"Anything, Octavia?"
"Nothing in the west wing."
Rainbow Dash finally surrendered to her irritation, becoming the first to groan loudly among the four mares. Twilight could only roll her eyes at the pegasus's impatience, crossing her hooves.
"Can't believe it..." the cyan mare hissed, more to herself than to her friends.
"The weapon cannot be that hard to find," the lavender unicorn retorted.
"If something is that powerful to destroy Canterlot from such a distance, then it's bound to be huge!"
"And it seems like we can't find it at all, can we?"
Twilight's inability to respond to her question made the rainbow mare scoff indignantly with annoyance. Princess Luna soon followed, expressing her frustration as well, though in a much more silent way than Rainbow Dash.
She turned to the last, more patient gray mare of the group, who cleared her throat, her hoof straightening her trademark collar and pink bow tie, before suggesting:
"Maybe try searching about it in Tantrum Palgiot's room?"
"Tantrum Palgiot?" the cerulean alicorn quipped.
"You mean the creator of the weapon itself?"
"Well, it seems like a good lead... but we don't really have much time left..."
The lavender unicorn stopped to think at the choices running through her head, the sands in her mentally-pictured hourglass starting to run dry. She turned to face Octavia's expectant look, before finally stating her decision:
"I don't think we could be able to find his room. If only we could-"
Twilight's voice stopped, her eyes fixated towards the end of the corridor, watching in surprise at a pair of blue eyes staring back at her, before the stallion that retained them stifled a small grin.
"Miss Sparkle!" he quickly hollered, unintentionally flaunting in his black suit.
"Winter?" she called out his name in meek interest, the four mares galloping towards him.
"Where have you been?"
"Dealing with a few things, though there is one more thing I have to finish."
His disheveled mane and slightly bedraggled suit already told them of his frantic state, though the Patriarch just shrugged it off with a smile, instead asking:
"Found the weapon yet?"
"Still trying to," Rainbow blurted out, much to Twilight's annoyance.
"How come everything in Pendant Lakes must be so-"
The lavender unicorn instantly stuffed her hoof into her friend's mouth, laughing sheepishly as the pegasus struggled to pull it out, her wings flapping frantically about.
"Don't bother Rainbow," she said with a nervous grin.
"We're just a little... lost! That's all!"
"The weapon must be somewhere, isn't it?" Princess Luna piped in.
"Yes," Winter replied with a nod, his horn still glowing a bright blue.
"My father had finished building the weapon, as he mentioned in his notes, but he kept the location of it only in his memory. The most we can work with is by narrowing it down."
"Narrowing it down?" Octavia repeated.
"You mean..."
"The weapon is powerful at a long range, and the only such availability I've known so far to reach such an incredible distance is a supercharged energy core."
Winter's brief explanation made them all look at him in bafflement, before he sighed, giving his full explanation:
"The core is basically three cylinders of electromagnets enwrapped in a sheet of charged solar cells, all of which power an electromagnet inside the nexus of the weapon to amplify and control the photons needed for the cannon. It slowly charges during the day, but at night the magnetism would leak, and thus affect the energy levels of Equestria."
"But there hasn't been any such drastic changes of energy until recently."
Princess Luna's questioning statement made him stop to ponder, the cerulean mare continuing:
"If the weapon was built before your father's death, then why did the energy levels rise only about now?"
"Hmm... my father did mention he never had the time to prepare a proper energy source..."
Winter twiddled his hooves in his bout of deep thinking, stopping after a moment as he concluded:
"It's possible that whoever that found it knew of the technology they were using, albeit more effectively. The location depends on the factors that such a weapon can achieve, which means-"
"We'll have to slowly calculate it ourselves...!"
Twilight quickly beamed at her realization, already bouncing with glee with the rest of them only looking at her squeal of yays in exasperation.
Rainbow just let out a short groan, her hoof smacking her forehead as she shook her head in disapproval.
"Is she that interested?" Winter piped in suddenly, a little surprised as the cyan pegasus merely laughed, giving him a sarcastic reply:
"We're talking about the origin of the word 'egghead' here."
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"We exorcise you, impure spirit..."
Princess Celestia held her breath as Stellar Lionheart scattered a mixture of red, pink and dried-brown rose petals around the paint-drawn sun logo, matching those etched onto the flags during the Summer Sun Celebration back in Canterlot. Lying unconscious in the center was Harmony, shifting a bit as some of the petals tingled her neck.
