//------------------------------//
// Explanations 
// Story: Homecoming 
// by seeker9709 
//------------------------------//













“Rainbow Dash!” 

Luna dove towards her fallen soldier and caught Rainbow's head before it hit the ground. She used her magic to remove the destroyed armor. Rainbow winced as the breast plate came off, fully revealing the cut along her side.

Luna glared at the injuries on her soldier. Without saying a word, she levitated Rainbow and sprinted off to the medical bay. Celestia, Shining, and Cadence followed behind.

Luna threw open the door to Celestia's room and pointed at the guards standing there. 

“You two. Get my best doctors, and get them to the medical bay.”

The guards took one look at the Lunar Princess and the cyan pegasus held by her magic. They quickly broke into a sprint, eager to avoid any harsh punishment.

As they ran off, Luna teleported the group into the medical bay. 



 =

A few minutes later, the princess sat in a waiting room as doctors tended to the injured commander, her eyebrows crossed in frustration, sadness, and rage. She glared at the floor. Commander Dash was one of the best fighters and strategists in the entire guard, and now she was just a mess of bruises, broken bones, and severe burns. She had been able to cast a minor healing spell just in time to stop blood loss – if Rainbow had lost any more blood, she could have died. 

Her once beautiful features were... No. A ruler shouldn't think like that. She would most likely make a near full recovery, but it would take much time, given the extent of her injuries. 

The princess sighed. 'And Twilight Sparkle.'

Luna gritted her teeth. This was turning into a mess. The guards will have to be on high alert, and just a few weeks from Hearths Warming. Many of them are supposed to be going home to their families in 3 weeks, and now they might have to be working double shifts.

Luna growled and stomped her foot so hard it broke the tile underneath. ‘How could a mortal pony be so powerful?’

“Lulu?”

“Auntie?”

“Princess?” 

She turned to see the concerned faces of Celestia, Cadence and Shining Armor. She gave them a small smile. 

“Been standing there long?” Luna asked.

“Only a few moments, but long enough to see you are clearly upset,” Celestia answered as she walked over to her sister. 

Celestia sat down next to her. “You need not worry, sister. She is strong, and she will survive.”

Luna sighed. “Oh, I have no doubt she will. It's just the circumstances. I mean, she might not even make a full recovery with injuries like that.”

Celestia gave her sister a warm smile. “You know how strong your student is. She’ll be fine.”

'Besides. I know you have feelings for her.' The two princesses often communicated with thought when they wished for nopony to overhear their conversation.

Luna snapped her head towards her sister, her eyes wide with shock.

'That's a lie.'

Celestia gave her sister a playful smile. 

'No. THAT'S a lie. You love your student and you know it.'

'Of course I do. I love all of my subjects.'

'Yes, but you have feelings for Miss Dash. Don't deny it.'

'I will deny it. It isn't true.'

'Yes it is. I would wager even Cadence and Shining knew it.'

'We do,’ affirmed two other voices that Luna hadn’t heard.

Luna turned and glared at the young couple, who was trying their best to avoid eye contact with her and not laugh.

Luna gave a huff. “Are our thoughts not private?”

Cadence smirked. “Not to family. And that includes in-laws,” she said, motioning to her husband.

“I will banish all three of you to the damned moon if I have to.”

“Way to disprove the accusation, Aunt Luna,” Shining teased. “You DO like her, don't you?”

“I am casting a teleportation spell right now.”

Celestia chuckled at her flustered sister. “No one is going to the moon today, Lulu. Besides, I think we are about to receive some news.”

Luna turned to see a white earth pony walking towards them. She had a soft pink mane and medical cross for a cutie mark.

Luna stood to meet her. “Nurse Redheart. How is she?”

Luna heard a snicker behind her and turned to see her family finding a sudden interest in ceiling tile, their faces blank as a stone. Luna gave them a glare before turning back to the nurse.

“Dash is badly injured, but she’s fine now. We found multiple broken and fractured bones, most likely from a crash. If she hadn't, and I'm assuming she had, worn armor, she would’ve been cut to ribbons. She had severe burns on her flank and lower wings, which will make flying and sitting rather painful for a few weeks. But those burns saved her life.

