The forces of the Dark One are on the Rise, poised to strike at the heart of Equestria. Can Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and the others weather the storm, or will it consume them?
Dark times are falling on Equestria. Though the Moon Kingdom has returned, the Dark One is gathering his forces, preparing to strike out at the Princess of Friendship in order to lay claim to what belongs to Him.
It will take everything that Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Luna, and Nightingale has to win.
They will need it, for Twilight's sanity hangs in the balance.
The Guardian of Darkness comes, and his arrival will shake the foundations of Equus.
A yawn from her partner distracted Corporal Silent Aegis’s thoughts. She gave him a raised brow. “Didn’t get enough sleep?” White Tail shook his head.
“Nah, just a little bored; now that all of the raids are done, going back to ordinary Guard-work is a little boring.” The Helix- a horned variant of the Nocturne race -grimaced. “I didn’t even get a chance to clobber some of the more useless nobles; my battalion was only on standby.” Aegis narrowed her slitted pupils at her partner.
Aegis started tapping the ground in irritation with her left hind hoof. Like White Tail, she was an offshoot of the Nocturne race; hers was the seldom-seen Night Satyrs. Instead of four hooves, Aegis’ front legs ended in a pair of clawed feet. Her backside was covered in fur that was of a different color and texture than the rest of her, ending with a pair of cloven hooves. The overall body shape she sported showed that she was both bipedal and quadrupedal.
“Look, rookie; the reason why we’re on Night-Guard is because all of that is done; the Chief thinks that this would be the opportune time for those idiots to try something. And since she’s stuck in Canterlot with her X.O., we’re here to make sure nothing happens to their home stomping grounds.” White Tail glared at his partner.
“Aegy, you’re preaching to the choir here; I know what the Chief said! It doesn’t make this kind of detail any less boring.” They both glared at each other for a couple of minutes; finally, Aegis sighed.
“Okay, you’re right; this gig is dull. But Papa always said ‘better a dull Guard job than one with excitement; at least nopony is getting hurt that way.’ I happen to agree with him.” Aegis used her tribe’s unique magic to levitate a trio of pebbles around her head. White Tail rolled his eyes. Suddenly, his horn flared, causing him to yelp. “What was that?!”
The Helix stallion shook his head, then started channeling shadow mana in his horn. He snarled. “We’ve got company! A whole bunch of shadow-spawn are heading this way!” He then galloped off in the direction of the Everfree Forest, Aegis but a moment behind him.
Roseluck was on her way home from a late visit with Fluttershy. A rustle from the bushes along the side of the trail caused the mare to turn. She started to scream as three shadowy creatures lunged at her. Before they were even able to get to her, however, three dark blurs slammed into them; one from above, and two from an adjoining path.
The three members of Twilight’s Dusk Guard surrounded the hapless earth pony mare as more shadow-wraiths moved in. Another three groups came from three other directions. One of the groups had shadow-mages with them that began to channel their unique magic in an anti-magic field.
However, they didn’t get far before yet another group arrived and started to rip them apart. The new ones then helped the trio of Guards-ponies in laying waste to the rest of the other spawn.
After a quick yet intense battle, Silent Aegis was able to get a closer look at the shadowy creatures that had helped them. Unlike the majority of shadowlings, shadow-spawn, and shadow-wraiths, these ones had clearly defined equine features. Aegis blinked; these were actually shadow-ponies.
One of them approached and bowed before Aegis. “Are you the local leader of She of Magic’s Guard?” the shadow-pony- a mare by tone of voice -asked. Aegis nodded.
“I am one of them. Thank you for aiding us; that could have gone a lot worse.” The shadow-pony nodded.
“It was much, much worse than that, as there was no less than ten groups sent to foal-nap specific ponies in order to draw out the Elements and She of Friendship.” The shadow-pony dropped a scroll at Aegis’ paws. “Please send this message from our Master, the Servant of Darkness. The next attack will happen soon, and will continue to do so until she returns that which belongs to him.” She and the other shadow-ponies then turned into blobs of shadow before flowing away towards the edge of Everfree Forest.
Aegis scowled at the sealed scroll. “I don’t like this, but we’ve got little choice. White Tail, you and Thunder Wing”- she gestured to the Nocturne stallion -”escort Roseluck back home. I got a scroll to deliver.” She grabbed it in one of her paws and shifted to bipedal stance before launching herself in the direction of the Castle of Friendship. The other two helped the shivering earth pony up before escorting her home.
Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash were enjoying some late evening reading. All of a sudden, a flare from the nearby dragonscale candle heralded an incoming message. Two scrolls- one ordinary one sealed with Twilight’s Royal Crest, the other ebony colored with a seal of crossed sword and oaken staff -dropped out of the puff of dragon magic.
Twilight opened the one with her Crest first. Her curious expression quickly turned to into one of concerned anger. She turned to her mate. “Rainbow Dash, listen to this.”
Chief,
The official report will be delayed until the morning, but this couldn’t wait. At the time of my writing this, Ponyville was attacked by several groups of shadow-wraiths. As you informed us that this might be the case we were well prepared.
However, what is troubling is that those of my wing that were present for the assault were aided by a small cadre of shadow-ponies, sent by one that calls himself ‘the Servant of Darkness'. Their leader left the scroll I sent along with this one to be delivered to you; she also said that the attacks would continue until you returned that which belonged to her Master to him. I would have read it myself, but I recognized that it had an immolation charm set to burn it if anypony other than its intended recipient opened it.
I will endeavour to let you know if more attacks occur; we can’t rely on the one that calls himself the ‘Servant of Darkness’, as I have reason to suspect his motives.
In response, I’ve called in the rest of my wing; we will endeavor to do our best to protect your home.
Silent Aegis
Rainbow Dash scowled. “Looks like the Dark One’s powers are returning, but it’s too soon. He shouldn’t have that much available.” The cyan alicorn frowned. “What I don’t get is why there are Shadow-ponies helping us; they seldom interact with those on this plane.”
Twilight frowned as well. “It probably has something to do with this ‘Servant of Darkness’ that Aegy talked about. Let’s see what he has to say.” Breaking the seal on the other scroll, Twilight began to read this one out loud.
To She of Friendship and She of Light,
I trust that this missive finds you both well; however, I have pressing concerns that you must know of.
As you are no doubt aware, He whom you call the ‘Dark One’ has begun to attack Ponyville. What you may not be aware of is that the attack that was thwarted this evening was but a fraction of what He had originally sent. I have done my best to stem the tide, but my powers are limited. I can only do so much without that which belongs to me.
You should make preparations if you wish to keep it out of His hooves; the attacks are only going to get worse from here on out, and there is only so much I can do to stop Him without Him being aware that it is me. Once those of His forces under my partial control complete a stated task, my aid will end. The best thing for all of us is for you to bring that which will end this to me. The opportunity will soon present itself, though when that will happen specifically is anypony’s guess.