The alicorn sighed. Most of the time she had been acting as the ruler of Equestria along with her sister, sometimes being a mentor, sometimes an adviser and, at rare and dire times, a fighter. This had only been the third time she was required to attend an exorcism, knowing full well of the demon's potential power.
"Every Tartaric power, every incursion of the infernal adversary, every legion..."
She turned to her side, watching Pinkie resting from her exhaustion, her limp body leaning against the alabaster mare's slender hooves. Her eyes were closed, yet the princess could tell she was not asleep from the small, worn-out mutters she was making.
Stellar sprinkled something - Celestia assumed it to be the water from the twin lakes - over the pink unicorn's face, stopping only when she coughed suddenly. He nodded to Caduceus, who soon handed him a bowl of oil.
"Every congregation and diabolical sect..."
"Don't be lost, Harmony..." the alicorn mumbled, referring to the former Voyager's saner side that had once nestled in her mind. She had seen it once in awhile from her; every queer flurry of her pupils to the twitches of her hooves... the real Harmony was still fighting in there, and both Princess Celestia and Pinkie knew about it.
"Please..."
"Thus cursed demon and every diabolical legion, we adjure you."
Stellar's voice heightened at that, his hoof circling the pointing rays of the sun drawing after being dipped in a bowl of olive oil, the intense smell wafting throughout the room whilst the butler made sure the trail of oil never touched the mane of the unconscious mare.
There was a sigh as he finally finished the next step, reaching towards the table.
"Cease to deceive the remnants of the living."
The rest of them held their breath as the butler raised his hoof, flicking the lid of a lighter. The flame that lurked within immediately pounced up the moment it ignited, prancing about in its metallic nest.
"And to give to them the poison of eternal perdition," he added, bending down at the near-invisible oil, the tip of the small ember flickering dangerously close towards it.
As soon as the flames sparked into the track, the circumference of oil suddenly flared up, burning in a dazzling ring of red and blue fire. Stellar held his blade up high, unexpectedly cuing the large crash of thunder outside, before striking it into the stone floor.
The rapier glowed a golden yellow, the flames burning brighter. A devilish snarl suddenly burst through their thoughts as Harmony suddenly hovered into the air, still unconscious despite the chaos brewing about. The stone floor cracked, the fractures brilliantly flaring in branches of white.
Then, Harmony opened her eyes.
A loud, piercing scream erupted from the hovering mare, her recognizable voice distorted in the mixture of the devil's hellishly deep roar. Her pupils glowed an incandescent white, almost as if her head was filled only with the prowess of light. The flames encircled around her gradually changed into a horrendous purple and black, only proving the demon's sudden knowledge of the ritual he was undergoing.
"Hurry up, Stellar!!" Caduceus shouted, his mane tossing in the powerful wind as they struggled to hold their stand. The princess held Pinkie tight underneath her wings, staring with horror at the screaming unicorn.
"Back to Tartarus, Morteoro!!" he continued shouting.
"Fury of Time, of Death and Life!! Of all deceit, the enemy of her salvation!"
"NOOOOOO!!"
"Be humble under the powerful hoof of Celestia, tremble and-"
Stellar couldn't finish it, even if he wanted to.
His body was suddenly thrown into the air, slammed back by an invisible claw. The fissures on the floor started to grow up against the blade of the rapier, before the metal splintered, shattering into pieces.
The tainted flames started to swirl around Harmony, as if being sucked into a vacuum, encircling the mare in a tornado from a pyromaniac's fairy tale. The miscellaneous papers in the room fluttered about, charred by the twirling inferno in the room.
"Get down!!" the doctor yelled.
The crackle of flames and howling of wind suddenly died down, forming some sort of white shell around Harmony's body.Princess Celestia hurled herself and Pinkie to the side, instinctively flicking her wings open as the two braced themselves for the incoming implosion, clenching their eyes shut.
*BOOM!!*
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"Height?"
"From the given scale here..." Octavia studied, measuring the blueprints before her.
"About three thousand six hundred feet above sea level."
"Alright."
Twilight immediately gazed back at the map, which was dotted with a multitude of red circles that showed the numerous possible locations that the weapon could've been built upon. So far, they've only knew that the weapon was in Pendant Lakes and its forest outskirts, though the recently obtained information had left out the town by itself, leaving only the palace and the various bumps of the mountains all around.
