"So, when did you know?" I asked.
He looked at me confused. "Know what?"
"Well, about the Princess' sister." I said. "Nightmare Moon. She's the one who has the cult following that's been trying to kill my parents. How long have you known about her?"
"Since she first became Nightmare Moon. You see, she had a plan to overthrow her sister. She had gathered a few supporters, taught them how to fight, kill, and torture, and attempted to stage a coop. During that time, her most loyal followers would sabotage and kill those who were a big part of the Royal Guard." he said as he twisted a few knobs.
"During the Equestrian Civil War, The Shadows caused rampant destruction all across the nation. After many weeks of fighting and death, the Princess was forced to do something she had been avoiding to do." he explained.
"She used the Elements of Harmony against her own sister?" I asked in disbelief.
"Yep. Banished her straight to the moon for a thousand years. It was nasty business." he said. The TARDIS jerked as we landed. "Well, you ready to save your mom, defeat the Shadows, and get Fluttershy back?" he asked enthusiastically.
"You bet!" I said and darted out the doors. I looked at the city around me and saw ponies walking around with bags and in fancy clothes. The Doctor walked out behind me and looked around as well.
"Uh, where are we?" I asked.
"Trottingham. Her mother took refuge here and tried to start up another gathering. When your mother and I arrived, however, she jumped us and took your mother." He turned and began walking down the streets.
I turned to him. "So why did you come back? Why didn't you continue to look for her?"
He looked back to me. "I did. Spent days looking for her."
"Then why did you come for me even though you said didn't want me to come?"
"After awhile I realized I was going to need some help. And who better to help than Rainbow Dash, the mare who rushes in without thinkning." he said.
"But can't that be a bad thing? Shouldn't we be thinking while we do this?" I asked
"Well, yes, but we need some of that, oh what do you call it? Spunk? No. Rushedness? No no."
"Well why me though? Why didn't you go to Felix? I'm sure he'd do just as much as me." I pointed out.
"While he would fight hard, he isn't the one who I trust to get a job done when it needs to be." he said.
I lifted my head pridefully. "So, where's this jerk at?"
"Buckingham Palace." he said.
I looked at him shocked. "Wait, so the Royal House is holding a terrrorist?" I asked in disbelief.
"Oh no no no. They don't know she's there. It's hidden." he said.
"And that's possible because...."
"You really don't have any clue?" he asked. I shook my head. "Well that's a downer." he whispered to himself. "Perception filter. Keeps it seen without being seen. You should have remembered it back when you came to Canterlot."
"Oh. Yeah I remembered. I was just testing to see if you knew it." I said.
"I'm a Time Lord, I know just everything there is in the universe. Well, except the exact function of a rubber duck. What is with those things?" he asked.
"How should I know?" I asked.
"Alright then snippy, let's just get to Buckingham Palace, rescue your mother, and then we can get you back to your friends. It'll be just like you hadn't left at all." he said. We continued to walk until we came to a large building. We walked up to it and walked past a pony in a red suit and a big black hat.
"Don't worry. They know me. We can just walk in." he said. We walked into the palace when I heard hoofsteps running to us. Five guards ran up to us with spears ready.
"Halt, in the name of the Queen!" one of the ordered.
We stopped and I looked at the Doctor. "I thought you said you could just walk in?" I whispered.
"Well, it looks as if they don't remember me." The Doctor pulled out a black wallet. "John Smith, head of the Royal Guard at the Trottingham embassy in the Griffon Kingdom and this is my lovely assistant, Rainbow Torchwood." he said. "I'm here to speak to the Queen."
"Sorry, Mr. Smith." the one who ordered us earlier said. The group put their spears down. "The Queen is a bit caught up in her duties at the moment."
"Oh, I'm sure she'll have time for me. Tell her the Doctor is in." he said.
"Sir, she doesn't have time, especially with the wedding that's coming up." he said.
"It's a matter of national security. Take me there if your for Queen and country." the Doctor said.
The guard stood there and nodded his head at us. "If you'll follow me." He led us through a series of halls that were laiden with pictures of past Queens and Kings.