Best Regards;
Servant of Darkness
Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight. “I know what you’re thinking Twi, and I’m already ahead of you; I just sent a hard light copy to Ponyville to aid in its defense. We risk more leaving our posts.” Twilight reluctantly nodded.
“As much as I want to rush to Ponyville’s aid, we can’t leave our post here as of yet until ‘Tia and Luna get back from Prance. That won’t be for another two weeks at least.” The purple alicorn had a scowl on her muzzle as she continued. “I really fear that there’s more going on here than we know; I can’t help but to mistrust this ‘Servant of Darkness.’ If he’s what I think he is, then it could be all one elaborate ruse.” Rainbow shook her head.
“I dunno Twi; the Dark One doesn’t usually allow anypony connected to Him to call themselves that, as that’s usually a sign that they worship Melanie. Despite His chief power being Darkness, He and She are bitter enemies.”
Twilight scowled. “I still don’t trust this though; something inside of me tells me that I should be suspicious. The best sort of thing for me is to make sure that what Luna gave me recently remains intact; who knows what will happen if it doesn’t.” Rainbow started at that; none of this sounded like Twilight.
<That’s because it is not her thoughts,> Serenity said softly in her heart. <Twilight is heeding what she thinks is the voice of Dusk, but is not. Don’t interfere child,> she admonished Rainbow; the mare had been ready to contradict Twilight’s statement. <That which speaks to her is already overreaching, but any interference will break the tentative connection she shares with Dusk. This must run its course.> Rainbow sighed internally with frustration, but held her tongue.
“Well, getting one of your doppelgangers in place will do wonders, at least until we can get there.” Twilight snorted in frustration. “Just when I think we’re going to get some peace, this happens.”
Rainbow shook her head. “I’ve honestly been waiting for the other horseshoe to drop Twi; ever since the Gate returned, we’ve been living on borrowed time. These attacks are only a fraction of what the Dark One has available. At least we know that we have a pony on the inside; trouble is, we can’t be sure of his motives beyond destroying his ‘Master.’”
Twilight frowned. “It’s not that I mistrust him Rainbow; even the Dark Priesthood doesn’t call itself by those terms. Anypony that does without a true Dark Blessing usually dies from advanced mana poisoning. I only suspect him because of the timing.”
Rainbow yawned. “Well, I think we should probably hit the hay Twi. My Ponyville body-double is on automatic; I need some lovin’ and some sleep; in that order.” Twilight blinked; Rainbow was looking at her with bedroom eyes.
“Oh, I agree,” the purple mare said, her own eyes filling with lust. She lifted her partner and moved her over to their bed before jumping on top of her.
For the rest of the late evening, neither one said anything; words were superfluous anyway.
Darkswirl looked down impassively at the shadow-pony mare that stood before him. “Are you certain that the message was sent?” She shook her head.
“I gave it to their leader mi’lord, but I have no way to confirm that she received it or not. My troop crossed over after as you requested.” Darkswirl nodded in terse satisfaction.
“You have done as expected. Return to your group and prepare for the next influx.” The mare bowed and trotted off.
The ebony-coated pegacorn was about to move onto one of the other reports from his other teams when he was interrupted by yet another of his servants. “Lord Darkswirl, word has come from Ponyville; the Alicorn of Light was spotted patrolling the outskirts of the town. She caught another of the False Master's groups and eliminated them.” Darkswirl nodded.
“As expected; it is most likely one of her hard light duplicates. Make certain that our own forces are nowhere near the town. She will likely be around for the next few days, but only at night.” Darkswirl gazed off into the distance. “She and the Alicorn of Magic will likely step up patrols in the Everfree Forest as well.” He snorted. “All too predictable; I tried to warn him that such was futile.” He turned to the stallion standing before him. “I want you to also send word to the ones watching the False Master’s targets. We must make certain that they are unharmed; I will deal personally with the ones that he’s preparing so that they will do what I expect.” The stallion bowed and then soon left as well.
Darkswirl spent the next few minutes going over reports from his various crews. As expected, twenty-five percent of what he had sent out was destroyed by the traps laid by his ‘Master’s’ servants. He snorted in dark amusement; it wasn’t like such losses would ever affect those that served him.
As part of the Power he possessed, any and all that were tied directly to Darkswirl could be revived by him at any time, though he was careful to do so only when needed. The Dark One hadn’t lived as long as He had by being stupid.
Then again, one could argue that going against such beings as the Essences was a hallmark of stupidity. Darkswirl snorted yet again.
Once he was certain that his efforts were paying off as he expected them to, he closed his eyes in order to prepare for the next stage of his plans.
As the pegacorn opened his eyes, he once more saw- with a deep sense of belonging -the hills of the lands he called his own. He turned at the staccato clop of of small hooves behind him.
Melanie, the Essence of Darkness, was standing there. As was usual at these times, he was brought up short at the love in her eyes. He sat down with a heavy sigh. “Things are spiraling faster than I was expecting them to,” he said to the foal-like being.
She nodded. “Yes, they are, and they will continue to do so.”
Darkswirl looked at the being that had been such a comfort to him. “Can we be certain that the Alicorn of Magic will have what it takes to fight that which torments her? Little LuLu was unable to.” Melanie looked at him reprovingly.
“I may have no connection to Twilight- that is my sister’s place -but even I can tell you that there’s no comparison. That Greater Demon of Envy had years worth of rejection and malaise to work off of. The Demon plaguing Twilight has already overreached itself several times already; it’s only a matter of time before it crosses the line.” Melanie smiled; it wasn’t a nice smile. “When it does, we will finally be rid of them. Twilight is like her mentor; she won’t just bind it away. She will bless it in much the same way as Celly blessed the one of Pride that tormented her, then kill it.”
Darkswirl frowned. “How exactly is that going to matter? I mean, we will no longer have to deal with the Demons of Fear, but there’s still the other Demonic Families to deal with.” Melanie’s smile grew.
“That’s because, in the history of Equus, no Bound or Chosen Alicorn has rendered Judgement upon any of the Greater Demons. Even LuLu was unwilling.” Melanie snorted. “At any rate, should even one of the Greater Demons be Blessed by a Bound Alicorn, so the same will happen to them all; the Heart of Harmony will make certain of it.” She smiled again. “Once that occurs, Hope herself will descend upon the remaining Greater Demons- all of which, save Fear, have been Bound in the Seventh Gate of Hel since LuLu was freed from her Nightmare -and utterly destroy them before moving on to the Damned Dragon Lord’s spawn. That will free the remainder of any under demonic possession or oppression; both Gaia and Serenity will ensure that those freed will suffer no consequence.”
