HiE - A Hollow in Equestria

by Charlie_K

Chapter Ninety Three

Chapter Ninety Three

No matter what course of action they took, she suspected that some unacceptable loss was going to occur regardless. The only question was, when this was all said and done, which loss were they going to be forced to deal with?

"Then we'll simply have to to do whatever we can, in order to prevent that from happening," Celestia stated, already working to steel her nerves for what would lie ahead.

"I'm coming along," Spike stated once he retrieved his hammer from where it'd landed after he'd tossed it in a failed effort at doing something to stop Nightmare Moon. "And before anyone tries to talk me out of it, don't, because I don't wanna hear it!" he stated as he addressed them as a whole, rather than individually.

"Spike-" Twilight started, only to be interrupted as Spike proceeded to dominate the conversation once again.

"No! Don't try and tell me it's too dangerous out there; not again!" Spike practically yelled, cutting off whatever Twilight had to say in opposition. "Twilight, Nightmare Moon was here in Ponyville, standing right where we are right now! She managed to get away from Ulquiorra alive! If she can do that whenever she wants, then nowhere is going to be safe; out in the forest, here in town, it doesn't matter where we are if she can just teleport in and be there!"

Twilight didn't want to admit it, but she hadn't thought about that possibility. Spike was absolutely right about it not really being safe anywhere, given when they'd witnessed for themselves. If Nightmare Moon could simply come and go as she pleased, and not even Ulquiorra could stop her from doing such as she pleased, then staying behind really wasn't the safest course of action available to them. Under such circumstances, she didn't think that anything could be considered as such. The safest course of action available to them, was probably the lot of them staying close together, and relying on strength in numbers.

"If you're going, then I'm going too!"

Twilight's head whipped around as she heard this, and saw Rainbow Dash slowly standing back up, despite how weary she currently looked. As exhausted as she had to be, the very notion of her willingly putting herself right in harm's way again was a very bead idea. But before she could even begin addressing just why this was a bad idea, Rainbow Dash was already speaking again.

"If we're going to find those missing foals, we're going to need air support for covering greater territory. Luna and Celestia are going to need to deal with Nightmare Moon, so they're going to be indisposed. I'm the only one qualified to do it," she explained, her voice filled with commitment, dedication, and passion, despite just how tired she must've been. "I don't deserve the Element of Loyalty if I'm just gonna hang back and cower because I got my flank kicked, while others go out and put themselves in danger. I need to do this!"

Twilight honestly didn't know how to respond. Where exactly was Rainbow Dash finding the strength necessary to do this? Where was she finding the strength necessary to even consider doing this? She should've been laying in a hospital bed, sedated, and hooked up to an IV to assist her on the road to recovery; not standing here in armor, and planning to go right back into the heart of danger! The very insanity of it had her mind reeling with disbelief.

"I'm afraid I can't allow you to go and do that, darling," Rarity spoke up and shook her head, not about to let her friend go running headlong into danger again.

"You can't stop me," Rainbow Dash pointed out simply.

"Oh I'm well aware of that fact. But that doesn't mean I have to like it. What sort of a friend would I be if I simply stood by, and didn't make an effort at trying?" Rarity asked. "I'm afraid there's simply no other choice. If you're set on going out there again, then I'm going too."

"Wait, what?" Twilight asked as she turned to face Rarity. Spike being willing to set out on this, she could understand as he was young and impressionable. Rainbow Dash, she could understand as she was still looking for payback. But Rarity was volunteering to set out on this damn fool errand along with them!? "Rarity, you too? You can't be serious!"

"I'm quite serious, Twilight. We just got Rainbow Dash back, I'm not about to let her head off into danger yet again; it was a bad enough idea the first time around," Rarity stated. "And seeing as I can't actually stop her from doing such, the only course of action that's acceptable is to go out there with her. Once out there, she's going to need all the help she can get," she explained.

"None o' ya are goin' anywhere without me," Applejack stated as she stepped forward, her voice firm as she spoke. "After what Nightmare Moon did ta us, Ah'm all fer stickin' it to 'er one way or another."

"I can't believe this!" Twilight stated in complete disbelief. This wasn't happening, it just couldn't be! Did her friends really have any idea of just what they were talking about doing?

Well she was certain that Rainbow Dash did, she'd been out for blood since the beginning of all this. But the rest of them? Really? She knew Celestia and Luna had told them that they might have to prepare themselves for making difficult decisions in this fight with Nightmare Moon, but did they understand the gravity of what was being discussed? Did any of them understand that they were going to kill Nightmare Moon? Did they understand that before that, they actually had to save Nightmare Moon from Ulquiorra, in order to try and find out where the missing foals might currently be? She certainly doubted that they understood the full weight of everything.

"Well ya'd best start believin' it, Sugarcube, because it's happenin'. There ain' no way, in either Tartarus or hell, that we're lettin' ya do this all by yerself," Applejack replied.

On the one hoof, Twilight was touched by the sentiment of Applejack's statement. But on the other hoof, she knew her friends were missing the point.

"N-no, that's not what I mean," she stated as she shook her head. "You and the others do realize that we actually have to convince Ulquiorra to not kill Nightmare Moon, until we can find and rescue the missing foals, right? We have to actually convince him to take the illogical course of action to threat management, and I don't have a clue how we're going to do that! No matter what any of us might say, he's going to have the logical high ground in this case."

"That's certainly a likely outcome," Celestia spoke up as she stepped forward. She knew that trying to appeal to Ulquiorra would be problematic at best under these circumstances. Trying to explain why killing Nightmare Moon shouldn't be done would be an exercise in futility. Instead they'd have to go a different route, and likely order him to stop. And if it proved necessary, then she would remind him of how he had accepted the fact that she was in charge here.

"Indeed so," Luna added and gave a single nod of acknowledgement, before turning her attention towards Twilight and her friends. "But it is not a matter you need concern yourselves with. Celestia and I will be setting out on this mission alone. Out there is no place for any of you."

Spike stared at them in disbelief. Was Luna seriously saying that they weren't coming along? Even after they'd established that Nightmare Moon seemed fully able to come and go as she pleased? This just couldn't be happening!

Rainbow Dash shook her head. "Screw that. I'm not waiting around here for Nightmare Moon to come back just to prove that she can. If you're heading out, then I am too! Let's take the fight to her!"

"That goes double for me!" Spike stated, his tone just as firm as Rainbow Dash's had been.

Twilight groaned, finding it far easier to do than bang her head on a wall, as it was a prospect that would require the effort of walking over to a building to actually do such. Right now she didn't feel like engaging in all the walking necessary to do that, as she would just have to walk all the way back once she was done.

Luna had good points. But then again so did Rainbow Dash, Spike, and the others who were adding their two bits to the ongoing discussion/argument. Going into the Everfree Forest was both incredibly dangerous and stupid. But staying in Ponyville, while smarter, was no safer; not with what they knew. Nightmare Moon had to be kept alive until they got what they wanted, but she had no obligation, or a compelling reason, to actually comply and give them what they wanted; not even if they tried to beat it out of her with a stick. Which sounded quite therapeutic right now, but hardly a constructive effort.

But there was also the fact that every minute Nightmare Moon was allowed to say alive, she threatened Equestria's safety through her very existence. That was established, undeniable fact. If one were to even try and deny it, they'd get slapped right across the face; because she would personally be the one doing it in response to such a stupid notion even being allowed to be voiced! That matter of stupidity aside, however, the point remained that in order to save those foals, they had to put Equestria at risk. No matter how much she looked at the equation, no matter which angle she tried to analyze it from, that was a matter she couldn't reconcile away.

'There will be times when hard decisions have to be made. When one must weigh the potential outcomes of whatever course of action they choose to take, and must be done quickly; sometimes in the space of time it takes one to blink. Sometimes even faster than that. The decision to weigh six, in exchange for six million, is something that may have to be regarded as being a distinct possibility at some point. But simply because we accept that a specific course of action must be taken, doesn't necessarily make it any easier to actually see it through to the end.'

And just like that, once again, she found Ulquiorra's words forcing themselves into the forefront of her mind, and with an echo of relevance.

He had seen this situation coming long before any of them had even considered it as being a possibility. Maybe not this exact scenario, with these specific factors currently in place, but certainly this situation of making difficult decisions when lives were at stake.

No matter what course of action was taken, it was almost certainly going to lead to more innocent ponies dying, and they would all be responsible for such; especially her. No matter what angle she looked at the problem from, she wasn't seeing a way out of it. They had no idea where the missing foals currently were, or if they were even still alive. And while they tried to sort that out, Nightmare Moon could easily cause untold levels of death and destruction.

Regardless of the course of action, she was quite certain that it was going to violate the teachings and principles that Equestria held so dearly. Did they even realize that? She certainly doubted it with all of the back and forth arguing that was going on around her. Luna was yelling, Spike was yelling, Rainbow Dash was yelling and occasionally joined by support from one of the others... it was all too much.

"QUIET" she screamed, much as she did the last time she needed everypony's attention. And upon seeing that she had it, she took full advantage of it. "We can stand here and argue over who goes and who stays until doomsday, but it's not going to change anything! Nightmare Moon is using those foals as a shield, and we don't know anything that would let us figure out how we're going to proceed! If we try and save them, we put Equestria at risk. But if we focus on saving Equestria, we put them at risk! Whatever we do, ponies are going to die, so the lot of you, just quit screaming like foals, and tell me what do we do about that!?"

She was seething right now, angry in both ways and extent she couldn't express. If she tried she would only wind up screaming and shrieking incoherently, like an unintelligent, inarticulate brute. Already she was very close to doing just that. She was vaguely aware that other ponies were slowly moving away from their position, likely because of her current demeanor, but there was nothing she could do about that right now. She desperately both wanted and needed answers, but there were none to be found. She didn't know how to deal with that!

The next thing she knew, there was the touch of something soft and downy upon her back, gently stroking her along the grain of her fur. She's been so upset, so close to simply losing it, she hadn't even noticed that Celestia had stepped over, and was currently in the process of trying to soothe her nerves as best possible.

It was hard to deny that it'd been a long time since she felt such, serving as a reminder that she wasn't alone, and that everything wasn't crashing down all around her. Just the feel of such soft feathers was working wonders at walking her back from the edge she was on. It felt good, it felt familiar, it felt... nostalgic even.

"Better?" Celestia asked in a tone that only she could muster.

Twilight silently nodded, not confident in her ability to speak right now.

Celestia nodded in turn. "It's certainly quite the conundrum to be facing. One that countless rulers have found themselves facing countless times in the past; having to weigh the needs of the many, against the needs of the few or the one. No matter what choice is made, there's always the nagging question if it was the correct decision to make."

Twilight nodded again, choosing not to bring up the fact that Celestia sounded like she was intimately familiar with the ins and outs of what they were discussing. Right now there were certain things that she would rather not know, and not get involved in. There would be plenty of time for that later on.

"Ulquiorra wouldn't have any trouble making the decision," she commented. She knew exactly what he would do if faced with the conundrum, and he wouldn't even have to think about it. "It's all a numbers game to him..."

"Life is unfortunately like that at times," Celestia replied as she continued running her wing along her back.

"There's no way to avoid it, is there?" Twilight asked.

"None that are particularly viable, short of us actually finding the foals. But they could literally be anywhere by now," Celestia replied and let out a long, tired sigh. "I think we all know what we have to do in this case, no matter how much we wish to the contrary..."

Twilight nodded once, solemnly and sadly. Celestia was right. More to the point Ulquiorra was right.

But beyond that, she realized that Spike was also right. Being here wasn't safe. In fact... in fact it might even be a liability to stay in Ponyville!

"I want to be there," she finally stated. "More accurately, I think that I need to be there. The others and I would be the most logical target for Nightmare Moon to try and strike if she manages to get away again. It'd be best for everypony if we were as far away from them as possible. And I can't think of anywhere further away right now than right under her snout."

"Clever," Celestia mumbled, "but are you sure the others would want to go along with something like that?" she asked.

"There's really only one way to find out," Twilight admitted, before clearing her throat in an effort to get the attention of not only her friends, but the others that were still present. "Everypony, what I have to say isn't easy, so please listen up...." she spoke as she stepped forward, moving away from the comfort provided by Celestia's wing.

+++

Twilight had explained the situation to them. She had meticulously broken down the matter to the best of her abilities, carefully laying out the intricacies of what would likely be experienced to all who were willing to listen. She explained the hazards that would be involved with staying present, as well as those should they depart in preparation for battle. She had been blunt, she'd been honest, she'd been on the verge of cursing up a storm at several points due to how much rage was bubbling just below the surface. But above all else, she'd been eloquent in informing the others of just what they needed to know, to make an informed decision.

