//------------------------------//
// The Lightsaber 
// Story: Darth Edris 
// by AntiBronyBenSwolo 
//------------------------------//

The years passed long and hard for Twilight and her friends. Between the return of Starswirl the Bearded and the Pillars of Equestria, the Storm King and Tempest Shadow’s invasion on Equestria, Cozy Glow’s near takeover of the newly opened School of Friendship, the attack on the harmony between the three tribes at the hands of the Legion of Doom, and Twilight being crowned Princess of Equestria, Twilight and her friends endured each trial, each one harder than the last. And behind the scenes, Darth Edris orchestrated them all to her grand design. Outside the watchful eyes of her friends, however, Fluttershy trained in secret in the art of the Jedi, practicing her meditation, telekinetic abilities, and skills with a sword with help from Roach.



Fluttershy tended to the animals in the Sweet Feather Sanctuary, tending to their every need and whim, and chatting with Occelus and Smolder, who was just about to leave. As the changeling and the dragon students set foot outside the sanctuary, Smolder accidentally tripped over a moderately large cardboard box with Fluttershy’s name on it. Occelus looked down and picked the box up.

“Hey, Ms. Fluttershy? You got a package,” Smolder informed as Fluttershy put down the birdseed she was feeding the Sanctuary’s feathered residence in to pick up the package for herself. The package seemed to be addressed to her and the sanctuary, and sent by a “Groom R.R. Martingale”. And most curiously, it had a small pendant with Fluttershy’s cutie mark, instantly cluing Fluttershy in on what’s going on.

“Is something wrong?” Occelus asked as Fluttershy examined the pendant.

“No. Nothing wrong. Just...something I need to attend to. Please excuse me,” Fluttershy said as she carried the package deep into the sanctuary. Smoler and Occelus had no idea what had gotten into Fluttershy, as they simply shrugged and left. Fluttershy headed toward a large spruce tree and pulled down on one of the branches, revealing a secret pathway underneath the roots of the tree. Fluttershy went through the secret door and into the path with her package in one hoof, and a lantern in the other. The pathway was long and dark like a city’s alleyway in the night sky, lit only by a lantern.

As she traversed through the long narrow tunnel that went for miles on end, a green flame engulfed her, revealing the little pony to be Roach in disguise, covering for Fluttershy while she was away. Roach, after almost more than an hour of walking down a long, dark, and damp tunnel, finally reached its end to find the long-abandoned cave where he and Fluttershy discovered the crashed Jedi ship. Or, at least, it would be abandoned, had the two not transformed it into a Jedi Sanctuary, with hidden entrances scattered throughout Equestria, including Sweet Feather Sanctuary, Fluttershy’s home, and the Changeling Hive. And the Sanctuary itself has certainly been refurnished since they first saw it.

On the north end of the lair sat a workbench for mechanical needs for Fluttershy and Roach to dissect their new Jedi toys with, as it would give them a better understanding of the Jedi Ship sitting in the middle of their lair. Speaking of, a large canvas tapestry covered the crash side, as if a surprise was kept underneath. On the east side of the cavern sat a yoga mat surrounded by scented candles for Fluttershy to attempt to meditate on the Force on her own. And at the west side of the sanctuary sat a series of small foam balls, a blindfold, and a large wooden stick with a comfortable cloth handle fashioning the branch into a practice sword. And all around the walls of the lair were bits and pieces of Queen Chrysalis’ old throne as a defensive measure against any unicorn intruders.

Roach placed the package down by the edge of the canvas tapestry and looked up to find Fluttershy meditating inside a changeling cocoon, as per a request. Despite having a yoga mat and candles, Fluttershy could not seem to meditate on her own and requests Roach to wrap her up for better results. By the side of Fluttershy’s cocoon hung a small beautiful hoof-made windchime as a signal for her to leave the cocoon. Roach headed for the top of the cave and poked Fluttershy’s cocoon as if to get her attention.

“Hey, Flutters. I don’t know if you can hear me, but if you’re ready to come on out, please give the signal. Somepony kind of figured out our secret here,” Roach said hoping Fluttershy heard her. Just then, the windchimes behind him rattled as Roach recognized the sound.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Roach said to himself as he plucked Fluttershy’s cocoon from out of the ceiling and carried it right next to the package. Roach poked his horn into the bottom and slid it upward to slice it open, releasing Fluttershy from the cocoon. Fluttershy moaned and rubbed her eyes as if she awoke from a long slumber.

