//------------------------------// // Chapter 19: The Judgement // Story: Dissonance: A Hidden World // by Braininthejar //------------------------------// The throne room darkened, the crystal walls turning dark and slick, as if covered with a film of something disgusting. Twilight looked around frantically, trying to find some way to escape, but the only thing she saw was Luna’s sneering muzzle. The first skeleton, which had just a moment before worn Rarity’s face, opened its mouth, the jaw filled with far more teeth than a pony skull should have. “How can you do this, Luna!?” shouted Twilight. “After all we did for you!” The skeletons hesitated. Luna cocked an eyebrow. “Oh? What do you think you did… hero?” Twilight looked her in the eyes.  I must think of something. I need more time. “We saved you from Nightmare Moon” she said, “returned you to your sister.” The corpse-pony lunged, sinking its teeth into Twilight’s shoulder. The unicorn screamed.  “Is that what you think?” said Luna, her own fangs suddenly sharper. The skeletal pony let go of Twilight, stepping aside and out of the way. “That I would need you to save me? That I would let you aim those stupid trinkets at me? Do I look anything like that pathetic flesh-puppet you met in the ruins?” Twilight closed her eyes, trying to banish the pain. Souls don’t bleed, souls don’t bleed… what did she say? That’s my chance. Let her talk. “What do you mean?” she asked. Luna sneered. “It was just a test of your potential, a clone cooked up the day before, and recycled after she said her lines. I couldn’t even possess that pathetic thing, but what a great prop she was.” Twilight gave her a confused look. “But… what about the Nightmare Moon? Weren’t you really sealed in the Moon?” Luna nodded slowly. “I was. But the whole Nightmare Moon thing was just a vile rumor. Let the ponies out of your sight for a moment, and they start creating their own monsters. And since the Moon's a harsh mistress... Celestia dear wasn’t sure I’d be sane when I come back. She decided she could use it, and let the rumor be. She underestimated me of course. I hate it when they underestimate me. Speaking of which, I think it is time to end this idle chit chat and show you what I can do. Be a dear and fall apart for me, would you?” This time the creatures attacked all at once, swarming over the immobilised form of Twilight. Luna watched intently, her eyebrow raising in surprise at the silence; she had expected more screams. As she commanded the nightmares to step back, she saw a conspicuously empty space between them. “You may rule over dreams,” said Twilight behind her back, “but this is my dream. I make the rules here.” Her horn lit up, launching a bolt of light at Luna, smashing her into the swarm of undead. Pieces of bone flew in all directions, the terrifying creatures stripped of their scariness as they were scattered all over the place.  Luna dispersed into a cloud of darkness, and reformed, unharmed, on the other end of the room. “Oh, that’s a new thing. You’ve learned a few tricks, and you think you can play with grown-ups?” Twilight advanced, charging her horn again. “My friends and I have saved Equestria many times! We will save it from you too if we have to!” She shot again, but this time Luna was ready. The alicorn dispersed, allowing the beam to pass harmlessly through her. She walked nonchalantly forward, the crystal walls darkening to utter blackness around her. “Somepony has an inflated sense of self-worth,” she said, before shooting her own spell. The lightning arced around Twilight’s defenses, filling the chamber with a smell of burning fur. “You think you’re special, don’t you?” Twilight teleported behind Luna, and stomped her hooves. A cage of crystal spikes shot from the floor around the Moon princess. “I will be as special as it takes,” she said through gritted teeth. I’m sure I hit her, but she doesn’t look hurt. Why didn’t my attack work? Luna turned into a cloud again, and slipped through the bars of her cage. “You think you are a saviour of Equestria? That we couldn’t have done it without you?” Another cage erupted around her, this one with transparent walls instead of bars. The alicorn reformed, looking at her opponent through the barrier. “The only reason you got to save Equestria again and again, was that your princess wanted to keep her cards hidden, and watch you dance on her strings instead. Nightmare Moon? a test. Discord? We’d faced him before. We had the means to handle his like this time. Changelings? With me around they wouldn’t have lasted the night.” She reared, putting her front hooves on the glass. “Crystal Empire? Celestia had the Elements sent there, ready to be delivered to you if you needed them. But turns out you didn’t. The princess we bred for the task proved adequate. Any trained agent could have done the rest. The Elements were never needed, and it was a mistake to give them to you. A mistake I will correct.” Twilight had already finished repairing her body, and was now staring at Luna, looking for anything that might resemble a weak spot. I think I need to catch her when she’s a pony. I waste my attacks when I hit that blue smoke… “the princess we bred?”  