The sound of the Doctor’s Sonic Screwdriver and intense headache jolted her from her sleep.
The last thing Rainbow Dash remembered was the Doctor shooting golden flames from his body and Twilight charging the Elements. Once again, incredible power surged through the cyan pegasus as Twilight fired the one spell the Doctor told her to conjure: the Reversal Spell. While she didn’t care so much about magic, Rainbow found herself grabbed by the Doctor’s plan to take down the Shadow Trio. While he left behind the detail that he had to die, the plan was Rainbow Dash approved.
The cyan pegasus slowly opened her eyes. She was in the throne room of the castle. The stained glass windows were all shattered, there were three burn marks in the floor, and standing close to the throne itself was a small statue. The statue was divided into three parts, each represented by an octagon. Next to the statue was the Doctor with his Screwdriver in his mouth and Ditzy next to him. They both looked like they were studying the statue.
RD tried to rise to her hooves, but her body felt like lead. Her wings were tired from doing something. She wasn’t flying in her sleep again, right?
Before she gave up and fell back asleep, she felt an aura of magical energy engulf her. She found herself rising to her hooves and her energy restored. In front of her was Twilight, who looked beaten up as well. She had scratches covering her entire body and bags under her eyes. “Good thing you’re awake,” Twilight said.
Rainbow smiled. “You interrupted my nap, but seeing that we beat those jokers, I say I forgive you,” the pegasus joked.
Twilight laughed and they hoofed. “Are the others awake?”
“Yeah, but they’ve been awake for a while. It took a while to wake you up though. I didn’t know your coat turns white when you get too tired,” the alicorn said.
Rainbow froze. “White? My coat is blue, not white!”
“But it was—nevermind. I don’t want to know. Next thing I know, I’m asking Pinkie why she has wings under her coat.”
The two friends laughed, but stopped. They both looked over to Pinkie, who was bugging Luna about wanting to see the castle on the Moon. RD had to do a double take because she remembered Luna crashing through the ceiling thanks to Nightmare Moon. She was laughing when Pinkie started showing her the signature Party Cannon. Wait until Pinkie wants to fire it.
“12!” they heard the Doctor said.
Both ponies turned to the Time Lord. “What?”
“Time locks. 12 Time Locks are in place inside the statue. I didn’t think about Time Locks being implemented but it got the job done,” he said. “Oh, and welcome back to the world of the living. I didn’t expect you to take charge of the Rainboom like that Ms. Dash. That was amazing to watch.”
“Huh?”
Twilight smiled. “I was awake for it. We shot straight up into the air and did the biggest Sonic Rainboom I’ve ever seen. It broke through Nightmare’s spell like that baseball when it broke through my kitchen window,” she said with a glare at RD.
“Can you quit bringing it up?”
The princess of magic shook her head. “Anyway, I got Spike to get Princess Celestia. Hopefully he didn’t get lost.”
“Are you sure the poor darling isn’t still at the doors wondering why it’s bigger on the inside?” Rarity asked.
“Ah’m still trying to figure it out mahself,” Applejack said.
Rarity agreed. Twilight looked back at the TARDIS. Perhaps her little dragon was still in shock from it all.
The doors suddenly opened. Spike was walking out with Princess Celestia behind him. She looked weary and most of her horn was still broken. It was better than before, but magic was still off limits for the alicorn princess. Before she moved her hoof, Luna was already running to her sister. She embraced her sister in the biggest bear hug in the history of bear hugs. Celestia’s yelp of pain and surprise didn’t stop Luna from squeezing.
Twilight smiled. She was going to have to find Cadence and Shining Armor and do the same thing. Maybe it can be a family night. Or brunch. Maybe a late lunch/early dinner thing.
The alicorn shook the idea out of her head. Maybe later.
The Doctor walked up to the princesses. “I think Celestia wants to breathe sometime soon,” he said.
Luna sighed and let her sister go. She mocked suffocating and gasping for air for the amusement of the ponies of the room. “Oh Doctor, the legends are very true. You do leave a mess wherever you go,” Celestia said as she surveyed the room.
