was getting sick of walking, and running. Though I did find out I was fairly fast without Sonido, it still did nothing to alleviate the cycle I'd found myself in.

'Screw this,' I sourly thought before I launched myself into the sky. Standing there, I looked around; Arid plains to the west, mountains north-west to north, greenery to the south where I'd just left, thick forest to the east. Looking around to ensure I hadn't missed anything, I closed my eyes and spun myself in a short circle. When I stopped, I kept my eyes closed and Sonido'd three times before dropping. Or, at least, that was the plan

I quickly got an idea of where I was when I slammed face-first into a tree on the second Sonido. Trying to move my head revealed my horns had somehow gotten stuck.

'Well? What's the problem?' Instinct asked. I charged energy for a Cero in reply, the tree bulging before exploding at the build up. The next few dozen trees behind it were consumed by the laser as I fell to the ground, splinters raining around me.


=================================


"Well, Miss Sparkle, I'd say you're doing just fine," spoke a grinning Precise as he re-bandaged his patient's side, "Though I gotta say, walking around isn't quite a smart choice."

"I, well, I needed to talk with my brother," Twilight said, fidgeting with the sheets as she endured the agony of full third degree burns that stretched from her left shoulder to just barely touching her flank and wrapped almost fully under her barrel. She'd paled and refused to look at the fact that her coat, skin, fat and muscle had been cauterised so thoroughly that her ribs were showing. Thank the Princess for modern medical spells, Twilight thought, wincing as a bandage pressed a little tightly on one of five cracked ribs. With said magic, her flesh should return a little faster while scarring a little less.

"Right then," Precise stated as he finished up, slyly pulling an extra length of ordinary cloth out of a pocket and quickly tying a fancy bow over where the bandage had been fastened, "All wrapped up. Now, for that spell..."

With that, he lit up his horn and began to cast the spell. And immediately cancelled it with a yelp of surprise.

"What is-" Twilight began, cutting herself off as she spun her head to look.

Her bandaged (and bow-tied, though she didn't notice it at first) wound was subtly glowing a blackish red, wisps of it flowing through the bandage.

"Seems that thing left a bit of a present for you," Precise cracked, eyeing the glow with a practised eye. Lighting his horn up once more, the glow in Twilight began flowing out like smoke to be guided into a nearby jar that previously held tongue depressors. Sealing the jar, he turned back to Twilight and cast the spell, noting with a smirk the look of curiosity the mare was giving the jar and himself.

"Not my first time drawing mana residue outta bodies, Miss," he said with a peculiar twist to his smirk. Finishing the spell, he picked up the jar and, flagging a nurse down, hoofed it to her with instructions that he gave with a flirting edge. With a knowing smile and eye-roll, the nurse was off. Collecting his things and quickly stacking the tongue depressors into a cabin-like structure, he bid Twilight a good day with reminders to not move.

Hope the colts down in Research can determine anything, he thought as he made his way towards Rainbow Dash's room, 'Cos I'd rather not have to mess with an unknown magic. Magic poisoning wasn't a first to Precise - in fact, such a thing had been used multiple times, even in the modern age. Murders and assassinations were difficult to solve when a unicorn could poison, kill and remove evidence from the corpse, after all.

Knocking on the door, he entered and rose a questioning eyebrow when he noticed a nurse sitting near the bed.

And Rainbow Dash strapped to the bed from from her ribs down, hind legs set in traction, her upper body twisted a little uncomfortably to not put pressure on her missing wing. What was more, her... were they ankles or wrists? He had been to medical school and still couldn't tell - wore what looked to be bracers locked with a key, and left her hooves free to grasp.

A third thing he noticed was that anything remotely sharp was kept out of the distraught Pegasi's reach.

A sobered sigh announced his presence as he quickly fit the pieces into a disturbing picture. Trotting over to the immobile, glassy-eyed Pegasus, he took a seat in the chair next to the bed and said simply,

"Mind telling me why you want to waste the efforts we made to save you?" His gaze was set on the wall; Some things, moreso than others, cut deeper through his professionalism.

His words, however, triggered something that he wasn't expecting. Not unprepared for, but unexpected nonetheless.

"'WASTE THE EFFORTS'?! WHY WOULD YOU WASTE THE EFFORTS ON ME?!" Rainbow Dash screamed at him in a raw voice, snapped out of her thoughts. Unnoticed blood flecked from her lips, evidence of a torn larynx, as she continued a little softer at the pain of her throat while the nurse settled back into her seat, courtesy of Precise, "I'm nothing now! Everything I have, everything I've worked for, GONE! And you ask me why I should live when I have nothing to live for?! HOW am I gonna be a Wonderbolt?! HOW can I keep the calling myself the fastest pegasus if I can't even FLY?!"

His eye twitched, as his eyes became hidden in shadows. Regardless, she continued, "HOW would you know how it feels?! I don't see YOU hornless here! SO SHUT UP, and don't pretend to know the HAY I'm going through! DO you know how much it's hurting right now?! That I can never ever fly again on my own?! I'm WORTHLESS!"

"Do you know how it feels to have to shovel a ponies intestines back in?"

Rainbow Dash, drawing in a breath to continue her rant, fell silent as she took note of the question, and her doctor. His eyes came back into light, giving her a glimpse of the darkness that hid behind them. Taking advantage of her silence, he continued in a low voice as the nurse looked away with a distant look in her eyes.

"Did you hear about the border dispute about twenty-odd years ago? The one that's been called a Royal Guard action?" A hesitant nod was his answer. "That is what the politicians and nobles call it. For myself, and many others... That was a war with Gryphons," His eyes took on a shadowed, haunted look. And by Celestia, even Rainbow Dash in her depressed rage saw that this pony in front of her had seen true Tartarus on Equestria as he went on, "I spent the seven years of that war, when I was barely older than you, being a surgeon. I've seen more blood spilt than rain you've kicked out of clouds. I've used more thread, handled more needles and sewn more parts together than all of Canterlot's dressmakers. I've taken enough shrapnel, both metal, stone and bone, to make a life-scale model of Canterlot Castle.

"I've operated on ponies and gryphons that'd lost horns, hooves, ears, eyes, legs, wings and even lives. I've set bones, saved lives and even once," here he dryly chuckled, "delivered a foal of a nearby village.

In fact, I once saved a pegasus, much like yourself, from suicide. Difference? She lost both wings to a vicious bastard of a gryphon."

Precise allowed himself a brief respite as he looked into Rainbow's eyes, before he continued, "For three weeks while that mare recovered from blood loss, I had to sit by her bed when I was off duty reminding her of all the things she can still do. When she was sent back home, I made her promise she wouldn't try something stupid again. When the war ended, I went home to Manehatten. Some weeks later, she turned up on my doorstep. Some time after that, we moved here." His tone during that part was clipped, like he was skipping a good deal of the story to reach a point.

Rainbow found what that point was.

"When we did, I found out that there was a spell, created somewhat recently, that could help regrow a Pegasi's missing wing or wings. So, we followed up on that but found that, with her wounds closed so long, she wasn't eligible for the procedure."

Rainbow dwelt on that as Precise fell silent, calmly sipping water from a nearby cup. The nurse, sensing something change in the patient, hoofed him the key before quietly walking out the door.

"So," began Rainbow, voice rusty from being raw, "You mean..."

"You can get your wing back?" finished Precise, "Yes. It will take some time for it to be fully grown, not to mention as strong as it was, but-" He was cut off as Rainbow threw herself awkwardly into a hug, sobbing in relief. He let a gentle smile slip onto his face as he pushed his past away, "if you get onto the treatment soon, it may take less time than you think. At most, maybe five years." With that, he gently pushed Rainbow back into bed, unlocking the bracers around her hooves to reveal three jagged wounds sewn shut on her left. With a tap of his horn, the wounds sealed together until all that was left was an angry red scar, almost like a burn, while the thread neatly untied and dropped into a bin.

Turning to leave, he was stopped by a throat being cleared. Followed by coughing.

"Hey, Doc? Could you, y'know..." Rainbow stuttered a little. Precise threw an understanding grin back to her, as he said, "Don't worry. Doctor-Patient confidentiality, after all." He left the room, confidant that she wouldn't try anything. As he shut the door, the nurse from before approached him. Wordlessly, he wrapped her in a gentle hug before work forced him to continue.

Night Wisp sighed, her nurse's uniform twitching as the long-healed stubs of her wings remembered flight.
> Finalised Report (Part 2)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Precise hummed a cheerful tune as he trotted into Pinkie Pie's room, raising an eyebrow in amusement at the various party objects hanging from the walls, ceiling and equipment. A pleased humming drew his attention to the furiously waving patient, who lay in a barrel cast to keep her from jumping around and damaging her broken ribs even more. Despite the wires, metal frame and rubber bands that kept her broken jaw forced closed, her infectious grin was ever-present.

"Well, Miss Pie-" A bout of nonsensical humming, accompanied by a hoof waving in an offhand fashion, effectively told him what she was telling him, "-Pinkie it is. I have a... most difficult question to ask." His face became severely grave.

Her baby blue eyes widened a little in what seemed to be surprise, before narrowing and becoming steely. With a questioning hum, she gestured him to continue.

His gaze stayed as such as he asked, while his horn lit up...

And drew a deck of cards from a pocket on his coat, "Go Fish or Snap?" A playful smirk appeared on his face as Pinkie held her barrel in laughter before tapping a hoof once on the nearby table, dragging it over as Precise levitated a chair over and shuffled the deck.

Flicking seven cards over to his new playmate, Precise casually asked his questions as the game commenced, with Pinkie starting the round off by tapping five times.

"Fish. Any... threes? So, how've you been feeling?" This was met with a (to most) disturbingly fluid hoof and foreleg waving up and down, followed by a shrug and a tilt of the head. Two knocks.

"Ah, shoot..." He handed over his pair of twos, "Any particular pains?"

Four knocks. "Fish. Jacks?" A single card was handed over, Pinkie looking thoughtful, before a hoof brushed lightly against her sides and rubbed a few areas. In a little bit of embarrassment, she also rubbed her jaw.

"Hmm... Aces?" A slightly accusatory frown appeared on her face as she hoofed over two cards. "Pinkie, your Sense would most likely be labelled cheating. Fours?" Another card for him. "Sixes?" A wave of the hoof and he drew a card. "You've been trying to eat solids, haven't you?" This was met with an innocent look and slightly pursed lips, almost like she's trying to whistle.

"You know you're meant to stick to liquid based foods." Thirteen knocks. A card. "As for your ribs, I'd say those are where most of the cracks are."

The game continued much in this way, Pinkie slowly gaining books on the doctor, while Precise kept on asking questions regarding her health. Just as the game was about to finish, the door slammed open and a panting, aggravated unicorn stormed in. Mustard yellow eyes glared daggers at the other doctor.

"PRECISE!"

The pony in question shot a quick wink at Pinkie before turning his head to view the other and greeting him with, "Yes, honey-buns?"

A flush of anger darkened the doctors red oak coat as a tic appeared on his temple.

"For starters, what have I told you about calling your superior that?!"