Did she mean Cadence? The alicorn turned around, and suddenly bucked the wall of her prison, shattering it into a cloud of razor-sharp pieces. Twilight disappeared at the last second, gasping in pain as one shard pierced her shoulder. “It won’t work,” she said with defiance, as a purple aura engulfed her body, clearing away all the damage. “You cannot beat me.” There was a rattling of bones, and two of the skulls scattered on the floor flew at Twilight, sinking their teeth into her flesh, causing her to scream and flail frantically for a moment as she tried to break away from the gnawing jaws. In the darkness, Luna laughed. “Can’t I?” She fired a shot just as Twilight broke free, forcing her into a desperate rolling dodge, then kept shooting, punctuating every sentence. “This is a dream, but the pain is real! The fear is real! The grief is real! You’ll be an empty shell when I’m done with you!” Twilight lit up her horn, a shield of force erupting in front of her to catch the last shot. “I’ve beaten worse than you! I can beat you too!” she shouted back, firing a blast, which Luna intercepted with one of her own. For a moment the two ponies stood facing each other, a glowing beam of magic arcing between their horns. It is my dream. I make the rules here. I can beat her… can’t I? The walls darkened into utter blackness, and then lit up slightly, ghostly visages appearing within the crystal. They were Twilight’s friends, Ponyville citizens, crystal ponies. The alicorn sneered. “You’ve been living a dream for years, Twilight Sparkle, but a rude awakening is approaching fast. You thought yourself a hero, but all you’ve ever been was a backup plan. And now you have outlived your purpose by far.” She pressed on and her beam pushed through, but Twilight was not there. A second later a big chunk of the ceiling fell where Luna was standing.   “You are wrong, Luna,” said Twilight, walking towards the pile of crystal rubble, horn at the ready,”I’m not doing this to be a hero. I’m doing this because my friends need me. I cannot lose.” Did I get her flesh this time? The rubble shook. Twilight teleported away, expecting an explosion. Instead, Luna oozed out from underneath it, a trail of smoke turning into a snarling face. “No. It is I who cannot lose. You innocent foal, you can’t even imagine the kind of pain it would take for you to hurt me. All you will do for your friends is get them all killed.” The ghostly faces in the walls screamed silently. The rubble around Luna rose, flying at Twilight, who dismissed it with just a frown; it crumbled to dust without touching her.  “I’ll save them,” said Twilight, charging up her horn again. “I’ve never failed before, and I will not fail now.” She shot, but Luna didn’t even make an effort to block. The blast tore through the gorget on her chest, leaving a gaping wound. Luna looked at the hole with mild amusement. “See?” she said with a sneer, “it’s happened to me before.” She swayed, as if about to fall, then teleported right next to Twilight, catching her off guard with a hoof to the jaw. Twilight went flying, skidding across the floor, too surprised to suppress the illusion of pain. “See what I mean!?” shouted Luna, giving her a kick that sent her skidding again, “You think too highly of yourself! You’ve never even seen a true fight!” She teleported and kicked again. “You’re weak and soft!” Another teleport, another kick. The wound on Luna’s chest was already gone. “We let you play hero with your friends, and you thought it was the real thing!?” She reared and inhaled. “I’ll show you real pain!” With the last words, the alicorn stomped the ground hard, her breath leaving the muzzle as a gout of blue flame, engulfing the prone form of Twilight. The room was filled with wails of suffering and the smell of burning flesh. Without warning, a stalagmite shot from the ground, piercing the side of Luna’s jaw and forcing her mouth closed, turning her wild grin comically crooked. The alicorn shook her head, breaking off the crystal, but by the time she regained her focus, her target was gone. “I will stop you!” started Twilight, appearing behind Luna. Her shot connected, but what seemed to be Luna turned out to be a crystal statue, shattering into a million pieces. Twilight breathed heavily, her body shaking as she tried to make her image whole again. She didn’t quite succeed, her coat still stained with deep black marks, and her stance still unstable. Why does she keep doing that? she thought desperately. Nothing I’m doing works! I don’t think I can keep this up much longer. No, I have to. I can’t lose to her. “You’re a thousand years too young to try to fight me,” answered Luna’s voice from the wall. She was now a huge image among the ghosts, towering over Twilight. “You will save nopony!” she shouted, disappearing a split second before Twilight’s shot cracked the wall. “You are nopony!” she continued from the wall on the other side. The whole room shook and then shattered, pieces of crystal falling away to reveal roiling darkness illuminated by burning buildings - Ponyville was