“The long gash on her side was very deep and narrowly missed some major organs. That burn mostly cauterized the injury, and if it hadn't, she would have bled out very quickly. She’ll have to stay in bed for a few days, and assuming she listens to the doctors this time, she will be back to full health in about a month and a half.”

Rainbow, while very skilled, was notorious for resisting doctors and their judgment. She had critically injured herself multiple times for continuing to train while seriously injured. During one instance, she was hospitalized after breaking three tendons in one wing and cracking two ribs. She was found the next day in one of the sparring rooms. She had to be subdued by twelve guards and Shining Armor, and during the struggle, she broke three more tendons in each of her wings, fractured three more ribs, and got a concussion. She still showed up for roll call the next day.

“I see,” Luna sighed. “May I speak to her now?”

Nurse Redheart gave her a smile. “Yes, you may. The doctors just finished, and she’s ready. Brace yourself. She isn't pretty.”

The nurse turned and began walking towards Rainbow's room.

Luna turned back. “Are you three coming with?”

Celestia replied, “No we'll stay. Don't want to be third wheels.”

Luna glared at her sister and began walking towards the room.

“Keep your hooves to yourself, Lulu.”

'THAT'S IT!'

She spun and fired a blast of magic at the three. Celestia had just a moment to throw another teasing smile and a wink to her sister before she, her niece, and her nephew disappeared.

'And they thought I was kidding.'

She followed the nurse through multiple doors and entered a large surgery room. Tools suspended from the ceiling by metal limbs. They were moved back, exposing a bed.

The pegasus laying on it was a mess of stitches, lotions, and wrappings. She lay on her stomach with her hooves lying spread-eagle.

Luna walked to her front to see an extremely annoyed look on her face. A large plastic cone was wrapped around her face, and Luna couldn't help but laugh at the pegasus.

Rainbow turned to her teacher with annoyed pout. “Oh, great. My boss comes to laugh at me. Could you please explain to these morons that I don't need a cone? I'm not some dog; it's not like I'll scratch.”

Luna finally stifled her laughter. “Why don't you take it off? When have you ever listened to a doctor?”

Luna could have sworn she saw smoke coming off of Dash’s head. 

“I would, but they gave me a paralyzing sedative, and I can't move at the moment. This one must be new, but I'm not worried. I'll fight it off eventually.”

Luna could only shake her head. “Why do you always put up a fight? You won’t win. You hate the hospitals, but you keep putting yourself back in. Don't you learn?”

Rainbow snickered. “When are YOU going to learn that it will take much more than a few broken bones to put me down for the count? Now are you going to get this damn cone off me or what?”

Luna chuckled at her student and removed the cone off of Rainbow's neck.

Rainbow shook her neck for a moment. “Oh finally. Now, then. Where are the other three? I need to tell you about what I learned.”

Luna gave a mischievous smile. “Give me a moment. I need to bring them back.”

She took a few steps back, and her horn lit up. A few moments later, there was a flash of light, and Princess Celestia and Cadence appeared, standing over a choking Shining Armor.

He took massive heaving breaths before he finally spoke, “How do you... freaking alicorns... breathe out there?”

Celestia laughed softly. “We don’t. We can just deal without oxygen for longer than regular ponies.”

Luna walked over to Shining Armor. “You thought I was kidding when I said I would send you to the moon?”

Rainbow got up off her bed and walked towards the Captain. “You sent them to the moon? Why?” she inquired.

“No reason,” they called in unison.

Rainbow took a step back, her eyes wide. “Okay, okay! Anyway, come on while it's still fresh in my head.” She began walking back to the gurney when Luna called to her in a disappointing tone.

“You fought it off ALREADY?”

“Told you it wouldn't take me long,” she called back without turning.

Shining finally got his breathing under control. “Which one did they give her this time?”

“Some brand new one,” Luna replied.

Shining went back into a coughing fit. “WHAT? We spent months developing that one, and you fought it off in an HOUR!?”

“You do realize that the more you give me, the more resistant I become, right? You're making it easier for me.”