"How long has this palace been here?" I asked.
"About 1000 years. Princess Celestia helped erect it for us all those years ago, as a sign of her allegiance." he said.
"Everything seems to happen 1000 years ago." I whispered to the Doctor.
"Must just be time convergence. Happens sometimes throughout the universe." he said.
We stopped in front of giant door that had two more guards standing next to it at attention. "She's just through this door. I'll see if she's ready to see you."
He walked through the door and closed them behind him. We stood there for a few seconds until we heard a louu exclamation come from the room. "What?! He's here!? He's really here?!" the door burst open and their stood a white unicorn with a crown on her flank. "Doctor! I'd been waiting to see when you'd show up again." she said.
"Queen Victoria! How's it been after all these years?" the Doctor asked. "You look lovely."
"Thanks Doctor. You're not so bad yourself." she looked at me. "And who's the new girl?"
"Rainbow Dash. How do you know the Doctor?" I asked.
"He and I were companions years ago. Took me to the planet Poosh and nearly got me turned into a Slitheen's pet." she said.
"Hey! I got you out of there, safe and sound." the Doctor said.
"Only after rewriting my genetics. If you see a silver head case with three clamps on the side, don't let him put it on your head. The thing hurts worse than getting ripped apart by Adipose." she said, pointing to me.
"Adipose?" I asked.
"A company billions of light years away that turned the habitants into walking fat. Very painful process." he said.
"Oh..." I said. All these alien names were starting to confuse me.
"So Doctor, I'm sure there is a very reasonable explanation for your visit. What is it this time? Slitheen take over? Macra in the sewers? Daleks?" she asked.
"Nope, none of them. Something a tad bit more personal. For both of us." he said, motioning to me. "Have you heard of The Shadows?"
"I've read about them. Only legends though. Why?" she asked.
"Oh Viccy. You should know by now that things are not just legends." the Doctor replied.
She stood there staring at the Doctor. "You're telling me that the deadliest thing in this sector of the universe is here?" she exclaimed.
"Well it's really only one of them. Only two of them are left now that Nightmare Moon has been defeated, so now it's only her two most devoted." he explained.
The Queen's face dropped. "Not them." The Doctor nodded his head. She lowered her head and sighed.
"She's here. Underneath Buckingham." the Doctor said.
"With my mom. So what are we going to do? Dig down and fight her or flush her out with some...techno gizmo that you have?" I asked the Doctor.
"First we need to find out where she is. Viccy, do you have any old lay outs of Buckingham? Any that show hidden rooms or tunnels that could hide a pony who wanted to be hidden?" the Doctor asked.
"Stop calling me Viccy. And yes. Hold on a second." she said.
"But I thought the Princess built this?" I asked.
"No she just helped build it. The original architect made up a blue print for the building and Princess Celestia constructed it." the Doctor said as he went to help Victoria.
"Found them. Here you go Doctor." Victoria said. They huddled over the blue prints for a little bit before the Doctor let out a loud laugh.
"Ah Ha! There it is. Right beneath our feet. According to this, we need to dig underneath the kitchen and into the central tunnel system. The question is, which way do we go to find them?"
"We'll figure that out later. First, let's get to the tunnels." I said and ran out the door.
"Rainbow Dash!" the Doctor shouted to me. I didn't listen though. I kept running for kitchen. I had no idea where the kitchen was, so I just followed the smell of food. I ran past a chef and slammed into the kitchen, knocking over a large number of ponies.
"Watch it!" one of chefs said.
The Doctor and Victoria ran in behind me. "When I said I needed someone who would rush in without thinking, I didn't mean that you should never think." he said.
"We need to find her. There has to be some shovels somewhere in this palace." I said. The Doctor pulled out his sonic thing and began pointing it at random objects around the kitchen. "Uh, what are you doing?" I asked.
"We aren't going to dig our way to the tunnels. That would take way too long." he said.
"So what are we going to do? Look for a lever or a button that will open some weird trapdoor?" I asked and leaned against a bookshelf full of cookbooks. It made a loud clank and I flinched back.
