//------------------------------// // Chapter 12: A Shadow's Remnant // Story: Turmoil Rising // by JFT //------------------------------// “This… is a lot to digest.” Grogar paced up and down. Chrysalis has just ended up filling in the old ram on the details of the centuries since he was absent: the fall of his empire, the rise of the Two Sisters, the Elements of Harmony, the birth of Nightmare Moon, and her defeat at the ones who inherited the Elements, but also events that were fresher in her memory, like how the Lord of Chaos impersonated him and tricked her, Tirek and Cozy Glow into retrieving his artifact, before stabbing him in the back and finally their inevitable defeat at the hands of their new princess, her friends, The Pillars of Old Equestria and the New Generation. “If you were able to bring me back by tapping into the essence of my Bewitching Bell, then the creature which lurks here, the one that you serve, must be extremely powerful indeed,” he said as he sat down by the bank of the lake and looking at the sinister tree. “Of course,” Chrysalis said proudly. “Then you understand what they can- “ “However,” Grogar interrupted her, “the fact that you went to great lengths to draw me out shows also that you’re very desperate.” Was that a smile on his face? Chrysalis couldn’t quite tell from her angle, but she could just feel a grin curl upon his face. He managed to conclude that in a matter of moments; he knew his powers were desperately needed. Trying to use fear to make him more agreeable would be out of the question. He continued. “In any case, if you want my help, you’re out of luck… unless you can get my collar back.” “Hah!” she scoffed, as she traipsed past him. “If you yourself have no idea where your collar is, then the one who’s out of luck is you if you’re counting on my help; I’m not wasting my brood’s precious time chasing down dead ends and rumors.” “Broodmother…” the harrowed voice spoke and the changeling queen stood to attention, turning to the source of it. “You will assist the Shaper in his endeavor. Do whatever is necessary.” She was furious. She’s supposed to play a patsy to this grizzled old sheep? “Well then,” Doubt said, “best we get on the way.” “What way?! We don’t even know where we’re supposed to go! Am I supposed to play a nurse for him now as well?!” Chrysalis fumed. “Changeling, who are you talking to?” Grogar asked. She stopped. “Don’t you see it?” “Who?” It dawned on to her that the old ram was unable to see Doubt; it would appear that either due to his lack of power or the fact he hasn’t been touched by the essence of Turmoil that he was unable to perceive it. She couldn’t help but give him a slight prod. “Ah, never mind then. It seems you can’t see the other participant in our operation. I suppose it must be from your lack of power.” “Do not test me, changeling,” the ram calmly said. “You should not think that a beast is no longer dangerous, just because it’s been defanged.” “Are… are you threatening me?” She looked down on the ram, who still sat on the bank. He turned his head to the side, just enough that she could see his eye. “What do you think?” Tension hung in the air. Chrysalis knew her power outmatched his in her own domain, especially now that she’s been empowered by hatred. And yet, here he sat; a decrepit old sheep who doesn’t even have the power to move a pebble, looking at her as if he’s not frightened by his position at all. When it became clear she was getting nowhere, she composed herself and picked up the Bewitching Bell since his owner was unable to, beckoning him. “Come, Grogar. If we’re to find where your collar is we’ll have to start at square one and the sooner I stop being your forced servant, the better.” The old ram rose and followed the Queen of Changelings, and she could just feel the smug grin on his face. He enjoyed her dancing to his whim without even commanding it. Sooner or later he’s going to lose it. The royal guards led Zecora through the hallway of the castle. Since it became apparent that the Princess has returned, after the shaman took care of whatever injured residents lay on the street, it was time to come together and see if she managed to finds something from the royal sisters. “Right through here, miss.” The guard motioned to the conference room. Just before they reached it, the doors opened and three individuals walked out: the custodian and his young apprentice, and a royal guard. They had heavy looks in their eyes. What exactly happened? The zebra took a deep breath and opened the doors. Everybody was there already: the twin former princesses, the Lord of Chaos, faculty of the School of Friendship, the Elements of Harmony, and… “Do forgive me for turning up late, but with so many in their current state, I couldn’t simply leave them to their fate,” the shaman apologized. “I see the meeting’s progressed apace, but I must ask, Princess, why the glum look on your face?” Twilight Sparkle sat at the head of the table, surrounded by everybody else, her face