Precise blinked in brilliantly faked confusion, tilting his head to the side as he thought for a moment. With a stamp of his hoof*, he answered, "Only on weekends!"

"Ye-NO!"

"Shoot."

"Now, Precise, listen to me and do your job, or so help me I will speak to the Canterlot Board of Hospitals about you!"

"Hey, gossiping's not nice, ya know!" Burn's eyes shot to Pinkie, who smiled and waved from the bed, the device still wired to her jaw.

"Welp," Precise sighed, using his magic to pick up the cards, "I'll see ya next time, Pinkie. And, for the love of the Moon, stick to what we give you."

Pausing at the door next to a still irate, and now confused, Burn, he turned back to Pinkie, "Unless, of course, you find out how to liquidise cupcakes and whatnot. In that event, make sure to save some for the rest of the patients and staff." Pinkie nodded with a cross over the heart, flapping motions and laying a hoof over her eye.

Precise grinned and left with a, "Good. I love the strawberry with lemon glaze."

After a moment, Burn whipped his head around to continue yelling at the now-vacant spot where Precise was, only to seethe as Pinkie giggled while his new headache grew.


=================================


Instinct and I were in quiet, dumbfounded shock as I stood at the edge of a clearing.

'Just... I don't even...' Instinct muttered while I stared.

At the somewhat charred, holed corpse of a giant purple-blue bear. Which had a veritable cloud of flies, two packs of those wooden wolves, quite a few creatures that looked like lions with bat wings and scorpion tails and various signs of decomposition.

'Just how the hell did we get full circle?' was the unspoken question on both our minds.


=================================


Precise continued to chuckle to himself at Burn's expression. He'd learned a long time ago to never think on Pinkie's antics. Burn, on the other hoof, took things way too seriously.

He quickly schooled his thoughts as he knocked on the door to his next patient. And blinked in surprise when all he saw was a mass of blankets on the bed. As he stepped inside, however, the blankets twitched slightly.

"Miss Rarity, I must say that you never seemed to have grasped the objective of hide-and-seek," Precise chuckled, trotting forwards and drawing the sheets down to expose the practically mummified unicorn. Bandages wrapped from her head to her flank, continuing down her right legs partially.

With a scorning glance, Rarity replied, "Well, it doesn't help that these ghastly wounds sting whenever I move."

"So you simply pulled the blankets over your head?" Precise's grin grew slightly.

"Well, the world is better off without a hideous creature such as myself," Rarity sotly said, her expression shifting to one of quiet pain.

Precise sighed as he levitated the medical chart to him, noting everything on it in a practised glance, before saying, "As I'm sure you know, Miss, manes, tails and coats can grow back."

"Oh, I do know that, dearie," Rarity interjected, waving a hoof dismissively, "but it won't be the same for quite a long time yet. But that is beside the point - the scarring I'll gain from this will be simply atrocious - I couldn't dare show my face at a fashion show! I'd have to close my shop down or hire an assistant - nopony would want to interact with me."

Precise slowly slid his eyes to meet hers and, seeing the genuine anxiety over such a thing, stated bluntly, "Actually, Miss, the scarring you'll have from this will be minimal - barely lines, if anything, when you're fully healed. Your friends, on the other hoof?

Misses Fluttershy and Applejack have some high level scarring from their injuries. Miss Sparkle will have extreme scarring from the surgery alone. Miss Dash has lost a wing and Miss Pie has a broken jaw to contend with.

Suffice to say, the scarring you'll have is quite minimal to be honest." To prove his point, he unwrapped some of the bandages around her foreleg, revealing the crisscrossing gashes.

And, casting the illumination spell on it, gently pulled one apart.

"What are you doing?!" Rarity nearly shrieked, before noting something. While the wounds themselves where quite ghastly on her pristine white coat...

They weren't more than a few millimetres deep for the most part, the deepest a centimetre.

Flicking his eyes back up to hers, Precise finished, "So, I believe I don't need to tell you that you are quite lucky in regard to injuries, correct?" A slow nod was his reply as he continued, "In fact, there are only three wounds we've had to perform very minor surgery on to remove the debris - the majority was stuck just  below the skin."

Rarity looked contemplatively uncomfortable as he redressed the foreleg, a teasing glint in his eyes as he finished.

"Now, what have we learned?" he asked in a manner akin to a teacher asks their student, while casting a spell to help her wounds heal.

Shooting a smouldering glance at him, she embarrassedly muttered, "To not take things out of proportion."

"Good," he smiled as he finished. Turning to the door, he said, "Now, those should heal well enough to not need bandages in about three weeks. As for your mane and tail..." he fished something out of an inner pocket, "I recommend looking at some of these - I'd say you should be able to work something." Tossing the object to her, he calmly left while chuckling quietly.

Rarity's cheeks burned as she found herself looking at manecuts for stallions.


=================================


As Precise finished up his rounds for the night, a voice called his attention. Glancing at the source, he bowed flippantly as Princess Celestia trotted up to him.

"To what do I owe this pleasure, your highness?" he asked smoothly as he rose at Celestia's bid.

"I would like to ask if the Element Holders, as well as Shining Armour, would be able to be moved tomorrow."

Blinking in surprise, he gave the matter some thought before voicing his opinion, "Well, I wouldn't say tomorrow, but why would you want them moved, and where?"

"There is something I, and my sister, wish to talk to them about."

Humming in response, he continued thinking about the subject as they unconsciously kept walking towards the end of the hallway.

"The creature?"

A regal nod was seen from the corner of his eye. Breathing in and letting it out as a heavy sigh, he concluded his thoughts.

"I'd like for them to have one more day of rest. After that, I'll organise the move after the midday check-up."

Celestia looked pensive for a moment before she agreed with another nod, "I believe that will work just fine."


=================================


Two days later


=================================


Luna took a deep breath as she beheld the results of the creature's escape, surveying each pony's injuries with increasingly heavy sadness. The Elements of Harmony, as well as Shining Armour and Cadance, stared at her curiously.

"There is something... We wish to discuss with thee," she began, her eyes flicking between the ponies and the floor. Beside her, Celestia hugged her with a wing. "You see... the truth is-"

A series of explosions sounded outside the hospital, followed by screams and a familiar buzzing. A guard barged into the room.

"Princess! The Changelings are attacking!" Everypony stared in shock at the guard, before they all rose to their hooves (Fluttershy choosing to hide under the bed before being pulled out by Rarity) and made for the door, each mindful of their own injuries. Once they reached outside, they saw the chaos that was occurring.

"Just what the hay is going on?!" Applejack gasped as she brought up the rear, her braces offsetting her balance. At the sound of her voice, however, no less than two dozen Changelings noticed them and immediately moved to swarm. The horns of the three Princesses, surrounded by their respectively coloured auras, showed their preparation to protect them.

However, they were blindsided by the nine Changelings that slammed bodily into them from the sides, knocking them down and disrupting their focus. In shock of the Princesses being effortlessly held down, the rest were quickly held captive.

"Ah, ah, ah," tutted a familiar, two-toned voice that oozed smugness, "We can't have you ruining our invasion again, Princesses. And as for you six," Chrysalis came into view, smirking at the Elements of Harmony, "I would rather not have to injure you any more than you are, but I will not have you interfere." Her eyes roamed the group, lingering on Shining Armour to the detest of Cadance, before settling on a unicorn. Her smirk growing wider, she beckoned to a nearby, heavily built Changeling.

"Let's start with that mummy right there."


=================================


Meanwhile...


=================================

A Changeling buzzed around in anger, trying in vain to keep track of an annoying group of fillies. Whisper Wind noticed from a short distance as the Changeling's head kept snapping around, even as the group of fillies in question ran underneath Whisper.

<I'll grab the fillies,> Whisper hive-spoke to the Changeling, giving an impression of where he was and where they went, <You go help secure this place.>

<Éntoa guide you,> the Changeling replied, relief in his voice as he recognised the request. Scouts, after all, were much faster and agile than Soldiers.

Whisper immediately spun around and buzzed after the fillies, sending orders over the Hive connection. Two were shortly captured, one having been side-swiped by a Bomber and the other running into a pincer-move. The last continued to run, though her strength was clearly-

The filly stopped short with a gasp momentarily before sprinting with new energy towards... A glance, and a brief query over the Hive, told Whisper that the filly was heading for the hospital. Where a Guardian, one of Her Highnesses personal guard, reared back to drive his foreleg into a wrapped-up unicorn. Seeing the connection immediately, Whisper pushed his wings into overdrive to catch the filly.

Time slowed.

The filly let out a wordless cry. The unicorn looked over with fear. Whisper drew closer. The Guardian descended.

Thump-thump...

The Guardian's hole-riddled hoof sank closer to the unicorn. The filly screamed something, probably the name of the unicorn. Whisper was almost there, his shadow halfway covering the filly. The scream echoed through the world.

Thump-thump...

The filly's hoof scraped up a short burst of dust. The hoof was almost touching the bandage-coated unicorn. The surrounding ponies watched in horror. Whisper's shadow covered the filly. The dust almost entered his eye. He blinked.

Thu-bvzvzvzt-ump...

Whisper's eyes opened to see a skull-like face, an orange-mane falling around it's shoulders like it'd been thrown into the air, a pale-white body with black markings that held a hole in the chest, a shredded black robe, a black sword and manacles around it's body. The red filly just passed between the creature's legs.

Wait. Wasn't the filly white?

Whisper's eyes widened as he took in the sphere of red energy that swirled between the monsters horns. The same red as the magic that lanced out of the same hospital they stood near. The same red energy that was...

Right.

In.

Front.

Of.

Him.


=================================


Time resumed as an explosion consumed a small hill covered with trees a fair distance from Ponyville.

Even as a solitary hoof, smoking slightly at one edge, bounced off the ground.
> Battling a Hollow!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As one, every Changeling present in Ponyville paused momentarily before continuing their duties. Those that were nearest and in view of the Hospital, however, were frozen on the spot at the sight of the creature, even the focused Guardians.

Chrysalis, having yet to see her target, didn't notice as she paid attention to something strange within the Hive mind. As Queen, her connection was always at least half-open to keep the disorderly in line, to monitor captives and to give commands. It was also a way of keeping an eye on each of her subjects.

So why was it that a full-grown Changeling was missing? Even if the Hive-mind was closed from one end, everyling should be at least able to see the closed end much like a closed door in a hallway. However, where this... closure was, there was nothing. Almost like it hadn't been there at all. And as Queen, she knew where each and every one of the closures were.

Impossible, she thought to herself with a frown, the only way for a closure like that would be for a Changeling to die. But I would've felt such a thing.

"Sweetie Bell! Get away from that thing!"

Rarity's shout snapped Chrysalis out of her thoughts and caused her to glare at the Guardian who was meant to be pounding the unicorn into the dirt, only to see him staring slack-jawed away. Looking in the direction he was, she saw it.

