Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Twilight smiled as Spike hopped from side to side, before looking to her, grinning. “Looks like I’m all good.”
The Alicorn giggled, before levitating the dragon onto her back and started out the recovery tent.
Spike looked around at all the creatures walking among the barracks. He still couldn’t believe how many allies Ken had managed to gather for Equestria. Some of these creatures he hadn’t even ever heard of before.
“So, where’s Ken?” he asked, waving to a purple dragon that was walking past, talking with a Pegasus, who waved back before continuing his talk with the winged pony.
Twilight glanced back at him. “She’s with Celestia, Luna and the leaders/representatives of the other races, discussing the final plans for our assault on the Crystal Empire.”
“That still sounds really weird to hear,” the dragon shook his head, frowning. “We’re assaulting the Empire… but to free it.”
“Life’s strange sometimes, Spike,” she replied before hiding a small giggle. “In more ways than one.”
Spike frowned, before folding his arms, pouting.
It had been a full five months since the three of them had arrived in this alternate timeline and he’d been frozen by that Changeling. Twilight had been informing him of what she could while he’d been stuck in recovery. They’d held him back a little while longer because they weren’t sure of the side effects on dragons and wanted to be a hundred percent sure he was safe to leave.
As they neared a seemingly unassuming tent, Spike heard a voice he hadn’t in a long while.
“It is a good plan, Your Highness,” the booming voice of Dragon Lord Torch said from within. “My dragons will indeed be the beginning assault. Our size alone will make breaking through their ranks easy.”
Spike found his brain struggling to understand how such a hulking form as Dragon Lord Torch could possibly have fitted inside such a small tent.
His question was answered once Twilight stepped inside, revealing a Dimensional Extension Spell had been cast on the inside of the tent, making it far larger on the inside than the outside would lead one to believe.
“We will then move forward, following the paths left behind by the dragons until we reach the Empire itself,” Ken was saying, pointing to a large map spread out between herself, the Royal Sisters, the Dragon Lord, a blue hippogriff, a strong black feathered Griffon and a pair of Changelings, the map being topped with figures representing Sombra’s army and the Equestrian Alliance’s Forces. “After that, Smoulder, Garble, Rainbow Dash and Sargent Shimmer will infiltrate the castle and make their way to the tower where Sombra is holding the Crystal Heart.”
“Is it really wise to send Sargent Shimmer in?” the hippogriff asked quizzically. “Would it not be better to have her on the battle field with the rest of us, where her magical talent will be far better utilized?”
“You make a good point, General Sea Spray,” Dragon Lord Torch nodded, before shaking his head. “However, Princess Twilight’s information from her own timeline makes it clear that tower has an illusion cast upon it. She will be needed to perform the Gravity Spell that will allow them to get to the top.”
“I still don’t understand why you want that little dragon on the mission though,” the Changeling with purple wings and red frill stated, looking to Ken with confusion. “He’s even smaller than Smoulder and clearly has no fighting experience. Why must he go on the mission?”
“Sombra is no idiot, Pharynx, that’s why,” Ken retorted, looking firmly at the Changeling. “Back when Twilight tried to get the Heart in our timeline, she triggered a protective spell Sombra had set there that would active the moment any creature got close to the Heart, causing his signature black crystals to form around it.”
“And, as we’ve all seen throughout this war, his crystals can repel spells, so any creature would be trapped within the black crystal prison, regardless of whether they had magic or not or anyone with magic tried to free them,” Luna stated grimly.
“However, due to how he was hatched, Spike’s dragon fire has a unique magical signature to it that is resistant to the crystal Sombra can create,” Ken nodded thanks to Luna. “Nopony really paid much thought back when it happened in our timeline, but thinking it over these months, I understand now that Spike is a very unique dragon and the key to freeing the Heart.”
“Once the Heart has been retrieved, it will be given to Cadance and placed back in the centre of the Empire,” Celestia finished. “As soon as it’s in place, the Crystal Ponies we’ve freed from Sombra’s grasp will combine their love and Cadnace will use the Heart to finish this, once and for all and the war will finally be over.”
“And Princess Luna still hasn’t managed to break through the rest of the brainwashed ponies?” the griffon looked to the Night Princess.
Luna shook her head. “My skills may be in the Dream Realm, but Sombra’s spell, even with the tyrant locked away in Starlight Glimmer’s Cutie Mark Vault, makes it impossible to break through to their dreams. It is a miracle we were able to break through to the small number of them that we have.”
“Uh, did I just hear that right?” All turned at Spike’s nervous tone. “I just got out of recovery and now you’re sending me into battle?!”
