The Dusk Shine Anomaly

by H3lios

The Elements of Harmony Part 1

Celestia's School for Gifted Djinn was the pride of the city of Canterlot, well, after the royal palace of course. It was an internationally renowned university for its record of producing some of the finest spell casters in history. One misconception about the school was that only djinn, a race of human like creatures with the ability to bend magic to their will, were welcome there. This was simply not true, while the vast majority of the student body were djinn, it was not uncommon to see a member of another species there. A seraphim, winged humanoids with the gift of flight, could be found studying weather magic for their domain was the sky and they had power over the wind and the clouds. Even terrans, with nether wings nor a natural affinity for magic, could benefit from the school's teachings of enchantments and alchemy.

The normally peaceful grounds of Celestia's School for Gifted Djinn were interrupted by the sound of panting and rapid foot steps. A young man in a school uniform was quickly making his way down the path with several books in tow and a trail of loose papers behind him. If the papers were important he didn't seem to care as he made his way to a small building on the edge of the courtyard. Dusk Shine was his name, a djinn with lavender hair that had a pink and purple streak running through the left side. Like all djinn, he also possessed an oval shaped, royal purple mana gem on his forehead. The young man had a reputation of being the most talented spell caster since the great Mordenkainen.

"Spike!" he shouted as he burst through the door, "Spike, bro, where are you?"

"Back here," said an annoyed voice from behind the opened door. As it swung closed, out steeped a young dragon rubbing the end of his scaly nose.

"Oh good, find me a copy of Predictions and Prophecies, I need to confirm something."

"My nose? Oh its fine, Dusk, don't worry about it," Spike replied, conveying his annoyance. "Lets see, predictions, predictions, oh by the way I picked out a present for Moondancer."

"Who?"

"Red-head, thick glasses, has a crush on you that's obvious to everyone BUT you?" Spike answered while looking through the books on the shelf.

Dusk looked up from the notes he was reading, "Moondanc... oh right, her. Wait, crush? She does not have a crush on me."

"Right, she just always volunteers to be your lab partner and blushes whenever she talks to you because its the in thing right now, ah here it is," Spike handed the book to Dusk who opened it immediately, "are we going to her birthday party tonight or not?"

"Of course not, Spike, this is too important. Lets see, elements, e, e, aha here we go, Elements of Harmony, see: Mare in the Moon?" Dusk arched an eyebrow.

"Mare in the Moon? That's an old fairy tale isn't it?" Spike asked.

"It is, but I think there is a connection here, aha! Mare in the Moon, a fable dating back to early Equestria, it tells of a powerful unicorn who tried to conquer the world but was imprisoned on the moon by the Elements of Harmony. According to legend, on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about nighttime eternal." Dusk finished reading and leaned back in his chair.

"So, what does this have to do with... anything?" Spike asked.

"You remember how I said Celestia was acting strange right? Like she was nervous about something? Well yesterday I saw her looking at one of the stain glass windows in the throne room, the one that shows her defeat of the Nightmare Moon. I asked her about it but she just kept dodging the question, so I decided to do a little research. According to the old records I found, Celestia used the Elements of Harmony to seal Nightmare Moon away one thousand years ago tomorrow."

"Wait, wait, Elements of Harmony? Like the ones from the fairy tale?" Spike asked, now somewhat interested.

"Exactly, Spike. All myths and legends are loosely based on true events or phenomena. What if the Mare in the Moon isn't a mare at all, what if its actually Nightmare Moon?" Dusk slammed the book closed and stood, he looked at Spike with all the seriousness of an academic laying out his thesis, "it would explain why Princess Celestia has seemed so stressed lately, she knows that Nightmare Moon is coming back!" Dusk walked over to the window and placed both hands on the ledge. He let out a sigh as he looked up at the sky.

"I don't know Dusk, that seems like a stretch. And even if you're right, I'm sure Celestia has it under control." Spike looked at the book detailing the old legend, skimming the text, he then closed the book and went to put it back, climbing on to the step stool so that he could reach the upper shelf. "Besides, she would tell you about something THAT important right?"