"Ah, good job Rainbow!" he said. The bookshelf had moved and revealed a hidden staircase. The Doctor and Victoria ran down the stairs.
"Hey! Wait up!" I shouted and flew down the stairs to them. I caught up with them as they stood at the bottom of the staircase at a fork. The Doctor was standing there looking at the blue print.
"Which way, Doctor?" Victoria asked.
"I'm not sure. This isn't anywhere on the blue print." he said.
"Well I'll stick with my gut." I said and flew quickly to the right. I heard the Doctor call my name as I flew down the cave's tunnel. The tunnel went on for a long time, making very small turns left or right. I could smell a raunchy stench coming from ahead of me. I flew faster, knowing that she had to be down there.
"I'm coming mom!" I shouted. I flew through a canvas and landed in front of an open room. It was, too large to be naturally made from the cave. I felt something wooden clamp down on my wings and hold me still. "What the- Hey what gives?" I exclaimed. I looked at what was holding me and saw a Timberwolf on each side of me.
"Welcome Rainbow Dash. I see you've found my lair." Fluttershy's mom said as she walked out of a corner in the room. "Where is he?"
"Who?" I asked, playing dumb.
"The Doctor. Surely he's the reason why you were able to find me. Considering him being so clever and all." she said.
"He'll be here soon enough, Clarrise. And when he is, you should be scared." I heard my mom warn from the opposite side of the room in chains.
"Mom!" I exclaimed.
"Oh I've got my own plans for the Doctor. I'm not too afraid of him. He's clever, but ignorant."
"You should be scared. You have, as you said, his two favorite companions. And one of them, is somepony he loves. He would do anything to get her back. And the other, is her daughter." I said.
"He may seem ignorant, but he's a good pony. Ponies tend to fear the evil warmongers, but they always forget the good ones. Nothing to fear from someone you can ransom with. You can predict an evil ponies moves in war. But when a good pony goes to war, there is nothing that can stop him." I heard my mom say from the opposite end of the room.
"Are you alright?" I asked my mom quickly, not even really paying attention to what was being said.
"You two can have your little reunion after I kill the Doctor." she said. "But for now, I think you two had better be quiet. If you want what's best for eachother." Clarrise said with a smile.
"Why should we listen to you?" my mom shouted. Clarrise raised a hoof and I felt myself being lifted into the air, pressure being pushed in on my sides.
"Do you want to find out?" she said. My mom just sat there quietly. "Good." she slowly lowered her hoof and I felt the pressure leave as I brought back down to eye level. "I've got so many plans. Despite Nightmare Moon's fall, I shall still have a glorious empire. Already I have gathered a handful of ponies who are willing to join me. And soon, I'll have a device strong enough to take over the mind's of everypony in the world. I'll march to Canterlot and rip Celestia's head from her shoulders. She'll make a lovely decoration above my fireplace." she said with a smile.
"What device?" I asked. "What do you have that can take over everypony's mind?" I had to buy some time. If I could keep her monologuing long enough for the Doctor to get here, we stood a chance of getting my mom out of here.
"Why, it's this." she said and pointed to a white orb with a tube strung out from it. The tube ran all the way to a pony that was sprawled across the table. "This, is how I will do it. However, I need the Doctor's sonic screwdriver."
"But what is it? What is that orb?" I asked again.
"It's a translator from a being called an Ood. They have a psychic link with all others of their kind and are able to communicate. I have modified it so it can be used as a device that targets specifically ponies. I need the screwdriver so I can amplify it's psychic power across the planet." she explained. "Want to see it in action?"
She held the orb in her hooves and looked at my mom as she slumped over. "Mom!" I exclaimed.
"Rise." Clarrise said. My mom immediately rose. "March." She tried to move forward, but was unable to because of the chains. "Kick the wall." She turned around and began to kick the wall. She did for a few minutes before she was told to stop. Clarrise put the orb back on the table and my mom slumped back to the ground.
"Mom!" I shouted again. "What did you do? She better not be hurt or so help me-"
"She's fine. Just asleep. The psychic link is only able to reach across this room since it is no longer connected to the Ood's mind and body. And you have brought me the piece that I need to control the world." she said.