When all was said and done, and she asked who was still willing to actually set out for the forest, five hooves and one claw had been raised in addition to her own, before she'd even been able to finish getting the question out. Despite knowing what likely laid ahead of them, her friends hadn't hesitated to volunteer for could quite possibly be the last mission they'd ever undertake together as friends. It had simultaneously warmed her heart, and moistened her eyes greatly.

Luna wanted nothing to do with any of it, however. She'd stated outright that them coming along was a very bad idea, and that she would have no part in knowingly taking them into such a dangerous situation, where Nightmare Moon could so easily exploit their presence.

It had been a good point, and Twilight couldn't deny the logic contained within. But to avoid a long, drawn out argument that merely treaded over already established points once again, she'd made a simple statement of fact; she and her friends were going, one way or another. If she tried to leave without them, she'd immediately latch onto them with a spell prior to the completion of the teleportation, that would drag the lot of them along for the ride. If such efforts failed, Rainbow Dash could easily lead them to where Nightmare Moon and Ulquiorra currently were; a fact that Rainbow Dash had all too eagerly agreed with.

Luna had finally relented in light of the realization that the matter was largely hopeless, but had made it clear that it was under protest, and that she really hated the idea of taking them into the heart of what potentially had to be the most dangerous conflict Equestria had ever seen in its history.

Nonetheless, she has still bestowed the thestral vision enchantment upon the lot of them prior to their travel.

It was easy to dismiss such concerns while one was -relatively- safe from harm, high on bravado, and in the heat of the moment.

Now that they were here, however, where everything was unfolding around them... it was an entirely different story, and it was making her start to regret their decision to come along, for what was ultimately witnessing a state-sanctioned execution.

They had all thought that they were prepared for matters like this, what with everything they'd faced in the past. Nightmare Moon's first return, the dragon, Discord's escape, the changeling invasion, Sombra's return... none of that could even hold a candle to any of this right now! This was real, and it was unfolding right before their very eyes.

They might wield the Elements of Harmony themselves, but the power of an Alicorn -to say nothing of two Alicorns- was something that simply had to be seen in order to truly be comprehended. There was just no way simply describing it would do it true justice. The gap between their respective levels was simply too insurmountable to even convey. Even just standing close to Celestia and Luna as they stopped restraining themselves, as they allowed their magic to freely flow throughout their bodies...

The amount of power they were both using right now was unprecedented, having never been recorded before in Equestria's known history.

She'd felt that kind of power once before in her life. High above Canterlot, during the second changeling invasion, when Ulquiorra had revealed his trump card to them all. The force he'd used in curb stomping the dragon? That had been nothing compared to what he could truly do. The amount of strength and power he commanded in his slender frame was utterly mind boggling, and she knew that it was a strength that exceeded what her mortal mind could properly comprehend; it was like trying to explain the mechanics of quantum physics to the foals that Miss Cheerilee taught. Simply being in his presence in such a state, was enough to induce a sense of despair and defeat.

But even that didn't properly compare to what was being witnessed now. The power coming off of the two sisters was a different order of magnitude compared to that of Ulquiorra. Its intensity, its texture, the effects it instilled within those that felt it... the differences that could be comprehended were so very stark to one another. It was soul crushing, but at the same time it was so very uplifting and comforting to experience. There was so much strength it was almost physically palpable, but it was a strength that was reassuring to be in the presence of.

When they finally broke and went on the offensive to attack Nightmare Moon -leaving trails of colored light in their wake in the process- it carried a sense that everything was going to be alright, because they were going to make it be alright, and leave nothing at all to chance.

But Nightmare Moon's presence conveyed a sense of strength as well. Maybe not like the other three, which could be felt in a more physical sense, but it was most certainly there. The amount of fear she must've gorged herself on had to truly be monstrous to explain it all. Her presence inspired a sense of panic and urgency, like being able to induce an anxiety attack in others through mere will alone. Her strength was conveyed on a far, far more primal level. It had the ability to tear right through the civilized mind, and register itself on a base, instinctual level, that so many deluded themselves into believing was no longer there.

That wasn't to say that Nightmare Moon's strength wasn't real, as it most certainly was. Celestia and Luna had both been quite aggressive in launching a frontal assault on her position, the two working in tandem to try and strike her down as quick as possible. They moved in a manner that suggested some sort of synchronization, or at the very least a shared understanding of one another, and what each of them had to do. But despite this, observation showed that Nightmare Moon wasn't really exerting herself in her efforts as she dodged, parried, blocked, and just plain evaded their attacks.

From their vantage point down on the ground, it was difficult to observe just which muscle groups were being utilized for each movement performed. But the movements themselves on Nightmare Moon's part were fluid. Too fluid to suggest that she was actually struggling in her efforts at guarding against the assault. Originally she thought it was just because she kept moving, that kept Celestia and Luna from successfully flanking her in a combined attack. But the more she watched as the display of yellow, blue, and red streaks of light zoomed about in the sky overhead, the more she realized this wasn't the issue. Instead it was something much worse; they were being played.

Nightmare Moon had showed her hoof twice before already. The first time had been when Fluttershy was attacked in the marketplace, and the second time had been just minutes ago when she'd appeared right in the middle of the assembled crowd. She was deliberately inserting herself into a situation where any move against her, that might have the chance of doing significant damage, would put bystanders at risk in the process. She'd even dared them to attack her since she was exposed, knowing full well that they couldn't make a move against her so long as others were in close proximity.

Now they were witnessing her utilizing her strategy for the third time, and none of them had even seen it coming until it was too late to actually do anything about it.

As vicious and brutal as Celestia and Luna were in their attacks, they still had a fatal weakness that they couldn't overcome in this fight. That weakness was, unfortunately, each other. They were working together to increase their effectiveness, but that effectiveness was being hampered by having to be constantly aware of each other's position in order to avoid delivering a fatal blow to the wrong target. It was inhibiting their follow through, causing them hesitate at points where a potentially fatal opening would've otherwise been presented and subsequently exploited.

Even when they changed up their strategy so they weren't working side-by-side, and instead were attacking from both the front and back at the same time, it still wouldn't do them any good. Nightmare Moon's scythe simply provided too much cover to get in close where she was. Even if that wasn't the case, there was still the fact that both sisters had to be careful in their follow through, as one wrong move by Nightmare Moon would lead to her being missed, and one of them being hit in the process.

If they could be separated from one another, if Nightmare Moon had to face them in a one-on-one fashion, her main strategy would fall apart, and she'd be at a severe tactical disadvantage. She'd be quickly overwhelmed by just one of them, and easily killed in short order if she faced either Celestia or Luna on their own.

But the question was how to go about convincing them to actually step back, and let the other face Nightmare Moon on their own? Even if she could command the Royal Canterlot Voice with the same level of skill as Luna, she doubted they'd actually listen to her explain the matter, as this was quite personal to them. Or worse, Nightmare Moon might attack them while they were distracted because they had to stop and listen to her.

If there were any options available to them, she was oblivious to just what they might be. Nightmare Moon had managed to hurt the two of them in a deeply personal manner that most simply wouldn't be able to understand. Their actions might've consciously been about protecting Equestria, but it would be pretty foalish to rule out the possibility that unconsciously they were looking for how to deliver payback upon her, and smite her ass for all that she'd put them through. She knew that it had to apply to them, because that had been a part of her motivation for coming out here in the fist place; she wanted revenge. Simple, uncomplicated, undeniable revenge...

But watching as things unfolded, she knew that revenge wasn't going to be the answer here; either for herself, or for them. Revenge was clouding their minds on the issue, making them sloppy, and leaving Nightmare Moon with the clear advantage in the matter. They were just too angry to properly think straight, and it could only get worse. The longer Nightmare Moon managed to physically rebuff them, the angrier they'd get, the sloppier they'd become, and it would only be a matter of time before one of them made the wrong move at the wrong time. The diarchy could easily become a monarchy if this predicament wasn't resolved soon.

What could they do about it, however? That was a contingency she hadn't exactly planned upon, and now she was regretting it. They'd come here for a myriad of reasons, but chief among them had been to act as decoys, reasoning that if Nightmare Moon tried to escape and take hostages again, they'd be the ones most likely to be used due to their importance. Their being here was to try and dissuade Nightmare Moon from returning to Ponyville, and hopefully keep the others safe. But how could they go about doing that, if they couldn't even keep themselves safe?

They were foaling themselves. It was really that simple. They were useless in this instance, and there was nothing that they could do. If they'd been practical about the matter, and approached from a purely logical angle, they would've simply stayed behind in Ponyville, and let Ulquiorra do what he did best. Nightmare Moon would've been dead by now, and this entire mess would be over. But that hadn't done that! Oh no, they just had to go and come out here, because they were all delusional in the belief that they might be able to do something that Ulquiorra couldn't do on his own! They couldn't even resist the hallucinations brought on by the terror fog, just what the fuck were they supposed to do against Nightmare Moon directly? They didn't even have the Elements of Harmony to fall back on in this case! The most powerful magical artifacts in all of Equestria, and they were just sitting back in the library like useless garbage, because that demonic bitch had found a way to sabotage them! That was why they were here right now, trying to kill her the old fashioned way, having to condemn the missing foals to death, and it was all her fault!

The more she thought on the matter, the angrier she found herself becoming at a direct result. She was growling, even snarling angrily, mentally berating herself for her own uselessness. If she'd focused more effort on learning how to conjure and maintain a mana weapon like Celestia and Luna could do, instead of becoming distracted with everything going on around Ponyville, they might not even be in this situation to begin with! She could've materialized the blade right in Nightmare Moon's guts and eviscerated her right on the spot. This might as well all be her fault directly! She was linked to so many deaths already, realistically what was a few more?

There weren't enough curse words in either her language, Ulquiorra's language, or any of the other languages in Equestria, to adequately articulate what she felt right now. Her blood was boiling, she couldn't see straight, she couldn't hear straight, she couldn't even think straight. The only coherent thought running through her mind right now, at this moment in time, was that she wanted Nightmare Moon to die, no matter what it took to get there!

---

High above the ground, far removed from the others so they wouldn't be in the way, Luna, Celestia, and Nightmare Moon were going all out in their efforts in killing each other. It was combat in its most brutal, most unrefined sense, far removed from being a well choreographed dance between the three of them. This was all quite real and one wrong move all but spelled certain death for those that were directly involved. And that was what worried Luna right now.

Despite the amount of unyielding rage that she was feeling for her adversary right now, and the overwhelming desire to utterly rip and tear Nightmare Moon's guts out, even she couldn't deny the fact that she was concerned about Celestia at the moment. Even with the threat of danger, and the rush of adrenaline, certain thoughts refused to be drowned out entirely.

Celestia's entire demeanor was certainly better than it had been just an hour ago, but that didn't mean she herself was better. Anger was certainly more constructive than despair in a situation such as this. But at the same time anger was just as much a double-edged sword as Celestia's own weapon was. Anger had the potential to render one blind to their surroundings, and leave them oblivious to the threats that stared them right in the face.

As strong as her sister was trying to be right now, Luna knew the truth was otherwise. She was still emotionally disturbed after Nightmare Moon's attack, much as Rainbow Dash herself had been, but without the benefit of time and support to assist her in coping with everything. They'd been forced to muster Celestia out in a mentally vulnerable state because they needed her right then. And now she was witnessing the consequences of those actions.

Celestia was acting in a reckless manner, giving into her rage as she wailed on Nightmare Moon, striking at her in a manner that was high on theatrics, but quite low on effectiveness. More often than not, she was going for wide, sweeping arcs with her sword to try and cleave her opponent in half, but also leaving herself open to a counterattack. Thrusts would've been much more appropriate to go with, and harder to guard against, but such was simply not happening.

She had allowed herself to believe that the matter could be controlled. She'd deluded herself into believing that by convincing Celestia to fight alongside her, her current mental instability could be adequately addressed. But that just hadn't been the case. Rather than fighting in a unified manner, Celestia had quickly descended into acting in a reckless manner that put them all at risk. More than once she'd been forced to break off her own attack because her sister was pursuing one of her own that could potentially inflict harm on the wrong opponent.

Nightmare Moon, unfortunately, was quite in control of her mental faculties, and easily able to contend with Celestia's rage. She was easily deflecting, blocking, and guarding against whatever attack her sister tried to deliver against her, which was only serving to make Celestia all the angrier as she went.

Loathe as she was to admit it, Luna couldn't deny that Nightmare Moon had the clear advantage in the matter. While she and Celestia were certainly stronger, Nightmare Moon was far more composed, and able to overcome whatever offense was thrown against her; in a sense she was the smarter of them. She wasn't succumbing to emotion, she wasn't overextending herself, she even rarely went on the offensive. She was drawing them into engagement on her own terms by simply demonstrating a bit of patience. And worse than that, they were actually falling for it. If something wasn't done fast, it stood to reason that they'd simply exhaust themselves, and then she could easily move in for the kill. They would become sloppy the longer this was continued, more prone to making mistakes, and leaving themselves open for exploitation.

