The Lords of Harmony

by Whinifree

Act 2 - The Hoofsteps of Doom, part 2

The creature's growl invaded Twilight's mind and pushed out all other thoughts. Her scars started to itch. Wincing, she rubbed her eyes as tears began to fall.

The others continued to stare at the beast.

“I think that thing's a mite ticked off,” said Applejack.

“Thank you, Captain Obvious,” Rainbow retorted with a grunt.

Rarity held on to Pinkie, trembling as much as Fluttershy. “N-n-nice Headless Horse....”

Rainbow huffed. “What are we waiting for? Let's blast this thing!”

“But we left the Elements in the house!” cried Fluttershy.

Without further warning, the Headless Horse charged at the ponies with incredible speed, leaving a trail of ghostly-white flame and smoke in its wake. The ponies jumped aside as the creature careened through the newly created opening like a runaway train. It hurried around to the house the ponies had been resting in, and leaped up onto the roof without missing a beat. It whipped around, then lunged at the ponies from above.

Shining Armor's horn lit up and a translucent wall appeared between the Headless Horse and the party, just in time for the creature to crash into it. A crackle sounded out as several bolts of magical energy erupted from the barrier from the force of the impact. Shining Armor winced, but his barrier remained.

The Headless Horse jumped back, ran several yards, then turned and rushed at the ponies again.

Having recovered slightly from her stinging eyes, Twilight poked her head out from behind her brother's barrier and shot another beam at the creature.

Glaring, Cadance did the same.

The Headless Horse dodged both shots, which exploded against the ground. It raised its right foreleg, and brought its hoof down upon the barrier with great force.

Shining Armor cried out in pain as more bolts of energy shot off from the barrier. His horn stopped glowing, letting off little crackles of its own, and the barrier faded.

The ponies cried out and quickly backed away from the creature. Glaring, Rainbow hovered in the air above the others.

The Headless Horse let out a fierce growl and reared back, pouncing again.

Rainbow rushed forward and tackled the beast. Both fell to the ground, with Rainbow landing on top of the pile. “Get the Elements!” she cried as she held the struggling Headless Horse down. “I'll distract it!”

“You ponies go!” cried Twilight. “I'll help Rainbow!”

The others all hurried back to the house and disappeared inside.

The Headless Horse growled as it fought against Rainbow's hold. After a few seconds, it managed to get a foreleg free and it smacked Rainbow's cheek with its hoof.

Rainbow grunted and stumbled toward Twilight.

Her horn lit up, and Twilight caught Rainbow in her magic, but this blocked her view of the Headless Horse.

With this brief window, the Headless Horse stood back up and charged away from the ponies, putting a large distance between itself and them to the point it was barely visible to them save for the ghostly-white flame of its hooves and tail. It crouched down and dug at the ground.

For a moment, Rainbow groaned and rubbed her cheek where the beast struck her.

“You okay?” asked Twilight, looking at the spot and noticing a large bruise on Rainbow's cheek.

“That thing is pretty strong, I'll admit. That kind of hurt.” She glared in the direction the beast ran and flared her wings. “Come on, Twilight. Let's get that monster!” She kicked into the air and streaked forward.

“Wait! The Elements!” Twilight started after Rainbow, but Pinkie's voice stopped her in her tracks.

“We got the Elements!”

Twilight looked back and saw the others coming out of the house, with Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie and Fluttershy with their Elements around their necks. “Toss them here!”

They tossed them, and Twilight caught them in her magic. She placed the Element of Magic on her head, keeping the Element of Loyalty aloft. “Rainbow, come back!” she called as the ponies gave chase.

Rainbow kept flying toward the Headless Horse. “Where do you think you're going? You think you can just attack us and then run away? Come at me!”

The Headless Horse shrieked and galloped toward Rainbow. Once it had gotten close enough to its target, the creature leaped into the air and raised its forelegs. Still aflame, its hooves suddenly morphed into four-pronged claws ready to strike.

Rainbow's eyes widened. “Huh?!” Flying too quickly to avoid the equally speedy and unexpected move by the Headless Horse, Rainbow grunted aloud as the creature brought its new claws down on her head.

The two collided and fell several yards to the ground together, landing in a heap just like the first time they scuffled.

Eyes watering from the pain and dizzy from the bruise on her head, Rainbow tried to kick the beast off of her, but it had already risen and was standing over her.

Like lightning, the Headless Horse raked its right claw across Rainbow's face, eliciting a cry of agony from the pegasus.

Before Rainbow could defend herself, the creature raked it's other claw across the other side of her face. It grabbed Rainbow's head, and swung her around in a full twirl, hurling her toward Twilight and the others like she was a rag doll.

“Rainbow!” the others cried all together as they charged forward.

Twilight was unable to catch Rainbow in her magic before the pegasus hit the ground and skidded several yards before stopping right in front of them. She fired another beam at the Headless Horse, but it simply side-stepped long before the shot even came close as if it had been anticipating the attack. Twilight groaned. “Barrier!”

