//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 
// Story: Losing Power 
// by Ferntail12 
//------------------------------//

	The center of the library had obviously been the site of a scuffle. Books were scattered everywhere, chairs were overturned, the bust and its table were on their sides, and Twilight’s immense collection of index cards was scattered all over the library, giving it the look it often had after a crazy week of studying. Pinkie Pie immediately yanked out her Sherlock Pones outfit and magnifying glass to examine the floor. She discovered scuff marks from hooves and… “Black feathers?”
“Black feathers?!” cried Spitfire. “Oh no! The Shadowbolts!”
“The who-now, sugarcube?” asked Applejack.
“Who are the Shadowbolts?” asked Rarity.
“Hold on a minute!” yelled Pinkie, pulling a glass of water out of nowhere and doing a spit-take.
“Eek!” eeped Fluttershy.
“The Shadowbolts?!! Are you sure, Spits?” asked a very worried and apprehensive Dash.
“It seems like it. This is exactly the kind of thing Nightshade would do. Kidnap a Princess and Element of Harmony… Oh, Celestia! The Elements! They won’t work now that Twilight is gone!”

Pinkie, who was still examining the floor, cried out: “Look everypony! Hoofprints! They're leading out the door!”

With Pinkie in the lead, the six ponies tracked the hoofprints, which led through the town square, down the road, past Fluttershy’s cottage and chicken coop, and into the Everfree Forest. Suddenly, Pinkie stopped short and the others piled up behind her.
“The hoofprints are gone!” she yelled, her mane deflating. “How will we ever find Twilight now?!”

Dash and Spitfire kicked hard off the ground and shot up above the trees. They immediately saw light blazing from a single window high in a tower of the Ancient Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. Wordlessly, they touched down and pointed toward the castle. The earth ponies and unicorn galloped as fast as they could. Spitfire and Rainbow Dash left Fluttershy in the dust, going supersonic in a matter of seconds. Abruptly, Spitfire stopped dead in midair and Dash crashed into her. 
“Nightshade. I knew you and your team were behind this,” said Spitfire scathingly.
“‘Course! The one and only Nightshade, in the flesh. Did you expect anything else, old friend?” replied the blue-maned Pegasus sarcastically.
“You won't get away from me this time, Nightshade! You should be dead. That excuse for a pony Nightmare Moon brought you back to life. This time, you’re going back to Tartarus. For good!” said Spitfire, discreetly touching an amulet hidden around her neck. Dash did the same, thinking: We got stopped. Keep going. Save Princess Twilight! We'll take care of your opposition. Suddenly, the full team of Wonderbolts appeared out of nowhere, teleported by a spell inside Spitfire’s amulet. Catching Nightshade by surprise, Dash rammed her with a cyan hoof, causing her to spiral out of control. Recovering quickly, Nightshade yelled “Blitz! Intercept Alpha 1 thru 10 northeast of Gamma A-3!”

A Delta-5 attack formation composed of Blueball Blitz in the lead, followed by Blackwing and Darkfire, then Hawkflight, Iceheart and Charger came streaking in a black blur out of the Ancient Castle of the Royal Sisters. Spitfire yelled “Wonderbolts! Icefire 10 Attack formation! Misty on point! Soarin’, you're with me.”

The ten Bolts shot off, leaving Nightshade, Spitfire, Dash, and Soarin’ in their wake. Spitfire and Dash nodded at each other, their amulets carrying their thoughts; and to Soarin. The pair shot upwards, leaving Soarin to do his part. Plunging toward the ground, Soarin whirled up a tornado with his wings. Moments before slamming into the forest floor, he pulled up sharply and widened the twister, engulfing Nightshade in a swirling black vortex. Beating his wings furiously, he hovered just under Nightshade’s hooves. Dash and Spitfire came plunging by, hitting their explosions almost simultaneously. They gave out all they could in a brief performance and pulled into the bottom of a pyramid formation with Soarin. 
“Impressive,” said Nightshade. Trying to catch them off guard, she attempted to replicate Soarin’s trick. Spitfire and Dash exploded her tornado with a horizontal sonic and twist. Spitfire twisted off toward a cloud, while Dash spiraled in and cracked Nightshade across the forehead, breaking her shades. Nightshade retaliated by slamming a hoof into Dash’s back, breaking a rib. Dash healed it with her pegasus magic. Then she slapped Nightshade hard over a wingtip, causing her to spiral into an unintended loop. C’mon, Spits. Get it primed. I can’t hold out for much longer, she thought.