Silver felt curiously solid. Did they have a form? They couldn't see themselves. Looking only saw darkness. What was happening? Were they a male or female? That would be nice to know. They found they were alright with either possibility. Mare, stallion, man, woman. All of those let Silver be with their herd and to hold them close, and that seemed much more important than a lot of other things.
Suddenly it returned. They had foals. Precious... wonderful foals. Oh, how long had they been away? They would spoil those foals so badly for a while!
Twilight pointed at the gathering white and silver field of energy. "Focus!"
"Don't mind if I do." Tirek drew from the intense energy and began to swell at an alarming rate.
Night Watch hurled herself at him with a wail that shook that building, but he swatted her away with a solid fist. "Fool me once... Now what have we here?" The rest of the Mane Five hurled themselves at him, but he was already too large for them. The magic that Twilight had bent towards this task had more than enough power to fuel him, at least strong enough to send them flying into walls and across the floor. "Someone's been a naughty little mare. I can't take over the world if you break it, 'Princess' Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight glared at him, but her magic was tied. She couldn't cast a spell in the middle of the grand evocation that held Silver there in its fragile net. "What do you want, Tirek?"
Tirek laughed at the question. "Oh, willing to talk now, are we?" He gestured at the ball of energy. "I'll start with that, only after you've stopped it from destroying everything." He pawed at the ground with a powerful hoof. "And you fancied yourself the 'good' one."
Night hopped to her hooves and approached him more cautiously. Her glasses were broken and she had to squint, but she approached despite it. "Leave Twilight alone. She has important business to tend to."
"I'm quite certain she does. Destroying my world is busy work." He reached out to grab Night, only to find her dart with unnatural speed around him. She was too powerful to draw from without pinning her down first, unfortunately for him. She darted in and slammed a hoof into his side, but that was delay enough for him to backhand her across the snout and send her staggering backwards. "That was quite rude, our first battle. I assure you it won't end the same way twice."
Fluttershy suddenly dropped onto his back. He reached back for her but she ducked and bobbed out of the way of his grasping hand while squealing in terror. Night took the chance she was afforded and drove into him, ramming him with her horn-like jewelry. He roared in agony and shook violently, sending both Night and Fluttershy to the ground.
This was happening far too frantically for Twilight's comfort. She drew powerfully from the chalice and its mixed energies, fortifying the essence before her. She just wanted Silver back! "Tirek, let me finish, or there won't be a world to argue about.
Tirek chuckled darkly. "I heard he wielded my horns for a short time, even menaced Princess Luna with them. Why so much effort for this monster when you destroy all the others that cross your path?"
Twilight stomped a hoof. The tattered laws of reality created the sound of a backfiring car from the impact. "He is my stallion, not a monster. We can... talk after." The chalice only had so much to give, and she needed it for the final step. Though she didn't want to, she saw no other choice, and reached out to her friends. Their rainbow power was snuffed as she channeled it right out of them, turning its power over Silver's essence in a vibrant display. "You want to take over, help me make sure there's something to take over."
Elsewhere, and there, Silver squirmed despite the lack of body. Something new was filling... It tingled so fiercely. What was it? Bits of it felt so familiar... There was some Applejack, and there, some Twilight. Rarity, Rainbow Dash... They were all there. Were they supporting him? They must have been. Silver tried to reach out wide and draw it all towards themselves. Fluttershy's presence suddenly felt overwhelming.
"Aren't you tired of fighting?" asked that small portion of Fluttershy. "No more looking for fights."
Had they looked for fights? They didn't think they had. "No more! This time, you can bring peace where you go."
Silver declined gently. They would always fight, if their friends and family needed him. They would rather die, again, than accept their friends being hurt. This was another fight. This was Fluttershy's fight. She was fighting to stop Silver from being hurt again. Silver understood it, and felt new warmth. They weren't angry at Fluttershy for this battle. It was the same fight they would accept. Fluttershy was a good pony.
Fluttershy sank to the ground and passed out, along with the other Element Bearers. Night rose tall, her suit keeping her going, if only just barely. It'd been so long since she last slept. Since she last ate. She was pushing herself past all reasonable efforts. She had to win. Somehow. She didn't charge in. Instead she took in the situation and tried to find the answer. Find the path.
There. Night spread her wings wide. "You can't take my magic. You know Twilight can take yours. If we fight, we either all lose, big time, or you lose. This is your chance for freedom, Tirek. Why are you even wasting it here?"
