Never in the history of the universe had the inhabitants of Amphibia witnessed the triumphant victory of a seemingly fragile human teenager imbued with immense power over a tyrannical being of evil. For them, it was a moment of joy, solemnity, and celebration. All the inhabitants of the land greatly rejoiced over the destruction of the one who threatened to destroy everything that stood in its way.
They all thought that the ultimate evil was finally vanquished from the land; with it gone, all the frogs, toads, and newts will once again live a life of peace and happiness. The biggest threat of Amphibia was destroyed forever—or so they thought.
In the empty void of space—what used to be Amphibia’s moon—there were multiple lifeless scraps of former King Andrias’s master: The Core. All that remained of the moon hovered aimlessly in space…going nowhere…except for one fragment. The said fragment was a piece of the helmet that once possessed Marcy Wu to become the villainous Darcy. It was the last remaining particle of the helmet which contained a large cracked eye.
After a few seconds of silence, the eye flickered on and off. Then it suddenly stopped flickering and remained open. The eye was dark orange with a yellow iris and white pupil. The eye looked left and right before staring at the darkness around it.
“What…? I…still live…?” The Core wondered out loud. Once it looked around, it’s pupil shrunk in shock as it realized it’s worst fear. “No…my brethren are gone! There’s no one left in my inner sanctum! This…this cannot be…!”
After it took a moment to bemoan its loss, it angrily growled. “Our triumph has been stripped from us, and our glory has been robbed from us. We were this close—very close to achieving what was rightfully ours…but…they took it…from us…”
The Core then recalled the recent betrayal of Andrias as he crushed his crown, permanently cutting all ties with it before helping the Calamity Trio to defeat it. Then it remembered Anne Boonchuy, Sasha Waybright, and its former host, Marcy Wu. The more it dwelt on its failure, the more enraged it got.
“That human girl will pay for what she’s done to my brethren! I will have my revenge on her and all her pathetic friends—including the turncoat Andrias,” it sneered.
Suddenly, the fragment was slowly dragged away from the debris. The Core looked back and saw a small portal open in the middle of space. Confused about what’s happening, it could do nothing but allow the portal to suck it in before it closed itself up.
Falling from the sky, the fragment landed on the snow before the portal closed itself up. Then it sprouted its own tiny legs and stood back up. The Core looked around and saw its new surroundings.
“Where…am I? This…looks like Earth…?” it whispered.
Suddenly, a bright light caught its attention; it turned and beheld an army of strange creatures standing on top of a hill. Three groups were high in the air towering over three figures standing below the hill. Then it saw a purple alicorn pony speaking to the said trio, giving a triumphant speech.
“Together we worked to bring harmony in Equestria! But there will always be more to do! Which is why we teach others about the Magic of Friendship! Others who will continue our mission after we are gone!” the alicorn passionately preached.
That caught the Core’s attention, causing it to angrily growl. “Friendship? Magic? Even here?!”
“And the more who understand how powerful friendship is, the stronger we will all be! Together!” she finished.
As on cue, she and her friends channeled the rainbow magic of friendship and launched it to the sky, extinguishing the ghostly beasts flying in a circle. Then it instantly descended upon the helpless trio, stripping them of their power for good. Then the trio found themselves at the mercy of their enemies.
“Hmm, those three creatures seem to be their enemies. Interesting…”
After the Changeling finished her rant, a giant cupcake fell from the sky and crushed them. The trio tried to escape from their predicament until two other alicorns and a strange, amalgamated animal approached them.
Moments later, the Core witnessed the three powerful bearers of magic turn the three villains into stone, silencing them forever. Then it heard a loud cheering from the civilians as they have defeated their foes.
Having seen enough of the event, the Core hid behind a bush. “Hmm, it appears this is a grand opportunity for me to start fresh. A world who believes in this ‘magic of friendship’ nonsense? That…can be fixed.”
