An Extended Holiday

by Commander_Pensword

6 - The Mane Event

Extended Holiday
Chapter 006: The Mane Event

---

The wedding hall where the ceremony was to take place was tastefully decorated. A light cream and gold bunting draped all over the ceiling and reached with stretches of cloth to curve against the columns on approach from the double doors. A massive chandelier acted as the focal point for the decoration while candles burned in equally spaced holders on either side of the columns to provide mood lighting. A pair of Unicorn guards stood on either side of the double doors to fulfill their duty of opening the way for the bride to enter through a second hall that had been decorated with bouquets of flowers in holders that were mounted on the columns themselves. A long red carpet with golden edges flowed through the two chambers, leading up to the dais and a green wedding arch accentuated by a number of floral arrangements tastefully employed. Much like the other hall, the columns here were also decorated with plant fixtures that acted as points of contact to bind more bunting together. Two pots sat on either side of the staircase with twin draping cloths on either side to provide symmetry. As a final touch, at Cadance’s request, the windows were fitted with temporary stained glass settings to enhance the mood of the wedding and further stress the bond of their marriage.

The five mares had lined up in place on the stairwell to await Cadance’s arrival, as was required and proper for them. The three humans stood a ways off between a pair of columns, close enough to witness the action, but not so close as to interfere with the proceedings. Shining Armor stood at the top with Celestia and Spike. All were ready for the practice ceremony to proceed.

It was elegant, refined, yet simple. In short, it was the perfect scene for a royal wedding. Indeed, it would have been perfect if not for the forceful intrusion of one extremely aggressive purple Unicorn bursting into the hall. Twilight Sparkle denounced Cadance with intense heat, leaving a stunned silence to sift like ash in her wake as the princess fled. And like the cold wind that often follows behind such burn-outs, Twilight’s friends, brother, and mentor soon followed.

The three humans watched with varying reactions from stony-faced to gobsmacked as the fallout settled.

Tears swam in the purple mare’s eyes. She hastily blinked them away as she gazed at the doors. “Maybe I was being overprotective….”

Taze’s fist clenched as he watched. “This isn’t right,” he growled. Turning for the door, he half-ran, half-stomped after the others. He grabbed the door as he passed through. Seeing the retreating party in the distance, he threw the door back with all the power he could muster, willing it to slam loud enough that the whole damned city would hear it.

“Matthew, go after him, would you? Make sure he doesn’t go too crazy on them,” Shawn asked. “Neither of us will stop him, but try to at least calm him.”

Matthew looked at Shawn and Twilight, torn between the desire to comfort and the desire to make peace. “Yeah, I guess I should go and try to be the diplomat,” he agreed. “Will you keep an eye on Twilight?”

Shawn nodded. And with that confirmation, Matthew strode hastily to the doors. “Here’s hoping Taze doesn’t start a war,” he muttered as he pulled the portal open. The sheer weight of the wood surprised him, and he wondered how Taze could have built up the momentum to slam them so heavily.

Moonshade followed closely behind, choosing to keep with the majority of the group. At the door, she paused to look back at Shawn, and then to Twilight. “Twilight Sparkle, I don’t know the details behind what transpired, but I do know the orders I have to follow. I can’t be in two places at once, and you are titled as a defender of the realm under Celestia’s authority. As such, I must remand Lord Shawn into your protective custody until a guard can be sent to replace you. Guard him to your utmost.”

“But—”

“There can be no buts here, Lady Sparkle. Even in heartache, a warrior and a hero must pursue their duty. I am calling you to do yours. He is in your care.” With that, the mare departed, and once more the loud doors closed behind, leaving only the two.

After a moment, Shawn sighed. “Emotions are certainly high,” he muttered, resting his hand on the hilt of his sword, the other on his hip. “Deep breaths, Twilight. Forward momentum is to be kept. Looking back won’t help.”

Twilight sputtered. “That’s what I call the understatement of the year.” She sighed. “But I suppose she’s right. I have to keep an eye on you, at least until we can find another guard to take over. Though I guess it’s more like babysitting, all things considered. Without the immature toddler part.”

Shawn raised a brow at the comments before shrugging. “I guess I’ve heard worse. I doubt we’ll find a member of the Night Guard for some time, though, so you’re stuck with me for a while. Sorry to say.”

“I’m sure we can figure something out.” Twilight smiled weakly, sniffled, and wiped her eyes. “So, I guess we should get going. Can’t sit here and mope all day, right? Where did you want to go first?”

“Can’t leave the castle walls, so not many places to go. You know that,” Shawn replied dismissively before shrugging.

“Is there anywhere you haven’t been to in the Castle yet?”

“I suppose I haven’t been to the castle’s library yet. Too much going on and all that.”

Twilight nodded. “Then that’s where we’ll go. Though, for the record, it’s actually called the Royal Archive.” She rose and strode toward the door. “Follow me.”

“Fair enough. I assume you’ve been there plenty of times?”

“Yeah. It’s big at first, but you get used to it pretty fast. I’m sure the librarian will be happy to help you find whatever you need.”

“...Yeah. I suppose working in a library probably burned you out on reading much, huh?” Shawn asked as he felt his chest tighten.

Twilight chuckled. “I suppose sometimes. Usually when I have to keep going after the same reference materials to give to colts and fillies for school.”

Shawn attempted to keep his breathing steady as he looked to the back of Twilight’s head. ‘Ex Divinia etiam…’ His grip tightened on the hilt of his sword as he allowed the unspoken thought to complete itself. ‘That’s, … that’s not her.’

---

“Hey! What the hell?” Taze bellowed as he caught up to the retreating eight figures. “I thought you were her ‘friends,’” he said, adding air quotes for emphasis.

“We are,” Applejack replied. “But after what Twilight just put the princess through, I reckoned she needed support.”

“You reckon—” Venom dripped from his voice as Taze spoke. “You reckon that the person you don’t even know is worth abandoning a friend who has stuck by you? You value your reputation so much more than those close to you, liar?” He looked at her dead in the eye. “With friends like that, who needs enemies?”

“Woah, woah, woah. Hold up,” Rainbow Dash said as she zipped between the two and nudged him in the chest. “Applejack’s a lot of things, but she’s no liar.”

“What do you call someone who breaks promises, then, traitor?” Taze asked, pushing her hoof away. “And don’t touch me. I'd rather not have to clean this armor again.”

“Pardon me,” Rarity said. “I understand Rainbow Dash can be a bit … unrefined, but she certainly isn’t that dirty.”

“I don’t have a reputation for you to take here, greedy! You’ll need to find another place to further your reputation,” Taze said as he rounded on Rarity.

“Pardon?”

“Oh! I’m sorry. Let me put this in a way you can understand.” Taze cleared his throat dramatically. “Oh, darling, I just simply can’t, darling, i just simply can’t put up with your gold digging right now!” And then, as if to add insult to injury, he leaned in and swiped a single hair out of place in her mane.

“Taze Klim, what is the meaning of this?” Celestia asked.

Taze turned on the diarch and thrust his finger forcefully in her face. “You can shut up for the time being. I’ll get to you in a minute.” He turned back to the group looking Pinkie Pie dead in the eye. “Does it feel good betraying your friend, leaving her to despair, taking her joy from her? By that singular act, you proved just how depressing a person you really are,” he growled.

Pinky took an involuntary step back.

Taze rounded on the last and most soft-spoken member of the party. “And you! The cruelty you showed in that room. The utter horrible cruelty!” He barely held the expletives back and spoke with a voice that was as biting as it was calm. “It makes me sick. Do you kick puppies in your free time as well?”

Fluttershy quailed as the other four clustered around her.

“You five are supposed to be her friends! Do you know what that means? That means you don’t abandon your friend simply because someone more important comes along! Did any of you stop to think? Did any of you pause to maybe give her some inkling of credit? You!” he pointed to Applejack. “How long have you known Princess Cadance?”

Applejack opened her mouth to respond, only for Taze to trample over any hope of a rebuttal.

“I’m guessing since you come from Ponyville and seem utterly uncomfortable with the other nobles around here, not very long. I’d even go so far as to guess that none of you even met her until you arrived. Am I right?” he asked them, then restated the question louder when they stayed quiet.

“And?” Applejack asked defiantly. “Does that give anyone the chance to attack her?”

Taze looked around. “Let’s look at this from the other end of the spectrum. Though I’m surprised you’re even able to try looking there, given how far up your plot your head is stuck right now,” he said acidly. “How long has twilight known Cadance?” He looked around the room. “Anybody?”

“She used to foalsit for her. How else do you think Cadance and I started dating?” Shining pressed as he strode forward aggressively. “Now, are we going to have a problem here?”

“Oh?” Taze laughed a deep dark chuckle, completely disregarding the captain’s question. “She was a babysitter? Really? She looked after children and toddlers prone to freak-outs and temper tantrums, and all of you thought a wedding would push her over the edge? Have any of you actually spent time with a tantruming child? You know what? Don’t answer that. I don’t want to hear your moronic reasoning here. Let's put aside the fact that she should have been going into this with nerves of steel! You know, because a wedding is a freaking cakewalk compared to a bunch of screaming toddlers! In this case, literally!” He took a moment to breathe. “You're telling me that the five of you have better judgment about somebody than a person who spent a significant portion of their life with them. Someone you just met! Please tell me this sounds as stupid to you as it does to me. Give me at least a little hope in your emotional depth outdistancing a soup spoon!”

“European Soup Spoon, I assume,” Matthew said as he approached with Moonshade at his side. He looked anxiously over the gathering.

“Ah, Matthew, good timing,” Taze said as he walked over and wrapped an arm around his friend. “Matthew and I have been friends for a long time. Years, in fact. I’d hide a body if he asked me to. I’d bail him out of prison. Hell, I’d die for him. Because that's what friendship means. It means sticking with someone, no matter what. If you were real friends, the least you could have done was comfort Twilight and offer some kind words before you try to help her come around to your side of thinking. That’s what real friends do. They listen! Honestly, the five of you sicken me with your definition of friendship.”

Matthew swallowed as he looked at the group. “If you’ll pardon the intrusion into the conversation, through the time Taze and other friends and I have spent together, I’ve learned one thing. True friends are there when you have the lowest part. They won’t drop you because you decided to finally stand up for yourself over something. True friendship is the kind that is absolutely worth fighting for, because it may not be easy, but the best ones are forged in the fires of adversity. And if you’ll pardon the frank view of an outsider, it seems the five of you can’t handle those flames.” His voice was neither loud nor terse. It was calm, straightforward, and utterly honest without a hint of partiality.

Taze released his hold on Matthew and turned to Celestia. “But you, you sicken me on a whole other level.”

“And you need to cool your head,” Celestia noted clinically.

“And you need to tell people things they need to know!” Taze shot back. “Honestly, do they even know what the threat is? Does anyone?” Taze gestured to the others in the room. “Have you deemed it fitting to allow the masses to know what they're dealing with? Probably not. You couldn’t even let the three of us know we were being used as bait!”

To the mare’s credit, or perhaps to her detriment, the only visible sign of her surprise came in the minutest widening of her eyes and a subtle shift of her pupils. “Yes, I wanted to lure out our enemy using the three of you, so I put you under a constant guard to ensure your safety,” Celestia said in a sarcastic tone that led the Ponies in the room and one young Dragon to gasp.

“Please, Luna assigned us warriors specifically from her guard for our safety,” Taze shot back with a heat that seared through the bolt she had cast. “God knows cardboard cutouts would have been more effective than your pretty boys over there,” he said as he waved at the two Unicorn solar guards that had followed them.

Moonshade had to suppress a snort.

“You can’t expect people to operate without at least some idea of what they're facing. Tell me. Can your Elements of Harmony serve any purpose split up? Does keeping those closest to you in the dark serve any real purpose? You are playing a terrible game of chess with people's lives! You have alienated your sister, and then you alienated your student! How many more people?”

The floor beneath Celestia’s hoof cracked with the force of the clop as she glared at the human. Her nostrils flared, and the breath that emerged from them was so hot that even in the warm air, it steamed and caused the air to waver. “You know nothing of my relationship to Luna.”

“Then I know everything! I think we both know who has a lot to think about, and it isn’t Twilight Sparkle,” Taze said, not breaking eye contact as he finished the sentence.

After a moment of silence, the maelstrom that was Taze swept quickly back to his friend. “Sorry, Matthew,” he said quietly before turning to Shining Armor and bellowing at the top of his voice. “Tenshun, Dumbass!” he called out, straightening his back and perfecting his posture. In that same instant, Matthew’s whole body went rigid as he mirrored that same posture out of habit.

Shining Armor stiffened briefly, then glared at Taze. “At ease, soldier,” he retorted.

Taze, not being a military man himself, was unaffected and unintimidated. It helped standing at twice the Pony’s height. Even if Shining Armor were to rear up on his hind legs, he still wouldn’t come to the human’s full height. “You're a disgrace to your office and your uniform,” Taze said flatly. “I seriously hope you fight for your pocket, because if that’s how you treat your friends and family, you're better off not fighting for them. That was your sister, your blood! She met you on the first day of her life, and she has loved you ever since. Tell me, do you kiss your mother with the mouth you just used on your sister?”

Shining glared stubbornly at the human. “I won’t apologize.”

“You should be lucky if she gives you the right, let alone a chance,” Taze said. “If she were to die tomorrow and you were to attend her funeral, I’d go so far as to call it a personal insult. Honestly, I don’t know if it’s worse how you treated your family or how you allowed your significant other to tirade without even attempting to reel her in. Where we come from, officers could be punished for their families acting like that if they did nothing to head it off. Tell me, genius, these headaches of yours. How many professionals have you seen about them? Also, when did Cadance get her PhD?”

“I can manage them just fine,” Shining Armor retorted. “And you don’t need a medical license to cast a basic healing spell.”

“No, but if you’re having rapid migraine-class headaches repeatedly over the course of a week, you should see a professional. That's not even a rule. That's common sense, something you seem to lack to a ridiculous degree.”

Shining Armor snorted angrily. “Are we done here? I have a fiance to console.”

“See a Doctor, Shining Armor,” Matthew urged. “Even my military isn’t dumb enough to ignore those kinds of signs. At least yours actually showed up. Mine never did. Listen to what your body is trying to tell you.” He glared. “And they say you’re the head of all military forces?” He looked to Moonshade. “Is all of your military this bullheaded? This is literally a threat to your national security if one of those attacks happen at the wrong time.”