Shining Armor summoned his magic barrier again, fully shielding the party within the translucent dome that left them with a couple meters of space all around. The stallion was visibly sweating and his horn gave off tiny crackles, but his magic didn't falter.

Everypony's eyes landed upon the fallen pegasus. Rainbow was motionless on the ground, wearing a pained look and taking heavy breaths. Her eyes were closed, and numerous gashes were clearly visible on her face and a few on her chest. She was unconscious only for a moment before attempting to stand, but her legs wobbled heavily. Rarity and Applejack helped her up and stayed by her side. Rarity levitated her cloak off herself and wrapped it around Rainbow, then Pinkie, Spike and Fluttershy gently pressed the fabric against their friend's open wounds. Sweat poured down everypony's brows, and their breaths were labored but not as heavy as Rainbow's.

Wearing a deep frown, Twilight examined Rainbow. The blood stains forming in Rarity's cloak where the Headless Horse had slashed at Rainbow, combined with the weak, pained groans her friend let out caused Twilight to wince as if it were herself that had been beaten up. All the while, the ferocious growls of the Headless Horse lingered in the back of her mind. After a few moments, Twilight turned and gazed upon the creature's terrible form.

With it's claws and tail still aflame, and still slightly crouched down into a combative pose, the Headless Horse walked in slow circles around the barrier. It made frequent, low-key cries, and occasionally poked at the barrier with its claw before resuming its patrol.

Cadance watched the dark beast unfalteringly. “It's still hard to believe, but there it is right in front of us. The Headless Horse....”

“I've never seen anythin' move like that,” uttered Applejack, swallowing hard. “And that thing sure knows how to fight.”

Spike kept his claws gently pressing Rarity's cloak against Rainbow's wounds. “It doesn't have eyes or ears. How does it seem to know exactly where it's going?”

Pinkie tilted her head, squinted her eyes, pursed her lips and rubbed her chin. “How is it even alive?”

“It's obviously a magical creature,” stated Cadance. “Very powerful dark magic but magical nonetheless.

The Headless Horse continued to prowl around the barrier, poking at it with its claws and making soft cries, then it suddenly stopped and dropped to its hindquarters, seemingly just staring at the ponies.

“So how are we going to get out of this one?” asked Rarity, maintaining gentle pressure on Rainbow's wounds with her cloak. “Princess Celestia isn't here to save us this time. I hate to be the one to say this but, after the way it beat up poor Rainbow, I don't think any of us stand a chance against that thing.”

“Not one-on-one at least,” stated Applejack. “In fact that thing moves so fast it could probably take down whole groups of ponies no sweat. Twilight, couldn't you just teleport it, or us somewhere?”

“I could, but there's one critical issue with that idea. Now that it knows we're here, it'll just keep coming after us. Somehow, it sensed our presence when we were hiding in the house, so trying to hide from it doesn't seem very feasible. It's also proven it's more capable in battle than we are. We don't have time to lose hiding or fighting....”

Twilight stared unflinching at the creature while their options mulled over in her head, and only one gave her a glimmer of hope. “We need the Elements. For this to work, we'll have to immobilize it to give us enough time for the Elements to power up.” She glanced at Cadance. “Can you do that?”

“I could try and grab it with my magic,” she replied. “But that thing's powerful enough it is likely to break free and quickly.”

Rarity blinked several times. “It's possible for something to escape that?”

“If something is strong enough,” said Shining Armor, taking heavy breaths and sweating as he maintained his barrier. “Exactly what happens is that the captive thing struggles in the grip and lashes out. Doing so puts extra strain on the unicorn holding it and forces them to spend more energy to keep the spell going.”

“Cadance,” said Twilight, “how long do you think you could hold it for?”

“Something like this, maybe two minutes if even that.”

Twilight nodded and adjusted the Element of Magic that rested on her head. “That's all we need.”

Cadance returned the nod and turned her attention back to the Headless Horse which continued to sit there facing the group.

“Do you think it knows about the Elements?” asked Fluttershy.

“Don't really matter in this case,” said Applejack.

Rarity pulled the now blood-stained cloak off Rainbow and fastened the Element around the pegasus's neck. She then draped the cloak over Rainbow again, making sure to cover the wounds with different parts of the cloak that weren't already stained.

“Is it gone?” Rainbow asked weakly.

Twilight looked over and shook her head. “It's still here. For now we're safe inside Shining Armor's barrier, but we need to use the Elements if we want any hope it beating it.”

“Get me mine and we'll show that thing what happens when we get real serious.”

“We put yours on already,” stated Spike.

“Soon as I give the word, drop the barrier,” said Twilight.

Shining Armor nodded. “Ready when you all are.”

“Now!”