“It’s not that straight forward, Spike,” Ken said calmly, moving away from the table and to the two of them, smiling assuringly. “As we said, Sunset, Garble, Smoulder and Rainbow will be with you. They’ll keep you safe until you guys get to the Heart. All you have to do is breathe fire on the crystal and then get the Heart to Cadance.”
“Oh, yeah,” Spike said in a deadpan. “Totally easy. Nothing to worry about at all with that plan.”
Twilight and Ken looked to each other and giggled, before nuzzling one another.
This was enough to pull Spike out of his thoughts, his eyes widening. That… that wasn’t any ordinary nuzzling. It wasn’t sisterly nuzzling, he’d seen Celestia and Luna, Applejack and Apple Bloom and Rarity and Sweetie Belle do that enough times to recognize it.
This was different though. He’d seen this kind of nuzzling. Twilight’s parents did it, Cadance and Shining Armour did it and Mr. and Mrs Cake did it.
“Wait are… are you two?” he looked from one Alicorn to the other, certain he was misreading things.
“Um…” Twilight trailed off, grinning and blushing.
“Well…” Ken trailed off too, blushing just as hard.
The little drake sat atop his mother for several moments, before hopping down, his expression firm. “Okay, just when did this happen?”
THREE MONTHS AGO
“Fall back!” I yell, flaring my wings and shooting into the air, before dive bombing a squad of Sombra’s soldiers, knocking them away from the other lavender mare. “We’ve got the info we need.” I look back over my shoulder. “Everybody, we’re pulling back, now!”
Yells of acknowledgement ring out and the groups of griffons, hippogriffs and dragons start pulling back.
“Back, you brainless oafs!” Gallus yells, pushing a soldier down and pinning him with his spear.
“RAH!” Gallus looks over his shoulder as another soldier charges at him, sword drawn.
The red griffon stares in horror, unable to break away due to needing to keep the writhing mass of rock reptile beneath him as the chimaera bears down on him.
I snarl, lunging forward, a magic blade forming around my hoof. With an animalistic scream, I slash through the beast, causing its three heads to roar in pain, before collapsing to the ground.
“Princess, watch out!” I suddenly see Gallus in front of me instead and whirl around as a griffon with white head feathers dashed with bits of purple comes into view, swiping her claws to knock aside a soldier from Sombra’s army that had snuck up behind me as I was helping Twilight up.
“My thanks, Gilda,” I nod as Twilight stands up straight. “Now, let’s get out of here before things backfire. Last thing we want is Sombra getting wise.”
Twilight nods, smiling at me, before her eyes widen in horror and she leaps at me, her horn blazing.
She pushes me down, the sound of a Concussion Spell going off over my head and the sound of it impacting something.
However, our momentum keeps things moving and her head ends up colliding with mine, our lips making contact.
We both stare at each other, wide-eyed, trying to process what’s going on, before Gilda’s griffon screech pulls us back to reality and we scramble off each other and spread our wings, taking flight.
NOW
“Once we got back to base, neither of us could stop thinking about our accidental kiss on the battle field,” I say, rubbing the back of my neck. “To be honest, ever since that Hearth’s Warming in our timeline, I’d been struggling with feelings I was developing for Twilight, but incest is extremely taboo for humans, so I’d been raised to feel that way and didn’t say anything about it.”
“What Ken didn’t know is that, to be perfectly honest myself, I’d been developing feelings for Ken not long after she started living with us,” Twilight admits.
We’re now in our own personal tent. We’d finished the meeting with the heads of the other races and had just spent the last couple minutes explaining how exactly Twilight and I have become a couple while Spike was still in recovery.
“It did clue me in as to why Twilight had a copy of Incest: A Herd Norm When Done Sparsely shelved in the castle library,” I give the mare a smirk and she blushes.
“Well, it’s true,” she retorts, going into Lecture Mode. “Statistically speaking, back in ancient times, during the mid-settling of Equestria, it was not uncommon for siblings in herds to get together. When done sparingly and with long extensions of time between each coupling, it actually did the opposite regular incest would cause in ponies, instead improving their strength and immunities.”
“And suddenly Celestia and Grandma’s words back when she and Grandpa were first introduced to Ken make more sense,” Spike murmurs, lost in thought for a moment.
Twilight and I both look at each other, blinking, before I frown, but smile, stomping a hoof. “Those cheeking shippers! That was their plan the whole time.”
“Do you think they knew we’d feel this way about each other?” Twilight looks over at the tent entrance, her expression stunned. “Was this planned the whole time?”
“I wouldn’t put it past that mare,” I say, rubbing my chin. “Tia was always sneaky, ever since she was young.”