“Damn it!”

“Anyways,” Luna interrupted, “Rainbow is going to tell us about her battle. It would be best for us to listen.”

“Thank you, princess.” She took a moment to get herself adjusted on the gurney. 

“So it happened like this...”





“Hey,” she yelled down. “If you start this fight, it won't end well for you.”

Twilight gave her a disappointed look. “Funny, I was going to tell you the same thing. I'm really busy today, so I can't stay and chat. I'll have to make this quick.”

All nine of her knives shot out from under her cloak, embedding themselves into the snow. She gripped them magically and returned her gaze to the commander. She flashed an evil grin. “Let's begin, shall we?”

Four knives flipped up and launched at the commander. They were straight shots, and Rainbow dodged them easily. She dove towards Twilight, slipping a small dagger from inside her armor into her hoof.

She met Twilight's gaze. Twilight wore an evil smirk and stared into Rainbows eyes. Rainbow turned her head to see the knives speeding her way.

She spun and turned sharply, trying to avoid the knives. They sped past her, grazing her wing guards. She tried to knock the blades away from her, but to no avail. She flew higher, trying to escape the reach of Twilight's magic.

Twilight was fast with her magic, but she couldn't chase Rainbow, who was undoubtedly the fastest mortal pony in Equestria.

Rainbow took a moment to observe her enemy. ‘She clearly doesn't want to waste time and wants this battle to be quick. She’s only using four knives as weapons; the others could possibly be for her defenses. She's confident in her skills, and is sure she can't be beaten.’

Rainbow grinned. ‘I’ll have to prove her wrong, hm? Let’s test her reflexes first.’

Rainbow slipped a second dagger into a groove in her hoof guard before diving towards Twilight.

Twilight attempted the same strategy as before. Her knives launched at Dash, but this time, Dash didn't slow down. She continued diving at massive speeds, and Twilight braced herself. She began running in zigzags, hoping to out-maneuver Rainbow.

But Dash was too fast. She brought her knife in front of her, while Twilight formed a shield with hers. They locked in place for a moment trying to stare the other down. Rainbow knocked her knife to the side, breaking the lock, and struck with the second.

Twilight jumped backwards, trying to evade, but was given a small cut on her cheek for her efforts. She rolled back and stood in another defensive stance, all eight of her knives at her side.

'Wait a minute, eight?'

Rainbow heard a quiet whistling sound coming from her left. Instinctively, she lifted her dagger, covering her neck. A moment later, there was a clang of metal and a force against her hoof.

She could feel something fighting her blade, but couldn't see- no. There it is. A shimmer in the air. It was cloaked.





“That clued me in to the fight at the tavern,” she explained to the royal group. “She enchanted her weapons with a cloaking spell, and just swung hard and fast, creating the image of ponies being ripped to shreds. It probably made her look like a demon or a god.”





She grinned. 'Close one... but not close enough.'

She disengaged the blade and launched towards Twilight again.

Together, they ran, stepped, jumped, stabbed, and sliced, trying to hit the other. Back and forth, they struck and dueled, only hitting armor and air. Onlookers saw blades whirl and heard metal ring.

When the two started fighting, they forgot about the storm that gathered around them. Quickly, though, the pair began noticing their vision impair from the sudden snow and wind. Blows began landing, and cuts began forming.

The duelers disengaged and jumped back, inspecting their wounds. None were serious, just simple nicks and cuts along their faces and sides. Despite the intensity of their dueling, they were neither breathing heavily nor breaking a sweat*.

They tore their eyes off of each other momentarily to observe the now white world that took up their vision. The snow was thick, and the wind was fast. They could barely see two feet in front of themselves. They turned back to each other and grinned. They were both in their prime.

The assassin and the snow mage disappeared into the white.





“Fighting where others can't see me is the best thing I can do.” She pointed towards her teacher. “You taught me that personally...”

Luna smiled warmly at Rainbow.

“… So you can understand my surprise when she could blend in just as well as I could. I will say, though, she was good...”





Twilight wrapped her cloak around her and slunk back into the snow.