Towering above all of them, save for Celestia, Luna and herself, and even then taller still, the creature's white skin stood against the greens, browns and various colours of the village. It's long, orange mane fell down it's back to the waist, where a white sash held up a black robe of some sort. Red fur adorned it's ankles, wrists and neck. A clawed hand gripped the handle of a long, slightly curved black blade with a short chain dangling from it. As it's head turned to look behind, at the tiny filly laying pathetically on the ground, she saw a horn extending from the forehead, reaching about a metre in front of it's skull-like face. A black line streaked down, the only break being the shadowed eye which held an almost glowing yellow.

"Oi. You okay, little one?"

As the little unicorn shakily nodded, Chrysalis mused on it's voice before realising something significant;

One, that there was a black shape laying not far from the creature.

Two, the Changeling Whisper Wind had never described what had exited the hospital.

As she thought the second, a chill came crawling down her back as she thought of the third...

The last update from Whisper Wind... was when he was capturing a group of three fillies.

But even that was undermined when she recognised that her newest soldier was standing right there, and she was thinking about something trivial!

Thinking quickly, she gathered her magic and let loose her mind-control spell. The creature turned around entirely, revealing a second horn symmetrical to the first, but made no move to dodge the blast that lanced across the ground between them. With a pulsing glow, the magic struck the creature's head, directly between it's eyes.

Chrysalis began cackling, before she turned to the three Princesses. Gesturing to them, she decided to make use of her first order, to the strongest soldier she'd ever captured;

"Now, my loyal subject, cut the wings and horns from these three who dare oppose my rule!"


=================================


'Did she...', Instinct muttered, even as I stared in slight confusion at the weird, equine-shaped bug.

'Did she seriously just...' As Instinct's 'voice' grew into a dark snarl, I noticed that something was strange with my vision - like someone had overlaid a ghostly flame over all the beings in view, each differing between them all. The one who was giving me orders, who called me her subject... her 'flame' was almost as strong as my former interrogator. Even as I marvelled at this, I could feel myself becoming angry.

'Did she seriously just give us an ORDER?!'

The surge of rage that overtook my already angered thoughts swept me away. Narrowing my eyes at the still-cackling bitch, the teeth of my mask opened.

And as I screamed, another flame, this a vivid red like my Cero, engulfed me from the inside out, stopping about a half-dozen feet in every direction. And the air itself became static-y, a strange whistle, sounding akin to rushing wind, resounding as every creature but myself stood and lay there, shaking.

Sonido'ing behind the startled bug, leaving behind the heat-less flame, I rose my sword to end her,.

"You are far too weak, to command me," Instinct and I snarled in unison as my blade fell, her head snapping around to face me, her eyes shrinking at her coming death.

A blur to my right caught my attention, as well as a screeching buzz as I turned my head to view another bug rushing me. Angling my blade, I twisted and cut clean through the insect-pony. As it hit the ground heavily next to the one it saved, a spray of blood spurted out as it split at an angle, the top of it's head with half an eye and most of it's left hind-quarter falling away.

I ignored it, and her now-quivering rescuee, for favour of the black cloud now closing in on me.

=================================


Unnoticed by all, the anti-magic cuff on the creature's left wrist cracked minutely.


=================================


<For the Queen!>

Chrysalis stared in horrified shock at the Changeling, it's last words resonating throughout the Hive-mind. Shock at the instant death of her subject, shock at the suddenness of the door vanishing.

<FOR THE QUEEN!>

The Hive-mind seemed to shudder from the echoing roar of all three and a half thousand Changelings as they abandoned their duties to attack the creature that dared to strike at their Queen.


=================================


<All Scouts, distract the monster! Soldiers, assume formation! Bombers, maximum altitude!> the Commander roared, as he himself dropped lower with the Soldier Changelings to take his position at the front. His orders became actions, as three large groups began splitting away from the black cloud. The smaller, nimble Scouts streamed past the larger and heavier Soldiers, while the armoured Bombers rose to as high as they could.

<Guardians, protect Her Highness at all costs!>


=================================


Chrysalis heard the orders being followed by confirmations. Her Guardians charged in to surround her, seven of the twenty-five that escorted her making a beeline for the monster. Focusing one more time, she let loose a spell designed to pierce solid rock in an attempt to aid them before closing the Hive-mind as much as she could to prevent losing herself in the madness.


=================================


As I stared at the black cloud that seemed to part three ways, I heard a mix of thundering and buzzing drawing closer behind me. Twisting around sharply, I barely caught the sight of a poisonous, vivid green lancing towards me, as well as seven of the heavily armoured insects charging at me.

Throwing my arm up, I caught the bolt square on my wrist, right where the manacle was. And just as the insects reached me, one reaching to strike me with a hole-ridden hoof...

The manacle, glowing green, white and red in cracks around the entire circumference, shattered.

The vivid red flame reappeared, surging out to stop a full seven feet around me. To my surprise and shock, as well as to all there, the hoof began to disintegrate like smoke as it neared me. The insects eyes were widened, even as I took advantage of its distraction and punched it to send it flying back, colliding with three of its fellows. Lashing out with a kick, a fifth spiralled away into a hill, while the sixth was cut down. The seventh, despite the odds being against it, still continued its charge at me. Flipping over it, I pointed two claws at the back of its head at Instinct's behest. A tiny red light, growing quickly to a few centimetres across, formed, and I discharged the tiny Cero which easily pierced the insect's head.


=================================


"No... It... It can't be..." Shining Armour mumbled in shock as he witnessed this monster easily killing Changelings without any difficulties, disregarding the fact that the Changelings that were holding them had flown off to join the main force.

"What is it?" Twilight asked, eyes widening as the creature loosed its magic to kill the Changeling, despite the five anti-magic cuffs in place still.

"Anti-magic cuffs are meant to drain and disperse a Unicorn's magic," Shining explained dazedly, as the creature landed easily while the Changeling hit the ground, "But there's a limit to how much can be done. The average Unicorn will go through a long sentence with one cuff, and then some, while stronger Unicorn's will go through maybe two, even three."

"But what happens when a cuff hits that limit, then?" Rainbow asked, slowly pushing herself up as the creature turned to face the swarm nearing it, individual Changelings becoming visible.

"The magic overwhelms the cuff, which then shatters. Which is why we keep a close eye on Unicorns that have them on. Normally, we'd have to switch a ring on a strong Unicorn about two years before they finish a thirty year sentence."

"Then," Applejack hesitantly asked as she rose her head, "What's the quickest a cuff's broke?" 

"Half a year," Celestia answered hollowly, drawing eyes to her as she explained, "I volunteered to test the device some time ago. Within half a year, the cuff broke." 

"Th-then.. w-what's the problem?" Fluttershy stammered as she lay curled and shaking.

Twilight, realising what her brother and mentor were getting at, whispered her thoughts. The swarm was almost upon them.

"It's only been five days."

As that answer gave birth to new thoughts, the creature vanished. And screams echoed from the middle as the forerunners spun around to engage the creature whose strength they couldn't begin to comprehend.


=================================


Kicking off one insects head, sending them ricocheting off its comrades, I swung my sword furiously in a blur of motion as a large group attempted to surround me. Even as blood sprayed and severed bodies fell away, I kicked off the air again and slashed a devastating line straight through the damn bugs with my sword and claws. A sound of whirring appeared as I spun around, unleashing another Cero, this one stronger than the ones before, the vivid red beam cleaving through the horde around me as explosions consumed them in the lasers wake. Aiming myself down, I angled my sword to stab straight through another, my strength causing several behind it to be blown out of the cloud. Grabbing one by the head as it attempted to attack while my sword was stuck in its comrade, I threw it to the side without looking.

Jerking my sword free of the corpse, throwing it into another black form, I continued to cut the rapidly dwindling numbers even further. 

=================================


Chrysalis shuddered as the two Guardians carrying her lay her down on the ground a short distance from the hospital, the rest keeping guard around alley they took shelter in. Despite the level that she'd closed the door, she could still feel the fear and pain as Changelings fell.

The sound of shattering brick and wood distracted her momentarily, fearful that the creature had come to kill her, before the agony of her drones swept through again.

A Guardian, sent to check the sound, reported a Changeling corpse.


=================================


<Oh Éntoa help -> <No! It'-> <Dear Crea-> <It's comin-> <HEL-> <My le-> <My wi->

Screams of agony, of helplessness, of terror flooded the Hive-mind. The Commander heard it all and put it out of his mind.

'Once we get the Soldiers and Bombers going, we'll make that thing pay for every Changeling,' he swore to himself. Opening his link, he yelled, <All Scouts! Fall->

The emptiness, only broken by wisps of pain or terror, interrupted him. Looking ahead, he saw the monster standing with its back to them. In mid-air.

On the ground under it lay Changelings, and every surface around it was sprayed with blood.

The sight enforced the terror the Commander held within his heart, but his pride and rage outclassed it.

<ALL CHANGELINGS! BRING THAT BASTARD DOWN!> he roared over the link, sending some of the Changelings around him wavering through the air over the sheer force, <AVENGE YOUR COMRADES! AVENGE THE FALLEN! FOR THE QUEEN!>

The Hive-mind rumbled, along with the air, as the Changelings took up to cheer both in the mind and the spoken world. The Bombers flexed their wings and drew their bodies in to be as fast as possible, while the Soldiers pushed themselves to bury their opponent.


=================================


Looking over my shoulder at the source of the vibrating air, I was surprised by the sheer cloud that now headed my way. Above me, the blue-turned-black patch of sky became green as the bugs shrouded themselves in emerald flames and fell like rain. I narrowed my eyes at them, wondering what I was going to do.

'Oi. Check out the bitch from earlier,' Instinct remarked, drawing my eyes to the aforementioned insect. She was just coming to her hooves now, trembling as her escorts helped her. A glance at a nearby corpse seemed to send her back to her knees, shuddering as a gargled moan of a dying bug from inside a... building across the street. There wasn't a way she could have heard that. Unless...

'You think she's connected to the rest of her soldiers?', I asked Instinct calmly, even as the swarm's noise became painful.

'One way to find out,' Instinct quipped, a grin heard in his voice, 'But I wanna test something myself.'

'What's that?' My curiosity was peaked, even as the insects were becoming individually distinct behind me.

'Use Getsuga. Seems you got stronger,' he said. Now that he mentioned it, the 'solid' feeling I had seemed less intense. Besides...

Be a quick way to deal with this problem behind me - I'd gotten fed up with cannon fodder.

"Getsuga," I intoned, raising my sword to point ahead of me, the blade horizontal as black flames surged from it. I spun around, swinging my sword wide.

"TENSHOU!"


=================================


Shining Armour's eyes couldn't have been wider, nor his pupils smaller, at what was being seen in front of him. He'd seen this monster cast spells through six anti-magic cuffs, break his way through half a building, overload a cuff and take down a whole swarm of Changelings without a scratch.

But this, this took the cake.

Upon hearing the roar, he'd expected the flames to consume a good portion of the Changeling army. What he saw was comparable to calling the Sun an ember. A veritable tidal wave of red edged, black flames exploded from the sword's arc, swallowing the entirety of the force about to collide with him. It defied all logic as it continued to grow, yet it didn't disappear as it did so. It grew, and grew, until the sky in front of him was naught but black.