buried in her hooves, leaning against the table. “While you were away, Zecora, we all caught up on what’s been happening on all fronts and…” Sunburst readjusted his glasses. “Let’s just say that things aren’t looking in our favor right now.” The ruling princess finally took a peek at the newcomer. “Zecora. Do you have the jar with you?” The zebra walked over to their side of the table, took off her saddlebag, pulled out of it the giant jar, and placed it on the table. The black mass with a single spark of light inside, swirled and twisted until a vague shape formed, its maw opening and trying to break through the glass, and again, to no avail. “So… that’s what that thing was then?” Discord asked. “Looks harmless enough.” “How in Equestria can you say that with a straight face when it just blocked your magic?” Starlight pointed out. “Hey now, let’s not jump to conclusions. Perhaps there’s another reason why that happened.” As the two glared at one another, Celestia brought the jar closer to her, the form inside desperately trying to attack her, with Luna observing it closely. “Is this what you were referring to, Twilight Sparkle? This is the piece of dark manifestation that came to life and devoured what was left of the Spirit of the Tree of Harmony?” “Yes, it is,” she answered them. “Now tell, does it jog your memories? Please tell me if that changes your statements from earlier.” She was practically begging them, but unfortunately, her former mentor gave her the response she didn’t want. “I’m sorry, Twilight. But neither I nor Luna can tell you what this darkness could be.” “But you’re more than a thousand years old!” Rainbow Dash jumped in with frustration. “Everything that’s happened since the founding of Equestria, you were present to see it, but this doesn’t remind you of anything?!” “Rainbow Dash! Watch your tone! You can’t talk like that to the princesses… even a former one,” Rarity interfered. “Well sorry, Rares, but they aren’t the ones risking potentially never flying again! If we ever face that thing again, I don’t wanna have a repeat.” “Well it still ain’t right to give it to ‘em like that,” Applejack joined in. “It’s not their fault.” “AJ, don’t you start as well! Because after what I’ve just been through today-!“ the wonderbolt stopped trying to make an effort to hold back, so Fluttershy had to intervene. “Rainbow Dash, please calm down,” she tried to lower the tension. “Please forgive her, he’s been through a lot since the morning.” “Fluttershy, I don’t need you to stand up for me!” the blue pegasus lashed back, making her gasp. At a moment’s notice, both the Lord of Chaos and Pinkie Pie jumped in almost instantly. “You don’t talk to her that way!” An argument erupted in the room, and it soon got interrupted as the doors opened and a young yellow, red-maned mare looked in. “Applejack?” The country pony stopped, recognizing the voice. “Applebloom?! What are you doing here?!” “I got let in,” she said as she closed the door behind her. “Zecora dashed away while we were helping the injured on the street and when I saw that went to the castle it-“ She stopped, finally realizing that the two former princesses were present. “Wait… what’s going on? Are Celestia and Luna out of retirement? Are things that bad?” “Applebloom, you shouldn’t be here,” the country pony scolded her younger sibling. “This is a serious situation that only the grownups can deal with. You don’t need to know.” “Excuse me?” the younger sister frowned. “I’m not a little filly anymore. Do you really think so little of me?!” And the arguments continued, the voices of everybody drowning out any sense of peace. “QUIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!” a yell came out that silenced everyone. There was visible frustration, but also despair on Twilight’s face, and having petty arguments didn’t help her situation. “I didn't think things could have possibly gone from bad to worse since I left in the morning…” She rubbed her forehead in her hooves. “… and it’s all my fault.” “Princess, I have a suspicion your actions alone did not place you in this position,” Zecora said. “Did you see those three coming out of the room just now, Zecora?” Twilight asked her. “All of them were involved in Queen Chrysalis' infiltration of the castle. Royal Guard Brightmane got replace early in the morning during his shift, so she managed to enter the moment Moppin, the custodian’s apprentice was taking out the trash, then he got replaced, which allowed her to go where the Canterlot’s artifact repository is. She wouldn’t have been able to open it, because even the apprentice was having a hard time opening it on his own, as I learned over the course of a week. And in my naivety, when I met the imposter Moppin this morning as I departed to look for the former princesses, for his sake, so he wouldn’t struggle, I opened the repository for him… I literally let Queen Chrysalis into the saferoom for magical artifacts, and now both Staff of Sacanas and Bewitching Bell are