Shining Armor's horned stopped glowing and the barrier disappeared. At that same moment, Cadance lit her horn.

The instant the barrier was gone, the Headless Horse crouched and lunged at the ponies with a loud growl and its claws ready to strike. But mid-jump, it became enveloped in a turquoise aura that held it in place.

Cadance grunted as the creature started to shriek and thrash about within her magical grasp. “Got it! Please hurry!”

Warmth washed over Twilight as the familiar tide of magical energy began to flow through her, mingling with the resonant energies of the Element of Magic. The other five Elements turned aglow, and a translucent aura formed around each of Twilight's friends that corresponded with the color of their respective Element. The glow around the ponies merged into a single field that gave off a brilliant white light with rainbow-colored undertones, also growing to envelop Cadance and Shining Armor.

Cadance's horn suddenly stopped glowing as the field of light surrounded her, and the magical aura holding the Headless Horse dropped.

Twilight's eyes widened. “Impossible! It broke free already?”

The Headless Horse stumbled a little and shook itself off as it landed on the ground. The creature backed away as the field of light started to expand and grow brighter, then after a couple of seconds, it turned tail and sprinted off with lightning speed. The beast was gone from the village before the field had enlarged by a single meter. It disappeared into the night and another trail of the ghostly-white flame was left behind as it went.

With the creature's departure, Twilight stopped channeling her magic and the field of light surrounding the ponies faded. The flames died away, and the area was bathed in the darkness and silence of night once again. The ponies stood firm as they stared in the direction the Headless Horse had retreated in. Several minutes passed, but the creature did not return.

Everypony let out a deep sigh.

“Goodness gracious,” uttered Rarity as she held a foreleg against her rapidly rising and falling chest. “What a horrific beast!”

“Looks like the Elements scared it off,” said Applejack. “Please let that be the case anyway.”

Twilight looked at Cadance. “What happened?”

Cadance frowned and rubbed her horn. “I'm not sure. My magic just suddenly stopped working when that light covered me.”

“That almost sounds like the magic of the Elements overrode your own,” replied Twilight with a raised brow.

“But why would they do that?”

“I don't know. It doesn't make any sense.”

“Uh, everypony....” muttered Fluttershy, pointing at Rainbow.

Everypony turned their gaze.

Rainbow's eyes were closed, she wasn't moving, and she was leaning against Rarity like she would fall over if Rarity wasn't there. Rainbow's chest rose and fell in a gentle rhythm.

Rarity remained where she was. She frowned and let out a soft sigh. “We've told her several times. Someday, that reckless streak would put the poor dear or somepony else in serious danger. Just like recently when we went to visit her when she was a cadet at the Wonderbolts Academy, and a twister appeared and nearly killed us.”

Applejack gave Rarity a quizzical look. “Did you forget? That wasn't Rainbow, it was some other hot rod. I forget the name. But back to the present, we had no choice in this matter.”

“In her wounded state...” said Twilight, “ after that fight with the Headless Horse... using the Element was likely too taxing.”

“We should get to bed before anything else happens,” stated Shining Armor. “If you all would prefer I could stay up and keep a lookout in case the beast decides to come back.”

Twilight shook her head and smiled at her big brother. “That's very good of you to offer but you need your rest too.”

“I insist.”

“She's right,” said Cadance, giving Shining Armor a tender hug. “You need rest just like all of us. If you insist on standing guard for us, let me help you. I'll take the first watch.”

Shining Armor smiled weakly and hugged Cadance back. “Well... okay.”

Without any further word, Twilight levitated Rainbow and walked into the house the ponies had entered before. The others followed close behind. Once inside, the ponies spent several minutes gently rinsing Rainbow's wounds off with some of the water they'd brought with them, then tore up Rarity's cloak into thin strips to bandage Rainbow's cuts. Twilight set Rainbow down on the couch while everypony else spread across the front room and kitchen floors again. Utterly fatigued from staying up so late and the encounter with the Headless Horse, none of them had any difficulty falling asleep, save for Cadance who remained awake and gazing out the windows by the door.

---

Everypony woke early the next morning. After a quick breakfast, Twilight had Spike send Princess Celestia an update on their progress, the Headless Horse no longer being a mere legend, and what skills the beast has.

From her chest and up, Rainbow's eyes, muzzle and mane were the only parts of her body not wrapped up in the remnants of Rarity's cloak. She gave Rarity a questioning stare.

“Don't worry about the cloak, darling,” said Rarity with a smile. “All that matters is that you recover. I can easily get a new cloak when we get back home.”

Rainbow nodded.

“Okay,” said Twilight. “Everypony full and ready to go?”

“I'm all good,” stated Pinkie.

“What if the Headless Horse comes back?” asked Spike.

Rainbow glowered and let out a soft snort then looked away.

There was a moment of silence as everypony glanced at Rainbow.

