Twilight’s happiness to see Cascade again vanished the moment she uttered those words.
“I am here to serve you, Lord Demise...”
Dulcet didn’t have a chance to react before a tentacle of sentient water caught her in the side, twisting around her body and lifting her high into the air. Twilight leaped into action and ignited her horn, letting lose a beam of energy that cut through the water. Dulcet cried out as she fell, only to be stopped just before hitting the ground by Celestia’s cloud of magic.
More water tenticals began springing from Cascade’s body and encircling the princesses.
Twilight swallowed hard as they grew closer, closing in on them at an alarming speed. “How do we fight water?!”
Dulcet, Celestia, and Twilight, with their backs together, charged their horns to face the rising tide surrounding them. Demise observed from the sidelines, thoroughly enjoying the show. “Do whatever you wish with the others, Cascade, but leave my love unharmed.”
The magic they were using on the tightening streams was having little effect, and like giant pythons, they began to coil around the princesses. “Yes, Lord Demise...”
Twilight couldn’t believe what she was hearing, coming from the princess of water. “Cascade, what are you doing?! Why are you helping her unbalance the world?!”
Having no face, the purple princess couldn’t possible tell what she was thinking, but the shimmering form of the Alicorn stomped a hoof angrily, causing the tenticals of water to tighten further. “It’s time for a shift in the balance, my little naive princess. The ponies used to treat us like gods, but now... now, they don’t even remember us! Demise will make them remember us, and we will be worshiped like gods again.”
She stepped a little closer. Twilight could feel the moisture and humidity radiating from her form. “You might not see it yet, but Demise has big plans for us, you especially... I can’t account for her taste in mares, but you do have a certain appeal about you that I...”
Demise scowled at her. “That’s enough, Cascade. Release Twilight.”
The water princess obeyed without question and allowed Twilight to slip from the tenticals that continued to wrap around Dulcet and Celestia. She fell onto the floor, soaking wet and coughing furiously. A shadow came over her, and she looked up to see Demise who had a look of genuine concern about her. “Come, my dear... Give up this notion of following Dulcet and join me...” She had extended a hoof before Twilight, an offering. “It doesn’t have to be like this forever... Soon, everything will be the way we want it to be, and you, Twilight Sparkle, will be my queen for eternity and beyond.”
Dulcet was struggling to free her face from the binds of the water tenticals that were beginning to cover her face, thrashing her head from left to right. “Mmmph! Twilight, don’t listen to her!” Don’t listen- Mmm!”
Again, Twilight was frozen by fear, too afraid to fight, but also too afraid to take Demise’s hoof. She felt her own hoof rising on its own, seemingly being drawn to meet Demise’s.
“Yes... Join me, my love...”
Completely encircled by water now, her friends watched with horrified expressions as Demise took Twilight’s hoof in her own. At the moment their hooves touched, the light coming through the windows seemed to fade. Twilight looked at Demise, expecting to see a look of satisfaction due to her victory over the princesses, but she instead looked distressed.
The darkness filling the throne room wasn’t caused by her. Somepony else had arrived, and they were making Demise nervous.
“Muahahaha! So you’re the bad princess I’ve heard about...”
The shadows along the walls seemed to move, running from window to window until they reached the throne. Twilight cocked her head to the side. “That voice...”
The shadows collected on the floor before the throne, and a tall figure rose out of the carpet. It was an Alicorn black as the night clad in dark blue armor. She stared down everypony in the room though her serpent-like eyes before letting out a malicious laugh.
It was Nightmare Moon, and Twilight’s own amazement, Demise looked afraid of the villain. Her ears folded back, and she took several steps in reverse. “N-N-Nightmare...”
The armored Alicorn bared her teeth and snarled viciously. “That’s right, you petty upstart... I’m the original bad mare... If anypony’s going to cause my sister and her friends trouble, it’s going to be me!”
She leaped towards Demise, melting into shadows mid-air before coming into contact with the princess of time. At the same time, Twilight turned to Cascade and charged her horn before letting lose a bolt of magic that caught the pony-shaped water in the chest. Cascade let out a pained whail before collapsing into a huge puddle of water.
Celestia and Dulcet, now free from the water’s cold grasp, readied their horns. Above them, Demise and Nightmare Moon we’re battling around the throne room, two shadows trading blows. Upon closer inspection, Twilight saw that Demise was actually trying to escape Nightmare, who gave a relentless chase.
While everypony was occupied watching the two black mares above, the puddle of water receded into nothingness, seeping into cracks in the floor and walls.
Nightmare Moon pulled her two front hooves together around Demise’s tail, causing the time princess to cry out in pain before spinning and throwing her towards the nearest window. Demise hit the glass and crashed through before flailing off of the city and into the distance.
Pleased with herself, Nightmare smirked before descending to the floor. There, she was met with faces of disbelief. At this, she began to laugh. Not like before, this laugh being softer as though she found something hilarious. Then, her horn ignited, and in a flash of light, Nightmare Moon was replaced by Princess Luna. “Gotcha...”
Twilight’s chest exploded with joy and excitement. “Oh, Luna... I’m so happy to see you... How did you- Nightmare Moon, she...”
Her voice fell silent. She simply couldn’t believe everything she just saw.
Luna flexed her wings causally. “I’ve had some practice dressing up for Nightmare Night. It’s not enough to look the part anymore. Now, it’s best to become who you are trying to portray...”
Then, Luna took a bow, like a stage performer.
Celestia stepped forward, embracing her sister. “Thank you, Luna... You did always have a flare for the dramatic.”
Dulcet cleared her throat. “Yes, um... We’re all very impressed, but now we must plan our next move. Demise was defeated here, but she will regain her strength and regroup.”
Twilight was afraid of that. “Regroup where?”
Dulcet approached the shattered window and looked out across Equestria, towards the Everfree Forest. “There...”
***Up Next: Twilight***