Moonshade shook her head. “No. In fact, standard says he should have seen a healer more than once already.”

“And I have!” Shining said hotly.

“To answer your question, Cadet, yes, we’re done,” Taze said, turning away from the group. “I’m done with all of you. Don’t talk to me, any of you. I wash my hands of you band of traitors and thieves.” He started walking away, stopping only long enough to address the Princess one last time. “Oh, and Celestia?” His lips curved into a cruel smirk. “May you live in interesting times.” And with that cryptic benediction, he strode down the hall and was gone.

Spike looked back and forth, first to Shining Armor stomping angrily toward the opposite branch of the hall, then to the smoldering Celestia, and finally to the mixture of angry, confused, and ashamed that was Twilight’s friends. “I … think I’m going to go get Mom. If anyone will know how to fix this, it’s her.” Spike raced to the hall as fast as his short legs could carry him.

Applejack broke the silence afterward. “Come on, girls. We said we were gonna go check on Cadance, and that’s exactly what we’re gonna do.”

The response that came was less than enthusiastic. Whether the party was willing to admit it or not, Taze’s words had affected them. And those words would continue to haunt them long after he had departed.

---

Shawn made a mental note at the lack of guards along the halls. While this wasn’t entirely out of the ordinary in the more public portions of the castle, it was highly suspect on the path they now followed. Torches flickered, casting their shadows over the hallways and distorting the fake Twilight’s face as they carried on. The clop of her hooves reverberated loudly in Shawn’s ears, and he couldn’t tell if it was a result of his paranoia and adrenaline or the structure of this particular wing. That paranoia now screamed at him as they ascended yet another stairwell. Unlike the previous passages, this one was less well-tended. Spiders skittered as they formed their webs, and there was no sign of a window that Shawn could see.

He needed a plan, and he needed it now.

If they were being followed, it was far back enough that he couldn’t tell. “Had I known the library was this far, I should have thought of somewhere else,” he remarked, his hand still resting on the hilt of his sword.

“I thought Celestia might prefer us to take a different route. You still draw a lot of attention in the castle, and the royal archives are still technically open to the public.”

“Fair enough.”

They finally reached a single door at the top of the stairwell. Twilight’s horn glowed a muted green, and the door’s frame throbbed sympathetically before the lock came undone and it creaked open. “Through here. We’ll get you where you need to be soon.”

As the pair entered the chamber, the familiar sight of Cadance’s pink, purple, and yellow feathers and mane graced them. Her green eyes flashed, then glowed as she glared balefully at Shawn while the door shut behind them with two palace guards taking posts in front of the door to bar his retreat.

“Lord Shawn. I hope you’ll forgive the little deception, but I thought it was about time you and I had a little chat one on one.” She smiled coldly as she stepped out of the shadows.

“Drop the facade already.” Shawn squinted as he shifted his stance slightly wider. “The others may have fallen for it, but you’re a piss-poor actor.”

Cadance shrugged. “You always get at least one critic.” A circle of green fire erupted around her hooves and, in a flash of light, the princess was gone. The creature that stood in her stead was, surprisingly enough, of comparable height and mass, but that was where the similarities ended. Her Hooves, wings, tail, and mane were punched with holes that made it look as though a swarm of moths had made a buffet of them. Her wings were translucent, like those of an insect, as was her mane and tail, though these were more substantial and less flimsy. Rather than the soft and glossy fur and manes that had been seen on the prismatic Ponies that inhabited the castle, an oily black chitinous carapace formed the majority of her body’s exterior. A sickly blue-green band and shell formed the protective housing that would normally hold those wings in protective storage when not in use. Her horn was long, gnarled, and jagged, like a crooked tree root. Instead of a typical ornament, this creature’s crown sprang from her mane at the base of her head in a ghastly fusion that was part antenna and part chitin, tipped with a number of blue orbs that matched her mane perfectly to simulate crown jewels.

Three more flashes of light followed as Twilight and the two guards swiftly transformed into smaller and less developed versions of the mare. The guards buzzed threateningly as their wings hummed and they glared with mandible helmets that actually clicked together.

“Ex Divinia etiam. I read that you were ugly, but damn,” Shawn remarked.

“You’re one to talk.” The thing that wasn’t Cadance chuckled. “I don’t know what rock you crawled out from under, but you chose a very bad time to reveal yourselves.”

“I’d say it was more a bad time on your end. If your plans go south, you’re supposed to work around, not through,” Shawn replied flatly, taking in the four around him. “I suppose not everyone can make solid plans.”

“Says the pot to the kettle,” the mare gloated. “Let’s cut the chit-chat, shall we? I think we both already know why you’re here.”

“Can’t replace me, so you’re going to get rid of me, yeah,” he said casually. The flutter of his coat was the only warning as the flash of steel glinted, then sliced clean through the chitin at the Changeling that had once been Twilight. The room rang with the clatter of chitin, punctuated by a scream of pain. Green ichor flowed down the drone’s forehead as it stumbled away from the blow.

Shawn barely had the time to react as the two guards charged. The one buzzed angrily overhead, zipping back and forth in a divergent path while jabbing with his spear. The one on the floor followed his companion by attacking from below, thus dividing the human’s attention and making it more difficult for him to parry.

Blow after blow, Shawn parried and dodged as best he could, but it was only a matter of time until the attackers began to find their marks. Tiny nicks dotted his arms and legs, and one particularly deadly blow narrowly missed his face, just grazing him by the cheek as hot blood trickled.

Just as his blood painted the edges of their spears, so, too, did their ichor paint the edges of his blade. Their combined assault winded him, but it was ultimately the action of their companion that finally undid him. Despite her pain, the Changeling mare that had impersonated Twilight managed to crawl behind his legs. And as the dance continued, the human was finally forced to fall backward. So loud had been the clash of steel and wood alongside the rush of blood surging in his ears that he had not heard the subtle ringing tone of magic nor seen the green glow that emanated from the leader’s horn.

As gravity asserted itself, Shawn first felt that curious slowing of time that comes with an adrenaline spike followed shortly after by pressure, and then a heavy jab before he struck the floor. The force of the impact pushed his breath out, even as two spears were leveled at his throat and the haughty laughter of the Changeling who was obviously their leader rang in his ears. Something seeped from his back, causing his shirt and coat to stick.

“Take him to the caves with the others,” she ordered, even as she sneered smugly at him. “Make sure he won’t be able to find the way back.”

“And … there’s your fatal mistake.” Shawn attempted to let out a weak chuckle. “I’m ... not replaceable.”

The Changeling leader smirked. “But you are expendable.” She tossed her head curtly, and then Shawn saw the haft of a spear growing larger and larger, followed by intense pain as it cracked against his skull. The last thing he saw as the light cleared and before the world faded to black was a chunk of wood spinning like a helicopter as it flipped away.

---

Taze took several deep breaths, attempting to center himself as he walked around the castle. He avoided the Guard as much as he could and this found him strangely walking around more and more remote parts of the castle. He ironically found his mind jumping to the nameless city by Lovecraft and the eerie descriptions of empty stone buildings and the horrors within. He stopped at one part to admire a set of throwing knives mounted on the wall. They were interesting to see because the blades seemed to be shaped artistically like feathers. He found his attention drawn to this for a while before he turned to observe the way forward, trying his best to be quiet as he kept an eye out for Celestia's guards.

The telltale clop of heavy hooves was the only indicator of the creature’s approach. He ducked into a nearby alcove and quickly pulled the curtain shut over it to allow the approaching Pony to pass. A nerve-wracking moment of silence followed as the Pony paused near the curtain. Perhaps it was patrolling. Perhaps it was lost. Or perhaps it was something else. He didn’t know, and he didn’t care. All he knew was he didn’t want to be found right now, and so he held his breath and waited.

It took about a minute before the heavy clop of those hooves began again and gradually receded. Taze sighed in relief, then pulled the curtain aside. The rear of the guard Pony was broad and muscular. His fur coat was a pristine white, and he lacked wings and a horn. But that was clearly made up by the sheer amount of mass he strode down the hall with. However, the most striking thing that drew the human’s attention was neither the mass nor the fur nor even the distinctively unlikely tribe. No, what really pulled Taze’s gaze was the sight of a long dark sheath and a hauntingly familiar guard and hilt. Taze had seen the Ponies’ weapons in their forges. This was most definitely not an Equestrian design.

Now, the sensible thing would have been to question the guard. And earlier in the evening, Taze probably would have gone for that. Right now, however, he was stressed. He was emotionally spent. And now, he wasn’t just angry anymore. He was livid. He didn’t care if this was one of the Changelings or if Celestia had turned on them after all. He booked it from the curtain. For a brief instant, things seemed to slow as he grabbed the hilt of his own sword, but they instantly sped up again. Taking the wrapped handle in both hands, he raised it over his head and brought it down with all the force mustered from years of chopping wood with a sledge maul.

The guard’s shock was plastered on his face as it looked at the image of the human, even as his head descended to the floor. His body slumped a moment later as a blast of green flames followed.

The creature’s body was as massive as it had been while it was disguised. Slick black chitin bulged and jutted out in vicious barbs and angles while a heavily reinforced shell glistened iridescently on his back. The fangs that extended from its gaping maw were flanked on either side by a set of massive mandibles designed to snap with crushing force. The floor hissed beneath its fangs as acidic venom ate away at the surface while the sticky green ichor gushed, then pumped, then burbled, and finally trickled, leaving the surface of the floor completely green and sticky. Its eyes were dead, but nearly reflective as Taze peered into them, perceiving the shadow of his reflection burst into a multitude of iterations.

Looking around quickly as the world came to, Taze hyperventilated. He had clearly just killed something, and his mind was reeling at that fact. However, he found the expected feeling muted as rationality staked its claim. First, this being had likely done something to his friend. Second, this was an enemy. A small darker part also claimed that it wasn’t human, but he tried to ignore that portion, given the sapient nature of the Ponies he had encountered thus far. Gathering himself, he relieved the creature of Shawn’s sword before hiding the body, with no small amount of effort on his part, behind the curtain he had hidden behind himself.

Turning the way he’d come, he ran off to find Matthew and Moonshade. It was official now. The enemy had made their move. Time was of the essence.

---

Matthew and Moonshade were lost. Well, Matthew was lost. Moonshade was simply following him to keep him out of trouble as they searched for the rogue Taze. Moonshade was using her nose while Matthew gazed around uneasily at how silent and empty the hallways had become.

A few minutes later, Taze barreled into Matthew unexpectedly, and both toppled to the floor in a heap. Taze was faster to recover, and quickly hoisted his friend to his feet. “Matthew!” he exclaimed. “Are you okay?”

“Yes.” Matthew rubbed his rear gingerly. “I’ll probably bruise a little in the morning, but aside from that, I’m fine. What’s going on, Taze?”

Taze looked suspiciously at Moonshade. “Has she been with you the whole time?”

“Yes,” he confirmed. “She’s followed me like my shadow, and you like a bloodhound. You're a hard man to find when you’re angry.”

“We need to see Luna now!” Taze said hastily. His pupils had widened significantly, and his movements were jerky as he checked the halls.

“What's so important?” Moonshade asked.

“Please, just trust me!” Taze stressed.

Moonshade looked at him for a moment, then sighed reluctantly. “Very well. But this had better be good.”

Matthew frowned. “Look, Thestral, in all my years, Taze has never been this anxious or worked up about anything. If he’s demanding to see Princess Luna, you can bet it’s important.” The sight of Shawn’s sword left the human swallowing. His voice cracked as he spoke. “Shawn? Is he…?”

“I don’t know. I found this on a … thing? I think it was one of those Changelings, but I can’t be sure. It looked like a guard, but changed into this black thing after it died.”

Moonshade stiffened at that comment. “You killed it?” she asked.

“Yes,” Taze said through deep breaths.

“Good,” Matthew breathed. “This is bad. If there are already enemies inside the walls….” He paused. “Can you … do you have proof? We need to show some sort of evidence to the Princess. A leg, a body, a head.”

“I hid the body,” Taze responded. “It was way too heavy to carry.”

Matthew looked to Moonshade. “Do you think the three of us can carry it?”

“If you have the location, Princess Luna can send some of the Night Guard for it. Or else retrieve it herself, should she feel it necessary,” Moonshade noted.

Matthew looked to Taze. “Can you do that? Tell Luna where it is?”

“Probably? I can get them in the right area, at least.” He nodded.

Matthew looked confused. “Uh, I would be walking, but where do we go?” Matthew asked.

“Follow me,” Moonshade ordered and sprinted down the hall. The humans were soon scrambling to keep up.

---

Princess Luna looked gravely at the two humans as they stared at her from the chamber inside the watchtower. Her duty to the spyglass was all but forgotten when she took in the worried furrows in Taze’s brow, and more particularly the sword in his grasp. Matthew eyed his friend with equal measures of worry and concern as they stood before the ruler. Moonshade maintained her vigilance in accordance with her duty as the pair’s assigned guard, even as she awaited Luna’s reaction to the news that had been delivered.

“How many others have you told?” Luna asked calmly.

“No one,” Taze answered.

“We came straight to you after Taze told us,” Matthew confirmed.

Luna’s face became serious as she considered everything. She summoned a guard and, after a rapid exchange, sent them off to look for the body Taze had hid. Turning to the trio, she nodded. “We’ll have to take this somewhere quieter,” she noted. “If what you say is true, this watch may be pointless.”

“At least give them a semblance of a watch, then,” Matthew suggested. “We don’t want them to think we know anything, right? Can’t you perform some sort of, you know, illusion spell or something?”

Luna nodded “I’ll set up a guard with a glamour to appear as though they are me.” She signaled another guard close and explained her instructions. One carefully controlled burst of magic later, a copy of Luna saluted again and reported to her post at the spyglass.

“Now what?” Matthew asked.

In an instant, they found themselves in Luna's room. There was no flash, no real magic effect at all. They just found themselves there.

Matthew blinked in surprise. “Okay. That was … impressive.”

“Being Princess of the Night imbues me with certain privileges at night,” Luna explained. “Now then, it seems to me likely the Changelings will plan their attack tomorrow during the ceremony. We need to have some kind of plan.”

“You mean aside from being ready to fight for our lives, I assume.” Matthew frowned. “If we’re already compromised, then the Changelings would have to move on the best defensive asset and neutralize it. If they had the numbers inside the barrier already, they would have attacked by now. That means either they’ve been getting some sort of device or enchantment or something in place to neutralize Captain Armor’s barrier or they’ll attempt to incapacitate him directly to bring down the shield.” He stroked his chin in thought. “Though that still leaves us with one question. How did they circumvent the barrier itself?”

