The ponies were in front of a giant monstrosity. Ithaqua had returned to his body. The Princesses, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Spike, The Cutie Mark Crusaders, Shining Armor, Lyra, BonBon, Flitter, Cloudchaser, Thunderlane, Star Song, and the thirteen guardians of the talismans were the only ponies left.
Ithaqua said, “Tremble before me, the king of the frozen wastes!”
Ithaqua fired large shards of ice at the ponies. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna cast a fireball and it some of the ice. Shining Armor prepared a barrier to deflect the shards that passed the alicorns.
Rainbow Dash, Flitter, Cloudchaser, Thunderlane, and Star Song flew to attack the giant. The others followed the pegasi.
Ithaqua responded, “So you still persist. Insolent fools.” He tried to attack the pegasi, but they flew and dodged the attacks.
Twilight Sparkle cast a spell. A red blaze emerged from her horn, Spike supported twilight’s spell with his green fire.
Ithaqua was unfazed by the flames. “Yes, continue your attacks. It will be all for naught.” Six hundred sixty six eyes appeared on his body and he struck the ground with his crimson sword.
Twilight Sparkle teleported away. Applejack and Rarity emerged from behind her and struck a mighty blow onto his legs.
The force was enough to push the leg back. The fillies and Fluttershy threw snowballs into some of the eyes and blinded some of them.
Cloudchaser flew behind the head and saw something unsettling. She saw Gale Force trapped inside the head. “Gale!” She charged into the head, trying to free her former leader from Ithaqua. Ithaqua turned around and slammed Cloudchaser with the scales.
Celestia and Luna saw the zodiac ponies rushing forward. The thirteen ponies and four talismans glowed.
Ithaqua was stunned. He couldn’t move.
Luna said, “What are you doing?”
Aries said, “Buying you time.”
Taurus said, “Use them, quick!”
Pollux said, “We may have failed at keeping Ithaqua out of his body...”
Castor said, “But we won’t let him wreak havoc over Equestria.”
Cancer said, “We’ll stop him from interfering.”
The zodiac ponies’ magic weaken a little. Ithaqua tried to swipe at them with the scythe, but Celestia used her telekinesis to hold it back.
The other ponies ceased their assault. Twilight Sparkle realized that she and her friends were still wearing the Elements of Harmony. She went to gather her friends.
Ithaqua said, “Why? Why do you persist?! Thine efforts are worthless. This world shall be frozen in ice!”
Leo said, “Not if we can help it!”
Virgo said, “We may be figments of imagination and magic...”
Libra said, “But we have a job to do. And we are gonna do it.”
Scorpio said, “We will protect our friends.”
Twilight had gathered Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy together. The zodiac ponies’ spell was weakened.
Sagittarius said, “Thank you friends.”
Capricornus said, “Good luck, and take care.”
Aquarius said, “Ithaqua, you will fall.”
Pisces said, “We won’t let you hurt our friends anymore.”
“Friends?” Ithaqua said, “Bah, what a foolish sentiment. Thy spell will be the one to fall.” He attempted to smash the ponies with his sword and scales, but Cadence and Luna used their telekinetic magic to hold them back.
Celestia said, “You don’t get it, do you? You underestimate the magic of friendship.”
Apple Bloom said, “You don't know what it’s like to have a friend.”
Rainbow Dash said, “You don’t have a sense of Loyalty!”
Fluttershy said, “Or Kindness!”
Applejack said, “And you manipulate ponies to do your bidding!”
Pinkie Pie said, “All you bring is sorrow and grief!”
Rarity said, “And you certainty are a selfish ruffian!”
Sweetie Belle said, “You don’t show remorse for your actions!”
Scootaloo said, “Or forgiveness!”
Spike said, “And you’re certainly a coward!”
Diamond Tiara said, “You certainly are the worst!”
Silver Spoon nodded. She, Flitter, Cloudchaser, Lyra, BonBon, Thunderlane, Star Song, Shining Armor, and Princess Cadence went closer to their friends.
Twilight Sparkle said, “You try to sever bonds and pit them against each other. You try to create a world without friendship, without life!”
The Elements of Harmony shot a rainbow beam into the sky.
Princess Luna said, “The magic of friendship was your downfall last time, and it will triumph this time.”
Princess Celestia said, “Ithaqua, the Equestria you conquered is gone. This world has more compassion than you had ever seen. If you try to extinguish that, then I will stop you!”
Everypony and Spike were covered in a veil of flames. The fires danced up to the sky and collided with the beam from the Elements.
A burning rainbow heart appeared between the ponies and Ithaqua. The heart pulsated magic unlike anything Ithaqua ever noticed.