And the roaring flames did nothing to mask the screeches of the dying. Another few voices sounded off to the side, but he took no notice as his sight was on the shadowy inferno in front of him.


=================================


Chrysalis spasmed lightly against the wall she'd collapsed against, her eyes rolled up into her head and her mouth wide in a soundless shriek. Saliva dribbled and splattered out as she sobbingly choked for air. Her ears resonated with shrill screeches and rumbling bass, her carapace burned until it melted and froze solid, her tongue tasted copper and iron, her vision was black and white. She felt all and nothing, as the sheer agony of two and a half thousand Changelings were instantly and simultaneously incinerated above her. She could handle small groups of Changelings being harmed or killed, but this? This overwhelmed both the Hive-mind and her own limits.

The Guardians next to her could do little, as they themselves succumbed to the pain and unknowingly added to their Queen's burden, along with every Changeling caught in the blaze as each radiated and received the pain of others and their own.

Within her mind, Chrysalis struggled to completely shut the door to the Hive, as the flood of pain threatened to break her. Managing, somehow, to close it, she collapsed into unconsciousness. Or would have, had a whisper not terrified her of succumbing to a nightmare she knew she would be subjected to for a very long time.

<For... the... Queeee..ne...>


> The Difference Between Them; True Instinct
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Holy SHIT!"

The unexpected swear caused Spitfire to recoil, almost creating a severe pile up as the rookies that flew behind her found themselves breaking suddenly to avoid slamming into her. Whipping her head to the perpetrator, she was astonished to see that the normally laid-back Soarin was stupefied nearby, along with a few other members of the Wonderbolts, staring raptly at something behind her.

Readying to give her Second-in-Command a harsh lecture on such language, Spitfire glanced in the direction that they were facing in order to remind them of being military and on duty, meaning that they shouldn't be ogling mares.

Only to crick her neck in a violent double-take at the sight of a good portion of the sky some distance away being covered in what looked to be a black, billowing shroud that almost emitted evil.

"What in the name of Celestia's holy flank is that?" she numbly asked.


=================================


As the creature calmly turned away from the inferno it caused, some few Changeling corpses dropping away only to crumble into ash upon hitting the ground, Luna lay there in terror as fear guided her thoughts. 'I... I... Impossible...' Memories of her talk with her sister ran through her mind. 'Could this creature... truly... not be evil?

No... no, it's far too powerful... It cannot be allowed to roam free.'

Not without measures.'


=================================


A Guardian, barely able to crawl from the mind-deafening surge that had slammed the now-survivors of the invasion, made his slow, scraping way to his still twitching Queen on stiff limbs.

Gingerly placing the tip of his horn to the base of Chrysalis', the Guardian slowly 'creaked' open the door to the Hive-mind. His fellow Guardians were there, with only three of the remaining eighteen still conscious. The Guardian took note for a moment of the silence within the mind.

<For my Queen, I give my honour. For the Hive, I give my life,> he intoned to the other three, breaking the chilling quiet. In a single moment, they understood.

<For our comrade, we bear witness,> three voices chanted, a slight tremble in one of them.

Closing his eyes, the Guardian did the one thing he was instructed to only do under extreme circumstances.

He focused on his body, and the inherent magic that all Changelings possessed, and began the task of draining himself and channelling it into his practically comatose Queen. As he did, green flames slowly travelled from the tips of his hooves and wings to his body, leaving brittle chitin behind. Opening his eyes, he gazed upon his ruler in quiet sorrow as the flames briefly covered them.

When the flames converged before the tip of his horn, his eyes held nothing within. As they spread out and onto his Queen, a gentle gust of wind blew around him, carrying him away as the lifeless body became dust and turning the gust a shade of black.


=================================


Chrysalis grunted as strength seeped into her body and mind, the remnant pain from her forces still echoing within the latter. Forcing her eyes open, she cringed as she took in a bright beam of sunlight that illuminated the craters and scattered ashes of fallen Changelings.

And the monster that dared attack her after refusing her rule, just strutting in its mid-air walk towards the ponies. She was Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings for Éntoa's sake!

Growling and pushing herself onto unsteady legs, she forced herself into a shambling walk past her barely conscious Guardians. A plan came to her mind, an incredibly, no insanely, risky plan that others would call stupid. But to her enraged and grief-shattered mind, it was her plan. And none would stop it.

Mustering her strength and charging her spell, she screamed her hatred.


=================================


Celestia was silent in shock as the creature headed back towards her, walking in mid-air. Despite her sister's, the Elements' and Shining Armour's descriptions, nothing could have prepared her for the view she had just witnessed. Only now, as the creature walked away from the casual massacre of an entire army, was the strange magic it had channelled through its sword dissipating, leaving behind only clear sky.

The only sound was the creature's footsteps creating a peculiar reverberating sound, akin to a drum being tapped lightly, on its invisible path.

The sound was suddenly joined by a pair of screams. Or, as Celestia snapped her head around, only one.

Her eyes widened in horrified recognition as the snake-like trail of misty emerald magic wound its way through the air and into the creatures head, Chrysalis collapsing as it did so while her target jerked to a halt.

Hesitating momentarily, Celestia quickly charged the same spell after giving a single order to those around her;

"Collect the Elements, and be ready."

Ignoring the confusion on many of their faces, she let the spell loose as a golden haze, shaped into a serpent, that was absorbed into the creature too.


=================================


Locations, others, speeches. Things that Chrysalis thought would be abundant in this thing's mind as memories, yet found mostly static. She ignored it as she found a bright light ahead of her, charging in without a second thought.

When the light faded from her eyes, what she saw momentarily stumped her.

A sprawling city of glass towers, the smallest equal to the Canterlot Palace, lay around her. The sky was an inky black with a single, crescent moon serving to bathe everything in a silver glow. Towards the base of the towers and all around her, a never-ending waterfall of sand rushed by, giving glimpses of a type of road or something at the bottom and even more towers to the sides.

Forcing herself to focus once more, Chrysalis began flying towards what she hoped was the centre of this mind. Her plan was simple; Use a high-level mind control spell, one which involved abandoning her own body, to break this creature's mind and take it for her own. Then, when she has won against Celestia, the creature would face Tartarus for what it did.

Swerving up to avoid a building, she took a brief moment to ponder what she'd done. Taking another look at the world she was in, what she found surprised her, to a degree.

The first thing that distracted her from her goal and thoughts was the sight of her hind legs in front of her face.

The second was the immense pain emanating from her skull.

The third was easily the most disturbing sound she'd ever heard.


=================================


Celestia forced herself to ignore the static around her, noting only the fact it was there, as she flew towards the being's mind in order to prevent Chrysalis from subjugating this creature to her will.

'Although, I wonder if she can control it,' Celestia thought soberly, guessing that such a creature would have quite a mental fortitude to match the incredible power it... no, he possessed. At least, she believed the monster was male. She shook any excess thoughts off as she flew through the bright light.

And immediately pulled up in an effort to remain airborne, only to fall heavily onto her flank on the glass floor of the tower. Wincing as she stood, and ignoring the embarrassing red mark on her white coat, Celestia gazed in utter confusion of the physics of this mindscape. After all, she was standing on the side of a behemoth tower, surrounded by its neighbours, while sand rushed down in pillars and waterfalls along the base and among the gaps between buildings.

Naturally, she was confused mostly as to where the creature came fr-

An explosion off to the left broke her thoughts off as she reared back in instinct, barely missing the black projectile that would've crashed into her chest had she stayed still and allowing it to skip once off the 'ground' they were on before smashing into a windowed wall. Now that the object was still, Celestia could see, with no small surprise, that it was Chrysalis. Incredibly beat up from being forced through and into walls, but Chrysalis.

"Heh, well look at this!" A voice said, its voice wavering in a manner that seemed a little familiar, though Celestia couldn't place it. Turning to locate the source, Celestia saw a smirking bipedal creature, a little shorter than her, with a white robe that obscured much of its form and held with a black sash. A black strap ran from over the right shoulder and down around its left hip. The hands held black nails, while the hand itself as well as the rest of the skin that she could see was white, along with its hair which hid its eyes. What caught her attention most, was what looked to be an oversized knife a chef might use, though the handle wasn't the usual crafted block of wood but instead wrapped in black cloth with a fair length extending behind. The thing that stood out most about it was the fact that the heel of the sword was silver-white, while its edge was black.

"And here I thought I'd be stuck here without any entertainment," the creature stated, as its smirk widened into a psychotic grin, allowing Celestia to spy what appeared to be somewhat pointed teeth, as it opened its hand to let the blade drop, only to grab the strip of cloth.

"And now... I get not one..." A practiced flick of the wrist sent the knife spinning, a low buzzing emanating from the whirling blade.

"But TWO playthings to kill!" The creatures head twitched up, revealing eyes with black sclera and vivid yellow irises. Celestia immediately took a step back at the sheer insanity and bloodlust that those eyes held.

"Just try..." Releasing the cloth to grab the blade, bringing it to a stop with little effort, the creature crouched slightly while bringing the weapon to its side.

"TO NOT DIE TOO FAST!" it yelled, launching itself at the Princess with a lunatic's laughter with the sword raised high with one hand to cleave her in half.


=================================


Luna stared at where her sister's magic had disappeared into the motionless monster as the other ponies around her began fussing over Celestia's lifeless form, Sweetie Belle included though Rarity swapped her attention constantly, mulling over Celestia's words.

"Be calm, dearest subjects," the Lunar Princess stated without moving her gaze, "Tis an advanced mind spell, designed to enter the consciousness of another. The drawback being that thy mind leaves the body."

"Isn't that... dangerous?" Luna's eyes flicked to the concerned face of Twilight, before returning their vigil.

"Only if the body is harmed during the period of the spell. In any case, please; Collect the Elements." With the reminding of Celestia's rare orders, Cadance volunteered to collect them for the injured hosts, remembering the locations of each as the six mares revealed them.

"Um, P-Princess?" Fluttershy spoke, shortly after Cadance had flown towards Ponyville, "Wh-What were you a-about to say before? I-If you d-don't mind..."

Luna sighed, casting her eyes to the ground. "The creature is not evil."

This shocked the group as all save Twilight began arguing, only for Luna to silence them with a glance before continuing, unknowingly dropping her archaic speech, "It is my own fault that you were all injured that day. Had I not been prejudiced towards the creature, had I not mistaken frustration for aggression, had I not been so arrogant to believe myself stronger..." Her eyes returned to the creature, "None would be injured. No dreams broken, no anguish felt, no securities shaken."

Her gaze hardened as she kept talking, "However... having seen such... violence, I cannot trust this creature as much as I wanted to. Not without learning how to restrain it." Turning to the six girls, she spoke her thoughts, "My sister wants you six, the Elements of Harmony, to use the Elements should Chrysalis be successful in bending the creature to her will. However, I would like to ask that, the moment my sister's mind is clear of the creature, you use the Elements regardless of which side its loyalties lie. Then, we can learn about it and find a way to restrain its might.

What say you?"


