*The dream realm*
"I have to give you ponies the credit. All of you are girly, but deadly. You all have tired me out. Though even so, it appears I will be the one victorious. " Nightmare looked at the last few remaining ponies standing. Twilight and her friends along with Big Macintosh, Lyra, Bon Bon, Vinyl, and Derpy were the only ponies left.
"Cmon girls! We can't give up now!" Rainbow Dash charged at Nightmare with all her might only to get slapped hard by a tentacle. Rainbow Dash landed back to where she started. When she got up, she was too dizzy to say another word.
"Throwing yourself with all you have isn't always the answer dear. This creature has to have a weakness of some sort," Rarity turned to Twilight. "If only we had some pony intelligent enough to figure that out."
And with that Twilight was met with multiple pairs of eyes staring at her. "W-what?! Excuse me?! Why is every pony depending on me all of a sudden?!"
"Aw. Are we all scared?" Nightmare chuckled. "How about I make it even scarier."
The ponies in confusion didn't understand until Nightmare dug his hands into the ground pumping nightmare magic into the dirt. The magic flowed through the grass. When it stopped a big circle of darkness surrounded Nightmare. Nightmare pulled his hands out of the ground and in the dark circle came shadow versions of each individual pony standing in Nightmare's way. The shadows raised up and stared down at their counterparts.
"It doesn't matter how much you try. The more negativity there is, the STRONGER I become. And would you look at that, my true power is coming back to me. Mmmm. I can feel it! It's only a matter of time!" Nightmare commanded his shadow puppets to attack the main 6. Then, he swung one of his tentacles out in the air causing it to cut through the sky and creating a portal to the real world.
Nightmare could taste the victory as he saw his power of darkness and nightmares cover the entire sky of the real world. "There is where my power awaits. It was nice knowing you ponies, but I have a mortal to kill. Samuel, I'm coming for you!"
"NO!" The ponies shouted and began to run after him, but it was too late. The shadow versions of them tackled them down and Nightmare had already gone through.
Exactly at that moment a rainbow beacon appeared, clearing the darkness covering the sky. "What the?!" Nightmare was knocked back into the dream realm by a rainbow shockwave. The ponies found themselves free once their shadow clones were vaporized by an unknown force that felt familiar. "Th-this is impossible! How?!"
Twilight remembered that feeling. It was the same feeling she had felt when she was with her friends against Nightmare Moon and Discord. The same feeling, she had felt when they used the Elements of Harmony together. But was it really the elements that had made them strong? No. It was their friendship. The elements were nothing without their friendship. All forces of evil were no match for The Magic of Friendship.
"Listen girls. I know he may seem strong, and you are all scared. But don't you see, it's all in our head. If you fear him or believe he is stronger than us, he will be. We have faced much worse in the past. He is nothing compared to them. And what got us through was our friendship," Twilight reached out a hoof to Fluttershy who was crying in fear. "Do you trust me?" Twilight smiled with hope and waited. Fluttershy grabbed Twilights hoof and she did the same for Applejack. The hoof grabbing started to form a chain of friendship as all the ponies glowed and floated up in the air without any wings.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Nightmare growled.
"If you say it is negativity you love. Then how would you do against positivity?" Twilight and the others flied towards Luna. The blue alicorn princess had sweat running down her head with extreme obvious pain coming from her horn. Twilight knew she couldn't hold the dream forever as she saw the bottom of her horn crack a bit.
"I'm sorry to you all. I have failed my duties as princess," Luna's horn formed another crack causing her to scream in pain.
"No. You haven't. We were the ones who failed to even notice you in the past. Don't feel bad about the past. The past is already gone. You aren't Nightmare Moon anymore," Twilight tapped Luna gently. "We forgive you."
Tears of joy ran through Luna's eyes. "Thank you."
The ponies took the time to admire each other one last time before locking their eyes on Nightmare. "Any last words, demon?" Luna said in a cold tone.
"Last words? Are you sure about that? I am NIGHTMARE, the demon who haunts one's dream. The demon who comes to feast on the living souls. I am an immortal being. How can you kill an immortal? With rainbows and pink things?"
