//------------------------------// // Always Darkest // Story: History Repeats // by SaddlesoapOpera //------------------------------// HISTORY REPEATS By Saddlesoap Opera CHAPTER FOUR: Always Darkest Rainbow Dash burst up through a white, puffy cloud, knocking aside two Earth Pony refugees and leaving them sprawling on the spongy surface. She didn’t even pause to apologize. Every one of the clouds was pale and soft and smooth. Not a single one dark or ominous or carrying a charge. The storm-clouds had all been cleared. Or rather, taken. “Don’t do this, Dust!” Dash shouted into the wind rushing into her face. “There are Ponies down there. Friends! If you won’t stop, I’ll...” She strained to gather more speed, nudging at the edge of the crackling barrier of air-friction that signalled the buildup to a Sonic Rainboom. And then, in the distance ahead, Dash’s innate weather-sense caught the brooding potence of a storm that spanned the better part of the horizon. Lightning Dust’s pale-green form stood out in sharp contrast against the looming black wall of the gigantic stormfront she was assembling. The air was thick with the moist ozone-tang of the clouds, and close and heavy with the looming threat of the charge they carried. “LIGHTNING DUST!” Dash cried out as she surged up to hover before her former academy partner. “What do you think you’re doing?” The Pegasus swooped down and alighted on top of the vast black plain and stared up at Dash, her brass-coloured eyes narrow and hard. “I’m fixing this,” she said. “Today.” “That’s crazy!” Dash protested, flapping over to stand before Dust on the rumbling cloudscape. “How is putting all those Ponies down there in danger supposed to fix ANYTHING?” Lightning Dust looked away. “I have to try.” Her voice remained low and flat, its rising tension matching the barely contained storm under her hooves. “Well try something ELSE!” Dash charged forward, skidding to a stop with her face inches from Dust’s. Electric crackles kicked up under her hooves. “If you burn that goop with lightning, Ponies are gonna get hurt! Maybe even DIE! Don’t you CARE?” The Pegasus winced, but she stood her ground. “Have you seen them? They’re as good as dead. There’s nothing we can do. Nothing but...” She looked down. “You don’t know that!” Dash spread her wings in anger. “We’ve beaten everything else that’s showed up! Nightmare Moon! Discord! Changelings! King Sombra! We can beat this, too!” Dust scowled. “YOU don’t know THAT.” The two locked eyes for second-long eternity. “I’m fixing this,” she repeated, and then turned to spread her wings and take off. She didn’t get the chance. Dash charged with a frustrated growl and tackled her fellow Pegasus, sending them both sprawling on the dark clouds. She bashed a front hoof across Dust’s jaw, but before she could strike again Dust hoofed her in the gut and surged up to fight back. The pair wrestled across the storm, every impact and shift of weight setting off threatening tremors and flickers of pent-up lightning. At length Dash got the upper hoof, pushing Dust down into the black, yielding expanse and scowling down at her. “Why?” Dash snarled. “Huh? Why do this? Because you wanna do something big and flashy? Because you wanna be the coolest flyer, no matter who gets hurt?” Dust gritted her teeth before Dash’s verbal onslaught, squirming underneath her, before she finally shouted back: “NO! BECAUSE THIS IS ALL MY FAULT!” Dash drew back at Dust’s sudden outburst. She got to her hooves, letting Dust roll over and do the same. “All your...? What are you talking about?” Dust hung her head. “What I told you back at the castle? That Ram? The one who did this. I... I...” She pounded the stormy cloudscape with a front hoof. “I h-helped him. I didn’t know what he was planning - I swear! But he never would have gotten all of the stuff he needed without me.” She craned her neck to peer at the covered wound on her flank. “First that sludge, and now Dragons... I can’t stand it. I can’t let this go on. I’ve gotta stop it. I’ve got to!” Rainbow Dash’s brow furrowed in sympathy. “I’m sorry. I mean it. But burning the ground won’t fix things. You’re just gonna make it worse-” Dash paused, looking above and beyond Dust at dark, winged shapes rising up in the distance. “Rainbow...? What are you-” Dust turned to follow Dash’s gaze; her ears drooped. A scattering of dark shapes was approaching by air, moving in chaotic unison like a swarm of angry hornets. “C’mon!” Dash shouted, and took to the air. Dust followed after