That causes me to get confused looks from the other two.
I blink, noticing their stares, before I sigh. “I did it again, didn’t I?”
Twilight nods. “How could you know what Celestia was like when she was young?”
“Haven’t you asked this timeline’s Celestia?” Spike asks, looking between the two of us. “Maybe she can shed some let on this.”
I shake my head. “She says she’ll give me the information to get our timeline’s Celestia and Luna to open up once the war ends. Something about a statue in the Royal Canterlot Garden.”
“Speaking of…” Spike looks a little nervous. “What about the Discord of this timeline?”
I sigh, shaking my head again. “We’ll cross that bridge when and if we come to it, Spike. Thankfully, the war has prevented anyone from being near his statue in a moment when a lack of harmony could free him.”
“Plus, in this timeline, technically, Celestia and Luna are still bound to the Elements, so the spell hasn’t weakened like it did in our timeline,” Twilight points out. “So there’s a good chance he’ll never break free.”
“Either way,” I yawn, settling down next to Twilight, draping a wing over her. “We’ve got a final battle two days from now. We’d better get our rest. It’s going to be a long one.”
___________________________________________________________
The air is still as we all stand before the large blockade that is Sombra’s army.
“Just how far out does it go?” Smoulder asks from next to me, a claw over her eyes, trying to see the end of the army.
“Sombra’s taken over half of Equestria,” Garble says, his arms folded. “Makes sense half of Equestria stands in our way.”
I nod, before stepping forward and turning around to face the mass of creatures behind me. “Inhabitants of Equestria, today is the day we fight for the freedom of our comrades. For the freedom of our lands. For the freedom of our homes! Sombra assumed we would all fall to his might within seconds. We’ve proved him wrong over and over again.
“We all come from different races, different cultures and backgrounds, which he assumed would keep us all apart, making it easier for him to pick us off. But, in doing so, we all have a common goal. We are united in one ideal and it cannot be broken.
“Today, we show him once and for all that Equestria is and never will be his domain. With this battle, this war ends and we will claim victory for what is rightfully ours! Are you with me?!”
Roars of approval ring out from the army, hands, claws, hooves and whatever else held in the air.
“Then…. Begin the first wave!” I yell, sweeping around and pointing to the fields of black armoured ponies standing in our way.
Louder yells ring out as the sky becomes filled with the massive forms of numerous of dragons, the smallest ranging from about as big as a truck back in the human world to sizes I don’t think I can even compare with.
Arrows and spells start flying from Sombra’s armies, along with rocks hurled by catapults. It does nothing, however, as the spells and rocks are either easily avoided by the dragons, or just bounce off of their scaly hides.
The dragons encircle the army for several minutes, before diving down and smashing into the ground, the shockwave from their impactings along sending armoured soldiers flying, before swiping their tails and arms around, knocking soldiers back as if they were flies.
We all watch, waiting for there to be a large enough line through the army for us to move.
“That speech was amazing, Ken,” Twilight whispers, taking my hoof.
I look to her and smile, before looking down. “Odd thing is… I feel like I’ve said almost the exact same thing once before. And been through this before.”
After several minutes, a break big enough for our army is finally opened up.
“Equestrian Alliance!” I yell, forming a magical sword on my right forelegs, looking back over the mass of creatures behind me. “CHARGE!”
We all surge forward, those with wings taking to the skies, while those without charge along the ground, weapons drawn and expressions set.
What few of Sombra’s forces that avoided the dragons in the first wave are not ready for us as we trample through them, weapons and swords and fists and claws flying every which way.
I block and parry several blows from soldiers, before leaping into the air, smashing my hooves together, sending out massive magical shockwaves through the air, knocking soldier after soldier back, too stunned to understand what’s going on.
The battle rages for several hours, with Sombra’s forces doing their best to put up a fight, but we continue, though at a modest pace, to break our way through their ranks.
As the afternoon sun begins to turn the sky red, signalling early evening to be on its way, the Empire comes into view.
“NOW!” I look to Twilight, who nods, sending a flare of magic into the sky, it exploding in a lavender light.
From behind as, a large contingent of hippogriffs and griffons that had remained in a group this whole time break away, revealing the Empire Infiltration Team.
With Spike sitting atop Rainbow Dash’s back, the team flies into the air, Sunset using a Levitation Spell upon herself and their shoot through the sky, making a beeline for the Empire, a hint of sparkling smoke disappearing in the opposite direction.
I glance for a second at Twilight, who nods and we rush forward, spells flaring for her, magical scythes being wielded by myself. We must also reach the Empire before Cadance gets there. We can’t afford any unforeseen complications.