The Time Lord chuckled. “Wasn’t me this time, or was it? No, I was regenerating. Oh, and be careful with that statue over there, it has the three fake gods in there,” he said.
The princess of the Sun looked at the statue. “Why am I not surprised?”
Pinkie jumped up. “Because you know the Doctor?”
“Just about right, little one. Well, there is a lot of cleaning up to do. Why don’t you take the statue to the catacombs of the castle, Doctor? We can clean this place up.”
The Time Lord nodded. “Ditzy, help with the clean up.”
“Okie-dokie,” she said.
The Doctor grabbed the statue with his mouth and walked out of the throne room. Celestia sighed. “Where’s Discord? He needs to help with the clean up.”
Fluttershy smiled. “I’ll go get him.”
“No, he should come here. There is no telling where that draconiquus is hiding. Discord!”
In a flash of light, a small box appeared in the middle of the room. The box started to play a song, and when it ended, Discord sprung out like the joker in a Jack-in-the-Box. He wore a jester hat and held a flower as a staff. Celestia shook her head.
“Somepony call my name?”
“Yes. We need you to help with the community to rebuild. I’m not sure if you heard, but Sombra tried to take over Equestria with Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis.”
In the back of Discord’s mind, a red alert flashed. They don’t remember me!
The box disappeared and Discord reappeared with a reflecting jacket and hard hat. “Just don’t let the pink one near any power tools and you got yourself a deal.”
Twilight looked up. “Power tools?”
The draconiquus waved it off. He glared at the TARDIS. That Time Lord and his box ruined his plans again. Without another thought, he disappeared to probably begin the reconstruction. Either that, or he was going to take a nap. Twilight shook her head. “Who knows what he was doing while Sombra was here?”
None of the ponies answered. “Maybe he was trying to fight him off?” Fluttershy said.
“I’m sorry darling, but isn’t Discord stronger?” Rarity asked.
Celestia nodded. “We shouldn’t focus on Discord right now. Twilight, I want you to properly secure the Elements. Sister, I’m going to need some rest and hopefully I can heal faster. Can you take my place—”
“We can gladly take thy place in supervising the clean-up and help with the reconstruction,” she said.
Celestia chuckled. “No Luna. Reconstruction will take probably a few weeks, and we must also be ready for the Summer Sun Celebration coming up. I am asking you if you can carry on my duties as Princess of the Sun and the Moon until I recover.
The Princess of the Night was stunned. “Uh, yes. Yes! I humbly accept!”
“Very well Luna.”
The girls all cheered and ran out of the throne room to start with the clean-up.
It felt like weeks since the endless night ended and the clean-up began. Ponies all over were cleaning up the propaganda and banners left behind during what the Doctor called ‘The Shadow Rebellion’. The statue was placed in a high-security chamber deep underground. The room itself was sealed in magic and a Time Lock, making it impossible for the three to escape. Discord could never find his three fallen comrades and gave up on the plan altogether. Nothing was going to happen with the Doctor around.
Speaking of the Doctor, the Time Lord and his companion stuck around and treated Celestia while she was healing. With some more Time Lord sciences and medicines, her horn almost completely grew back. The exposure of her Magic Core, observed by the Doctor, was no longer a threat, but her magic was weak. She would need more time to regain her lost energy. That didn’t stop Luna from taking control of the Sun and Moon while she was ill.
Finally, after a month of working cross Equestria, Canterlot was back to being the shining jewel of Equestria. Princess Cadence reported that the Crystal Empire was back at full power and the Crystal Heart was shining bright. Ponyville and many cities were shining bright thanks to the leadership of the Mane 6. It was so great in fact that the Equestria Games were to continue in the Empire.
On a bright Saturday afternoon, exactly a month since the end of Sombra’s brief reign, Canterlot was busy. Princess Celestia had called for a celebration to honor the heroes who defeated the royals of the Shadow Rebellion. The celebration was to be held in Canterlot castle with Cadence and Shining Armor attending. The whole city was the center of the world.