“Hey Roach,” Fluttershy yawned as she scraped the slime of the cocoon off of her.

“Hey, Fluttershy. Learn any new tricks from your latest meditation session?” Roach asked as Fluttershy looked downward in disappointment.

“Well...no. I was...I was just…” Fluttershy said as if she had spent all that time meditating in a changeling cocoon for nothing. Roach recognized this behavior from his partner before.

“You...still miss Twilight, huh?” Roach asked as Fluttershy sighed, letting a couple of tears trickle down her face. It’s been a whole year since Twilight was coronated as Princess of Equestria. And despite Fluttershy agreeing to meet with her friends every month since then as a member of the Council of Friendship, she still felt like her friends were drifting far apart from one another. And the more time she spent training to become a Jedi, the more Fluttershy felt like she was a part of the problem.

“It’s...kind of hard not to,” Fluttershy admitted as she wiped the tears from her eyes. Roach sat down to console and comfort her.

“Hey. Missing your friends can be hard. Change can be hard. I get that. I had to go through Chrysalis being kicked out and replaced by Thorax, and we still weren’t used to it at first. But you also just can’t accept change right away. It needs to take time to process. But once you have finally accepted that change, you’ll be able to see that it’s not just the end of one story, but the beginning of another,” Roach said as Fluttershy smiled at her changeling friend, letting a tear trickle down her cheek.

“Thanks, Roach. You somehow know exactly what to say exactly when I need to hear it,” Fluttershy said as the two got up.

“Now, I wanted to show you something,” Roach said, picking up the package and handing it to Fluttershy. Roach cut open the box with his horn, and Fluttershy opened the package revealing its contents: An old leather journal covered in dry mud, a blue notebook, and a small letter. Roach examined the leather journal while Fluttershy read the letter.


Dear Fluttershy,


I have examined the journal of your mysterious


Griffon Prince and I think I may have determined


his tomb’s whereabouts. A lot of the contents in


the journal seemed very strange, such as mentions


of a weird mystical energy. Also, I couldn’t risk damaging


such an old relic by writing my notes in here, so


I decided to write them in this notebook for you to go


through. Meet me in Griffonstone so we can


begin our expedition to find our prince’s tomb.


Signed, Dr. Caballeron.


“Wait, is that where the Griffon Prince’s journal went? I thought that book went missing!” Roach exclaimed, going through the old leather book. Fluttershy went through Dr. Caballeron’s notebook about the journal and decided to head over to the workbench to add her notes as well.

“I know you might not see it as a good idea, but Caballeron’s a history teacher. Meaning he knows a thing or two about the Griffon Prince’s past. I let him borrow the journal so he can help us find out where it is,” Fluttershy explained, hoping Roach could connect the dots.

“No, I know where this is going, but please, please tell me you didn’t tell him we think the Griffon Prince is a Jedi,” Roach begged as Fluttershy paused for a moment.

“Well, I didn’t tell him that much. Either he probably knows a little bit about the Jedi but thinks they’re a myth, or this would be his first time learning about them, or he just doesn’t know about them. Pick which story helps you sleep at night,” Fluttershy said, going through Callaberon’s notes.

“Plus, had I asked Rainbow Dash and Daring Do to help us out, then our secret would be more at risk,” Fluttershy said, adding to her argument.

“...Alright. Fair enough,” Roach said, taking his turn at examining the notebook.

“So, what do ya say? Ready for a jungle adventure?” Fluttershy said, packing tons of apple lunches, camping equipment, the journal and notebook, and a small saddlebag full of spare parts and machinery that looked like they were saved for something.

“Hey, worth a shot, ain’t it?” Roach scoffed as Fluttershy beamed excitedly about her new adventure.



Out Fluttershy and Roach went, to the edges of Griffonstone, surrounded by the shadowy greens of the forest below the Griffon City. The duo sat at nearby boulders waiting for their archeologist companion to guide them to the tomb of their mysterious prince.

“How much longer until they get here?” Roach asked, who felt like he had waited for hours on his little rock.

“I’m not sure. Just have to wait a little while longer is all,” Fluttershy said as she let the wind brush up against her side to cool her off against the boiling sun.