Luna only responded with a powerful magical attack that came from her heart. The attack expanded into a white flash of light causing every pony to awaken from the dream. Twilight and her friends had awoken back in the Golden Oak Library.
"Did it work?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"It better have," Applejack said. "I don't need dat monster terrorizin' my entire family at night!"
"Well let's find out! I had a blast fighting that dream parasite with my cupcakes!" Pinkie bounced out of the door leading the other five outside where they would find Luna, on top of the windmill she had used. Luna stood there in shock as to what she was seeing. Up in the air above Ponyville, Nightmare could be seen. His body appeared to be melting like snow. His tentacles and horns were falling apart. The ponies only questioned how a being could stay alive in such a condition.
"Ugh. I was hoping my plan would succeed. But it looks like I have to gain power elsewhere. I have underestimated you ponies. When I am done with that mortal, I will hunt down anypon- UGH! ANYBODY else, who dreams about ponies like you. That is a promise." Nightmare flied away from Ponyville and into the Frozen North.
Luna failed to fly after him. So much energy had been taken away from her. Luna closed her eyes and laid down into a sleeping position on top of the windmill.
"Are you kidding me?! We go through all that trouble of kicking his butt just for him to escape!" Rainbow Dash slammed her head on a pony's home to let out her frustration.
"Rainbow Dash calm down," Spike walked up to the blue pegasis. "We banished him from the dream realm so he couldn't create anymore nightmares. And that's all we wanted, right?"
"Hey, you six," a guard stood behind them. "You have been assigned by Princess Celestia, on an important task in the Everfree Forest with us. Please follow me." The six ponies and the small dragon followed the guard with no complaint. They were escorted by several more guards that came into view when they approached the forest.
Twilight being the most curious out of the six decided to speak up. "Mind telling us what this is about?"
"We are going to investigate the strange force which came from the Everfree Forest. The princess has informed us to take the six of you with us since it was somehow related to the Elements of Harmony. Oh, and you, Princess Celestia's pupil. I am sorry for your loss."
Fear began to fill Twilight's mind. "My loss?"
The guard was about to regret it but said it anyway. "Have you not heard of your brother's...death."
Twilight didn't say a word. She just stood there, causing the rest of the group to stop for her.
"Yes. Your brother, Shining Armor, was killed by the two-legged monster who stole the elements before the changelings took Canterlot by surprise. Princess Celestia burned the creature to crisp, but it was revived by the queen of the changelings. And it wouldn't be of any surprise to me if the creature now works with those stupid bugs," the guard had to signal Twilight and the others to continue walking down the path.
Twilight's tone turned dark. "So, you say this creature is still alive with the elements. What was that about you escorting us to a place related to the elements?"
"Well, our job is to escort you to the Tree of Harmony near the castle of the two sisters. And investigate the problem there. That is all."
"The castle of the two sisters. I'll take us there right away," Twilight focused a spell on her horn and a lavender aura covered the entire group for a second. When it disappeared, they were now at the entrance of a cave. The guards were caught off guard by the unicorn's abilities.
"Hmph. Show off," one of the guards whispered to themself.
"What was that?" Twilight faced the guard with obvious hidden rage.
"Uh. Nothing," the guard looked around nervously for help until he spotted something interesting and then hoof pointed to the inside of the cave. "Hey, whos' that over there?"
Inside the cavern were six known beings they all knew. A draconequus, a two-legged monster, three little fillies, and one unconscious princess laying on the ground in peace. Right away, Twilight jumped in to engage. The mare's face was boiling with hatred at the monster. Sam already knew what this was about. Turning his hands into sharp blades, he tried to look scary. When he failed to scare Twilight's socks off, Sam lowered his eyebrows in annoyance and turned the blades into shields for defense only.
Twilight galloped towards Sam ignoring the fact he had some pony, powerful by his side.
Back in Canterlot castle, a meeting was taking place. Chrysalis stood at the very front of the table creating plans with her subjects to take all of Equestria in their hooves. The meeting went swell until Pharynx showed up with bad news. Normally Chrysalis would be mad at the sudden interruption, but Pharynx is one of her best. She wouldn't get mad at him.
As Pharynx finished, Chrysalis's mood changed entirely.
