//------------------------------// // Part IV // Story: Twilight's Nightmare // by Dulcet //------------------------------// Part IV The following morning, the ponies headed out to Ponyville to find the Empress. “Where do you think the Empress is at?” Rainbow Dash asked. “My best bet is that she is in Canterlot, where Princess Celestia and Luna are most likely help captive,” Cadance replied. “Canterlot, here we come, then,” Rarity said. Applejack gulped. “We’re gonna have to ride the train then, but the train station is across town!” “Yup, that means wear your hooded robes at all times. Just stay low, act natural, and don’t do anything out of the ordinary,” Shining Armor proposed. The ponies were about to enter Ponyville, where there were hundreds of Metusonians patrolling the town. The ponies gulped, but tried to remain composed, except for Fluttershy, who fainted, but immediately got up afterwards. “We can do this,” Twilight assured. The friends swiftly blended in with the Metusonians as they walked through Ponyville to get to the train station. The patrolling Metusonians did not notice the ponies sneaking to the train station. Most of the guards were busy celebrating their takeover of Ponyville and yelling “All Hail Empress Adrestia” and “For the Metusonian Empire”. Their dreams of the Metusonian Empire ruling the entire land of Equestria was about to be achieved, but neither did they know that Twilight and her friends were sneaking past them in disguises to stop their dream from becoming a reality. The ponies eventually made it to the train station without getting caught. “Phew, I think we’re in the clear, ya’ll,” Applejack uttered, wiping the sweat off her forehead. “I had a feeling we were gonna get caught for a moment.” “Sneaking past them seemed a bit too easy if you ask me,” Rainbow replied back. “Come on, let’s get in the train,” Twilight said, heading to the train. All of a sudden, some pony hollered from not so far away, “WAIT!” The friends looked back to see who was calling them, but to their horror, it was a Metusonian guard racing to them at full speed. The guard blocked the entrance to the train, disallowing Twilight and her friends to climb aboard the train. “Uhm, is there a..” Twilight cleared her voice to speak in a more masculine tone. “Sorry, is there a problem here?” “Yes there is…” the guard revealed. “I’m on to your ponies..” “Whoa Nelly, that doesn’t sound too good,” Applejack whispered. “Ssshh, remain quiet, AJ,” Rainbow Dash murmered. “Uhh, what seems to be the problem?” Shining Armor inquired. “You ponies think you can get on this train without showing any identification!? All Metusonians need to have their identifications with them at all times. It’s a rule. Don’t you know that?” the guard informed the ponies. “Oh.. right.. Well, we must’ve left our IDs back.. at home. Must be in our other.. hooded robes. You know, laundry day?” Shining Armor replied back. “Likely story.. Who are you? Take off your hoodie. Reveal yourself,” the guard ordered. “He’s on to us..!!” Rarity whispered in panic. “Quick, every pony! Gang up on him!” Rainbow Dash declared. The guard was completely caught off guard and was quickly vanquished and knocked unconscious by the ponies’ ambush. The ponies then entered the train and hid the guard’s body in the closet. “Okay! That was just way way way too close!” Rarity declared. “You got that right,” Fluttershy agreed. “Really Shining Armor!? We left our identification because it was laundry day? That must be the worst lie of all time,” Twilight joked with her brother. “Twilight does have a point,” Cadance giggled. “Haha, okay, I have to admit, I was never a good liar,” Shining Armor remarked. “Yup same here!” Applejack responded back. The ponies laughed, believing that they were in the clear; however, Jazz noticed something as they headed closer and closer to Canterlot. “There are so many guards out there at the station,” Jazz recalled. Every pony came to look for themselves. “It’s probably just a precautionary measure,” Rarity hinted. “Either way, time to put our hooded robes back on,” Shining Armor declared. The train came to complete stop at the station. The ponies left the train and proceeded to head to the Canterlot Castle, but the Metusonian guards surrounded them. The guards whispered to each other, but the ponies could not hear what they were saying. One of the guards approached Twilight and suddenly took her hood off, revealing her face. The other guards did the same with her friends. They were compromised. “Yup, that’s them. Take them to the Empress,” the guard ordered.