The above factors were simply unacceptable. Something needed to be done about this situation to rectify it. But the question was, what might that be? She was too busy worrying about Celestia's well being to devote the necessary mental focus on not only keeping tabs on her, but also contemplating all of the available options. She was good at logical thinking, but there was only so much that she could actually do in this situation. Ulquiorra was likely more qualified for this particular multitasking endeavor, but that was neither here nor there right now. Calling him in to help would just put others at risk in the process. She was going to have to do this one on her own, and simply hope for the best.

---

During the time of her reign as one of the rulers in Equestria, Celestia had found it prudent to be fluent with a fair number of languages for when she received visiting foreign dignitaries. Over the course of centuries she'd lost count of just how many different languages she'd learned, as some simply weren't as common as they once used to be.

That matter aside, she wasn't aware of the appropriate words in any of them that could adequately describe just how much anger she felt right now, as she faced down Nightmare Moon once again! And the fact that she wore a smug-assed smirk throughout the engagement, only served to further infuriate her. That, and make her want for a cheese grater for removing that smirk from the face that wore it!

Despite the physical combat element of their engagement, facing Nightmare Moon was reminding her a lot of the psychological game of chess that the day court brought with it whenever she had to address certain nobles. But seeing as Nightmare Moon had been bound to a certain noble for a millennium, that really wasn't a surprising development to note. Further infuriating, but not all that surprising really.

"You look tired, Celestia. What's the matter, are you not getting enough rest?" Nightmare Moon crooned as she blocked yet another sword strike with her scythe, the sound of the two fields crackling against one another filling the air in the immediate area between them. "Do you need to lay down and take a nap? Maybe get a glass of warm milk?" she taunted further.

"Your concern is overwhelmingly touching," Celestia bit back, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she spoke. "I'll nap quite soundly after I make sure you're dead for good this time. In fact it'll be the second thing I do, after I send your head in to be stuffed and mounted!" she shrieked as she dragged the edge of her sword down along Nightmare Moon's scythe, before repositioning the blade to run parallel to the ground, and lunged forward is a strong thrusting motion to impale her opponent straight through the heart.

But such a simple move was insufficient for actually doing anything of effect against Nightmare Moon; a fact that was demonstrated as her opponent simply moved back, easily stepping out of the limited range over which she could extend her sword.

"Oh my! Crude and slow doesn't even begin to describe that one. I'm actually embarrassed for you, Sunbutt, thinking something like that might work against me," Nightmare Moon stated. "I'm also a little offended. I thought I was special to you. I guess I was wrong there."

"Oh you're certainly special, alright," Celestia quipped in response. "In fact you're so special to me, that I'm going to-"

"Sister!"

Celestia found her -admittedly vulgar- declaration of intent cut short as Luna's booming voice caught her attention, forcing her to acknowledge her sister's presence as she hovered next to her.

"Do not let her goad you into acting recklessly. You are smarter than her. You know that, I know that, and she knows that. That is why she is trying so hard to keep you unbalanced," Luna stated, "and succeeding at it, apparently," she muttered to herself.

Celestia grunted in response, Luna's snide comment not being quiet enough to totally escape her ears. She wanted to tell her sister to mind her own business, and that she could easily take care of herself. But she stopped short of doing such, as deep down she realized that Luna was indeed right. Despite everything Nightmare Moon had done to them, everything she'd done to her, she still had enough sense to realize when she was in the wrong on the matter. Allowing herself to succumb to the sheer amount of hatred she had in her right now, would do none of them any favors.

"You're right, Luna, you're right," she admitted as she forced herself to calm back down. "I'm allowing myself to get far too worked up over the desperate gambits, of nothing more than a mere gjenganger in this matter."

Nightmare Moon grunted at Celestia's insult and scowled at the two of them, but ultimately said nothing, refusing to lose her composure in the matter. She'd already allowed herself to lose far too much of her composure as it was, thanks to that pasty-faced, mass-murdering, bipedal abomination currently running around, and that stupid dragon with his stupid little enchanted hammer. She wasn't about to dignify them any further in their futile endeavors against her. And if they were going to be stubborn about it, then she was just going to have to up the ante in response.

"I wonder if you'd be saying the same thing about Ready Stance if he were here right now..." she practically purred.

One could practically feel the change in the air at Nightmare Moon's blatant taunt being issued without even a second thought. Whereas Luna and Celestia had been working at maintaining at least some form of composure and discipline over themselves, those efforts were swiftly fading in response. Ready Stance had been among the very best of day guard, and had served them loyally for many years. When it came to selecting which guards would look after Rainbow Dash during her suicide watch, he had been at the top of the list of candidates. His untimely demise -his murder at the hooves of Nightmare Moon- in the line of duty had been a great tragedy to the palace staff, to say nothing of his own family.

And to have his memory mocked by the one who had ultimately been responsible for killing him... that had been it. After that low blow of a taunt, Nightmare Moon was now going to be in for a world of pain that she couldn't possibly hope to comprehend. Even Luna couldn't bring herself to let such disrespect go without repercussions being soundly and vigorously delivered in response to this.

But nothing of the sort actually came to pass, as once again the air changed. Unlike the previous one, however this was a change that could literally be felt, and feeling it caused a sudden tremor running up the both of their spines.

A tremor of such magnitude, it caused an involuntary shudder throughout each of their bodies, much like being exposed to a cold arctic wind. It was all a very familiar, and very terrifying sensation to experience out of the blue. Terrifying enough that their focus was sufficiently broken, and their weapons dissolved back into the ether from whence they'd been summoned to begin with.

"Oh no..." Celestia practically squeaked out with wide, panic-filled eyes. This couldn't be happening to them, not now of all times! "Faust, please, not now..." she all but whimpered.

But her pleas were met only with screaming. Terrible, horrible screaming that defied rational explanation. Screaming that couldn't be typified and codified in a neat and orderly fashion. Screaming that was soon joined by an eruption of turbulent magical energies from behind their current position, that just served to further cement the fact that this was indeed happening, and it was happening right now!

The intensity of the eruption simply couldn't be emphasized enough. Lesser ponies might've easily been blown right off their hooves from being in close proximity to it. It was enough to draw both of their attentions away from Nightmare Moon herself, as they turned around to verify for themselves just what was going on.

Much as Celestia had feared, the disturbance was coming from Twilight herself. But this wasn't the same sort of disturbance they'd felt down in the prisons of Canterlot palace during the changeling invasion, when her outburst had resonated throughout the marble hallways, and destroyed a good portion of the throne room in the process. That had been worthy of concern on its own merits, but what was happening currently was far, far worse than that.

She'd only felt this with Twilight at one other point in time, and it had nearly ended in catastrophe. And it was just as terrifying right now, as it had been way back when she'd first met the little filly at the entrance exams.

In the few seconds that had passed since Twilight's inequine screaming began, her entire body erupted in a bright flash of light, as a lavender aura completely encompassed her, accompanied almost immediately by a second magical pulse emanating outward from her body, kicking up dust in every direction in the process. Nearly all of her companions had scattered -either of their own volition or otherwise- from the immediate area as the shock wave struck, and the aura expanded at least a meter in every direction. Right now it was difficult to tell if it was truly an aura, or if she'd erected a personal force field around herself.

For whatever reason, through whatever manner, a core breach event had been initiated.

"What're you waiting for?!"

The sudden yell had brought their attention back to their immediate surroundings, and they quickly realized that it was Nightmare Moon who was addressing the both of them.

That fact in and of itself was just... unusual. Rather than striking when their attention had been drawn elsewhere, she'd just been hanging back and hovering there, her own eyes wide with what they could only assume was terror at what she was witnessing for herself. Whatever it was, it had sufficiently shaken her focus to the point the cohesion of her scythe was no longer being maintained.

"Go to her, you foal! Go to her and stop her, before she blows us all to the Elysian Fields!" she shouted anxiously, her voice heavy with what sounded like genuine panic as she addressed Celestia directly. "What're you waiting for, you idiot?! I didn't work so hard to return to this world just for this! Defeating the two of you won't mean anything if she winds up killing all of us!"

Celestia was at a loss as her mind tried to process this information. Nightmare Moon was actually imploring her to act before it was too late. Not only that, but she was making no move that would suggest it was a trap to attack when her guard was dropped. This was all far, far too weird. Had she actually been driven insane by everything going on? Had the strain of leadership finally broken her mind?

"Go now, sister!" Luna screamed, breaking her out of her confusion. "Tend to Twilight Sparkle before it is too late! I shall tend to this demonic wench myself!" she stated as her once again summoned her halberd, more than ready to engage Nightmare Moon by herself, without having to worry about collateral damage getting in the way.

Celestia could do little more than nod in response as she placed her trust in Luna's capabilities. Right now she had to get to Twilight while there was still time.

---

Spike hadn't been in Canterlot for the changeling invasion, so naturally he hadn't observed a great many details transpire. He'd been forced to rely on others to relay what they'd witnessed for themselves, while he was left to coordinate things in Ponyville.

But their accounts had done nothing to prepare him for the sudden eruption of rage and power that was coming from Twilight right now! One moment they'd been discussing the aerial combat going on high over head, and the next thing he knew he was diving for cover, as she suddenly started roaring in a manner that'd scare a full-grown dragon!

Seeing Twilight angry wasn't anything new; growing up and living with her for as long as he had, it was impossible not to. He knew firsthoof -better than almost anypony- just what sort of temper she had about her. On more than one occasion, he'd witnessed how her anger seemed to manifest itself in the form of a blazing, fiery unicorn that looked like it could burn down all of Ponyville without even trying. But all of that just seemed to pale in comparison to what he was witnessing right now. He'd been scared before when Twilight lost her temper in a truly epic fashion, who wouldn't be? But this was truly something else. This felt way different than all the times before. It felt a lot more terrifying to be witnessing; terrifying enough that he honestly considered running away, for fear of what she might actually do.

He had no way of actually knowing it for himself, but his sentiments on the matter were shared equally by everypony in the immediate area. What they felt coming from Twilight was truly astounding and terrifying. Nothing like this, as far as they could remember, had ever been experienced before. And if they made it out of this alive, none of them wanted to experience it again either! It wasn't just frightening to experience, it was even downright painful to feel the degree of unstable magical energies radiating off of her body and against theirs. Energies that caused even the ground beneath their hooves to tremble, as if even it was afraid of her right now.

And then there was the matter of her screaming. Terrible, horrible screaming that chilled them to the bones. To the very marrow of their bones! Screaming that simply shouldn't have been possible with either the structure of her diaphragm, or the capacity of her lungs.

Not even Ulquiorra was immune to experiencing concern over these developments. However his concerns were of an entirely different nature.

Much like the others, his primary focus had been on the aerial combat unfolding high above them. Yet even with his attention being directed toward the dogfight between the three combatants -and their utter incompetence in that field- it had still been impossible for the disturbances in the area to actually escape being sensed by his pesquisa. He had detected them early on, how they'd been coming from Twilight Sparkle herself, and how they'd growing throughout the entire demonstration. Not simply growing in strength, but growing in terms of magnitude and instability. These hadn't been steady increases that suggested a deliberate course of action, but rather an uncontrolled reaction of some sort; like a freak accident that resulted from negligence on the part of one demonstrating carelessness.

During his time in Equestria, he had -unwittingly- become familiar with the nuances of various ponies in how they went about conducting themselves. Among those varying nuances was what it felt like when they went about working their magic. Much like individual reiatsu patterns, each pony had their own unique feel when they actually worked their magic, be it unicorn, earth pony, pegasus, or even alicorn magic. And what he was feeling right now, wasn't what he'd come to associate with Twilight Sparkle.

If Twilight Sparkle's magical abilities could be adequately described as a sculptor engaged in the process of bringing a statue into existence, what was being witnessed right now would be more akin to an avalanche bring triggered down a mountainside; rough, unrefined, and a great magnitude larger when it came to the destruction of existing stone. It wasn't like anything he'd felt being demonstrated by her before; not even back in Canterlot during the changeling invasion, when she'd directed the entirety of her fury against him.

Random, unguided speculation wasn't a course of action he was particularly known for engaging in; rather it was something he objected to doing, preferring instead to rely on facts rather than being guided by blind guesswork. But even with that fact in mind, based on what facts were currently in evidence, one conclusion immediately leapt to the forefront of his mind; he was witnessing a core meltdown in effect. More than likely a slow burn core meltdown as well. It was a possibility that would certainly explain what he was currently experiencing.

He'd witnessed the aftermath of a core meltdown once before already, and observed what the scope of the damage had been then. If that was what an average unicorn could do, he really didn't want to contemplate what the scope of damage would be from a unicorn as advanced as Twilight Sparkle. There was no telling just how many lives would be lost as a result of that being allowed to occur.