“We'll scare it off with the Elements of Harmony like last night.” Twilight rubbed the top of her head. “At least I hope that' what happened. Maybe if we're lucky we'll actually get a shot off before it can run away and that will take care of it for good. Anyway, if everypony's ready then let's head out. Let's move quickly and try and reach the mountain before nightfall.”

Leaving the ruined village behind, the ponies walked along the cold ancient wasteland toward the mountain. They passed through areas similar to the ravine and forest they'd started in—nothing but dead trees with broken branches and some scattered boulders—and the towering cliffs far off to their sides had gotten closer to each other, making the ponies feel like they were in a cage. Like the previous day, gloomy gray clouds covered the sky, the air was chilly, and no sound of any kind of wildlife could be heard. The ponies made little conversation as they traveled.

Rainbow did not speak a single word the entire way, nor did she keep to the air. She walked alongside the others and simply stared at the ground. Whenever the others glanced in her direction, she appeared distant. When they said something to her, she did not reply. Occasionally, some of them would put their hoof on her shoulder and give her a warm smile. She returned the smile, but it was weak and quickly went away.

During lunch, Twilight kept a very close watch on Rainbow as the others tried once again to interact with her, and were met with the same eerie silence they'd gotten in response all morning. Twilight let out a sigh. “Rainbow can you come with me for a moment? Everypony.... can you excuse us please?”

The others watched quietly as Twilight led Rainbow a little ways away from the group. Like Cadance had done for them up to that point, Twilight maintained a magic bubble around her and Rainbow to shield them from the frigid winter air. Once they were far enough away to talk without the others overhearing them, Twilight faced Rainbow and gave her a discerning stare mixed with a slight frown. “You've been extremely quiet today.”

Rainbow didn't reply and stared blankly at Twilight.

“Just like that. This isn't like you at all.”

Again, Rainbow didn't reply.

“You do remember that you can tell me anything, right?”

Eventually, Rainbow nodded but still didn't speak.

“Want to tell me what's going on? Just a little friend to friend talk to clear the air?” Twilight put her hoof on Rainbow's shoulder and smiled gently. When Rainbow didn't give any response for the fourth time, Twilight thought about the previous night, and the cuts and bruises the encounter with the Headless Horse had left her friend with. Then, her mind shifted back to when they were at the Crystal Empire, and how helpless they had been against Nightmare Moon.

“Hey, uh, Rainbow,” said Twilight, “I know it's been really hard for us since Nightmare Night. We've suffered many hardships from the war, and had our very reality reconfigured by old myths turning out to be true. Whatever you might be thinking, you can tell me, and the rest of us. It scares me to see you so quiet.”

Silence.

Twilight let out a soft sigh and kept her hoof on Rainbow's shoulder. “Well, if you don't want to right now... that's okay too. I'm just worried is all, but I know I can't force you.”

Rainbow stared at Twilight. “I....” she muttered.

However soft it had been, the sound of her friend's voice made a small gleam of hope rise inside Twilight and she looked up, meeting Rainbow's gaze. “Yes?”

“I just....” Rainbow's voice faltered. Very slowly, she rubbed her head, then shook it. When she spoke again a moment later, her voice was barely a whisper. “Not now....”

Twilight frowned, but nodded. “Well, whenever you're ready.”

Rainbow nodded in return.

“Come on,” said Twilight, gently patting Rainbow's shoulder. “Let's head back to the others.”

Quietly, Twilight and Rainbow returned to the others, and the group resumed their journey across the bleak wasteland.

Coming within a mile of the base of the mountain, just as Rainbow had described the day prior, the world got darker and darker the closer they got. Spike checked his watch and noted that it was not time for the sun to set yet. The phenomenon reminded them of the Everfree Forest which gave them pause, but only for a few minutes. They stared up at the mountain's jagged, split peak and the crater in its center.

“So the plan again,” said Applejack, “we search the crater and if there's no crystal stuff there then we go past the mountain?”

Twilight nodded. “Correct.”

“Too bad Luna didn't just write it in the journal where Nightmare Moon took her. That would be easier than tryin' to figure it out step by step.”

“It's just a strong feeling I have that I can't quite explain. But like you said, my instinct has led us this far hasn't it?”

“It has,” replied Applejack with a slight hint of concern in her voice. “But that's actually what has me worried.”

“Worried?” asked Spike. “About what?”

Applejack kept her gaze on Twilight as all eyes turned toward her. “Please don't take this the wrong way, but my gut instinct is this: Ghastly Gorge, the cave, this place, the mountain....”

“What are you getting at, Applejack?” inquired Rarity, furrowing her brow.

“It's startin' to feel like y'all know exactly where you're goin'.” Applejack hesitated for a moment and took a deep breath. “And I think it has somethin' to do with these....” Giving Twilight a strong discerning stare, Applejack raised a hoof and pointed at her face.

Twilight blinked a few times. “With my eyes?”

Applejack shook her head and kept her foreleg raised.