"What?! He has escaped!" Chrysalis banged her cheese legs hard on the table.
"I am sorry my queen, but yes. He took off with the elements. And somehow sneaked past the entire changeling army. He is quite the ninja," Pharynx restated.
"Weren't you supposed to be looking after him?!"
"I would've been if he didn't shoo me away. For whatever reason he left, it has to have something to do with the elements. He could be anywhere by now. My only guess would be the Everfree Forest. A few of us have reported a strange source of power coming from the deep parts of the forest after uh. What was his name again?"
Chrysalis face hoofed herself, "His name is Sam. And we need Sam for one of plans to take down the princesses and their followers. I planned on making him an unstoppable tyrant. That won't be happening if he isn't even here!" Chrysalis looked at her other subjects next to the table. "I want you all and that includes you too Pharynx. To find my monster. Once you do, bring him to me, I will deal with him myself."
"Understood," Pharynx and the rest of them got up and left the room leaving Chrysalis alone to think for herself. The changelings walked down the messed-up hallways of the castle. Windows were shattered and holes could be seen in the celling after the attack. They didn't care whether it was a mess or not, as long as it was their territory. Pharynx came to stop once he saw his brother, Thorax, waving a hoof at him as he was about to leave. "What are you doing?" Pharynx asked. "You're supposed to be taking your job seriously instead of worrying about me."
Thorax lowered his head in shame. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
"It doesn't matter now. Right now, you're coming with me on our mission whether you like it or not."
"Mission? What kind of mission?"
"Don't ask. Just follow us and shut your trap," Pharynx commanded.
"Alright..." Thorax did what he was told and followed his brother and the others. Once they were out of the castle they flew into the forest in search for Sam.
Nightmare crawled through the snow in freezing pain. "So... Cold... I can't give up now. I can feel it. A great darkness dwells within this frozen land. I'm so close..." Nightmare could sense so much negativity from where he stood. Nightmare accelerated into a run, in desperation to find its source. The demon didn't care about the pain, as a matter of fact the pain was fading away from the negative energy.
After a minute of running through nothing but snow, Nightmare, found his destination. It wasn't anything he would enjoy. It seemed to be only a kingdom made of crystals until he saw something fascinating appear from behind the kingdom. Large amounts of dark magical smoke flew around the kingdom causing a spike of negativity each time. This was the thing Nightmare searched for. The only question left now was would it be any of use?
The crystal ponies looked up and screamed at the horrifying shadow king. "You are all mine!" Sombra flied down to the crystal ground and returned back into his pony form. "Now, now, there is no need to scream. I will not harm my very own slaves, at least, not physically." King Sombra focused his magic. Small purple bubbles of pure darkness surrounded his horn as he charged his magic. The shadow king grinned and released the darkness out of his horn.
The crystal ponies saw visions of their greatest fears. It felt like a never-ending nightmare. And none of them stood a chance against it. All they could do was surrender their very own mind to King Sombra to end the nightmare. Sombra laughed at the sight of his returned servants. The sight of the Crystal Empire, however, did not appeal to the king of darkness and hatred. "I think it's time for a little redecorating. What do you all think?" Sombra's slaves nodded with little to no emotion. Sombra only smiled and replaced all of the sparkly crystals he could find into dark crystals with his magic.
Sombra turned into his shadow form and flied into the throne room. He was about to take the throne for himself until he spotted a dark figure, sitting on the crystal throne. The figure's eyes opened, revealing three purple eyes gazing upon Sombra with interest. "Who might you be?" Sombra took a few hoof steps forward preparing for a fight. The figure got up from the throne and took a few steps forward as well. "My name is Nightmare and I bid you no harm."
"How so?"
"I have come to offer you a deal. If you refuse, I will take off without a word."
Sombra raised an eyebrow. "Go on."
"I will help you conquer this world if you choose to help me regain my strength. The amount of negativity you created is good for my health. Of course, that is not enough. I need more power. And you are the only one I see who could possibly deal with that issue. I would also like to learn spells you ponies use."
"And how do I know you won't just backstab me in the end?"
"Because we both exist to cause harm to others. Why would I backstab a being who is similar to me? Plus, I'm not in it for this world. You can have this so-called land, Equestria, for yourself. I only desire for a simple mortal to be killed by my very own hands."