missing!” She stopped for a moment and looked and her friends. “Which means my friends got into an entire debacle with her and her swarm, got outwitted, and lastly it culminated with the whole area surrounding the Everfree Forest getting completely messed up and doing NOTHING positive in turn!” Everybody in the room saw the tension rising in her. “To make matters worse, the guards that were sent out to retrieve the statue of Tirek and Cozy Glow came back with nothing. It seems something already dragged them away by the time they got there. I had hoped that I would have at least one solace in this whole disaster of a day, hoping the only two ponies who are older than anypony else in Equestria would know what we’re facing… and in the end even they have absolutely no clue. I’ve… I’ve failed everypony.” And with those words, she bashed her head on the table, her mane covering her face, her faithful companion coming to her side and patting her back in an attempt to comfort her. A deathly silence fell over the room. Coupled with what happened the previous day, what she’s been under for the last two weeks, adding on top of what happened today, her friends were overcome with shame; they frivolously argued, while their Princess was the one in the worst position of all. As the whole room stewed, Zecora had this anxious feeling at the back of her head that the repeat of the day before will happen, if the Princess of Friendship’s mind is not put at ease. “That’s not entirely true, Twilight,” Celestia finally broke the silence. “No offense, but I don’t think even you can dissuade her from this state at this point,” Spike told Twilight’s former mentor. “No, I meant that, technically, we’re not the oldest ponies in Equestria,” she answered. Everybody looked at her, dumbfounded by her words, even Twilight finally turned her head. “What? But you and Luna are over a thousand years old. I’ve never heard of anypony that’s older than you two.” “He is older than us, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna joined in, the older sister choosing not to interrupt her since she knew she was on the same page. “He’s older than the founding of Equestria itself. He looked over both of us in our youth. He was our mentor. And even though he may have gone missing during the most critical time in our lives,” she looked at Celestia for a moment, “he’s the one who would know the answer for sure.” “You could surely contact him,“ the mare of the Sun resumed. “After all, haven’t you and your former student taught him a thing or two about friendship?” Twilight’s mind was all a buzz, it was difficult to think past the cloud of despair hanging over her, she turned her head on the table in the other direction to look at Starlight Glimmer, and their gaze met, it all started to clear up and the expression on her face changed, and it seemed even the headmare herself came to the same conclusion, as they both shouted a single word at the same time. “Starswirl!” “Of course! Why didn’t we think of that before?!” Starlight hoofed her face. “He was there when ponies still lived up north, before moving south to escape the snowstorm caused by windigos. He was the one who first recorded them existing, to begin with. And he was a conjurer of numerous spells that even I can’t easily replicate. If there’s anypony out there who would know about what we face for sure, then it’s him!” The Princess lifted her head off the table as her spirit rose. Perhaps not all is lost yet. They just have to find… And then she stopped, her hyped reaction grinding to a halt. “No… wait. That may be a problem. I’ve not heard from Starswirl’s travels in weeks. Last time he sent me a postcard from Hayseed Swamps and I’ve not heard from him since. He could be anywhere in Equestria for all we know.” “If it will help, Twilight, I can pull a few strings and have someponies try to look for him,” Celestia answered. The sound of her former mentor deciding to pitch in to help her delighted her so much, she jumped off her seat and hugged her. “You can?! Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you!” “Well, that was a quick mood swing,” Spike commented. The depression in the room dropped, perhaps there was still one small chance that this whole thing could be salvaged, even if the current circumstances weren’t in their favor. “That reminds me,” Discord said as he grabbed the middle of his body and opened it as if it were a coat, pulling out a snow globe, “what do we do with these?” He placed it on the table for everybody to see. Inside, five changelings were desperately trying to break out, hissing and thrashing about. “Oh, I’ve got a good idea,” Trixie answered. “Why don’t we just send them over to Thorax? You know, for rehabilitation?” “You know, that’s actually a really good idea Trixie!” the headmare said. The blue unicorn smiled smugly. “Well, I am the Great and Powerful School Counselor, otherwise I wouldn’t be worth my position-” And suddenly, the Lord of Chaos plucked the horn from atop the mare's head, and