//------------------------------//
// Chapter 10: As Unity Holds Out, One Must Go Alone 
// Story: My Little Pony Equestria Girls 3: Twilight's Shadow 
// by Revan 
//------------------------------//

Sunset Shimmer was getting desperate. Despite all that she could do, the wall of red that surrounded Human Twilight would not yield. In fact, from what she could determine, it was getting stronger.

Spike looked at Human Twilight with tears in his eyes. He'd only known her personally for a very short time, but he'd grown up with her Equestrian counterpart, and from what he could tell, she had a very similar personality to 'his' Twilight.

Then there was a massive explosion, and Sunset and Spike were hurled away, hitting the far side of the 'cavern' wall. Sunset coughed, and looked up just as Twilight Sparkle hauled herself to her feet.

"Twilight?" Spike asked uncertainly.

Twilight coughed, and then replied, "I'm still me."

Sunset quirked an eyebrow. "I hope you don't mind if I scan in order to confirm that."

Twilight nodded, and Sunset closed her eyes, performing a rapid but thourogh scan of Twilight's mind. She detected nothing dark - not even a single trace of darkness was left in Twilight's mind.

"You're clean," she said, and stepped back.

Twilight cocked her head. "I see that you're in pony form now," she observed wryly.

Sunset spoke up quickly. "I can change back if you'd like-" she began, only to be interrupted by Twilight's upraised hand.

"No, stay in your original form. I like it." She smiled and added, "Has anyone ever told you that you're beautiful?"

Sunset was taken aback. She thought about her past. Now that she mentions it, I believe that the last person - or pony - to do so was Princess Celestia, and that was before I started to become power-hungry.

"Not in a long time," she replied. "But - thank you."

Twilight smiled, but then her face creased into a worried expression. "We need to hurry. Sunset, can you carry me and Spike on your back?"

Sunset was thrown off-balance once more. "I think so. Why?"

"Because I know exactly where we need to go - and we need to move fast."

"Alright, but I hope you're sure that you know what you're doing," Sunset sighed as Twilight swung herself up onto her back. Spike climbed on, and Sunset Shimmer galloped in the direction that Twilight was pointing.





Meanwhile, everyone else, pony and human alike, had met up with each other. Unfortunately, they were under attack.

"Oh come on! How many more stinking changelings are going to attack us?" Pony Rainbow Dash complained as she dogfighted with a bunch of Rainbow clones.

"Personally, Ah think that the fact that they can't imitate humans is a blessin'," Human Applejack shouted back in response. She was currently engaged in a boxing match with a convincing duplicate of Princess Celestia.

"While we're counting our blessings, I believe that Fluttershy's stare is immensely helpful," Pony Rarity added, as she kicked an especially nasty specimen of Timber Wolf in the face. The wolf howled in pain, and Human Rarity, who had managed to imagine a very fashionable, jewel-encrusted - as well as useful - flamethrower, torched it with a jet of flame.

At the same time, the two Fluttershys were holding back an entire army of minotaurs, which were facing the nightmarish proposition of facing not one, but two angry Fluttershys, both of which were giving the stare and the worst scoldings that they had ever gotten in their lives out to them.

"While I may not be a fan of Pinkie's antics under most circumstances, they're certainly being effective," Human Rainbow Dash noted as she played her favorite guitar at a volume level which, if done in real life, would have made it impossible to communicate with anyone else, and would have caused instant deafness. As it was, she had every changeling within three hundred feet on the floor, grabbing their eardrums and howling in pain.

And her statement was true, for the two Pinkies were pulling out all the stops - playing never-ending tag, wielding party cannons, burying their opponents in an avalanche of cupcakes, cakes, and other pastries, bouncing and even teleporting at an incredible rate, and generally causing mass pandemonium.

"Yes, but Ah don't think that we can hold out forever," Pony Applejack said, even as she ran circles around a horde of Parasprites.

Unfortunately, that was also true. Despite everything that they could do, they were being forced back - slowly, perhaps, but steadily.

Come on, Twilight...





"Is this it?"

"Yes, I'm certain of it."

Twilight dismounted even as Sunset cautioned, "That doesn't look like it's going to grant easy entrance."

The that that Sunset was referring to was the gigantic set of locked doors that stood in front of them.

Spike spoke up. "I'm getting a bad feeling about this."

Twilight walked up and put her hands on the door handles. "She's inside."

"But where is Dark Twilight?" Sunset asked.

Suddenly, a burst of maniacal laughter filled the air. Sunset instinctively turned around so fast that Spike fell off of her back.

"I'm right here, Sunset Shimmer," Dark Twilight said, striding forward. An entire armada of powerful foes/former foes stood behind her.

"Twilight, get inside!! I'll hold them off!!" Sunset shouted as she fired up her horn.

Twilight was torn inside. "But I can't let you fight them alone!!"

"I was a student of Princess Celestia. I won't go down easily."

"But-"

"GO!!!!!!"

Twilight placed her hand in an empty handprint that was next to the set of doors. The doors glowed a bright purple, and began to open.

"STOP HER!!!" Dark Twilight commanded. The armada rushed forward.

Sunset Shimmer was there to meet them. She engaged in magical and physical combat even as Twilight slipped inside and the doors began to close.

Dark Twilight howled in frustration, and streaked after her like a bolt of lightning, managing to slip inside just before the doors closed...