For Everfree

by NPP6

The Cell of Midnight

They weren't sure quite what, but something about this bat pony made the guards uneasy. Maybe it was the fact that he hadn't spoken since they had arrested him. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't struggling. Maybe it was the fact that his quiet smirk hadn't changed in the slightest. Maybe it was the fact that he had done exactly enough damage to get him arrested and then surrendered, almost turning on a bit. Maybe it was the fact that they didn't know his name.

One of the guards, a grizzled old soldier, was fairly sure that it was the fact that he seemed to want to be here.

Regardless, this unidentifiable pony had done enough damage to warrant assignment to the maximum security cell. This made the first time in anypony's memory that two stallions had been in that cell at the same time.

---

The brown earth pony stallion looked up as the door opened. A small group of guards walked in, one in the front, four surrounding another pony, and then two bringing up the rear. The fact that the pony the four guards were surrounding was a bat pony and not wearing armor told him everything he needed to know. He might not recognize him, but he knew who he was.

The guards chained the bat pony to the wall, forehooves over his head, hindlegs below him, wings extended and shackled at their bases.

After the guards left, the bat pony gave the earth pony a searching gaze, as if trying to figure out how he wound up here. At length, the bat pony gave what appeared to be the best shrug he could manage in his position, closed his eyes, and seemed to be trying to take a nap.

The earth pony let a few minutes pass before deciding that the silence needed to be broken, and preferably by a conversation that would actually be useful. He weighed his options and then decided to go for dramatic. The bat pony's eyes snapped open as two words fell from the earth pony's lips.

"Hello Midnight."

---

"Okay, congratulations, you've gotten to the point where I'm willing to trust you. If you can tell me how you know all this."

"You won't believe me."

"As you've already pointed out, I'm a human who turned into a pony when he went through a magic mirror and replaced another version of himself, and then recently ascended to alicornhood. Try. Me."

The earth pony he was talking to thought about it for a split second, then pointed at his flank, specifically his hourglass cutie mark. "Time is my special talent. I'm a time traveler."

The reaction wasn't quite the one he was expecting. There was laughter, but it wasn't derogatory. In fact, the other pony was pleased. "Well I'll be," Inkwell said, "The old geezer finally figures it out."

"What?"

"Starswirl! He finally manages to figure out those time spells, and that's how you're here!"

The pony shook his head ruefully. "Not quite I'm afraid. He might have figured it out, but I didn't use his spells to get here."

Now Inkwell was confused, "Okay, so how then?"

The earth pony sighed, "I suppose there's only one way to go about this. Let's start at the beginning, my name is The Doctor, although for the last few years ponies have been calling me Doctor Whooves..."

---

"...So I finally get to meet the wizard of the travelling blue box then? Well sir, it's an honor."

"The honor is mine. I do apologize though..."

"For what?"

"Well, your rescue attempt tonight was supposed to be successful. It would appear that my rescue attempt earlier put the guards on alert and so you were captured... I fear I may have destroyed the course of history..."

Inkwell started chuckling, "So I even managed to convince you? Well, looks like I did my job then, if the powerful one's are convinced. I was a little worried that I didn't do a good eough job to convince the guards."

"What?"

"Don't worry, you haven't hurt my plans in the slightest. Tell me Doctor, exterior walls three feet thick twenty high, castle walls five feet thick exterior, two interior, dungeon through six floors of said castle, complement of over two hundred thousand guards, not to mention the draconequis himself, and then I have to get them all back out. What was the fastest way to make my job easier?"

"Bypass. Eliminate obstacles."

Inkwell smiled. "Exactly. And since I already knew exactly what they'd look for if they arrested me..."

"...You knew exactly how to smuggle in whatever you would need to escape."

"So you see Doctor," The spell circle etched so finely on the crystal contact lense in Inkwell's right eye as to have been invisible to all but him until this point started to glow. "It's all part of the plan." Thin beams of light shot out from his eye and shattered the manacles on the Doctor's hooves. Inkwell then craned his neck to either side, forward and down, and then finally back and up as he blasted off his own chains.

The pony landed gracefully on the floor, and then subtly shifted his weight as he transformed from Inkwell to Midnight Star. The Alicorn smiled at the Time Charger, "Ready?"

The Doctor nodded, "Let's go save Ditzy and the others."

Midnight used his magic to silently pick the lock on the cell door, and then the pair slipped out into the rest of the castle.

Author's Note:

And so it begins...

In essence, they're back. Also, this story is definitely going to have more in it than the last one. Reason being that Rising Star was about who Midnight Star was and how he came to be. For Everfree is about the actual war to retake Equestria and the world thing.

Which is also the reason behind the shift in storytelling style. I won't be focusing on Midnight as exclusively here.

Another change to my storytelling style is that I'll be splitting my one series into two. So events in the present and the past are going to be written simultaneously. Which is why another story is probably going to be popping up alongside this one soon (Note that I'm not committing to a specific date this time. Lesson learned).

Anyway, thank you for your support, input would be greatly appreciated.

-NPP6