___________________________________________________________
Cadance paced back and forth in the main room of Starlight Glimmer’s house.
“Your Highness, please, stop pacing,” the svelte white unicorn stallion said, looking to her from the desk he was sitting at. “The Princesses will send word the moment your time arrives.”
“But I can’t help it, Neighsay!” she said firmly, whirling around as best she could. Her pregnancy was well into the later months, leaving her belly much larger and it harder to move around. “I should be out there! It’s my Empire, but I’m not helping reclaim it!”
Neighsay merely shook his head. “In your condition you would not be of any help on the battle field, Your Highness, and you know it. And you are going to help reclaim your Empire. Princess Ken and Princess Twilight worked very meticulously on the plan to ensure your part would go to plan. You are the only one who can activate the Crystal Heart. You are the trump card.”
Cadance bit her lip in anger, before huffing and moved to stand by the window.
She didn’t like this. In fact, she hated it. Others were fighting her battles for her, all because she was pregnant.
She had been overjoyed upon learning she was going to be a mother, though had always feared her foal would be born into this world of war.
With the sudden arrival of Princess Ken and Princess Twilight from an alternate timeline, she had been looking forward again to the birth of her foal because it likely would be born after the war had finally ended.
However, being pregnant, she could not risk her unborn child’s life, meaning she’d been sitting on the sidelines for so long now, letting others fight her battles for her Empire.
Putting a hoof to her slightly swollen belly, she closed her eyes. Ken, Twilight, please be safe. Please bring this war to its end soon.
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“That Illusion Spell was trippy as hay, right?” Smoulder called as the group was speeding up the underside of the tower stairs.
“Tell me about it!” Garble called. “If Sunset weren’t here, I don’t think we’d have ever escaped it.”
“Coming up to the end of the stairs, guys!” Spike called, easily remembering when he and Twilight were close to the end in their own timeline.
Seconds later, they all flew off the edge of the stairs, Sunset catching them in her magic’s red aura quickly and recasting the Gravity Spell.
The six look around the top of the tower, before seeing the Crystal Heart floating above a circle in the centre, looking completely innocent.
“Be careful now,” Dash said, glaring at the circle. “Remember our information.”
“I can back it up,” Spike nodded. “Saw it happen. I know what to do. Smoulder?”
The orange dragon looked to him and nodded, picking him up in her arms and carrying him as best she could. Getting to the Heart, Spike grabbed it.
However, the added weight was too much and Smoulder lost her balance in the air, dropping and hitting the circle, which at once lit with a black light, blaring sounds ringing all around.
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Cadance stood a bit straighter as a sparkling smoke headed towards the window she was standing at, coming from outside the town.
It went in through a crack in the door and came together, bursting into green flames, revealing a scroll.
She levitated it over, quickly reading it, before looking to Neighsay and nodding. “It’s time!”
The stallion nodded back, standing up and tapping the medallion on his chest.
It lit with orange magic, which then went to his horn. Frowning at the nearest wall, he lowered his head, a beam shooting from it, hitting the wall and opening a blue flaming portal.
“We must hurry, Princess,” he said, looking back to her. “We don’t know how long the Alliance will be able to keep Sombra’s forces at bay before they—”
Suddenly, the whole ground shook.
“What in Equestria was that?” Neighsay asked, stunned.
The ground shook again, a booming sound being heard.
The two ponies ran outside, looking around.
A third boom came, this one accompanied by the faint sound of something crumbling.
“Princess, run!” the two turned to look behind them, Night Glider rushing from the direction of the cave where Sombra was being held. “Get to the Empire! Sombra’s—”
Before she could finish, a thunderous boom rang out, the rocky base that was the roof of the cave exploding outward, black smoke billowing out like ragging storm clouds.
Cadance felt her heart leap into her throat as a pair of green eyes formed in the smoke.
“Now, Princess!” Neighsay yelled, motioning back inside.
The two hurried in, running for the portal, only for the two to be thrown aside, heads smashing into the wall.
Cadance stared through bleary eyes in fear as smoke quickly coalesced, forming into the tyrant king.
He smirked at her. “Princess Cadance. How nice to meet again after all this time.” He frowned, glancing at the portal, before noticing the scroll that had been sent laying where it had fallen after he had made a grand entrance.
No! Cadance’s eyes widened as he levitated it over and read it aloud, before leering.
“Cadance, we have breached the Empire. Spike and his team are going for the Heart. Have Neighsay open a portal to the centre of the Empire and we’ll await Spike’s arrival with the Heart. An impress plan,” he said, looking to her, chuckling. “Too bad that prison just wasn’t strong enough to last a little longer, hmm?”
