Canterlot was in a state of disarray. Panicked ponies ran around, looking for some form of safety. Royal Guards, both Celestial and Lunar, gathered them and brought them to the castle for safety. Different buildings still emitted smoke; all of them stemming from noble houses.
Golden Dusk, now wearing armor, galloped through the streets to the closest site of Purifier activity. Scarlet Gem flew in front of him, only slightly ahead.
Dusk looked around him for a moment and saw chaos. Memories sprung up that he much rather remain buried. Shaking his head, he kept running.
They reached a tall two-story house. A metallic fence surrounded a small perimeter, and Royal Guards were outside. The squad looked to be frustrated.
Scarlet approached their lieutenant who was a well-aged unicorn stallion in gold armor with a star-shaped badge.
“What’s the situation?” Scarlet asked, landing gently behind the lieutenant.
The unicorn jumped and looked behind him. “Identification.”
Scarlet sighed and Dusk caught up, now standing beside her. She pulled out her badge and flipped it to its back. Engraved in a scarlet color was ‘Valkyrie.’ The lieutenant‘s eyes grew in size, and he nodded.
“Sorry, Guardian, didn’t know I’d live long enough to see one of you,” he chuckled.
“Make that two,” Dusk smirked under his helmet. He pulled out his badge and flipped it around. A black metallic plate was layered on it and engraved in gold was ‘Hunter.’
“Valkyrie and Hunter?” He shivered a little. “Lieutenant Star Chaser.”
“Lieutenant, what’s the sitrep?” Scarlet asked.
Star Chaser sighed. “This is the Sparkle residence.”
“The Sparkles?”
The lieutenant nodded. “Purifiers managed to sneak into the residence. They breached through a back wall, and are holding Sir Night Light and Miss Velvet hostage.”
Oh, they were going that far?
“What are their demands?” Scarlet inquired.
“The abolishment of the noble houses and having a ruler other than the princesses,” he deadpanned.
Dusk sighed. “So, basically the same thing.”
“Pardon?”
“Purifiers attempted to invade the castle. They have been taken care of, and their demands were the same,” Scarlet explained.
“Do we need to reinforce the palace?” Star Chaser asked.
Dusk shook his head. “We have the Warlock there already. Captain Armor as well.”
Right on cue, a large raspberry-colored bubble surrounded the royal palace, ensuring no invaders would get in or out.
Star Chaser nodded. “Back on topic, the Sparkles are being held in the first floor living room. We’re unsure of their numbers, and our guards can’t sneak in without being spotted.”
Suddenly, a familiar unicorn stepped beside the lieutenant. “Sir! They are growing restless!” He gestured to their squad of guards.
“We’re working on it, Swift Star.” He rolled his eyes.
“Swift Star?” Scarlet inquired, looking at the familiar stallion. “Oh, I see that wound on your cheek healed with no fuss.”
The guard looked in front of him and saw two Guardians. He let out a light gasp and took a step back.
Star Chaser noticed the glow through the helmet of Valkyrie and stepped in. “Did my nephew do something… untoward you, Guardian?”
She hummed. “Well, it’s in the past.” She turned to look at Dusk. “Think you can hit them from here?”
Golden Dusk was already eyeing the windows with a gold shine through his helmet.
“Windows aren’t big enough. I can’t see any good spots to get an angle either,” he sighed. “I’ll go in through the back.”
“Won’t you get spotted?” Swift Star asked.
Scarlet held a hoof to her chest in mock hurt. “We show you what we’re capable of, and you still doubt us?”
Star Chaser glared at his nephew. “There’s a story behind that, and I intend to know.”
Seeing as Swift Star gulped, he sighed. “Okay, so Hunter—”
He was gone.
Star Chaser glanced around and found no trace of him. He looked to the Valkyrie with a questioning gaze. When she returned it, she looked to her left where Dusk was standing. She laughed when she saw nopony there.
“He’s like that,” she giggled. “It’s good to know he’s confident about this.”
Golden Dusk silently walked around the metallic fence. He used a spell to hide his presence. He found a small opening behind the house, it seemed they pried the fence open. He jumped through it and landed silently. The moon shining brightly above him now, there would be plenty of shadows to hide in. Though, he casted a spell to hide his presence, just in case.
There was a large chunk of wall missing behind the Sparkle residence. Smoke still sprouted from it, and fires burned excessively. It didn’t seem to be spreading, however. He checked to see the magic flow and found that the flames were being controlled. They weren’t going to spread, but they were still hot.
Ignoring the flames for now, he entered the house lightly. Once in, he found himself in the kitchen. It still seemed to be in order, despite a few signs of struggle. A chair tipped over, and a few broken plates were the most notable. They were probably preparing for dinner.