on fire, the giant vision of Luna rising above it. Twilight rose to the challenge, shining like a beacon. The instant she did, she regretted it. Her light illuminated the streets further, bringing out the silhouettes sprawled on the ground. Familiar coats, familiar cutie marks, all covered in burns and splattered with blood. She could see Big Macintosh, Mayor Mare, Nurse Redheart… Down the street, near the Sugarcube Corner, there was a stroller toppled over, a round bundle underneath it. “This is what your folly will bring,” said Luna, her body darkening, tendrils of blackness extending towards Twilight. “A war that will shatter the order we have spent a thousand years maintaining. All you care about will die because of you.” Twilight’s aura intensified, the tendrils stopping at the edge of it, trying to force their way in. “I’ve always protected Equestria!” shouted the unicorn. “I won’t let it be destroyed!” “Oh, I know,” replied Luna,”I have seen it in your eyes when Obsidian spouted his accusations. You are his pawn now, you’ve freed him, and now you will fight his crazy war. And he will never stop until we’re all destroyed, no matter how many ponies will have to die along the way. You may have protected Equestria before, but now you will be the torch that sets it on fire, unless I stop you.” The blackness intensified, some tendrils wrapping around Twilight’s barrier, some stabbing it like daggers, trying to find a weak spot. Twilight struggled to maintain it, but found that the more power she used, the brighter her light was. She couldn’t help seeing more and more details, a kaleidoscope of horrific images assaulting her senses. “I know the truth of what you are!” she shouted, “I’ve seen what you’ve done!” Luna seemed to grow a bit more, the mask of cold contempt breaking to reveal a flash of anger. “You know nothing of us,” she hissed through gritted teeth, “of our struggles of four thousand years, trying to build a lasting order despite the likes of you. And now we finally have it. We have everything covered. We even have the means to handle the likes of Discord. You’re the last thing that’s left, the last threat that will bring death and destruction upon Equestria. All those ponies will die because of you. If you really care about them, lie down and die!” ‘I will not give up!” Twilight struggled with all her strength, forcing her eyes close as she did what she could to push the tendrils away. “Don’t you get it, Twilight!” shouted Luna, pushing on, “You’re not the hero here! You are the threat to peace! The ponies you claim to defend will curse your name for generations!” Voices sounded in the darkness, anguished, panicked. Twilight didn’t want to hear them, but she did anyway; ponies screaming her name as a warning, some shouting for their loved ones to run, some just screaming in mortal terror, some calling for the princesses to save them.  “These are all lies!” she tried to shout, but her voice was drowned in the cacophony. Through her closed eyelids she could see her light dimming. A single tendril managed to slip through her shield, slowly extending towards her, while the others kept crushing the sphere like a giant talon. It took Twilight a moment to realise that the attack had ceased. The tendrils were still around her, but they were no longer moving. Slowly, she opened one eye. The images around her were growing pale, the sounds dimming. There was also a new sound, one that Twilight could only now make out - a growing jingling sound, as if somepony had disturbed a crystal chandelier.  Luna heard it too. As she turned her eyes up, her dark aura shrunk into her body, and for a moment Twilight could see her clearly. The alicorn glared back at her. “This isn’t over,” she said, before collapsing into a point and disappearing. A second later a string of iridescent symbols touched the ground, coiling into a familiar pony shape. It launched several runes around it, touching its surroundings, now a collection of still images, frozen in place after their creator disappeared, and dispersing them into nothingness.  It then turned around to face Twilight, the runes flying back to it, forming a question mark in front of its chest. “I’m… okay… I think,” said Twilight. She looked around at her dream, now slowly turning into an empty white void. With an effort of will, she turned it into the main room of her library tree. Once in a familiar setting, she took a deep breath and calmed herself down. “Thank you for saving me. Looks like she disappeared in a hurry,” she said to Verba.  A couple of runes disconnected from Verba’s body, forming in front of him. 2>1 Twilight nodded. “I know.” She then looked around warily. “Do you think she’ll be back?” Verba made a gesture that Twilight could only guess stood for looking around. GUARD - he formed. OBSIDIAN Twilight nodded again. “I will try to wake up and tell him. Could you look after my friends in the meantime?” Verba nodded and then dispersed, flying to parts unknown, leaving Twilight in her library, trying to force her body awake. *** "So, any luck?" asked Sweetie Belle.  