her. A few moments later they were close enough to see the invaders more clearly; they both wished they couldn’t. A flight of Smooze-soaked Dragons was advancing on Cloudsdale, roaring and snarling and flexing cruel talons. They ranged in size from barely larger than a foal to behemoths larger than a farmhouse. They stared at Cloudsdale and its inhabitants with the mindless yet hungry eyes studding their slimy hides. All around, Pegasi and wingless Ponies with enchanted hooves raced about to rally defenses against the marauding beasts. “We have to stop them!” Dust said. She moved to confront the beasts. Dash followed, but then a sudden flash of inspiration shone in her magenta eyes. She snagged Dust’s tail in her teeth and wheeled around, jerking her comrade backward. “Ow! What they hay? Lemme go!” Dust struggled against the pull, slowing their progress. “I’m not gonna run! Not again! I can’t lose my home to these things! I CAN’T!” Dash spat out Dust’s tail and surged around to press her front hooves to Dust’s shoulders and stare her down. “We aren’t running. I promise.” Dust frowned. “Then what-” Dash hazarded a glance back the way they’d come, and chuckled. “We’re gonna save the day,” she said, “and it’s gonna be REALLY big and flashy!” •   •   •   •   • “My name is Megan Williams,” the living legend said, “and I’m here to help.” Twilight Sparkle stared for a long moment before snapping out of it and putting a front hoof to the strange blonde-maned creature’s outstretched hand. The thing’s resemblance to the storybook’s drawings was uncanny. A fairytale come to life. She might as well have been meeting Sleipnir or Little Red Saddle Blanket. “Uhh... pleased to meet you, Megan,” she managed. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.” Her wings shifted. “I’m a princess. Oh, but not a princess-princess! Princess Celestia and Princess Luna rule Equestria, but I’m - well, it’s a little complex, but you see, we have these special enchanted relics called the Elements of Harmony, and when I was studying an ancient spell about-” Megan cut her off. “You talk a lot when you get nervous, huh?” “She sure does!” Spike piped up. “I’m Spike, by the way.” “Huh!” said Megan as she looked the little Dragon up and down. “I think I might have met a distant relative or two of yours...” Twilight blushed. “Give me a break! It’s not every day I meet a mythical being in the middle of a Dragon invasion AND an ecological disaster, you know!” “Really? I guess Ponyland has calmed down a bit since I was first here.” Megan snatched up her hammer and got to her feet. “But yeah... these Dragons have got to go. You can tell me everything later.” Apple Bloom stepped forward. “Megan...? Hold on a second! Ya mean ta say that you’re THAT Megan? Like from the stories?” Megan cleared her throat. “Yeah. I guess I am.” The little foal’s eyes widened, and then turned to settle on her sister. “But... does that mean my sister is really...?” She swallowed, as if trying to digest the incredible truth. “Big Sister... are... are you THE Applejack?” “Yes,” said Megan, at the same instant that Applejack barked: “O’course not!” Twilight stepped in to interject. “Please... Megan was right. We really don’t have time right now. We’ll talk once we’ve dealt with all this.” The group sheepishly murmured in agreement, and then Megan took a look around, shading her eyes with a hand. “Which reminds me... where are they?” she asked. “The Witches. If there’s Smooze, the Witches must be back. Or, their descendants, I guess...” Applejack, Apple Bloom, Twilight and Spike all stared blankly. “I don’t know anything about any witches,” offered Twilight, “but somepony who warned us about all this mentioned a Ram. Maybe you-” Megan was off and running in a heartbeat. “Hay!” said Twilight, turning after her. “Where are you going?” Twilight magicked Spike onto her back, spread her wings and half-ran-half-flew after Megan, followed by Applejack, who dipped her head to lift her little sister onto her back before tearing off as well. The Megan ran at a full sprint, her long legs taking massive strides. She came to a spired tower set with a spiraling ramp hugging its outside walls, and quickly climbed to the top. Twilight, Spike and the Apples stayed at the bottom, staring up at her in confusion. “GROGAR!” Megan bellowed to the empty sky. “Come out and face me, you sunovabitch! I’m here! I came back!” At first it seemed no answer was forthcoming. But then one of the larger marauding Dragons changed course in midair, its