They were in Tantrum's room, scanning through the various notebooks and logbooks that had been scattered around the table. She quickly crossed out the town with a black marker, turning to Rainbow Dash.
"Angle?"
"How the heck do you use this thing?" the pegasus fussed, flipping a protractor about.
"Ugh... seriously?"
The lavender unicorn sighed, her horn snatching the tool from Rainbow's hooves, the cyan pegasus just crossing her hooves with a scornful growl.
"Maximum angle of elevation: sixty. Minimum around thirty."
Winter watched vaguely as she crossed out a few more dots from the large map, narrowing slowly to about a dozen left, all situated in the steep mountains around the palace. Princess Luna was sitting beside him, her observation on Twilight's progress more focused than his own.
The clock in his head ticked slowly and agonizingly, despite all attempts of ignoring it. His patience diminishing, he turned to the cerulean alicorn, asking:
"Where's your sister?"
"Overseeing the exorcism," she replied halfheartedly.
The Patriarch tried not to think about it; his mind had other things to tend to, after all.
His hoof reached into his suit, biting his lip. He still has one last thing to finish, and if he can't make it in time...
"Where's the exorcism being held?"
"The Tower Room," Octavia answered the question.
"I see..."
He quickly rose from the group, much to the surprise of the rest as Winter gave an apologetic bow.
"I have some unfinished matters to attend to," he said, trotting towards the door.
"Before any of you say anything, yes, it's urgent."
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked skeptically.
"Where are you going?"
There wasn't a reply, as the Patriarch had already stepped out of the room before she could finish her question. The lavender unicorn just blinked, before shaking her head, going back to her necessary calculations.
"What's up with him?" Rainbow asked, a little annoyed at his sudden departure.
"I don't know, but now's not the time to ask about it now."
Twilight beckoned her attention back to the map, continuing their effort of their frantic search for the weapon. She continued studying the blueprints, scratching her head at any other possibilities that might pinpoint its exact location, before feeling a tap on the shoulder.
Octavia handed her a close up of the battery, which was embedded into the mouth of the cannon itself.
"It's says here it requires only about four hours of sunlight. Any lesser, there wouldn't be enough time for it to fully function. Any more, and the battery will explode."
"So it must be exposed to four hours of sunshine... the approximate time for a sunrise or a sunset. That leaves us only a cliff face as the best possible location for a weapon."
She soon crossed out most of the remaining dots, leaving only a pair left on the map. The rest of them nodded understandingly, yet all of them knew it wasn't enough.
"Come on, come on..."
Her gaze switched from the two dots on the map, her head hastily wracking up a few calculations. Both locations were rooted deep in the mountains, with a network secret mountain passages connecting them to the passage, yet if they've got one of them wrong, there wouldn't be enough time to gallop to the other.
"There must be something that can help us."
"Wait," Rainbow suddenly perked.
"You've mentioned sunrise or a sunset, right?"
"Yeah?"
"Just thinking about the facts."
The cyan pegasus unfurled the map of Equestria, showing all of the numerous towns and cities that populated its stretch. Pendant Lakes was circled red, with a red line connecting it to Canterlot, in which the mare trailed her hoof upon.
"Tantrum's planning to strike Canterlot, isn't he? That means the weapon has to face towards the capital."
"Which means it has to face southwest..."
Twilight's face immediately lit up in realization, turning to the cyan mare.
"You're a genius, Rainbow!"
"Aw, no biggie..."
Her sheepish reply soon made way for the seriousness of the situation, the lavender unicorn finally crossing out one last dot, smiling beatifically at the final, possible spot.
"It must be over there," she concluded, pointing at a series of craggy mountains.
"There's not much time to waste!! Let's go!!"
*BOOM!!*
The floor suddenly rumbled, the four mares freezing on the spot as the ground below them shook in a frenzy, throwing them off their hooves.
"What in the hay was that?!" Rainbow yelled her question.
Princess Luna galloped out of the door first, her eyes widening in disbelief at the sight the moment she peered out of the window. The rest soon followed her movements, though Twilight was the only one in the end to be able to mutter something out, her heart sinking in a brew of dread, before she shook her head.
"Look," she called out to the others.
"If we stay here any longer it'll only get worse! We have to go! Now!"
"But Pinkie-"
"She'll get out of there," the lavender unicorn interrupted Rainbow, ignoring her protests.