Rainbow’s eyebrows crossed in a glare. The damned unicorn was getting on her nerves. The storm had come sooner and now was in her way. But on the plus side, she would make quick work of the battle with this added snow cover.

Twilight closed her eyes and cast a quick spell. A veil of magic whipped across her face, and when she opened her eyes, they glowed white. No matter how good she was, the pegasus couldn't hide from thermal vision.

She surveyed the area for a moment before she saw a dim orange light in the distance, outlining a crouched pony.

Twilight grinned to herself. Two of her knives sped off into the distance, and the sound of steel meeting flesh and bone could just barely be heard in the distance. Quick work indeed.

Twilight sheathed the rest of her knives and walked the distance to her fallen enemy. When she arrived, she found not a dead pegasus, but a fading illusion spell.

Her eyes widened. “What is-”

Twilight was cut off by an explosion of pain on her side. She turned to see Rainbow standing next to her, grinning madly.

“... But I'm better.”

The cut along Twilight's side was deep. Twilight gripped her side with one hoof. 

“... How?” she cried out, Wincing as she tried to stop the blood flow.

Rainbow gave her no time to stop. She jumped forward and tackled the unicorn. They rolled over each other, fighting for dominance.

Twilight kicked Rainbow off of her, but found herself pinned again only a moment later. Twilight found her hooves pinned beneath Rainbow's.

Rainbow was breathing heavily, and finally spoke after she regained her breath. 

“Now, we’re going to Canterlot, and you're coming with me. Would you like to try peacefully, or should I go on?”

Twilight glared intensely at Rainbow before her horn sprung to life and sent Rainbow flying. A moment later, Rainbow felt herself inside a magical grip, and was slammed into the ground. Metal was smashed, and bones were broken.

Rainbow's vision blurred. The thick snow storm didn't help, either. She shakily got to her feet to see a lavender mare standing directly in front of her, a calm smile across her face despite her injuries and the circumstances.

Her smile reminded Rainbow of a motherly smile, one that says everything would be alright. She had seen that look on Luna's face before.

Rainbow felt an invisible grip wrap around her throat as she was lifted a foot in the air. Twilight floated up and met her eyes. The eerily calm smile was still on her face. Rainbow coughed and struggled against the force holding her.

“Now, now, Miss Dash, that's quite enough of that. You've caused me a lot of trouble today.” 

As she spoke, she used her magic to withdraw her lost blade from a pouch in Rainbow's armor.

She removed her stare from the choking pegasus and inspected her weapon. She looked with a close gaze, inspecting for the slightest mark or scratch. She gave a sigh of relief as she replaced the weapon with the others, except for one. She levitated it towards Rainbow's chest and held it there.

“Do you have any last words, anything you want me to tell your family?” she asked sarcastically.

Rainbow's eyes crossed in a flash of anger, but melted away a moment later. A small smirk replaced the anger.

“The thing about magic...” she said, meeting Twilight's eyes. 

Her smirk grew into a grin. Her hoof flipped a small coin into the air in front of Twilight. It had a glowing rune on one side. 

“...is that you don't have to be a unicorn to use runes.”

The rune flashed, and Twilight's magic grip disappeared. The knife she held in her magic grip fell to the ground. Rainbow's wings shot out and held up.

Twilight jumped back, pure rage enveloping her. She charged her horn and fired off a spray of magic blasts. Whenever they came within two feet of Rainbow, they dissolved before they even touched her.

“NULL MAGIC?”

“The very best, my dear. This is personally made by Princess Luna. It stops any magic that enters it field, which means...” 

She disappeared in a blur of colors and reappeared behind Twilight.

Twilight didn't even have time to turn and react. 'She's too fast…'

“...you just lost all hope of winning this fight,” she finished before slashing Twilight across the back twice.

Twilight fell forward, but caught herself with magic. She turned and threw up the most powerful shield she could create, but Dash simply walked through it.

“You’re powerful, kid, but you couldn't hope to beat Alicorn magic.”

Rainbow brought her hoof to stab the powerless mare, but was blocked by Twilight's blade.