Applebloom shook her head. “Nuthin.” She walked down the slope to join her friend on the bank of a small stream. “Looks like it’s just us for miles and miles.” Sweetie Belle sighed. “So, we don’t know where we are, we don’t know where to go, and we have nothing to eat but grass?” She looked up at the yellow-brown plants further up the slope.  “It tastes like worse than some of my cooking.” Applebloom tried to smile. “At least we have water. And nothing has tried to eat us so far. And it’s warm.” “It’s really hot, you mean,” said Sweetie Belle. She leaned forward, slurping some water from the stream. “So, what do we do now?” Applebloom looked around. “I don’t think anypony will find us here. Not as long as we’re wearing these things…” “So, you think we should take them off?” asked Sweetie Belle. Applebloom shook her head. “Nuh. I think he was telling the truth. And if he wasn’t… I think I’m too scared to find out. But we can’t stay here. Something bad will happen to us sooner or later.” “So, where do we go?” Sweetie climbed the slope to have a better look. Around her there was an open plain, as far as the eye could see, patches of brown grass interspaced with yellow dirt. Far, far in the distance a mountain range could be seen. Applebloom joined Sweetie and followed her gaze. “I think we could go downstream. It has to go somewhere and that way we won’t walk in circles. Plus, we really shouldn’t leave the water.” The unicorn considered the proposition. “Sounds like a plan to me. Let’s just wait for the air to get a bit cooler.” I really hope everypony is okay. There is something terrible going on, I know it. *** "Is everypony ready?" asked Obsidian the assembled ponies. They were in the Crystal Empire stadium, now emptied for their personal use. Twilight and her friends were lined up in front of Obsidian.  “We’re ready,” said Twilight Sparkle. Obsidian walked in front of the line before stopping in front of Twilight. “You’re not wearing armor.” Twilight gave him a confused look. ”Neither are you.” Obsidian smiled. “My magic protects me better than any armor. You haven’t reached that level yet, so you will need some. Since this is training, you should use it to get used to the weight.” “Told ya,” said Applejack, with an aside glance to Rainbow Dash, who pouted. “As you should realize by now,” said Obsidian, stepping away so everypony could see him clearly, “we are already at war. This night’s attack could have been the end for us if not for a timely intervention by Verba. Between his guard and the spells I spent the morning casting, you… should… be safe from more such intrusions. But we cannot spread that protection to everypony. Starting today, you might face death at any moment. Learning as fast as you can is key to your survival.” The six mares all tried to show determination. It didn’t quite work. There were gulps and nervous fidgeting. If Obsidian saw that, he pretended not to notice. “From yesterday’s flight you should have some bare basics of how your power is channeled. I will now give you an overview of your specific abilities and then we will practice together.” “Can I have some questions before we start?” said Twilight. “As long as it’s short,” replied Obsidian, impatience audible in his voice. “I still don’t quite get how you use magic,” said Twilight. “I’ve seen you use it without the staff, so it’s not the source of your power.” Obsidian nodded. “True. You’ve surely seen the patterns appear on my coat when I focus. These are spells written into me, serving the role my horn would if I were a unicorn. It was an experiment that allowed me to learn magic in the first place before I was given a focus. But since all of you are using the elements already, you will not need to endure the procedure.” “I would also want to know more about our enemies,” continued Twilight. “You have already told us the story of how they became villains, but we’ll also need to know what they can do.” “Yea, if we know what we’ll be fighting, we’ll know what to train for,” added Rainbow Dash. “If you insist,” said Obsidian. “Though you must understand, a lot has changed through the centuries. Obviously, they now have powers they didn’t use to have, including access to magic. And they’ve had centuries to learn new tricks. Still I will tell you what their abilities used to be back in my time.” He walked along the line and stopped in front of Pinkie Pie. “Enigma, the one later known as Guilt, was a scout. The ritual gave him control over space, allowing him to transport and exchange objects. It also gave him perfect spatial awareness, allowing him to fight without using his eyes. He used this ability to become a perfect assassin, moving in, striking his target and disappearing before anypony could react.” He then moved to Fluttershy. “Lightbringer, the one to become Hate, gained power over motion. Never one for subtlety, he used the power mostly on himself, becoming an unstoppable force or an immovable object, while using his perception of movement to anticipate attacks.  