“By being inside before the barrier was cast,” Luna said. “Clearly, they’re smarter than we thought.”

“What do we do, Chieftess?” Moonshade asked.

Luna turned to the fiery plinth where the great warhammer lay. The princess approached it with a deliberate calm. The flames licked at her hoof with no effect. “It’s time, old friend,” she said with a smile. The hammer began to shake as a high-pitched ringing filled the air. Moments later, the casing shattered, and the flames surged into the weapon, causing it to pulse with a menacing magical aura as it floated toward her hoof. But, of course, even without the magical aura, menace was in its nature.

The warhammer was not unlike something from medieval Europe of Earth. It was primarily forged of a strange dark blue metal that seemed to carry a dull silvery glow within its darkened depths. Silver filigree caressed the surface of the metal, forming intricate symbols and etchings that almost seemed to dance in the weapon's own corona. The front was a large circular face covered in tiny bumps where the point of impact would be. The back was a spike formed of a rusty brownish-yellow substance that bespoke either a horn, fang, or some sort of massive claw that jutted back at a cruel angle. The haft was constructed of the same metal as the head, though the handle was wrapped in black leather with a small thong at the end. The hammer seemed to hold aloft happily in Lunas grip, like two partners finally rejoined after a long separation.

“You need to avoid attending the ceremony tomorrow. They will come for you, and you must be ready. Try to find me as soon as you can, and we’ll do our best to confront them head-on. I’m afraid even if we were to discuss this with my sister, she would not take it seriously.” She shot Taze a sidelong smirk. “Especially after the dressing down you gave her.”

Moonshade looked at the weapon in Luna's magical grip with awe and reverence.

“Princess Luna, if we’re going to accomplish anything, we need more information,” Taze insisted as he absently brushed the sword’s hilt. “I need some kind of book or something about Changelings. Anatomy, weaknesses, deterrents and defenses, those sorts of things.”

Luna considered the human’s words for a few moments before nodding. “You’ll have whatever information I can send to you when you return to your room,” she promised.

“I assume the same way you brought us here in the first place?” Matthew guessed.

Luna nodded. “That would be wisest, considering things from here.”

“It would probably be best for you to send us back to the tower and let us return to our room from there.” Matthew frowned. “Is the armor you had us measured for ready for use yet?”

“It should be. I’ll have it delivered to your room.”

Matthew nodded. “We’ll make sure to take care of our preparations, then.” He frowned again. “How are we going to be able to tell your units are who they say they are? I know we can trust Moonshade, but if they managed to infiltrate the Solar Guard, then it’s possible they may also have planted someone in your units’ ranks.”

“My Guard has several code words and other such knowledge they use,” Luna noted.

“I suppose we’ll have to trust that, then.” He clenched his jaw as the full weight of the situation crashed down on him. He swallowed heavily to push back against that invisible pressure and nodded. “All right. Unless you’ve got anything else to add, Taze, I guess all we can do now is act normal and prepare.”

“I’ll also need some kind of candy or something similar,” Taze noted. “I have low blood sugar issues when I exert myself too much. I’ll need something I can eat while we fight.”

Luna nodded. “We will ensure such rations are included in your supplies.” She lifted her head, raising her horn high. And in an instant, they were gone.

---

“You going to be okay?” Taze asked Matthew as they sat in their room.

“Taze, we don’t even know whether Shawn is alive or not,” Matthew said as he looked at Shawn’s bed, where the sword lay on the blankets like the top of a Templar’s funeral effigy. “I am definitely not okay.” He leaned over his bed frame as he worked over the mechanisms on his crank crossbow. “But … we don’t exactly have much of a choice right now. If we freeze, we’re probably going to die, so … I just have to not freeze, do something. You know what I mean?” He raised the bow and eyed the door, then lowered the weapon again and slowly disarmed it. “What about you? Did you find anything useful in that book?”

“Not yet,” Taze said with a stony face. “You get some rest, and I'll let you know if anything pops up, okay?”

Matthew sighed. “I don’t even know if I’m going to be able to sleep.”

“They sent us those potions.” Taze pointed to the two bottles on a table.

“I know. I just–” he sighed again. “–Oh, I don’t know. I guess I just want to spend a little more time with a close friend before I take it. Sort of a last supper, you know? Just … just in case.”

“Don’t think like that,” Taze said as his mouth pulled into a smirk “We’ll be fine. Just wait and see.”

Matthew turned back to the Thestral that had come to replace Moonshade so she could stock up on her own supplies for the battle to come. “You’re sure I’ll wake up in time?”

The Thestral nodded. “It’s guaranteed. You will rise full of energy and fully aware.” He looked slyly at Taze. “A first for one of you, from what I understand.”

Matthew couldn’t help but chuckle. “Thank you. I … I needed that.” He lowered the crossbow gently to the floor and unsheathed his K-bar one last time before shoving it back where it belonged and striding to seize his bottle. His hand shook as he reached for the stopper. Finally, he managed to pull it out and raised the container in a salute. “May we live past the interesting times to come.” He smiled weakly. “And Taze, thank you for being such a good friend.” With that said, he downed the bottle’s contents and slipped under the covers. It wasn’t long before his breathing became long and even. Matthew was asleep, and his belongings, including the gifts from Luna, laid at the ready next to his footwear.

“Yeah, I’m a saint, all right,” Taze grumbled as he rose from his bed and approached Matthew’s. He took the quiver of bolts and moved to one of the tables that had been brought in to decorate the room. “Did you guys manage to get that stuff I listed for you?” he asked the Thestral.

“The materials are all there. You’ll find the vessels are clearly marked.”

“Then I have work to do,” Taze said as he began setting things up. He sorted the chemicals out carefully before he retrieved a small bowl and began to mix them together in certain amounts while he read from the book like he would a recipe for cookies.

“I take it that your friend would not approve of this?” the guard guessed.

“Chemical warfare is considered a major war crime in our homeworld. After a great war, the nations came together and agreed upon a set of laws that forbid the use of such weapons and several others as going against everything we considered to be ‘human.’”

“And you would rather the burden, and thus the guilt, of this act be upon yourself, rather than your friend?” the Thestral surmised.

“If you’ve heard anything about my speech earlier today, then you likely remember I said I’d die for him. Friends are the people you can count on. They’d sacrifice for you, and you need to be willing to sacrifice for them. If it takes my soul to make sure his isn’t touched, that's a price I'll pay,” Taze noted as he finished one mixture and began another.

“Then it seems that humans may not be so different from Ponies after all,” the Thestral said with a wry smile.

Taze grinned. “At least Thestrals, perhaps.” He chuckled. “I never did get your name.”

“You may call me Crescent Reaper.” He chuckled. “A bit pretentious, but it is a name well earned.”

“I suppose I'll get a chance to see the reason why up close tomorrow.” Taze chuckled. “Who knows? Maybe we’ll speak again when this whole mess is over.”

“Perhaps,” the warrior allowed. “But for now, I would focus on that mixture of yours. Keep stirring like that and you’re liable to fill this whole room with fumes.”

“I doubt it,” Taze said as he worked. “The book said these mixtures are targeted at emotivores.”

“And that is supposed to make them smell better?”

“No, but it also means whatever scent they have is probably not going to be overly noxious to us,” he noted. “Mostly, anyway.”

“Will you also treat your own weapons?”

“Yes, but my weapon does more potential damage, so I’ll be doing just a base coating with one of these. These bolts are going to get treated with multiple coatings each.”

“I do not believe those measures have been combined in such a manner before. I suggest you use a brush, rather than risking an adverse reaction.”

“I plan to.” Taze nodded. “Just want the preparations done first.”

“I will leave you to it, then.” The Thestral nodded as he spread his wings and flew up to the rafters. “I’ll keep an ear out for any uninvited guests. Make sure you don’t stay up too late, though, human. We have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow.”

“Best of luck,” Taze offered with a nod before focusing on his work. It was going to be a long night.

---

The first thing Shawn felt was a strange sense of cold against his cheek. Actually, his whole body felt cold. Pain throbbed against his skull with every beat of his heart. It was dark, obviously, because he had yet to open his eyes. He wasn’t sure that he wanted to just yet. He remembered the fight, the attack from the Changelings, and … a flying chunk of wood. He would have to focus on that later. For now, he needed to focus on his own body.

He grunted as he moved his arms and pushed himself off the ground before putting his knees underneath himself. Finally, he opened his eyes and took in his surroundings. The best he could make out was that he was in a cave of some kind, though it was illuminated by a series of large crystals.

He took a few breaths before taking the inevitable next step to shift himself to his feet. As he placed more weight on his right side, the leg gave out momentarily, leaving him to stumble several steps before crashing into one of the larger crystals around him and propping his now throbbing shoulder against it to hold himself up. Attempting to stand upright unassisted resulted in a flare of intense pain in the lower right section of his back, and he was in no shape to try and reach behind himself to figure out why.

“Come … on,” he growled to himself. “Move. I need to move.” He continued, slowly applying pressure to his right side as he stood himself up. The pain provided clarity and focus. “Come on. Move,” he ordered again as he finally took a few steps.

Scanning the grounds around him, he was barely able to find what appeared to be a path through the stalagmites and crystals. While he attempted to follow the assumed path, his thoughts drifted back once more to the events that had led to his being cast … wherever here was.

The Changelings had attacked him after he was led to a trap. He saw their leader as well. At least, he assumed her to be their leader, though events were slightly blurry. He groaned as he placed a hand on his head. What was it that led there…? What happened before? How did he expose them?

‘The fake Twilight. Right.’ He frowned at the thought. “What about the others? Damn it…. Are they all right?”

He stumbled once more as his right leg wobbled and threatened to give out again. “Come on.” He grit his teeth as he continued to push forward. “I can’t die here. I won’t die here.”

It was faint, a ghost of an echo, but it rang and resonated with the crystals, and thus in Shawn’s ears. The hint of a voice, and a nagging, almost maniacal laugh.

“Are you sure we’re going the right way, Twilight?”

“No, but as long as we keep going up, we have to reach the opening they used to sneak through the barrier in the first place. Don’t worry, Cadance, I promise. We’ll get there in time to stop all of this.”

“We have to be careful, Twilight. The Changeling Queen’s magic was strong enough to overpower mine. And she’s had days to feed off of Shining Armor since then. She won’t be an easy target.”

Shawn grit his teeth as he contemplated the voices. It could have been a clever trap laid out to lead him astray. But … he was already as good as dead either way. He took a few breaths to brace himself, then inhaled as much as possible. His side seared with pain as the flesh around the wound that was doubtless there shifted with the movement of his diaphragm. He grit his teeth through it and bellowed at the top of his lungs. “Twilight!” The pain from the breathing was nothing compared to the explosion that followed his expulsion. He fell to his knees, and his hands scraped the uneven floor as he panted, grit his teeth, and yelled again. “I need help!”

The crystals rang again, this time with a deeper tone as his voice carried and reverberated again and again. It took a full five minutes before the response came back.

“What was that?”

A gasp followed. “Lord Shawn!”

“Twilight, wait! It might be a trick.”

“Cadance, he’s not a Pony. He’s not even from our world. I don’t think the Changelings can take his form.”

“Ex Divinia etiam,” he muttered as he thought things over. Proof would speed things along. “The glamour spell you cast over me at the fitting room! She didn’t notice I was the wardrobe!” he called out, taking several breaths as he groped for the next piece of evidence he could use. He had to stay awake. He had to keep his mind moving. Otherwise, the darkness would close in again. He reached toward his back, but his arm trembled as he did so, and he nearly lost his balance. His hand smacked heavily against the floor as the tremors began to shudder over his body.

“Shawn!” In her exuberance, the mare had dropped the noble title. The rapid beating of hooves echoed through the cavern.

“Twilight, wait!”

“If you can hear me, call again!” Twilight shouted. “Help us find you!”

“I can’t,” he choked as his voice failed him. “Come on, … one more time,” he muttered, trying to psych himself up for it. “I’m—!” Before he could utter the word ‘here’, the rest of his breath came out as a haggard groan of pain. His side flared up again. This time however, he couldn’t push through it as he exhaled harshly, taking short gasps before his arms wobbled and finally failed him, and he collapsed onto the floor.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed. Every blink felt so slow. It was harder and harder to force his eyelids open again. The steady rhythm, the reverberation of thudding hooves. Thudding, thudding, thudding in such a steady beat. The short gasps punctuated the silence between those thuds as the blackness ate away at the edges of his vision piece by piece. Focus flagged as the distinct staccato of the clops became a muddled river of sound, and then white noise washing over him. He managed one last final groan before his strength failed him utterly and he fell clawing into that dark abyss.

---

Taze tightened the straps on his pauldrons one last time. What he’d been given was a blue sweater with several small plates across the front with a steel kind of belt-like harness around the waist. Beyond that, he wore surprisingly well tailored pants that had been given several carefully shaped plates across the front. The harness around the waist connected to two large pauldrons at his shoulders with additional spaulders and bracers made of boiled leather covering his arms. He wore his original gloves and boots, however. The smiths were unable to get the hang of either in time. Additionally, at the request of one of the Thestrals, he’d been given a bandoleer loaded with the closest thing they could get to throwing blades. They were handleless knives, basically, but they were weighted well enough for throwing. He looked at Matthew with a grim smile as he tested the fit.

Matthew smiled grimly in turn. “You look terrifying,” he said as he finished dressing in the armor provided. It looked more like a more Romanesque breastplate formed from plated boiled leather that looked like it had been welded together. A plated metal kilt over a pair of leather pants offered protection for his thighs. There was no need for footwear, since he had his combat boots. Rather than the familiar gold of the Solar Guard armor, a simple burnished steel served to protect them. The breastplate had an eagle etched into it that looked similar to the great seal of the United States. He couldn’t help but wonder how they might have gotten ahold of it in the first place. There was only one potential explanation he could think of. “I think Luna was in my dreams,” he announced as he pointed to the design on his breastplate.