Twilight's eyes widened. Slowly, she raised her hoof and touched her scars.

Applejack maintained her steely gaze and nodded before lowering her hoof. “Don't forget, them scars are magical in nature. You've had them for a few months now, but they don't appear to be healin' at all. And you yourself said it's entirely possible that your accident with the Crystal Heart what gave you them scars could have been a trap by Nightmare Moon, possibly as a means to corrupt you with her dark magic.”

Twilight's thoughts raced back to the accident then to the dream with Luna and the dark claw.

“Soon as we get back to Equestria,” Applejack continued, “you're gettin' yourself checked.”

“But I feel fine.”

“Y'all say that, but I just ain't so sure.”

“Really, I'm fine!”

“No ifs, ands, or buts about it, Twi,” said Applejack, her demeanor getting more stern by the second. “You ain't fine.”

Something stirred within Twilight, and she narrowed her eyes at Applejack. The longer she glared, the more she felt a seething malice swelling up inside her.

Rarity stepped between them and held out her forelegs. “Come on now, you two. This is no time to start fighting.”

“Me?” asked Twilight, glancing at Rarity. “What about her? She started it with those ridiculous notions that something is wrong with me.”

“I'm just concerned is all!” cried Applejack. “Why is that so wrong all of a sudden?”

Twilight glared at Applejack again and shouted at the top of her lungs. “I said I'm fine and that's that! End of discussion!” Without another word, Twilight snorted aloud, turned toward the mountain and walked away.

Standing still as statues and with mouths agape, the others watched silently as Twilight departed. They quickly exchanged fearful glances then followed after her, but purposely stayed a couple yards behind, watching her. A tense uneasiness hung in the air about them, and it started to snow as their trek resumed.

Eventually, the ponies reached the base of the mountain. The world was now as dark as midnight. Spike checked his watch again and announced it was the evening hours. With the ground sloping upward along the mountain, every pony who could used their magic to light the area. There were no paths visible, and the ponies faced a decent slope as they began their climb. Cadance, Rainbow and Fluttershy took to the air, but the climb was slow for the ponies as a whole and they had to take several rest stops.

After a while, the ground started to level out a bit as the ponies neared the rim of the crater. They could no longer see the land at the bottom of the mountain from their position; the world below appeared to be nothing more than a dark void ready to claim anything that entered it. After another rest stop, the ponies came to a pass between two of the towering rocky spires that rose up around the crater's rim.

The pass was clear of any debris, but how narrow it was gave the ponies more than a mild feeling of claustrophobia and unease. Scouting ahead just a little, Cadance announced that the ground started to slope down into the crater itself about a dozen meters beyond the pass. The ponies slowed their speed slightly once they reached the decline. By that time, it was snowing harder.

“I vote we call it a night once we get down there,” said Rarity wearily and shivering greatly. “With any luck there will be a cave somewhere we can sleep in so we don't freeze to death out here.”

“I'll look ahead.” Cadance flew away from the group and into the crater. The pink alicorn herself faded from view, but the globe of white light coming from her horn kept her from disappearing entirely.

Cadance returned after a short while with a frown on her face. “I couldn't find any caves. I'm afraid we'll have to sleep under the stars.”

The ponies all groaned at various volumes and several of them hung their heads.

“We could build a fire?” asked Pinkie.

“But we didn't bring any wood with us,” said Applejack. “And I don't think any of us are fixin' to backtrack to gather some.”

“I suppose I could stay up and hold my bubble to shield us from the cold air like before.” Cadance looked between the other horned ponies in the party. “But I would need somepony to trade me places so I can get some sleep too.”

Shining Armor immediately raised his hoof above his head. “I'll do it.” He glanced at Twilight and the other Element Bearers. “In the event the Headless Horse comes back or something else comes along, better that I be less rested than you all.”

Twilight and the others looked at each other briefly before nodding at Cadance and Shining Armor. Afterward, their journey continued, cautiously making their way down the hill by the magic light of their horned members. They stayed close together, ready to grab each other in case somepony slipped. Finally, the reached the bottom of the crater.

“Eleven o'clock,” said Spike, checking his watch.

“You sensing anything, Twilight?” asked Rarity.

Twilight looked around and closed her eyes. She stood still as the sound of her own breaths became the only thing she could hear. Other than the cold, hard rocky ground beneath her hooves and the frigid chill of the air, her heartbeat was the only thing she felt.

“Nothing,” she said with a sigh. “Nothing out of—”

Twilight suddenly paused as an odd feeling began to resonate within her horn. It was very faint, but it was enough to send a minor chill down the unicorn's spine. “Wait a second....”

Everypony stared eagerly at Twilight.

“What?” asked Spike. “What is it? Is there some of that crystal nearby?”

Twilight waited a little bit before responding. “It's... It's hard to tell, but I do sense something. And it's coming from....”