I must also warn you, something else has been done to him. I was never there to experience it myself, but some of my disciples told me of another power he manifested, one not connected to the ritual he underwent. There is another, dark power living inside him. Should you ever see him erupt in black flames, run. You’re not ready to face it yet.” Passing the rest of the girls, Obsidian went to the other end, stopping in front of Rarity.  “Absynthe, Envy, gained power over energy. Whether light, magnetic forces, or his favourite, lightning, it was all his to command. He used it to weave illusions, or to fry his enemies, dozens at a time.” “Wait” said Rainbow Dash. “Absynthe? That’s the one you said is Luna. You mean Luna is a dude?” Obsidian rolled his eyes. “After the first thousand years of changing bodies, I don’t think it makes much of a difference anymore. Continuing…” He walked in front of Dash. “Evening Embrace, Deception was given the most subtle power among the Shattered. She was given the ability to transform living beings, reshaping them as she saw fit. While she would use it for espionage or assassination, changing her appearance and secreting deadly poisons from her body, her most important actions were performed by transforming others; she became a mother of monsters, breeding new and deadly creatures to fight alongside the Shattered. Due to her ability she was also the most elusive, always hiding away and waiting for a chance to free her companions whenever we had them imprisoned.” He stepped to Applejack. “Gloria, Arrogance, gained control of non-living matter. She would reshape it with her will to create weapons and armor, shielding herself with whatever was at hoof. But soon she discovered that with some knowledge she could make poison, or explosives, from just about anything. If you fight her, don’t give her the time to react, or you’ll end up breathing acid.” Applejack gulped. Obsidian moved to Twilight. “And finally, Libra, Vengeance. Judging by the fact that Gloria is in charge, Libra might be out of the picture for the time being. That’s very fortunate. It seems her mind was affected the most, and worse, she gained the most power too. She was gifted with all the abilities of her companions. While she could never achieve their levels of mastery in any of the fields, she was instead able to blend them together, gaining a wide range of abilities; launching blades that bypassed barriers, weaving armor through her flesh and bone, or reshaping her body to instantly heal. Then she discovered that by combining her abilities, she could break down matter on its most basic levels, unleashing the primal forces of creation contained within to turn them into a terrible force of destruction. Whole cities would be left smoking ruins in her wake.” Obsidian finished and looked around his audience. When the silence stretched uncomfortably, he smiled. “Well, right now it seems to be six of you against five of them. Let’s focus on what you can do with it.” *** North Star anxiously walked into the throne room. With all he was already doing at the moment, the blue unicorn wasn’t expecting direct summons from the princess. Then again, nothing seemed to work to schedule anymore, not since the unexpected battle in the great hall of the palace, a battle which ended before any of the guards managed to contribute to it, and apparently resulted in the Elements of Harmony being stolen. Now the throne room was bustling with activity, various ponies walking in and out, delivering reports and receiving orders, trying to force the world around them to make sense again. And in the centre of it all there was princess Celestia, sitting on her throne, flanked by her unicorn secretary. North Star was about to take his place in the line, when the princess looked up, meeting his eyes. Instantly, her form stiffened. “Captain North Star, I have a matter of grave importance to discuss with you. Everypony else, please leave us for a while.” As one, the other ponies started towards the exit, even the princess’ personal guards. North Star watched them go, growing more and more uneasy as he was slowly left alone with Celestia. As the last pony left, closing the large door behind him, the princess’ horn glowed gold, the spell spreading around the throne room, sparkling briefly on the walls before flowing towards the doors and windows. The guard pony recognised it as a warding spell, designed to block both noise and scrying attempts. Anxiously, he trotted towards the throne. “Your Majesty?” Celestia was staring forward above his head, watching the effects of her magic. Once she was satisfied with the result, she slowly looked down on the unicorn. “Captain, I have summoned you here to inform you, that we have lost two members of our military.” North Star took a step back, momentarily speechless. Losses among the guard weren’t unheard of. They were soldiers after all, and their function was not entirely decorative even in the most peaceful of times. But two deaths now? To his knowledge, these were the first ponies that actually died on duty since he replaced Shining Armour as the captain of the palace guard. “Who were they?” he asked, forcing his voice to sound formal and emotionless. “Hail Kicker and Blue Streak, two pegasi from third aerial division.” This