"We have to make sure the weapon is deactivated first!"
There was a dejected sigh from the pegasus, crossing her hooves with spite.
"If Pinkie.... gets hurt," she muttered before darting off, though it sounded more like a threat.
"What of my sister?" Princess Luna hastily asked, Octavia trotting ahead.
"Will she be safe?"
"I'm sure she'll be fine."
Twilight held her breath; she didn't plan to leave both her friend and her teacher up there, but if the weapon is not neutralized in time... she wouldn't want to see the result of it.
"Let's go, Princess Luna," she said, trying her best to plead.
"We don't have much time."
There was a sigh, before the alicorn turned back one more time.
The tower had severed into two, the top part still clinging onto its base by a few bending bars of iron, the walls of it facing the ground below. Her breath shivering, the princess held her face of determination, of not wanting to disappoint her sister again.
"I'll come back..."
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"HANG ON, STELLAR!!"
The butler eagerly complied, his bottom hooves fluttering about in the strong, turbulent gust of wind blowing his suit about. His other hoof hung limply to the side, the feeling of nothing but the torrential rain splashing against it only raised his fear for his life.
He looked down - a part of him wishing he didn't - at the bright lights of the Equinox Ballroom below him, shimmering brightly from behind the window-paned roof without a care for the storm brewing outside. The ponies in it were still chattering happily, completely oblivious to the growing danger above their heads.
"WE HAVE TO GET THE PONIES OUT OF THERE!!" he shouted back, trying to hold his grip.
"WHEN THE TOWER COMES DOWN, THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE TIME FOR THEM TO RUN!!"
Caduceus hoped he could come to his terms, but with one hoof clutching his friend from a long fall of death and the other singed, the smallest, slightest drops of rain already stinging it like a snake bite, making him wince, he could only but heave his friend back up from the broken hole of the roof.
His radio was out of reach, already fizzing about in the torrent of rain. Beyond that was Harmony, still deranged and possessed and, at the worst possible circumstances, awake.
The pink unicorn herself burned with a black fury, screaming in the rain like a wolf, her hooves tugging at her mane as if she was trying to rip the hairs off her head. Her white blades were resting at her heels, along with her shredded dress, though she doesn't seem to notice it now.
"Pinkie~!" she mewed in her insanity, attempting to sniff out the pink mare.
"Is it not cruel to leave your friend alone like that?"
The doctor could feel, from beneath the agonizing pain, her devilish aura, which only seemed to grow the more she paced around the cylindrical wall of the hanging structure, swaying in the violent wind blowing from the side.
His breath slowed, his lips nibbling against each other to silence his pain, he tried to haul his friend up from the edge in vain, before hearing the hoofsteps getting closer, the metal supports groaning in response.
"Seems Caddy here got into a little trouble, eh?"
Caduceus just growled at that, his burnt hoof trying to reach for his gun.
"Oh well," the pink unicorn gave a sardonic shrug.
"I'm sure Stellar wouldn't mind a visit to Tartarus, wouldn't he?"
"H-Harmony..."
Pinkie stepped from behind a set of stone stairs, which were like spiraling blocks in the tunnel of the falling tower. Her hooves were raised up high in a bout of surrender, making the unicorn smile.
"Y-You got me..." the pink mare stammered.
"Just leave them alone."
"You think it's all negotiations, don't you Pinkie?"
There was a malignant laugh, before Harmony trotted up towards her, face to face with her former friend.
"I'm just happy that you volunteered to be the first... out of many, of course."
"Don't touch my friends."
"Or what?" she shot back, raising her blade to Pinkie's chin with a devious grin.
"We all know you would do anything to see them safe, wouldn't you? Well, I'll let you choose then."
The pink mare just froze as Harmony cackled, musing with morbid delight:
"Would Twilight be first? Or maybe Rainbow Dash? Come on, I haven't got all day!"
"Just leave them alone!" she demanded coldly, clenching her hooves.
"You want me? I'm here! My friends have nothing to do with this!"
"Miss Pie!!" Stellar's voice called out from amidst the chaotic storm outside, the butler still dangling dangerously at the edge of the tower.
"Don't do it! Your friends-"
"I have to!!" she yelled back, wanting to deny the situation she was in. Harmony merely chuckled gleefully at that, watching the mare slump down to her knees in defeat with her eyes starting to water.
"I have to..."