Sombra's suspicion lowered. "If you don't mind me asking. What has caused you to turn into the monster you are today? I've had my reasons to be the unicorn I am today that I'd rather not discuss."
Nightmare thought about his past. The amount of pain he had felt back then made him grit his teeth. "Let's just say I was normal until jealousy and hatred filled my heart. Like you, I'd rather not discuss about the past. Now do we have a deal or not?"
Sombra had to think about this. This demon just showed out of nowhere jumping directly to a deal. What if he had other plans? Then again, how much strength have the ponies gained after a thousand years. "It's a deal," Sombra fired his dark magic into the demon.
"Yes!" Nightmare could feel his power growing. When Sombra finished, Nightmare decided to test his newfound power. The demon raised his hand and out came fifty zombie ponies from the crystal ground. "This may not be my true power, but this will do for now."
Twilight was caught by surprise as a pig with wings knocked her away before she could attack Sam. She picked herself up and blasted the pig to nothingness. Sam only watched in horror at the amount of hate that was used in the blast. "Geez. She surely is determined to kill me. I don't even know if there is any way I can reason this out." Sam felt a claw pat him on the shoulder.
"Oh, calm down Sam. What can you possibly be worried about when you have me on your side? Once that demon is gone, you and I will rule Equestria as GODS!" Discord made a strange pose to which Sam rolled his eyes to. The idea of becoming a god to create chaos along with Discord didn't sound very fitting to Sam. "You know, this cave is pretty boring for a fight like this. Let's make things a little more interesting," Discord snapped his fingers. In a matter of seconds, everypony was out in the open. The grass turned into checker tiles, the paths turned into soap, the trees disappeared, and decks of cards appeared all over the place. "Now we're cooking."
The guards all ran in panic at the sight of the draconequus, leaving the six friends behind to fend off Discord and Sam. "Hey! Where are you cowards going?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.
Rarity agreed. "This is absurd! Those guards were supposed to be perfectly well trained, and I thought we had turned that disgusting creature into stone. How are we supposed to win without the elements?"
"Disgusting creature? Well, you're an untamable brat!" Discord retorted. Sam couldn't help but laugh his guts out.
Twilight stood her ground while the others were in confusion and fear. "Forget Discord! Go after that creature first!" Twilight pointed a hoof at Sam. "He is the one responsible for this mess!"
"Whoa, easy there girl," Applejack had to stop Twilight in her tracks. "Don't let your emotions get da best of ya. I know how you feel about your brother, but ya can't jump into a fight that will end with you being bucked all the way to Appaloosa."
Twilight hissed at Sam. "Your wrong Applejack. I'm not backing down. Neither should you all. As long as we have each other we can defeat any pony." Twilight's horn was covered by a rainbow aura. The unicorn focused her energy and separated it into each of her friends. Each of their cutie marks glowed as they felt the surge of magic flow within. When it was over the six ponies each glowed a separate color of the rainbow. "Get ready to face the Magic of Friendship!"
*The main sixs' abilities have been enhanced.*
Sam took a step back. "Oh boy this might be bad. I don't remember the ponies doing this in the show."
"A show? Well, that is something I am very good at making. And what is a show without any music." Discord snapped his fingers once again. Music had begun to play in the background for the ponies to hear.
'Wait a second. I remember this music. Did he just look into my memories or something? This is awesome!' Sam and Discord danced to the music like idiots. The ponies took it as an opportunity to attack them by surprise. Applejack was the first to take action. She threw her lasso, tying the rope around Sam's torso. Sam cut the rope off of himself and blocked the incoming blast from Twilight.
"This battle is so boring. How about I spice things up a bit." Discord used his magic to create glitter bombs in front of Twilight and AJ. Both ponies were blinded by the explosion. Sam bashed the two of them with his shield knocking them down unconscious. Rarity and Rainbow Dash were the next ponies to come. Fluttershy only took cover under a deck of cards.
Rainbow Dash stretched her wings and flew towards Discord ready to tackle the chaos god. "I've had just about enough of you Discord!"