massive bulk heading straight for the tower. Megan moved to dodge, leaping from the stone spire just before the Smooze-covered beast knocked it over like a Pony tipping a candlestick. Megan tumbled down onto a nearby rooftop; her hammer clattered down next to her. Twilight ignited her horn and spread her wings, adopting a protective stance in front of Applejack and Apple Bloom. The Dragon bowed its head at the roof, and a blackened, weathered, skeletal Ram hopped down to stand on the pebbled surface. “Hello, Megan,” he rasped. “It’s been a long time. Look at you... all grown up.” The smooze-covered Dragon behind him growled. “Megan!” Twilight called up. “What’s happening?” She spread her wings and took off, flapping up to the rooftop across the street. Spike held onto her mane and cried out in surprise. Megan picked up the hammer and narrowed her eyes. “Looks like one of these Ponies finally wised up and just killed you, huh? I was wondering which one of you monsters would end up crossing that line. Hmph. Too bad it didn’t stick.” Grogar chuckled, the sound as dry as tinder. “Actually, another ‘monster’ was the one who did me in. My second most promising student, and he betrayed me. Stabbed me through the heart with the very horn I gave him. I was so proud...” He gave another mirthless laugh. “Whatever. I’m putting an end to this. Just like I always do.” Megan hefted her hammer. The undead Ram adjusted his stance, ready to move. His horns shone with a transparent aura of magic. “Not this time. You’re out of your depth, girl.” Grogar nodded his head at the beast behind him, and the thing inhaled for a blast of fiery breath. “Megan!” Twilight shouted. “Watch out!” Megan charged toward Grogar, diving forward and tucking into a roll. A sheet of flame poured above and past her, setting the far side of the roof alight. At ground level, Applejack and Apple Bloom raced aside as blazing embers and flaming debris rained down around them. Megan tumbled to a halt less than a yard in front of Grogar. She surged to her feet and swung the hammer in a brutal upward arc, catching the Ram on the underside of his jawbone. “This time... STAY dead!”  The echoing impact shattered the front half of the brittle skull like an antique vase. Sharp teeth clattered across the rooftop like hailstones. The Dragon rumbled in shock and drew back, uncertain how to react without guidance. “You sent me back!” Megan shouted as she brought the hammer down between Grogar’s shoulders. His thin ribs cracked. “You broke the Sunstone, and it sent me back!” On the far rooftop, Twilight winced and averted her eyes at the sound of the next shattering blow. She held up a wing to shield Spike from the sight. “You made me LEAVE THEM! When they NEEDED me!” Megan’s face was locked in a bloodthirsty scowl as she pounded the skeleton over and over, smashing it to jagged shards. “JUST DIE!” Megan dropped the hammer on top of Grogar’s demolished remains, and wiped a shaking hand down her face. The Dragon rumbled out a growl, but did not retaliate. Instead, it stayed where it was, eyeing Megan warily. “M-Megan...?” Twilight gulped. Ally or not, the creature’s sheer fury had been terrifying. Megan heaved a deep sigh, and then knelt down to rummage in the bone-shards. She retrieved the Ram’s tarnished bell-pendant and tossed it to the ground. She stood up and stomped on it hard, crushing the fragile metal, and then stared up into the Dragon’s blind face. “This is over. Go back where you came from.” The eyes studding the beast’s wings all turned to stared down at Megan, and the thing grinned. Suddenly, a hollow, echoing voice called out: “Oh, no, Megan... we’re just getting started.” A whirling storm of shattered bone struck Megan like a battering ram, throwing her off her feet to land within a few feet of the wall of fire at the roof’s edge. Twilight and Megan watched in stunned horror as the bones reassembled themselves; in seconds, Grogar stood restored in all his dark, skeletal glory. “Oh, dear...” he said in mock concern, “it seems it ‘didn’t stick’ again!” Megan rolled onto her stomach and dragged herself onto all fours. Her cheek bled from a nick by a sharp-edged bone-shard. “H-How...? Your bell... I broke it...” Grogar barked out a laugh. “I’ve studied Magic for thirteen centuries since we last met, Megan. I’ve given up on shortcuts. No more relics to steal. No more bell to ring. No... I’ve learned Magic the hard way.” His horns blazed, and seething starbursts spilled off them like eels being born. The white-hot