“Well, wait no longer, my friend,” A voice called out from beyond the hill. A group of stallions, all of which were familiar to Fluttershy, and led by an infamous archeologist, came right around the corner to meet up with Fluttershy and Roach.

“Dr. Caballeron! So glad to finally see you again,” Fluttershy said as Caballeron chuckled.

“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” Caballeron chuckled as his henchponies chuckled along. Roach chuckled along, but couldn’t find anything funny about the situation, and found the doctor’s helping hooves suspicious.

“I see you got a henchpony of your own. And a changeling for one at that,” Dr. Caballeron noted as Fluttershy went over to introduce Roach.

“I wouldn’t say he’s a henchpony like your friends are. I see him more as a loyal companion. And without his guidance, I don’t think we’d be searching for the Griffon Prince,” Fluttershy said as Roach reluctantly shook Caballeron’s hoof.

“And can you tell us just who is this Griffon Prince we’re searching for again? We weren’t told anything upon heading here,” One of the henchponies objected.

“Well, for short, the Griffon Prince was the crown prince of Griffonstone during a time when the Griffons waged a devastating war on the neighboring creatures. Unfortunately, the Prince’s lover died in the war, and the Prince was so distraught that he left his kingdom to live in exile as a humble hermit. Legends claim that during his exile, he was protecting something very valuable and very rare,” Roach explained, as he flipped through the pages of the journal, explaining the story to the henchponies further.

“That’s not very helpful, honestly,” One of the other henchponies scoffed.

“Well, I’m sorry I can’t think of any other way to explain it!” Roach snapped at the henchpony. Fluttershy jumped in between her companion and the henchpony to stop a fight from erupting.

“Everything about this Prince is shrouded in mystery, so there’s no easy way of explaining him at all. Except we may have unraveled one of his mysteries: the whereabouts of his tomb. And once we find it, there will be so many more answers from there,” Caballeron explained as the henchponies stood down and nodded at their employer.

“Care to lead the way?” Fluttershy asked, giving Dr. Caballeron his notebook. Caballeron nodded and led the troupe of adventurers into the thick forests below Griffonstone in search of the tomb.

The forests ahead were large and dense, populated by practically giant trees with snow-grey bark and covered in blackish-green leaves, sometimes dropping lumps of snow. The air was hostile as it was filled with itchy pollen and freezing cold breezes that made one feel like they could freeze at any moment if they weren’t bundled up enough. And the noises were eerie enough with shadowy crows and ravens cawing at any who dared pass through, mixed with the cold winds made for a very ominous forest. Nonetheless, Fluttershy and her party trudged through the cold, dark, damp forest for miles on end, sometimes encountering ruined camps of those who came before them. As the ponies and changeling marched through the harsh environment, they stumbled upon a rather large stone structure. It looked to be a small castle with a run-down and broken fountain, crumbling pillars supporting the structure, covered in thick vines and moss, providing the castle the only color visible, and guarded by a large statue of a griffon with a large robe and an outstretched claw as if casting a spell.

“Well, everypony. It looks like we made it,” Dr. Caballeron announced as his hoof pointed out the structure. They had finally made it to the Griffon Prince’s tomb. The company entered the establishment as Caballeron lit a makeshift torch and gave Fluttershy a torch as well. The tomb’s interior was rather small but very long, and very dark. It was also rather quiet, with the only noise emanating was the quiet drip of water droplets from the melting snow from above. Fluttershy aimed her torch up against the wall, hoping to find some clue as to the Griffon Prince’s story, and maybe how to connect it to her outcome as a Jedi, but the timid little pony, unfortunately, found no such clue as to indicate anything helpful. As they traversed the dark tomb, the light became clearer at the other end and uncovered a large stone sarcophagus. Fluttershy glided over to the top of the tomb to examine its contents: The Griffon Prince’s skeleton rested silently clothed in old robes and armor and grasped onto the hilt of a weapon, much like the weapon Fluttershy first encountered years ago.

“Guys. I think I found the treasure the Griffon Prince was guarding!” Fluttershy announced, picking up the weapon. Just then, one of the henchponies lunged at Fluttershy and gagged her with a white cloth, much to the surprise of Roach and Caballeron. The rag was coated in a sleeping agent, which made its way up to Fluttershy’s senses rendering her unconscious.

“Hey! We were actually going to help her, not stab her in the back! Didn’t you learn anything last time?” Dr. Caballeron scolded as the traitorous henchpony only let out a sinister grin as he took the weapon from Fluttershy’s resting hooves.