With such facts -and possibilities- in mind, there was only one course of action coming to mind, that struck him as being the most logical to engage in at this point in time.

He immediately stepped forward, raising his right arm in the process as he fully extended his hand, and quickly brought it down perpendicular with the current position of her neck, right at the base of her skull. Killing her would be infinitely kinder than allowing her to die as a result of what she was currently experiencing, along with potentially averting the core meltdown before it reached critical mass.

Unfortunately that wasn't what happened. Before his hand even made contact with the fur on the back of her neck, he could feel the clash between their respective reiatsus occurring. Within seconds the force of the clash caused his arm -as well as the rest of him- to recoil back violently, as everything below the elbow was completely vaporized, leaving him with nothing but a ragged stump, and confusion as to just what happened. Not simply what, but also how. If she could do that to his hierro currently...

He was vaguely aware of the fact that the others were talking, but he wasn't focusing on what they were saying, as there were more important matters at hand now. If he couldn't kill Twilight Sparkle in an effort to stop the core meltdown, he would simply have to utilize his sonido in an effort to get her as far away from the rest of them as possible before she reached critical mass. If they should lose the diarchy -if such was actually possible- Equestria itself and everyone that lived in it likely wouldn't be far behind.

"Move aside!"

But even those plans didn't make it to fruition before being interrupted. His arm wasn't even finished regrowing as Princess Celestia swept into the scene from behind their current position.

Confusion reigned supreme as the lot of them watched Celestia trot over, and promptly sit down on her haunches behind Twilight, before reaching out and wrapping her forelegs around her midsection, and pulling her into what could best be described as a bear hug, lifting her right up off the ground as she continued screaming.

---

"Twilight! Twilight! Where are you, Twilight? Can you hear me?"

Entering a pony's mind directly was a far different process than merely reading their mind. It was a process that was far more difficult to perform effectively, and required both far greater effort and finesse, as well as greater skill in general. Thoughts could be scanned and read with comparatively little effort, because it was so hard for a pony to turn their mind off and actually stop thinking about things, especially when nervous. But to actually gain access to the inner workings of their consciousness, that was an entirely different process.

The process was similar to the dream walking that Luna performed, but at the same time very different. Dream walking dealt with the unconscious mind, when a pony's defenses were naturally relaxed and open to such. The conscious mind, however, was very much aware, and very resistant to whatever was deemed an intrusion from an outside source; that was one of the primary reasons brainwashing a pony was so difficult to pull off effectively.

It was for those reasons she was fortunate -as well as thankful- that Twilight's mental defenses were currently down, since having to try and mentally overpower her would only make the matter all the worse.

Getting in, even under such circumstances, was the easy part. Once she actually was in, however, that was when things really became difficult. The only reason Twilight's defenses had been down in the first place, was because of just how much pain she was currently in; just setting hoof into her student's mental territory was almost overwhelming even for her! But she had to press on! Somewhere in this din of chaos, in this maelstrom of colors, noises, and sensations that roared with the ferocity of the most violent winds, her student was in desperate need of help.

Hatred. That was what she was feeling right now as she tried to find Twilight. So, so very much unyielding, unquenchable hatred; far too much hatred for one who was still so young. It honestly scared her just how strong and palpable it felt right now; to know that it was all coming from Twilight herself, and was all directed at Nightmare Moon.

But at the same time she was sensing a great magnitude of fear. Fear of what was going on around her, and within her. She was aware of what was going on right now, and it scared her deeply, putting it at odds with the seething hatred, the two emotions in a tug of war to see which was more dominant, and which would reign supreme.

"Twilight! If you can hear me, please answer me!" she called out again.

"Princess!"

She heard it. Through all of the noise of chaos and negativity surrounding her, she heard it. Twilight's mind was receptive to her presence here, meaning there was still a chance to be had. She couldn't actually see her student, but she could still feel her presence close at hoof.

"Princess! I'm so sorry I yelled at you like I did! I never should've said those horrible things, I'm sorry! Please! Please make it stop!"

Even here, even over the din that was assaulting her senses, she could still hear the utter panic in Twilight's voice; much as she did the last time they were here.

"It hurts so much! Please! I don't want to die like this! Please make it stop!"

"It's going to be alright, Twilight, I promise you, you're not going to die; not here, and certainly not like this. It's going to be alright."

She knew that she needed to be calm right now, no matter how much she wanted to share in Twilight's current panicking. She knew that if she gave in, then all hope really would be lost.

"I know that you're afraid right now, Twilight, but I need you to focus. You need to bring your magic back under control before it's too late."

"I can't do it! I can't! There's so much magic; too much magic! I can't get it under control!"

"Yes you can, Twilight, yes you can! I know you can do this, I believe in you, my most faithful student."

"But I can't! I'm not strong enough to do this by myself!"

"You won't be doing this alone, Twilight, I'm right here beside you. I'll be helping you through every step of the process, but this is something that you need to do. I'll keep your magic contained, but you need to bring it back under your control. I need you to do this, your friends need you to do this."

"A-alright. Alright. I'll do my best..."

Had it been anypony else, the claim of them doing their best might be seen as indicating a half-hearted attempt that they wouldn't follow through with, due to accepting their defeat before even making the first move. But Celestia knew that wasn't the case with Twilight. If she said she would do her best, then she seriously meant it.

"Very good then..."

---

Forty seven seconds. Forty seven seconds, and everything had changed. Ulquiorra had no idea as to just what had happened in that short span of time, only the aftermath. The reiatsu levels being demonstrated by Twilight Sparkle were no longer in a range he would immediately classify as being a danger to everyone around her, and they were dropping, both steadily and sharply, to levels far more readily associated with her.

Whatever Princess Celestia had done in that short span of time, a Chernobyl-type event no longer seemed like a definite possibility.

As the glow of unstable magical energies faded from view, he -and by extension the rest of them- could see Twilight Sparkle keeping her body rigid and tense, before going limp and slumping back against Princess Celestia for support, and looking physically exhausted. Considering how close she'd come to dying in a spectacularly violent fashion, her current condition was understandable. More than likely, she was out of this confrontation for the duration. Not that she had actually been contributing much of anything since the start of it all, but any potential involvement on her part now would be unlikely at best.

All of that, however, was immaterial to the current matter. Now that the crises relating to Twilight Sparkle had been resolved, they could once again return their attention to the matter of putting a more permanent end to Nightmare Moon.

---

Celestia breathed a sigh of relief as her senses came back to the real world, allowing her to feel Twilight slouching back against her. As she heard her panting for air -intermingled with a squeak that would've been adorable under different circumstances- she knew all was well with her student once again.

Or at least as well as it could be, when the matter pertained to her own body, rather than their current situation. Twilight might not be in danger of experiencing a core breech right now, but there was still the matter of Nightmare Moon to tend with.

Placing a quick kiss atop her student's head, just behind her horn, she made ready to reengage the original threat of the evening.

"Goodness! Are you alright, darling? What was that just now?" she heard Rarity asked as she stepped closer, her voice heavy with worry for the well being of her friend.

"Yeah, Twilight, what was that? You shot my ass, like, six feet with that," Rainbow Dash added, more curious than concerned.

The others present -minus Ulquiorra- expressed similar curiosity on the matter, wondering about what Twilight had demonstrated to them just a short time ago, and presenting a number of questions in short order. That complicated the matter, and she knew it full well.

"I'm afraid now isn't the time to be asking such questions," she spoke up in an effort to bring the matter back under control. Leaving Twilight alone to answer the numerous questions would only make the situation worse. "I'll explain the matter to all of you, but not right now; there's simply no time for such. Right now, I need to get back up there and help Luna before it's too late," she stated, hoping the promise of answers would sate them until things had managed to calm down a little.

"Princess... wait..."

It was a weak request, delivered with all the strength of one who couldn't catch their breath. But it was loud enough to catch Celestia's attention, and bring that attention back to Twilight once again. She looked completely exhausted, but still struggling defiantly in an effort to get out whatever had motivated her to speak up in the first place.

"Yes, Twilight? What is it?"

"You-" Twilight panted, "you can't go back in there. Nightmare Moon is playing you and Luna against each other. You... you can't fight her effectively, because she's putting each of you in the line of fire when you attack..."

Celestia paused, having not expected such a statement. Before she could even inquire further, Twilight was already launching into an explanation of what she was talking about.

"Any time one of you engages her directly, the other has to pull back as a result. Luna's been having to hold herself back each time you go on the offensive against Nightmare Moon, because she doesn't want to hurt you. It's exactly what she did when she popped right into the middle of town, right in front of everypony; you couldn't attack her then, because there were too many innocent bystanders in the line of fire," she detailed as she moved to sit back up under her own power once again.

As far as Twilight could see, this was just another in a long line of similar acts Nightmare Moon had perpetrated in her campaign of fear.

She looked upward, trying to gauge how Luna was doing in one-on-one combat against Nightmare Moon. As best she could determine, she was faring better on her own, now that she didn't have to restrain herself like she had been, and was more able to go all out in lashing at her quarry. Now that it was a solo engagement, Nightmare Moon was having a far harder time actually defending against Luna's onslaught, and her balance was being broken bit by bit. That calm, cool, collected disposition of hers was taking a beating, and her movements were more jerky, almost carrying a sense of being frantic as she had nopony to hide behind any longer.

"Luna... Luna can take care of herself in this matter. Sisters shouldn't fight against each other like common enemies..." she muttered.

"That's not right," Pinkie mumbled, "that's not right at all! That's low even for Nightmare Moon!"

"She's a villain, darling, one can hardly expect her to observe any rules relating to the concepts of decency or fair play," Rarity commented, not certain of what else to say in light of everything going on.

"That might be the case, but Ah'm in agreement with Pinkie on this one," Applejack growled. "Ah get that Nightmare Moon's killed other ponies and whatnot, but actually playing yer own kin against ya like that? Ah swear, if she were down here where Ah could actually get mah hooves on 'er, Ah'd pound 'er flatter than an apple turnover!"

"Well, if you can get me up there, I can probably manage to arrange that," Spike commented as he tightened the hold he had on his hammer. "Break both of her wings, maybe crack her on the horn a few times for good measure, you might just get your chance to do it," he stated, his mind already running through what might be necessary to pull off such a daring assault.

Had Spike not spoken up when he did, Ulquiorra would've pointed out to Applejack that even if Nightmare Moon was at ground level, her tenacity would've done no good in this matter. His own physical strength had yielded no lasting effects against her prior to their arrival, and even the diarchy weren't faring much better on their own.

But then he heard Spike's comment about attacking Nightmare Moon's horn, and paused in thought. Based on his readings about pony physiology, a unicorn's horn was incredibly sensitive to injury, and a sufficient blow could interrupt their magical abilities for an extended period. The same facts was even noted regarding changelings. Barring evidence to the contrary -which he had yet to find- there was no reason to believe that the same didn't apply to alicorns as well. He couldn't help but wonder just what would become of all that magical strength of Nightmare Moon's, if her horn was attacked directly. What would be left if they could actually pull off something like that? If her horn could be broken, or perhaps cut off entirely, what strength would she be able to draw on then?

With so little information on alicorns, it was difficult to conclude just what would happen. But at the very least, it stood to reason that things would fare badly for Nightmare Moon under such circumstances.

"I'm afraid that I have to object on such a course of action," Princess Celestia spoke up as she stood back up again, interrupting his train of thought before it could go too far. "There's far too much risk to yourself by going with such a plan of attack, Spike, even if it might work. I'm afraid that, right now, even if you are a dragon, you're simply too young to be going all out like that. But you did manage to give me another idea, and it's one you can actually help with," she continued.

Spike had wanted to object at being sidelined to easily, especially on the basis of his age. But then he stopped when Celestia said that he could actually help with what she apparently had in mind. that had his attention real quick.

"Yeah? What do I need to do?" he asked, eager to be of actual assistance once again.

"Just stand right there, and all will be revealed soon enough," Celestia stated as her horn began to glow with a golden aura, before it switched to a dark pink aura.

The aerial combat between Luna and Nightmare Moon was temporarily forgotten about, no longer at the forefront of their minds as curiosity over what Celestia was intended asserted itself over them. Several of them back in surprise as a beam shot forth from her horn and engulfed Spike's body, himself included, but other than that nothing appeared to be happening. Or at least it looked that way until her own body began glowing once again, this time with the same dark pink aura.

"Luna will have her turn, but I'm going to be ready for re-engagement regardless."