"Really? The same could be said for you." Discord looked up into the sky. He smiled at the dull white color of the clouds. "I heard you're a professional at clearing the sky. I'm curious. How would do against cotton candy?"
Rainbow Dash was only a few inches close to reaching Discord until the blue pegasus was ambushed by several pink clouds. The clouds continued to pile on top of her. Rainbow Dash couldn't find it in her power to break free. The clouds felt like the stickiest thing in all of Equestria. All she could do was eat her way out.
Sam smiled at the sight. He had to admit to himself that it was little funny to see ponies get destroyed by random stupid stuff. Sam put on a serious expression right away when he saw Rarity and Spike about to launch an attack on his new friend. "Discord! Look out mate!"
"Look out? For what?" Discord felt the air become warm. It felt as if something like lava was about to reach him. When he turned to his left, Sam was covering him from the little dragon's breath. The fire was absorbed by Sam's shield. Sam cried in pain as the fire burned him on the inside. He shook it off and focused on his shield, trying to release the fire inside.
"Have a taste of your own medicine!" Sam turned his shield back into his hand and released a green fireball about three times the size of an average pony at Spike.
"No!" Rarity had to act fast. She used her magic to create a cyan magic shield in the shape of a diamond. The impact of the fireball had destroyed the shield, leaving Rarity out of breath to perform another magical spell. The chaotic fight carried on with Discord and Sam having all the fun. Twilight kept missing her shots, Applejack and Rainbow Dash's attacks were consistently blocked or cut off, Rarity and Spike were still in the middle of recovering, and Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie didn't even participate in the fight. The ones who would win were obvious.
"Oh Sam, this is just too entertaining," Discord said.
"Yea, it sure is. I don't want to overdo it though. I wouldn't want to cause any true pain. We should stop now before they decide to seek revenge against us," Sam suggested. "I already have one lavender pony thirsty for revenge. I REALLY don't need to be seen as an enemy to pony-kind."
Discord created a red throne and sat comfortably with his legs crossed. "What's there to worry about? Nothing bad is going to happen. Thanks to you, the elements are now gone. The ponies by themselves stand no chance against the lord of chaos. So, tell me. What is it that troubles you about these ponies? I mean, some of them are enjoying my chaos." Discord pointed at Pinkie Pie who laid down on the checker ground, gathering as much chocolate milk as possible from the clouds.
"Because..." Sam paused. He couldn't believe it. Never in his life had he ever defended anyone, or any pony for that matter. Whenever a fight took place at his school, he would only look at it for a split second and move on about his day without giving a care. Even if he manages to stop a fight, he wouldn't accomplish anything out of it. Knowing that another set of people would take their place. But for some reason, something deep down was telling him to stop Discord even if he didn't have the power to do so. Sam may have not felt empathy for others. But he did feel empathy for the six of them. "Look, Discord, ya can't-"
"I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!" Twilight interrupted. Every pony had set their eyes on the unicorn. Twilight took a deep breath and let it out. "I can't believe it has come down to this. I'll use it..." Twilight closed her eyes and thought about her brother and the great memories they had. She decided to let her hate build and mix into her magic. Those great times she could've had with him, had been taken away. As Twilight opened her eyes Sam could sense the strong intent to kill. Twilight pointed her horn at Discord. "Let's see if the lord of chaos survives this. My TRUE fail-safe spell!"
*BOOM*
The lavender explosion spell had destroyed the chaos. The Everfree Forest was back to its original dark state. Twilight could feel the soft and moist texture of the grass. No more chocolate rain, no more checker tiles. Everything was back to normal, right?
Discord stood on top of a hill fine and healthy. The spell didn't even scratch the draconequus. Twilight in disbelief, only had one word. "How?"
Discord looked down at his feet. Sam was laying down in front of him. The boy appeared to be sleeping with his mouth open. "Come on Sam. Wake up!" Discord tapped him on the head multiple times. Nothing. Not a single movement came from Sam. Was he dead? Discord couldn't describe the feeling he was feeling. He felt something in his chest. It was something he had never felt before. Discord always enjoyed creating chaos on his own. Why was he feeling this way? It's as if having Sam by his side to be there for him had triggered something. "He would sacrifice himself for me?"