He moved to the helmet next. It lacked the usual space for the guards’ plume, leaving something more akin to a medieval helm as he strapped it on. When the helmet was properly situated, he nodded and moved to push his glasses up his nose, only to stop in surprise as his hand hit a solid wall. It was invisible, but it was clearly there. “Taze, … the helmet has a forcefield for my face.” Carefully set gems in his armor glowed with the charge of mana to help maintain the field. Along with the armor, the Ponies had been kind enough to include a trainee short sword to act as a final line of defense. They had also included a loop in the sword belt to place his K-bar. Finally, he nodded and turned to face his friend. “So? How do I look?”

“You look like you’ll last a bit out there.” Taze chuckled. “Let's hope this all works out.”

“You doubt the craftsmanship?” Moonshade asked with eyebrow raised as she fixed her helmet on her head. The dark blue polished metal shone sinisterly in the light. A saber was buckled to her side, and a tomahawk was strapped to her chest.

“No. I'm just being realistic,” Taze said. “Go into battle thinking you will live, and you will surely die. Go into battle recognizing that you may die, and you will surely live.”

“But I will be relying on your armor totally,” Matthew started. “We take this one moment at a time.” He grinned. “Did you relay that I wasn’t feeling well, like I asked?”

“Yes. Over an hour ago,” Moonshade noted.

“Which means the fun will begin in about….” Taze counted down from five with one hand and then pointed toward the door, which received a harsh knock.

“Who's there?” Moonshade asked.

“Corporal Flurry. Princess Celestia dispatched me to escort a healer to tend to the human.”

Matthew gave a very convincing groan and grumbled to Moonshade to stop the noise or he’d lose his cookies again.

“Permission to enter?”

“What is the command code for today, corporal?” Moonshade asked.

“Ma’am, that information wasn’t shared with me. All I know is I’m acting on Princess Celestia’s orders to escort.”

“And I am acting on Princess Luna’s orders not to act without the correct authorization,” Moonshade stated. “No command code, no entry.”

“Please,” a mare’s voice called. “Won’t you at least let me leave some remedies for the human to try? You can retrieve them after we depart. I just want my patient to be well.”

“Leave them in front of the door and leave, then,” Moon shade said, making extra effort to sound unsuspecting but annoyed and ending with an overdramatic sigh.

The sound of clinking vials rang like milk bottles. “Permission to be dismissed?” the corporal asked through the door.

“Leave, Corporal, before I strangle you with your own tail!” Moonshade barked.

The sound of retreating hoofbeats echoed from the hall.

“For being a race of shapeshifters, you’d think they’d be better at acting,” she said in a whisper. “Four sets of hooves approached, and only one set left. They’re waiting for us to open the door and retrieve the ‘medicine.’”

“So, then, we wait?” Taze asked.

Matthew nodded and kept his mouth shut as he slowly got down on the ground and crawled to a good spot, raised his crossbow, and pointed it at the door.

Moonshade nodded. “As long as we can. Then,” she looked grimly at the door, “we give them Tartarus.”

---

Twilight Sparkle, the bearer of the element of magic, noble daughter of the Solar Court, and sister to Captain Shining Armor of the Royal Guard was racing as fast as her hooves could carry her across the stone floor. The bedraggled Princess Cadance trailed behind with a concerned look on her face.

“Twilight, slow down!”

Twilight shook her head. “If I slow down, he could die. You heard him. You heard what happened! He could be injured. He could be bleeding! He could be—”

Cadance leaped in front of the mare. “Twilight! Calm down. If this friend of yours is in trouble, and it really is him, then we’ll help him. But if you don’t move more carefully, you’re liable to get yourself killed. This is a mine, after all, and a very old one at that. We’ll run where it’s safe, but when it’s time to turn corners or enter a dark cavern, we need to slow down and take in our surroundings. We don’t want to get trapped in a cave-in.”

“But—”

“Deep breaths, Twilight.” The mare laid a scuffed hoof on the mare’s back and rubbed it back and forth. “You’re the smartest mare I know. If we’re going to find him safe and sound, you’ll figure out how to do it.”

It took a few moments for the mare to catch her breath. The presence of her favorite foal sitter helped immensely. She was still worried, but her friend was right. Running blindly would only get them lost. She had to think. What did she know about navigating caverns and cave systems? “There are some species of creatures that navigate through echolocation,” Twilight mused. “I talked with some of the Thestrals about it once after Princess Luna came back.”

“And?”

“Well, … this whole cavern is filled with gems and crystals.”

“And?”

“That means that they can resonate. They attuned to the fake you when she taunted me in the cavern. If she can use that connection to find us when she’s back up in Canterlot Castle, then maybe I can use it to find him down here!”

Cadance smiled. “See? Smartest mare I know.”

“I’ll still have to be careful about it,” Twilight said with a frown. “If her magic is still connected to these crystals, she might feel what I’m doing and try to stop me.”

“Then what if I give her a target?”

“Cadance, no! That’s too dangerous!”

“And what you’re suggesting isn’t? Shining would never forgive me if I let something happen to his little sister. If Chrysalis’ magic isn’t there, then there’s no harm. And if it is and she tries to lash out, I’ll be better equipped to handle it. Either way, this is our best option to find him quickly. If this lord really is in danger, then we have to take the risk.” Cadance’s horn glowed a bright blue. “I trust you, Twilight. And I believe in you. Will you believe in me?”

Twilight didn’t trust herself to speak. She nodded as tears swam in her eyes and her horn ignited. Together, the two touched their horns to the crystal walls and let their magic spider out in tendris. Each crystal their power touched changed shade and hue to take on purple or blue auras as the mares’ magic passed through the cave network.

The spell was a curious blend of projection and scrying pulled into one. Throughout the journey, Twilight could perceive the world surrounded in a purple hue as her awareness raced along the paths of the cave system. Faster and faster her magic flowed. She snaked past Cadance’s touch, having known that familiar mana for years. There was something else there. But what she perceived was not an aura of magic, but rather a lack thereof. The magic in the air surrounded the shape, but the shape itself was a dark void. And it was crumpled on the cave floor.

Twilight’s thought snapped back like the crack of a whip as she pulled herself free of the cave walls. She turned quickly to Cadance, where the blue tendrils of her magic were slowly being herded back by that malevolent green.

“Cadance, that’s enough! I’ve got what we need. Break it off!” Twilight raced to her foal sitter’s side and thrust against the Alicorn’s side. Her horn jostled, and an almost electric spark jumped off the crystal wall to her horn. Then she gasped as her eyes came back into focus and the green consumed what little of the blue remained.

“Did you … find what you need?” Cadance huffed.

Twilight nodded, even as the Cadance that was not Cadance appeared on the wall and tutted.

“Ah, ah, ah. Naughty naughty,” she chided. “Did you really think I was going to make it that easy for you?”

“We will get out of here, Chrysalis. And when we do, you’ll regret ever coming to Canterlot,” Cadance said.

Chrysalis chuckled. “By the time you get out, there won’t be a Canterlot left for me to regret.” She sneered. “I think the castle would make for a lovely hive. Don’t you? And Shining Armor will make a perfect drone. A queen can never have enough consorts, you know.”

The ghost of the Changeling’s laughter carried exultantly through the air as Cadance’s hoof smashed against the crystal surface, shattering the Changeling queen’s image. “I won’t let that happen,” she said through clenched teeth. Then, as her head drooped, she spoke more softly. “I can’t….”

Twilight laid a supportive hoof on Cadance’s side. “We’ll make it,” she promised. “Let’s get Lord Shawn. Then we’ll gather our forces and get out of this place.”

Cadance nodded. “I wasn’t able to chart far, but I got far enough to make her take notice. Lead the way. I’ll follow. Then I can guide us through what I saw.”

This time, the race was not the frantic charge of one consumed with emotion, but rather the confident strides of one who knew where they were going. Room after room, cave after cave, Twilight followed the trail her magic had laid for them until they finally reached the chamber where Shawn’s body lay and gasped.

The human was crumpled on the floor, his eyes closed. His face was a pale white, and his back and coat were dyed a sticky red that seeped like ichor from the wound where a black object protruded.

“Shawn!” Twilight ran toward the body. “Shawn, can you hear me? Shawn!” She nudged his face. The skin felt cold to the touch, but her keen ears heard the faint gasps of his breath. She looked up frantically at Cadance. “He’s alive!” Her horn glowed brighter to give a better view of the human’s condition. “Help me!”

Cadance approached quickly. Her own face appeared to have paled, though whether it was a trick of the light or simply the change in her demeanor was difficult to tell. “I … I don’t know if we can do very much here, Twilight,” she said softly. “I … I don’t know what to do….” She began to shake. “What do I do? Mother….” Her pupils and irises shrank as she stared off into the distance, as though she weren’t even there in the cave anymore. Tears pattered against the cave floor.

“Cadance!” Twilight raced up to the mare, but no matter how she called, the mare wouldn’t answer. Twilight had read about these reactions before, but she had never expected to see a traumatic flashback from her foal sitter of all people. There was only one way to guide her out of it. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake,” she began with the traditional cadence, clopping her hooves in time and crouching down to cover her eyes as they had for so many years when she was a filly. Cadance blinked slowly at that as her eyes pulsed. “Clap your hooves….” Twilight raised Cadance’s hoof to tap her own. “And do a little shake.”

“T-Twilight…?”

“I’m here, Cadance. Let’s do it again. You remember the motions, don’t you?” She smiled at the mare who had loved her like a sister for so many years. “Sunshine sunshine,” she began again. This time, Cadance joined in.

“Ladybugs awake,” she said uncertainly as she lowered her head.

The two spoke together as they completed the ritual. “Clap your hooves and do a little shake.” Like an exorcism, the two chanted together once more, pushing through the motions until Cadance was finally back in the present. She breathed slowly. “Thank you, Twilight. I … I don’t know what happened.”

“We can talk about that later. Can you help Shawn?” Twilight guided Cadance back toward the human’s limp body.

Cadance swallowed heavily as she looked over the carnage. “I don’t know enough about his anatomy to be able to heal him, even if I had a strong enough spell to do the job. And that fight with Chrysalis weakened me. I won’t be able to do much.”

“We can’t just leave him like this.”

Cadance nodded. “I know. You’re right. But without proper knowledge of his anatomy, I don’t know how best to help him. We could kill him if we’re not careful. We need guidance from someone who knows how to treat him.”

“We don’t have anyone like that!”

“Yes, we do.” Cadance looked down at Shawn. “Twilight, I need you to hold him steady in your magic. Do you understand? We can’t afford to let him hurt himself.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Try to bring him back to consciousness. He’s the only one that can help us right now.”

Twilight hesitated for a moment, then nodded grimly as her horn lit up and her magical aura surrounded the human’s body. A few moments later, Cadance shook herself and gathered her will before lowering her horn to the human’s forehead.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “This is probably going to hurt.” And then her power arced from her horn into the man’s skull.

Shawn grunted in pain as his eyes opened weakly.

“Shawn?” Cadance asked. “That is your name, isn’t it?”

Shawn slowly looked Cadance over. “Yeah,” he muttered softly.

“We don’t have much time. I brought you back, but I won’t be able to keep you coherent for long. You’ve been stabbed in the back, and I don’t have sufficient knowledge of your anatomy to treat you. I need you to tell me all you can about emergency procedures for your species as quickly as possible.”

After a few seconds he exhaled. “I’d be dead already if it was anything vital…” He took a breath. “Best bet,” he took a moment to muddle through his thoughts. “Is to remove whatever’s there and seal the wound.”

Cadance shook her head. “We can’t close it. We have neither the tools nor the knowledge of your anatomy to perform that sophisticated a spell successfully, let alone operate to close it.”

After a few seconds, Shawn looked her dead in the eyes. “Do you know any fire-based magic?”

Cadance nodded. “We do.”

“Pull it out,” he took a breath. “And sear the wound shut.”

“Are you crazy?” Twilight objected.

“I’m dying.” Shawn gave a weak smile. “It is a severe solution, but ... it’s all I have.”

“Twilight,” Cadance said gravely. “It’s either this or he has no chance at all.” She closed her eyes and shuddered, most likely to shake off the remnants of the vision she had experienced. “On the count of three, I need you to pull out whatever that thing is with your magic while still keeping Shawn restrained. After, I’ll move in with the spell before his blood has a chance to pool in the wound.”

“Hold me steady,” Shawn added as he closed his eyes, bracing himself the best he could.

“One.” Twilight braced herself. “Two.” Cadance charged up her horn. “Three!”

The spike yanked with incredible force, crashing into the high ceiling and clattering to the floor before skittering to a spinning stop. The torn fabric that had been thrust in with it soon pulled out, leaving Cadance the opening she needed as her horn unleashed a blue flame that was carefully concentrated. She plunged her horn at the wound. Steam and smoke hissed as the smell of roasting flesh assaulted both equines’ nostrils. Shawn hissed, then opened his mouth as the involuntary scream forced itself out of his throat.

And then, mercifully, it was done. Cadance drew back with a wan face as Twilight released her hold on Shawn and waited while the human’s chest heaved.

Shawn calmed his breathing as best he could before clenching his hand into a fist. After a moment, he raised his arm, placing his fist on the ground as he pulled himself up onto his knees. As he settled, he reached up and wiped his forehead. “Gods, … that sucked.”

“Are you all right?” Cadance asked. “Can you stand?”

“Yeah. Just, give me a second.” Shawn gave a nod. After a moment he pushed himself onto his feet, wobbling briefly before he widened his stance. “Lightheaded. I’ll probably be fine for now. Thank you.”

Cadance eyed his right leg suspiciously, then strode to his side. “Use me for support until you can get your full strength back. The damage to your side is likely still going to give you trouble.”

“I’ll be fine for now. Honestly, the pain is waking me up right now.” Shawn shook his head. “It’s … one hell of a motivator. If I need your help, I’ll ask. Don’t worry.”

“Do you feel well enough to climb?”

“Won’t know until the time comes.”

“Then we’d better get moving. We don’t know how much time is left before the ceremony. Twilight, can you guide us back along the trail you took to get us here? I should be able to guide us from there, at least for a time.”

Twilight nodded. “This way.”

---

The rhythmic thunk and chop of blade against wood hacked away at the three occupants’ ears. Now that guile had failed, brute force had become the Changelings’ only recourse. Moonshade crouched at the ready while the door shook and vibrated. Then came the sound that filled the room with dread, the familiar ring of magic at work. A green aura surrounded the hinges. The metal screeched as it slowly pulled out of the sockets. Finally, the metallic ping rang as they pulled free. With a final blow, the door came crashing down.