Ulquiorra watched, trying to figure out just what Princess Celestia had in mind for a counter assault against Nightmare Moon. The magic she was using right now was unlike anything he'd ever felt before, but that wasn't saying very much, as he'd only bore witness to a limited number of spells being cast during his time here in Equestria. As to how this magic involved Spike, that was another mystery in itself that-

And then he had his answer. As he watched, Princess Celestia's appearance began to change. He had no idea how to go about describing the manner of change itself unfolding, as it seemed to defy a basic explanation. But suffice to say, the image of the white alicorn was giving way to something else that looked to lay just beneath the surface. Even the armor itself was changing in form to coincide with what was going on.

Leg joints were reoriented, as fur and feather was quickly replaced by scale and membrane in their place. Two curved back horns thrust themselves into existence, appearing on either side of her skull at the back of her now wedge-shaped head, as neapolitan-colored frills on the sides of her skull quickly replaced her flowing mane. A long row of sharp looking white spines ran down her equally white back and very long, reptilian tail, from the base of her skull, all the way down to a tail tuft of fur that matched the frills. Horseshoes were morphed into what could best be described as golden plate mail gauntlets, as hooves were swapped out and replaced with claws, with individual articulated digits -a total of five digits on each limb- and each topped off with a sharp talon on the end. Articulated digits that effortlessly clacked against the hard ground in an individual manner as they were being flexed for the first time.

Princess Celestia had transformed herself into a dragon. That was the simplest, most comprehensive way he could think of how to explain what he'd just witnessed. But it was unlike any dragon he'd ever seen before. Not that he'd actually ever seen many dragons to begin with, but that was beside the point right now.

The form was a strange mix of traits and attributes that didn't really look like they belonged together. While the majority of Princess Celestia's body was composed of white scales, those that ran along her underside, from her chin down to her tail, bore the same coloration as the frills on the sides of her head; as did the leathery membranes on her wings. Her horn -her original horn- had taken on a mother of pearl sheen, setting it apart from the whiteness of her scales.

Coloration aside, there were physical aspects that seemed entirely out of place. The tuft of fur on the end of her scaly tail looked utterly bizarre, and clashed significantly with the overall reptilian presentation. Such was more appropriate for the illustration of a dragon that was based upon the lore of the nation of China, what with its slender, almost sinewy build that...

His mental evaluation of Princess Celestia's new form suddenly ceased, coming to an almost screeching halt as his mind immediately changed course in the pondering of details. How exactly had this particular form come about? Was it something that had occurred on its own, based solely on a pony becoming a dragon? Or had she possessed control over the final product, and actually guided it, molding it into what was now before them?

The claws, the wings, the slender frame, the two prominent horns on her head, the way in which the joints on all four of her limbs were oriented and could bend...

This form that stood before them, as close as he could tell, looked as if it was heavily inspired by his own Segunda Etapa form...

Had Princess Celestia discovered it when she'd read his mind during their first meeting? Had she actually come across that information? And if so, was this newfound dragonic form her own subtle -if not unintentional- way of letting him know that she knew about it? Perhaps it had been chosen less on the basis of letting him know that she knew, and more on the basis of its perceived strength?

There were far, far too many questions going on right now, and not nearly enough answers to go around! When this was all over, whoever was still left alive at the end of it, they were undoubtedly going to sit down, and have a very long conversation about all of this.

"Holy fuck," Rainbow Dash stated in an almost breathless tone as the aura faded, giving an unobstructed view of the end result. "That... that's just too awesome to put into words..."

"I'll say," Spike replied, dumbfounded and just about slack-jawed by the whole thing. If Celestia could do that, then... nope. Best not think about such things right now!

The various responses of the others fell on the deaf ears of Twilight, who was left in awe at witnessing Celestia's seemingly effortless transformation from alicorn to dragon. Spells that allowed for such actually existed!?

She had to find that spell! She had to learn how to do stuff like that herself!

"If a dragon is what we need, then a dragon we shall have..." Celestia growled, although her voice was far too soft to properly match the form it came from. However the act was still enough to give a glimpse at the numerous sharp teeth that now filled the mouth of her new form.

Twilight shook her head, suddenly coming back to her senses as she heard Celestia's words. She didn't recall them ever concluding that the situation needed the intervention of a dragon. Spike had volunteered to beat the living fuck out of Nightmare Moon with his hammer, but that would've just presented the same complications as if Celestia had been allowed to jump back into the fray once again. She honestly wasn't seeing how this sudden development made any real, beneficial difference in the current matter, that would warrant it being brought up in the first place.

Now that she thought about it, this new development might even make the situation worse than it would've been otherwise, if Celestia had simply joined back in as she had been. Could she even use her magic right now, in this current body of hers? Was something like that at all possible?

"This night fiend has already drawn her last breath," Celestia continued as she arose from her sitting position. "Her corpse just hasn't realized it yet..."

---

Uninhibited in her combat, and able to go all out without a fear of collateral damage being left in her wake as a result of such, Luna was able to easily deduce an accurate assessment of the situation; Nightmare Moon was no weakling.

She certainly danced about a fair bit, avoiding a fair percentage of direct engagement as she did so, but when the two of them did actually engage, this weapons clashing and sparking as they tried to overpower one another, it was easy to see that she was competent, and capable of holding her own in this battle with little in the way of trouble.

That wasn't to say she was insurmountable, however; far from it actually. Despite their clashes being brief, they had been quite intense, and she was starting to show signs of being winded as a result. Much like herself, she was slouching and panting, as mutual glares of hatred and contempt were exchanged between the two of them, as each prepared to go at one another again.

Originally this had been purely to give Celestia the opportunity and time necessary to tend to Twilight Sparkle while there was still time to prevent what was attempting to happen, without being interrupted when she was at her most vulnerable. But that was then, and this was now. And right now, she was intent on bringing an end to all of this on her own. Just as soon as she caught her breath again. The crisis with Twilight Sparkle had passed, so she didn't have to concern herself with that at least.

"I must admit," Nightmare Moon panted, "you're not nearly as weak as your big sister is. It's quite surprising really. I guess it comes from not stuffing yourself with as much cake as she does."

"You do not even know the half of it. The bakers up in Canterlot are making a small fortune off of her fat ass," Luna shot back, primarily to rob Nightmare Moon of any glee that would be had from such a petty and insulting taunt. That, and there had been a measure of truth to it, but she didn't need to know that.

Her halberd brought to bear, she prepared to launch herself back at her foe once again, but stopped just before doing such as strange sound met her ears. It sounded almost like the leathery flapping of thestral wings approaching, only it was a lot louder than what she'd heard being produced by those on her staff. What could possibly be coming to interfere with them now? Did Nightmare Moon have friends and minions at her disposal now?

"Luna..."

Now her curiosity was really piqued at hearing her sister's voice from behind her. Her sister's voice, and leathery wing flaps. She gave Nightmare Moon a cautious look -who presently looked somewhat dumbfounded- before turning around to see what Celestia was up to.

What she saw was completely unexpected.

"What? What in the-"

"Might I be of assistance?" Celestia asked as she hovered about in place.

"... In that form?" Luna asked, uncertain of what else to say in response to this particular development. Did Celestia even know how to make use of such a form?

"Well, we didn't really have a cockatrice on hoof, so..." Celestia muttered and shrugged.

Luna felt the urge to groan. That was what Celestia decided to go with, in explaining not only herself, but also her own conduct? Really?

Suddenly -far more suddenly than Luna would've thought possible- Celestia lunged at her, latching onto her left foreleg with her newly formed claw, and forcefully flung her back behind her. It'd all happened so fast, she didn't even have time to properly process the exact sequence of events! Angrily, she turned around to glare at her sister, prepared to give her an earful for her course of action, but stopped at what she saw. Nightmare Moon had lunged at them while her back was turned, and had struck at the both of them with her scythe; the same scythe that Celestia had pulled her out of the path of, and had directly intercepted by using the back of her own armored claw as if it were a physical shield!

Had Celestia not acted when she did, she would've potentially been killed before she had time to realize what was going on.

"Go, Luna! Stay with Ulquiorra and the others where it's safe! I'll tend to this!" she heard her sister yell, snapping out of her shock at just how close she'd come to being killed.

Luna didn't even have time to utter a response, before Celestia pressed the assault against Nightmare Moon, much to her surprise. Just as hour ago she'd been the one pulling up the slack, and trying to keep everything together. Now all of the sudden, her sister had actually pulled herself together, for the sake of protecting her from harm. This... this was most certainly going to be something else...

---

Everything had happened so fast, it left Nightmare Moon uncertain of exactly what transpired until after the fact. Celestia had been fast enough to not only perceive her attack, but react to it as well. She had pulled Luna out of the path of the attack before it could be landed, and thrust herself forward for the purpose of using her own body as a shield, to intercept and stop the travel of her scythe blade.

Their eyes met briefly, only for an instant. But it had been long enough for Nightmare Moon to see the unrestrained killing intent that Celestia's eyes held, and all focused solely on her. In that instant, she actually felt something she hadn't felt before; fear. It was a deep, primal sort of fear that only resonated on the instinctual level, sending a shiver up her spine. It was far different from what she'd felt when Twilight had been at risk of a core breech.

This was a most interesting development. Certainly unexpected, but most definitely interesting!

"Well then, Celestia, if that's how you feel, then let's see just what you can do!"

The words had just barely left her lips when Celestia immediately swooped into action, switching from defense to offense as she swept her scythe out of the way, and lunged forward to grab her by the face with surprising speed.

She felt pain from her muzzle being slammed and pressed against her own helmet, and the skin on her nose being scraped against the rough surface of the underside of Celestia's claw as she was held firm. The impact had been hard enough, and jarring enough, she'd lost the cohesion of her scythe. But at the same time, despite her vision being obstructed by the individual digits of the claw in her face, she was still quite aware of the fact that she was being taken for a ride as Celestia dragged/shoved her along for their shared flight, with her being held out in front of her!

The next thing she felt was the impact of her back being slammed into the trunk of a tree, which quickly morphed into being slammed right through the tree, kicking up a storm of slivers and wooden shrapnel flying in every direction. Her mind hadn't even finished processing such before she found it being repeated a second time. Then a third. After the fourth tree was reduced to kindling she lost count, as her mind was left swimming from the rapid, painful input she was being subjected to.

This wasn't acceptable by any stretch of the imagination. As it was already, it was going to take her hours to get all of the splinters out of her butt.

Glaring through the claws obstructing her vision, she focused on Celestia's face as best she could, and let loose a magical bolt that caught her right between her eyes. Certainly not the most powerful of attacks she could've launched, but it was enough to get Celestia roaring in response, and letting go of her as she cradled her own face. She would've smirked at seeing her opponent in pain, but right now had far more important things on her mind than simple gloating; like putting a lot of distance between them. Immediately she took off straight up, flying high into the sky to put herself out of Celestia's reach before she could be grabbed again.

This really wasn't going the way she'd envisioned it. She'd accounted for numerous possibilities in order to secure her victory, but somehow Celestia taking on the form of a freaking dragon hadn't been a contingency she'd anticipated developing.

Oh well, no matter! Celestia could take on the form of a hydra for all she cared, it still wouldn't make any difference in this matter. She wasn't about to be bested by her oldest of foes simply because she was playing dress up.

"Here me, Celestia!" she bellowed as she stopped her ascent, and opted instead to hover as she addressed the forest below. "Your little temper tantrum won't do you any good in this fight! I'm your superior, now as I've always been, and nothing you can do will ever change that fact! I am the true Queen of Equestria, not you, you insignificant worm!" she howled as her horn glowed.

She watched as Celestia breached the treetops, aiming her entire body for her position on a collision course. Nightmare Moon smirked in response to this occurring.

Summoning her scythe was discarded in favor of another course of action, in this case it was barraging Celestia with a tempest of magical blasts raining down on her scaly hide, pelting and pummeling her with superior firepower that would humble even Luna's earlier wing barrage against her.

She watched in glee as Celestia was forced to shield herself against the proverbial hailstorm of a magical onslaught being unleashed upon her position, unable to escape it. She had to guard her face with her forelegs while allowing the rest of herself to be pelted, meaning it was only a matter of time before her wings could no longer keep her aloft, and she'd be sent crashing to the ground, and breaking who knew how many bones in the process of her unplanned landing.

"Cower you-"

As it turned out, Celestia hadn't actually been cowering when she'd been shielding herself with her forelegs.

Instead she'd been bracing herself as she plowed ahead undeterred, slamming into Nightmare Moon head on -right in the face no less!- before she could even finish her taunt, hitting her with enough force to not only break off the attack, but send her reeling -as well as flying- from the force of the forward momentum that'd been imparted on her at the moment of impact, while simultaneously demonstrating that physics hurt! The last part was only emphasized all the more as she found herself being slapped across the face by Celestia's muscly tail as she passed by.