"Not if she didn't want me to worry..." Dusk trailed off as a thought came to him. "That's it!" he declared loudly, startling Spike into falling off the step stool for the second time that day, "she must be trying to keep me from panicking. She always was over protective of me." Dusk grabbed his royal purple windbreaker that bore his cutie mark, a pink six pointed star with five smaller white satellites of the same shape. Putting it on he headed for the door, "I bet when I tell her that I've figured it out and she sees that I'm perfectly calm and confident, she'll tell me all about her plan to deal with Nightmare Moon. Come on, lets go see her, court should be over by now."

Spike shook his head as he recovered from his spill and looked up to see an excited Dusk running out the door. "Hey, wait for me!" an excited Dusk was an oblivious Dusk, which meant that a level headed Spike was needed.

***

Moondancer looked at the invitation in her hand for the 4th time in as many minutes. It had to be perfect after all, Dusk Shine would notice any misspelled word or grammatical error, no matter how slight. She had spent two hours on this simple card with a mere two sentences on it trying to make it perfect. The first attempt was too casual which she feared suggested he was just another guest, the next was friendly but she didn't want him to think she just wanted to remain friends. The one after that had been a little too inviting and was crumbled up, burned and the ashes scattered to the winds all in a blind fit of embarrassment. This continued on for several more drafts until she finally settled on a set of words that she was sure conveyed friendship but left the door open for something more.

Perhaps she was overthinking it.

But the redheaded girl could be forgiven for stressing on the details, after all, the invitation was an integral part of phase one in operation "Get New and Amazing Boyfriend with Date Under the Stars and Kissing" or G.N.A.B.-D.U.S.K. The G was silent. Once Dusk was at her birthday party, she would casually suggest that they go star gazing and watch the predicted lunar eclipse and during the event, she would tell him how she felt. Of course, knowing Dusk, she would have to be direct. Most guys would catch on when they realized it was just the two of them in a romantic setting but things like that didn't work with him. He would honestly believe they were two colleague observing a rare celestial event.

Moondancer took a deep breath and steeled herself, determination shown through her round glasses. Her friends were right, no more shying away, it was time to put her plan into action. She wouldn't have to wait long, however, as she spotted her target running down the path with Spike in tail.

"Dusk!" she called out as she ran to intercept him. "Dusk Shine, wait up!" Dusk didn't stop though so she got closer, perhaps too close as they eventually collided.

Moondancer shook her head and looked around, she saw that Dusk, to her inner otaku's disappointment, was not on top of her but off to the side on all fours, slowly getting back up. "ohmygosh I'm so sorry I thought you would stop are you ok?"

"Ugh, yea I'm fine, sorry I was focused on something else," he said as he got to his feet and offered a hand to help her up.

Moondancer took his hand, ohmygosh hes holding my hand and got to her feet as well. "Say, you have a second?"

"Not really, I have something important to talk with the princess about. So if you're not injured then I have to get going."

"Wait!" Moondancer grabbed his arm as he turned to leave. "I... This is for you," she said, offering the invitation.

"Oh, um thanks?" Dusk took the invitation and looked it over. Moondancer's heart was in her throat as he read it.

"It's an invitation, to my 20th birthday party. It'd mean a lot to me if you came... I mean because I'd like all my friends to be there," Stupid, let the card to the talking.

Moondancer looked for anything that might indicate what Dusk was thinking but so far the only one who's facial expression changed was Spike who for some reason had a smile that spoke of vindication. "Oh ok sure I'll be there but I really have to go. Important meeting with the princess. Later," Dusk placed the invitation in is jacket and resumed his race towards the palace.

A few moments later, Moondancer let out a long deep breath and smiled the biggest smile she could. He said yes, woohoo. Phase one complete. To most people, Dusk's dismissive reply would have painted him as cold and cynical, but not to Moondancer. She had known him for a long time, since elementary school. He was very analytical and literal, but when he was enthusiastic about something, his passion shown like the sun. It was a side of Dusk only rarely seen and it was the side she loved. I better go get ready. Tonight's going to be the best night ever...