"Shameful, isn't it?"
Another laugh made Pinkie cringe, before the unicorn bent down towards her ear, whispering:
"Don't worry. I'll make sure it'll be quick."
"You wouldn't dare..."
The cold, foreign voice made Harmony whirl around instantly, only to smile at the figure standing before her, whose lustrous mane whipped about in the compelling storm. The defiant flap of her wings and the flare of yellow from her white horn only proved the height of her anger, though the unicorn could only laugh.
"You know better, Princess," she sneered.
Princess Celestia just frowned at that, her slightly bruised face darkening quickly.
"I know enough to say this isn't what you want."
"Really?"
Harmony swung her blade from Pinkie's chin, pointing it directly to the alicorn with a smirk.
"Then I'm sure you'll be the first to come to my terms, hmm? Or would you cower back into your palace and rot once more?"
"Never," the princess spat out, kicking her hooves back.
"I've endured more than a thousand years in the palace. I've seen many ponies come and go throughout my whole life, but if you think you can take the prospect of Equestria away, you're sorely mistaken."
Her horn soon glowed a bright yellow, burning in the radiance of anger.
"Even if it means having to kill my former subject," she took in a huge breath.
"For the duty as the protector of my kingdom, I'll do it."
Before Harmony could respond, Princess Celestia suddenly galloped towards her, rapidly hopping past the hurdles of the granite staircase. The pink unicorn soon chuckled in response, her hooves brandishing the pair of her ornate white blades with ease.
Pinkie watched hesitantly as the two rushed towards each other with intent; flourished even more as a heavenly glowing saber suddenly rose from her horn, the princess wielding it effectively with it's tip pointing towards her target.
For once, she thought to herself, she wouldn't want to know the results of this fight.
Former teacher and former friend, their blades finally clashing against each other.
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"They want us to what?"
"Evacuate everypony from the ballroom," Chief Griffonhooves repeated.
"The tower could come crashing down at any moment."
Crimson wouldn't want to see that happen, his gaze fixated towards the glass ceiling in horror.
Beyond the endless hail of rain, the structure of the tower dangled freely, swinging in the powerful wind, yet the ponies in the ballroom were still in their cheerful talks around, never bothering to see the looming danger over their heads.
"And we're not suppose to leave anyone behind?"
Soarin' just rolled his eyes, trying not to smack the colt senseless.
"How am I stuck with this dude again?" he asked with sarcasm.
"Look, maybe there are those weird assassins in here! I don't think they'll like it when they find out that the tower's gonna start collapsing-"
"Now's not the time," Doctor Arrowfaith broke in, scanning at the countless groups of endless chatters and sips of fine wine, all too absorbed in their miscellaneous conversations.
"All we need is to come up with a method to get everyone out of the ballroom asap."
Looking at the slightly formal scene (which was surprising for the ponies of the palace, who never expected the citizens of Pendant Lakes to be so royal) the four of them settled down to think, their efforts more and more frantic as the clock suddenly struck ten, signaling the climax of the occasion.
"And now," a loud voice boomed from around.
"Please welcome our Patriarch: Winter Palgiot!!"
A wave of clopping hooves soon followed, the spotlight now turned towards a pair of fluttering curtains, with all eyes awaiting their Patriarch to appear, not realizing his desperation.
"If they find out about anything," the police chief hissed to the rest.
"We'll be dead before the next sunrise."
Suddenly, Crimson snapped his hooves, his head lighting up with glee.
"Hand me a revolver," he asked, stifling a small laugh.
"Y-You're serious?"
"Darn it, just hand one to me!" the red stallion rasped with displeasure, prompting Chief Griffonhooves to give one to him. With a small flick, having a small glimpse of the four remaining bullets slotted within, he soon smiled cunningly before raising his gun into the air, whispering:
"Play along."
*BANG*
Immediately, the crowd started to duck downwards, all letting out a frightened whelp, with some turning towards Crimson, shuddering in their place.
Soarin's horrified expression at Crimson's actions was evident, his hoof desperately nudging the stallion.
"What the heck do you think you're-"
"Listen!! To the ponies of Pendant Lakes!!" he continued, ignoring the pegasus's worries.
The ponies around all cringed under his powerful voice, his face trying to retch out a serious expression. He paced around the room, his head held up high in an arrogant fashion, before pointing the gun towards the crowd.
"We're the Bandits Of... of..... what's the location?"