Matthew pulled the trigger of the crossbow, and the first changeling was hit in the left eye as the illusion failed. The Changeling fell to the left, lifeless as the hinges they had just removed. Next, Matthew rolled out of a magic blast and tried to load another bolt. As the next Changeling poked through to walk in over the body of its companion, Taze struck out with a sweep of his blade, only to strike an angle between the chitin plates instead, causing the blade to bounce off. He growled and managed to jam the shorter blade in with his other hand, though the effort left the hand numb. The changeling landed on top of its comrade, leaving only one left to kill.

Moonshade charged the gap and managed to catch the last changeling off guard, slitting its throat with a well-practiced slash of her saber. She pulled the twitching Changeling into the room, leaving it to die there, then checked the hallways carefully before nodding.

“It’s clear. Let's go!” she said as she took point.

Matthew had his next bolt loaded by the time the other two had made their kills. “Let’s get rid of these bugs,” he said darkly. Despite the bravado, a slight tremor in his voice betrayed the shock and fear he was combatting as they began the campaign that would truly be a fight for their lives. He moved slowly, using the walls for cover as he kept an eye on their surroundings.

“You okay?” Taze asked as they moved. He sheathed his short blade and kept a throwing knife ready in his off hand.

“I just killed for the first time in my life, Taze. I haven’t even hunted before…. And here, I killed a living, thinking being. I … I think I know why we dehumanize our enemies now. It makes it a lot easier to pull the trigger.” He swallowed heavily and moistened his lips. “But it’s either we kill them or they take us out.”

“We’re fighting for more than ourselves here,” Taze reminded him, gesturing to Shawn’s sword. He wasn’t willing to leave it for someone to take, so he’d tied the sheath to his back, instead.

“And that’s why I’m trying not to panic. But when this battle’s over, I am going to freak out. I know I am. I just … don’t know how much yet.”

“That's fair.” Taze clapped his friend on the back. “Now let's follow the Thestral.”

“I am,” Matthew rumbled. “Someone’s got to watch our backs.”

---

Daylight shone from the cavern entrance after an impassioned musical number that sounded … curiously one-sided carrying through the caves. The purpose of the song seemed to be two-fold. First, a means to vent her emotions, and secondly as a means to tie their magic to the song and let the soundwaves chart a course to the cavern’s entrance. Twilight explained the phenomenon briefly as something the Ponies call heartsong, an expression of harmony that binds the lifeforms of Equestria together.

However, Shawn didn’t have time to focus on that, thanks to the convenient approach of three clearly brainwashed bridesmaids whose eyes were all glowing green. Shawn was definitely starting to see a pattern there….

“You’d think they’d make it less obvious,” Shawn muttered as he widened his stance, bringing his fists up.

“Wait!” Cadance shouted as she produced a bouquet of flowers and shook it in front of the mares. Two of them eyed it hungrily before it was flung off into the shadows of a cavern.

The twin cries of, “I want it!” rang in stereo, but the middle bridesmaid stared with wide eyes at the sight of the human. Her body trembled. An unhealthy smile curved her lips as she bared her teeth in a manic grin and began to shake in place.

“Human. It’s a, it’s a … a … human!” She lunged, giggling like a madwoman as the green light in her eyes flickered and buzzed.

Thankfully, Shawn was prepared for something along those lines, though he was anticipating more hostile intent in a lunge. He sidestepped the mare easily. “You know, now is really not the time.”

She giggled all the more and lunged again.

“We need to sedate her,” Twilight said. “She’s not in her right mind!”

“Apologies will have to come later,” Shawn muttered as he clenched his fists. Once the mare was within range, he sprung into action. He pulled his left arm closer to his chest and rotated his body, drew back, then released a powerful right hook. In slow motion, it would have played out very much like cartoon physics. The mare’s jaw pushed one way from the force while the rest of her body twisted and spun as a result of her own momentum contributing to the collision and increasing the impact. Her legs flailed like the appendages of a ragdoll as she lost consciousness and skidded to a stop.

“Damn it.” Shawn grimaced as he shook his hand. “That’s not pleasant.”

“Is … is she going to be all right?” Twilight asked.

Cadance rushed over to Lyra and waved her horn over the mare.

“She’s still breathing,” Shawn remarked as he clenched his hand a few times. “Trust me, I’m not strong enough to do that. Given your anatomy, my fist was likely to break before I’d break anything on you.”

Cadance nodded in confirmation. “She’ll have a nasty headache, and some bad bruising under her fur, but she’ll definitely live.”

“Then we don’t have a moment to waste,” Twilight said quickly. “We have to get to the wedding!”

“Lead the way.” Shawn gestured forward.

The trio blinked in the midday sun as their eyes adjusted to the sudden transition to take in their surroundings. Topiary and grass wove together to conceal their presence. And when they looked back to the hole from which they had emerged, there was only the appearance of a perfectly maintained patch of lawn. The many buildings and estates of Canterlot and its residents and businesses lunged at the sky while the steady flow of water and the dim roar of the falls indicated just how close to the castle and wedding hall the three really were.

“Well this explains a lot,” Twilight said. “No wonder they were able to infiltrate the castle.”

“I suppose the cavern entrance would have been too difficult to widen for a proper assault,” Cadance agreed. She looked frantically toward the wedding hall. “We haven’t much time. Shawn, I have to ask you to rally as much of the Guard as you can. If there’s anyone you know you can trust, find them, and have them spread the word to move on the wedding hall. I’ll do everything I can to stall until you can get there.”

“You’re not about to face her alone,” Twilight insisted. “That’s my brother she’s threatening.”

Shawn sighed. “That, and the Guard doesn’t exactly look at me in a good light. Given our arrival, we’ve been mostly to ourselves. Best I could get might be some of the Lunar Guard, who are likely already fighting or preparing to fight.”

“That’s better than nothing. At least you can tell them the target.”

“I’ll see what I can do.” Shawn frowned. “Given our position, I think I know where the forges are. I’ll have to equip myself first.” He patted his left side where his sword would have been.

“Don’t push yourself too far,” Cadance warned. “We still have to get that wound tended.”

“I’ll try. But given the current state of emergency, I don’t think I’m going to find a doctor able to take the time to help me.”

“Then … I suppose all that’s left to say is good luck,” Cadance said. “And … thank you for believing Twilight.”

“Given what I had heard about you and what she said about you, it added up easily that something was wrong. That, and Princess Luna warning us about the Changelings in the first place helped.” Shawn gave a nod. “Be safe, all right?”

“As safe as we can be denouncing the villain.” Cadance smiled. Then she nodded and turned toward the hall. “Come on, Twilight. We have to hurry!”

Twilight gave a quick hug around Shawn’s good leg. “Thank you,” she said. Then she, too, turned and raced after her future sister-in-law.

Shawn gave a soft sigh as he looked skyward. At first, he thought the black specks swimming in his vision were just the result of light damage. But as he squinted at the great bubble overhead, he could just perceive the barest hints of ripples spreading like rocks striking a pond. First a few, then a few more, and then a veritable cloud of them swarming, switching, and striking in turn to maintain their strength.

The enemy really was making their move. And they were legion.

“Oh, shi—”

---

Matthew glanced behind him as he followed Moonshade and Taze through the corridors. They’d taken out a few more of the Changelings, but been lucky enough so far to go relatively undetected. They slipped into a windowed hallway, and Matthew gaped at the sight of the great pink dome above. “They’re attacking the dome!” he hissed.

“Well, if Shining Armor’s weak enough, they might be able to break through,” Taze acknowledged. “At this point, they’re the battering ram.”

Matthew frowned. “Then we should pick up the pace.” He sighed. “I just wish we knew how many are in the castle grounds themselves. That would make this a lot easier.”

“Let's hope Luna knows what to do, then,” Taze said. He kept his sword drawn and his eyes alert. “Which way?” he asked Moonshade.

The Thestral didn’t say anything in response, and just darted down another corridor.

Matthew waited for Taze to follow, then took up the rear with his crossbow at the ready, should a bolt be needed. As they passed a doorway, the wood burst open, and two Changelings tried to charge. Matthew fired, cracking the first Changeling’s chitin hard around the hole in its hoof as it passed through to strike the second opponent in the barrel. It hissed, reared and lashed in the air, then stiffened and fell dead. The Changeling with the damaged hoof charged, and Matthew drew the short sword and plunged it at the same time the Changeling lunged at him. The weight of the charge thrust the pommel into Matthew’s chest, knocking the wind out of his diaphragm. The fang-filled mouth was inches from his face. Matthew’s arms shook as the body’s weight drew the blade to the floor. Taze seized the handle and yanked it out of the drone’s body, trailing the same green ichor.

“Thank you, Taze,” Matthew muttered. “I should see if I can recover my bolt.”

Taze shook his head and pointed to his wrist. Matthew nodded and silently moved to work at cranking his next bolt into place while Moonshade provided overwatch.

“”Keep an eye on your six,” Taze noted as they moved. “That could have gone badly.”

Matthew nodded sharply and resumed his vigil as they turned down another hallway to reach a more familiar corridor.

“Are we close?” he asked Moonshade.

She nodded. “We should be. The Changelings have been fewer down this corridor. It seems like the princess may be sending out cleanup patrols.”

Matthew smiled. “Then we meet up with the princess and see where we can throw our weight about.”

“Best keep your eyes open then, human. The princess is said to be more like a natural disaster than a warrior,” Moonshade said with a somewhat awed look on her face.

“You’ve seen her in combat before?” He smirked. “Sounds like the third army in World War Two. Or a battle carrier group.”

As if to punctuate that statement, a very large body flew through a nearby pillar, kicking up dust and shattered stone. When it settled, a massive Changeling lay dead and still twitching inside the crater that had formed in the pillar. There was the casual sound of hooves on stone as Luna walked around the corner dressed from head to toe in familiar blue armor. The massive war hammer was held casually in her magical grip.

“Damn,” Taze swore with wide eyes as he took in the sheer destruction that one blow had wrought.

“I agree,” Matthew said. “That was good!” He grinned in relief as good humor replaced anxiety.

“Good to see you’ve made it. Come quickly. Let's get you inside. My captain is already prepared to explain the plan,” Luna told them as she approached, gesturing to a spot between the pillars that appeared to be a sheer stone wall.

Matthew nodded as he followed behind the princess. “Good. I’d rather not go off and do something without an update on intel. We already took out about … six to seven Changelings between the three of us.”

“We killed any we came across, my princess,” Moonshade clarified with a bow.

“Very good. Though it seems there will be plenty of fun for all of us soon,” Luna noted, gesturing upwards.

“How long can it hold out?” Matthew asked. “That is the main situation on time.”

“I don’t know,” Luna admitted as she shepherded them toward the stone face, pushing them against it and then through it to what might have been a decent sized room, had it not been filled with Thestrals, cots, and supplies. The supplies were being hoofed over to others as each hastily sought to place them in their necessary locations before standing at attention for their princess.

In the middle was a table with odds and ends that a trio of Thestrals were working on.

“Good sandbox,” Matthew said as he observed the setup. Figures of plastic beetles were intermingled with tin soldiers standing in for the Thestrals alongside a gem that most likely represented Luna. Two tin Minotaurs were hastily removed from a bag to add to the scenario, now that the two humans had been successfully escorted. Matthew couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight.

“All right, you lot of whelps, ready up!” Luna shouted in a harsh tone to all the troops. Despite the fervor with which they moved to assemble, there was nothing but smiles on their faces. “Now Canterlot has a bug problem, and we all know those pompous oafs in gold plating are too fancy to stomp some bugs. So I hope none of you got yourselves ‘dolled up’ in your fancy dresses and best horseshoes, because it looks like we’re going to be getting dirty today.” She grinned at the warriors and raised her hammer above her head as a banner and a salute. “HOORAH!”

Matthew was surprised to hear something so close to the Marine shout from back on Earth. Although it was not the same as the Equines, it seemed only fitting to Matthew to call out the Army equivalent from home. “HOOAH!”

“The solar guards are counts’ sons, knights’ sons, or barons’ sons. Their professions are sitting on their plots and letting others make money for them. Thestrals! What is your profession?”

“Warriors!” they shouted.

The enthusiasm carried Matthew out in a riptide as he shouted, “Citizen Soldier!”

“Now you give your ears to the captain, and Sleipnir's flaming beard help you if I find even one of you out of line. You’ll all sit in the corner while I take the fun.” With that, Luna turned her attention to the grizzled one-eyed Thestral near the map.

“All right, idiots,” Night Shade began, “here’s—” He was unfortunately cut off as a wave of magic crashed through the area and the sound of something shattering into massive bits above them filled the air.

“Report!” Luna called to a nearby guard who sped out and returned moments later.

“The shield’s down, ma’am! Changelings are swarming in!”

“”Well, looks like the plan’s out the window. Lunar guard, get your weapons and follow me!” Luna shouted, then turned to leave the room.

Matthew took enough time to restock on bolts, then followed grimly behind. Taze Followed his friend, trying his best to keep him in sight amongst the crowd of moving Thestrals. He’d never seen Matthew like this before.

---

Shawn growled as he pushed himself off the wall. While he was good at hiding it, he was definitely dealing with anemia. Every now and then, the world would spin beneath him, resulting in stumbling clumsily to a nearby wall. He wasn’t making progress like he wanted to. At the very least, he needed to equip himself and find Matthew and Taze.

Though it took some time, he did eventually find his way to the forges. The door, however, was either locked or barricaded. He couldn’t tell just by pushing against it. After glancing around once more, he raised his voice. “Hello? Storm Hammer, Steel Weaver, you in there?”

Following a few moments of silence, he sighed. “Of course not. High priority targets. They’re probably being guarded somewhere else,” he muttered.

There was a chance he could bash his way in, though. Considering the situation, he was certain they’d understand. And if they didn’t, then he’d probably be able to pay for it using some of the funds the nobles had given him as peace offerings. With that decision made, he lined up his shoulder against the door and prepared himself. While it would be optimal to kick the barrier, he didn’t trust his coordination there, given the location of his injury and the damage too much stress to that area could cause. As such, it fell to using his height and weight instead.

After taking a few preparatory breaths, he backed off, then rammed into the door. Surprisingly, the door groaned under the assault, an effect he hadn’t expected from a single blow. Then came the pain. He clenched his teeth as his shoulder and the muscles around the right side of his lower back both screamed their protests. Shawn knew he didn’t have the time to nurse those areas, though. He gritted his teeth and pulled back again. This time, he gave himself a little more distance and put his all into the charge. The door cracked as he burst through, breaking the metal bolt as the door slammed open. He stumbled in surprise at how the barrier had broken after only his second attempt. He barely managed to catch himself and avoid stumbling head-first into one of the forges.