A few more minutes passed by in tense silence with everypony's remaining fixed eyes fixed on Twilight. Applejack watched her with eyes half-lidded and her brow furrowed. They leaned in closer and closer the longer they waited.

By then, Pinkie nearly had her nose touching Twilight's and she shook her friend by the shoulders. “Coming from where? Spill it, sister!”

Twilight grunted and backed away as Pinkie shook her. She opened her eyes and waited for the others to back away a little to give her some space. “From the west. I can't quite be sure if it's midnium or not but I remember sensing this same thing in the air in the Everfree Forest.”

“You sayin' there's another Everfree Forest west of here?” asked Applejack.

“This region is called the Undiscovered West for a reason. For all we know there could be another Everfree-like place here somewhere.”

“Lovely,” groaned Rarity.

“I know you all said we'd call it a night once we got down here,” Twilight continued. “You ponies should do that. I'm going to go a little further just to make sure I'm not imagining things.”

“Y'all ain't goin' off alone, sugarcube,” said Applejack. “I'm comin' with you.”

Her back turned to Applejack, Twilight rolled her eyes. “Fine....”

Rainbow stepped forward as well. She didn't say anything, but she gave Twilight the same determined look that Applejack did. She nodded slowly so as not to upset the bandages that were wrapped around her head.

Twilight glanced at Rainbow then walked up to her. She placed her hoof on her wounded friend's shoulder like before. “If you want to come too then that's cool.”

Still keeping quiet, Rainbow nodded again.

Twilight turned her attention to the others. “We'll be back soon.”

The ponies who were staying behind tried to find a somewhat comfortable bit of ground to settle down on. Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow headed off with Twilight leading the way by magic light and Spike's compass. Once they were far enough away, Cadance's magic bubble formed around the camp.

Twilight and her two companions continued along the crater floor. Like the rest of the mountain side, there were no trees here, only cold, hard rocky ground. The dark sensations in Twilight's horn slowly got a little stronger as they walked.

“So, Rainbow,” said Applejack, her voice carrying a tone of uncertainty. “Um....” She started to mumble incoherently. “Are your cuts still hurtin'? Need another rinse off?”

Rainbow let out a soft grunt.

“Is that a yes, or a no?”

Twilight sighed. “Just leave her be, Applejack. She's got a lot on her mind and she doesn't need us pestering her nonstop.”

Applejack gave Twilight another look of shock. “Uh... okay. Sorry.”

After only several minutes, the sky suddenly changed from pitch-black to being covered in ghostly-white clouds that gave off an eerie glow. The clouds drifted to and fro, pressing into each other endlessly, but they never parted, leaving the sky completely blanketed. The land remained covered in the dark of night. In addition, the same eerie light appeared around the edges of the mountain that made it look like an outline.

With this new look to the area, the ponies could see the split in the mountain's peak actually came all the way down to the ground. The cliffs were wide apart at the mountain's peak, but got closer together the closer to the ground they came, resulting in a narrow pass at the base. From their current position, neither Twilight, Applejack or Rainbow could see exactly what lay beyond the split in the mountain. Sensing dark energy coming from the direction of the pass, Twilight determined that was their next destination.

The trio returned to the camp, easily finding it again thanks to Shining Armor staying up to light the camp with his magic. Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow soon joined the others in peaceful slumber. Shining Armor did the same next to Cadance, until she woke him up several hours later. The princess went to sleep at her husband's side, and the stallion spent the rest of the night maintaining the magic barrier that protected the ponies from the icy air.

---

Once everypony had awakened and eaten, the party was led to the spot where Twilight, Applejack and Rainbow had visited the night prior. Just like the first time, the dark sky suddenly changed to being covered in drifting ghostly-white clouds that gave off an eerie glow. The world below the blanketed sky lost some of its light which left the land bathed in a partial darkness, but the ponies could still see a fair distance in front of them, including the mountain pass which stood out like a bruised leg.

Save for those who'd already seen this drastic shift in the look of the world, the ponies stood with their mouths agape.

“Will somepony please tell this place to make up its mind?” asked Pinkie.

“Nine in the morning,” said Spike, checking his watch and compass as he sat on Twilight's back. “And heading due west.”

“Ain't no time like the present,” stated Applejack. “Let's move out, ponies.”

Keeping to the head of the group as the herd of ponies proceeded toward the pass, Twilight recited in her mind everything from Luna's journal that she could recall. The familiar tingle of dark energy crept into her horn the closer they got. It was still faint, but just enough that it guided her every hoofstep toward their goal.

The pass was a lot narrower than the ponies first thought. Stretching only several meters wide, it was still big enough that it didn't slow down their progress. However, with the sheer closeness of the cliff faces that rose up on either side of them to heights they couldn't see from their position, the ponies were left feeling like they were boxed in.