As she and Neighsay struggled to get up, Sombra turned into smoke and shot through the portal.
___________________________________________________________
“Glad we at least have a moment to catch our breath,” I say as Twilight and I lean against one of the poll of the room surrounding where the Heart would normally sit.
“Yeah,” my marefriend agrees, slightly more winded than myself. “Not used to fighting for so long. Or at all, really. Been a fair few months since Tirek, ya know?”
There’s a blue flash and we turn to see Neighsay’s portal opening.
“Good,” Twilight says, stepping towards the portal. “Cadance’ we’re ready to—”
There’s barely a second to react. I suddenly notice a magical signature coming that is not Cadance and yank Twilight back with my magic, just as a storm of black smoke surges out of the portal, shooting past us and out of the room.
“What in Equestria?” Twilight cries as I let go of my magical hold on her.
Seconds later, Cadance and Neighsay stumble through the portal, their faces filled with worry.
“Sombra broke out!” Cadance says, before having to catch her breath.
“He knows the plan!” Neighsay follows up, holding the pregnant mare up.
Our eyes widen in horror. No! If Sombra knows the plan, he knows Spike is the key and will go after him. The others may be strong and skilled fighters, but against Sombra himself, they’d be powerless and Spike… Spike would be…
“Open a portal to wherever Sombra is now, immediately!” I yell at Neighsay.
He nods, taking a second, before opening another portal.
Twilight and I nod our thanks to him, before nodding to each other and charge into the portal.
Upon exiting it, we both flare our horn, releasing an intense burst of magic.
A shout of surprise is followed by the figure of King Sombra hitting a nearby wall.
He shakes his head, looking confused, before standing up and sees the two of us, the portal closing behind us.
He blinks, before snickering. “Well, isn’t the an interesting development?” He stands, looking us over, before his eyes linger of me, confusion entering them. “What? But how?”
“You’re not touching my son, Sombra!” Twilight growls, her horn flared.
“This end, now, tyrant!” I agree, flaring my own horn.
His still looks confused, but smirks. “Very well. I shall get my answers either way. Bring it!”
Twilight and I flare our wings and shoot into the air, before dive-bombing him.
He lights his own horn, causes a spear of crystal to form, quickly rising into the air. We easily avoid it, having trained enough with Dash to move quickly through the air.
Using the momentum of my turn, I swing around, forming magical axes at the ends of my hooves and swinging my forelegs.
This catches Sombra off guard, causing him to back away after the first axe cuts through him, causing him to cry out in pain, but being given no time to counter as he’s slammed down by a spell from Twilight.
He yells in anger, several large spikes of crystal flying from around him, giving us barely enough time to dodge them.
He takes advantage of this, however, catching Twilight off guard. I watch in horror as he grabs her by the throat and slams her to the ground.
“RAH!” I scream, my eyes glowing white. My body surges with magical energy and I charge forward, knocking him aside, his body slamming to the nearest wall.
Leaning over Twilight, I sigh with relief when she opens her eyes and sits up, giving me a small grin, before her eyes widen and she snarls, pushing me aside, her horn flaring.
A shout of surprised anger causes me to look to see Sombra skidding along the ground all the way to the wall, his shoulder bleeding.
Glancing to Twilight, my eyes widen at the sight of her. She’s glowing. Her small versions of her Cutie Mark are all over her hooves, her wings are several different colours and her mane is not only longer, but has a new cream stripe through it. Not to mention the fact her mane is moving on its own, like Celestia and Luna’s do.
She looks to me, before smirking. “What? You did it first.”
Cocking my head in confusion, I give myself a quick once over and notice the same has happened to me. What the…?
“Enough!” we both look back as the wall eplodes away, revealing a very irritated looking Sombra. “Why won’t you just surrender already?!” He then smirks. “Do so now, promise to be my brides and serve my every whim, and I will not only spare your own lives, but the lives of your friends. And your little dragon too.” He finishes with a laugh.
Twilight and I quickly glance at each other, our expressions firms, before nodding.
“Not happening, Sombra!” she declares, firing a magical blast he avoids and we all start manoeuvring around each other, flying back and forth around the room, striking and backing away. “We will never surrender to the likes of you!”
“Threatening Spike’s life too? Big mistake!” I charge at him, horn flared.
He whirls around, smirking, his eyes glowing green before my vision is filled with the same colour.
Suddenly, I’m somehow in the Canterlot throne room, where there are crystals all around. Sombra sits atop Celestia’s throne, leering down at me.
My eyes widen as, at his hooves, I see a beaten, broken, bloody and battered Twilight, her wings torn apart, her horn shattered, her body… unmoving.