The blade was locked in her teeth. Twilight visibly shook from her anger. Dash noticed something coming of her mane and coat. 

‘Smoke…?’ 

Twilight sliced forward, but Rainbow simply jumped back.

“I'm not that easy, Commander. I have a few tricks myself.”

Rainbow flew back as a wave of flame came off of Twilight. Rainbow watched as the fireball consumed the unicorn. The flames receded to reveal a flaming Twilight. Her coat was pure white, her tail and mane pure flames, her eyes glowing ruby red.

Although its origin is unknown, rage sparks have been noted throughout pony history. When an exceptionally powerful unicorn reaches a point in their anger, they can literally burst into flames. Only a talented few unicorns were recorded experiencing this phenomenon, such as Clover the Clever or Starswirl the Bearded, and despite their incredible strength and magic power, they could only hold this form for a few seconds.

But Twilight is used to breaking records. 

Rainbow charged, not fearing the fact that she would be hurt by magic. She began slashing and stabbing towards Twilight, but was shocked to find that she could feel her skin burning from the heat. Even her knives glowed red.

“Sorry, commander,” Twilight called, her voice deep and smooth. “Null magic protects you from magic, but it won't help you against pure elements like fire.” 

Rainbow dove forward, slashing down with her knife across Twilight scalp. Such a blow should have killed her, but she found there was no injury, only a silver trail running down Twilight's face.

Melted steel.

Rainbow’s knife was now a small metal stump.

Twilight gave a huge grin. She whipped her mane, sending a wave of white-hot flame towards Rainbow.

The pegasus shot into the sky as the flame passed underneath her. Where she had been standing, the snow melted and solid ground turned burned and black.

Rainbow flew back into the white of the storm, only to hear a chuckle from the flaming mare.

“Oh, commander,” she called into the white. “How can you hide if there is nothing to hide in?”

Her body glowed with heat, and a massive wall of flame exploded around her. The flames formed a dome of heat, melting snow and ice, revealing the cyan pegasus a few hundred feet away.

Rainbow dove towards Twilight, weapons at the ready.

Tendrils of flame erupted from Twilight's mane and launched towards the pegasus, forcing Rainbow to a halt. The flames shot back behind Twilight as she grinned.

“Sorry, Commander Dash, but the same trick won't work twice.”

A moment later, Rainbow zoomed out of the white, a panicked look on her face. A massive column of flame followed her.

Twilight grinned as the flame consumed the troublesome pegasus. She wore face of victory as she turned to leave, her flames extinguished as quickly as they started. Yet immediately, she was slammed to the ground by the commander once more.

The two mares collected themselves yet again. Twilight threatened to burst into flames again. Both mares were cut, bruised, and beaten. 

“I have killed some pesky creatures, commander. Ponies, diamond dogs, griffons, minotaurs, the sorts. But you… You are, by far, the most annoying of them all.”

Rainbow grinned. “Well, then. I'm about to get infuriating.” 

She still had one more trick up her sleeve. Rainbow slipped two crystals from her armor and clapped them together, cracking them.

Twilight's eyes widened as they landed in front of her. 

‘Flash crystals!’ She spun to avert her eyes, but she wasn't fast enough. The crystals exploded in a wave of light and sound, leaving the unicorn blind, deaf, and stunned.

Rainbow took her chance and sprung into the air. She struck Twilight in the side of her head, knocking her down and keeping her dazed.

Wasting no time, Rainbow jumped back into the air. She flew around Twilight, but her injuries made her slower.

Twilight soon recovered enough to stand. Rainbow still circled, flying at incredible speeds, the air buffering around her.

Growling, Twilight attempted to ignite herself again, but couldn't – Rainbow's flying had created a vortex around her. Twilight yelled and cursed, striking the air around her with knives and hooves, trying to strike down the commander. She missed again and again.

Rainbow flew until she and Twilight were inside a rainbow funnel. Still continuing the circle she flew lower to Twilight's level.

“I'm giving you one last chance. Surrender or I will take you by force,” Rainbow’s voice came from all sides.

“Never.”

There was an audible sigh.

“I'm sorry, then.”