As they inched along, the sound of low rolling thunder reached their ears. Finally coming to the end of the pass, the ponies beheld a sprawling desert. They paused at the edge of the gray sand and stared out, spotting a few scattered rocky outcroppings and some hills.

The tingle in Twilight's horn suddenly got stronger and she felt a warmth throughout her body.

“Well, it's no Everfree Forest,” said Rarity.

“Maybe Everfree Desert?” asked Spike.

“Took the words right from me.”

“Is it just me,” stated Applejack, “or is the air suddenly warm?”

Rarity nodded. With a bright smile, she sat down on her hindquarters, rubbed her forelegs together and hummed aloud. “It does and thank goodness! Finally something to feel relief about!”

“There's a concentration of dark energy in the air,” said Twilight as she rubbed her horn. “I'm sure you, Cadance and Shining Armor are having some tingling sensations in your horns right now.”

Rarity rubbed her horn. “I do actually.”

Cadance and Shining Armor both nodded their acknowledgement of Twilight's assertion.

“This place is giving the whole Pinkie Pie the tinglies!” cried Pinkie. “I mean that literally and figuratively.”

“It's strange, but I feel it too,” said Spike.

Applejack glanced at Twilight. “So can I. Does it mean we're close?”

Twilight closed her eyes and waited for several moments. “If they're strong enough, concentrations of dark energy can be felt even by earth ponies, pegasi, and other creatures. There's no mention of dark energy in the air itself in the journal, but Luna described the region she went to as 'her kind of place'. This desert definitely feels like the right place. We're close. That crystal is definitely here somewhere.”

“There's no telling how large this desert could be,” said Shining Armor.

“I''ll find it....” stated Twilight with a somewhat dark tone. She stared straight ahead with a gleam in her eyes.

“Looks like that crystal may not be the only thing we might find here....” Trembling, Fluttershy pointed at the ground and everypony looked down.

There was a trail of what looked like hoof prints in the sand. They were fresh in appearance, and led away from where the ponies stood deep into the desert.

Rainbow glared at the prints, but did not speak.

“So this is where that monster ran off to,” said Applejack with a snort. She kicked at the sand in front of her, destroying the hoof prints and sending a small wave of sand flying away. “If only we had time to give it a good old-fashioned whoopin'.”

“Maybe it needs midnium or to be around dark energy to refresh itself,” said Cadance. “That would seem most likely, assuming it does actually get fatigued.”

Without looking back at her friends, Twilight started to walk forward. “Let's get moving. We'll follow the tracks and see where it takes us.”

The others all startled a little at Twilight's sudden movement, but they caught up to her and followed close behind. No longer having a firm ground beneath them, the sound of the continuous rolling thunder became the only thing they could hear. After a couple hours of walking over great dunes and going around sand pits of various depths—some so deep that a pony would have to be air or magically lifted out of them—the ponies' weary breaths joined in the chorus of thunder overhead.

Twilight felt no such fatigue. Despite the tingling in her horn and her quicker than normal pace, she felt a strength within her being that did not let up. With that same determined look in her eyes and in her stride, she continued alongside the trail of hoof prints without faltering.

“Twilight,” said Rarity between hard breaths, “could we maybe slow down a bit? Maybe even stop for a few minutes?”

Twilight did not look back. “Why? We're making good time.”

“What about lunch?” asked Spike. “It's almost noon. Good a time as any for a little break.”

“If you all want to stop for lunch that's fine, but I'm going on.” Twilight's tone was firm. “Just follow the tracks and you'll catch up.”

The others furrowed their brows at her. They glanced at each other, then elected to have their lunch as they walked.

“Sure you don't want anything, Twi?” asked Spike, holding up a bottle of water. “Not even a drink?”

Without even looking back at the others, Twilight grabbed the bottle in her magic, took a drink, and tossed it behind herself like she didn't care where it landed.

Fluttershy barely caught it in her hooves before it hit the ground.

Applejack furrowed her brow at Twilight and gave her another half-lidded stare.

Soon, Twilight began to feel the concentration of dark energy in the air get stronger.

Getting close.

Her pace quickened.

So close!

Without warning, she broke into a sprint.

The sudden lunge caused Spike to lose his grip. He yelped as he was thrown from Twilight's back and landed face first in the sand before anypony could catch him.

The others went wide-eyed.

“Hey!” gasped Rarity as she levitated Spike off the ground. She dusted him off before setting him down on her own back. “What are you doing?”

The ponies called out to Twilight, but she didn't reply or even give any indication that she heard them. They groaned and gave chase with Spike clinging to Rarity's neck.

The calls of her friends were pushed to the back of Twilight's mind as she galloped. Despite not having stopped for a break since entering the desert, the concept of fatigue felt like a foreign concept to her. With a dark grin on her face, she careened forward like a bullet train. Soon, the object of the journey came into her view. She dashed onward, not stopping until she entered an entire field of dark, jagged crystals that were sticking up out of the sand like spikes.