shoved it in her mouth, making it sound like a trumpet. “Look, if you’ll be tooting your own horn, do it properly, please.” She glared at him. Twilight picked up the prisoners. The idea was good. Maybe they can try to at least turn Chrysalis’ new brood away from her. Things have finally settled… except for one little thing. A last-minute guest just heard something that wasn’t meant for the ears of anyone except those of the closed circle. Applejack looked at her younger sister with a serious look on her face. “Applebloom, let me be clear. What you’ve just heard is something that must not, under any circumstances, leave this room; you must tell NOPONY. Do you understand?” The young mare nodded. And just when they thought they were finally all set, voices followed from the beyond the door and then got burst open, a familiar white blue-maned unicorn with a monocle made an entrance. “Princess Twilight Sparkle, we must seriously talk about-!” he didn’t make it half into the room, before stopping himself and fully taking in the sight of who was present and then bowing. “Your Majesties, forgive me! Had I known-!” “Fancy Pants, please, no need for decorum,” Celestia urged him. “You know full well we’re not the rulers anymore.” “That may be the case, madame, but residents of Canterlot have not yet forgotten your radiance. But this is a serious matter. The streets of the city are littered with mess and there were injured as well. What exactly happened?” Everybody looked at one another, and then all looked at Discord. “Okay fine, guilty as charged. And if it’ll make you all feel better I’ll clean it up, okay?” the draconequus confessed. “We’ll believe it when we all see it. Now come on,” the nobleman ordered. The Lord of Chaos sighed and marched out the door, followed by the rest of the group, the zebra scooping up the jar into her saddlebag before she joined. The two creatures walked down the path at the other end of the cave that the changelings have dug out to provide a hidden exit, to avoid potential eyes that might be watching the front, especially now that the forest’s been literally turned upside-down. It took a while before they finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel… followed by a roar. They arrived at one of the middle cliff sides of Ghastly Gorge; the entrance was dug out in the area that was densely populated by quarry eels. A snapping sound followed, as Chrysalis flew up to the vegetation and pulled out a long vine, landing back to Grogar’s side, using it as a rope to tie up the bell around his neck. “I’ve no intention of carrying your trinket everywhere, so deal with it yourself.” “Suits me fine,” he shrugged as he started walking by the side of the cliff. “I wouldn’t let some other creature handling my talisman.” “Wait. Where are you going?” Queen of Changelings asked him. “Out of the gorge, what else? It’s going to be a long walk to Cloudsdale.” “You’re planning to just walk through the nest of eels?” “I do not have wings like you, changeling. What do you expect me to do?” he said, as he continued on his path without care. “It’d be a lot easier if I just lift you out of here. I’ve been instructed to make sure you get what you need, and something happening to you isn’t on the list.” “Instructed? HA!” the old ram scoffed loudly. “That’s a fancy way of saying that you’ve been “commanded to assist me in any way possible”.” “WHAT?!” she erupted. “You think I’m some sort of joke?! I’m the Queen of Changelings!” “And you expect that some creature’s going to respect you if you loudly proclaim that you are?” he brushed her off. Queen Chrysalis was slowly reaching a boiling point. This blasted old ram, who hasn’t been around for eons and was just a few moments ago brought back by her, has the nerve to look down upon her? “Fine! Go ahead and get eaten! See if I care!” she scolded him and took flight. Grogar said nothing. He simply continued to march as if she said nothing. Chrysalis flew several feet away, still glaring at him for the disrespect she was just shown. As the ram slowly approached the eel holes by the side of his trail, the little weaselly vapor slithered to her side. “You know, you’re risking a lot, broodmother,” Doubt whispered. “I’m pretty sure Hatred didn’t give you an option to fail in your task.” She scoffed. “Don’t worry. Sooner or later when one of the eels gets him he’s going to beg me to rescue his rear.” “And if he gets swallowed in a single gulp and dragged right back into the nest?” it asked. “You’ve seen what Hatred can do to your enemies. What it almost did to you, when it tried to prove a point. It was going easy on you. And if you fail it… oh, I SHUDDER to think what fate will befall you if you’re unsuccessful in protecting our friend down there.” Doubt was doing what its nature intended; the Queen of Changelings begun to doubt her own decisions, perspiring in the process, the cold shiver at the thought of consequences ran down her spine. The ram didn’t even try to stay hidden, as his hooves