surprised North Star even more. While working directly under the princesses made him the most important officer in the guard with lots of extra resources at his disposal, he was merely a captain by rank; only the actual palace guard was under his direct authority. Neither of the names rang any bells. But why would Celestia summon him to tell him the news then? “Corporal Hail Kicker was the fourth Kicker of that name since the founding of the guard. He got married last year. His brother and sister are still in the guard and his mother is a retired officer. Blue Streak was a new recruit, three months in service. He had an allergy to transmutation spells and had to dye his coat to match the standards of his unit.” The unicorn stepped back, utterly confused. “Your Majesty?” The question he was about to ask died in his throat as Celestia suddenly stood up, her wings flared, her pastel mane billowing around her like a storm cloud. “There are hundreds of ponies in my service, ready to risk their lives in defence of Equestrian peace. I remember the name of every single one. I owe them that. We owe them that. This is why these two deaths sadden me even more. Because Hail Kicker and Blue Streak had their loyalty repaid with betrayal.” North Star’s eyes widened with shock. He stood there silent, stiff as a board, while Celestia continued her explanation. “Two days ago guard ponies all over Equestria received orders to arrest suspects in connection with the Ponyville changeling infiltration. Manehattan, Appleloosa, Fillydelphia, Cloudsdale and 5 other locations. They went there expecting to find ponies controlled or replaced by changelings. What they didn’t expect was an enemy prepared for them. Only the Manehattan team succeeded in capturing their targets, and these have already been confirmed to be real ponies, at worst manipulated by the enemy. In all the other places the targets had already left, some of them mere minutes before the guards’ arrival. Somepony... someone took them first. Someone who knew about the operation. In Appleloosa, the pegasi unit managed to give pursuit. They were ambushed and pushed back by unknown enemy, with Hail Kicker and Blue Streak killed in the skirmish.” As the princess kept talking, North Star’s mouth hung open. He was visibly trembling, looking like he was about to collapse at any moment. Celestia walked up to him, staring down at his face. “The enemy knew they were coming. That’s more information than could be gained from scrying. And the orders had been sent all over Equestria. The source of this information leak must have been here, in the headquarters. Within the palace itself. Since the changeling invasion of Canterlot, we have been checking everypony present regularly. There are no changelings here and nopony is under mind control spells. That leaves only one possibility, darker than any other. Captain North Star, as the commander of the palace guard, you are in charge of protecting this place. I command you to find the traitor and bring him or her to justice.”    It was at this moment that North Star’s hind legs finally gave way under him, causing him to slump to the floor. He sat there, staring up at her, a powerful unicorn warrior reduced to a pitiful heap, tears welling in the corners of his eyes. “Your... Majesty... I...” Celestia took a step back, looking at him quizzically, but said nothing. She was evidently waiting for him to collect himself.  The captain looked down at her hooves, unable to meet her gaze. Finally he stuttered: “Shining... Armour...” He couldn’t see Celestia’s face, but felt her tense at the sound of the name. When she spoke, her voice was calm, but in a way that made his hair stand on end. “What did you say?” North Star fell to his knees, words spilling rapidly from his mouth. “Captain Shining Armour. He contacted me to tell me that somepony had broken into the crystal tower library! He said it was Equestrian spies and they were looking for some old history records! That there has been some evil in the past for Equestria that nopony remembers about and the library holds proofs of that. He said that... there is some sort of conspiracy in Canterlot and he wants my help to get to the bottom of it. To report to him on anything suspicious. When I noticed that the guard recruitment increased and new plans were prepared for rapid deployment to the north... I thought he was right! I wanted to tell you from the start, but he said he didn’t want you to know until he has solid proof... I never knew, I swear!” He remained on the floor, muzzle pressed to the cold tiles. He didn’t know what he was really expecting – a kick to the head, a blast of searing flame, a voice calling his own guard ponies to take him away? When seconds kept passing and nothing happened, he risked lifting his gaze. What he saw hit him harder than any physical or magical blow ever could. His princess was standing above him, her mane flowing down her back, her wings half-folded, a single tear running down her cheek. “My little pony... what have you done?” Dozens of possible responses flooded North Star’s head. How he had always been devoted