“I’m afraid I wasn’t there last time,” The henchpony cackled as he engulfed himself in a green flame revealing himself to be a changeling. And not a kind gentle changeling, but a nasty, ravenous changeling from before King Thorax took the throne. Roach and Caballeron gasped and backed away before the other two henchponies revealed themselves to also be love-starved changelings. Roach looked back at Caballeron, noticing the surprised fear on his face.

“Don’t look at me like that, I didn’t know they were changelings as well!” Caballero muttered as the lead Changeling fiddled around with the ancient hilt.

“And I must say, thank you for leading my comrades and me to this remote sanctuary, and to this valuable treasure. But really, the honor must go to your friend here,” The Changeling thief mocked as he lightly kicked Fluttershy’s unconscious body.

“Don’t you hurt her!” Roach demanded, before being held down by the two snarling changelings behind him and Caballero.

“Or what? You’ll face me? I’m afraid you just don’t have enough firepower to face me now. Not with my new weapon, anyways,” The lead thief monologue as he found what looked like a couple of buttons on the hilt. He pressed the one closest to his hoof, and out sprung a blade of pure white-hot plasma surrounded by a thick golden-yellow aura. The thief twirled the yellow blade around before pressing the other button, causing another identical blade to pop out of the other end of the weapon. The lead changeling cackled as he twirled the weapon around, before deactivating it.

“What I want to know is what exactly do you plan to do with this weapon, now that you found it?” Caballeron asked as the lead changeling smirked down at the helpless archeologist.

“You say that like I know you’re going to escape,” The lead changeling said, pointing the yellow lightsaber at Caballeron’s chin.

“Trust me, I’ve done this song and dance before with Daring Do. I know how this goes,” Caballeron commented as Roach looked on at the golden blade in curiosity about the changeling’s plan.

“Betcha his plan is to avenge Queen Chrysalis and overthrow Thorax or something,” Roach uttered as the sinister changeling snarled and held the lightsaber at his fellow insect’s neck.

“Lucky guess?” Roach mocked as the Changeling thief prepared to strike before one of the other changelings spoke up.

“We don’t have time for this. The mare could wake up any second now,” One of the changeling rapscallions informed as the leader examined the lightsaber closely. He probably could, and maybe should, strike them all down with his new saber and be done with it. But then he remembered something. He had a deal.

“No. Stick them in the nearest cave and leave them to rot,” The leader said, almost as if under some kind of spell. Roach and Caballeron looked at one another in concern as the two changeling henchmen pushed them along while Roach picked up Fluttershy’s resting body. Roach looked on ahead at the nearest cave they were being stuck in and saw that it was filled with bright, colorless crystals decorating the cave as if they were stars in the night sky. After one final push from the changelings, knocking Fluttershy, Roach, and Caballeron over, Roach looked back to find the lead changeling thief fluttering up to the top of the cave. And with one stroke of the yellow blade of the lightsaber, the cave came crumbling down, blocking their only means of escape, and leaving them behind.

“...What in the world was that?” Caballeron asked as Roach looked around the dark cave, with the crystals being their only source of light.

“A Lightsaber. The treasure of the Griffon Prince was his lightsaber. And we just led these bandits right to it,” Roach explained as Caballeron sat down hopelessly. Roach looked down at the pony historian and couldn’t help but sympathize with him.

“Hey, don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll be able to get out somehow,” Roach said as Caballeron surveyed the situation closely.

“With what? All we have is this bag of scraps you two insisted on bringing! We have nothing to escape with! We have no food or rations, so we’re probably gonna starve in here! It’d take a miracle to save us now,” Caballeron said as Roach looked back at Fluttershy’s still resting body. Roach remembered how a miracle brought them together and unlocked Fluttershy’s connection to the Force. And maybe it’s that same miracle that will save them. Without hesitation, Roach began secreting some changeling gunk, much to Caballeron’s confusion.

“What are you doing?” Caballero asked as Roach wrapped Fluttershy up in the gunk.

“Cocooning Fluttershy. This should help,” Roach said as Caballeron was confused by the act.

“With what? Sedating her more than she already is? This is getting us nowhere out of here!” Caballero ranted as Roach merely chuckled in response.