echoed throughout the gorge; no way the quarry eels wouldn’t hear that. Grogar stepped before the first eel hole and Chrysalis braced herself for the worst. Nothing. The nest inhabitant didn’t bother trying to even poke its head out. Same as the next one. And the one after that. Even the ones that followed. The ram passed through the trail full of living death traps, unscathed. He arrived at the cliff stairway and slowly climbed it to the top and out of the gorge. The changeling queen sighed in relief, as she flew close to the holes above which she flew. “Huh, I guess nobody’s home then,” Doubt shrugged. Those were words spoken too soon, but only to the detriment of the changeling. The loud buzzing sound coming from Queen Chrysalis’ wings drew out the nest inhabitants, as one of the quarry eels popped its head out, with its mouth open wide, about to clamp down on its prey. She dodged in the last moment, but in the direction that she was flying, it drew all other eels from the following holes out to devour her. “Whoops. My bad,” Doubt tried to pretend innocence after luring her into a state of vulnerability. Chrysalis didn’t have a moment to even respond as she dashed up and down trying to not get eaten by monsters. Finally, she managed to pass them all and landed on top of the cliffside, panting from exhaustion. “And here I thought I would have to go back and save your sorry wings,” the old ram preached, as he sat at the edge of the forest, chewing a patch of grass. She barely managed to sum up enough breath to reply. “Don’t... give me… that attitude. Y… you… you just got lucky the eels were asleep!” “No,“ the ram deflected, as he rose and proceeded to march into the forest, “I was never in any danger from them, to begin with. Those beasts simply knew better.” “You… you keep telling yourself that.” She finally managed to catch up and started to slowly follow him. “There is no way I will believe you that the quarry eels didn’t come out because they’re scared of you. You said it yourself you’re not as powerful without your collar and the bell no longer contains the power it once had.” “Indulge me for a moment, changeling,” Grogar said as Chrysalis strode by his side. “You told me earlier that you originally found my bell after Gusty hid it away because some creature impersonated me?” “Oh that. Yes, Discord sure was something. He once conquered Equestria just so he could have some fun at the expanse of its denizens. He singlehandedly pulled my other two compatriots out of Tartarus and even drew another out of ether itself.” “This “Discord” creature sounds very powerful indeed if he was able to do something like this on his own,” he pondered. “I wonder where he drew such power from.” “Drew from? Discord is a spirit of chaos from another dimension,” she explained to him. “He used to be a terrifying force, but now, ever since he made friends with those blasted ponies he’s all,” and with those words, Queen Chrysalis shapeshifted, taking on Discord’s appearance and mimicking his voice. “Oh, I’m Discord. I like having tea parties with my little pony friends and after that, we’ll go skipping over the rainbow and be best friends forever.” She stopped after noticing that her companion was no longer beside her. “Grogar?” A skipping sound came from behind her at a fast pace and then - a thud. She felt as if a boulder had just crashed into her abdomen, but all she saw were a pair of giant ram antlers. She was sent flying and collided against the nearby tree. With a spinning head, she awoke, light flashing before her eyes until she saw hooves standing before her, and looking up she realized what a mistake that was. She didn’t feel it back in the cavern due to the aura radiating from the tree, but now out in the open, she could feel it. Grogar stood before her, drawn to his full height, looking down on her, and the look in his eyes… it was full of unrestrained hatred and rage, his very presence exhuming a sense of dread, the malice surging out of him. She felt nothing like this when the Lord of Chaos posed as him. He was the real thing. His horns begun to glow in yellow as the Bewitching Bell around his neck got directed at her and before she had a chance to react, rang. The bell activated, its ringing echoing around and a sinister vortex opened. Chrysalis felt her magic was quickly being drained from her body, growing weaker by the moment, her Discord guise coming off and disappearing. The bell finally went silent. Queen Chrysalis felt powerless; all that magic, all that power, gone, and from the exhaustion and injury earlier she couldn’t even move a muscle. The old ram still stood before her with his artifact, unmoving, with a merciless look in his eyes. Was this really how it would end for her? Obtaining everything she ever wanted only to have it all stripped away? Betrayed by the one she helped bring back and forced to look after? “So… this is your true form after all,” Grogar mumbled. The bell rang again, and all the power that was just drained from