magical constructs shrieked their way across the roof toward Megan. Megan stumbled to her feet and dodged as the spells detonated; she avoided the blasts by a split-second. Dimly glowing pockmarks scarred the roof where she’d knelt. There wasn’t time to enjoy her escape, however, before she had to leap once again to dodge a second magical salvo. And then a third. The last roll brought her close to the wall of flames, and the tails of her coat caught fire. She hastily shrugged it off, leaving it to burn. This is too much for her! Twilight realized. Even if Megan found some way to defeat the dark sorcerer, his Dragon was waiting to finish her off. Grogar was toying with her. Twilight frowned, and then ignited her horn. “Megan! Hold on! we’re coming!” The glow from Twilight’s horn spread out, surrounding her and Spike. “Whoa... what are you doing?” asked Spike, eyeing the aura anxiously. “It’s too dangerous to fly to her with that Dragon guarding them,” Twilight replied. “We’ll teleport in and rescue her before they can stop us!” Grogar turned to face the young Alicorn as her horn’s glow caught his notice. The next wave of his magical blasts faded out, yet the Ram’s horns glowed brighter still. Megan’s eyes widened in recognition. She held out a hand in warning. “TWILIGHT! DON’T!” The warning came too late; Twilight Sparkle and her Dragon assistant winked out in a flash of purple-red magic. They did not reappear. •   •   •   •   • Lightning Dust’s hooves tingled as she gripped her payload and poured on more speed to catch up with her comrade. Rainbow Dash’s plan was reckless, ill-advised and suicidally dangerous. So far, it was working like a charm. “Ready, Dust?” Rainbow Dash shouted over the roar of the wind. “On three, the Buccaneer Blaze! One... two... THREE!” The two Pegasi corkscrewed forward with angry storm-clouds gripped in their hooves, coiling around and past the massive Dragon’s snapping jaws and reaching talons. As they passed its meaty torso Dust squeezed her cloud and Dash did the same, and fierce bolts of lightning streaked between the clouds - and through the Dragon. The Smooze-covered monster let out a shuddering roar. The sludge covering its scales charred and sizzled. When the flash faded the thing fell downward, scorched and senseless. “YES!” Lightning Dust shouted, tossing aside her spent cloud and reaching out a front hoof. “That makes six!” Dash dropped her cloud and clopped her own hoof against Dust’s. “Yup! Time to load up again!” The pair raced off toward the dwindling stormfront that Dust had assembled and snatched up a pair of fresh clouds. Once they were rearmed they surveyed the horizon, looking for further invaders. “There!” Dust cried out. “At the Cloudaseum!” “Right!” The Pegasi took off toward the site of the next largest Dragon’s attack. As they flew they passed numerous smaller skirmishes, with Pegasi unleashing lightning- or wing-powered hoof-strikes on the smaller attacking Dragons, and magic-blessed Earth Ponies and Unicorns fighting alongside them. Dash and Dust parted ways as they drew closer to the majestic building, arcing around the hulking brown monster raising its Smooze-splattered talons to smash the Cloudaseum’s side wall. “This looks like the last big one!” Dash shouted to her partner. “Give ‘im everything we got!” Dust nodded. “Piece of cake!” Without another word, two of the fastest Pegasi the Wonderbolts Academy had ever seen surged toward the tainted Dragon with victory shining in their eyes. The maneuver was flawless; the pair lined themselves up, triggered their clouds, and sent fierce lightning blasting through the beast in both directions. But then, as the thing howled and spasmed under the onslaught, its meaty tail lashed out toward Dust. “No-!” The impact burst the storm-cloud and knocked the breath from Dust’s lungs with more force than any crash she’d ever endured. In a heartbeat she was rocketing backward in a blur of dizzying, pain-wracked speed, falling before she even understood she was moving. Somewhere in the receding distance Rainbow Dash cried out, but her voice was so far away that Dust couldn’t make out the words. The stricken Dragon had thrashed and flailed between them for far too long before it fell. Dust struggled to take in breath while wind roared in her ears and black curtains danced before her stinging eyes. Her wings flapped drunkenly, out of sync with each other. The Smooze-covered ground rose up before Dust, hungry to devour her, but then fate intervened... And so did a large