“I see; well, that will most certainly help in the short term.” Darkswirl sighed heavily. “I-I'm so tired Melanie,” he said, tears forming in his eyes. “I’m so tired of being forced to do His bidding, watching Him do so much evil.” The tears started to fall as Darkswirl continued. “Millennia of watching all of this, and being nearly powerless to do anything about it.”
Melanie placed her hoof on Darkswirl’s right front leg in a gentle benediction. “It is not your fault child; you have done the best that you could. All that remains for you now is to wait for that which is yours to be restored to you.”
The ebony pegacorn looked at the Essence of Darkness sadly. “Isn’t there another way at all?” She shook her head.
“Even a particle remaining would be enough, and this would drag on further.” Melanie’s expression grew firm. “However, I have made it plain to the others that should you choose not to, i will still use my Power to preserve you. No matter the cost.” She stomped her hoof in anger. “Damn that Star Swirl! You have already gone through so much; first the ritual they used on you that should have killed you; then by you being forced to rip your own horn from your head to halt his Binding.” Her anger grew. “If it weren’t for my sister’s, I would have drawn him into Darkness and tore his soul apart! He had no right to do what he did, no matter what his reasons were!”
Darkswirl just shrugged. “That never stopped him; you know that.” He ran a fetlock over his muzzle to wipe away his tears. “In any case, what is done is done. I will do what I need to; I just wanted to be certain that there is no other recourse.”
“There is none; the Ritual was thorough. It pains me that you will have to die to be reborn, but the alternative is to wait for the other to grow up. And I do not wish to force that upon the child; she is still far too innocent. She should be allowed to have a simple life, filled with song.”
Darkswirl nodded. As Melanie faded away, he gazed once more at the lands he could never call home.
“Soon beloved; I will be there soon. Then, the Darkness will be able to embrace Sol’s Light.”
Twilight watched as Sunset paced back and forth. The two were not in her office, but were actually in Raven Brightmoon’s.
Raven was Celestia’s personal assistant, as well as the Secretary of the Interior. It was her responsibility to make sure that Canterlot ran as smoothly as it did. She was the liaison between the royal houses and the common pony.
And Celestia would never be half as effective as she was without this seemingly ageless mare.
Twilight shook her head to dismiss maudlin speculation. “Sunset, you need to stop worrying. A few hundred shadow-spawn isn’t going to be able to do much of anything with Rainbow watching from her Realm. We’ve got ponies from my guard on all of its citizens, plus ten on each of the disaster trio.”
Sunset- who had been muttering under her breath almost non-stop, looked up at her fellow alicorn. “What? Oh, Ponyville’s safe. No, I’m impatient because Discord asked us to be here, and then he makes us wait. I know he’s all good now, but this is not the time for pranks.”
“Oh Sunny; you should know by now that this is the best time for pranks. As Pinke would tell you, laughing away the ghosties works wonders.” The two mares looked up to see a smirking Draconequus hovering next to the only austentatious piece of furniture in the office; the chandelier. “Besides, Chaos waits for no-one, but can make others wait on it.”
Sunset rolled her eyes. “Well, you made us wait here for like, three hours. If you yourself was going to be like the human doctors, you should have told me.”
Discord shook his head. “No, you both had to be here so that our foe wouldn’t know to look for you. I’m right on time; the geasa on me will lift at precisely four-forty.”
Twilight frowned. “Wait, this is the precise time you first showed up after taking the Elements six years ago.” Discord huffed.
“Yes, remind me of my chimera days why don’t you.” He chuckled. “No, little miss-bookworm, this was before I took the Elements. In fact, this time now is why I was only able to do what I did in that fight. I lost because I challenged the wrong pony.” As the minute hand on the new clock model on Raven’s wall hit 4:40, he began to glow.
“Finally! I have more power at my disposal now than I did then, but having my memories blocked from everypony but moi is so annoying. So, story time.” He waved a paw, causing a polka-dotted chair to appear next to Twilight’s”
“So, little miss bookworm; why do you think you won so handily? Because I wasn’t toying with you, I assure you. Discorded ponies don’t break from the mold by a simple memory spell, and you still needed the elements for it to work.”
“You already told us this! Clover the Clever sealed you away to burn all of the Chaotic mana you had as a result of your creation! I don’t see what that has to do with any of this Discord.” Discord, for once, was actually scowling at Twilight.
“Oh, certainly, it did so. But then, I was able to gather more after being sealed in stone with the Elements.” He waved a paw at the direction of Ponyville. “Once I escaped, I was able to access the stored power of one thousand years worth of chaotic events. Not much in Equestria, but the minotaur are wonderfully chaotic.”
“No, if you had gotten there when I first escaped, I would have had the six off you dancing to my tune like so many parasprites. The reason I was able to get to the Elements is that, at the time, Celly and little Lulu were busy trying to contain everything.”
“What really happened was this…”
Raven watched impassively as a book fluttered past her, dropping explosive dung bombs. Already, there were several very large holes in the cobblestones from the bombs.
Another one- this one with teeth -latched onto her tail. Raven went from being amused to annoyed, and channeled a burst of Harmonic power to Cleanse the street.
This, predictably, brought Discord. “Ah, so there’s another Harmonic user. Pity; I thought by turning the Chapel into gingerbread would keep you all out of my tail, but I guess not all are that lucky, eh?” This was a purely rhetorical statement.
“All I see before me is a clown that didn’t learn the first time. Go bug Celestia and Luna; maybe this time you’ll actually get something to stick,” Raven said coolly. “I have business elsewheres.”
“I don’t like your tune,” he said, frowning. Another Discord popped up behind her and grabbed her back hooves. “Fortunately, I can always change that.”
Raven glared at the chimera. “Let. Me. Go. Now. Before. I. Cut. Off. Your. Tail.”
Discord shrugged. “There are two of me, so you’ll only get one shot. Anyway, I need to see if my little trick still works.” He made to poke her in the rump, where an inkwell and scroll was prominently displayed.
Before he could do so however, two swipes from a previously invisible blade cut off the tails of both the doppelganger and the real Discord. The fake flashed into a pile of horseshit while the original let out an earsplitting shriek. His eyes glowed red as he glared at Raven with murderous intent.
However, Raven wasn’t finished. Two more slices chopped off both wings before the blade flashed to the base of his neck. It drew itself a third of the way through his head, causing him to screech, as all his chaotic energies were now devoted to keeping him alive.
The Bound blade started using Harmonic energies to burn away the one thousand years worth of stored power in the chimera. Discord watched in disbelief as Raven began to change. She grew taller and more stately, fully as large as Celestia. Her horn grew longer, and wings appeared. Her Cutie Mark flashed, fully revealing itself as one that Discord knew all too well.