her returned, the sense of loss dissipated. She gasped for air, coughing, as she finally got back on her feet. Then she heard words come out of him that she did not expect. “You will have to forgive me, Queen of Changelings…” He was actually addressing her by her proper title? No smug remarks or insults? What just happen? “… but after my last encounter with that sniveling little draconequus I’m not taking my chances with being careless,” he finished. “You… you knew Discord?” Chrysalis asked him. “Discord? Is that the name he chose for himself? Oh, I do. Very much in fact. And after what you’ve just shown me I relish the thought of meeting him again in person.” “Well…” she coughed one more time. “Even if you get that chance, he’ll pretty much wipe the floor with your old hide. Even if you manage to recover your collar, unless you can catch him off guard to use your bell on him, it will remain empty.” “You’re wrong.” “What?” she was confused by his response. “I didn’t sense it back in the cavern, but there is something still left in the bell.” “Power?” “No… not power,” Grogar responded as he directed the bell to the ground and begun to shake it rapidly. An orb. A single small yellow orb suddenly fell out of the Bewitching bell and gently landed on the floor. The old ram lifted it to his face. The Changeling Queen cocked her head. “What is that?” “A memory,” he answered. “Some creature must’ve used my bell to hide it away, thinking nobody would find it, except for its owner. But I wonder, what kind of memories would one have that he wanted to forget?” Without a moment of waiting, he chucked the orb into his mouth; his eyes flashed for a few moments and then he spat it out. Then Chrysalis saw a change on the old ram occur; a cruel, vile smile appeared on his face. What did he just discover? “Queen of Changelings. I believe I know how to track down my collar… and more.” Doubt slithered to her side. “Oh… this I’ve got to hear.” “So… you’re the one she was talking to earlier, wisp?” Grogar addressed it. Both the vapor and Chrysalis looked at each other. The ram could actually see him now? “You’re just like it, aren’t you? That mass of darkness that lurks in the lake? If you’re not bound to it, what uses do you have?” “Ugh, at least the day was coming to an end.” Twilight dragged her hooves Discord managed to clean up the mess he’s created. The Canterlot nobles, or at the very least Fancy Pants, was satisfied with the outcome, although there was still a nagging thought in the back of her head whether or not to spill the beans already on the goings-on in the Everfree Forest; Applejack certainly pushed her, but she pleaded that they give it some more time, at least until they manage to find Starswirl, which she did not approve of one bit, considering it would probably take days. Regardless, the idea was pushed back. As for the unexpected visitors, the high-class unicorn invited the Council, as well as the two princesses on a lavishing dinner party, as the nobles were quite delighted to have the former Princess of the Sun visiting after being absent for so long. By the end, however, Twilight was ready to turn in after all the mental exhaustion she had to endure. Everybody else already went back to Ponyville, while she was left behind with the two royal sisters. “Filling my horseshoes isn’t easy, is it?” Her former mentor accompanied her. “Nope, not one bit,” she mumbled. “Shouldn’t you be going back to Manehatten? I’m pretty sure your staff and cast at the theater will be missing you otherwise.” “Oh, I’m sure I can be absent for a day or two, the play isn’t going to run away,” the former princess reassured her. “As long as I can help my former student.” They walked down the corridor to the royal bedrooms where Twilight finally stopped. “I’ve left your room the way you did, I simply didn’t have the nerve to change it after you left.” “Thank you for the sentiment, Twilight. I will see you in the morning. Good night.” The white alicorn entered the room and closed the door behind her. Twilight yawned. Sleep would offer her some reprieve… but if the nightmares reoccur, then little will change, which was the likely outcome. “Twilight!” a familiar voice called to her. Spike ran down the hallway to her, accompanied by the former princess Luna. “You’re going to bed right now, right?” he asked. The princess thought it was a curious question. “Yes? Why would you think I wouldn’t?” The Mare of the Night approached her. “Twilight Sparkle, can we talk for a moment?” “What is it, Princess Luna?” the purple alicorn responded. “What you said earlier, the nightmare you described, one that’s been torturing you for days and nobody could cure, except for the zebra bringing out… "the waste". I want to see it for myself, and perhaps find something everypony else missed.” “You’d do that for me?” A glow of hope appeared on the younger mare’s face. “Considering you’ve managed to hold the line in our absence for so long, I think it’s the least I can do.” “And I’m coming along