Inside Canterlot castle, Princess Celestia and Luna stood in front of a crowd of hundreds of ponies. Outside in the gardens, thousands upon thousands of ponies were ready for a whole 24 hours of celebrating. The Galaxy Watch that was put off would be one of the many night-time celebrations. Luna was elated.
The crowd of ponies fell silent as the trumpets blared, calling for their attention. Princess Celestia and Luna extended their wings.
“Fillies and Gentlecolts, I am glad that you all could attend. Today, we honor the ponies who fought against the world’s worst demons to ensure that we live in peace. Today, our heroes will be rewarded for their efforts. Please join us as we welcome our heroes: Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Ditzy Do and the Doctor!”
As their names rang through the halls, the doors came open and the 8 ponies came walking out. Ditzy and the Doctor smiled as they greeted the crowd of ponies, but the Doctor knew that this wasn’t meant for him. All he did was drive the heroes around and sacrificed himself to correctly perform the spell that saved Equestria. It wasn’t him.
Twilight felt her soul lift up. It felt good to finally celebrate after a month of working to rebuild. She looked over at her friends and took a mental note to never forget just how powerful they were when they were united.
Unity through Harmony? Hmm… Twilight thought.
The lavender alicorn found herself staring at Applejack. She told the truth concerning her new status as a princess of Equestria, yet she acted like nothing was bothering her. She was going to have a talk with Applejack later to discuss the problem.
They approached the steps to Celestia and Luna’s thrones. They both looked proud. “These ponies have demonstrated feats of great strength during the darkest days of our history. The proved to us that if we set our sights on a particular goal, and we work hard, we can accomplish anything.”
Celestia magically produced a small chest. Inside was 9 golden medals. She placed all the medals onto the ponies before her. Even Ditzy and the Doctor received medals for their involvement. Once the medals were distributed, Luna looked back in the chest.
She turned to Celestia. “Sister, there is one more medal in the chest,” she whispered.
The elder sister smiled. “I know.”
She turned to the crowd. “While these 8 ponies worked on the front lines, I cannot overlook one more hero. This hero risked her own safety multiple times to ensure that her friends get their work done. Without her, Twilight Sparkle and her friends would not be here today and the Sun would not be shining.”
She raised the 9th medal. “I take great pride in bestowing this medal on my sister, Princess Luna.”
Luna turned in shock to her sister. Celestia smiled at her young sister. “While I was healing, it was my sister who stuck by me and ensured that my health would worry her less. It was also because of her that Twilight Sparkle is here. She saved her life, and that is great itself.”
She pinned the medal onto her sister. “My sister has kept Equestria in balance and maintained power. I am very proud of her.”
Twilight smiled. “Behold, citizens of Equestria, your heroes are here!”
The ponies started to cheer. Luna smiled as she looked down at her medal. She had something material to be proud of. The Doctor and Ditzy cheered for their friends and their accomplishments. The Doctor kept a note in his mind saying he should check up on the 6 in the future.
All the cheering ceased immediately. The noise in the room was replaced by the sound of cloister bells. The Doctor immediately recognized that sound. He slowly turned back to the doors, and under the archway was the TARDIS. The doors were wide open and the interior was blanketed in a red light. All the ponies in the room began muttering amongst themselves. Celestia and Luna were shocked at the time machine’s sudden interest to join the celebration.
Ditzy, on the other hoof was more interested in the stained glass windows above the two princesses. “Doctor?”
The Time Lord turned around to face the windows. With one glance, he gasped. Written on the windows were the two words he dreaded to see: BAD WOLF. The words were written in red. Everywhere he turned, the same two words rang in his head. Ponies started to freak out at the sudden appearance of the words. Some got the idea it was written in blood.
The Doctor’s two hearts started to beat faster as he processed the words. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as more ponies started to freak out. One pony screamed louder than everypony else. “There’s a wolf in here!”
The Doctor turned around, and standing in front of the TARDIS was the Bad Wolf itself. The wolf was sandy-colored with golden eyes. It sat patiently in front of the TARDIS. Hello Doctor, long time no see.