Astrolia, Bound Alicorn of the Stars, trotted forward and touched her horn to Discord’s goat head. He cried out as his own memories were bound by a geasa from the fourth eldest pegacorn. She snorted when she was finished.
“I said all those years ago that I pitied you for what they did. I had the same for Eris and her daughters. But I will not let you do what you are doing at my Enemies’ direction.” Astrolia looked on as Discord’s tail reattached itself. She pulled Starlight away from his neck slowly, and watched as the wound closed.
Discord screeched as he burst away to Ponyville, as his other double went and retrieved the Elements.
Astrolia rolled her eyes. “All too predictable really.”
“So, as you can see, Equestria is once again in the debt of somepony who will never collect, just as much as I am. I will be forever grateful for Astrolia’s sympathy; I would never have met my friends if that wasn’t the case. Or my sisters, but that’s not part of this tale.” Discord smiled at the two mares as he rocked in what had been at the start an ordinary love seat, albeit a small one.
“Well, this is a nice story and all-- but not only is there no evidence to confirm it, I’m wondering why you’re telling us now,” Sunset said. “Aside from the fact that my half-sister is involved- yet again -in stopping yet another threat to Equestria, this doesn’t really have anything to do with what’s happening in Ponyville.” Sunset snorted. “That’s just like her. But what was so important that you had to tell that tale?”
The smirk Discord was wearing fell at this. “Aheh, well, the two books in question were a pair that Clover had written.” He sat down two books that had mysteriously appeared. “One was just a general ‘Book of Prophecy.’ None of them are attributed to the Temple of Chronos, but the one underlined one on page 626.” He chuckled. “That number’s got me all in Stitches.”
Twilight had already opened the aforementioned book, leaving the other to Sunset. She stiffened at the underlined passage. “And in the seventh month of the Year of the Aurora, the Child of Friendship shall journey to the lands of Shadow to save the heart of Honesty, Generosity, and Loyalty.” She looked at the date. “T-that’s preposterous! This pre-dates Equestria by three millennia! Just how much of my life has been scripted?!” She slammed the book shut in disgust.
“All of that crap about prophecy, and the first thing you try and do is the same claptrap. Yes, I know that I followed the ‘Mare in the Moon’ prophecy to Ponyville, but that ultimately became a destiny I chose. How often do I have to fear the same for me and my friends; this one is ominous.”
Sunset looked up in confusion. “Why were these passages underlined? ‘Seek not to discount the words of the past, for there is wisdom to be found there.’ Then there’s this one; ‘You have little to fear but Fear itself; but if you master your fears, you can change the world.’ The last one at least makes some sense; ‘A redeemed soul is a friend for life, for their words carry wisdom that is learned via hard lessons.’” She shook her head as she read the cover. “‘Clover’s Book of Life Lessons.’ Sounds like a self help manual.”
Twilight didn’t get a chance to respond, as at that moment a dragonfire-imbued scroll materialized in front of her. She quickly unsealed and read the scroll. “Clever Marigold was on another assignment watching for rogue changelings. She said that a small band- around twenty -were last spotted heading for Apploosa.” She closed her eyes to briefly send a light-pulse message to Rainbow Dash. Her eyes suddenly flew open in fright.
“Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom went with Braeburn to Appleloosa! Their cart was just found on the trail to the south of Whitetail, with a slew of dead changelings. Rainbow says that a hard light duplicate of her spotted Bloom’s bow on one of them. I don’t know where the fillies are now, but they’re likely headed to danger. We should have been looking or changelings too; Metamorpha is still at large.”
Twilight summoned her saddlebags to her. “Sunset, I’m giving you temporary Regency. This can’t wait until Celestia and Luna return; those three girls are the very heart of their sisters. Rainbow was right; we should have kept Scoots here. Whatever is leading them is not Applejack’s cousin, but I don’t think it's a changeling either. I have to go now; Rainbow’s already on her way back here. Hold the fort until she gets here.”
Sweetie Belle shivered as she sat in front of the small fire that Apple Bloom had painstakingly built. Her shiver, however, was not because she was cold; rather, it was a result of the fear she had been dealing with all day.
She, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo were deep in the Everfree Forest, in a part where even the indigenous creatures were seldom found. While that meant that the three fillies didn’t have to worry about cockatrices turning them into stone or getting chomped on by a Timberwolf, the nature of this particular part of the forest wasn’t exactly homey.
Then again, unless you were Zecora, homey wasn’t a word that described the Everfree anyway.
Sweetie shivered again as a howl sounded off to the left. Scootaloo flared her wings, which began to spark as she channeled static from the air into them; it was the lowest form of Arcane Lightning Wing there was, and practically every pegasus knew of it.
Apple Bloom’s ears twitched at the howl. “Huh; that sounds like an ordinary wolf howl. Not good.”
Scootaloo scowled at the yellow filly. “What?! Apple Bloom, a regular wolf is a shade better than a Timberwolf!” The earth pony shook her head.
“Oh sure, fire will scare the poor thing off, but that’s about it.” Bloom’s expression soured. “But that’s all; my horseshoes and ribbons won’t work against them.”
At that reminder, Scootaloo grew silent, remembering just what Apple Bloom’s special silver horseshoes were really capable of…
Scootaloo dodged to the left as another of the small force of changelings lunged at her. Two more were off to the side, out cold from a pair of bucks from a very angry earth pony filly. Another three were still trying to put out their tails, while a fourth writhed in its death throes from ruptured eardrums, a result of a sonic screech from a seemingly helpless unicorn filly.
“Where’s your cousin?!” the pegasus shouted to Apple Bloom. The earth pony didn’t respond or a moment, as two more changelings made to grab her. She dodged both of them, then delivered a pair of quick bucks to their heads. A pair of cracks signified a pair of broken necks, adding the two to the four Apple Bloom had already felled.
“Ah saw him run off just before this lot attacked! He probably went looking for the patrol that was supposed to meet with us. Ah should have listened to mah sister, and cancelled the trip!”
The changelings at this point had once more stopped; the fact that six of the twenty had been killed by one half-grown earth pony gave them pause. The leader pointed its horn skyward, sending a bolt of energy into the air. The three fillies could see that even more were headed their way.
Apple Bloom snarled. “Ah’ve had about all I can take from you’s. Let’s see if you like what My Most Precious Possession can do!” With that, she pulled the tie that kept her ribbon secured to her head, and threw said ribbon at the leader.
The seemingly-innocuous object- filled with the enchanted hopes and dreams of a growing filly -hit the leader in the horn. Instinctively, the changeling sucked up the love energy in the bow and shared it with its fellows.
