"Every normal pony must be tempted, at times, to spit on her hooves, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.”

Over brunch, Twilight Sparkle lines out her plans to turn to a life of villainy. For the most part, her friends are all for it.

It makes sense in context, honest.

To save her sister and her faithful student, Celestia herself must travel into the ancient tunnels beneath the ruined castle in the Everfree Forest. She, and the guards who accompany her, must face the dark, twisting corridors. Still, what was Luna and Twilight's purpose at the old castle? Why were they unable to return of their own accord?

And what watches Celestia from beyond the light's edge?

Canterlot... For centuries, Canterlot was the shining gem of Equestria, the pinnacle of pony society. Now, it’s a reminder, a bleak and monolithic warning to the world. 

Changed by the chemical and technological poisons that plague the mountain, an abomination of nature, I wander the greatest disaster Equestria has ever seen. 

... I will escape eventually, and when I do, I hope my friends still see me as Twilight Sparkle, and not the monster that hides among the ruins. 

Twilight Sparkle is Dead.

Her friends decide this isn't an acceptable state of affairs and vow to change it.

They really should have compared notes first.

Commissioned by TheDriderPony

Spanish/Español: https://www.deviantart.com/spaniard-kiwi/art/Las-muchas-resurrecciones-de-Twilight-Sparkle-937900726 by SPANIARD KIWI

-GM, master of ghosts.

There's something strange and unnatural living in Bon-Bon's house.

Something other than Lyra.

Shortly after Queen Chrysalis' defeat at Canterlot, her army is demoralised and hungry, and the Queen herself is at her wits end - having locked herself in her bedroom, presumably to spare her subjects from her upcoming mental break in a short moment of compassion.

The Queen that leaves the room is far different from the one that entered it.

Queen Chrysalis, seemingly revitalised in her entirety, declares a change in course for her and her subjects. She promises to lead them to a new battlefield... and she swears victory in her name.

Celestia, the Lightbringer.
Luna, Mistress of the Night.
Twilight Sparkle, Master of Magic.
Cadance, Princess of Love.

Of the Four Princesses, Cadance is the one that ponies think they understand the most. After all, what could be so hard about being Princess of Love?

A lot of things, actually.

The first story in the Four Princesses, Four Demons series. Sequels are Celestia the Indomitable, Twilight the Triumphant, and Luna the Faithful.

Featured from 1-26-21 to 1-29-21, all thanks to the kind folks of this site, who even pushed it to the #2 spot.

This isn't where I belong. I left all this behind years ago, moved on with my life. But a mare from my past brought me back, and now she won't let me go. So I'm stuck here, trying to make the best of it with ponies that don't understand me, don't even like me. But when something moves in the darkness, and when things go wrong in the cold, dead night, they'll turn to me to try to set things right.

Why? Because once a police pony, always a police pony.
~~
This is a spin-off story to 'Why am I Pinkie Pie?!', and will contain spoilers for that story, but it's not necessary to read that story to understand this one.
Cover art by the talented Conicer
Need more Cinnamon Swirl? Merlos the Mad wrote a fanfic of this story!

There is now a side-story: A Hard Day's Nightmare Night

Twilight Sparkle is dead.
Twilight Sparkle is only slightly inconvenienced by this.

What Spike saw in the doorway of King Sombra's crystal palace hasn't left his mind. The fear of Twilight abandoning him haunts him through recurrent nightmares. Anxiety taunts him when he's at his most vulnerable, reminding him of all his failures, all his inadequacies, all his wounds.

One night, this fear and anxiety manifests itself in a full-blown nightmare, dragging Spike face-to-face with his greatest fear. What if Twilight never needed Spike in the first place?

Takes place right after the Season Three opener (before Episode Three).

Thanks to RGLloyd for editing.

Now Featured on Equestria Daily!

Now Featured by The Royal Canterlot Library!

Check out the YouTube reading by the awesome Chinchillax!

Check out another YouTube reading by DJ Tazzlez from Hive Radio!

Rated Teen for some dark elements.