Dusk peeked out the kitchen and found himself in a dimly lit hallway. He already had his eyes shifted, so it seemed a lot brighter to him. Quietly, he snuck through the hall and found a large opening with a lot of light coming from it.
“They aren’t doing anything,” he heard a voice say.
“We have to wait, our orders say so,” another added.
Curious, he used the magic Luna and Cadence gave him to cast a spell. A gold orb formed in front of him; it reflected its surroundings perfectly, making it almost invisible. He made sure that he couldn’t sense magic from anywhere in the house but the living room. Once sure, he closed his eyes.
Dusk saw everything through the little orb as it flew into the living room. Night Light and Twilight Velvet were tied up and had their mouths covered. Both conscious, the mare was shaking and the stallion calm. Though, he could tell he was putting up a front so that his wife wouldn’t lose hope.
Six Purifiers were in the room. Two standing in close proximity to their hostages, and the other four spread out by different furniture. A pair of them stood directly behind the wall he was leaning on. Two earthponies, three pegasi, and one unicorn.
“I should be able to manage,” Dusk whispered to himself, eyes still closed.
The orb flew to the two farthest away from his entrance. The Purifiers were a decent range from each other, but it would work. The orb planted itself on the wall, and Dusk’s view of the room slowly disappeared.
Satisfied, he opened his eyes and his horn glowed. He cast two more spells on the wall, directly behind where the two other Purifiers were standing.
It was all ready. His horn blazed once more and ribbons of magic sprouted where the orb planted itself. It snared the two Purifiers that were adjacent to each other. The pair by the wall readied short swords and rushed to help their comrades. The spell Dusk cast behind them activated and they found themselves trapped in a gold aura of magic and were slammed into the wall and glued to it. Their swords dropped to the ground.
The last two, who were supposed to guard their hostages, drew knives. One rushed to one pair, and the other went to the ones on the wall.
“Damn the Guard!” the one working on the ribbons of magic cried.
Weakly, a pegasus trapped in ribbons called out, “Behind y-you…”
They turned around and saw that their last comrade who wasn’t trapped was knocked out. A unicorn in black and yellow armor standing over his body.
“So, the guard sent you after us?” they spat, readying his knife.
The unicorn in armor remained stoic and calmly approached him.
Shaking, they flicked their up to point their horn at Dusk. It blazed with magic, preparing a large spell.
“Take this!” With a pained cry, a large beam of magic shot at Dusk.
He found himself blinded, but he took the hit with courage. Once the beam had died down, the Purifier found himself panting. He looked up with a sense of victory, only to be changed into one of fear.
Dusk was still in one piece. He covered the four ponies behind him in a gold bubble to make sure they wouldn’t get hurt. The yellow in his armor glowed brightly, and so did his horn.
The Purifier that fired the spell was briskly tossed out the window, knocking him out. The guards outside were surprised except for Scarlet. The squad immediately sprang into action and started to advance into the house while others bound the Purifier outside.
Inside, Dusk’s armor stopped glowing as he absorbed the magic. It still didn’t feel natural… it felt... enhanced somehow.
He approached Night Light and Twilight Velvet calmly. Using his magic, he removed the tape from their mouths, making sure it wouldn’t cause them any pain.
Breathlessly, Twilight Velvet asked, “W-who are you?”
Dusk untied them, and showed them his badge, specifically, the side with the engraving.
Night Light stood up. “Thank you,” he smiled.
The squad of guards stormed the room, and Scarlet entered through the broken window.
“Sir Night Light and Miss Velvet, please come with us,” Lieutenant Star Chaser said. “We’ll have you stay at the castle.”
Night Light and Twilight Velvet gave one more thanks to Dusk and left with a pair of guards. Star Chaser eyed the Purifiers who were still struggling against their binds.
“Shall I take them to the dungeon?”
“In a moment,” Dusk said, leaving the lieutenant bemused.
The unicorn in black armor approached the two who were tied with ribbons. “Where is your hideout?”
One of them snorted weakly. “We’d never tell you.”
Dusk sighed inwardly and he fired two spells onto the pair. “Where?” he asked in a dark tone.
“On the moon,” one of them snarked. Suddenly, they were met with a sharp pain throughout their body that lasted several seconds.
Dusk turned to look at the other one. “Where?”
Shakily, he admitted, “T-there’s a warehouse in the lower parts of Canterlot! It’s the only one, you can’t miss it!”
Seeing as they didn’t erupt in pain, Dusk nodded. He turned to face the lieutenant.
“Now you can take them,” he said.
Star Chaser nodded, slightly disturbed.
Golden Dusk approached Scarlet. “Shall we?”