=================================


Celestia flapped her wings to force herself backwards and away from the knife as it struck the glass where she stood, creating an explosion of glass and dust. Landing firmly on her hooves, she took note as the creature stood back up easily, slinging its sword over its shoulder. To her right, Chrysalis staggered drunkenly upright.

"What... hit me?" Her bleary eyes squeezed shut before opening, finding her vision a lot more clearer. Glancing up, she saw the alicorn that she hated, and another creature similar to the body they were fighting in.

"My name is Celestia, Princess of the Sun and one half of the diarchy of Equestria," Celestia stated, hoping beyond hope to not have to fight, "Who are you?"

The creature blinked, momentarily nonplussed, before returning to it's grin and stating, "Princess, eh? Ya mean like that blue one earlier?" It's grin grew more feral as it continued to talk, "Well then, I hope you're as good as she was."

"I asked you your name," Celestia firmly repeated.

"Don't have one," was her answer, much to her surprise, "Thought I'm hurt you don't recognise me," it said, to Celestia's confusion, as it lay a hand on it's chest with an expression of mock hurt which was ruined by the grin it still wore. Suddenly pointing it's knife at her, it moved it's hand to the grasp the hilt as the cloth suddenly wound its way up the arm.

"Ban... KAI!"

Celestia and Chrysalis both braced themselves, trying not to be blown away by the whirling vortex of magic that engulfed the being until it suddenly ended, leaving the creature with a long coat, as well as a sash and robe that both found vaguely familiar. However, both began connecting dots as they saw the blade. No longer reminiscent of a knife, it was long, narrow and slightly curved with a four-pronged guard and a short chain dangling from the end of the hilt. The same sword as the creature carried though white instead of black.

"Maybe you need another reminder," the creature said, still grinning as it raised it's left hand to it's face, it's fingers clenching to resemble claws as white magic outlined in red gathered itself. With a vicious yank, the energy solidified before bursting away.

Leaving a mask that both Alicorn and Changeling knew well enough, though the one that they remembered was white with red lines instead of black with white stripes.

Neither had any chance to realise just how much trouble they were in before the creature in front of them launched itself at Celestia once more, cackling insanely. Chrysalis, seeing an opportunity to gain control without interference, took off once more towards the center of the mind.

Only for the creature to appear before her in a blur of movement, the sound of static echoing, and slam an open palm into her face to send her flying back next to the startled Celestia.

"And just where were you goin'? The fun's just getting started!" he declared, both labelling it a male from it's voice and build, as he lifted the mask away to show an eye and his grin.

Chrysalis snarled at him, growling nasally through a swollen muzzle, "I will take control of this body and force it to accept me as its ruler! You will not stop me from reaching my goal, and so help me if I have to kill you to get past you, so be it!"

"Oh?" His grin died a little as he contemplated something.

"Tell me... what's the difference between a king and his horse?"

The sudden question threw both rulers off guard, before he reiterated his statement with serious expression, "And I don't mean some childish shit like, "One has a crown" or "Where they live". If both held the exact same form, abilities and power, why is one the king that directs the battle, while the other is the horse that carries the king?" Both rulers began thinking of the difference between the two, but not coming up with any answers.

Seeing their struggle to answer, the creature spoke, "There's only one answer to that question." Celestia frowned at this - surely, there was more than one answer to such a riddling question?

Thrusting his arms to the sides in a grand motion, the mask inexplicably staying crooked on his face, he declared the answer: "INSTINCT! For identical beings to gain the strength and power to become the king, they have to seek out battles and more power! They thirst for fights, and live only to mercilessly crush, shred, slice and KILL their enemies!" he ranted, slapping a hand with clawing fingers to his chest as he continued, "'Cos deep, deep within our bodies lies the honed instinct to kill, to fight, and to slaughter our enemies!" Throwing his hand to his side, he pointed the blade at the two equines before him, "But you don't have that! None of you! You keep trying to force others to surrender! You don't kill any of them! And it doesn't work! It's like trying to cut something with a sheathed sword!" With each word, Celestia paled more and more until she seemed grey, horrified at such a prospect, while Chrysalis' eyes grew wider at the same thing.

His grin grew once more on seeing their horrified expressions as he concluded his speech, "That's why you'll never become my ruler, insect bitch! That's why you'll never beat me! That is why you'll ALWAYS be weaker than me!"

Disappearing in a blur, the being appeared once more before the two, with his sword blazing with white fire tinged red.

"GETSUGA TENSHOU!"


=================================


"I'm in!" exclaimed Rainbow, angry still at the creature. Despite what Princess Luna had said, it had still hurt a lot of ponies. Only a monster would do something like that.

'Is this the right choice?' Twilight thought to herself, staying silent as the rest began to agree at their own pace, 'To judge, and punish it for our mistakes and fears?

'If so... then how are we so sure we aren't the monsters here?

'And if we don't, or if it doesn't work...' A glance at the remains of the former Changeling army served to deepen her doubts.

"Twilight?"

The sound of Luna's voice broke out of her reverie, to find both the Princess, her brother and her friends looking at her expectantly. She bit her lip and looked to the side, unsure of what to do. On one hoof, the creature would be trapped until they could find a way to contain it's power, to make it less dangerous; On the other hoof, had it really done anything wrong?. Yes, it had harmed several ponies, it had destroyed part of the hospital, but hadn't they, the ponies, done something as bad? Hadn't they attacked first and then imprisoned it, after it had helped them?

And yet, despite the facts staring at her in the face, she found she couldn't help but agree with Princess Luna. Fear caused her to throw logic and reason aside and nod reluctantly in agreement.

Cadance landed just after she agreed, handing out the necklaces to the various ponies. Turning to Twilight, she took note of the stress she seemed to harbor before solemnly handing over the tiara.


=================================


Celestia landed heavily, quickly using her materialised rapier, glowing like the morning dawn, to parry away the creature's blade and using another, as golden as the sunset, to force Chrysalis to block.

Time, she knew, held little to no meaning in a battle within minds. It may have felt that they'd been dueling for over three hours, but it could easily have been only a few minutes in the real world. What started as a two-on-one fight quickly dissolved into a three-way free for all. Both bore evidence of fighting - Celestia had bruises in various places on her legs, head and chest while Chrysalis had cracks that leaked blood. Both had cuts and scrapes from both their mutual enemy and each other, while he was unblemished. Any attacks they'd sent against him did nothing.

Forcing Chrysalis back with a forceful push, Celestia threw herself back once more to dodge a swing from the white blade and ducked to miss Chrysalis' emerald-green, jagged edged broadsword. Stabbing at the being to intercept a swing and sweeping the other at Chrysalis to cut her below her eye, Celestia quickly backed away for a moments reprieve to consider the situation - it had become obvious very quickly that Chrysalis was more focused on her than the creature, while the creature seemed to switch his focus between the two.

The logical thing would be to leave, but Celestia couldn't take the risk that, no matter how impossible it seemed, Chrysalis could actually beat the creature. Throwing herself back into the fight with reluctant gusto, she reviewed what the creature had said.

'Instinct... the urge to fight and kill,' she pondered, even as she jerked her head to the side to avoid a narrow white blade and crossed both rapiers to block a heavy swing from a jagged sword, 'Something ponies don't have... Something only Diamond Dogs and Dragons seem to access.'

Thrusting the jagged blade away and twirling her rapiers to slash rapidly at both opponents, she continued to think as she fought to defend, grateful for once of all the practice she'd had while sitting in on Day Court, listening to her whining nobles.

A sickening crunch and pained scream shocked her out of her thoughts as she took note of the fact that the creature had switched his attention to Chrysalis, and nearly threw up at the sight of what happened.

Chrysalis was suspended in mid-air, her sword fading back into mana, held there by the being's hand buried in her abdomen. He chuckled darkly, before Chrysalis' chitin seemed to glow from black to a dark, brick-like red and expand slightly while she gaped pitifully. It all ended when a vivid red beam, encompassing her entire back from haunch to withers, spouted from her back, undoubtedly annihilating her insides. Stabbing his sword into the ground, he took hold of her horn and, with a spin, flung her off his hand and into the air where she disappeared into a green haze that faded away.


=================================


As Twilight slowly took hold of the tiara, not thinking to use her magic, a vivid green glow caught everyone's eye as it travelled swiftly from the creature to Chrysalis' still body.

What happened next, defied all logic. As soon as the green haze touched the body, blood sprayed from wounds that suddenly opened, cracks appeared with horrific crunches and a burst of what seemed to be air preceded the majority of her back bulging before bursting outwards. Rushing over, Fluttershy immediately saw the Changeling Queen's state when she forced open a glassy, blank eye.

Shaken, all turned to view the creature or Celestia, not knowing what was happening.


=================================


Celestia stood there on shaky legs, even as the creature before her took up his blade. Turning back to her, he grinned that psychotic, bloodlusting grin. As he slowly walked towards her, blade at ease, she began trying to think of strategies, plans, anything that would allow her to leave. Until a thought came to mind of when Luna, and later Twilight, explained the second encounter with the creature in the outside world.

He stopped in surprise as she asked him, "You cannot be harmed, can you?"

He chuckled before saying, "Realised that, have ya? What's ya point?"

"If I were to put a scratch on you, would you let me leave?"

He seemed speechless for a moment, before he threw his head back and broke out into a maddening laugh. When he calmed down from his burst, he looked back at her, grinning as he said, "You actually think you can so much as scratch me?! FINE!" Tossing his blade up into the air and slipping a finger through a link in the short chain, the blade vanished into a faded blur before he jerked his hand back and forward to snatch it out of the air, "You put any damage on my body, and you can go free. But it ain't gonna be that easy!" he yelled as he charged straight at her.

She closed her eyes and focused; Focused on the anger and fear when she heard that her sister, as well as her precious ponies, one of which was her most faithful student, had been harmed. Focused on the sorrow at hearing their pain at the hands of this creature. She focused on feeling all that she'd had these past thousand years, bottled to maintain an image of a Princess. She opened her eyes, which glowed golden, to view the creature a mere few hooves away, before merging both rapiers into one and, rearing back slightly, stabbed it into his chest as he brought his blade down.

A dome-shaped explosion of gold and white filled the area, obscuring the surroundings to those inside and vice versa.

When the light faded, and dust settled, Celestia's rapier was pressed against the chest of the creature while his blade stayed where it had finished its arc. A spray of blood lay splattered against the white robes, fur and glass floor from the wound that went from Celestia's forehead to her chin, crossing over her eye, continuing down her chest. With a pained exhale, she dropped to the floor, barely conscious from the pain that his sword wrought upon her as her rapier faded away into broken light.

Swinging his blade up again, he put all his force behind it to decapitate her.

Only for a solid blue glow to wrap around a part of his sword. He blinked in surprise, before glancing down at his chest at what seemed to be a pinprick. Under his coat, lay the tiniest spot of blood.

"Che, seems she's stronger than I thought," he sighed, before roughly grabbing her by the horn and throwing her the same way he had the insect bitch.


=================================


Next time, on Equestria meets the Vasto Lorde...