This left them all open to the spell woven into the fabric of the hairbow. Scarlet lightning travelled down the legs and over the wings of the changelings, as the willing sacrifice of her precious dreams turned the pooled love into hatred. The remaining fourteen changelings collapsed as their love-glands burst.
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle stared at Apple Bloom. They never knew the depths that such a kind, gentle filly would go to to protect herself and those she loved. Apple Bloom tossed down a flash pellet. The clearing soon filled with a pungent smoke that did nothing to the ponies.
However, the approaching changelings veered away from the enchanted smoke; heavily laced with both oleander and cleansed moonflower, it would have done the same to them as well.
The fillies used the cover of the smoke to get under the tree line; once under a blessed sandalwood tree, they slumped in relief.
A few moments later, the three fillies heard the gallop of hooves. Braeburn soon showed up on the trail. He slowed down when he saw all of the dead changelings near it. He looked around for the fillies, and sighed with relief as he saw them under the treeline.
Braeburn walked in their direction, seeming to shiver a little as he approached the treeline. Apple Bloom’s eyes narrowed as she caught the shiver; this, added to some other clues she had, cemented some things in her mind.
“Cousin Apple Bloom! Thank the stars that you’re all right! When the wagon ran off like that, Ah was plum worried.” He gave a stern gaze to Sweetie Belle. “That’s why we don’t cast spells we don’t know lil filly; hard telling what they’ll do.” Shaking his head, he gestured to the cart.
Hesitatingly, the three fillies walked over to the lanky stallion, who was shaking his head at the state of the object. “Two broken axles, and three broken wheels. This is going to take days to fix. Well, there’s no help for it; we’ll have to make camp until the patrol arrives.” Braeburn smiled down at Apple Bloom, who didn’t smile back. “At least Ah get to spend more quality time with my favorite lil cousin.”
“Ah think there’s a problem with that,” Apple Bloom said softly. “Mah cos is still in Appleloosa Ah think; cause y’all sure ain’t him. Heck, y’all aren’t even a real pony.”
With that startling statement, the earth pony filly spun around on her front hooves and delivered a two-point apple buck to the lower part of Braeburn’s flank, just below his right Cutie Mark. The silver horseshoes she was wearing glowed brightly as they connected. The stallion let out shrill inequine shriek as he was thrown tail over teakettle into the nearby sandalwood tree.
As he landed, his shape morphed, becoming twisted. The creature raised its head and glared at the earth pony.
How?! You’re not a priest! You’re not an alicorn! You’re not a pegacorn! You’re a weak EArth Pony filly! How could somepony like you kill a shadow wraith?!
“Mah family has worshipped the Lady of Life since well before my grandsire’s grandsire was born,” Apple Bloom said softly. “Ah knew just what you were when Ah felt the first tickle from mah shoes. Granny isn’t just teaching me the way to make Zap Apple Jam; Ah’m learning all of the old Apple ways.”
The wraith let out a screech of pain and anger as the rest of its life force faded. Apple Bloom snarled as she felt the last of the mis-born’s energy go off in another twisted spell. The sky darkened as the illusionary magic took hold. The shape of the clouds above took on sinister qualities as well.
None of this bothered Scootaloo, as she could see through the illusion. However, Sweetie Belle’s already troubled mind- due to the artful hijacking of her earlier animation spell -was unable to handle what she was seeing. She screamed and fled into the forest.
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo both shouted, and chased after her. Neither one noticed the arrival of a certain striped mare.
“When a sour wind does blow, there’s little else to know; By the sounding of Death’s Drums, Something Wicked This Way Comes.”
With this little macabre rhyme, Zecora followed after the fillies, knowing that others weren’t far behind.
Scootaloo and Apple Bloom had found Sweetie Belle next to a small pond, shivering in fright. After getting a fire going, Bloom brewed a pot of a strange, sweet-smelling tea. The fragrance was enough to chase the fog that the illusion held over Sweetie’s fragile senses, breaking the hold the twisted magic had over her.
“Sweetie Belle, listen; that ‘Animate Object’ spell ya cast was spot on. That Whatever-it-was posing as mah cousin Braeburn- who never left Appleloosa -used its own magic to hijack it.”
“H-how did you figure t-that out Bloom?” the unicorn filly said, her word coming out in fearful stutters.” Apple Bloom snorted.
“Lotsa little things, and one big thing. For starters, his accent was forced; allus can tell when somepony is acting like they’re a country pony, just like allus can tell that ya sister fakes that Canterlotian accent she has.” Despite her fear, this caused Sweetie to let out a giggle.
“Another thing was the fact that ‘Cousin Braeburn’ kept calling me ‘his favorite lil cousin.’” The filly snorted. “Cos calls mah sister that, not me; Ah’ve never really been round him outside of reunions, so Ah’s don’t know him as well as AJ and Big Mac do. Ah’m closer to Babs’ side of the family anyhow.” Apple Bloom took a sip of the tea before continuing.
“The biggest thing though, was when he first showed up. Mah horseshoes done an shocked me something fierce; Granny Smith allus said that they’d only do that ‘in tha presence of Somethin’ Wicked And Downright Spooky.’” She snorted. “The only other time they ever did that was when all those fake Pinkies were around because of that Mirror Pool.” She snorted again, this time in aggravation. “Ah’s had to work real hard to keep them from glowing after ‘Braeburn’ hijacked a spell that worked fine right up until that moment. Didn’t expect him to make the cart run us to where it did, though Ah do think he was trying to avoid those changelings.”
Scootaloo looked up at that. “Hay, I thought they were working together, but you make it sound as if they weren’t.” Bloom shook her head.
“Ah think they were supposed to, but Ah recognize that lot from the fliers at the Post Office. Them’re some of Metaphorpha’s brood; they’re just as bad- if not worse -than ol’ Sticky Spit.” Bloom spat. “No honor among them at all; the only pony their Queen is in fer is herself.”
Apple Bloom looked up at the angle of Sol. “We’re probably gonna be here for awhile, so’s Ah think we should try and get some sleep.” She reached into one of the pouches of the belt strapped to her barrel and pulled out three small balls. Tossing these to the ground, the shrinking charm she had placed on them was cancelled, causing them to spurt out as a set of sleeping bags.
The three fillies climbed into the bags. Once settled, Apple Bloom passed around some trail bread, along with cups of tea. Meager though it was, it was enough to take the edge off their hunger.
Though they tried, none of the fillies were able to get any sleep that night. Which was why they were up late enough to hear the howling of a wolf.
A rustling of leaves woke Sweetie Belle from a fitful doze. The filly jumped up, lighting her horn to throw a spark at the nearly-dead campfire.
A form along the left side of their camp drew Sweetie’s gaze. The frightened filly moved closer to the fire as what was obviously another of the same creature that had masqueraded as Braeburn slithered its way into the camp.