Tirek seemed to weigh those words. "You have a point..." He looked towards Twilight. "Thank you for the snack. An excellent start to things. I'm certain we will meet again, when I'm ready." He turned and walked away calmly. Night Watch wanted to stop him, to pound him, but she knew she couldn't. He was beyond her, and there was no help waiting for her.
"Night..." Twilight was looking at her. "We need to shape him, now. We're already so late..."
Night turned to her talent. She looked for the answer. Find the path... Calculate the odds. "If we return him as a princess, why can't we turn him into a prince again later?"
Twilight frowned. "I suppose... nothing would prevent that... Oh, Night, please, quickly. I'm doing the best I can, but it's so much."
Night held that image sure in her head. Princess Silver Stars, so enchanting and pretty. She had been shaped by Luna's magic to be the mother of all lunar unicorns. Physically she was gorgeous. Mentally, at the time, she was still trying to find herself. My, how far Silver had come since then. Maybe things would be different this time. Night held the image surely, with Silver garbed in her best dress, wings spread wide and joy on her face. Joy of living, of being loved, and so much more to experience.
The universe collapsed.
Silver felt solid, significant. They, no, she. She looked over herself, admiring her supple muscles as she carried herself in a slow circling walk. She had a body. She remembered this body. It was the one she became pregnant with. Morning Glory's true mother had returned. Twilight's wife, even if she never fully accepted the role. Did that mean Twilight's husband and Clear Twilight's father was gone? No. She was more than one thing. She was so many things.
She spread her wings wide and felt the chaos that had overwhelmed the world a moment. Everything was falling apart. She had never 'felt' chaos before, but she was certain she was feeling it then. She wrapped it in her furry wings and gently soothed it with strokes and gentle words. She nuzzled into the frantic energy and urged it to calmness, and things began to settle.
Twilight collapsed as soon as gravity allowed it. The air was thick with energy, and something else. She forced her eyes open to see an alicorn standing there. She had a pink dress on, and huge lunar wings. "Silver?" The alicorn smiled down at her.
"I think so."
Twilight felt joy well within her, but they weren't done. Twilight scrambled to her hooves and grabbed the chalice, throwing its contents at Silver, splattering all over her front as Silver squawked in surprise. All three essences soaked into her, and she shone as her form was cemented, becoming true reality instead of the figment it was just a moment ago. Twilight smiled, and collapsed. Consciousness fled her immediately.
Silver was left, damp, but alive. Alive, but alone. Night Watch, Twilight, and all the others were sprawled around the room, lost to the world. Silver shook her head and smiled gently. "This is some welcoming party." She gently picked up each in turn, carrying them to a bed and tucking them in. She felt tranquil and at peace. The world may have threatened to tear itself apart, but she was alive, and her friends and family needed a caretaker right then. It was only after Rarity was tucked away last that she took the time to inspect herself.
She felt an odd sense of dissonance. She remembered not being this alicorn princess, but she also remembered being it. She was... something else when something horrible happened. Why couldn't she grasp that memory clearly? Whatever she was, she was a princess, a lunar princess. Was that bad? She remembered embracing the totality of her sex, as a stallion. She had even learned to love the presence of another stallion, in all ways. As a mare, she loved other mares. Was she gay? No. Certainly not. She liked the other sex as either a stallion or a mare. It was all coming back to her.
She heard a loud cry and her ears perked. Clear Twilight. She sprinted up the stairs to her foals and approached, only for Clear to suddenly wail at her on sight. "Little mare, what's the matter? I'm here for you." Silver gathered her up and nuzzled her and began to inspect her. Clear calmed down in time, even as Silver wondered how her foal hadn't recognized her.
Silver turned her attention on Morning Glory and soon had two clean and content foals. She played with them, since they were awake, and she felt full of energy, as if she'd slept deeply and well. It tickled at her and she remembered she was Morning Glory's father and mother. She was both of their father and mother. Would that confuse them? It already confused her a little bit. Regardless of what she was, she was their parent, and she loved them.
Silver spread her wings over the foals as they climbed, wrestled, and explored eagerly. She felt satisfied and content. Being with her foals was a true joy. Knowing her mates were sleeping elsewhere made it all the sweeter.
Wasn't one missing? She frowned delicately in thought. "Fast Change?" Clear looked up at her quizzically. "Oh, not you, silly." She nuzzled Clear gently, mind whirring with the wondering of where Fast Change could be. She should be there, with their family.
Silver lifted her foals gently in her magic and sang a soft song with no words. She rocked them and loved them, and slowly they faded off to a gentle nap. She had once feared how she'd do as a parent, but she felt she could do the job well, and would let nothing stop her.