“I think it will...from a certain point of view is all,” Roach said as Fluttershy resonated quietly in the cocoon’s fluids, freeing her mind from her body once more into her meditative state.



Fluttershy opened her eyes and lifted herself up to find herself in her meditative realm of the Force. Her head was throbbing from the thug that made her pass out-- the Henchponies!! Fluttershy lightly growled and scolded herself for trusting Caballero’s henchponies and not finding anything suspicious about them. She couldn’t see much of the attacks, but she overheard the entire debacle from Roach and Caballeron. She can’t believe she’d been outsmarted by Changelings! For real this time! If only she had a little more time to practice her Jedi senses, she would have been able to call them out before heading to the Griffon Prince’s tomb! And now the changeling thieves have stolen the Prince’s treasure, and it’s all her fault! Fluttershy’s rage slowly rose as she plunged her hooves into her face in the diamond-clear rivers, scolding herself. And once the young pegasus had tired herself out, Fluttershy could not stop herself from letting a few little tears drip from her eyes and into the river she was previously beating.

“Why are you crying?” A voice called out. Fluttershy wiped the tear from her eye and turned around, though no one was there.

“Hello? Master Qui-Gon? Are you here?” Fluttershy asked, hoping the Jedi Master who introduced Fluttershy to the Force would dispense some wisdom, any wisdom to get her out of this situation. Instead, she found just the being she was looking for.

“No, I’m not Master Qui-Gon. But I am the Jedi you were looking for, if that’s what you’re asking,” the voice responded, coming out of the forest. He was covered in olive-colored fur with some matching feathers, had pale blue highlights on the tips of those feathers, had a bright green tail, wore a bandage on his front right leg and a ruby bracelet on his front left leg. His eyes were as blue as the night sky and his beak was the color of copper coins. Fluttershy could not believe her eyes. She was staring face to face with the Griffon Prince.

“Oh...Oh my...you really are a Jedi,” Fluttershy said, realizing the theories she shared with Roach about him were correct.

“That I am. And I take it you tread the very same path? We’ve been watching your progress very closely, and I must say I am very glad to see how far you have come,” The Prince said as Fluttershy was flustered with the Prince’s words.

“Oh my gosh! Thank you. I...didn’t think anyone would be watching,” Fluttershy said as the Griffon Prince sat down right beside her.

“All the Jedi in here have been watching you since you connected yourself to the Force. Though you failed to answer my question. Why do you seem so upset?” The Prince asked as Fluttershy looked back down upon herself in the river with regret.

“I...I wanted to look into your tomb to help learn about the Jedi, and...we were ambushed. And now the thieves that beat me stole your lightsaber! And it’s all my fault,” Fluttershy said, fighting back tears. The Prince merely chuckled at the remark.

“Good thing they didn’t take the treasure I was guarding,” The Griffon remarked as Fluttershy’s eyes shot up at him.

“But...I thought the lightsaber was the treasure,” Fluttershy asked as the Prince smiled at her.

“Yes, a lightsaber is very sacred in a Jedi’s life. However, dear Fluttershy, my life has already been over for more than a thousand years. I have no need for it anymore. Especially in a place like this,” The Griffon Prince said, placing his paw on the golden-yellow trunk of a nearby tree.

“Then, what was the treasure?” Fluttershy asked as the Prince looked back down at Fluttershy.

“A cavern full of Kyber crystals, the source of a lightsaber’s power. And, correct me if I’m wrong here, this missing piece to yours,” The Griffon Prince explained as Fluttershy’s eyes widened at the Prince’s words.

“An entire cavern of them?” Fluttershy asked as the Griffon Prince chuckled.

“Yes. But I advise that you not to pick just any old crystal. You must let the Force guide you and let the crystal call out to you. If anything, it’s very much similar to those pink butterflies on your flank,” The Griffon Prince explained, as Fluttershy turned to her cutie mark.

“Let the Force guide me, right?” Fluttershy asked as the Griffon Prince nodded. Fluttershy then turned back to her reflection in the river and closed her eyes. She concentrated on the will of the Force, and all sense of anger and guilt she was bearing against herself was blown away in the realm’s wind. Another breath was drawn as she extended herself as she felt the Force blow through her body like a pleasant breeze.



“...any second now,” Roach said to himself as Caballeron growled at the situation.

“It’s been 30 minutes. Nothing happened yet,” Caballeron commented, demeaning Roach’s faith in Fluttershy’s cocooned body.