___________________________________________________________
Twilight tried to stand from where Sombra’s magic shockwave had knocked her back, her eyes widening in horror as she saw Sombra merely standing before Ken, the latter of who’s eyes were glowing green.
Sombra had caught her in his Worst Fear Spell.
“No,” she whispered.
Sombra glanced back at her, smirking. “Yes. Now her deepest fears will consume her, making her my puppet.”
“D… D…” Ken murmurs, her expression showing absolute horror.
“Yes?” Sombra looked back to the mare, sneering. “D-what, my helpless slave?”
“D… D…” Suddenly, though her eyes remained green, Ken snarled. “DIE, YOU FUCKING BASTARD!”
Sombra didn’t even have time to react. Ken rose up, her forelegs being covered by magic scythes and she started slashing at him like a mad mare!
The stallion was now suddenly on the backhoof, struggling to try getting away from the mare that looked like she was now out for blood.
“YOU’LL PAY FOR MURDERING HER, YOU SICK SON OF BITCH!” Ken screamed with pure malice in her voice, the now frightened stallion barely avoiding her manic strikes. “I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!”
Twilight just watched, her mouth agape. How…? What was going on? Nopony or any creature caught in Sombra’s Worst Fear Spell had ever managed to fight back while still under its influence. The only possible way that could happen would be if…
Twilight’s eyes widened. Whatever Ken’s worst fear was, her feelings about it were far stronger than her actual fear and it was helping her fight back… though from what she was saying, Twilight had a strong hunch what Ken was seeing and while fighting back, Ken thought it was still really happening.
Sombra was backed against a wall. He wouldn’t be able to use a spell to escape. He stared, eyes wide as the crazed mare before he lunged forward, the magical axe she was swinging his way turning into a spear and he knew what she clearly intended to do with it.
“Alright, enough!” Sombra cried in fear, releasing his spell.
At once, Ken’s eyes returned to normal and she looked confused.
Sombra took that as his chance, turning into smoke and slipping past her, leaving Ken to collide with the wall.
___________________________________________________________
“Ken!” I groggily open my eyes to see Twilight by my side, she lifts me up.
Wait. Twilight’s alive?!
I pull her into a hug, never feeling so relieved in my entire life.
“What…? What are you?”
We pull apart to see Sombra standing on the other side of the room, panting heavily, looking at me in absolute bewilderment. “Just what did you see that could possibly cause you to fight me while still under the spell? You were a mad mare!”
“Says the tyrant king?” Twilight asks, shooting forward.
Sombra leaps past her and aims for me, curiosity in his eyes.
“You don’t need to know. Also,” I duck to avoid a blast of his magic, giving a taunting smirk. “That voice? So not intimidating in the least.”
At once, his eyes widen and he snarls, firing several more blasts at me, which I avoid with ease.
“How dare you?!” he yells, focusing on me… just like we want him to. Good. Gotta keep his focus off Twilight. I am not letting that happen in real life! “I am Sombra! King of the Crystal Empire! Masterof the shadows! Living beings tremble at the very mention of my name!”
I toss my head back, blocking one of his spells with my own. “Name, sure? Voice? Ha! You sound like a flamboyant stereo type cartoon villain from the eighties!”
That causes him to pause in confusion.
“NOW!”
Sombra’s hit from behind by a blast of magic, causing him to slam sideways into the crystal wall.
I rush forward through the air, forming a magical spear on my right foreleg and slam it through him, pinning him to the wall.
He winces, before glaring at me.
“Do you honestly think you can defeat me?” he asks, staring right into my eyes.
I glare into his own eyes, before smirking. “Maybe. But that wasn’t the plan. We just needed to keep you distracted.”
He blinks. “What?”
___________________________________________________________
“Come on!” Spike yelled to his group as the blue portal opens.
They charged through, coming out next to Cadance and Neighsay.
Cadance took the Heart and placed it in its place, before looking to Neighsay and nodding.
He nodded back, opening another portal, through which over a hundred Crystal Ponies came through.
“Citizens of the Crystal Empire,” Cadance looked out at the all, her Cutie Mark glowing in tandem with the Heart’s light, “the Crystal Heart has returned. Use the light and love within you free the Empire and end this war, once and for all!”
The Crystal Ponies nodded, their coats shining and bowed, light spreading across the Empire, before all surging into the Heart, which began spinning, before releasing a field of love and light outward, spreading it across the Empire and out across Equestria.
___________________________________________________________
Sombra’s eyes widen in horror as I feel something strong, powerful and warm surging towards us.
“No!” he yelled, his eyes wide with panic and his voice filled with it. “You can’t defeat me! I’m the King!”