Her head hurt, her ears were ringing, her vision was blurry, she wasn't certain if she was right side up or upside down, and she was feeling the distinct urge to hurl at the moment. Celestia had hit her with all the force of a speeding freight train with that little maneuver of hers just now. That old bag of bones had a lot more surprises to her than had originally been anticipated. But no matter, it was a small issue that would quickly be resolved. She would clear her senses and get righted again, and then Celestia would really be getting it!

"Where are the foals?"

Her disorientation and discomfort were immediately forgotten about as the growling hiss was practically whispered in her ear. Immediately she moved to escape, but quickly found herself being grabbed and put in a headlock, with her neck held firmly in the crook of Celestia's left foreleg, with her claw pressed against the side of her head.

"I'll ask you one more time, Nightmare Moon. If you don't answer me this time, I'll rip your head right off your neck, right here and now," Celestia growled, her hot breath being exhaled against her neck in a manner that sent unpleasant chills down her back once again. "Now tell me. Where are the foals?"

"Close enough at hoof they can practically be touched," Nightmare Moon wheezed. "And yet, simultaneously far enough away as to be completely unreachable," she added after a beat.

She suddenly tensed up at a most painful sensation, which she could only conclude was Celestia using one of her claws to cut the skin on her cheek and draw blood. Perhaps the answer she'd gotten had displeased her. But she refused to let on to just how much pain the simple act was actually causing her; she wouldn't give Celestia the satisfaction of it all.

"Why did you murder Ready Stance?" Celestia asked as the severity of her tone increased further.

"Who, your precious guard? Why not? He served his purpose, there was no point in leaving him alive afterward. He'd just be a loose end if I'd left him alive..."

Nightmare Moon wheezed as she felt Celestia's hold on her neck beginning to tighten from the muscles in her foreleg flexing. She definitely didn't like that answer.

"And Doctor Thrush? What reason could you have for murdering him as you did? What could he have possibly done to deserve that!?" Celestia demanded to know, practically shrieking as she presented the question.

Now Nightmare Moon grinned. Celestia was dangerously close to losing her composure, and she could feel it.

"He had the audacity to pervert my nights by inducing a fear of the dark in that stupid pegasus. Her, I don't care anything about, but I refuse to stand a mortal tarnishing my gift to them!" she stated as firmly as she could under the present circumstances. "Under the circumstances, you would've done the same thing..."

The mutilation of her face was quickly ended, as was the headlock, and she found herself being forcefully whirled around, forced to face Celestia directly.

"I would never murder one of my subjects! I'm NOTHING like you, Nightmare Moon!" she shouted/roared fiercely.

Nightmare Moon, in turn, found the energy to chuckle at Celestia's words, and the manner in which they were delivered.

"You obviously don't know what I do, Celestia. You didn't see the sickness, the depravity that was in his mind. Your words wouldn't flow so freely, so readily, if you knew what was really in his heart, just beneath that professional veneer of his. Thrush, that subject of yours, that was a true monster in pony form," she stated in a low, firm tone.

Of the many minds that she had poked around during her reconstitution phase, laying the groundwork for her return, his had stuck out. The things that he had done to so many throughout his career. She had done the kingdom a favor by removing him from it.

"His wasn't the only disturbed mind I've seen, his weren't the only secrets I've come to possess," she continued on. "Thrush wasn't the only one lying, and hiding his true self, Daybreaker..." she added in a tone just above a whisper, and delivered with a smirk.

The look of utter shock on Celestia's face was exquisite. If only she were in possession of some manner of somehow preserving it for all eternity. She had big plans for that face.

But unfortunately, it ended far too quickly, as said face reverted back to a look of barely subdued rage.

"Do you have any last words to share while you can still talk?" Celestia asked as she drew her right claw back, straightening all of her individual talons in preparation of delivering a vicious -and fatal- strike.

"Just seven, actually," Nightmare Moon replied, "you forgot about my horn, you idiot..."

Celestia hadn't even been able to fully process what Nightmare Moon was saying in time to actually respond and react, before her opponent's horn flared to life, and the grip she had on her neck was forcefully disengaged, before two shod hooves were slammed into her armored chest with enough force to shove her away.

"You're so incompetent it makes me sick!" Nightmare Moon stated as she summoned her scythe once again. "Equestria is soon going to have the ruler it both needs and deserves! And that rule will be heralded by your death!" she roared as she lunged forward, swinging her scythe right for Celestia's exposed neck.

---

The fight between Celestia and Nightmare Moon hadn't been going anything at all like Twilight had expected it to. It was pretty much as simple as that.

Then again, she hadn't known exactly what she'd been expecting, when she first saw Celestia transform into a dragon, but she was reasonably certain that what she was currently witnessing hadn't been it. Maybe the demonstration of a magical tirade against Nightmare Moon that would make her own brush with near-death look like a firecracker in comparison. Or maybe the reveal of as-of-yet unknown secrets about the alicorn species. Those had certainly been regarded as possible developments when Celestia decided to enter the fray once again. But certainly not a dragon, and certainly not... any of this...

If she had to speculate, the form has been chosen to satisfy some base, primal desire for a physical, even visceral satisfaction that couldn't be achieved through the exchange of magical bolts being fired, or combat spells being weaved; Celestia certainly hadn't been shy about getting up close for the purpose of delivering brutal blows against Nightmare Moon, even if it meant putting herself in the line of fire. It was a risky gambit to take, even under the best of circumstances.

Further speculation would suggest that the scales of her new form were up to the task of shielding her from harm. She had tanked a number of bolts in her skirmish against Nightmare Moon, and was presently showing no signs of being worse for wear, although it was hard to say for certain without an up close examination once she was back on the ground. Right now it was just a hypothesis that her being over a thousand years old, had directly translated into her newfound form having a thousand year developed carapace that gave her the same sort of protection as a naturally born dragon at that age. If that was the case, then it was doubtful that Nightmare Moon could present anything that would actually hurt Celestia.

But all of this protection came at an apparently steep price. Celestia was demonstrating significant levels of speed, strength, and even agility, allowing her to close distances and avoid attacks while delivering same, but they had all been of the physical nature. She had yet to see a single magical attack delivered, which at the very least strongly suggested that becoming a dragon had left her devoid of any offensive or defensive magical capabilities.

That fact put her at a significant tactical disadvantage in this fight, as Nightmare Moon could reach out and touch her from an extended distance; a fact that had been demonstrated a number of times throughout their aerial combat. And even though it didn't look like Celestia was taking damage, Nightmare Moon could still ensnare her in a telekinetic hold, and just plain throw her away, and leave her vulnerable to a counterattack. The fact that such a tactic hadn't been exploited to make her open to a scythe attack had been nothing short of a miracle so far.

Much as she hated to admit it, everything served to suggest that both Celestia and Nightmare Moon were engaged in a stalemate. Unless some outside intervention should develop, this was likely going to come down to a question of who possessed the most stamina, and who could keep their composure the longest. If they were left to their own devices, this might go on all night before anything resembling a conclusion was had.

Making it all worse was the fact that there wasn't much that any of them could do to help in the matter. Even if they could somehow intervene directly, they'd simply wind up putting themselves at risk of being attacked in the mix, or Nightmare Moon taking advantage of their involvement, and making hostages out of them yet again. That would just serve to make a bad situation even worse. The only one among them who might stand a chance of achieving some good was Ulquiorra, and she wasn't about to ask him to actually put himself at risk like that. If he hadn't thought to do something like that on his own, then it probably wasn't her place to be suggesting it as a course of action.

"Is any o' this makin' sense to ya, sugarcube?" she heard Applejack ask, tearing her attention away from the current clash unfolding overhead.

She simply shook her head in response as she glanced down at the forest floor. "Very little has been making sense since the start of all this. But then again real life rarely makes sense."

"Isn't there anything we can do to help?" Pinkie asked, her voice heavy and anxious as she spoke.

"I believe we're already helping as best we can, Pinkie, by simply staying out of the way while Celestia does her thing," Rarity explained.

Twilight nodded silently in agreement. Much as she hated to admit it, sometimes the best -if not only- available course of action was to simply do nothing, if not just stay out of the way of those who knew what they were doing. That was assuming Celestia did know what she was doing. Honestly, she was starting to think the best thing they could've done, was simply stay out of the way, let Ulquiorra do his thing, and then pick up the pieces afterward. He was the most proficient one of them when it came to dealing and dispatching death, as well as the most practical. They'd all succumbed to be emotionally charged at the time when deciding to come here, and that meant-

"Incoming!"

At Spike's yell, every set of eyes that had been focused elsewhere immediately turned skyward to see that Nightmare Moon had decided to turn her focus on them, and sent a magical blast hurtling in their direction!

Twilight mentally stumbled, trying to recall the spell used for conjuring a force field.

Ulquiorra's hand was already on the hilt of his zanpakutō at the call, but Luna's reaction was far faster, immediately bringing forth a shield spell to intercept the blast before it could do any damage.

Celestia's intervention, however, had come completely out of left field. They had failed to notice the swooping dive she'd engaged in, throwing herself into the path of the attack, and using her own body to intercept and break it before it could reach their position.

The impact of the attack had been enough to knock her right out of the air, slamming her into Luna's defenses in the process, and leaving her pinned between them for the duration.

"Sister!"

The force field was cancelled out as fast as Luna could manage, but the damage had already been done. Celestia fell to the ground in a heap, tendrils of smoke wafting up off her form as she laid there motionless.

Despite the distance between them being measured in feet, it might as well have been miles the way Luna felt as she crossed it to reach where Celestia currently laid.

"Sister, are you alright? Are you injured?" she asked frantically, all the while doing battle internally over whether or not to try and actually move Celestia.

Celestia groaned as she stirred, slowly picking herself back up off the forest floor. "I'll be alright," she grumbled and rubbed at her head, only to find the helmet she currently wore was in the way of achieving that goal. "But I'm going to need a masseuse when this is all over," she stated further as she straightened herself up again.

Luna shook her head. "Sister, this madness has gone on long enough. You have done quite well in all of this, but I am begging you to please stand down, and allow myself or Ulquiorra Cifer to take over on this matter!" she stated. Even if Celestia's body was up to the task, it was apparent that her mind wasn't. If it were, she would've known she didn't need to shield them with her own body as she just had.

"Your concern is touching, Luna, but I'm not out of this yet," she stated as she fully pushed herself back up into a standing position. "I need you and Ulquiorra where you are presently, in case Nightmare Moon tries to attack you and the others again. You keep them safe, and I'll tend to her."

"Well then you might wanna move it, because she's right there!" Rainbow Dash spoke up as she looked skyward.

Luna was going to protest Celestia's stubborn insistence on continuing to fight, but that plan was put on hold as she, too, looked up to see Nightmare Moon was glaring down at them, a cocky looking smirk adorning her features as she did. It was enough to make her want to charge head on and whip out her halberd once again.

The simple fact that she wasn't attacking them just yet was nothing less than unnerving.

"Well now, Celestia, your reflexes are certainly faster that I was expecting. I didn't think you'd actually be able to pull off such a maneuver," Nightmare Moon commented as she hovered above them, the smirk never leaving her face even once.

"Go fuck yourself!" Rainbow Dash yelled back in response, not caring if the comment was aimed at her or not. Right now she was very, very close, to going tearing off after her all on her own.

Nightmare Moon opted not to dignify Rainbow Dash's impotent retort with a response, and instead focus her attention back on Celestia, who was presently doing her best to glare at her angrily.

"You know, Celestia, at first I didn't have a clue what was going on, what with your manner of engagement. It's so primitive, so unimaginative. But now I understand exactly what you've done, and it's your own undoing," she cackled as she glared back at her. "It all makes so much sense now. The accelerated speed, the toughened carapace, the increased muscle mass... in your short-sighted rage, you gave up your magical aptitude, in favor of heightening all of your physical attributes, through usage of that new form. As if simply increasing your physical abilities, would ever be enough to deal with me!" she stated and laughed. Celestia was utterly pitiful, if she truly believed that brawn would ever triumph over magic!

"You're so wrong in your assumption of facts, it's not even funny anymore," Celestia growled as she crouched down, her long legs folding up at her sides, as her tail was brought to rest against the ground, and her forelegs brought to her front, each one of her claws digging and anchoring into the hard ground before her. "I still have plenty of magical aptitude accessible; more than enough to deal with the likes of you..."

Nightmare Moon cackled again at Celestia's boast. She obviously didn't know her subject matter, if she believed that being locked in a dragon's form would leave her access to any of her magical attributes; that was obviously the whole reason she'd gone with a bare-hoof beat down against her in the first place. She really must've been getting senile in her old age, that's all their was to it.

That, or she'd really scrambled her brain when she attacked her mind earlier in the evening.