birch tree. A multilayered gauntlet of leafy branches lashed Dust’s hide and wings; she broke smaller branches and cracked larger ones. She was less than five yards from the ground when she struck a limb too large to crack, and then she knew no more. •   •   •   •   • Megan stared in horror at the empty space where Twilight and her Dragon had vanished. The grey clouds above dripped cold discomfort on her. “Awww...” crooned Grogar with feigned dismay, “those magical Ponies never do learn, do they?” “You.... you MONSTER!” Megan turned to face Grogar, her hands balling into fists. “Why? Why do you all keep doing this? What’s wrong with these Ponies, huh? Why do you have to keep hurting them?” She was shaking with fury, now half-considering charging the unkillable fiend, Dragon guardian or no. “Why?” Grogar tilted his skull. “Because I can.” He rasped out a laugh. “You aren’t going to move me with a speech, Megan. You won’t show me the error of my ways. You remember - even before I died, I was free of the foolish burden of a conscience.” He reignited his horns. “And now... I don’t have a heart to stir.” Megan scowled. “They’ll stop you. Even if you kill me, they’ll find a way.” Grogar slowly shook his head. “You haven’t changed. Still so deluded.” His horns flared brighter. “This time... the Pony-tale won’t have a happy ending.” Grogar prepared a larger magical blast; Megan tensed. “WRONG.” The nearby fallen tower blazed with a golden glow and hurled itself upward. The aura flickered out an instant before the mass of stone smashed into Grogar’s Dragon guardian. The beast grunted in surprise, knocked senseless amid a rain of broken masonry. Princess Celestia flapped down from above, her golden-armoured form wreathed in solar flames. Grogar took a step backward; the pinpoints that served as his eyes shrank. Megan stared in awe; the barding-clad white Alicorn was taller even than she was, and the warmth and splendour flowing off of her felt like the summer sun at noon. The resemblance to a Pony she’d once known was uncanny. “...Majesty?” “No need to be formal,” Celestia said, and offered a slight bow of greeting. “I am Princess Celestia. You must be the Megan. I have many questions for you - but first...” She turned to face the skeletal Ram before them. Grogar let out a small, frustrated growl. He sagged slightly, his skeletal joints settling. “Old habits die hard, it seems. I hadn’t planned to face you, yet... but Megan drew me out with the chance to gloat...” Just then, a tremor shook the roof under the three; when Grogar spoke again, the fatalism was gone from his voice and his disdainful sneer was back in force. “...Ah! Never mind! I guess luck is with me, after all.” His latest chuckle was very amused, indeed. Celestia narrowed her eyes. “What are you talking about?” Another tremor shook the ground; Megan staggered and steadied herself with a hand on Celestia’s side. She pulled it away an instant later, wincing from the heat. Grogar nodded toward the Royal Palace. “I doubt you’ll have time to deal with me... since you’ll be so busy dealing with my most promising student!” Celestia gasped. “No!” A towering blast of dusky purple flames erupted in the Palace’s central courtyard, and a grimly glorious midnight-black Alicorn clad in silvery-blue Equinium armour rode the blaze up into the sky. “PONIES OF EQUESTRIA!” The Alicorn bellowed, “FACE YOUR DARKEST FEARS MADE FLESH!” Thunder boomed from the dark clouds above to emphasize her cry. Grogar leaped to the next rooftop with weightless grace, his hooves glowing with his pale magic. He shouted over his shoulder: “You two have fun, now!” Celestia faced Megan, her eyes full of worry. Megan sensed the expression was not one the sovereign wore lightly. “Megan, take Applejack and get to safety. If Twilight was right, you two can find a way to help fix things if you work together.” She turned to face the dark inferno in the distance. “Stay away from the Palace. I don’t want to risk hurting you by accident if... if I come to blows with her.” Her fiery aura glowed brighter, and she took to the air. Megan watched the black Alicorn in horror. “Princess... is... is that Luna?” Celestia lowered her head and closed her eyes as she rose upward. “I hope so.” •   •   •   •   • Pinkie Pie waded through the pastern-deep Smooze with heaving, forward-leaning wrenches of her hooves, each step taking her entire body’s effort to complete. Ponyville was long behind her, and the looming mountain that was home to Canterlot lay in the