“Yup.”
The pair of Guardians made their way outside, a squad of guards following behind them with bound rebels. The ponies they saved were just outside the fence, a purple alicorn hugging the two tightly.
“I’m glad you two are okay!” the princess cried.
Her parents returned the embrace. “Twilight, we’re okay, but we—”
“I would’ve come sooner, but I just got the letter from the princesses! Then, I had to explain to Starlight and Spike where I was going and—”
Her mom tapped her on the nose, ending her rant. “We’re fine, dear, but we need to go to the castle, as the guards said,” Velvet said.
Twilight Sparkle nodded and wiped away a tear. “I’ll go with you.”
The family of three made their way to the palace, escorted by the entire squad of guards now. Star Chaser bid the Guardians farewell.
Dusk stood motionless for a few moments. One of the reasons he joined the guard was to keep ponies safe. Seeing the Sparkles and their reunion brought both warmth and pain to his heart.
Scarlet nudged him with a wing. “Ready?”
Dusk nodded.
“Let’s end this.”
~~~
“Why is your magic power unnaturally high?”
Back at the castle, Purifiers were tied up in the throne room whereas others were sent straight to the dungeon. Mythic Moon wanted some to be in the presence of royalty for the interrogation. Shining and Princess Cadence were discussing plans of what to do with the prisoners while Princess Luna and Celestia were standing beside Mythic.
“I-I’ll never tell you!” the Purifier cried.
Mythic sighed. Her horn glowed as a sharp pain struck the Purifier. They held back a scream, and their body tensed. After a few moments, they relaxed and breathed heavily.
“Why?” Mythic asked once more.
The Purifier spat at her helmet, a weak smirk growing on his face. Mythic wiped it off with magic, and her eyes started glowing white.
The two princesses held a hoof in front of her, telling her to stop.
“T’would seem they are uncooperative, sister,” Luna said.
Celestia nodded. “I believe so.”
“Shall we show them what alicorns can do?”
The sun princess’ smile grew. “Sister... I cannot help but agree with you more…”
The Purifier shook and his ears folded back. The princess’ horns slowly emitted glows, and he started sweating.
“Potions!” he cried. “She gave us potions!”
“Who is ‘she?’” Mythic asked.
He gulped and added, “Close Ward. She gave us potions and said it’d make us powerful enough to take down alicorns!”
Mythic looked horrified, something the princesses took note of. “Was it colored orange and sometimes shifted to red?”
“Y-yes…”
She recoiled and stood up. She shot a sleep spell at the Purifier. The two princesses stood up as well as she walked towards a pillar.
“Warlock? What’s the problem?” Luna asked.
Mythic Moon held a hoof on the pillar. She pulled it back before slamming her hoof into it. A sizable crack left from the impact.
“Damn you, Close Ward…” she cursed.
“Warlock?” Celestia asked, the loud noise of her action drawing the attention is Shining Armor and Cadence as well.
“Four from Valkyrie, and one from Warlock,” Luna noted in a whisper, eyeing the different cracks in the pillar. “T’would seem repairs will be needed,” she sighed.
Her sister gave her a subtle glare and she smiled sheepishly.
“Close Ward… was a former Royal Researcher,” Mythic explained. “She managed to create potions that boosted a pony’s magic to alicorn levels.”
“That sounds like quite the discovery,” Luna said. “How come she was removed from her position?”
She sighed. “It’s how the potion’s made.” She turned to face them. “Most ingredients were fairly common, different plants and such. Then, she told us the last ingredient…” She stepped forward. “Magic.”
“That sounds fairly normal,” Luna raised a brow.
“No, not our magic. Pony magic is stable, constant, the amount we have can translate to how powerful we are. Hence, me having power equal to alicorns.”
“Then how was it made?”
“You know how volatile the magic of creatures other than us is?” Mythic asked.
Luna nodded. “Of course, creatures such as the cockatrice and Timber Wolves have magic that is unstable.”
“Take the hint.”
The night princess hummed in thought, though her sister had already figured it out. Her eyes widened when she came to realization.
“She took magic from innocent creatures?” she asked, horrified.
“That would leave them dead,” Cadence whispered audibly.
“Close Ward found a way to extract their magic forcefully. She made a device that we should have destroyed,” Mythic growled.
“So, she has taken the lives of those creatures?” Celestia asked.
She shook her head. “No, she didn’t have the heart to do it.” Her mood turned sour. “Though, with the amount they were left with, they might as well be dead when she released them…”
Suddenly, a familiar green pony walked in the room calmly. Her dual-toned grey and black mane swishing lightly. She wore an ornate bracer with an emerald gem on her right foreleg.
“Finally, you’re here,” Mythic deadpanned.