“Then consider this a coup, Your Highness!” Twilight smirks, the light spreading past us, causing us to shine with its energy, myself yanking my hoof back, knowing he cannot escape.
Sombra screams as he is literally turned to dust, obliterated right before our very eyes.
There’s silence for several moments as Twilight and I try to catch our breath, before screams of joy erupt outside, the sound echoing so far that it clearly stretches for miles.
I look to Twilight and give her an exhausted smile.
She returns it. “We did it.”
I chuckle. “Yeah. We did. Now… how about we get some rest.” I flop to the ground, my eyes drooping. “I’m completely wiped.”
Twilight chuckles, doing the same. “Yeah. Some rest would be really good after all that.”
ONE MONTH LATER
“It was truly an honour to fight alongside you, Dragon Lord Torch,” I say, hoof bumping him.
He nods. “The honour was all mine, Your Highness.”
“I wish you could stay,” Cadance says, hugging Twilight.
“I know,” she replies, pulling back from the hug. “But we have to return to our own timeline and save it.”
“Don’t let your me push you around, Spike,” Garble gives the smaller drake a fist bump. “And if he tries, just remember Smoulder’s nickname for me. He’ll shut up right away.”
Spike nods, smirking. “You got it.” He shrugged. “Though, I doubt I ever will see him again. Haven’t seen him the first time I met him, anyway.”
“And remember your Molt will come about six months sooner than it originally would have in your time, now,” Smoulder says firmly. “Be ready for when it happens.”
“We will,” Twilight chuckles.
We’re all gathered by the Map. Having spent so long helping try settle things down after the war ended, it’s time for us to go back. We have our own villains to fight.
“Ken?” I look to Celestia and Luna, before of whom are standing a bit away, looking crestfallen.
“We know you cannot stay,” Luna says, looking solemnly at me. “But, regarding the us from your timeline… just… tell them you know about it. Even the title of the statue will make them talk.”
“But you still won’t tell yourselves because…?” Spike asks, but Twilight shoves him lightly.
Celestia shakes her head. “Much as we desperately want to, it is not our place to. Your dau— Your Celestia and Luna should tell you. To do so ourselves would be unfair to them.”
My eyebrow is raised. She clearly meant to say something else, but stopped herself. I close my eyes, shaking my head. Whatever it is, if they’re right and I tell our Luna and Celestia I know about the statue this timeline’s versison of them showed me not long after we started trying to settle this timeline as best we could, they should finally explain their odd behaviour since Hearth’s Warming.
“Now, if I’m reading your timeline’s me’s alterations to the spell correctly, the moment you arrive in the past, so will she,” Starlight says, levitating Twilight the scroll with Star Swirl’s spell on it. “She specifically alteted Star Swirl’s spell to send her back in time, meaning even if somepony else casts the spell…”
“She’ll be brought back too,” I finish for her, nodding as the three of us walk up to The Map.
“I wonder if Starlight ended up in this kind of timeline or was stuck in the past this whole time,” Spike ponders.
“Either way, thanks to Starlight’s help, Starlight won’t get the jump on us,” Twilight says, before pausing, a very perplex look on her face. “That was a weird thing to say.”
“Yeah, let’s just go stop her instead of focusing on that,” I say, rubbing my temples. “I get the feeling if we think too hard on it, all we’ll achieve is gaining a massive headache.”
The two nod and Twilight readies to cast the spell.
I take one final look over the crowd of different creatures surrounding us, all here to bid us farewell.
“Good luck to you all,” I say as Twilight starts casting the spell. “I wish you all the best. Remember that the bonds of friendship we formed during the war are not just for the war. They are forever. You’re all like a family, remember that.”
Every creature cheers, waving and calling their farewells, many with tears in their eyes, all wishing us luck for our own time.
As the portal pulls us in, I look to Spike and Twilight, who both nod, their expressions firm as my own.
We will defeat Starlight. We will not let this timeline be created again.
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Original timeline Celestia: I shipped it!
Original timeline Cadance: Auntie, that's my job! I already booked a table at a romantic resturant and everything!
So they end up in the barren wastes one, huh?
Yet another grand chapter full of character, action, twists and more! Always a treat.
Were they gonna say that they're Ken's daughters?
9678899
Because there are precious few stallions that are good mating material that fit, that AREN'T related to said mare.
9678915
I believe so, and with this distortion of time currently happening, I wouldn't be surprised if an accident forces them into the distant past.