"And what makes you think I'm just going to hand over my sonic device to you?" I heard the Doctor say.
"Ah, Doctor. I see you've arrived." Clarrise said. She raised her hoof and two Timberwolves came out and tried to grab him.
"Oh please." he said and pointed his sonic screwdriver at them. They collapsed into piles of sticks on the ground. "Burst of sonic energy turns them to simple sticks and twigs. No harm done from them." He pointed it at the two holding me and I dropped to the ground.
"About time you got here!" I said. "She has a-"
"-mind control device so I heard, but the real thing I want to know is how she came by an Ood here. How do you even know what an Ood is? You don't have a spaceship or an almanac or a historical reference guide to the Universe." he said.
"Ah but Doctor, don't you remember? In the early days of the war Nightmare Moon gave The Shadows a book telling about all the creatures and aliens we could use to our benefit." Clarrise said. She looked behind me and smiled. "Now, how about you drop your screwdriver and give it to me, before somepony gets hurt?"
"How about no." he said. I was suddenly lifted into the air and I gave a slight voice of surprise.
"Suit yourself." she said. The Doctor turned around and pointed at the Timberwolf again, only this time, nothing happened.
"What?" he said. He tried again, but still nothing happened. "What? This doesn't make-" he started but stopped himself. "Oh wait. But it does."
"What makes what?" I asked as I tried to fight my free of the Timberwolf.
"Did I mention that the Timberwolf builds a sonic resistance to my sonic screwdriver after it's been affected by one?" he said.
"No! That bit of information would have been wonderful to have known!" I shouted.
"Yes, well, since they're alive, they're slightly affected for a short time. But since they're also made of wood, they grow immune to it. My sonic screwdriver is useless against wood."
"Wood? Your super high tech device is useless on wood!?" I exclaimed.
"Yep. One of the many ironys of my life." He turned back to Clarrise. "Alrighty then! Let's see, you need me, I need these two. How about you let them go, and I'll help you?"
"And how do I know once you have them you won't sabotage it?" she asked.
"You'll have to trust me." he said.
"Sorry, but trust doesn't come easily to those who help skewer my plans." she said.
"Well, then I guess we do things the hard way." he said.
I fell to the ground as my mom threw a rock right at the Timberwolf's face, causing it to break into sticks and twigs again. She ran over to me with Victoria right behind her. "Thanks for the distraction." she said.
"Anytime. You still owe me for the business on Balhoon." the Doctor said.
"Doctor, we better get going." Victoria said. "The orb is set for detonation in two minutes."
"A Queen who knows how to make a bomb?" I asked.
"Well after running around with this oaf you learn quickly." she said, motioning to the Doctor.
"Are you all through?" I heard Clarrise ask. We turned and looked at her. She had about two dozen Timberwolves behind her, growling.
"Uh, yes. Actually we were just leaving." the Doctor said. The Timberwolves gave a low growl. "Run!" he yelled at us. We bolted back into the way we came.
"Just like old times!" Victoria said.
"Oh yes!" the Doctor replied. I looked behind me and saw two Timberwolves closing the distance faster than I would have liked.
"Doctor!" I shouted. He turned his head around and pointed at the Timberwolves. One of them burst into twigs and the other just sneezed. "Got anything else?" I said.
"Yeah. Run faster!" he shouted. We came up to the fork and ran up the stairs.
"Wait! The kitchen is up there!" I shouted.
"Yeah, and Timberwolves are down here. Get your flank moving!" Victoria exclaimed to me. I wasn't about to disobey a Queen, so I flew up as fast as I could. I flew out a window and helped the others out as they reached it. I pulled my mother out with the Doctor right behind her.
"How far is the TARDIS?" she asked.
"About a mile down Constitution Hill." the Doctor replied. He ran ahead of us with me following him the Queen behind me, and my mom following her. We ran hard for the TARDIS as the Timberwolves closed in on us. I looked behind and couldn't find Fluttershy's mom. I hoped she was caught up with the guards in the palace.