“Just need a bit more patience is all,” Roach replied as the older stallion scoffed.

“We can’t wait for anything. If we don’t do anything, we’re going to starve or run out of air. If we don’t act, we’re going to die!” Caballeron snapped at the younger changeling. Without warning, however, a small, colorless crystal from the many crystals decorating the cavern snapped from the stone walls, bolted through the cavern lightning fast, and punctured the cocoon like a dart, causing some of the fluids to leak out.

“Well, looks like now’s our time to act,” Roach declared as he further punctured the cocoon with his horn, pouring Fluttershy’s now recovered body out of the cocoon, coughing and sputtering. Caballeron couldn’t believe his eyes.

“You alright Flutters?” Roach asked as Fluttershy cleared her fur of the cocoon gunk still a little stuck on there.

“Yeah, I’m fine. You still got that satchel of parts?” Fluttershy asked as Roach pulled it out. Caballeron shook his head in disbelief as he tried to gather his thoughts.

“Care to tell me what this is about?” Caballeron asked as Fluttershy poured out the spare parts and junk pieces and arranged them in a certain manner. Fluttershy then pulled out the once colorless crystal, which now shimmered a bright, sapphire blue color, and placed it in the center of the arrangement, while Roach spectated.

“The lightsaber wasn’t what the Griffon Prince was guarding. It’s these crystals. He’s been guarding the future of thousands of more ponies like him, ponies like me, and waited for us to come along!! And it’s just what we need to get out of here,” Fluttershy said as she sat down and, as she had done in the spirit realm, let the Force guide her once more.

“I...I don’t...huh?” Caballeron stuttered as, to his amazement, the parts levitated and swirled around in the air as if leaves in the wind, gliding around Fluttershy’s body. Fluttershy monitored her breath as the parts changed it’s orbit from Fluttershy to her crystal, slowly surrounding the tiny blue rock and later encasing it in a cylindrical hilt. The device then slowly landed in front of the ground in front of Fluttershy as she finished her meditation.

“Please tell me what I think it is!!” Roach pleaded with his eyes all puppy-like and a giddy smile like a child opening a present. Fluttershy chuckled at her partner’s eagerness and picked up the hilt of the device, igniting a blade similar to the Griffon Prince’s blade, only with a blue blade instead. Roach danced around in victory at Fluttershy’s new Jedi weapon as Caballeron stood there speechless.

“Well...I’m surprised by the technological advancement and use of magic, but...can we please get out of here now?” Caballeron asked as Roach and Fluttershy nodded at one another. Fluttershy then trotted up tho the stone blockage and breathed deeply, amassing a large amount of Force energy within herself, stirring within her like a whirlwind ready to blow free. And with an extent of her front legs, the whirlwind broke free and knocked the stone blockage away, freeing Fluttershy, Roach, and Caballeron.



The night sky clouded the foggy forests as a trail of burning carnage from the tomb of the Griffon Prince lead to the Changeling thieves who robbed it of the Prince’s saber, who have set up a camp for the night.

“So, remind me of our plan again? Are we bringing back Chrysalis’ reign?” One of the thieves asked as the leader held the lightsaber hilt closely in his hoof.

“Of course not. Remember what the boss said? She said she’ll help us take back the hive and turn it into a democracy! No more kings or queens! All we need is that Jedi pony girl and we’ll be good to go,” The leader declared as the other changeling thief clapped his hooves in response.

“But...didn’t the boss say she wanted the little pony alive? She’s not gonna be happy when she finds out we tossed her into a cave to die,” the lesser thief asked as the leader groaned at the question.

“All part of the plan. Besides, that archeologist guy was right. They’re most likely going to break out of that cave any second now,” The leader explained as fiddled around with the lightsaber.

“How very perceptive of you,” A quiet voice said, startling the changelings. The lead changeling activated the two yellow blades of the Griffon Prince’s lightsaber as the two henchponies huddled behind him. Out of the bushes came Fluttershy, Roach, and Caballeron, ready to face off against the thieves.

“Well, well. Look whose ready for round two,” The lead thief taunted.

“You didn’t even give us round one, in case you forgot,” Roach snarled as the rival changelings snarled back.

“Oh. That’s right. You stupid ponies never know when to keep your guard up. So, this fight should be easy,” The lead changeling said, as he aimed to strike Roach with the yellow light of his saber, but was stopped by the bright blue blade of Fluttershy’s lightsaber, much to the surprise of the changelings.