this time,” the advisor chipped in. “Thank you!” Twilight smiled and hugged both her and him. Night has fallen over Canterlot. Everybody else had already entered deep sleep, including the reigning Princess and her companion. Another’s work, however, was about to begin. Former Princess of the Night stood on the balcony overlooking the kingdom, as she did numerous times before, doing what she hasn’t done in a long time. She closed her eyes, her horn glowed and darkness enveloped her. The stream of dreams opened before here. It has been a long time since she visited this place, but now she had a set task again. She looked for two specific individuals and it didn’t take long to find one of them. On a full moon night, the purple adolescent dragon, now grown, sat in the garden on the far end of a fancy chaise, playing the guitar. Lounging next to him was the voluptuous vision of a white, purple-maned fashionista in a silken white dress and a fancy hat. The distinct sense of desire was in the night’s air. And just as the climax of the sweet romantic moment was approaching, a dark mare popped her head out of the moon in the background. The moment Spike noticed her, panic got hold of him. “No, wait! Princess Luna just let me have this-!” “No time,” she simply said and dragged him with her. An opening appeared in the sky above Canterlot just before morning dawn, and the Mare of the Night and the dragon, now-adolescent again, passed through. “I knew I should’ve taken a rain check,” he grumbled. “Your dreams will come again, Spike,” she reassured him, “but for now we must keep to the task at hand.” They both looked down and saw the events play out Twilight found herself where she normally would, standing on top of the tallest tower in Canterlot, looking on to the horizon, waiting for the brand-new dawn. And then it happened: strong wind began to blow, a great mass of shadow emerged from the land and plunged Equestria into darkness. As she flew off, she was unaware that outside participants were already watching the events take place. Both Luna and Spike stood in the air and watched the whole event play out. “So much darkness…” Mare of the Night looked to the horizon. “I don’t think I’ve seen anything alike in a really long time, and even then, not to this extent.” “So, shouldn't we intervene now?” Spike asked. “At the most critical moment. Alas, I’ve no idea where that moment is. You’ve been with her the whole time. Can I count on you to find the right moment?” The little dragon nodded. And they watched as Twilight tried to fight off the darkness, failing, and as she flew back to Canterlot to get the residents to evacuate, it skipped over to her, failing to stop it once more and its grip beginning to overpower her. “Now?” Luna asked. “No,” Spike told her, “this isn’t the moment yet.” “But how is she going to-“ before she managed to finish the sentence, she heard a booming sound. She saw a rainbow trailing on the edge of the dark matter and flying away, carrying the princess and landing on the castle’s courtyard, four other familiar faces appearing to her side. They embraced her and the magic of friendship began to radiate from them, sending out a rainbow that pushed back the encroaching darkness. “Huh… that’s not what I expected,” the former princess raised her eyebrow. “Perhaps this time the problem fixed itself.” Spike didn’t have time to make a response, but what followed definitely mirrored his thoughts. NO! The two observers leaped in fright, the dragon literally jumping on the Night’s Mare’s back. They both heard that sinister cry and then saw the darkness surging on once more, and forming five faces. “That’s the point, isn’t it?” Luna tried to keep calm. The dragon only let out a yelp. “YEP!” The former princess of the night flew down in haste. As the darkness crept closer, surrounding Twilight and her friends, pulling the five into its depths and proceeded to press down on her, and then… a flash of light! She covered her eyes from the blinding light and as it faded, she finally saw two familiar faces. Her faithful companion kneeled by her side, while Luna stood valiant against the darkness bearing down on them all, erecting a protection bubble. “Twilight, are you alright?” he asked. He was met with an instant pull into an embrace. “You’ve no idea how much I wanted to see you here of all places,” his big sister whispered. He could do nothing better but to return in kind. Then she released him and her gaze wandered over to the Mare of the Night. “Princess Luna, what’s causing all of this?” she asked her. The blue alicorn glanced back at her. “We’ll soon find out.” She wandered outside the protective bubble, her horn alit like a torch. The nightmare's shadows pressed down on her, but couldn’t touch her. “Reveal yourself!” she called out. “Whatever you are, you have no power over the watcher of dreams!” DID THEY FEEL THE SAME? Luna could hear the voice. It came from a specific direction and followed it. DID THEY SHOW YOU THE SAME RESPECT AS THEY