9678922
I doubt it since Ken is remembering stuff so it's more like a past life
That is the common result of thinking too much about time travel
When you say it like that I start to think the next timeline will have a Celestia or Luna that went down a darker path as a ruler and Ken will give them/her The Scolding
I haven't read any of the 2019 chapters yet but holy shit, I thought this fic was dead and mourned it long ago.
Hay, they finally stopped dancing around eachother.
And ripped ol' Somby-womby a new one, tag-team style!
<Text snipped at Breezie's request to try and get control of this section.>
9678915
That is what I've assumed for some time now.
Always nice to be right about something 
9678928
I believe Ken is the reincarnation of their mother's soul. Thus, his arrival at Equestria was not a fluke.
Love the character growth and I have no complaints about the ship.
9679074
That's plausible, but I still favor the "Ken will eventually travel back into the distant past to act out the events planted in her subconscious memory by the memory spell in Luna's room (that was probably created by her future-distant-past-self!)" theory myself, and the snippets in this chapter where she's grumbling about remembering doing this thing before, somehow, despite having only just done it lend strength to that idea.
Why would a memory of a past life include events that haven't happened to your current life yet, after all?
My bits remain on timey-wimey shenanigans.
Not impossible that it doesn't go the way you guess, yet, but I'll let my chips lie where I laid them.
<text voluntarily snipped because Breezie requested a certain topic disappear to try and get control of the comments.>
Honestly I’m just waiting to see Ken snap after finding out that Luna and Celestia are trying to bring back their dead mother because they found the perfect vessel (insert Just A Pancake’s Everyone is X E H A N O R T here.)
Can’t Luna and Celestia like make a replica of their mother’s body and have their mother heart go into it as I know from kingdom hearts logic that a person can have someone else’s heart in their heart true example is Sora having Ventus’s heart in his own heart after the events of birth by sleep and the sole reason why Roxas looks just like Ven but more aggressive
C O N F I R M E D
They are going to have to answer a great many questions when this over. Also hopefully hire a guard detail for the castle just for the sake of logic.
Great chapter Autum.
...Okay...are they ageing at all? They're now five months older than they were when they left Twilight's castle, and depending on when they return (just a few moments after leaving, I think the show used, versus being forced to return five months after leaving to preserve biological age) that could make their ages quite strange.
If it's the former option - few moments after leaving - then they would've grown in a very small amount of time, screwing up their birthdays and official records; if it's the latter, then peaceful-Equestria would be without two of its princesses (and its dragon) for who-knows-how-long, with possibly disastrous consequences (Garble becoming Dragon Lord, no-one being free to save the Pillars, etc.).
Time travel's weird.
9679332
Yes time travel is weird and no time maybe passing for prime Equestria. And 5 months would not show much aging for the three of them. Spike's race is long lived and Twi and Ken are alicorn's thus near immortal.
A little rushed but still enjoyable
9678899
Welcome to the internet have you heard of rule 34
You sir have excellent tastes.
Badass song for a war arc.
9679352
Honestly i say wait and see what the author does with the whole sisters mother thing first before you lose your shit.
9679351
Thank you for your response. And I agree it probably should have a notice in the description so people don’t get caught up and blindsided. I just never why people get upset to the point of complaining,beg,convince,disrespect,or demand an author to change the story(and I’m not saying you are doing these things) when they could accept the story is going the way they don’t agree with and leave for a new story or stay and see where it goes.
I don’t know, I feel like I’m not getting my thoughts to transfer from mind to text in a acceptable format.
9679422
Eh, if he wants to be the cop that insists that guy was speeding, even when the gps evidence says he wasn't and the judge threw the ticket out, that's his prerogative. The rest of us can enjoy a fun fic.
9679517
True
9679387
Yes inhave but still serms high fir this fandom
9679529
I dunno
I really enjoyed all of this, You did some great work on this timeline and I can hardly wait to see what comes next.... I kinda hope the Nightmare Timeline will show up..
... That one would be interesting to see....
Still, Thank you for making and continuing to make this awesome story!
Very good chapter. But you can go to watchcartoononline.io or dailymotion.com for full mlp episodes.
9679861
yayponies.no as well.
I'm hoping the next Timeline we get to see is the Nightmare Moon world.
9679996
Next thing you know Ken and Fausticorn can be both existing at the same time but at the cost of Fausticorn becoming a white wolf with alicorn wings and horn and red mane and her cutie mark exactly were cutie marks are found but that won’t happen because I already thought of Fausticorn becoming a white wolf with alicorn wing and red mane so that can’t happen but and I’m directing this to you Autumn Breeze if you what to use the white wolf Fausticorn then PM me
YEY!!!!!
(SNIPPED by request of the author)
Oof, he's gonna have his molt WAY sooner thanks to the upcoming two timelines...