Rainbow continued her flight. Faster and faster, she flew around Twilight.

Twilight still fought, yet lashing out with her knives, she still could not land a strike. She saw this and ceased her assault. She watched as Rainbow flew faster and faster. 

‘If I don’t stop her now, the vortex can suffocate me, or… No… She can’t be...’

Twilight gritted her teeth. 

‘This needs to end now.’

Twilight carefully watched Rainbow. She watched for a pattern, anything she could use against the pegasus.

2...

3...

1...

1...

2...

3...

1...

1...

2...

3...

Twilight grinned. 

‘Gotcha.’

She sheathed her blades and gripped one between her teeth. 

‘I’ve got one shot… this will have to work.’

The wind formed a cone around Rainbow. She braced herself. This was going to hurt, though it was going to hurt Twilight more. 

Time slowed as she passed by Twilight one last time. They met each other’s eyes for one moment.

Twilight's blade sank into Rainbow’s armor and skin as the wind around Rainbow released, breaking the sound barrier.



 

“You used the 'rainboom,' as you like to call it, didn't you?” Luna asked.

Rainbow nodded. “Yes, but at that range, it hurt us both.”



 

Rainbow lay in the snow. She listened to the sound of her own breathing. The pain of the crash from Twilight, the effort of creating a rainboom, and the crash following made the pain almost unbearable. She slowly opened her eyes to see that the storm had cleared. A few gentle flakes fell from the white sky.

Slowly, she regained the feeling in her limbs and made her way to her feet. As soon as she stood, she lost the small contents of her stomach and nearly fell down. She choked as she recovered.

She inspected herself. Her armor was shredded, and entire pieces were missing or broken. Some of the pieces were digging inside her, leaving blood trails down her rear legs, making walking painful, but not as painful as flying on sore wings.

Breathing heavily, she spotted the lavender mare a few hundred feet away, lying flat in the snow. She wasn't moving.

Rainbow breathed a sigh of relief. She slowly made her way to Twilight.

It took her almost a minute to cross that distance. She had almost reached the unicorn before her hoof touched something. She looked down to see a small book lying at her feet.

'Whatever it is, it can wait till later,' she thought before putting it a side compartment in her armor.

As she did, she heard coughing. She turned to see Twilight coughing gently.

Suddenly her eyes flew open, and she sat upright almost instantly. She was taking huge ragged breaths.

Her head rolled back. Her eyes stared into the white sky, her mouth agape, still drawing strangled breaths.

Rainbow stared at the unicorn in confusion and wonder. Twilight drew another breath, but stopped mid-way. Her head slowly rolled to the side to meet the commander’s stare.

Her ragged breathing turned into a deep chuckle. It started out soft, nothing but air. But it got louder and louder, until it was almost hysterical.

Rainbow glared at her. “Shouldn't you be asleep?”

Twilight’s laughter ended abruptly. A massive smile formed on her face. 

“The other one is asleep. I am awake.”

“’I’? Who is ‘I,’ exactly?”

“My name will serve you purpose. The dead have no use for names.”

“Dementis. Stop." Twilight cried out. Trapped in her own mind. "We can't afford to-”

“BE SILENT. You had your chance, and you lost. Now it's my turn. Saevio? Would you like to help me with this one?

“Sure. What did you have in mind exactly?”

“How does roast pegasus sound to you?”

“Delicious.”

Dementis grinned. 

“Prepare yourself, commander.”

Rainbow began backing away from the unicorn. She noticed for the first time that Twilight’s eyes were pitch black.

Her horn glowed with golden energy Rainbow had only seen from Celestia herself. She took off and flew as fast as she could away from the unicorn.

Golden energy gathered around the body and horn of Twilight before releasing.

To many, it would seem as though a second sun had risen from the north, or they would pass it off as some unexplained phenomenon. Only seven ponies knew what it truly was: the power of the sun.

Rainbow ignored the pain of her wings as she flew higher and higher, trying to escape the massive dome of golden light racing after her. It was hundreds of feet away, yet she could feel the heat burning her hooves.