Apple Bloom leap up suddenly, her hooves glowing brightly. The creature chuckled darkly and waved a claw. The moonlight in her horseshoes dimmed as its energy was sapped.
Before the creature was able to move further into the camp, a shaggy form barreled into it. In moments, the creature was torn apart by a large silver wolf.
Three other mis-born lurched from the treeline. Apple Bloom’s anger rose. With a trumpeting neigh, she called upon her earth pony heritage, and slammed her fore-hooves into the ground. This, coupled with the moonlight streaming into the camp, recharged the blessing within her horseshoes, restoring their magic.
A concussive wave of magic flowed outward from the point of impact. This rendered every misborn present- all save a winged one -into mere motes. Apple Bloom snorted in satisfaction. She turned just as the massive silver wolf barreled into her.
The other fillies watched in shock as Apple Bloom giggled while rolling around with what apparently was a big puppy. “Trevor, ya big goof! Lemme up!” The wolf let her up, a happy doggy grin on his muzzle.
Sweetie Belle blinked as the fact that the wolf suddenly looked familiar to her. She then started to grin. “Trevor, is that really you?” The wolf gave a soft woof. Sweetie jumped up and gave him a hug. “Scootaloo, don’t you you remember? Trevor was one of the puppies we foal-sat that one time we were trying to be Cutie Mark Crusader Foal Sitters!”
Scootaloo blinked, then looked closely at the grinning wolf. “Trevor?” she said softly. Her expression cleared, and she let out a happy yell. “Trevor!” The small orange filly leapt at the wolf in prelude to a glomp for the ages.
All Trevor did was let out a few happy barks and bathed Scootaloo’s muzzle with wolfy kisses. After a few minutes, Scootaloo settled down.
“But how did you get here? You’re not lost or anything, so how did you get here?” Scootaloo asked.
“In order to find you fillies three, young Trevor came with me.” Apple Bloom turned with a big grin to see a very familiar face off to the side.
“Zecora, you made it! So the spells on my bow worked!”
Zecora nodded. “Yes in truth young Earth Mystic; your bow and smoke did guide me well, though the sun and stars did more to tell.”
Apple Bloom blinked. “Um, what does that mean Zecora?” She asked, her one confused.
Zecora only smiled. “Worry not on the words that I just let fall; they are meant to tease and confuse those beyond the fourth wall.”
Everyone not a zebra- filly and wolf -blinked in confusion at this.
Zecora just smiled her enigmatic smile before joining the fillies at their camp fire.
“In case you have not heard, I have come to bring word. She of Friendship is on her way, to come and save you three this day.” The three fillies sighed with relief. Scootaloo looked up at Zecora.
“Is Rainbow Dash with her?” the orange filly asked. Zecora tilted her head in thought.
“What She of Light is doing today I cannot say; she may even be on her way.” Scootaloo sighed and nodded.
The four talked for a few more minutes before the fillies started getting sleepy. Under the watchful gaze of wolf and shaman, the three finally fell into an exhausted sleep.
The next morning, the three ponies, one zebra, and one overgrown wolf waited for Twilight to arrive. While they did, Zecora provided three growling bellies with enough trail bread to settle each, as well as settling her own hunger. Trevor went off to hunt rabbit for breakfast.
While the equines all ate, they talked about little things, instead of the situation they were currently in. This was a tacit agreement to avoid having to think about the fact that they were lost.
Zecora looked up at a growl from the woods surrounding the camp. She stiffened, as that wasn’t Trevor. Suddenly, a very large behemoth charged its way into the camp.
Zecora reacted, though she was already too late. Cages of shadow descended around each of the fillies in her charge. The zebra snorted, and called to the wind.
It answered her call, cutting the behemoth in two.
A snarl came from the tree line. A blast of shadow mana rendered the shaman senseless. Another dealt with Trevor.
However, before the shadow wraith could do anything to the fillies, bands of darkness flared from Sweetie’s horn. The filly was able to free herself, and shorty freed her friends as well.
The wraith chuckled. “Truly honorable prey. It’s a shame you must die.
“Not if I have anything to say about it, misborn.” The wraith’s head separated from its shoulders as Twilight stalked into the clearing. The three fillies clamored around the alicorn.
“Well, it seems as you three have had a bit of an adventure,” Twilight said. She frowned. “Did you pass any archways by any chance?”
Applebloom nodded. “We passed by a pair of stone pillars a little while ago.” She gestured at the trail behind them.
Twilight sighed. “I was afraid of that. Let’s get the wolf and Zecora up; you’ll have to come with me until I can get you to safety. The Forest Heart doesn’t allow for unicorn magic outside of a few spells, so I can’t teleport you back.”
“Can we please get some sleep first? I’m still tired,” Sweetie whined. Twilight giggled.
“Yes Sweetie Belle, we’ll sleep first. It’s not safe to move through the Heart at the moment anyway.”
Twilight built the fire back up as Apple Bloom roused Zecora and Trevor. Twilight smiled at the wolf. “It’s always nice to see you Trevor. “ The wolf gave bathed the mare’s muzzle, causing her to giggle. “Yes, you’re coming too. I hope Cadance doesn’t mind. Get some sleep girls; we’ve got a long day tomorrow.”
“What the?! Are ya sure? Did you double-check?” Applejack exclaimed at the Guards-mare. The pegasus nodded.
“It has been confirmed; the wagon that came and picked up your sister and her filly friends was found among numerous changeling corpses, which turned out to be Metamorpha’s. There’s also reports that Braeburn was found trussed up like a turkey for a gryphon dinner at his home.”
“Ah know how ta spot changelings, and that was mah cous! There’s no way he coulda fooled me!”
“Miss Apple, changelings aren’t the only ones that can shapeshift. We’ve gotten further reports of shadowlings and darklings in the forest.” With that, the mare left.
“Consarnit, Ah told Granny that they needed to stay here!”
“And jest when do ya git off telling me anything Jacqueline Apple? Ah’m that fillies’ guardian, nawt you or ya brother.” Applejack glared at her grandmother. “Besides, she was wearing her horseshoes, and she knows more'n’ a bit of earth runic. Ah’ve been teaching her jest as much as Zecora has.”
“So that was grounds to disregard what Twilight told us?! She’s a princess?”
“It weren’t no royal command, so Ah was under no obligation to follow it.” Granny continued knitting. “Calm yerself down; she’s prolly already on her way to rescue them.”
“They wouldn’t be in danger if they had stayed here!”
Big Mac looked at his sister. “Spotted a shadowling in the south forty yesterday,” he said phlegmatically. She looked at her brother in consternation. “Been escorting Cheerilee to protect her too; changelings went after her.”