DID TO HER? The closer she came to the source the more she slowed down. That voice. Its doubting words. It sounded familiar in some way, she heard it many times in the distant past. But its name escaped her. YOU WERE BOTH MENT TO BE EQUAL, YET THEY CHERISHED HER MORE! Finally, she started to see something in the distance. A strange twisting vaporous shape floated there, exhuming the darkness, constantly changing its form. I deserve more than that precious child of light! Luna stopped in her tracks. The voice suddenly changed. It was as if somebody else was talking now, but that’s precisely what gave her pause. She recognized that voice. Her own voice! Or rather, the voice of her worst self; angry, spiteful, resentful, jealous. And that’s precisely what the vapor turned into. It transformed into an image of her own darkness – Nightmare Moon! She wouldn’t listen to that again. Her horn lit and the light pierced the shroud, eliminating the visions of nightmare in Twilight’s mind; the vapor, on the other hand, the source of it all, resisted, yet the form it just took was being distorted. “Begone!” Luna cried out. “I’ve put you behind me! You won’t make me succumb to my own darkness again and you won’t corrupt anypony else!” FOOL… WE LIVE… IN EVERY… BREATH… The light consumed everything. As it finally disappeared, Twilight and Spike looked around themselves and saw Canterlot cleared of everything, the sun rising over the horizon. The bubble disappeared, enabling them to finally move about, and seeing the former princess staring in the distance, they both ran to her. “Princess Luna, you did it! It’s finally gone!” Twilight yelled with a cheer. But as they got closer to her, it became clear something was wrong. She just stood there, unmoving. “Princess Luna?” the Element of Magic prodded her. She suddenly shook her head, snapping out of the trance. “I’m sorry, Twilight Sparkle, I was just… in thought.” “Is it gone then?” Spike asked. The Mare of the Night nodded. “What was it? What was the source of my nightmare?” Twilight questioned her. “I…” the former princess couldn’t find a proper answer. “I don’t know. Whoever infiltrated your dreams had long since left. All that was left in its place was a remnant of his power… a shadow. And its voice, it was…” “It was what?” the dragon wondered. “I’ve heard it before somewhere, I just can’t seem to recall where. All I do know is that when I approached it, it shifted… into Nightmare Moon.” The two looked at each other with concern. “You… you don’t think she’s going to come back, do you?” “Unlikely,” Luna stated. “I’ve put my past behind long ago. But still… that foreboding voice… why was it here?” Silence lingered over the dream realm, unsure of the events that transpired. Spike gazed on the horizon and suddenly realized something, breaking the stillness. “Emm, Princess Luna, any chance you can take us out? We need to get up for the morning routine.” “Oh, right! In all that’s happened, I completely lost myself,” Twilight concurred. Luna smiled and nodded. “Very well, Twilight Sparkle. We’ll speak again… in the waking world.” Her horn flashed and everything went white. The little dragon opened his eyes. He’s just awoken from a deep slumber, yet he felt as if he’s been awake the whole time. But what about his big sister? He jumped out of bed in a hurry, not even bothering to grab the morning list, and rushed over to her room. He knocked on the door. “Twilight? Twilight is everything okay?” He opened the door and saw a sight he hasn’t seen in a long while, a much-missed one. The Princess of Friendship was all dressed up already, standing before a mirror, combing her mane. “Good morning, Spike,” she addressed him. “Looks like somepony slept in.” He crooked his eyebrow. “And somepony’s feeling fresh as a daisy, apparently. So, it worked then?” She nodded with a smile. ”I’ve not felt this freshened up and relaxed in weeks, Spike. It feels like I can take on the world.” “All things considered, we might as well.” “Oh, ha ha ha,” she made a sarcastic remark at his snide comment. She opened the drawer and pulled out the amulet, traipsing over to the edge of the balcony. “I hope you’re ready Spike. It’s a new day, with a ton of new possibilities.” She activated the trinket. The moon slowly drifted from the sky and disappeared beyond her sight. Then, the light began to peek over the horizon, marking the beginning of a new dawn as the sun finally rose. Twilight closed her eyes and inhaled, trying to soak in the first fresh sparks of morning light, the gentle breeze passing through her mane. This… was perfect; nothing could ruin this moment for her now. Then she opened her eyes and they almost popped out of her sockets, after what she saw. Spikey angry dark clouds loomed over Ponyville, making it rain chocolate while pigs flew about, on top of other things happening in the village that she couldn’t clearly make out from this distance. “DISCORD!” she yelled in frustration of having her day ruined when it just started.