=================================


"Sister!" A blue alicorn rushes to her sister as a spray of blood emanates from her face and chest

"No... it can't be..." Celestia's eyes widen at the sight of something impossible.

"TWILIGHT! NO!"
> The Decisive Fate
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"-always weaker than me, I*****!"

My eyes snapped open, and were momentarily blinded by the sunlight as I woke at the feeling of being stabbed in the gut. Gripping the area served to remind me of my dream. A cry drew my attention away from myself, and to the group in front of me.

Even as my eyes met those of my betrayer, they vanished in a burst of white light.


=================================


Every pony held their breath as the golden haze exited the creature and made its shimmering way towards the still body of their Princess. With the sound of skin and muscle tearing, small amounts of blood flew from the light cuts and bruises spreading black and blue. For a moment, they all sanctioned a sliver of hope, that the alabaster Alicorn wasn't seriously injured. For a moment, they believed that everything would be fine.

With a sound akin to ripping paper, a gash started from the top of her forehead and travelled down to her brow, cut the eyelids in half, continued down her cheek to her jaw and disappeared only to continue its journey down her chest almost instantaneously shattered that hope.

"Sister!" Luna cried out, racing back to Celestia as blood sprayed from the newly opened wound onto the ground.

"Princess!" the six Elements yelled out in shock, Twilight most of all.

'I... I can't...' Her world seemed to be shaking as she spotted the bloody mar on her mentor's perfect coat. Turning back to the creature, which now seemed to be twitching erratically, before gripping it's stomach for some reason, she took a deep breath and made her choice.

'I'm so sorry... I don't want to... but I have to protect my friends!'

"Girls, NOW!" yelled Twilight, as she focused on the bond that the Elements provided, eyes squeezed shut to maintain that concentration. Feeling each of her friends as they connected to the flow of Harmony, her eyes shot open to see a horned mask of bone... and vivid, almost glowing yellow eyes staring back at her.

The power of the Elements of Harmony surged through them and in that instant, Twilight 'heard' the thoughts of her friends;

'No freaks gonna hurt the Princess and get away with it!'

'This thing ain't gettin' near my family!'

'Oh, dear... I hope this doesn't hurt it...'

'I refuse to let such a barbarian walk where they may!'

'Ooooh hereitcomeshereitcomeshereitcomes!!! Super Rainbow Party Cannon, GO!'

With the sound of rushing wind, the Rainbow of Harmony* arced above their heads...


=================================


I watched as a freaking rainbow appeared from nowhere above the six ponies' head and shot up to come down on me.

'They don't seriously think a rainbow's gonna- AAAARRRRGH!' Instinct bellowed as he cut himself off, the rainbow having somehow wrapped itself around me once it reached me and began causing me to roar in pain myself. Looking at my arm, my eyes widened as flakes of my skin slowly began lifting away and crumbling to dust. Though it was difficult to see, I think there may have been another colour under it...

My rage surfaced as I looked to where the ghostly flames of the six were. Crouching slightly, I charged a Cero that grew to it's normal size in moments before firing.

Only for the rainbow to somehow wrap itself around the beam and break it into nothing.

'Shit!' Instinct snarled, 'How the hell could that have happened?!'

Charging another Cero, I released it before charging and firing another right behind it. Both met the same fate as the first.

'Oi, if you don't do something soon we're dead!' Instinct snapped.

Bracing my feet more firmly, I did something I'd never tried so far - I charged a Cero, and kept charging. Doing so, I saw how the so-called "anti-magic cuffs" affected me; After the usual charge time, it was difficult to force more energy into the Cero. With a roar, I kept straining to cram more and more energy in while drawing more up from somewhere deep within myself, the red flames appearing around me and keeping the rainbow at bay.


=================================


Unseen by all, each of the cuffs began cracking, minutely at first but steadily becoming larger until...

With a vicious retort, all five shattered at almost the same time. And the results were instantaneous.


=================================


Celestia came to at the feel of a wet cloth dabbing at her face. Flicking an eye open, she saw her sister's worried face, as well as a white cloth tinged a dark pink coated in a midnight blue aura. She winced as memories of what occurred surfaced in her mind, grateful to be alive even as the burn of her wound made itself known to her.

Hearing the relief of Shining Armour and a filly she identified as Rarity's sister, she looked around to blink at the absence of her student and her friends. Looking to Luna, she asked, "Luna? Where are-"

Something struck her on the muzzle as she spoke, drawing her attention to a shard of a blackish-silver metal about the size of a bit. The curvature, as well as the colour seemed to ring a... ring... Her eyes widened as the dots connected. Forcing herself to stand up, despite a few cuts on her haunches and legs stinging at the movement, she saw where her student and friends were.

Hovering above the ground slightly in the five-pointed gem shape, a rainbow being channelled from them to a spot where it cocooned around the creature,  the red flames from earlier forcing the cocoon from wrapping it entirely. She took all that in, for the next moment everything changed.

The cocoon suddenly bulged out one side, a spherical lump the size of a beach ball expanding instantly. As the rainbow began trying to break the magic down, she saw what it was.

"No... it can't be..." Celestia whispered, eyes widening in horror at what she saw. For there, the beach ball barely connected to his horns, stood the creature, some patches of his black-marked white skin being eroded away. She looked into his eyes, almost hidden as they were in the vivid red of his magic, and saw pure, unfettered rage. She immediately knew his intent, but was too late.

"No... please..."

Time slowed, as with a screeching, rumbling whirr, the ball of magic exploded into a beam as thick as an oak tree trunk towards the source of the rainbow, rings of the multicoloured beam expanding and dissipating along the length of the streak of red. In the centre, Twilight looked slowly back at her teacher, a look of fear on her face as her glowing eyes wept a single tear.

"TWILIGHT! NO!" Celestia screamed as time resumed it's torturous pace, and the beam struck into the Elements of Harmony, and a massive mushroom explosion of vivid red with streaks of rainbow sounded like thunder as it consumed the six.

That moment echoed on forever, even as she numbly became aware of Luna dropping to the ground beside her in shock. As the magic and smoke slowly cleared away, all that was evident of there being six, healthy young mares, each with their own quirks, the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, the champion fighters that fought Nightmare Moon, Discord and Sombra and won...

Was a smoking, soot-coated crater.
> Revelation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

-It's too bright...- Twilight thought as she squinted through the incredibly white colour around her, barely able to make out the shapes of others around her. She struggled to lift a hoof, only to find her strength seemed to be non-existent.

-Who said that?- a brash voice came from her left. One of the shapes in that direction and in front shifted, revealing a silhouette of something reaching out to the side while a much shorter extension was on the other side.

-R-rainbow D-Dash? I-is that y-you? a timid voice sounded from behind Twilight and to the right.

-Goodness, this is certainly one powerful light,- remarked a posh voice that seemed to originate from behind Rainbow and Twilight.

-Ah'll say, it's like staring at the sun up close and personal like,- stated a Southern accent behind Twilight.

-Could really use more colour, I think...- mused a squeaky voice contemplatively.

-Enough.-

At the sound of the wizened tone, the intense light faded away to a more acceptable level that allowed the six to see their surroundings, which seemed to be a circular, unmarked room of stone, clearly and stand shakily to their feet. Before them stood a Pegasus with a grey coat, wings folded over a two-coloured, monk-like robe, most of it being white with the rest black, the hood serving to obscure his features, aside from the glowing light blue mist that trailed slightly from his eyes. Turning around, he inclined his head for the group to follow him along a stone passage as he said in the same tone, -They will see you now.-

-Who will?- Rainbow asked before noticing the others staring at her in a mixture of shock and confusion, asking, -What? I got something on my face?-

-Rainbow...- Twilight said, her mouth not moving to form the words, before she noticed herself doing it and began softly babbling gibberish.

-Come. Patience is a virtue, but delaying is, at times, an insult.

Snapping her head around, Rainbow growled at him, -Oh yeah? Well, patience this!- Charging at the Pegasus, who still had his back turned, she leapt to tackle him, only for a wing, partially unfurled with a single primary extended, to stop her dead in the air. With a flick, he sent her rocketing back to skid to a stop next to her friends.

Folding his wing to his side, he turned his head to gaze at them as he said, -Fighting me is pointless. You have no strength here. Now, come. They will see you now.-

-Who are 'they'?- asked Twilight, slightly over her shock at everypony becoming telepathic in this place, as they began following their guide. Despite the lack of torches or other such sources of illumination, they had no trouble seeing the plain tunnel, nor the pony leading them.

-They are who will judge you. You will see them for yourself,- was the grave reply, despite the neutral tone.

Some time later, the group found themselves standing in a large, ancient-looking amphitheatre of moss-covered and cracked stone, two massive arches side by side in front of them with a tall cross separating them. Silently, the Pegasus left the six alone.

After a moment of nothing, Rainbow asked the rest, -Well, what now?- Her answer was the interior of both arches bursting into light, the left side an ominous dark red while the right was a pure pale yellow. Vague, shadowy forms were seen in both, the left broad and tall, with eyes like fire, while the right was thin and petite with eyes blue as the sea. The six all instinctively huddled together, Fluttershy becoming all but invisible.

-Are you the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony?- a soft, feminine, breeze-like voice said, the blue eyes looking down at the six trembling at the display, whom nodded after a moment.

What was to be said next was interrupted as the Pegasus re-entered saying, -Apologies, Masters, but the Raven has arrived.- A dark shape flew over his head as he spoke, banking into a turn as it reached the cross. Alighting on the top of it, the shape turned out to be just that - an ordinary raven that sat preening inky black feathers that seemed to absorb light with a beak like ebony, eyes a shade of gold.

The left shadow's eyes narrowed as it spoke in a rumbling bass, -What business have you here, Raven?- Said raven, eyes glinting as it regarded the shape to it's right, spoke in a cunning tone only a thief could be proud of, -My Master wishes that I take part in this, that he may interject should he so desire. We are Neutral, as you should remember; it is his place to break any ties that should occur.-

-You make it sound like your important, but you don't look anything special,- Rainbow shot, before the others managed to quiet her. With a blink, the raven's eyes landed on Rainbow Dash with a fearsome glare.

-'Nothing special', eh?- he paraphrased, a smirk hidden within his voice, -Well, then... how about NOW?!- With a flare of his wings he sent a blast of wind towards the group which concealed himself in a whirlwind of silver. As they opened their eyes from the sudden burst, they saw that the raven had, inexplicably, grown to the size of Ponyville's Town Hall. Grey markings ran down his wings and body while an eerie mask of bone lay upon his face, covering the top of his beak and flaring out at the back into three fins. His talons gripped the arms of the cross comfortably as he folded his wings and stared down his beak at the ponies and challenged Rainbow Dash, -Still think I'm an ordinary raven, pony? I am known as the Raven, messenger of the Neutral Master whose name was lost long before this world existed.-

-I apologise for my friend, but,- Twilight said, cutting Rainbow off, -where are we, and just who are you?-

-The answer to those questions are of no concern to you,- rumbled the red shade, sending a glare at the gigantic bird before regarding the petite shadow as well, -Now, shall we begin?- As both gave their consent, the Raven, eyeing the shade a moment as a message seemed to flash between them, looked at the ponies and began;

-We meet here at this time, within the realm between realms, to discuss the actions that you six have enacted recently and, most importantly,- here his manner became serious, -The consequences of those actions.-


=================================


"Twilight... please... no..." whimpered Celestia, tears dripping down her face as she stood still in shock, Luna practically comatose. An enraged bellow sounded behind her as Shining Armour, stumbling slightly from his still-new prosthetic, charged at the still-present cloud with his horn wrapped in magenta light, a military sword being summoned to his side and drawn.