distance ahead. Her rosy hide was soaked with sweat underneath the layers of purple filth, and a thick hemp rope slung around her shoulders bit deep into the sludge as she dragged her precious cargo behind her. “Not far now...” she said. “Only a f-few more miles. Just... just a little ways. Just a teensy, weensy, ti-i-i-i-i-iny bit. Just a h-hop, skip and... and a jump.” She paused and performed an anemic vertical wiggle that could charitably be called a jump before moving on. “Remember? Huh? Like in the mountains? You were so... so scared! But then you saw you reached all the way without even jumping! Hee hee!” Pinkie managed a thin giggle, even though the act made her legs tremble and her teeth clench. The Smooze covering her shifted, and the edges of it around her exposed Cutie Marks sizzled and bubbled. The eyes studding the stuff here and there narrowed in annoyance. Pinkie looked over her shoulder. Fluttershy was as lifeless as she’d been since Pinkie had retrieved her. Rarity and Discord were the same, moving only as the ropes tied around them pulled them. If anything, being towed through the sludge had only gotten them even more covered in the stuff. Pinkie stared at Fluttershy for a long moment. “Aww, it was nothin’!” She pushed on, striding through the vile ocean with relentless Earth-Pony endurance. “Wooooow-wee!” she suddenly cried out a minute or two later. “This stuff sure stinks, huh? Makes me wish I had some s-sneezing powder, just to get my nose all stuffy!” She tilted her head as if listening to an unheard answer from Rarity. “Yeah! Just like then! Me and Dashie had super-duper fun that day! It’s a good thing you’ve got a s-sense of humour, huh? Huh?” She squeezed out another laugh, but a couple of sobs escaped along with it. She angled her head to the other side, and shifted one ear. “Hmm? O-Ohh... nah. Not... not really. Only... only when I laugh!” Pinkie couldn’t stop herself this time; the gallows humour hit her right in her funny bone. The Smooze bubbled and hissed on her flanks as she cackled, her peals of laughter making her body shudder as if each guffaw were the lash of a whip on her back. Tears followed the channels their previous fellows had washed into the Smooze on her cheeks. “ONLY WHEN I LAUGH!” She fell to her knees in the fading echoes of her scream, and decided to release a few more sobs. Better out than in - that’s what Granny Pie used to say. A little crying wouldn’t be so bad, would it? Lots of Ponies cried when they were happy. She stooped lower, her shoulders heaving with the force of her wails. The Smooze around her rippled hungrily. Just then she froze, and opened one eye. Her ears twitched. “T-Twilight?” she whimpered at the empty expanse of Smooze before her. “Is... is that you?” Her ears swiveled forward to listen to nothing. She took a step backward. “...Uh-oh.” •   •   •   •   • Applejack had watched the impressive display of Celestia’s arrival and departure from ground level, and now the farm Pony cantered over to Megan with her sister on her back as the strange creature climbed down the building’s one remaining fire escape. “Megan?” Applejack asked. “What happened? Where are Twilight n' Spike? Who is this Grogar fella?” “An’ what about that over there?” Apple Bloom chimed in, pointing a small hoof toward the Palace. “Is that NIGHTMARE MOON?” Megan held up her hands in a warding gesture. “Slow down! Grogar’s an evil bastard of a Necromancer from back when I first came to Ponyland. If Twilight's as smart as she sounded, her and Spike are probably okay for now, especially if Grogar is out here. Grogar’s just banished her to his kingdom - Tambelon.” “Tambelon? The Kingdom of Shadows?” Applejack tilted her head incredulously. “But that’s just an old-” She caught herself. “...Oh. Uh, awright.” Megan smirked. “Yeah. So... who’s Nightmare Moon? Is she Luna? Or something else?” Applejack frowned. “That’s kind of a long story. Let’s just say we REALLY don’t need her ta be here right now, on top o’ the Dragon invasion and that purple crud.” “Smooze,” corrected Megan. “Right. Smooze. Well, if you’ve seen it before, do ya know how to stop it?” Megan folded her arms, her fingers squeezing her biceps, and turned away. “Yes... and no. The only way to destroy the stuff for good was the Flutter-Ponies, but...” Megan shuddered. “They can’t help us, now.” “What?” said Apple Bloom. “Why not? The Fairies ALWAYS helped ya in the books!” When Megan turned back to face them, her face was pale and her eyes were shining. She knelt down