As he had surmised, the chambers were completely empty. He sighed and rubbed his shoulder absently against the pain he knew would bruise in due time. Fortunately, he still remembered the way to Steel Weaver’s personal workspace. He doubted his armor would be finished, but whatever was there would at least be something he could use, assuming he could find something that fit.

He found several pieces of plate armor. Of course, they were only pieces made separate from one another and held together by leather straps. He frowned as he looked over the pieces. They’d cover anything essential in his center of mass, but his limbs would only be partially covered. “Better than nothing,” he murmured

Pulling up the pieces that made up the chestpiece, he began the process of strapping them on, ensuring they wouldn’t slip. Next came the bracers, followed by some plating for his thighs and greaves for his shins. Overall, it was barely anything in comparison to the standard armor of even the Solar Guard, but he would make do with what he could. Frankly, in his condition, he wasn’t sure he would be able to handle a full set of armor anyway.

Once he ensured everything was strapped down, he looked over the weapons that were completed on the nearby racks. It didn’t take him long to find the one Steel Weaver had him look over initially Thankfully, the smith had his finished products neatly organized, including the sheath for the blade. Ensuring it was sharpened, he took the sheath and strapped it roughly around his waist. Then he snatched a dagger that had been left on one of the worktables still in its sheath and attached it to the sword belt just above his left leg beneath his coat.

Looking over the sword, he took a breath and sighed. “No mercy,” he spoke to himself, sheathing the sword as he turned to leave. He tried to pull the main forge door closed behind him. Though it proved difficult, he eventually managed to get it into mostly the right place. He shook his head to clear his thoughts as the sound of hooves clopping on the floor grew louder, most likely in response to the break-in. Whoever it was probably went for reinforcements first.

He frowned as he unsheathed the sword and dagger, holding the dagger in his offhand, then turned to face the direction of the approaching force.

Four familiar figures galloped into sight. They didn’t notice him at first. They seemed to be performing a systematic sweep of the area. When they did notice him, however, they charged. Realizing the position he was in, Shawn ducked lower and braced for their assault. He managed to get the sword into the bottom of one to split it down the center, but nearly pulled his arm getting the sword out as the attacker’s momentum yanked the sword after it. Another, he managed to stab in the neck with the dagger. The third banked and attempted to stab him, but a quick dodge to the side saved him from repeating the events with Chrysalis before the caves. He ran the dagger blade across the Changeling’s throat until he felt something warm on his hand. He didn’t allow himself to focus on what he left behind. The final Changeling came at him from behind, only to impale itself against the sword blade as Shawn spun the weapon around.

“Four,” Shawn growled as he flicked the ichor off both blades. He didn’t grab anything to clean them, but if push came to shove, he’d grab whatever the previous Changelings were wielding and use them to move forward instead.

For now, he needed to find Matthew and Taze. Maybe Luna if he could. She’d have a general idea of where everyone probably was. Looking out of the nearby window to determine how the shield was holding up, he was very much surprised to find it completely gone already. The swarm was fully invading.

“Used as bait, and the outcome went to hell. Delightful.” He rolled his eyes before pressing on.

---

Shawn growled as he continued on his path toward the shared living quarters the princesses had provided for them. He would either run into his friends there or he would need to redirect his path toward Luna’s room and see if he could at least catch one of the Night Guards near there.

He scanned over his environment once again as he moved, ensuring that there was nothing he didn’t take in, even looking above himself to make sure none of the Changelings were trying to keep out of his view for a sneak attack. The creatures could have been anywhere.

He finally found a familiar figure dressed in blue armor patrolling the area near their shared apartment with crescent glaive at the ready.

“Crescent? Oh,” Shawn exhaled. “You’re a sight for sore eyes.”

“Oh! Where have you been?” Crescent asked with wide eyes. “The city is under attack. We heard you’d been taken.”

Shawn chuckled, then winced as his wound stabbed with pain. “Yeah, hard to miss the attack. I was, but I got free with some other prisoners.” He waved off the equine’s concern as he drew closer. “Where are the others?”

“I don’t know. I was left to keep an eye out while the others prepared for the attack.”

“Fair enough,” Shawn replied as he felt a chill go down his spine. “What about the compressor?”

Crescent stopped and gave him a confused look.

“The compressor?” Shawn asked again. “It’s not a priority,” he added casually, even as his heart raced.

“Yeah, the invasion takes priority,” ‘Crescent’ replied, checking the other end of the hall.

“Don’t do this to me…” Shawn commented softly as his hands began to shake.

‘Crescent’ turned toward Shawn. “Don’t do—?”

That was as far as he got. Shawn had reared his foot back and slammed it full force into the fake Crescents throat, resulting in a burst of green magic as the changeling was revealed. The glaive clattered on the floor as the Changeling scrabbled for purchase and air against the pressure as it choked and coughed. “Don’t you dare pull that shit with me!” Shawn roared as his rage boiled over.

He quickly replaced his foot with his hands and pulled the Changeling off the ground, then slammed it against the nearby wall. “What did you do with Crescent?!”

“Thestrals … too dangerous. Taken care of.” The changeling’s horn sparked to life momentarily as it struggled to respond.

Realizing what could potentially happen, Shawn unsheathed the dagger in his offhand and reared his arm back before stabbing it directly into the Changeling's horn. The force of the blow cleaved through the material before embedding the knife into the wall itself.

Shawn grit his teeth as the Changeling’s words reached his mind. It wouldn’t lie, not in this position, and not this sentence. It could have told him that Crescent was still alive, but it told him straight out what was done.

His breathing slowed as he held the screaming changeling against the wall, and his expression shifted to one of cold malice. Looking behind himself, he took note of Crescent’s glaive on the ground, and a plan began to form.

He removed the changeling from the wall and practically threw it onto the floor, disorienting it long enough to retrieve the glaive. If the Changeling was saying anything, it wasn’t reaching Shawn’s ears. Using his foot, he kicked the creature onto its back before taking hold of the glaive in both hands. With nothing stopping him, he sunk it into the changeling’s throat until he felt the blade stop against the floor beneath him.

Shawn took several breaths as he felt the world come back to him. Blood rushed and pumped so fast and loudly in his ears that instead of a roar, he could only hear a distinct ringing. His hands ached from the vibration of the strike and the hard stop as he gripped the shaft tightly.

After taking a moment to finish gathering himself, he stood up and ripped the glaive out of the corpse. He didn’t know how long he stood there looking over the scene. He only noticed what was happening when the sound of metal clashing echoed through the hallway from some nearby fight.

Moving towards the wall, he ripped the dagger out of it and sheathed it once again at his waist. Then he tightened his grip on the glaive again. Any guilt or worry over killing had been burned away by this one savage act of retribution.

“Thirteen,” Shawn tallied as he pressed on toward Luna’s room.

And maybe, he was starting to feel quite up to the task, himself.

---

“I don’t know how much longer this will hold up,” Taze admitted as he looked at his sword. He could already see small cracks and delamination forming on the metal.

“Grab another sword, then. Please don’t keep using one that’s at risk of breaking,” Matthew snapped, then looked back at Moonshade. The mare had fallen back to be his spotter. They were moving with one of the fringe groups of Thestrals, trying to clear any other part of the castle before they marched on the wedding hall.

“You see swords just lying around?” Taze asked. They’d lost Luna in a mass of visceral body parts and green mist a while ago. The lunar Alicorn had seemingly fallen into a battle rage of sorts.

Matthew didn’t answer as he raised his bow and fired. Another Changeling fell to the ground, its short sword clattering against the stone. “There you go. One extra blade.”

Taze shrugged and grabbed it in his left hand while still wielding the katana in his right. “Try and get me another,” he said.

“Is he using two?” Moonshade asked Matthew as Taze moved up.

“Apparently.” Matthew zipped up to what he thought was an alcove only to realize it was a hallway that had been overlooked. He pressed against the wall and motioned his comrades to his position as the buzzing of Changeling wings heralded the approach of another force. He fired off another bolt as four Thestrals and Moonshade reached his side. He dropped the crossbow as the four charged forward, only for another Changeling to barrel into the remainder of the group, wrecking the drones’ attack formation.

Before any further action could be taken, a familiar figure marched toward them with an ichor-drenched glaive held aloft in his right hand. The back of his coat was soaked with his own blood, while his front had many splotches of green. His expression was cold and calculating as he took in the sight of the Changelings being cut off by the Thestrals. The cuts and blood on his face seemingly meant nothing to him. He continued his march to the downed Changelings and stabbed each one as they struggled to regain their balance. The strike was almost surgical in the sense that it either slit the throat or gouged deeply enough into the insectoids’ torsos with a wound large enough to ensure their death, despite any attempts at healing. So focused was he on this task that he hadn’t even noticed the others.

But that didn’t stop them from noticing him. Matthew’s eyes widened with horror as the desperate cry of, “Medic!” burst from his lips.

A Thestral with a white band over her foreleg approached and spoke in a gentle tone as she kept her distance. “Lord Shawn?” The human stared down at her with a cold expression as his weapon leveled in her face. His knuckles were white as he squeezed the shaft of the glaive. The Thestral maintained eye contact and didn’t flinch. “If you would come this way, we’ll get a field dressing for you.”

“My wounds have been dealt with already,” Shawn remarked, as he raised the glaive to a standing position and propped himself on it.

.

“And I’m the battle medic. I wouldn’t be fulfilling my duty without giving you a once-over. Your friends are in our number. If you would allow it, my examination shouldn’t take long. It can be performed in their presence while the remainder of our squad secures this area of the castle. That weapon won’t do you any good if you push yourself beyond the ability to wield it.”

The more the medic attempted to ease Shawn, the more he found his grip tightening on the glaive.

“Shawn, stop being a stubborn ass and let them look at you,” Taze shouted. “Nobody here’s a god damned Changeling.”

Shawn shifted his attention up, and his cold expression seemed to recede as he finally took notice of both Taze and Matthew. He exhaled, allowing some tension to escape him as he lowered the glaive. “Tibi gratias ago deorum,” he spoke softly. “All right.”

Taze threw an arm around his friend. “I was worried. I thought they killed you.”

Shawn nodded. “It felt like it. I’m just glad you guys are all right.” He followed Taze’s directions to a relatively clean patch along the hall.

Matthew smiled. “It’s good to see the three amigos back together.”

Taze unclipped the sheath on his back with one hand and slid it off, then handed it to Shawn. “I killed the bastard that had this.”

Shawn looked to the sheath with a small smile. Taking hold of it, he positioned it to the other side of his hip and strapped it in before removing the makeshift chestplate at the medic’s instruction.

Once he had removed the pieces covering his torso, he took off his coat and placed it off to the side. The Medic hissed in surprise. “You burned it shut. Brutal, but effective. Magic-based, if I’m not mistaken. But the muscle spasms and movements are starting to crack the seal, so to speak.” She pulled out a bottle and clean cloth. “I’m going to apply a numbing agent. That should cut back the pain. Then I’ll add another salve to keep it from tearing open. It won’t be perfect, but it will serve you far better than what you had before. Then we can get you back out killing.” What was asked next was partly bedmanner and partly the inquiry of one warrior to another. “How many bugs did you get?”

“Twenty-seven,” Shawn replied flatly.

A few of the Thestrals gave some whistles, and the medic grinned. “In that case, you can probably expect to receive some moon berry wine from the princess when this is over. You’ve gotten more kills than some of our best rookies.”

Shawn hummed in response as he allowed the haft of the glaive in his hand to tap against the ground.

The Medic continued to eye the glaive when she had the chance, reaching toward her kit for the necessary materials. “I apologize, but I must ask. How did you get that glaive?”

Shawn sighed heavily as his shoulders slumped, then squared rigidly. “It’s Crescent’s glaive. I stumbled across a Changeling disguised as him.” His grip tightened on the weapon. “I made it talk, but the news was about what you’d expect.”

The murmuring increased as the medic’s brow furrowed. “That is … concerning,” she admitted.

One of the warriors approached with a hard glint in his eyes. “I salute you for honoring his memory, Shawn of Earth. You have avenged him well. And I am certain you will do so many more times over before this battle is ended. However, I must ask this of you. How is it that you are able to wield that glaive? Princess Luna pairs our main weapons to each of us specifically. They cannot be wielded by unauthorized users, though they can be carried. Did you see the bug use it at all? If so, that is a very troubling development, one which our units will have to plan for.”

Shawn shook his head. “Didn’t give it the chance to even use it. It didn’t know the code I established with him.” He paused briefly, then resumed. “So, I acted first.”

The soldier sighed. “Keep using it for revenge on the bugs then. We’ll see about ironing this out later. For the time being, you are the keeper of Crescent’s memory and legacy. Guard them both well.” With that said, the warrior departed to check his fellows and maintain the perimeter they had set up.

As the medic continued her ministrations, Shawn could feel the pain dissipating as the muscles in his back relaxed to ease the tension there. Finally, she nodded and began to pack her tools up. “Okay. You're ready to return to the fight. Given the princess’ directive to watch over you is still in effect, it would be best for you to remain with your companions and Moonshade. It would be safer that way as well, since they are familiar with your tactics, and we are not.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Shawn replied as he started to put everything back on.

“Can someone loan me a second sword or a dagger?” Taze asked the guards. “Doesn’t need to be fancy. I just don’t trust this to last much longer,” he noted as he gestured to his katana.

A few Thestrals laid out some replacements and secondary arms for him to look over and test.

The mare nodded. “You have five more minutes to let the medicine take full effect. Then we need to keep moving.”

Taze managed to find a long sword to replace his katana. Then he stowed the short sword he’d grabbed off the Changeling earlier. Finally, he laid hold of a spare dirk for his left hand. The smaller blade's weight felt better than the other weapons. “Let’s go.”

Matthew nodded while Moonshdae took up his side. “So,” he began, “where do you want to take Shawn?”

“Our objective,” Shawn spoke up, “should be to find the element bearers, who currently have the real Princess Cadance in tow. They’ll need backup. They may be high priority.”

“I’ll do this for Twilight, or for you,” Taze sneered. “The rest of them can rot, for all I care.”

