//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Return of the Gurdian // Story: My Little Pony: The Element of Time // by Thunderwing250 //------------------------------// As Twilight struggled to get up, Xenxus's horn lit up with crackling, blue magic. He lowered his horn and, with a sound like thunder, his magic shot straight at her. Before it could connect, the Archivist jumped in front of Twilight, summoning a force field, blocking his magic. “You!?” Xenxus snarled. “Princess. Get out. Leave Xenxus to me,” The Archivist insisted. “No, I can't!” Twilight cried. “He did something to the princesses, he--!” “The Princesses are fine. Xenxus is only playing games with your mind,” The Archivist replied. Twilight's face was locked in a frown. It was almost as if she hadn't even heard. Xenxus let out a frustrated snort and swung his horn as The Archivist, knocking her away. “BEGONE, YOU WITCH! THIS IS BETWEEN THE PRINCESS AND I!” Xenxus yelled. The Archivist's barrier blocked her impact into the wall and she dropped back down onto her hooves. “Princess, go!!” she insisted. “No, you don't understand, he--” Twilight was interrupted. “ENOUGH WITH YOUR BLABBER!!!” Xenxus yelled out in rage. Dodging each of his shots, The Archivist knew Twilight was no match against him. She had no choice but to help. For the first time, the Archivist felt confused: it was almost as if her words towards Twilight hadn't been said at all. She has to distract Xenxus and get Twilight out of the burning castle. As the pillars and ceiling began to break, piece by piece, the battle enraged, Twilight and the Archivist used as much magic as they could against the might of Xenxus, but even so, they were no match for his excessive speed. Using every bit of his magic, Xenxus shot at both of them, creating explosions, ripping the castle apart and causing them to tumble down the mountain and onto the homes down below. Crashing down; homes were flattened out, and some of them engulfed in flames. From their refuge on the hill, Princess Celestia, in all her years as ruler of Equestria, had never seen something this chaotic and destructive before. Carrying her unconscious sister, she felt that the search for answers had to be made. This time, she would not hesitate to get them by force. Suddenly, Fluttershy pointed her hoof to an explosion in one of the towers and a pink barrier flew down from it, glinting against the rising smoke. “Look! It’s Twilight!” she said. “She’s in danger! We gotta help her!” Rainbow Dash quickly responded. “I'm not sure there's much we can do,” Applejack sadly responded. “Most of us can't fly and even us that can, well... Remember what happened last time?” “All we can do is support her,” Rarity said. “Whatever! I'm going!” Rainbow announced. She was off in a coloured blur before anypony could stop her. As soon as Pinkie Pie tried to speak, an explosion was seen and this time, Xenxus revealed his true form for all of the Canterlot ponies to see high above the city. Celestia was stunned. “I… I have never seen him before. Who is that?” she asked. Before the anypony could reply, Doctor Hooves walked up. “Your majesty, a moment alone, please,” he insisted. Celestia frowned and then turned to the other ponies. “Can I trust you to watch Luna?” she asked. “Abso-fudging-lutely, your Highness!” Pinkie Pie said. “She'll be fine for just a moment, Princess,” Rarity said gently. Celestia couldn't help a small smile and she left her sister, then joined Doctor Hooves as he led her to an isolated, quite area away from the refugees. “So, you'll tell me what's going on?” she asked. “What you see there is Xenxus, the Bronco-Titan of Famine and Obliteration. Another ancient creature hidden from your history, just like the previous one,” he said. “I… Wait… Khaoios?” Celestia replied. “Yes. He is also Khaoios’ younger brother. Now, why he came here to attack Canterlot, I don’t know,” Doctor Hooves continued. Princess Celestia frowned. “Then what must I do?” she asked. “Keep yourself safe. Hidden. Protect your sister. Your disciple and her friends were given a specific mission and it is their responsibility to finish it. However, the encounters with the Bronco-Titans are unexpected and thus we cannot interfere. As you have said, have faith in Twilight and she’ll be alright,” Doctor hooves said, and he smiled a little. Princess Celestia took a deep breath and nodded. As the city slowly burnt, Twilight and the Archivist continued to use their magic and dodge all of Xenxus’ shots. Unfortunately, they started to become exhausted from this long battle as the smoke from the fire affected them. On a nearby tall building, the Archivist’s legs shook with exhaustion. Xenxus surprised her and knocked her away, leaving Twilight defenseless. Twilight turned to see The Archivist, unable to move. She couldn't get the Princesses out of her mind. With whatever strength she had left, she flew as fast as she could back to the burning castle In a blink of an eye, Xenxus appeared right in front of her and using his magic, like a burning electric pulse, he knocked her back down onto a roof of another building. This time, she couldn’t move. The impact had affected both her magic and use of flight. She thought she heard a voice calling to her to get up. Her eyes caught a glimpse of blue and rainbow above. She struggled, but Xenxus was not going to allow that. Rainbow Dash charged him with a roar, but a swift whip of his tail sent her spiraling and crashing through a hole in a nearby roof. “Time’s up, Princess Twilight Sparkle!” Xenxus said as he charged at her. At this moment, Twilight felt deeply frightened, until suddenly, a portal on her left appeared and by surprise, Timaeus emerged, knocking away Xenxus with his magic. With such a powerful force, Xenxus was not only pushed back, but thrown far into the burning castle, and an explosion followed in his wake. Suddenly, half the castle exploded and tumbled down Xenxus still inside. As it crashed onto the ground, the fire continued to burn, until Xenxus scrambled out of the wreckage and retreated. Twilight heaved herself up, breathing hard, and spread her wings to fly, but Timaeus held her gently by the shoulder. “M-Master Timaeus?” Twilight stammered. Timaeus smiled reassuringly. “Take a deep breath, Twilight Sparkle. You will be alright.” “B-But he--! But I--!” “Twilight Sparkle. There is only one thing that can stop Xenxus. You must use the Element of Time. The Archivist mentioned it to you, yes?” he said. “How did you know?” Twilight asked. “I know a lot more things that you can imagine, young Twilight Sparkle. For now, I shall follow Xenxus and keep him isolated away from populated areas. Your task is to find the Element of Time.” “But the Element of Time disappeared after the princess wore it, didn't it?” she asked. “That is why you and your friends will go back in time and retrieve it before the Princess does. Though it may change that part of history, you must take it and go to the lower levels of the castle. There you will see a mirror. Go through it and you will arrive back in present time. Do you understand me?” Timaeus said. “Wait? What about the rest of the ponies?” Twilight asked. “They will be fine. Now go.” Timaeus commanded. Twilight turned as the Archivist walked to her. “Go. We’ll be fine,” The Archivist said. Understanding Timaeus’ words, Twilight hurried to help Rainbow Dash out of the wreckage and, together, they started heading towards the hillside. As they left, Timaeus watched as Xenxus flew further and further away from Canterlot. Observing the damage, he noticed most of the structures below still stood in one piece. As for the castle, only half stood with fire still raging.