Some of of the crystals were as small as a foal or smaller. Some were the size of an average height adult pony. Some were as big as a house. The crystals all rose up at different angles and the field stretched as far as could be seen across the darkened sands.

The ponies soon caught up to Twilight. After taking a moment to catch their breath, they stared at her with utter bewilderment clear upon their demeanors.

“What the hay, Twilight?” grumbled Applejack, glowering a little. “What's the big idea just takin' off like that?”

“Isn't it obvious? Just look around. We found it!”

“Be that as it may,” said Rarity, mirroring Applejack's tone, “we're supposed to stick together. More than that, poor Spike could have been seriously hurt!”

Twilight looked back and grunted. “Oh. Sorry about that, Spike. Well come on, ponies. We've found what we came out here for. Let's grab what we can carry and hoof it back to Equestria! We did bring the tote bags to carry it in, right?”

“One tote.” Pinkie set her saddlebag down on the sand and pulled out a small, black, rolled up tote bag. “Got it right here.”

Staring at the tote, Twilight frowned. “Is that it? I thought we brought more.”

“We didn't because we needed room for food and water,” said Shining Armor.

“We had a talk about this,” stated Applejack. “We agreed that a few small samples was all we needed.”

“I changed my mind. We need more!” Twilight levitated her saddle bag to her side, opened the pouches, and turned it upside down. All of her bottled water and packaged snacks fell to the ground. “Put that wherever.”

The ponies just stared at Twilight as she began to collect hoof-sized midnium shards and stuff them into her saddlebag. They exchanged nervous glances again, then sighed under their breaths. Rarity gathered up Twilight's supplies and distributed them among everypony else's. The others joined Twilight in picking up the small dark crystals within a couple yards of them which they placed in the tote bag.

Everytime the ponies touched one of the crystals, they shuddered and let out a gasp.

“Is that supposed to happen?” asked Fluttershy. “I thought this stuff was only supposed to affect unicorns.”

“I'm definitely feeling the tinglies now!” cried Pinkie.

“Remember what Celestia told us it said in the journal,” said Cadance as she dropped another shard into the tote. “This stuff is solidified dark energy. It interferes with a creature's natural magical energies. And to your question, many scholars believe that earth ponies and pegasi actually do have magic within them, just not in the same way unicorns do. Matter of fact, one common theory is that the magic inside pegasi is what enables them to walk on clouds and manipulate the weather.”

“That so?” inquired Applejack. “What are they sayin' about magic and earth ponies?”

“This is just conjecture, but they say earth ponies have more stamina and are unrivaled in farming and agriculture.”

Fluttershy suddenly stopped and stared at a spot away from her. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but has anypony else noticed these?”

Everypony turned to stare at what Fluttershy was pointing at.

There were more hoof prints in the sand several yards away from the trail of prints the ponies had followed, and away from where the ponies had been stepping. They were spread over a wide area, and the area they covered was completely devoid of the midnium.

“There's no way those could be Luna's tracks from a thousand years ago,” said Fluttershy. “Um... could they...?”

“Not unless they're literally set in stone,” stated Applejack. It wasn't until that moment, looking down, the farm pony noticed that the trail of prints they'd followed stopped where Twilight had stood upon first arriving at their location. “That's weird. I didn't notice before but the Headless Horse's tracks stop here, and there's even more tracks over there!”

She pointed at another grouping of tracks at another spot, not connected to the Headless Horse's or the bunch that Fluttershy had spotted. Completely forgetting about the task they had come for, the ponies stared at all the tracks. Twilight, however, continued to gather up midnium shards like she wasn't even paying attention to anything else.

“Why do the Headless Horse's tracks suddenly stop here?” Applejack continued. “And whose are these other two sets? Looks like this place has seen some activity recently, but from whom?”

“Is the tote full yet?” asked Twilight as she strapped her near overflowing saddlebag to her waist. “I'm packed and as Pinkie Pie would say, I'm ready to go go go!”

Everypony's attention snapped back to Twilight as the unicorn started to trot back in the direction they'd come from. With more uneasy glances at each other, they hurriedly filled up the tote the rest of the way, then followed after their friend to start the long journey home.

Author's Note:

Thanks for reading!

Comments

[Whinifree]

9393177
Oh it thickens alright, and it will continue to thicken. Sorry it took so long to update this.

[Whinifree]

9396846
Thankie.

[Whinifree]

9454338
Which ch exactly? And I’m sorry this hasn’t been update in a while. I haven’t heard anything from the editor in weeks. Means he’s very busy.

[Jade Dawn]

It sounds like Rainbow is going through PTSD. I mean, considering she told Scootaloo she could totally beat the Headless Horse, and now she meets the real thing and finds she can't...

[Whinifree]

9472042
How did you like the way I introduced it in the previous ch? Creepy I hope.

[RoyalBardofCanterlot]

What's wrong with Twilight?