A black shape, barely visible in the smoke, made an abrupt motion and all save Shining shied away as the cloud was dispersed forcefully. As Shining cleared the last bank of cloud that was sent away from the shape, he swung his blade wildly only for the familiar black blade to parry it, sparks flying everywhere. With a sudden swing, the sword in Shining's magical grasp was cut in half, and he felt himself being lifted into the air, the creature's hand wrapped around his neck. Fighting for air, he looked to glare at the creature, only to find it somewhat different.

Where earlier it had been barechested with a type of ruined robe and sash covering it, somehow the robe had been mended seamlessly, revealing them to be some kind of pants, while a long black coat covered it's shoulders, arms and back, the front left open with the hole in it's chest for all to see.

"I already told you..."

These words, followed by the sword lifting into a position to stab him through the head, caused Shining to start panicking as the monster's head became visible, shadowed eyeholes revealing white skin at the edges of the vivid yellow eyes themselves.

"I've had enough..." The sword was drawn back as Shining's efforts to free himself became frantic and violent.

"OF YOUR SHIT!" The sword tip grew startlingly close to Shining in just a second, the sheer force of the creature being shown once more.


=================================


-Consequences? You make sound like we're being punished,- said Rainbow, confusion written all over her face.

-Perhaps you should be,- commented the Right Shadow, the blue eyes staring stoically at the pegasus, -then you would learn a lesson.- However, her words went in one sky-blue ear and out the other.

-Why should WE be punished?!- she snapped at the shadow, -That monster is the one that's evil, not us! That thing's hurt us and other ponies, as well as Princess Luna! So why should WE get the blame for what it's done?!-

-And what about what you six have done?- the Left growled menacingly, Rainbow flinching momentarily at the anger in it's voice, before retorting, -We've been trying to stop it from hurting others!-

-Silence!- commanded the Raven, ignoring the glare the Left sent him while directing one of his own on Rainbow Dash, -Well, it seems we need not recall the present issue for any reason. Before we begin, however,- he regarded the two at either side, -I would ask that the ponies Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy be spared, for harbouring no ill will towards the creature.-

-I request that Rarity be added to that list, for having not taken any action against it,- interjected the Right, eyes flicking to the mentioned pony as she breathed silent relief.

-And I vouch Applejack, provided she take no further action whether physical or verbal,- stated the Left.

-Are we agreed?- a silent confirmation passed between the three, -Then those whom we have named shall suffer no sentencing from us, though they will continue to bear the pain they have wrought upon themselves. Two bursts of white light suddenly surrounded Twilight and Rainbow, bringing them to the front of the group.

-As for you two, however,- Raven began, only for Rainbow to interrupt him.

-NO! No bucking way am I takin' manure for trying to protect Equestria! If the stupid Elements had worked, this wouldn't've happened!-

A rather unsettling yet dangerous silence fell around them at those... thoughts? Words? Twilight wasn't sure, broken by the Left growling, -'If the Elements had worked,' you say?- His voice grew into a roar as he spoke,

-DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW THEY WORK IN THE FIRST PLACE?!-

-We-well... no...- Rainbow admitted reluctantly after a moment, the shade's anger cowing her. The Right's eyes narrowed slightly as she continued where the Left began, -No, you don't. And we shouldn't have to tell you. But the way you do NOT use them is with thoughts of revenge and hate. The Elements are a shield, not a sword.-

'Well, if it was a sword, there wouldn't be a monster possibly attacking ponies right now, would there!- Rainbow shot back. Only to reel back in surprise as a large plume of smoke rose up and circled into a ring between the two groups, mist emanating from the edges to the centre.

"STOP!"

The scream of a filly echoed throughout the room, making every pony flinch while the Raven and Shade's didn't bat an eye. Within the ring of smoke, an image took shape.

The desperate cry caused a black blade to stop perfectly, a thin trickle of blood beginning to eke from the slight cut from the sword being pressed against Shining's skull, said Unicorn being held by his throat by the now-clothed creature. Celestia moved forward, even as the creature turned his head slowly to regard the speaker darkly.

"Please... just, stop," Sweetie Belle sobbed as she stood on shaky legs, collapsing onto her flank once he faced her, tears streaming down her face.

The group began yelling at the picture, urging Sweetie to run, begging somepony to do something or hurling abuse at the creature. In the commotion, they nearly missed her next words;

"Y-you hu-hurt all the Ch-Changelings, y-you to-took my si-sister awa-away... Ha-haven't you h-hurt enough p-ponies?" she questioned through her tears to a seemingly emotionless creature.


=================================


"Ha-haven't you h-hurt enough p-ponies?"

Those words kept echoing in my head, even as I stared at the little white pony I'd saved. Turning my head, I looked at the blood-stained ground behind me, corpses and disembodied limbs strewn everywhere. Looking back to remind her that I'd saved her, I looked into her eyes.

And saw.

I saw a creature with a strange mask of a skull, holding up a struggling, injured, defenceless Unicorn, with a blade poised to kill him. Behind me, I saw not the results of a fight, however unfair, but the scene of a mass murder. What I saw, was the Monster that these ponies claimed I was.

I opened my hand and let the Unicorn drop to the ground, my blade pulling away and lowering until it rested by my side as I backed away a few feet, allowing his comrades to levitate him to safety.

'Can I really think of myself as anything but a monster, now?'


=================================


-S-Sweetie Belle,- Rarity whispered, aghast at the thought of her little sister putting herself in danger. All Twilight could think of, was every time that they'd encountered the creature. As she did so, more smoke-and-mist circles rose in front of her, showing all the details. Reviewing each of them, she looked at the still sobbing forms of her mentor and the little filly.

Taking a deep breath, she spoke, -If I take full responsibility, will you let Rainbow Dash go?- Her question caused her friends to gasp and begin asking her what she was doing, but her focus was on the Raven as he spoke.

-Explain as to why we should do as you ask of us?-

Another deep, shuddering breath preceded Twilight's speech.

-Because I was the first to come into contact with the creature, despite how scared I was of it. When it saved us from the Ursa Major, I didn't even think of considering thanking it. I was just so much more scared of what it could do.

-When I found it in the forest with Princess Luna, I didn't try and prevent anything. I could have stopped them from fighting, or I could have ended it early. When it helped us out of the Forest, how did I repay it?

-I helped to subdue it and imprison it, without thinking of what I'd said to it in the Everfree. I told it I wouldn't hurt it, and what do I do? I betray the trust it had in me. If I had simply let it walk away, nopony would be hurt now.

-And now...- her voice began shaking as tears slowly began dripping from her eyes, -Now, I tried to seal it away because I was so afraid of it. Even though I knew it had done some really bad things, like killing that Ursa, hurting the Princess and... and everything...-

She looked up at the impassive judges in front of her, dimly aware of the others viewing each occasion with the creature and of Rainbow Dash looking at her in angry confusion.

-What has it done that we ponies, who are taught to embrace peace, love and tolerance, didn't force it to do? That I didn't force it to do?-

She let her head fall as she struggled to stop sniffling and hiccuping. And so she missed the unseen triumphant smirk on the Raven.

-Granted.-


=================================


Celestia could do little but try and comfort the little fillies, two others having appeared shortly after the creature dropped Shining, as best she could, paying little mind to the ponies now slowly revealing themselves now that the Changeling invasion had suddenly stopped. Nearby, Cadance held and cried with a grieving Shining Armour.

Luna simply stared hollowly out at the mourning ponies, as each newcomer learned what had occurred. In a town such as Ponyville, everypony knew each other to an extent that tears were shed for the lost. And she allowed the guilt and sorrow to fester, as she knew it was all her fault. Her gaze flicked to the mostly ignored creature, who simply stood apathetically at the entrance of the street that held the massacre of the invasion.

A sudden, blinding burst of rainbow drew everyponies attention from the loss of six mares, dying down to reveal the floating figure of Rarity. Four more bursts followed, one after another, allowing Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and finally Rainbow Dash to be seen hovering above the ground, a soft light emanating from them.

As the onlookers watched with awe and hope, the light faded to allow them to fall limply to the ground.

"R-Rarity?" sniffled Sweetie Belle, slowly making her way to her sister and, reaching her, gently nudging her side with a tear-matted hoof, "Rarity... p-please b-be okay..." All around her, ponies were gathering around the Elements of Harmony, all praying that they were alright.

"S-Sweetie Belle," the white Unicorn murmured, her eye slitting open enough to see, "Thank goodness... you're... alright." Any more was unnecessary as the white filly flung her hooves around her sister and cried.

Celestia ignored the tears that ran down her face as each of the Elements of Harmony was greeted by those that cared for them, thankful to whatever gods that existed that they were all-

Celestia took a sharp intake at the missing sight of her student. She began to panic slightly, looking all around in the hope that she had just missed her. Yet, among the various colours of her subjects, she couldn't spot that familiar lavender.

A final flash of rainbow light lit up behind her, causing her to whip around to almost collapse at the sight of her student laying on the ground, curled up with her back to everypony.

She ignored decorum as she raced over to check on Twilight. Upon reaching her, shock overrode everything that she felt.

For Twilight's head bore three black lines, white markings within seeming to form runes, that converged on the base of her horn and spiralled up to completely wrap the pinnacle.
> Judgement
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three figures before her shared a silent conversation, even as Twilight recovered from the sight of her five best friends vanishing. With a short nod, the three turned back to the lavender unicorn.

-Before we continue, do you understand that, by shouldering the responsibilities Rainbow Dash, your punishment shall be heavier than if she was to carry her own?-

A silent nod answered the question.

-And do you still agree to shoulder that burden?-

Another nod, this one carrying a slight hesitation.

-Then the condition of your punishment is thus...


=================================


Celestia stared in horrid fascination at the marks on her pupil's head, two stretching from her temples with the third starting at the middle of her brow, momentarily before forcing herself to focus with a quick shake of her head as Twilight groaned. A flood of thoughts regarding the strange marking flew through her mind before she chose to enact the simplest and least damaging plan; she lit up her horn and cast a simplistic illusion that caused all others, even Twilight, to ignore it.

Her eyes fluttered open as Celestia's horn flickered out, eyes gazing out upon the land blearily. Seeing the shadow that lay over her, those eyes slowly rose to see the librarian's mentor that now engulfed her in a gentle hug that spoke of relief, concern and happiness.

As she shut her eyes to enjoy the moment, memories came unbidden; A clearing at night, an Ursa's corpse. A crater-pocked battlefield, white and midnight-blue clashing. The inside of a building, a shadowed creature chained.