"Just make one up!"
"I can't just make one up," Crimson hissed, imitating the Wonderbolt's frantic tone, the pegasus just humphing in irritation at that.
"Besides, the ponies in Pendant Lakes might have more knowledge than your airhead of yours."
"Just say Aston Reach," the doctor prompted.
"That's basically where we all are."
"The Bandits Of Aston Reach!!" he shouted immediately after the small interruption.
"We're the prowess of the North. The so-called 'rogues' that had been mentioned in many of your tales of mockery and... erh... heroism! Yes! And now, we're back to claim what's rightfully ours!!"
"What's rightfully yours?" somepony in the crowd quipped, instantly stirring a chorus of skeptical murmurs around.
"The Diamond of Pendant Lakes!!" he finished, quelling the stirring crowd immediately, the ponies now all looking at him in confusion and surprise.
"I see your Patriarch never told you about it, didn't he?"
"What diamond?" some of the ponies asked around, making Crimson laugh in amusement.
"And we, the Bandits Of Aston Reach," he continued, waving his gun about.
"We're here to bring it back to its home! Back into the bowels of the mountains, where it rightfully belongs!!"
The silence that followed was nerve-wrecking, the crowd of ponies just staring straight at the red stallion, who was still oblivious of their growing suspicion. Soarin' nudged his friend, whispering:
"You do realize they're not buying it?"
"Doesn't matter."
His response practically shocked the remaining three stallions, though Crimson was still unfazed by that, laughing lightly with his hooves crossed in absolute certainty.
"What matters most is that I have the gun, and that means I still have a way to force them out of the room."
Haughtily turning towards the crowd, the stallion raised his gun, continuing:
"Now, I myself believe that the Diamond is in here! Though I need each and every one of you to leave the room immediately, lest it would interrupt any of our excavations!!"
There was no movement, the crowd just standing firm like a platoon ready for a battle, even more resembling it from the grudging looks that they were wearing.
"What are you doing?" Soarin' hissed at the now frozen Crimson, the stallion unable to respond to the sudden turn of events.
"Use the damn gun!"
"Oh, for Celestia's sake."
Cleptius immediately snatched the weapon from the stallion's hoof, immediately raising it to the air.
*BANG*
*BANG*
*BANG*
The three loud gunshots were enough to shun the crowd back into their fear, the respective shells clinking onto the marble floor. With a wry smirk, the doctor blew the wisp of smoke rising from the barrel, leaning against the column like a professional, much to the surprise of his comrades.
"Now I'll be kind just this once," he warned, swinging the gun around his hoof.
"If everypony as to do as he says, and leave the ballroom in an orderly fashion, all of you won't face my wrath. And when I say my wrath will be your worst - and last - nightmare, I mean it."
The lack of response that followed was absolutely unnerving, at least for the doctor.
"What are you waiting for?" he shouted.
"A step out of the room, or a BULLET IN ALL OF YOUR FACES?!!"
Immediately, the crowd started huddling towards the door, slowly and unwillingly marching out of the room in sheer terror. Doctor Arrowfaith just smiled, leaning against one the marble pillars as the rest of them hurried up to him, with Soarin' being the first to ask:
"How do you do that?"
"Well, a few years in acting class and a job as a doctor in an asylum would do the trick."
The doctor just smiled furtively at their slightest abhorrence; the same ones they were trying to hide from beneath the wide smiles they were forcing out, making him laugh.
"You do realize that you're talking to a psychologist, aren't you?"
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*CLANG*
Princess Celestia skidded backwards to a halt, panting lightly with her blade raised in self-defense, her gaze locked onto the mare in front of her, who was laughing mockingly at her combat.
"And they say you were a fighter!" Harmony cooed, wielding her dual blades effectively.
"Be grateful that you even made it this far, my Princess."
How much times had they clashed? Fifteen? Sixteen? Yet the results always ended up the same, their blades still fresh without any trace of blood, their throats still intact. The only injury both of them had so far was a few bruises around their sweating face and a small blister on at least one of their hooves.
Their biased audience could only watch the heated battle springing in between, each of their hatred for the other mare only growing the longer they rest.
"Tiring out already?" the pink unicorn cackled, marching ahead once more.
"But I was just getting started."
The alicorn just whipped her blade up, ignoring the physical battle from the mare before her and her mental battle with her fatigue, wiping the sweat from the sides of her cheek.