Emerald Melody scoffed. “You try being in the middle of orchestra rehearsal in this mess and suddenly leaving your band alone.” She glared lightly. “Not suspicious at all.”
Mythic sighed and chuckled lightly. “Alright, here.”
With a white flash, a set of green armor came into existence. It stood bipedally and... it had a spot for a horn on the helmet.
Mel deadpanned, “Warlock, I don’t have a horn.”
“Do you want everypony to know you can do magic without one?”
She sighed. “Fair enough. Why is it bipedal though?”
“Use your key spell.”
Mel’s eyes glowed a bright green, and the back of the armor clicked open. She got the idea and walked into it on her two hind legs, aligning her forelegs with the armor. Using gravity, she fit into the armor as it wrapped around her.
She stretched her legs. “Perfect,” she said.
Mel held up a hoof as green magic gathered on it. She let it compress into a small ball and threw it at Mythic. The Warlock put up a barrier. The ball exploded, and Mel could feel the deadpan stare coming through her helmet.
“Really?”
“I needed the warm-up,” she explained.
Mythic was tempted to make her unable to use her magic but decided against it.
“So, what’s the plan?” Mythic asked.
“I’m sure you can feel the magic of Hunter and Valkyrie. We help them.” Mel cracked her neck.
“Of course, so shall we?”
Mel turned to face the royalty in the room. “By your leave.”
“Go, bring an end to this. The squads of our guard will be more than enough to address those who were attacked.” Celestia and Luna sat on their throne once more. Beside them, Raven Inkwell and Nightingale were both writing on scrolls.
Mel and Mythic nodded. Maestro stood closer to her teammate whose horn glowed white. In a flash, they were both gone.
Shining Armor stared blankly at the royal sisters. “You do know what you’ve done, right?”
They gazed at him with a smile. It was so sweet and innocent, it would give even the Element of Laughter diabetes.
Cadence asked, “What did they do?”
Shining’s gaze remained flat as he faced his wife. “They just siced four Guardians on the Purifiers.”
Cadence eyes widened and she could only say one thing.
“Oh.”
~~~
Golden Dusk stood outside a large, purple, metal door. The warehouse had a similar style to the other buildings in Canterlot. He thought it would be ominous and broken down. Instead, a pristine coat of white paint covered the walls, a bright, purple roof covered it. Windows were placed high up and on the roof. The night sky easily revealed the light coming from inside.
Scarlet Gem landed in front of him after scouting the area. “Large windows on the roof, no back entrances.”
Dusk sighed. “So, we go in loud?”
“We could try slipping in through the windows.”
“They’ll notice a moving window that nopony is touching,” he deadpanned.
Suddenly, white flared behind them. The two took a bipedal fighting stance before lowering back down to the ground with a sigh.
“Maestro, Warlock,” they greeted.
“Hunter, Valkyrie,” the pair that teleported in greeted back.
“What’s the situation?” Mel asked.
“We have confirmed information that this is their hideout,” Dusk replied.
“And we plan on taking out their strongest players first,” Scarlet added.
Mythic’s horn flared, but she was stopped by Mel putting a hoof in front of her.
“What are our options?” She asked.
Mythic sighed as she powered down the spell she was casting.
“No back entrances, so loud and proud,” Dusk said.
Mythic smiled inside her helmet and her horn flared.
Mel sighed. “Okay, Warlock and I will distract whatever numbers they have in there. Look for where their leaders are and take them down.”
Dusk and Scarlet nodded. He raised his forehooves up and Scarlet picked him up and they flew to the roof. Once they landed, Scarlet flew up once more and gave the two a go signal.
“Just like old times, eh, Mel?” Mythic giggled.
“Maestro,” she corrected. “But yes, just like old times,” she smiled.
The Warlock’s horn blazed a bright white. She opened the large doors open, an explosion resounding outside and inside the building. She walked in calmly, Maestro close behind her. She estimated about a hundred ponies in black raincoats.
Mel subtly looked up and saw Dusk and Scarlet entering through the windows. Dusk walking upside down and the pegasus flying silently.
“Good luck, Guardians,” she whispered.
“Please, they can take care of themselves.” Mythic rolled her eyes.
A Purifier’s horn blazed and they tossed multiple large crates towards them. The two dodged but found their exit blocked. Another Purifier casted a magic barrier, ensuring that teleportation wasn’t possible.
The Purifiers surrounded them, planning to use their advantage in numbers.
“Now, you are trapped here with us,” one said arrogantly.
After a few moments, Mythic burst into laughter, confusing the Purifiers.
After Mel’s own fit of giggles, she said, “Please…”
Mythic’s voice added:
“You are trapped here with us.”