A tear formed in his eyes. He knew what this feeling was. It was sadness and despair, something he never felt. The only negative feelings he felt in the past was utter boredom. These feelings were something else.
"Dang. I can't believe I just did that." Sam grunted as he sat up. He stretched his arms and his torso only to be met with severe pain everywhere. "OW! Dang man. That spell roughed me up pretty good. You owe me a lot, Discord."
"What?! Your still alive?! Do you have any idea how worried sick I was?!"
Sam smiled. "Wow Discord. I didn't know both you and I had it in us to care for one another. I am pleasantly shocked," Sam felt the comforting breeze reach his face as he laid back onto the comforting grass. "So, since I saved your head, how about you save mine by letting me sleep in your bed tonight."
Discord returned a smile. "Ohhhh. So, you're saying you want to sleep with me?"
"What?! Sweet Celestia no! I meant I just need some place to stay and rest! Also now is not a good time to talk when we have six ponies on our tails."
Discord shook his head. "Don't worry about them. Twilight's magical spell had separated her from her friends. Twilight alone is some pony I can handle with ease."
Sam was left clueless. "What do you mean Twilight's friends were separated?"
"I mean they're gone! Take a look for yourself."
Sam sat back up to search for the six ponies. All he could find from afar was Twilight Sparkle crying in the distance. Spike stood alongside, trying his best to cheer her up. "I failed," Twilight muttered.
"There's always hope, Twilight," Spike rubbed her back to comfort her.
"NO THERE'S NOT! I'M...a failure..." Twilight galloped into the forest, tears flooding on her cheeks.
"I hope she isn't going to be a problem in the future," Sam fell to the ground after he attempted to stand. His muscles were demanding for rest. No serious injuries were spotted. So why did he feel so much pain on the inside? His regeneration would've ended the pain by now. "Wait a second. If Twilight wanted me dead so bad. Why did she aim her fail-safe spell on you instead of me?" Sam thought about having axes for hands. Nothing happened. Whatever the spell did, Sam knew it had to be built for the sole purpose of weakening an opponent. Was it permanent?
Discord crossed his arms. "What is it now?"
"My magical abilities are gone. That would explain why she targeted you. You owe me even more now since I saved your chaos magic."
"Um, what happened here? Where am I?" Cadance stood up on her four hooves. She rubbed her head trying to remember the events that had taken place back at the wedding. She looked around at her surroundings. Everything was blurry. The princess rubbed her eyes to clear her vision. Two figures stood beside her. Cadance ignored Discord and focused on Sam. "You. You're that guy who helped me escape. Was Chrysalis telling the truth? Did you kill my future husband?"
Sam ignored Cadance's question and instead changed the subject in hopes of her forgetting about the whole thing. "Well, looks who's awake. You have no idea how hard it was to carry you all the way here. You also have no idea what you missed out on. Me and Discord were having a blast. Man, if only you were there to see it."
Cadance stomped her hoof on the grass. Her tone became serious. "I don't have time for small talk. Tell me. Did you kill my future husband? Or was it some pony else?"
"Alright, alright." Sam sighed. "I did kill him. But not on purpose. He was in my way, and I had to leave Canterlot ASAP. I accidentally killed him in the process. I'm sorry."
Cadance stood in front of Sam. She lowered her head and pointed her horn at Sam's chest. His heart glowed gray with only a little red in the middle after the alicorn's magic came into contact. "I see. You were telling the truth. I can see it in your heart." Cadance turned her head to her side. "It makes me wonder. What does it feel like to be so emotionless?"
Confusion filled Sam's face. "Emotionless? Me?"
Cadance nodded.
"Heh. Where do I start with that?" Sam scratched his head. "Let's just say I have an anti-social personality disorder. I'm just a guy who feels less emotion. Does that answer your question?"
Cadance frowned. "I wish I could fix your problem. I've never seen any pony with a heart like that. It's just so empty."
"Yea I know."
"So, why did you carry me here exactly? I thought it was all over for me after I blacked out from the amount of love the queen drained."
"Hey, sorry for interrupting your stupid conversation about feelings, but I have a question. Should I teleport us away or try to reason this out because we have hundreds of bugs surrounding us right now!" Discord warned.