“Do it for the real Cadance,” Shawn replied simply. “Having met her, … I feel bad for her. She also worked alongside the real Twilight to bring me back from Death’s embrace, so there’s that, too.”

Taze stopped and considered his statement for a moment, then nodded slowly. He looked around. “Well, if we’re going off on our own during an invasion with overwhelming numbers, only one thing comes to mind,” he noted, standing straight and loosening his muscles. He looked to shawn. “Leroy?

Moonshade raised an eyebrow. “Leroy?

“Jenkins.” Shawn nodded his approval.

Taze raised both blades and charged ahead. “LEEERRRROOOOYYY!”

Shawn gave a soft smile as he gave the glaive a small spin, happy at his returning dexterity. Looking forward, his expression hardened, and he began his grim march once more, with weapon at the ready.

Matthew sighed. “Come on, Thestral. We need to make sure these two don’t go killing themselves. I’ll explain later.” And with that said, the two ran after the pair to cover them as the search for Twilight and Cadance began.

---

Matthew tightened his grip on the crossbow. He looked around the location and pursed his lips. “It seems like the Changelings are getting thicker,” he muttered as he looked about to keep an eye on all his friends while counting his lucky stars that he’d managed to hit most of his targets.

“That makes sense.” Taze nodded. “Block off your enemies’ assets with bodies, no?”

“Then we keep clearing them,” Shawn remarked.

Taze made a sweep of the area as they left the relative safety of the palace hallways for the open courtyard. Now they could be attacked from any direction.

The streets were bedlam as green balls of energy hailed from the skies and collided with the cobblestone pavement to leave small craters from which Changeling drones emerged with fangs exposed and predatory hisses. Civilians fled and were herded while those guards that were still themselves struggled and were ultimately restrained by the Changelings’ ichor. A bright purple light flashed like a strobe in the far distance as Changelings were blasted backward by the united force of Pinkie Pie wielding Twilight Sparkle like a mini gun. Rainbow Dash was busy battling other Rainbows while Fluttershy cringed or posed to misdirect her imposters. Rarity used her levitation skills to manipulate various objects and either crash them on Changeling heads or deflect attacks. Applejack used her champion buckers to wreak some serious havoc, cheering all the while in that country exuberance that only a few can pull off successfully.

Taze notedly went for Changelings on the far flank of the group, leaving some distance between himself and the mares as he hacked and slashed clumsily at the crowd. Shawn directed his focus inward toward the six, doing his best to clear a path he could use to help guard and protect them, and possibly provide a way to wherever they were trying to reach. Matthew worked on overwatch, using his crossbow to try and thin the horde of Changelings. A small number of Thestrals accompanied them to keep airborne Changelings from taking them out.

The battle lasted almost an hour, with the remnants of the swarm retreating after the bodies had begun to pile up. When they were at last sure of temporary safety, Taze and Shawn began checking for conscious bodies and either slitting the enemy’s throat or impaled their chests.

“What the hay do you think you’re doing?” Applejack demanded as she raced toward where Shawn was systematically killing each living Changeling one by one and counting each blow.

“Oh, how positively ghastly,” Rarity said as she averted her eyes. Fluttershy shook like a leaf as she whimpered near the twin portals that led into the hall that contained their elements.

“Applejack, wait!” Twilight cried after the mare, but it was already too late.

Shawn turned on a dime when he noticed Applejack’s approach and pointed his glaive directly at her before she could get close. “Not another step,” he growled out before glancing at Twilight. The order that followed was barked swiftly and without regard for rank or title. “Twilight. Confirmation of what happened in the caves?”

“Shawn, she’s real,” Twilight affirmed gently as she approached. “I found you in the caves with Cadance, and she burned your wound shut before we traveled to the entrance outside the castle grounds. You had to knock out Lyra after Cadance distracted the other two bridesmaids.”

Shawn took a moment before nodding and lowering the glaive. “Clear.”

“Good to know. They won’t stab us in the front, so we just need to keep them in front of us,” Taze called back as he kept working.

Twilight raised a confused brow at that comment. “... Okay, if you say so.” She turned to face Applejack. “Are you okay?”

Applejack fixed Shawn with a stinkeye. “Better, now that that thing’s out of my face.”

“Applejack, he just helped repel a massive attack. We don’t have time to bicker. If we don’t move now, we might not be able to get to the elements in time to stop Chrysalis. She nearly killed him. Of course he’s going to fight back now. We may not like it, but it is justified.”

“You're wasting your breath,” Taze called out. “The mob rarely cares about truth or justification.”

“I don’t waste my breath with my friends, Taze,” Twilight snapped back. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but my friends aren’t the enemy here.”

“You ever wonder how far your friends have your back?” Taze asked as he glared at the five. “Because I can tell you with complete and total honesty that the generosity of your friends’ kindness and loyalty is shallow enough to make a teaspoon feel like a swimming pool. It makes me want to keel over with laughter.”

Applejack winced at the verbal assault while the other mares averted their gazes.

“We don’t have time for this,” Shawn spoke up. “Twilight, you said the elements could be used to stop Chrysalis?”

“That’s what Princess Celestia said. The elements were able to purge Princess Luna of all dark magical influence. I don’t care how much love Chrysalis may have consumed. There’s no way it can match that kind of magic.”

“Then let’s move. We don’t have a lot of time before more Changelings come by.”

“I’ll cover you,” Matthew said. “I’m not much good in a direct fight, anyway.”

Moonshade sighed. “The more I follow you three, the less I feel my chances of getting out of this alive.”

“Helping the bearers of the elements of harmony to achieve their objective isn’t such a bad way to go, though, is it?” Matthew retorted with a cheeky grin.

“I suppose not.” Moonshade grinned. “Let's move.”

The doors flung open, but much to the dismay of the Mane Six, the hall was already flooded with the buzzing of angry drones glaring fiercely as their horns ignited. At that moment, the swarm returned in greater numbers to hem them in and harry from all sides. The heroes were completely cut off.

Taze was tired and angry. He didn’t think about it as he charged the swarm, flailing away with his weapons in both hands like a bladed windmill. Shawn, meanwhile, had lined up his weapons and engaged. He was getting severely worn down from all the fighting, and he was almost certain he was feeling heavier than usual.

Matthew swore and fired. The others had practically sealed their fate with their actions. The bolt grazed one of the drones in the shoulder and sent it careening through the air as it reacted to the concoctions that were injected into its bloodstream by the dart’s passing. It eventually crashed into a fountain, where its eyes rolled and it spasmed briefly before falling limply in the shallow water. Moonshade swung and lunged with all the skills at her disposal, but still the creatures came, each striking probingly, pushing the humans and the mares closer together. The end result would be inevitable.

Taze got dogpiled by a group of Changelings, even as their comrades lay dying around him. All his swords lay broken and twisted on the ground or embedded in dying Changelings. Matthew fought to the last, spearing Changelings with his K-bar and crossbow bolts until they finally managed to pin him down and trap him with their uniquely sticky restraints. Moonshade was forced to drop her weapon when it was clear they weren’t going to be able to fight through this.

Shawn found it harder and harder to keep himself upright as he fought each Changeling nearby. His back was starting to burn whenever he turned until finally he couldn’t keep himself steady. Once his balance failed him, he collapsed onto the floor. Everything went dark before he even hit the ground.

By this point, there was little option for the six guardians of Equestria. With heads bowed low in dismay, they surrendered to the swarm and the inevitable march of shame that was to follow.

By the time the Changelings had left bearing their prizes, all was quiet in the square. Many of the civilians had already been rounded up or herded to other streets and alleyways for better management and processing. As such, no one was present to witness the Changeling who had fallen into the fountain raise his head and groan. He blinked slowly, and his eyes began to brighten. Then he shuddered. “My Queen. Why can’t I sense my Queen?” His eyes widened with horror when he realized it wasn’t just the queen he was missing. There was no song in his mind, no unity, no one-ness, no direction or control. There was just him and that dreadful, deafening silence. He had to get help. Surely, the other drones or the queen would know how to restore what he had lost. Surely, the hive would save him. He had to reach the hive! His head rose weakly, but his legs refused to respond. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t seek help, nor could he confirm the status of his fellow drones or their queen. He was alone. Tears welled up in his eyes as, for the first time in his life, this Changeling endured a breakdown as a true individual. He sobbed. “My queen, don’t leave me alone….”

---

The wedding hall was the same as it had been the previous evening. The buntings were just as elegant. Shining Armor stood atop the dais staring blankly with shrunken pupils and irises as a green tint overwhelmed the white of his sclera and his natural blue. A new decoration hung from the ceiling in the form of one solar diarch who was completely wrapped in a pulsing green cocoon. A very much worried spike stood next to where Cadance had been firmly rooted to the spot by a similar substance. The mare gaped in dismay when the double doors opened to reveal the escort, including a downtrodden Twilight and her friends. Two changelings had restrained Rainbow Dash’s forelegs as they escorted her to be on the safe side. A thrashing Taze, a panting Matthew, and a growling Moonshade each offered what resistance they could against their captors, but there was little chance of their breaking free at this point. Shawn’s recumbent form laid atop a group of Changelings. And as they approached to present their prize to their queen, a slick red swath painted across some of their chitin before his body landed on the floor.

“What is this?” Chrysalis asked.

“This is the one you had cast into the caves, my queen,” one of the Changelings responded as it bowed obsequiously. “It appears to have returned from the grave, only to die again in battle at the vault that holds the elements of harmony. It is your glory and your victory. We thought it only right to present this creature to you as a sign of your conquest.”

“And why does it still have its weapons?” she demanded.

“We could not remove them from its grip, my queen. Even in death, something resists the probing of our magic, and its grip is too strong upon the spear to break.”

Taze growled and attempted to break free.

Chrysalis smirked. “Aww, the poor beasts are upset at the loss of their friends. Don’t worry. You’ll be joining him soon enough.”

“We’ll take your swarm with us,” Matthew spat.

“Brave words, but bravery is all you have.” She looked to the element bearers, then to her drones. “You do realize the reception’s been canceled, don’t you? Go! Feed!”

At their queen’s command, the drones swarming in the room all zipped for the double doors, hissing hungrily. A green aura surrounded the heavy doors and slammed them shut behind, leaving Chrysalis alone with her captives.

“You know, I really must thank you all.” Chrysalis rapidly shot spurts of her own ichor to immobilize Taze, Moonshade, and Matthew before they could act. “Honestly, you all played your parts beautifully,” she taunted. “Only Twilight here doubted me, and the five of you were so focused on what this wedding could do for each of you, you never even stopped to think. Not even the wise and benevolent Celestia!” Chrysalis laughed exultantly.

Applejack approached slowly behind her friend. “Sorry, Twi. We should’ve listened to you.”

“You know,” Taze growled, “apologizing now is really disingenuous.”

“Okay, did I miss something here while I was in those caves?” Twilight practically shouted. “Because clearly, something happened to make you angry with my friends, and I have absolutely no idea what it could be.”

“Oh, this is just too precious.” Chrysalis laughed. “Did none of them tell you? Did none of your oh so precious friends fess up to what they did?”

“Fess up to what?” Twilight asked. “Whatever may have gone wrong, I’m confident we can fix it together. It can’t have been as bad as the Smartypants incident,” she muttered the last part.

Grinning, Chrysalis lit her horn and projected the memory of the events in the throne room for all to see. “You tell me.”

Twilight stared silently at the projection for a while as the friends averted their eyes. Even Spike looked ashamed.

“Twilight, I … we….” Applejack was at a loss for words.

Twilight held up a hoof for silence as she watched the projection. Her eyes watered as she observed how her brother disowned her, followed by her friends leaving her to suffer alone, and last but not least, the cold rebuke from her beloved teacher. The pain on her face was obvious, and as Taze watched her reaction, he could feel his fingers digging into his palm. Had he not been wearing gloves, he would have drawn blood.

When it was done Twilight was giving labored breaths as she worked to get her emotions in order. Her body shook with the shock of what she had witnessed. Perhaps the one thing that sustained her was the compassion that shone in Cadance’s eyes. The purple mare worked hard to control herself. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she managed to lift her head.

“This changes nothing right now,” Twilight said, doing her best to look at Chrysalis with a defiant glare. “First, we deal with you.”

“Oh? And what can you do that your beloved princesses could not?” Chrysalis chuckled as she turned from the group and flew toward the window to look down on Canterlot as the swarm ran free. “This day has been just perfect,” she sang to herself as she began to gloat.

Twilight crept silently toward where Cadance had renewed her struggles against the ichor that Chrysalis had bound her with. “If anyone can bring Shining back from mind control, it’s you, Cadance,” Twilight whispered. Her horn erupted with magic to purge the substance. “Go to him, while you still have the chance.”

As the Alicorn of love, Cadance bore what was perhaps the one unique power that could break Chrysalis’ hold, despite being at the lowest of her reserves. For love, despite its many flaws, always has been and always will be an infinite force. And despite the pain of what she had witnessed, Cadance still loved her white knight, her Shining Armor. She wept at the lack of response, even as she smiled to look on that face. “This was supposed to be the happiest day of our lives,” she said softly. “Please don’t tell me it’s too late to make it so.” She embraced her stallion, and as she did so, electricity arced along her horn, giving birth to a single heart-shaped bubble. It floated to Shining armor’s face and merged at the base of his horn. With a gentle flash of light, the green was purged, and Shining Armor’s deep blue orbs shone brightly again.

Shining Armor blinked and shook his head to clear it of the fog that still remained as he struggled to get his bearings. “I-is the wedding over?” He gazed on the face of his sister and her five friends for only a moment before that view was obscured by the great threat that he had sworn to ward off for the sake of his beloved and his sister both.

“It’s all over,” Chrysalis gloated. She continued to exult over her triumph, even as she belittled Shining Armor and his efforts to bring his power to bear.

‘Breathe,’ the barest flicker of thought passed through Shawn’s head as his eyes opened weakly, slowly. And finally, his chest rose farther than it had been as he desperately tried to pull in more oxygen to his burning lungs.

“My power is useless now. I … I don’t have the strength to repel them.” Shining Armor’s voice. Exhausted, dejected.

‘Help.’ Though try as he might, there was no way Shawn could get help. He could feel the individual parts of his body ache as they barely clung to life.

“My love will give you strength.” Cadance. Faithful. Strong. Kind. Willing to throw herself into danger for the sake of others. She didn’t deserve this. No one deserved this.