and sat with her legs underneath her. “They lived in a valley where this huge jewel was kept. The Sunstone. The thing kept the land lush and full of life - it even made the sun rise in Ponyland! But the last time I saw Grogar, he... he destroyed it.” Applejack gasped. “Shewt! That’s awful!” Megan shook her head. “No. Awful was finding out that since I rode a rainbow to come here, putting out the sun let him send me back.” Her hands squeezed her arms tighter. “Wh-When I finally managed to return to Ponyland, it was... it was a nightmare!” Tears slid down her cheeks. Apple Bloom hopped off her sister’s back and approached Megan, putting a gentle hoof on her knee. Megan picked up the little foal and held her close as she continued her reminiscence: “Flutter Valley had turned into a ruined wasteland, and the Flutter Ponies had become these twisted, ugly bug-monsters. All black and shot through with holes - like worm-eaten wood.” Applejack’s eyes widened in recognition. “I’d let them down, and the whole world had suffered for it. I ran away from the Valley, but everywhere I went things were even worse. Day and night coming at random. Trees coming to life and attacking Ponies. Burning rain and freezing-cold forest fires. I wasn’t here when you Ponies needed me... and everything got destroyed! I couldn’t stay and watch that. I came back to Earth as soon as I could.” Apple Bloom stood up in Megan’s lap and gave her a hug around the neck. “I don’t think all that was your fault, Miss Megan,” said Apple Bloom. “Ya got that right,” agreed Applejack. “It sounds like ya came back right in the middle of the first time Discord showed up an’ caused trouble.” “Discord...” Megan idly stroked Apple Bloom’s mane as she spoke. “Luna mentioned Discord before. Some kind of evil spirit?” Applejack rolled her eyes and let out a shudder. “Yeah. But not the angry kind. More like the kind that plays with the world an’ everythin’ in it like some bratty colt breakin’ his toys-” A roar echoed through the streets; Grogar’s guardian had woken up. “We’ll talk about this later!” Megan said, getting to her feet with Apple Bloom still held in her arms. “For now... RUN!” •   •   •   •   • Twilight Sparkle and her assistant appeared in a flash of magic, and when the light faded there was nothing to replace it. The place was utterly dark, and the gravel underhoof was uneven and dusty. The air smelled of old death and dry rot. “Twilight...?” Spike coughed. “Where are we? It’s so c-cold...” “I’m not sure... let’s take a look.” Twilight reignited her horn. She gasped. The pair stood in the ruins of a stone building that had apparently been shattered by a massive earthquake. Only a few lonely sections of wall remained standing, like the jutting ribs of some enormous beast’s skeleton. All around, archaic buildings stood in various states of disrepair. Some looked freshly evacuated, while others were mere rubble. Twilight slowly turned in a circle, surveying the strange city, until her eyes fell on a sign bearing a familiar seal in the shape of a stylized ram’s head. “Tambelon...” she whispered. Spike rubbed his upper arms and then breathed warm air between his paws. “Wh-What?” “Tambelon!” she repeated. “The Kingdom of Shadows! That Ram must have used Black Magic and banished us here! When I researched Black Magic after we defeated King Sombra, I read that the dark power that he drew on - the same power that Princess Luna used as Nightmare Moon - all came from...” She gulped. “...here.” Spike’s brows knitted. “Oh. That’s n-not good.” A shiver ran from his head down to his tail. “T-Twilight... aren’t you cold? It’s f-freezing here!” Twilight frowned. “No... I’m okay. It’s kind of chilly, I guess. And creepy.” She looked down at her assistant in worry. “Are you all right?” Spike nodded, hugging himself again. “...Let’s just g-get out of here, okay?” “Yes. We need to get back to Canterlot. Megan and our friends might be in danger! Stay close to me, Spike...” Twilight’s horn glowed brighter, and then flashed. They stayed where they were. Twilight stomped a hoof. “Shoot! Wait, I can do this...” She fixed her stance and prepared another spell-matrix. Her horn blazed again, even brighter, and the flash that followed left spots before their eyes... in their view of Tambelon. Twilight growled in frustration, spreading her wings and unleashing a miniature red-purple sun at the tip of her horn. Pebbles around her hooves shuddered and drifted up into the air. Her third teleport-flash knocked Spike off his feet and