Applejack looked up as the door opened. “Rainbow Dash! Ah thought ya went to Canterlot! What’re ya doing here?!”
“My job AJ, and I’m still there too; this is one of my body doubles. Spotted some more darklings, and Quick Quills was found tied up in his basement.” Rainbow ran a hoof through her mane. “Plus, Zecora’s gone too; Fluttershy said that she took Trevor with her.”
Applejack sighed in relief. “There’s no-pony that knows those woods better.”
Rainbow shook her head. “It gets worse; they’ve crossed over into the Dark Heart, so I can’t follow. The path’s closed off. At least I know Twilight found them; She’ll lead them to safety.” She snorted in anger. “Still, none of this should have happened. We got caught flat-hooved.”
“That’s cause somepony don’t know how ta listen,” Applejack groused.
“Pointing hooves ain’t helping AJ,” Big Mac said. Applejack ignored him.
“How’s Rarity and Scoot’s folks taking tha news?” she asked instead. Rainbow’s ears flattened.
“Badly. Scoot’s dad is filing charges against the Mayor. Rarity’s about the same as you, beside herself with worry.” Rainbow Dash snorted. “At least some good has come out of this; Magnum and Pearl have been declared unfit parents, so Rarity has custody of her sister now.” Rainbow rubbed her ears.
Applejack looked at her friend. It was obvious that she hadn’t been sleeping all that well. “Rainbow, ya should try and get some rest, ya look like ya need it.” Rainbow snorted.
“You sound just like Sunset. I’m an alicorn; I don’t need sleep. I’m just stressed out with everything going to Tartarus. And the nobles aren’t helping any.”
AJ frowned. “Yer still having problems with them? Ah thought all of that was cleared up.”
Rainbow sighed in frustration. “We only got those that were stupid enough to try going the mercenary route. The smarter ones are using the media and the bureaucratic process to give us trouble.” She then smirked. “Not that that’s working; it’s illegal to take pictures anywhere near the Palace, even with a telephoto lens. Anyone found does ten years hard labor on the border.”
“Isn’t that a little harsh though?” Applejack asked. “Ah mean, they do have rights.”
Rainbow Dash glared at the earth pony. “They can still print whatever they want. Tell me something though; do you want reporters dogging your steps? Because those laws extend to us Element Bearers as well.”
Applejack blinked. “Huh, didn’t know that actually.” Her expression soured. “After that contempts with the Foal Free Press, Ah don’t really like reporters.”
Big Macintosh let out a snort and left the table. Applejack sighed.
Rainbow’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Is he mad about something?”
“Well, y'all didn’t handle that whole thing so well as Ah recall,” Granny Smith said, not looking up from her knitting. “In fact, ya done dumped a bunch of cold rainwater on that lil filly that looks up to ya.”
Rainbow snorted, this time in anger. “Well, it wasn’t right that they were printing all of that stuff about us. How would you like being called lazy?”
“If tha shoe fits; Ah’ve been called worse in mah time sugarcube. Had me a rival that called me the town cart. Take that to the bank. Applejack done found out her brother’s temper when she tried to spank Apple Bloom. And all because they were being blackmailed.”
“Twilight told me that Princess Celestia had a few choice words when she found out. Which is why the law was extended.” Rainbow Dash ran a hoof through her mane. “Not our finest moment. At least it ended well.”
“Not as far as Big Mac’s concerned it ain’t. He thinks Ah still owe Apple Bloom an apology fer the way Ah treated her. He’s right, but every time Ah try to bring it up, Apple Bloom runs off. Ah don’t know if it’s because she doesn’t wanna be reminded of what happened, or that she thinks she deserves what’s come of her actions. Ah have tried though, as much as Ah think that Ah was still right in my actions.”
Rainbow Dash snorted. “No, you overreacted as much as the rest of us did.” The cyan alicorn sighed. “Still, I think I know what’s going on; she likely doesn’t feel as though she deserves one. I get the impression that she was the voice of reason in all of that, but stuck it out because she’s loyal. Still, we need to apologize to them when Twilight brings them back.”
Applejack frowned. “RD, when ya said tha ya can’t follow cause they’ve crossed over into the Dark Heart, what do ya mean by that? Ah heard Twi say that ya are able to make copies anywhere where there’s light.” Rainbow Dash ran her hoof through her mane in frustration.
“If I could, I would. In fact, once the chance to aid Twi comes up, I’ll be going; I’m not leaving her to fight this battle on her own.” Rainbow stomped her hoof. “There’s only so much I can do without making things worse! The Heart isn’t like most other areas; it’s only been in the area it is now since just before Luna was freed.”
“Every time a pony or other creature uses magic not tied to the Realm of Shadows or the Everfree itself, the Heart simply moves! It’s always near the center of the forest, but never in the same place twice. Scrying for it just does the same thing. The only other path to it leads from the Crystal Empire, but that’s one way from the Heart itself.”
At this point, a knock came at the door. Upon opening it, Applejack found an out-of-breath Spike. “I got a scroll from Cadance! Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, Twist, Featherweight, Silver Spoon, Zecora, and a large silver wolf are there now! The foals are all young adults now, but it’s still them!”
Rainbow Dash facehooved at that. “Ugh! This day gets better and better!”
Several hours earlier…
“Sweetie Belle, please wake up.” Sweetie yawned cutely, blinking up at the purple muzzle above her.
“Hi’ lo, Princess Twilight,” she said sleepily. She blinked again at a pair of high-pitched giggles. “What’s so funny girls?”
“Jest you, sleepyhead,” Apple Bloom said, her accent thicker than normal due to her laughter. Sweetie Belle scrunched her nose up in irritation; this caused Twilight and Zecora to join in. The little unicorn stuck out her tongue.
After a bit, they all settled down. Twilight looked at the overcast sky; the clouds cast shadows that were very disconcerting. She shook herself. “Well, no help for it I guess; we really need to move here soon. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover before I can get you all to safety.”
Apple Bloom looked around her at the trees. While she did recognize most of them, there were a few that were unfamiliar to her. “A crystal oak tree?” she asked, pointing at one. “Ah didn’t know such a thing grew in the Everfree.”
Twilight motioned to the others to start cleaning up the camp as she handed a bowl of trail mix to Sweetie Belle. She then sat next to the yellow filly. “They don’t Apple Bloom; those are trees from another Realm entirely. We’re well past the Heart of the Forest, and into the Trail of the Shadowlands.”
Apple Bloom nodded. “Thought as much; one of Granny’s books done mentioned something about this place. Ah should be more skeered than Ah am, but somethin’ tells me that we’re safe now. And nawt jest because yer here, Princess Twilight.” She frowned. “Ah jest wish I knew what that somethin’ was.”