‘Move.’ His grip tightened around the glaive’s shaft. Slowly, he let it go. There wasn’t a chance he could use it right now. He moved his arm and slowly planted it on the ground next to his chest before pushing himself up onto his knees.

Laughter. “What a lovely but absolutely ridiculous sentiment!”

‘Come on.’ He grimaced as blood moved through his body, flaring up more pain as muscles tensed. He was completely disoriented. The room spun beneath him as he looked around, taking in his location. The others were there, detained. That laughter. Familiar. The same as the caves. Chrysalis. She must have revealed herself.

“No! You will not!”

Ringing. An angry hiss. She was preparing some kind of spell toward Cadance and Shining Armor.

Another hum. “Get away from my family, you ugly parasite!”

Twilight!

Shawn grit his teeth as his anger boiled to the surface once again. It was weak, but it would be enough. His heart picked up as adrenaline slowly pulled his body back from the brink. There was no way he’d survive, so maybe … it was time to ignore that last part of his mind.

He pushed himself onto his feet. Numbness finally greeted his motions as he stood upright. In fact, he was starting to feel fine. ‘Once more, onto my last.’ He nodded weakly to himself as he widened his stance, then finally took off toward Chrysalis at a dead run.

He’d interrupt her spell, one way or another.

There was no more time to think, no more time to plan. It was all or nothing. He was already dead. If he could keep the others from the same fate, he would. The force of the collision was nothing compared to when he’d fallen on that Changeling’s horn. His arms wrapped tightly around the barrel, one above and one below, clinging to the smooth chitin and squeezing with all his might.

There would be no getting away for her. The world became a pinpoint of focus as legs flailed and bashed against his legs and shoulders. One foot in front of the other. One step farther away from the people she could hurt. He didn’t even register the glass as he burst through the window insert. He didn’t register the step up, nor the launch into empty space. All he knew, all he was, was one thing, one purpose.

Stop Chrysalis.

Shawn heard a thunderous boom from inside the room as the large doors flew open and Luna entered the hall.

“No!” Taze screamed.

“Shawn!” Matthew’s familiar voice faded behind as the doppler effect worked its magic. “No, damn it, no!”

Wind whistled as Shawn’s legs swung around Chrysalis’ torso to squeeze and pin the wings. His arm wrapped around her neck and yanked back with the aid of his other arm. He didn’t hear her choking. But he knew he’d immobilized her. He knew she wasn’t casting. That was enough.

It was good enough.

---

The great wooden doors were thrown open with a thunderous boom as Luna tore into the room with her guards in hot pursuit, only to see the remnants of the shattered window and the distraught faces of the captives.

“No!” Taze yelled. The goop on his arms strained as he attempted to pull free, to do something, anything!

“Shawn! No, damn it, no!” Matthew stared after the void where his friend had once stood. The stained glass was all that remained of Shawn now. A breeze fluttered the buntings weakly as Twilight gaped at where the human had gone. Her horn’s light faded slowly as she swallowed heavily and tears welled up in her eyes.

Moments later, the combined power of Shining Armor and Cadance flooded through the chamber and into every nook and cranny of the castle before spreading out over all of Canterlot in a repelling force that was less a barrier and more of a banishment. All signs of Changeling influence and essence were completely neutralized. The magic was thorough, destroying every remnant of ichor used to secure their victims in place, including the cocoon that surrounded Princess Celestia. The screams and shrieks of panicked Ponies were soon replaced with the dismayed shouts of thousands of Changelings. Many were cut off abruptly with unpleasant squelches. Others faded into the distance as the force of the spell catapulted the creatures and scattered them to the winds. It was as if the very power of the barrier had been keyed completely to neutralize Chrysalis’ influence. And, in a way, perhaps it had at that. Would that it could have undone the one act they wouldn’t be able to remedy.

Taze booked it for the ledge Shawn had fallen from. His left arm hung limply at his side from where it had been dislocated while attempting to reach for his friend earlier. “Get someone down there!” he screamed at, well, anyone.

Matthew was already running for the doors. ‘I was supposed to be the first to go. I have the poorest health of the lot,’ he thought angrily, even as the room began to spin. His shoulder bashed against the door frame as his chest throbbed. “Damn it,” he swore as he laid a hand over his chest.

“We’ll go,” Shining said quickly as he and Cadance ran to the window. The mare had already flapped her wings and seized her groom before they took to the air and began to glide down with Luna following close on their heels.

Twilight was torn, but finally turned her attention to the solar diarch. “Princess Celestia, can you stand?”

“I’m all right, Twilight. Thank you.” The Alicorn rose slowly to her hooves and shook her head. She approached the humans. “Stand next to me. I’ll get us down there,” she promised.

Twilight shook her head. “Let me. You still need to recover from what Chrysalis did to you.” She looked to the two humans. “Taze, Matthew? I need you two to stand close to me to get you down there. I was able to transport Shawn and Cadance before, so taking the two of you shouldn’t be any more strain on me.”

Taze gritted his teeth but approached Twilight as he nursed the swaying arm. Matthew did not look happy, but moved with assistance from Luna’s guards and Moonshade to stand next to Taze. One flash of purple light later, they were standing on the ground floor outside the wedding hall. There was no sign of the Changeling queen’s body, but a long jagged horn oozed green blood from the base that had been torn away. The power of the dead man’s grip had prevailed, even as the spell carried the rest of Chrysalis away. The human didn’t move. If he could still breathe, the motion was imperceptible to the naked eye. His eyes were closed, and his face was flat. His lips seemed to curve ever so slightly at the corners, but that could easily have been a trick of the eyes. Cadance and Shining Armor both bowed their heads as Luna stood imposingly over the body.

“Princess Luna, is he…?” Twilight couldn’t bring herself to finish the question.

Matthew shoved his way forward and knelt by Shawn’s face. He hovered his hand over the human’s mouth first, then brought two fingers to his neck. He waited a few moments, then produced a dollar bill from his pocket and held it over Shawn’s lips. His eyes widened at the sight of the barest shift. He practically jabbed his fingers at the same spot on the neck again. His body shook as he whipped around and shouted at the top of his lungs. “MEDIC! Someone get a medic down here! He’s alive!” His eyes watered as he looked over his friend’s recumbent form. “He’s alive….”

“You heard him, get someone down here!” Taze barked as he rushed to his friend’s side.

“Aunt Luna,” Cadance began, even as the sound of rapidly approaching hooves began to thunder in their ears.

“I’ll get him to the healers. You worry about these two,” Luna said. She wrapped him in a careful cocoon of magic, spreading her power over him one filmy veil at a time, rather than the usual full fledged application that they had seen her use so often when handling her hammer or other objects.

“You must be Shawn’s friends,” Cadance said softly as she approached the other two humans. Shawn had begun to rise ever so slowly under Luna’s gentle ministrations. “I’m in your friend’s debt. If there’s anything I can do for either of you, please, don’t hesitate to ask.”

“That goes double for me,” Shining Armor agreed. “You four saved our lives and the lives of all of Equestria.”

Matthew rose to his feet with help from Taze to offer leverage. The ponies could hear his joints crackle and pop. He gripped Taze’s good shoulder as another dizzy spell struck him. “Y-you’re welcome,” he grunted.

“Thank you, Princess Cadance. That means a lot, coming from you,” Taze said as he looked Shining Armor in the eye. “Just from you.”

“Can the two of you walk?” Cadance asked. “We can carry you, if that’s necessary.”

“I’m fine” Taze said. “I can get there my—” The world suddenly became very fuzzy as he realized the pain in his gut seconds before the world swam into darkness.

Matthew had no warning as his support gave way and he fell to the ground with Taze. “Uh, … a little help to a hospital would be nice… Taze didn’t get to eat recently. I think his blood sugar crashed. And … I should probably get checked for bruises and the like,” he conceded, then gave a mirthless chuckle. “Guess we’ll be in the same wing as Shawn, more than likely.”

“I’ll carry him,” Cadance offered. “Just place him on my back.” A minute later, with primary assistance from Twilight and a few other Unicorn guardsponies, Taze’s unconscious form laid astride the princess’ back.

Twilight turned briefly from the sleeping human to look back at the edge of the crowd that had gathered, where her friends waited with anxious expressions. Spike sat astride Rarity’s back, and his eyes never strayed from Twilight. The purple mare looked back to Cadance and Shining Armor. “You all go on ahead. I need to take care of a few things before I can catch up.”

“Are you sure, Twilight?” Cadance asked.

Twilight nodded. “Yes. This isn’t something that can wait. If I put it off now, things will only get worse.”

Cadance smiled lovingly at her. “You really have changed a lot since I babysat you, haven’t you?” She offered one brief nuzzle of affection, then nodded as Shawn’s recumbent form was finally raised to sufficient height in Luna’s magic. “We’ll see you soon. I’m sure Shining will have a lot to say to you then, won’t you, dear?” she asked pointedly.

Shining nodded mutely as his ears dropped low. “Yeah….”

Twilight nodded again. “I’ll … see you soon.”

With those final parting words spoken, the two princesses and their party disappeared in a flash of light, leaving Twilight to face a challenge that would perhaps be even more trying than saving Canterlot had been.

Comments

[Sky Hooves]

An epic mass of movie quotes... and I like it

Awesome chapter. Cant wait to read more

[Seeking Dusk]

The warrior who died twice. There are many far less epic titles to earn.

[Pinklestia]

"Taze said reaching in a fluid motion into his belt and putting on a pair of insanely pointed orange sunglasses."

A bit reference heavy, don't you think?

[Biker_Dash]

Otter, my friend... this fic has earned its position within the Warrior Files. The fics there define what it means to have the pure fighting spirit inside.

[Truthseeker]

Taze told the pony who was holding his nose high. he attempted to speak but Taze slammed the door in his face.

First paragraph and already an error? And then there is THIS:

Two of the guards thrusted their spears forward only to have them knocked away by Shawn, having only done so because of swinging the sword.

That was a terrible sentence. There are so many sentences with uncapitalized words, I doubt I could ever count them. I have to go to sleep now. Try actually reading the chapters before you post them, find an editor, do something! I'm not going to say this is crap... but it's not far off. It could be so much more than it is right now.

[VcSaJen]

“So if Apple Bloom made a big mistake you’d abandon her like yesterday's trash too?”

Well, considering 'Ponyville Confidential'...

[thaecrasis]

I'm sorry, but I think this is where I stop reading.

• I feel almost no attachment to any of the characters; none of them seem to really "come to life" so to speak.
• A lot of the scenes have a tons of unnecessary detail, and I would often just skip over some paragraphs.
• There is way too many grammatical and spelling errors - I was willing to ignore a few, but errors stand out a lot to me and I end up seeing every error when I read things.
• A lot of the character interactions just seem sloppily written, with characters simply agreeing with something without a thought, or doing things that don't make sense.

I won't give this a down vote, but this story definitely seems like it isn't for me (and it's not because it's HiE either - my all time favourite story is "Diaries of a Madman")

It's too bad - I was hoping I'd be able to get into this story since it's so long.

[Amos Anon]

I can tell that this is written by multiple authors, and while the overall story is fairly solid, at this point in the story, I find that there's quite a bit of disparity between the different authors' writing styles. I remain hopeful that this will improve over future chapters as the authors learn how to write together better, so I'll continue reading. Now I know that these chapters haven't been edited yet, but I can echo many of the other commenters on here that the grammer and spelling is pretty poor. I remain optimistic that this will improve as well.

[EnderHooves]

Not bad. It's pretty good for not being re-edited yet. Something I noticed though that I want to make sure gets picked up in the process of re-editing the chapters back to front.
We never see twilight get taken. One scene she's being disowned by her friends and brother, one of the humans talks to her, then another goes off to give her friends a piece of his mind. She then follows after him to tell him that her friends are right, the next scene has one of the guys running after her and she's a changeling now.
I know you'll get here when you get here, but I just want to point it out so you can fix it when you do.

I like this story so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing the re-done chapters.

[Vital Spark]

9959136
Hey, EnderHooves. I hope you'll forgive me. I intend to put the answer to your query in spoiler to avoid causing any problems to readers that might skim over the comments. I'm the head editor for Extended Holiday.

To answer your question, the reason why we didn't show Twilight getting kidnapped, like in the show, is because by this point she already had been. There was no space between Shawn pursuing Twilight and her getting sent to the caverns by Chrysalis, like it had been in the show. We altered things. Now, if you mean you wanted us to write a scene showing when, exactly, Twilight was abducted and cast into the crystal caves in our version of events, that's something we may or may not include. The main plot of the story is meant to follow Shawn, Taze, and Matthew, not necessarily focus on the events of MLP and the mane six. As such, the writing of Twilight's kidnapping seemed unnecessary to the writers at the time. The scene confirmed that we were deviating from the show's order of events, since in this one, Twilight didn't cry to Crysalis and then get sent down in that burning ring of fire. I hope you find this helpful.

Sincerely,
Vital Spark

[Icy Creation]

Matthew was frozen as he saw out the side window and not out the skylight. “It’s raining zergs.” He muttered in terror as he remembered another war game he played at home. Starcraft, he sighed at least he always played at the terrans. However something clicked and turned to Shawn. “You said… real Cadence was heading to the wedding, that means, the Cadence that is fake, what about Celestia? She was there.” he gulped and looked ill. “We need to move!” His voice trying to hide his worry and fear. “Celestia… the attack is going ahead, what’s the fate of the rulers?”

Terrans? Fuck Terrans, Protoss are the best. En taro Tassadar.

[FoxFire Moonwall]

A moment of silence for my changeling brothers who fell in battle .
. . . . . . . . . .
For the Hive!!!!!

[Timuri]

This is a bit rough. It seems fairly well thought out, and this Equestria is different enough to be interesting. The primary issues are the protagonists. It really feels like a case of isekai-protagonist syndrome. They are improbably skilled in melee combat, something no one from Earth has really used in battle for over a century, and fight like hardened and skilled veterans in spite of having no experience whatsoever. If the battle has no lasting mental effects on them, that will cinch it.

Still I'll continue to give the story more time. Isekai syndrome doesn't have to be a bad thing, so let's see what you did with it.

[Poparakelis]

These Mcs are somewhat, well actually they are horrible, immature swearing all the damn time for no reason making questionable decisions being chunni, acting like anime protagonists, fucking around in serious situations, really, they are horrible, they don't feel real.

[Poparakelis]

And stop hyping up humanity for god's sake they aren't special in a magical world, they CAN become special, but they aren't