"And what could you possibly do to me as you are now?" she asked and grinned wryly, knowing that it was nothing but hot air. For all of the beating that Celestia had delivered, she had nothing to actually show for her efforts, beyond a few minor bruises, scratches, and a couple of shallow cuts. She might be a little sore when tomorrow rolled around, but that was the extent of it.

Celestia, however, wasn't giving her anything that resembled an audible answer. Instead she just sat there, and opened her maw as if she were roaring, exposing her numerous sharp teeth, and... a ball of white/golden light forming right in the center of her mouth near the back of her throat, swirling into existence in a leftward direction, as vapor trails of like-colored mana energy were drawn into her opened mouth, and causing the ball to swell in mass to a maw-filling size, and glow with an intensity like a miniature version of the sun itself.

"What."

Nightmare Moon could only watch in disbelief as, with a mighty exhale -or perhaps a strangulated roar, she didn't know for certain- Celestia let loose a massive, blinding beam of pure, highly concentrated mana from her mouth, and sent it rocketing right in her direction! Staring into it was like staring into the sun itself, and even from her vantage point all the way up here, and away from it, she could feel incredible heat radiating off of it, as it quickly approached her location.

Acting on instinct rather than anything resembling conscious thought, she quickly erected a force field in front of her, just barely managing to intercept the attack, and block it before it could actually hit her. But it had been so close to doing just that! Another second of hesitation, and she would've been engulfed by it.

Intercepting the attack, however, had been the easy part.

The amount of heat coming from that blast had been unbelievable from afar, but up close it had been unbelievably worse. Even her shield was doing little to actually shield her from the intensity of what was just on the other side of it. It might not actually be able to crack through her force field, but the heat was still intense enough to leave her feeling like the fur on her face was being singed right off just from the close proximity.

There was also the fact that her shield tanking the brunt of the assault was starting to result in her being pushed back across the sky.

And that was to say nothing of just how blindingly bright it had been! The night sky had practically been lit up like it was daytime. It was just utterly unspeakable, that something like that were to happen. Was Celestia actually channeling the sun itself through her own body, in order to pull off such an attack?

Finally the attack came to a stop. And not a moment too soon, as the instant it ceased she finally allowed her shield to drop. Just trying to hold that blast back had been enough to leave her feeling fatigued. Making it all the worse was that it hadn't been the full brunt of the blast, as Celestia's aim had been slightly off. Had she been right on the nose, she wasn't certain if her shield would've actually held out; being blinded by the blast, she couldn't see if her shield had started to fracture, but she could certainly feel the strain it'd been under. Had she been pinned down on the ground, or against a mountainside, it could've potentially shattered like an eggshell after that.

Unfortunately, as her vision cleared, she quickly became fully aware that Celestia was already in the process of charging another attack. And as she saw the swirling mass of mana growing in concentration, and expanding in size to the point of completely filling her mouth, she didn't know what was the more fearful fact to consider; the fact that Celestia could readily use that particular spell more than once, or that she could apparently do it in quick succession, with no cool down phase in between.

---

From his vantage point, Ulquiorra was experiencing shock at what he had just witnessed take place, the readings of his pesquisa shooting off the charts, and into currently unestablished territories. These readings of reiatsu intensity went even higher than what he'd experienced upon first arriving in Equestria, when he'd arguably been at his weakest. They were so high, they were actually beginning to burn away at his skin, with smoke wafting up from the affected areas. And all of that had merely been from the attack being charged. The actual discharge was another -and quite painful- story entirely.

When Princess Celestia had unleashed that attack, the entire immediate area had been subjected to a shock wave, kicking up huge, billowing clouds of dust all around them in the process, and even making the ground shake to some extent as the third law of motion declared that it was still relevant in these uncertain times, with the recoil being felt through the soles of his feet. The blast had been so violent, even he found it necessary to shield his face with his forearms; something he had never been forced to do before, in all of his years of remembered existence. Had it been panic that had motivated him just now? Some primitive instinct leftover from a lesser Hollow he'd consumed so many years ago? An aspect of self preservation that he didn't have a conscious control over?

The light coming off of the discharge was bright enough, it quite literally illuminated the night sky, casting off a yellow tint in the immediate area as it traveled along its assigned trajectory, leaving a roar in its wake like intense flames, or even an angered dragon. Ulquiorra was left unable to do anything but watch, observing how treetops that weren't even in the direct path, but merely along it, were utterly obliterated from the blast passing overhead, as it made its way to Nightmare Moon's position. And if he were open to speculation, he would wager that Nightmare Moon's face was one of utter bafflement at what she was witnessing before her.

Unfortunately all the bafflement in the world was of no use, if the intended target had the ability to endure the blast outright, simply by erecting a barrier and waiting it out!

As the blast came to an end, and the gold tint faded, Ulquiorra was left with no more doubts in his mind. What he'd witnessed in that attack just now, it was undeniably the blast of a Cero. And it had been a full-fledged Cero, not merely a weak imitation of such, as Twilight Sparkle had displayed back in Canterlot. The ratios and structure were all within acceptable parameters to be considered as such.

And, disturbingly, it was a Cero that could outmatch even his own Cero Oscuras, if he were to be foolish enough to stack them up against one another. How Princess Celestia had learned to use such a technique, he didn't have a clue. But the fact remained that somehow, somewhere, she had familiarized herself with the mechanics of his technique, and learned how to use it on her own.

The question of whether or not this form had been inspired by his own Segunda Etapa seemed far more likely now than previously.

A great number of hours could be involved with hypothesizing, speculating, and discussing the matter at length. But right now that point was moot, as Princess Celestia was already in the process of charging a second Cero, to try again at striking down Nightmare Moon.

The roar of the Cero being discharged had been just as loud as the first one, and the heat had been just as intense. And, much as he didn't wish to admit to it, he'd felt an almost instinctive urging to duck when he saw Princess Celestia was in the process of turning her head in an attempt to aim the Cero's path to correspond with Nightmare Moon as she flew horizontally, to avoid being struck a second time. But despite her best efforts at keeping up, all she could do was trail behind the intended target, obliterating the tree tops -and leaving nothing but smoldering stumps behind- as she cut a path of destruction through the forest.

Based on what he was seeing, Princess Celestia was having the same type of difficulty controlling her Cero -the Cero Sol perhaps?- as he did with his own Lanza del Relámpago.

Princess Celestia was undeniably powerful in her current state; far more than in her natural alicorn state, and undeniably greater than her opponent. But all of the power in the world would be of no use to them right now, if she couldn't actually strike down Nightmare Moon, who possessed far greater levels of mobility as she was right now. She could just continue to dodge ad nauseum, as Princess Celestia missed time and time again, aiming for where she was instead of where she would be. And she didn't have the reiryoku to continue missing time and time again, he was aware of that fact. If things continued as they were, the results would not be in their favor.

As he witnessed Princess Celestia in the process of charging up a third Cero, he knew that they would have to change their approach.

---

Nightmare Moon panted as she flapped her wings to steady herself. Unlike the last time they'd clashed, Celestia was definitely going all out in trying to obliterate her this time around. She was drawing far more power than ever before, and wasn't the least bit shy about using it in her spell discharge. She was trying for a killing blow with every shot, and would most likely succeed if she could actually hit her.

But all of that strength came with a price. In her stationary position, Celestia was far slower than herself; she'd discovered that fact when she'd banked to the right to avoid getting incinerated, and managed to stay far enough ahead of the ensuing path of destruction, to avoid having her tail burnt off as it trailed behind her. So she was fairly confident in the fact that she could still persevere, so long as she kept dodging, and looked for an opening to exploit. She would've fired upon their position during the charge time it took Celestia to actually ready the spell, but it was unbelievably short in nature; too short for her to exploit with anything of significance. And if she did fire off what rapid-deployment attacks she had, they'd do little good against that hardened carapace she'd have to go up against.

And that was to say nothing of Luna herself, who would do everything in her power to prevent harm from coming to any member of their little group...

Looking down, she saw yet another blast being readied. Predictable, really, considering Celestia's current mental state. And just as predictable, was the fact that she'd dodge this one, just like the previous on, rather than wasting her magic in guarding against it. It was just a matter of time before she was completely exhausted, and unable to maintain that horrible form any longer.

However her attention was taken away from what was directly in front and below her, as something wrapped firmly around her neck from behind, pulling her into a tight choke hold. Immediately she started kicking, squirming, and flailing to try and get loose from whatever it was that had ensnared her again. However her efforts were met by something firmly grabbing her horn in the middle, and squeezing it tightly, causing her to tense up in overriding pain.

"There will be no escape for you this time," a voice said from behind her. A voice she instantly recognized as that belonging to Ulquiorra. He'd managed to sneak up behind her, again, and now had a tight grip on her, that was preventing her from using her magic, as he squeezed her horn even tighter than before. The pain was starting to get seriously intense, and made her wonder if the keratin structure was actually going to crack and rupture in his grip.

"Let me go you foal!" she wheezed out in response as she continued to struggled, trying to beat him off of her back with her wings. But so far it was proving useless, and only seemed to spur him on further as he squeezed away. And it only grew worse, as down below, she could see that Celestia was almost ready to fire again. "If she hits us with that, we'll both die! Do you want that to happen? Do you want to die?" she asked him.

"If it ensures your defeat, then my death will be an acceptable price," Ulquiorra stated as he held onto her firmly, effectively cutting off her mobility, and leaving her open for a direct assault by Princess Celestia; a fact that was apparently recognized, as he witnessed the discharge of her Cero in progress.

His assigned purpose in this world had been to protect Equestria from harm. And as his skin began to smoke - both from the combination of the close presence to Nightmare Moon, and from the ever decreasing proximity to the approaching Cero- he was aware that he was close to completing that purpose. For that fact, he had no regrets. As the approaching light started to blind him, he knew that in a matter of approximately three seconds, it would be all over. He would have completed his task this time around, unlike the last time. Secure in that knowledge, his own death was perfectly acceptable.

"Mission completed," he thought to himself, as he felt the both of them being engulfed in the stream of highly concentrated reiryoku, the roar of it all beginning to quickly deafen him to everything else around him.

Except for the barely squelched scream from down below, from a voice he couldn't readily recognize, as they were completely overtaken by Princess Celestia's fury.

"ULQUIORRA!"

Author's Note:

Alright. I'm not happy with the final product. There was a lot I was trying to do, a lot of things I was trying to tie together as I finally get to the action of the story, the stuff I've been planning for years now. Looking over it, I probably should've spent those years refining everything, rather than building up to what would be happening. The fight between Celestia and Nightmare Moon was especially difficult to write and choreography properly. Sadly I don't think I managed it. Sorry, folks, I tried. Hopefully the quality isn't so rough that it discourages reading what will be following.

Comments

[Krazyfan1]

Great as usual!

[Lunar Sword]

No complaints everything about this chapter was amazingly done.

[Midknight Defender]

O hay look, new chapter.

*starts reading*

Oh FFS!

*table flip*

Another rehash/copypaste of stuff that has already happened?

Bad arrancapone!!! Bad!

*reads more*

Ah, finally, something new.

...Okay, from Raindragon to Draglestia.

You really just like turning pones into dragons, don't you?

This whole story is just an excuse to turn everypony into a dragon, or make them want to turn into dragons (I saw that, Twiley!) isn't it?

[Thelykenking]

For a moment I felt a little mugetsu scene forming but clarification came after the cero.

[Shisarakage]

All the tension... all the palpable fury... I know not the words to even remotely describe the emotion this particular chapter has instilled. Damn...

[Emperor of Jurai]

Blah I hope this means we nearing the end of this stuff, I'm getting burnt out on Nightmare Moon. Just like many in DBZ got burnt out with Buu due to how long it took for that bugger to go down for good.

[ItsDaKoolaidDude]

So essentially, you redid the finale on how NM dies.

[Skyboss]

8572932
Who?

[stephen51991]

A tremor of such magnitude

Dead link, replacement here:

Other than that, *inhale* ...OMGTHATWASSOINTENSEHOLYSHITEPILOGUEEPILOGUEEPILOGUEHYPEHYPEHYPE!!!!!

[Mr_Perlimpinpin]

Soooo...this chapter is just celestia stealing the show from ulquiorra, great. At last this arc is over, I really hope we don't have to wait 4 months before the next chapter.

[Nikolas]

It was very awesome chapter and this pretty much summarizes everything in this chapter.
And i am really sure that Ulquiorra will somehow survive this whole mess.

[the7Saviors]

I don't know, personally I was satisfied with how you originally ended NM via Ulquiorra. I don't really have a problem with making Celestia more badass (the more the merrier) but I would've rather had Twilight do something awesome. Maybe like find a way to take her meltdown and mold it into some kind of ridiculous superform (probably an alicorn with way things like that tend to go when it comes to Twilight). That's just me though, i'm biased because Twi is best pony imo. I won't say anything about Ulquiorra not getting any spotlight (even though I want to) because 1) He's had plenty already and 2) I don't know what you have planned for the next chapter. All I can hope is that we get more OP Ulquiorra and that it doesn't take as long to pump out the next chapter.