"So was I."
With another furious charge, the two mares met once more in the center of the battlefield, their blades clashing for the umpteenth time in another frenzy of sparks, the sizzling sound of metal against metal ringing throughout the falling tower. Their glares burned with the power of a rekindled rivalry, their willpower blazing with each restless second that had past.
It ended up, again, in another draw, with the two of them retreating back to their respective ends like two wrestlers in a boxing ring, though there was no nourishment of water for either; the most only a free shower from the heavens above.
"Pinkie," the alicorn called to the pink mare, making her perk up in attention.
"Get Stellar and Caduceus out of here."
"But Princess-"
"No more 'but's."
Her breath shuddered with fatigue, Princess Celestia clutched her hoof tightly, her eyes furrowing down sternly at her, managing to gasp out from her weariness:
"Just get them both out of here... get yourself somewhere safe..."
Pinkie could only give a hesitant nod, before galloping towards the two stallions at the side, helping the butler lift his friend up as they limped towards the still-intact portion of the tower, tending to Caduceus's burnt hoof.
"Isn't that sweet?" Harmony mewled with cold delight.
"Saving that mare's life when she's about to die anyway!"
"Doesn't matter."
Kicking back her hooves, wielding the blade once more, the alicorn held her breath, her lustrous mane now soaked with rain and sweat, as she braced for the plan brewing in her head.
"What matters is what comes after, Harmony."
Instead of charging headfirst, her horn started to glow a bright yellow, her eyes shining into a pure brilliance of white as she rose from the ground, her ethereal blade diminishing from the overpowering magic of its owner.
Harmony just gritted her teeth as she stepped back, raising her pair of white blades in self defense, though apart from the princess, only one other pony knew what was about to happen.
"GET DOWN!!"
Caduceus's voice made Pinkie and Stellar duck, just in time as a white blast suddenly engulfed the night, with Princess Celestia spreading her wings apart. The grandeur of white immediately narrowed into one powerful beam of light, shooting towards the mare at the other end.
Harmony, however, jumped over it, despite a part of it already striking her square at the hooves, making her yelp in pain. Her cape and mask soon formed from the black darkness, before she swirled in a cloud of ash, escaping from the flare of energy.
"Princess!!" Pinkie called out as the hanging portion of the tower started to bend once more, the alicorn frantically speeding towards the three ponies with her wings, darting past a few chunks of rock and debris.
The metal supports keeping the impaired structure hanging finally snapped, with Princess Celestia narrowly jumping into the standing base of the tower, watching the fractured top crashing through the fragile windows of the Equinox Ballroom, before sighing with relief.
A loud, electronic whir snapped her attention back, followed by a divergent blast of electricity, the bolts streaking throughout the room in a static frenzy. It was only after the dust cleared that they realize what it was; the shattered fragments of the Dreamscape machine.
"Winter's going to kill me," Stellar quipped first, before the four of them burst out in laughter.
Frantically galloping towards the base of the tower, they've finally emerged into the corridors of the palace, yet the danger was still evident, which only fueled their desperation.
"We'll have to get Twilight to signal us somehow," the Princess ordered, trying to remain strong.
"And somepony must keep watch from our reinforcements, just in case."
"Understood."
Caduceus was the only one not being attentive, instead glancing around at the corridor.
"Is it me?" he suddenly spoke, making the rest look at him perplexedly.
"Or did the doors just... stopped?"
Sure enough, the wooden doors that had once shifted endlessly were now fixed in their positions, not moving a single inch. It only took a second for Pinkie to jerk up suddenly, her eyes widening in horror.
"Oh no..." she muttered, instantly galloping off without another word.
"Pinkie! Wait!"
The alicorn's attempts to call her back were futile, though Stellar just marched to her front, brushing the dust off his suit whilst he glanced up at Princess Celestia's worried face.
"I'll follow her, my Princess, just in case anything happens," he said reluctantly, before turning to his friend.
"Don't do anything stupid."
"Be careful!" was his friend's last response, the butler now galloping off after the pink mare.
His dread only grew with every step towards her, wanting to deny the dark possibilities that had formed inside his head. He bit his lip, frantically praying to himself in doubt.
The corridors only added to his trepidation, the few turns that both he and Pinkie made only wretch up the fear in his gut; the fear of getting closer to their intended destination, wherever it is.
"Please be safe..."