It looked behind and overheard word that the same purple alicorn will become the new ruler of Equestria. Intrigued, it hid behind the bush again. “A new ruler? Why…yes…someone far younger and more…powerful…unlike the fool Andrias. And from the looks of it, I could find some new brilliant minds to take the place of my deceased brethren.”
“It seems that Providence has seen fit to give me a second chance,” the Core plotted. “I will acquire a new body—a new host to conquer this new world. If friendship is truly their power, then I will show them something more…beneficial. The Core…will reign supreme once again.”
Some time later, Twilight and her friends arrived at Canterlot for the coronation ceremony. The Core secretly followed them from every rooftop it came across. Once they entered through the gates, it snuck its way under the gates after they closed. But before it could procede, it noticed that a large crowd was gathered for the coronation.
Not wanting to be seen, the Core activated its little drillers and plowed through the soil underneath the ponies and non-ponies.
A few minutes later, Princesses Celestia and Luna approached the balcony with the former standing upfront. “Citizens of Equestria and beyond!” she addressed the crowd. The creatures cheered in acknowledgment of the princess while the yaks stomped and the dragons breathed fire.
“My sister and I have ruled this land for quite some time, but even we know that change eventually comes to us all,” she continued. “And though we know it can be unsettling, it’s as natural as the rising and setting of the sun and moon. Both of which my sister and I feel confident leaving in the hooves of the pony who will come after us.”
The Core once again watched as Twilight clumsily rejoined with her predecessors. The Royal Sisters combined their crowns into one and crowned her as the new ruler.
“She reminds me of Marcy. Hmm, this is perfect,” the Core chuckled.
As the day passed by, it witnessed the ponies hugging together while crying happily as a new era begins for Equestria. Then the monster saw its opportunity to take action. It crawled on the table and extended its arms to Twilight’s new crown. Then it transferred a small portion of it’s own data into the crown.
Having made a new extension of itself, it quickly crawled away as soon as the group hug broke up.
It was then night time as Twilight just finished preparing herself for sleep. She yawned as she approached her royal bedroom. “I still can’t believe I’m Equestria’s new ruler. Huh, I just hope I’ll meet everypony’s expectations.”
“And that, you will, my dear. You will,” a strange voice echoed.
Startled, Twilight looked around in her room and saw no one inside. “Huh? Who said that?”
Suddenly, her crown opened a large orange eye, uttering a mechanical beep in the process.
In a blink of an eye, Twilight saw herself in the midst of darkness. Confused and frightened, she ignited her horn to see where she was.
“Forgive my intrusion, my dear. I couldn’t help but let myself in.”
“Who are you? Where am I?”
“Consider me…a new friend.” Then the eye opened up, scaring Twilight even more.
“W-what are you?”
“I am…the Core.”
“The Core? Core of what exactly? And where did you come from?” Twilight curiously asked.
“None of that matters, dear. What does is how you should conduct your new rulership. You see, I can help you. I can be your guide. You won’t ever have to feel worried or scared in this new responsibility.”
Twilight rubbed her chin as she contemplated its words. “Well…I do have the confidence I need to rule Equestria, and I’m sure things won’t get out of hoof during my rule.”
“Unless some things DO go wrong. There will always be challenges for rulers to tackle, but of course, from my experience, not ALL of them have succeeded.”
That caught Twilight’s attention. “Really?”
“I’m afraid so. What if you make a mistake that will ultimately result in a civil war or even worse…someone plots to overthrow you?”
Sweat drops fell from her head as she listened.
“Your predecessors would be disappointed in you. But don’t worry, I can prevent that from ever happening. Trust in my guidance, and your reign will be glorious forever,” the Core whispered.
After Twilight thought about it, she breathed in and out before facing the Core. “Okay…I’ll really appreciate your help…whatever you are.”
“Excellent. I know you won’t be a disappointment.”
“Say, do you mind telling me who you are exactly? I’m still trying to grasp how exactly you’re speaking to me,” Twilight said.