to his service, how Shining Armour was a hero of Equestria, who had saved everypony in Canterlot from the changelings, including North Star and Celestia herself. How they had spent their entire service in the guard together... none of it reached his lips. He just stared in silence, stunned by the enormity of his error, until finally, Celestia composed herself, evaporating the tear away with a flash of her horn. She folded her wings, took a deep breath and continued talking. “You have been mislead, Captain. The most devious of lies, as they were mixed with truth. It is true that there were spies in the Crystal Empire. They were there by my own command. And it is even true that the history of Equestria has been falsified.You should have asked me about it in the first place, I was there when it happened. It was done over a thousand years ago, after all the ponies of Equestria agreed to do so.” North Star blinked. He understood every word, but what they added up to was mind boggling. “But... why?” he asked, hoping that the princess could help him make sense of her words. “It was the darkest era in the history of Equestria,” the alicorn continued, walking slowly around the throne room “a time when Discord himself was only one of the horrors everypony had to suffer daily. Times when pony would turn against pony and air itself was filled with poison. When those Dark Times finally ended, everypony wished to forget them like they were a bad dream. So, we did. We worked hard to erase anything from those times, so no new generation would have to live in their shadow. The Crystal Empire would be one of the few places where any records of the Dark Times might still exist.” She suddenly turned towards North Star, her mane billowing again. “But I would not have sent spies to the Empire over some dusty history books! What they were sent to look for were tomes of dark magic. Do you think King Sombra had become the horror he was by his power alone? There was something that corrupted him, something that I suspected was still in his old seat of power. After the bearers of the Elements disappeared, signs of dark magic started appearing all over Equestria, magic much like Sombra’s. I was trying to find their source. I didn’t contact Shining Armour directly, because if the power was corrupting him, he would try to hide it and mislead me. When my spies returned with nothing, I thought I had been wrong, that whoever stumbled upon that evil power had already taken it away. But it was Shining Armour all along.” She paced nervously in front of her throne. ”Since last year the military of the Crystal Empire increased tenfold. That in itself was not suspicious – it was nearly nonexistent before, and the times are getting dark. Still, I had the commanders prepare plans to move the guard north, just in case. If I had definite proof back then...” She turned on the spot, staring straight at North Star. “If you had told me earlier, those deaths could have been avoided. Those and many more. Three days ago we still had the Elements, with their power to purify the tainted and dispel dark magic. There was less and less hope of finding the bearers alive... but if there was no other way, they would be replaced. I was considering you as the one who could become the bearer of Loyalty! Now the elements are gone and with them, the only force that could save Shining Armour and Cadence from the corruption that has consumed them. They have hidden their darkness from their subjects, good ponies like you, who are now ready to fight and die for them, unaware of how they have been manipulated. Unless a miracle happens soon, there will be war, one like Equestria hasn’t seen for centuries.” She walked towards North Star, and suddenly slumped to the floor in front of him. “Why didn’t you trust me, Captain? Have I not been a wise ruler for centuries, bringing happiness and safety to generations of ponies? Did you think I wouldn’t believe you?” North Star tried to move away, but found his legs failing him. This was worse than any nightmare he could ever imagine. Finally, he gulped loudly and lowered his gaze. “Your Majesty... I will accept any punishment you deem appropriate.” He sat motionless, waiting for her to speak, until he felt a tip of her wing brush against his cheek. Celestia had picked herself up and was once again standing over him. “Captain, even though you weren’t aware of the effect of your actions, what you did constitutes high treason. Since the theft of the Elements we are under martial law, and it only has one punishment for such a crime. There is no way you could make up for your error to the families of those who were killed.” She took a deep breath and withdrew her wing. “But there are things now that are more important than even justice. There are hundreds of ponies that still need to be saved and it is our duty to try our best to do it. Your crime will be kept secret until I decide otherwise, so that you can get a chance to fix at least a part of what you did. The first thing you are going to do is tell me all you know. What exactly did you tell Shining Armour, and what else did he ask you about?”