Had she been at full health, Rainbow could have escaped the field of light with time to spare. But she was not. She was seriously injured and sluggish, and the light was catching up to her. Her breathing was getting heavier as she desperately tried to escape her death.

Her wings were burning, but she barely noticed it because of the adrenaline pumping through her veins.

She reached her hoof into her armor, trying to find anything that could mean her salvation. She pulled out a rune and sighed at it. 

‘This is going to hurt. Again.’

She clapped the rune with her hooves, activating it. She threw it behind her and braced. As she flew, the rune exploded, sending out a shock wave propelling Rainbow up even faster.

She raced forwards, flying hundreds of miles per hour. She turned her head to see the field of light no longer following her.

She stopped her wings and began falling back towards the ground far below. Every few hundred feet, she flapped her wings to make sure she didn’t fall too quickly. 

A few minutes later, she landed roughly. Where snow had once been, there was only blackened earth.

A tired and angry unicorn stood over her. Her horn sparkled from magical depletion.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Rainbow interrupted her with her hoof. 

“We'll finish this battle another day, Twilight Sparkle. Not today.”

She clapped her hoof on her final rune. She teleported away, leaving Twilight staring at the empty space before her.





“And so that was it. I teleported back here and that was that. I'm assuming you enchanted the rune to take me back to you, Princess?”

Luna nodded. “I have but one question, commander. What was the book you found?”

“Oh, that's right. Princess. The armor, if you would?” 

Luna brought over the broken remains of the stealth armor and dropped them at the group’s feet.

Rainbow crouched and grabbed different pieces, searching for the compartment where she had put it. She soon pulled out a small leather-bound book.

“I didn't exactly have the opportunity to get any reading done, so I don't even know the contents. It could be a spell book or a -”

“It's a journal,” Shining interrupted. He grabbed it with his magic and opened the weathered pages. “This is Twilight's journal from when she was a filly.”

“I’ll take it for research,” Luna stated.

“I'm keeping it,” Shining maintained.

“Hey, I was the one who had to fight the bitch,” Rainbow protested.

“You watch you call my sister, damn it. She's my sister, so I'll be taking her journal.”

“You sound like you're used to stealing your sister’s diary,” Luna teased.

Shining's face grew red. “This is family property, so it's my duty to keep it safe.”

“I’m the one who's in the hospital for this journal, therefore it's mine.” Rainbow plucked the book right from Shining’s hooves.

The journal was wrapped in a warm golden glow and lifted from Rainbow's hooves.

“No one will be taking the journal today. The day grows late, and we have our royal duties to attend to. We will decide on this matter on the morrow.”

Celestia was right. The sun was setting, and the day was coming to a close. Night court would be starting.

Shining sighed, “Very well, Princess. Tomorrow, then,” He voiced before he and his wife departed.

“Well, I’ve got work to do as well. See you tomorrow,” Rainbow declared before she was enveloped in a magic grip and placed back onto the gurney.

“Oh, no, you don't. You're injured too badly this time. You're staying here and making a recovery.” 

Rainbow opened her mouth to argue, but was cut off by a stern glare from her teacher. 

“You are one of my best soldiers, and are of no use to anyone in this state. Promise me you will stay here for three days. Then you may go about your business. But three days.”

Rainbow had no choice but to agree. 

‘These are going to be three long days…”

Luna smiled. “I'm glad you agree. Come, sister.” 

She and Celestia walked out of the hospital and into the winter air.

“Were both reading tonight, aren't we?” Luna asked.

Celestia gave a teasing smile. 

“Yep.”





Twilight wanted to scream. She wanted to yell until her voice died. She wanted to do anything to release the hate and anger inside of her, but she couldn't. Her magic was depleted, something that hadn't happened in over a decade. Her vision was blurry, and her ears rang from the rainboom. She was badly injured, and she was physically beat down.

She only wanted to sleep now.

But first she needed to get away. She couldn't be found here.

She turned when something caught her eye. A scrap of paper. She slowly picked it up with her hooves. The hate left. The tiredness drained away. A smile found her lips, and grew to a massive grin.

‘Maybe something good did come of this hell.’