“I got this one! You get the other two!” Fluttershy commanded as Roach and Caballeron charged after the changeling henchponies, leaving Fluttershy with the lead thief. The lead thief then disconnected their two lightsaber blades and aimed his lightsaber at Fluttershy.

“You really think you can take me? I’ve beaten stronger ponies than you long before I grabbed this blade,” The leader said, attempting to intimidate Fluttershy.

“Oh, I don’t doubt it. What I do doubt is if you know how to use that thing,” Fluttershy said, flourishing her lightsaber. The lead thief snarled and charged at Fluttershy as they exchanged blows and swipes with their lightsabers. The dark moonlit forest soon became illuminated by the blue and yellow blades of each combatant’s weapon. The lead changeling thought Fluttershy’s will was weak and attempted to use an aggressive fighting style to intimidate her. Fluttershy, however, had tons of practice and utilized a lightsaber form that really revealed how much she knew. She began flying circles around him, dodging blows from the changeling’s yellow blades, and striking back with her blue blade. Fluttershy would continue this tactic until she made the thief lose his footing and prepare to finish the duel. However, the thief was prepared and caught Fluttershy off guard by knocking her lightsaber out of her hoof and knocking her down in the process. The lead thief cackled sinisterly as he prepared to make the final blow, but Fluttershy was able to recover in time and blasted him with the Force, knocking him down for the count. Fluttershy sighed as she picked up her lightsaber and the Griffon Prince’s lightsaber.

“Oh. My gosh! That was awesome!” Roach said as he and Dr. Caballeron came out of the nearby bushes with the two changeling goons tied up in rope and changeling gunk.

“I...thank you, Roach,” Fluttershy said, blushing behind her mane. The lead changeling gagged at the friendly gesture but was too weakened by the fight to do anything about it. Dr. Caballeron proceeded to tie up the leader thief in rope along with his cohorts while Roach met once more with Fluttershy.

“So...what’s our next move?” Roach asked as Fluttershy pulled out the Griffon Prince’s lightsaber.

“Disguise yourself as a guard and take these three stowaways to Tartarus. Don’t let them say anything about what has happened tonight. I’ll take this relic back where it belongs,” Fluttershy instructed as Roach’s green flames engulfed him turning him into a stark white pegasus in golden armor, who proceeded to lock the changeling thieves up where they belong.

“And what about me? I take it I now know too much for your liking?” Dr. Caballeron asked as Fluttershy thought it over.

“Well...yes. But I trust you can keep us a secret? Like I trusted you to quit your stealing?” Fluttershy asked as Caballeron smiled at the compassionate little pony.

“You have my word, my friend,” Caballeron nodded as Fluttershy headed back to the tomb. As she stepped into the dark cave, now illuminated by the blue light of her saber, Fluttershy could now feel the Force flow through her steadily as she realized the temple served as a safe house for the light side of the Force. Once she got to the cobweb-covered skeleton of the Griffon Prince, Fluttershy took the Prince’s saber and placed it back into the tomb where it belonged.

“You didn’t have to do that,” A familiar voice called out as Fluttershy turned around to find a spectral image of the Griffon Prince, glowing bright blue and partially transparent, but still there nonetheless.

“A lightsaber is a Jedi’s life, is it not?” Fluttershy asked as the Griffon chuckled at the Jedi-in-Training.

“Yes, but do remember, there are alternatives to fighting. You should know this all too well as Element of Kindness,” The Griffon Prince countered as Fluttershy couldn’t argue with that logic.

“I take it you’ve come to wish me luck on my Jedi training?” Fluttershy asked as the Griffon Prince sighed deeply with regret.

“Yes, but also to warn you the dangers of the Dark Side. There is an everpresent evil within the shadows of Equestria always watching, waiting specifically for you. It was this shadow that sent those changelings after you. I’ve tried to seek out this evil in my time, but they proved much too strong for me. Even killed my husband to weaken my spirit...and it worked. Stay vigilant. Stay on your guard. And beware the shadow, wherever they may be! And may the Force be with you,” The Griffon Prince warned as his spirit disapparated, leaving Fluttershy alone in the tomb.

“I won’t let you down. I won’t let anyone down!” Fluttershy promised, alone with her thoughts.