Celestia started as she felt Twilight's hoof weakly attempt to push her away.

"Twilight?" she asked hesitantly, even as she moved slightly away.

"There's... something..." Twilight said faintly, attempting to stand on weary legs, "I need... to set... right." As she finished speaking, her body gave out on her. A golden glow surrounded her, lightening her body and steadying it. A now-solemn Celestia looked upon her student, already guessing what she planned. Gently wrapping a wing around her, the Solar Princess slowly guided her protégé.


=================================


'Can I really think of myself as anything but a monster, now?'

'Are you really that stupid?'

'What?' Suddenly, the colours that surrounded me seemed to fade to greyed hues as a being in white robes appeared before me, a black and white mask identical to the one I wore covering his face. Although, something seemed... off...

"You're not seriously believing that bullshit, are you? You saved their pathetic asses from an invasion, by the look of it, and you're here believing their shit about how you're evil while they get to call those dumbass idiots heroes?"

"Instinct?"The apparition before me threw me a scornful look before something caught both our attentions; a series of muted lights flashed among the crowd of ponies that had gathered without my noticing, revealing five of their kind that slowly fell back to earth and were shortly surrounded by others that wept joyously.

"Tch, you see that? All those worthless trash gather around the ones that did nothing and sing praise about them, when they did fuck all," Instinct snarled, gesturing viciously at the crowd behind him, even as a sixth light shone and deposited the pony that had betrayed me, "So don't you dare say that you're a monster for saving their hides from being enslaved!"

"I... understand...' was all I could say, even as Instinct faded away and the world brightened again. I looked again at the massacre behind me, and saw it in a new light; the enemies of the ungrateful ponies, slain by my hand. I felt no remorse for my actions any more, thanks to Instinct.

'I am not a monster...'

I saw my betrayer coming closer, the white horse supporting her.

'But that doesn't mean I'm not guilty of acting like one.'


=================================


Everypony gradually fell silent as Twilight, supported by Celestia, slowly approached the Minotaur-like creature, anxious as to what was about to occur. When they were but a few metres from it - 'Him', Twilight corrected herself, rather sure the creature was male - Celestia allowed her pupil to stumble forward, supported solely by magic.

A sudden disturbance sounded out as members of the Wonderbolts dove onto the scene, ready to protect the Princess and her student from the creature.

Turning to face them while keeping her eye on Twilight, Celestia spoke commandingly, "Stand down, my loyal guards." The sight of the still-slightly bleeding scar had them hesitant about following the order, but still they did as ordered.

Turning back to the focus of everyponies attention, Celestia waited calmly for what was to occur.


=================================


-Your magic, the thing you pride yourself in, shall be restrained. The well of magic shall not be diminished, but the seal that has been placed will use your own magic to limit its use,- the Raven said, eyes closing towards the end.

-The full effects will become clear once you return,- the Left stated, it's eyes closing as well.

-Furthermore, this punishment shall last until you gain the forgiveness of the creature whom you have wronged,- the Right finished, eyes easing shut.


=================================


All present could attest to how silently the world stood at that moment; no wind brushed neither fur, grass, dirt or stone, no birds sang their lilting tunes; as if the world itself was waiting with bated breath as to the outcome of this meeting;

One, backed by the remnants of an invading force with nary a scratch and, unbeknownst to many, bereft of memory.

The other, a student of royalty and, again unbeknownst, the reason that she and many others were injured.

The silence was broken when one stepped forward and said;

"My name is Twilight Sparkle, protègè of Princess Celestia, Solar Diarch of Equestria. And I am here...

To beg for your forgiveness." As her head hung low, she breathed to continue-

"WHAT?!"

Rainbow Dash struggled to stand up, despite the many ponies attempting to coax her into relaxing, visibly outraged at her friend's hung head, her bangs hiding her eyes, while she kept on her tirade, "Why should we be asking for that THING's forgiveness?!"

"Rainbow..."

"Why isn't it being arrested already?! Celestia knows that's the least it deserves!" Ponies nearby, Royal Guard especially, began nodding along with the pegasus.

"Rainbow."

"It comes here, hurts Princess Luna, blows up half the hospital, and saves us from the Changelings?! Why, so it can kill us it-"

"RAINBOW DASH, SHUT UP!"

Twilight's shout drew the gradually increasing attention away from Dash's words back to her, the mare herself stunned that what she had heard. Tears slowly trickled down the lavender mare's face.

"In the Paleopony era, a Unicorn named Marestotle discovered the connection between two events, which was named causality; or rather, cause and effect," Twilight spoke, her breath slightly shaking as she did, "I don't pretend to know what event brought him here, only that he is. What I do know, is that a series of events have brought us to this moment."

"Twilight, is this REALLY the time for a lecture?" Shining asked, before being hushed by Cadence.

"The Changeling army is dead, the hospital destroyed and ponies are hurt," Twilight continued, regardless of her brother's interruption, "because I chose to help imprison him, after promising I wouldn't try to fight.

So if you want to call him a monster, then you may as well call me one, too, because I'm just as responsible for what's happened over the last few days as he is."

As expected, everyone was stunned at the speech, and therefore responsibility, that Twilight gave and heaped upon herself. Even the stoic Princesses were speechless.

However, none expected the Hollow that stood there to be caught off-guard.

'Holy shit... she's actually serious...' Instinct muttered, partially in awe.

Twilight turned back to face the Hollow, taking a deep breath to steady her thoughts, before talking once more.

"I know that, after all that's happened, we... I don't deserve to ask you for forgiveness. Heck, I don't even have the right to talk to you. But, what I want to ask is...

Can I, no, can we have the chance to make it up to you?"


=================================


I stood there silently, as conflicting thoughts raced around my head as to whether or not I should accept. Instinct in particular was saying we owe them nothing; that they brought their pain down on themselves. I opened my mouth, unsure of what to say when;

'They are afraid, that's all.'

'What the...?' was all I could think before the world greyed out once more, except this time a vague black blur was present, a light-blue glow surrounding its edges.

'They only know of peace, so how else should they react in the face of violence? Fight back? Become afraid? That is how the world is.' The shadow stated, even as it slowly faded. Before it disappeared completely, it said something that I took to careful consideration as the world regained its colour.

'She is not asking for forgiveness...'


=================================


The Hollow breathed in, prepared to speak his piece, when he was interrupted.

"Hey, I just came up with a good name!"

Ponies and Hollow turned to face the jaw-wired Pinkie Pie, all wondering the same thing; 'How is she speaking through that?'

To which she, surprisingly, giggled, "Well, I AM the number-one Party Pony! I gotta know how to do ventriloquism for the odd gag! But anyhow, I have a name!" She turned to face the as-yet-unnamed Hollow as she spoke, "You keep calling out those weird words when you swing your sword and fire goes 'FWWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH!~', right? Although Getsuga sounds like a mouthful to say, and 'Getsu' would be like saying Luna raises and lowers you every night and- Oh, sorry, got carried away," she chuckled sheepishly, "Anyway, why not just call you Tenshou?"

"Ten...shou..." the Hollow slowly spoke, ponies staring at him; largely in amazement that he could talk in the first place, or the fact he was taking Pinkie's advice, with some fearful that they would join the Changeling's should he get upset. With a shrug, the pale white, Minotaur-esque creature shrugged.

"It'll work, I guess," Tenshou stated, glancing back at Twilight before turning around to at a mountain some distance away. Sighting what he was looking for, he turned back to Twilight, pointing at the cave within the mountain with his sword.

"If you need something, I'll be in there," was all he said before beginning to walk away.

"Wait, what about," Twilight started, before Tenshou cut across her.

"I guess I can accept your apology. However," his head twisted sideways until she could spy one vivid yellow eye.

"I won't forgive you." With that, he disappeared in a burst of static.

Even as Twilight's eyes grew dazed as a memory forced itself to the front of her mind, and collapsed to the concern of all present.


=================================


-However, - the Right spoke once more, it's eyes opening as a tendril of what looked like liquid lightning reached out from the arch, -should you inform any other of this condition...-

The Left's eyes opened as well as it continued, a similar ethereal appendage of smoke-like magma extending, Then your magic, and ability to use any magic...-

-Will be sealed away,- the Raven uttered, his golden eyes revealing themselves from behind his lids as he spoke the last word with tremendous gravity and echoed by the other two, an ink-like shadow that repelled all light around it extruded from a newly raised talon and touching Twilight's brow, whilst the other two made contact with their respective temples;

-Permanently.-

An aurora of lights surged down the connections from the three and into Twilight, spiralling toward and up her horn, before she, too, vanished in rainbow light.


=================================


Within the Castle of the Alicorn Sisters that stood, crumbling to Time's decay, deep inside the Everfree Forest, a dark shadow cackled lowly as it slipped out, it's prize claimed. Green eyes, leaking purple smoke, looked gleefully to the small satchel that held said prize as another piece fell into place.

'Soon,' was the only thought that held no concern for the various schemes and plans that ran rampant within the umbra Unicorn's mind, 'Soon, it shall all be mine...'


=================================


Within the auditorium where only minutes before a pony was judged for her actions, only a single raven rested upon the top of a giant cross. Gold eyes opened as they viewed, once more, a portal of mist, and the events contained.

-Soon.- Gold eyes narrowed as a certain sequence played out once more as the Raven silently pledged, -Soon.-


=================================


"Shit," Instinct muttered as he angrily studied his reflection at one of the many windows that filled the world he lived in, "That was too fucking close. But hey, at least nothing major's been done..." As he turned away while continuously muttering, a window became opaque momentarily.

Showing as inky black swirled within his left eye, consuming the white sclera.
> Well, I'm just gonna say it...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

In short?

I fucked up... majorly. 

And I'm not saying that because of all the plot crevices in the story ('cos face it; saying their plot holes is like saying Niagra Falls is a trickle... from a distance, it's true, but the moment you get up close and personal with it...) that have been pointed out. Seriously, if you read the last blog, I said the author in my head couldn't find the story and the desk was covered in papers?

I finally got the memo from the guy; turns out, all the stuff you guys've pointed out to me? Probably four to six pages worth.

The rest of the paperwork?

All of it was issues with the storyline, how it was going, where it was going, what was going to happen... you get the drift.

The author then wrote two suggestions for me to decide (since I'm the asshole who has to sign this crap... being the primary personalty is such a drag sometimes):

1: Complete overhaul, which means getting all the files related to Vasto Lorde and loading them into this nice little incinerator I got just down the hall. It also means you guys'll be waiting even damn longer while I get the team into the Story Room for planning.

2: Vasto Lorde goes into cold storage... a.k.a it's gonna disappear from my mind permanently in about... eh, I give it a week, week an' half tops.

By now, you can guess which I've gone with.

So, as of now the story is Cancelled, but if anyone wants to pick it up and take this egg that I picked up from Bradledew and hatch it fully, go for it.

And if you check my blog after this you'll see where I was gonna take the story, as well as an announcement.

It's been a blast writing this (when it flowed anyways).