Ithaqua saw that his form was melting away. “No... No...” He reverted back into Legion, a single lone windigo.
Gale Force fell into the ice.
The rainbow beam of flames emerged from the rainbow heart. The beam hit Ithaqua. “Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!” was all he said before the windigo vanished.
The ponies saw no sign of the zodiac ponies, nor did they see the four talismans. Cloudchaser flew down to get Gale Force out of the water.
Gale Force saw Cloudchaser and Flitter. He turned and saw Thunderlane and Star were there too. In fact he saw several other ponies were here.
“What happened?” Gale said. The last thing he could remember was that he went to the Unicorn Range in seething anger. He saw that the windigoes were gone.
Cloudchaser said, “They’re gone. The windigoes are gone. Just please don’t do anything reckless like that again.”
Pinkie Pie cheered. “Woo-hoo. The windigoes are gone. Lets celebrate.” She fired her party cannon in glee.
“Um, Pinkie,” Twilight said. “I don’t think this would be a good place for a party.”
The ponies and Spike went back to Canterlot.
Three days later. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were in the schoolyard. They saw Featherweight pass them a copy of the Foal Free Press.
Sweetie Belle read the paper. “Huh?”
“What is it Sweetie Belle?” Apple Bloom said.
Sweetie Belle showed Apple Bloom and Scootaloo the gossip column. They saw the apology letter they wrote. The letter that Diamond Tiara intercepted.
“But how?” Scootaloo said.
The three fillies saw Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon nearby. Diamond Tiara was wearing her normal tiara again. The two fillies went to the Crusaders.
“Hello everypony,” Diamond Tiara said. “Did you read the paper?”
Sweetie Belle said, “You put this in?”
Diamond Tiara said, “Uh-huh.”
“But why?” Apple Bloom said.
Silver Spoon said, “We wanted to thank you for getting Diamond Tiara out of there.”
“Okay...” Scootaloo said.
Diamond Tiara said, “Maybe we could hang out sometime?”
The Crusaders were shocked to hear something like that exit Diamond Tiara’s mouth. “Um, sure?” Apple Bloom said.
“Thanks,” Diamond Tiara said. “Chao.” She and Silver Spoon left.
“What the heck just happened?” Apple Bloom said.
“I guess that whole windigo thing had taught her a lesson.” Sweetie Belle said.
The bell rang, and the Crusaders went into the schoolhouse. They were glad to see that everything was... well almost back to normal.
A week after the battle with Ithaqua, Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Rarity, Sweetie Belle, Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, Lyra, BonBon, Flitter, Cloudchaser, Star Song, Thunderlane, and Gale Force were at the reception of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance’s wedding in Canterlot.
Twilight Sparkle and her friends saw that the fillies were having fun again.
“They deserved a break after all that happened,” Applejack said.
“Yeah,” Rarity said. “I’m happy that this dreadful windigo business was over with.”
Twilight Sparkle saw that Pinkie Pie was already dancing. She noticed that Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were nearby and went to them.
Elsewhere at the party, Flitter and Cloudchaser were talking with Star Song, Thunderlane and Gale Force. A grey pegasus with a blond mane gave them their drinks.
“So what are you gonna do now?” Gale said.
Cloudchaser said, “Well, Thunderlane and I are heading to the Wonderbolt Academy. You?”
Star Song said, “I’m going back to Los Pegasus. The music hall calls my name. And I’m supposed to meet my new manager, Toola-Roola there.”
Flitter said, “I’m going with her to help her rehearse while you two are at the academy.”
Cloudchaser said, “What about you?”
Gale said, “I have some anger management classes in Baltimare. And then its back to work in Cloudsdale.” He sighed. “And without you and Over Cast there.”
Thunderlane said, “Don’t worry, we can still visit you Gale.”
Meanwhile, Lyra Heartstrings and BonBon were discussing another date.
Lyra said, “We can’t do it this Saturday. I have to help Star Song in Los Pegasus.”
BonBon said, “Well Sunday’s out as well. I have a lot of work to do then.”
“What work?” Lyra said.
“I had a huge order for some candy,” BonBon said. “Or bowties. “I’m not sure which.”
Lyra giggled a bit.
Everypony partied hard in Canterlot. For they celebrated not only the wedding between a princess and the captain of the guard, but the permanent defeat of the windigoes.
After the reception, the bearers of the Elements of Harmony and the Cutie Mark Crusaders went back to Ponyville together. They knew that nothing was gonna separate them again.
“Everything’s gonna be just fine.” Twilight Sparkle said.