"Almost there!" the Doctor said as we neared the big blue box. He ran ahead and opened the doors. I ran in and was followed by Victoria. I turned and looked for my mom and when I saw her, Fluttershy's mom crashed next to her and threw her into the ground.
"Mom!" I shouted. I flew out of the TARDIS towards the bitch that was hitting my mom. She grabbed her and wrapped her foreleg around my mom's throat.
"Stop or she dies!" she shouted. I braked as hard as I could have and crashed into the ground as I attempted to land. I looked up and saw my mom with tears down her cheeks.
"Clarrise!" I heard the Doctor shout as he stopped next to me. "Don't hurt her, don't you dare injure her!" he exclaimed.
"First you have to help me!" she demanded. "The Palace Guards are going to be after me now, and since the mind control device is no longer useable thanks to her," she said nodding her head to Victoria, "I need a place of refuge, and you're going to give it to me."
"Why? If I do you'll just come back and cause more trouble." the Doctor said.
"Because if you don't," she said, squeezing my mom's throat, "I'll kill the one you love."
The Doctor stared her down and my mom looked at me with teary eyes. I walked over to the Doctor and put a hoof on his shoulder. "Please." I whispered to him.
He looked me in my eyes. "She'll just come back and cause more harm." he said.
"Yes, but we can deal with that later, when she doesn't have my mom hostage." I said, hoping to persuade him.
He turned back to Clarrise and sighed. "Fine."
"No! Doctor don't you dare help her!" my mom exclaimed.
"Be nice now, deary. We wouldn't want to have your daughter watch you die." she said. She walked up to the Doctor with my mom still in her grasp. "I'm glad we understand each other." she said with a smile.
I moved to try and free my mom, but the Doctor put a hoof in front of me to stop me. He shook his head and walked inside the TARDIS. Victoria and I followed him in and the doors closed behind us. "Where?" he asked Clarrise.
"Skaro." she said.
"No. You'll have too many accomplices to help you destroy Equestria." the Doctor said.
"You don't have much of a choice, now do you?" she said. "Now either you take me there, or she loses her spinal chord."
The Doctor walked over to the panels surrounding the center of the TARDIS. "I'll take you to Sol 3. You'll be left alone and taken care of there." he said.
"Don't drop me off at that pitiful place of hairless abominations. It's Skara, or her death." she said, tightening her grip.
"Look, everypony, just calm down." Victoria said. "We'll take you there, but only on one condition."
"I don't think you're in any place to make a condition." she said.
"Listen. We take you to Skara if you let her go and stand by her daughter."
"Do I look stupid to you!? Once you take her, you'll take me to the Shadow Proclamation or kill me here and now. Sorry, no can do." she said. She looked as if she was about to snap my mom's neck but the Doctor stopped her.
"Hold on, hold on! There's no need to do that! Fine. I'll take you to Skara. Just don't hurt her." he pleaded.
"Don't worry. As long as I'm safe there, so will she." He pressed some buttons and pulled some levers that sent the TARDIS spinning.
During that brief moment, my mom broke free and kicked Clarrise away from her. "Now!" she exclaimed. Victoria ran up to Clarrise and kicked her in the face, sending her flying back. I flew by her and punched her face into the wall. It felt good to finally hit this monster.
My mom grabbed me and held onto a railing as Victoria followed suit. "Doctor! Do it now!" she shouted. There was a low humming sound followed by a loud bang as the TARDIS doors blew open, trying to suck us out. I looked behind me and saw Clarrise flying towards us. She grabbed my mom's hooves and held on.
"Oh no you don't! I'm not getting lost in time!" she shouted.
My mom tried to kick her off but wasn't able to. She began to slip, with one hoof on the rail and the other holding me. "Grab onto the rail! Don't let go!" she told me. I did as she said and she lowered her head to my ear. "I love you. I'm so sorry." she said and let go of the rail, falling out of the TARDIS.
"Mom!!" I shouted.
"Firefly!" the Doctor exclaimed. "No!"
My mom fell out with Clarrise as the TARDIS doors closed, locking them out forever.