Twilight giggled at Bloom’s wrinkled nose. The earth pony stuck out her tongue at that, then giggled herself. “Well, it’s all thanks to you actually. That last stomp you did woke up Earth and Sky. All shadow creatures that survived the battle have been destroyed, and that includes the three remaining Behemoths. You’re quite the little powerhouse there Bloom, and your Loyalty to your friends shows through.”
Apple Bloom tilted her head in thought as she helped Sweetie Belle roll up her sleeping bag. Frowning a little, she pulled a cord that caused the bag to shrink so that she could place it in her pouch. Finally, she looked up at the alicorn. “Ah’m Loyalty too. Huh, kinda thought Ah’d be Honesty, like mah sister.”
“You would think that, wouldn’t you,” Twilight teased, ruffling the filly’s mane. “But that’s not always the case. Your brother, for example, is a shoe-in for both Kindness and Loyalty.”
“You see girls, everypony has a little bit of every Element in them. After all, they’re all part of Friendship. However, there are a few exemplary individuals whose nature set them above the rest. These could- and many have in the past -bear one of the Seeds from the Tree. And there are even rarer ones whose inclination towards an aspect is so strong, that they’ve made more branches grow.”
Twilight’s horn began to glow as she projected an image of the Tree of Harmony on the ground in front of her. The three fillies gasped as they saw that the Tree was even more beautiful than it was originally.
The five branches had sprouted extra flowering fronds. Within these fronds, five new jewels resided, each bearing a familiar cutie mark. Three of them were the marks of the CMC; the other two were a cloud holding up a ten-ton weight, and a pair of candy canes entwined. Even more surprising, these were tied by branches next to a smaller heart knot, one in the shape of a spoon.
“Each one of you have gone out of your way to include Silver Spoon in your activities in spite of the way she and Diamond Tiara acted towards you. Because of this, the Magic of Friendship has touched her heart, as it once did mine. You didn’t have to do it; no pony would have held it against you if you hadn’t. But you were still willing.” Twilight used her hoof to dash away the happy tears as she pointed to a number of smaller gems, many of which bore the marks of other ponies. One larger one close to the spoon-shaped indentation bore Diamond Tiara’s mark.
“You wouldn’t have any reason to know, but you’ve managed to touch the heart of a selfish filly who really just wanted friends. Once everything is settled, Cherrilee will be taking custody of her niece. You’ll see a very different filly than you were used to, and all of that is thanks to the letters both Scootaloo and Twist wrote.” Twilight cancelled the image.
“Anyway, that’s a tale for another day. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover before we make it to the Path of Crystal, and I want to get there as soon as possible. Your sisters are beside themselves with worry, and your parents are fit to be tied. Let’s go; hup two, hup two.” Twilight started trotting a military trot, causing the other ponies- and wolf -to giggle and chuckle as they joined her.
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Trevor all stared at the pair of shimmering pillars in awe. Twilight smiled. “Girls, this is what’s known as the Path of Crystal. It leads from the Dark Heart of the Everfree, through the Valley of Dreams, to the Southern Crystal Berry Slopes in the Crystal Empire.”
“As you can see, you four are expected,” the purple alicorn said, waving her hoof at the barrier. “The Path knows who is meant to travel it, and will only accept those that have need.”
“You won’t be joining us, Princess?” Sweetie Belle said sadly. Twilight shook her head.
“This Path isn’t for alicorns. Even if I had no other task, I would still not be able to walk here. To do so would be to invite disaster, as the enchantments laid protect the Path so long as an alicorn never walks it.” She snorted. “The only reason why we found it is because of you four; had it just been me, the Gate would have shifted the entrance to another place and time.”
“Who would design a path to do that? Star Swirl the Bearded?” Apple Bloom asked sarcastically. Twilight snickered.
“Not this time, though you’re right in that he would have done something like this. No, this is high-level alicorn magic tied to the Power of three different Realms. Notice the banner of stars around the symbols?” The three fillies nodded. “Well, that’s a universal symbol for the Stars or Magic. It’s a symbol commonly connected to The Bound Alicorn of the Stars.”
She shook out her wings and her head to clear her mind. “Anyway, that’s something for a later day. We need to get you three to a place of safety.” Twilight used her wings to push the three fillies- and one overgrown wolf pup -closer to the Gate. Zecora moved up as well.
As soon as the four crossed onto the clean stone in front of the Gate, a flash of magic heralded the raising of a starry barrier. An image of a starry alicorn appeared before them. “She’s like Trixie; always has to put on a show,” Twilight murmured softly, a smirk on her muzzle.
The image gazed down at the four before it. After a moment, the image began to speak. “I see before me the Three Ponies and Two Guardians that were fated to walk the Path of Dreams this day. State the names you were blessed with so that the Guardians within will be satisfied.”
After a few moments, Sweetie Belle stepped forward hesitatingly. “M-my name is Sweetie Tart Belle, of Ponyville. Youngest daughter of three to Magnum Opus and White Pearl Belle of Ponyville.” The others- including Twilight and Trevor -blinked at that.
“Huh; never thought Ah’d see tha day where Sweetie would say her real name. Oh, my turn, sorry there starry mare,” the last was said to the starry mare. She only smiled patiently. Apple Bloom cleared her throat and began to speak; this time in a much clearer, faintly upper-crust Manehattan accent. “My Name is Apple Bloom Apple, of Sweet Apple Acres. I am the youngest daughter of the late Lord Red Apple, and his wife, Golden Starfruit of the Orange family.”
All eyes turned to Scootaloo. With a huff, the orange pegasus filly stepped forward. “My name is Scootaloo Brightfeather, daughter of Bright Lily and Stern Glow of Ponyville, formerly of Fillydelphia.”
After she stepped back, Trevor padded forward. The wolf opened his muzzle and gave a series of half-growls and barks. What was strange was that, though they couldn’t understand the words, they somehow knew that Trevor’s wolf name was He-Of-The-Silver-Paws, son of He-Of-The-Crimson-Tail and She-Of-The-White-Pelt, Descendants of the Guardians of the Sisters.
After Trevor was done, Zecora stepped forward.
“As anypony who can plainly see, I am Zecora of the Everfree.
Exiled by choice from my native home, The Forest is where I’ve chosen to roam.”
After she finished speaking, the starry alicorn smiled. “Well met all. The door is opened; make haste little ones and Guardians; there are those on the Trail that wait for you.”
The four looked at Twilight as the specter faded. “Go on; this is where we have to part ways.” They all nodded sadly before turning and making their way past the Gate. Once Scootaloo’s tail-tip had passed through, she having hung back the longest, the Gate closed before fading away.
Twilight blinked the tears out of her eyes as she turned to continue on her own journey, one that she wished wasn’t one that she had to complete alone.