pushed her to her knees with the force of its light. But they were still in Tambelon. Twilight’s horn snuffed out, but kept glowing just from the sheer heat it had built up. She winced in pain and gasped for breath. “...It’s... it’s no use. I can’t teleport us out of here.” She hung her head. “We’ll just have to try to find some other way out...” Spike nodded. He gritted his teeth to keep them from chattering. Once the heat in her horn had faded somewhat, Twilight once more lit their way, and they set off through the abandoned streets. There were signs of what could have been an old battle, but the general decay of the place made it hard to be sure. Spike shivered all the while as they walked. After a few minutes of travel the road angled upward, and they crested a hill. Spike pointed down into the valley below: “Twilight! LOOK!” The vast open space, cleared of any ruins taller than a foot or two, was speckled with a seemingly endless collection of stars. The softly-glowing, hoof-sized motes sat shimmering on the ground; seemingly discarded, as through the sky had shed them like falling leaves. Spike slowly stepped forward, the cold momentarily forgotten. “What are they?” Twilight followed the little Dragon. “I’m not sure...” Just then, a familiar meek, gentle voice carried on the wind. “Pinkie... you sang a song...” Twilight looked around with wide, disbelieving eyes. “Fluttershy? Where are you?” Spike waved from a few paces away and called out. “Over here!” Twilight trotted over to find Spike holding one of the glowing orbs in his paws. The thing’s glow flickered in echoes of pale yellow and pink, and it spoke with the kind Pegasus’s voice: “I never would have done it. I was too scared.” The voice was undeniably Fluttershy’s, but it was heavy with sadness and self-doubt. It was the sound of their friend at her worst. Spike met Twilight’s eyes. “What is this? I don’t understand...” Despite his confusion, his shivers subsided as he held the Fluttershy-orb. “...It’s warm...” He clutched the thing close, cradling it like a treasure. Twilight was about to reply when Rarity’s morose and weary voice sounded from nearby: “Those flowers. You and Rainbow Dash played a trick...” Twilight galloped over to the source of the sound, and found a white-and-purple flickering orb among the countless masses. “You two love your tricks.” Spike’s lower lip quivered. “R-Rarity...?” The little Dragon walked up to the orb as if approaching the edge of a cliff. Tears shone in his eyes. He picked up the Rarity-orb and held both of his finds in a hug. “Rarity! I let you down! I’m s-so sorry!” “I’m so sorry!” the Fluttershy-orb seemed to echo. “It must hurt so much...” “No!” Spike lied. “I’m being b-brave! Honest!” Tears slid down his cheeks, and fresh shivers shook his body. His breath came out in puffs of fog. Just then, a burst of searing pink sparks exploded a few feet away from Twilight and Spike. Spike hunched over the two orbs protectively. The rosy fireworks briefly outlined the shape of a frizzy-maned Earth Pony, and a half-mad voice screamed: “ONLY WHEN I LAUGH!” The pyrotechnic display was gone as quickly as it came. Twilight stared at the spotty after-images in her vision. “...Pinkie Pie?” A further sputter of sparks created a silhouette of Pinkie standing facing Twilight. “T-Twilight? Is... is that you?” Twilight stepped closer to the pink glitter. “Yes! Pinkie, it’s me! It’s Twilight!” Behind her, Spike was reaching out to hold more and more of the glowing orbs. He muttered softly to himself as he worked. “Don’t worry, Rarity. I’ll keep you safe. You and everypony else. Nothing will get you while you’re with me. Yeah... I’ll keep you nice and safe. You keep me warm...” He gathered more orbs, scooping in motes that had been out of his reach a moment earlier. “It’s so cold, Rarity. I gotta stay warm. That’s all I want... all... I...” He squeezed his eyes tightly shut. Still distracted by the phantom party-Pony, Twilight tried again. “Pinkie? Can you hear me? Say something!” The swarm of pink sparks shifted, as though Pinkie were leaning to look past Twilight. Curious, Twilight turned around. Her ears drooped. Spike was swelling up with every breath, his purple scales darkening and his limbs - and his claws - becoming longer and thicker. He growled, and the sound traveled up a neck that now stretched out to a long-muzzled, lantern-jawed head full of jagged fangs. The Pinkie-presence took a step backward, and spoke once more in a horrified whisper: “... Uh-oh.” TO BE CONTINUED