[GrimmWolfDragon]

Great chapter.

[AdaaaM]

Well... Good chapter... the fight was getting kinda tedious... but on the other hand writing good fight scenes is hard... a it cant be perfect... hope Ulquiorra gets to live... as a pony...

[Black_Knight]

Well this was another roller-coaster of events.

Nightmare staying on top even on a one on two situation, Twilight almost going nuclear (brilliant use of Shin Godzilla soundtrack here by the way), Celestia turning into a dragon using the spell Twillight will use during the Breezies' event and Ulquiorra sacrificing himself.

Come on you can't have him kill before he shows to everypony his Secunda Etapa.

Mistakes found:

was a very bead idea.

bad

"Go to you, you foal!

her

[ItsDaKoolaidDude]

8573129
NM means Nightmare Moon abbreviated.
It's a common thing to abbreviate names in mlp.
Much like TS is Twilight Sparkle and AJ is Applejack.

[Trevor12300]

8573503
I really hope this doesn't become a main character dies and turns into pony scenario. I just really dislike those. Ulquiorra is much better as a "human" than he is a pony.

[AdaaaM]

8573756
I used to dislike some certain ideas too... Then when you spend some time on this site reading trough stuff you're bound to hit some stuff you just don't like... but it is always on the author... I have read some great stories that have red and black alicorn ocs, human becoming pony and then ascending and polygamy herd stuff in them... And I still love them... I would advise to be open minded... I personally find the idea of Ulquiorra having to deal with a physical body amusing...

[astromormy]

Loved the chapter, and I can see some of the parts that might have been hard to write and justify, such as having Ulquiorra sacrifice himself. Given his physical strength, he could have easily snapped Nightmare Moon's horn off. Never-the-less, I'm not sure how you would've even gone about sacrificing Ulquiorra as you did without serious revisions, so it's easy enough to look past.

Definitely looking forward to where you go with this. Personally, I'm hoping Ulquiorra stays human. It'd just be seriously weird to see him as a pony. Though, I am interested to see if this somehow leads to Ulquiorra's hollow hole closing up some more.

Can't wait for the next chapter; hopefully, it doesn't take several months.

[ErikPhantom]

It's a perfectly good chapter.

My only issues are: 1. This is starting to feel dragged-out, somewhat like the previous arc of investigating did.

2. Everyone and everything is stuffed full of surprises. Almost every scene has a character displaying heretofore unseen capabilities or levels of power. And everyone is surprised, shocked, and even scared each and every time.

Of course, long multi-part fight scenes and random power-ups when losing are a central component of Shonen action manga and anime, so that is likely exactly what you're going for.
It could just be that it works much better in manga and anime because of the visual component, you can see the new developments and exactly how the scene is going for yourself, whereas with purely text it requires significantly more effort on both the reader's and the author's parts to understand and convey at the same level.

I'm just saying, I was tempted to skim the rest of the chapter after about 8-10k words since the effort to read the rest fully would likely not be rewarded with plot/character-progression I would otherwise miss.

[Emperorxeno]

Not good quality?!? My god, your standards for GOOD quality is too high! The quality is good enough for a book! Stop beating yourself down, or I’ll do it with a positive look on life pep talk, that will last for 24 hours!

[forrest yuchnitz]

I liked the ulquiorra vs nightmare fight more

[Night_Flicker]

woah, what an update! cant wait for more.

[Obsidian Shard]

Really great, can't wait for the next chapter. Only real problem I had with this one was the massive wall of text towards the beginning that at first was enjoyable, but after reading "everyponys angry and theres nothing we can do about it" 20 different ways it started to make me laugh...

[hydra30]

Hey welcome back.
Dont sell yourself short, I liked how this chapter turned out, nice and actiony. I hope to see Ulquiorra Cifer release his Resurrección: Segunda Etapa soon, his first transformation was to much for Twilight and her friends, I wanna see how they react to True Dispair.

[RanmaChaos]

8573397
I was also pretty satisfied with the first ending. But more to the point, with two different scenarios going on and how long it is between updates, I find myself confused at times about what is going on. I thought they had already rescued the foals, did Nightmare Moon kidnap some again? Didn't the Element of Loyalty reignite?
If this is the scenario Charlie_K wanted all along, then I wish he hadn't written the first ending in the first place. Dragonlestia is pretty cool and shows why Ulquiorra obeys Celestia in the first place.

[Charlie_K]

8572807 8572852 8573410 8575706
I'm trying. It just doesn't feel that way to me.

8572867
I had Dragonlestia confirmed for the story from the moment I saw the Breezie's episode.

8572882
More like one part Mugestsu, two parts rabid Hollow Ichigo from the Hell 'verse movie.

8572904
The chapter really conveyed that? I was worried that the writing was too wooden and stiff to do that. I was worried that I was telling rather than showing.

8572929
Fuck Buu!

8572932
I'm going for a director's cut approach.

8573135
Thanks.

8573195
I'm trying to avoid such a long period between updates. I honestly think it's going to go easier from here on out, as I don't believe I have anymore groundwork that needs to be laid out and established.

As for who stole the show, that's debatable. Celestia led strong in the fight against Nightmare Moon, giving her an outlet for all that rage she's been carrying around, thus putting her above Ulquiorra in that regard. But at the same time Ulquiorra got a great character moment that I feel does a lot for him.

8573294
It'd be a shame to kill him off at this point.

8573397
As awesome as that would've been, Twilight finding a way to control her core meltdown and transform it into something positive was just something that I couldn't manage to pull off. Her finding a way to go Super Saiyan was too far out there even for me, and that's saying something. Besides that, it was the only way I could conceive of to get Celestia out of the fight with Nightmare Moon, and as a result let Luna go all out on her.

8573503
Fighting scenes are extremely difficult to write in a good manner. Especially when you're going for an anime feel.

8573598
Thanks for finding those.

Originally I was going to use the Vasto Lorde theme for Twilight's meltdown, but then I found Shin Godzilla and realized Vasto Lorde wasn't strong enough to convey just how bad and dangerous the situation was.

8573821
I'd like to see a red and black OC that really hates the fact that they're red and black, and would rather be any other color because they don't like being edgy.

8574245
Actually Ulquiorra's part was the easy part to write if you can believe that.

8574466
Let me see if I'm understanding this properly. My attempts at paying proper tribute to the source material is affecting my writing style? I'm conveying the elements of the manga in writing form?

8574794
I just don't feel it at times.

8575572
To be honest, I kind of did too. It was fun to convey TeamFourStar and what they do, especially when it came to Ulquiorra blistering Nightmare Moon's ass and humiliating her like he did. It felt good to cut loose and be silly.

8575814
Yeah, I gotta work on that.

8576357
Everyone keeps calling for Segunda Etapa. Ulquiorra's not a one-tricky pony.

8581921
Sorry. I guess I'm taking the Hollywood blockbuster desire too literally.

[forrest yuchnitz]

8592975
i like the fight more because i got to see the reactions of what the ponies thought of his release form and im still hoping and waiting for him to show the 2nd release at some point

[Emperor of Jurai]

8592975
You really shouldn't say such stuff on the internet, because there may be porn of `fuck Buu` xD

[the7Saviors]

8592975
Yeah I understand. That was just something I used as an example anyway. Like I said Twi is my favorite pony by a long shot and I'd enjoy any chance of a story focusing more her.

[ItsDaKoolaidDude]

8592975
Okay I can take that.

I'd like to see a red and black OC that really hates the fact that they're red and black, and would rather be any other color because they don't like being edgy

You've given me an idea an I am taking it and plan to run wild.

[ErikPhantom]

8592975
Umm... I mean... pretty much, yeah?
You're accurately portraying what anime like DBZ did with their characters and fight scenes, I'm just not so sure that that's necessarily the best thing to emulate.

I just meant that, as 8572929 said, that sort of thing also gets pretty boring/tiresome even in anime, where we can see and hear the pretty light-shows, "surprise-punched-in-the-gut/groin-faces," and what else is happening.
It's also that, generally, I like my fight scenes at one chapter max. It kinda stops being exciting/surprising after the first few surprise reveals of new depths of power/cunning/ruthlessness/reinforcements/etc, when you know someone's going to pull out one of those already, and kinda just wish the baddie would just die already so something else would happen.

Sorry if I seem overly-critical or harsh, I just can't see how to phrase it less passive(?)-aggressively and/or without making it sound like I'm bashing something you clearly enjoy a great deal.
It's just not quite my cup of tea. (Aha! Maybe metaphor can save me from a misunderstanding/seeming harsh/stifling an author's creative freedom and choice/trying to force an author a certain direction in their story!)

"It's just that this individual 'cup' of tea is a bit stronger than I like it to be, ideally. I'm still enjoying the 'pot' of tea as a whole and the company itself though."
(Eh... It mighta worked? Maybe? I'll see, I guess.)

[Charlie_K]

8593161
... I can honestly say that I didn't notice that until you mentioned it. Huh. I guess I need to go back through the ideas I have planned for the coming chapters, and see what I can do about addressing that.

[Night_Flicker]

8592975
This story is amazing, your an awesome writer.

[stephen51991]

8592975

I'd like to see a red and black OC that really hates the fact that they're red and black, and would rather be any other color because they don't like being edgy

[Adult story embed hidden]

The protagonist spends years prior to the actual start of the fic as a red and black alicorn Gary-Stu. While he originally decides to roll with it on the basis of how absurd it is, as soon as the full ramifications of the situation hit him he is justifiably horrified and disgusted, and both he and the ponies around him end up severely traumatized by the experience.

[Dirty Bit]

A Celestial Dragon? This isn't One Piece!

That being said, this chapter reminded me of the power of plot armor

8573503 I can help with that last part

[Sun Sage]

Well this is definitely better than the original filler fight. That was just... ugh. It was like a 500k word build up to a complete let down 'fight'. Half a million words to finish off with 'shonen jump villain is much more badass than useless girl cartoon characters'. Which... uh... *golfclap*? We get enough endless variations on 'ponies are useless, only Ulquiorra can do anything' throughout this thing... if that's also the denouement then frankly you've failed to tell a story. No real conflict (Ulqy curbstomping everything doesn't qualify), no character development, just a comparison type commentary where the 'weaker' characters 'ooh', 'ahh', and 'eek!' at the 'stronger'... sorta like what actually happens in every DBZ episode where they aren't just yelling for 20 minutes. If that's all you're using a crossover tag for, peachy... but it can be done in far fewer words so I assume not.

Now that that's been said... this take is much stronger (though I grant the other had some good, comedic moments), and I'd urge you not to listen too hard to those who are on about the length. Finishing this quickly, after all the build up to it... and build up.... and build up... no no. It's been a long courtship waiting for this confrontation; it simply wouldn't do for any party concerned to finish too quickly. This take though... at this point no matter who finishes the fight I think I'll be satisfied with how it went. It's a shame the main seven have been so close to useless, but this isn't the end of the story so maybe by the end they'll manage to not be trash in Ulquiorra's eyes. ...And maybe he'll actually be something resembling the friend they want him to be. Or not. Guess we'll find out.

Either way, this is one I keep coming back to. It's one of the first stories I started reading here and I was taken with how it handled itself. The pacing during the whole 'something new and horrible has happened again and we still know nothing!' portion of the current arc felt a little slow, but one could also attribute that to the same impatience for answers that the characters felt... aka immersion. The fillers and deleted scenes have added some nice comedic and occasionally emotional touches... moreso than Bleach filler ever did, to my recollection. It seems you're too hard on yourself in the author commentary, but that's all too often the case for any author; you're not alone.

Speaking of... if you're still looking for a proofreader, I could help with that, if you'd like. I'm a former professional editor (magazine work, but hey it counts) and edit for a couple stories on this site as well (The Ballad of Jack Nasty, Enchanted Library and its sequel, atm). If not, also fine, see ya next chapter.

TL;DR: Impressive work, digging the director's cut fight, overall some frustration with pacing but a good story I hope to see more of. Give yourself more credit.

[GotThisToLikeStorys]

Like

[demonwarden]

and who's going to be the main villain now?

[Charlie_K]

8628707
Well there's always Tirek.

[demonwarden]

8629525 fair enough

[Draco fox]

Two words total badass

[Fireeaters]

So he gets his shit pushed in before he uses his thin limb form? That kinda sucks.

[Lumaril]

Very nice I like this much more than the first and I'm much happier now that the end to this arc is longer. I hope you make more as this is a masterpiece and I wish you good luck in all your endeavors. And honestly all the characters played off each other really well, and thankfully almost everyone learned to not be a dick or they died trying to yayyyy.