***

The afternoon sun shown brightly through most of the stained glass window, all except the dark blue of Nightmare Moon's terrifying depiction. In the shadow cast by her image stood two figures. The first was known by all, Princess Celestia, Custodian of the Sun and Moon and guardian of the realm of Equestria. Even in the shadowed light she had a radiance about her. From her back, just below her prismatic hair sprung several strands of light that flowed as if they were weightless. One might describe them as tentacles if 'tentacle' wasn't such an ugly word. They were more like rolls of cloth that had been unfurled underwater. These "wings" as she called them, were the defining characteristic of her station as a nephilim, an ancient guardian of harmony.

The second figure, in contrast, was much darker than the princess. Standing a whole head shorter and clad in a dark colored trench coat, he would be almost invisible in the shadow cast by Nightmare Moon's window were it not for Celestia's ambiance reflecting off his dark chitin like skin. He had wings as well, but they were a far cry from the majesty of Celestia's. It didn't matter that they weren't beautiful, however, since his wings, and indeed any part of him, were never meant to be seen.

"I understand your concerns, K'vann," Celestia said before she turned to look at the shadowed man, "but I'm confident things will work out."

"I'm only asking what we should do if they don't," K'vann said in his coarse and grainy voice. "What if she's gotten stronger or smarter? A thousand years is a long time to gather one's strength."

"True, but I've had a thousand years as well. I've prepared to the best of my abilities and once Nightmare Moon is subdued I can finally begin work on removing the darkness that plagues her mind."

IF its a darkness, what will you do if she chose this path of her own free will? K'Vann did not give voice to his thoughts, he knew the princess was aware of that possibility but she clung on to hope. Who was he to take that hope from her, after everything she'd done for him.

"Princess Celestia," a voice echoed from the end of the hall. K'Vann immediately surrounded himself with a green fire that lasted all but a second. When they vanished, they took with them K'Vann and in his place stood an average looking young man in an officer's dress uniform.

"Princess!" the voice called out again as Dusk Shine and his draconian companion ran down the hall towards the pair. "P Prin, hah, one sec," Dusk put his hands on his knees while taking deep breaths. I need to exorcise more he thought to himself.

"I shall take my leave, Your Majesty, Master Dusk, have a wonderful Summer Sun Celebration."

"You as well, Kevin," Celestia smiled as the young 'man' turned about face and walked towards the exit. As he strode past Dusk, he glanced down at the out of breath scholar and Dusk in turn looked up at him. Their eyes meet only for an instant but Dusk felt that all to familiar chill that he got whenever he saw Kevin. The man seemed nice enough the few times they had met in the past if a bit formal but Dusk could never shake the feeling that something was off with him.

Once Kevin had left the room, Dusk recovered enough to speak normally, "that guy gives me the creeps." Celestia merely giggled.

"Special Agent Kevin has an air about him, true, but it's born of his... unique experiences. Perhaps one day you'll learn about them, but for now, what brings you here in such a hurry, my dear student?"

"Oh, right!" Dusk snapped his attention back to the princess. "I've figured it out, Princess, and I want you to know I'm not scared. In fact I'm more than willing to help." Dusk said.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure what you mean Dusk."

"About the Mare in the Moon! She wasn't some ancient unicorn, she was Nightmare Moon, and according to the prophecy, her return is imminent. I know you're trying to look out for me and didn't say anything so I wouldn't worry and I appreciate that. But I am your humble student and its my duty to assist you in this matter." Dusk stood smiling in anticipation of the praise that was sure to receive.

Princess Celestia blinked, her expression unreadable for the moment then she let out a soft laugh. "Oh Dusk, you really need to stop reading those dusty old tomes."

Spike made a mental note to himself to hack into the palace security crystal footage so that he could re watch this moment as he was certain he heard an electrical sounding pop in the vicinity of Dusk's head.

***

It was early the next morning when five figures stood around a royal transport that was prepping for departure. Spike was busy loading the last of the luggage while a still disgruntled Dusk Shine was saying goodbye to his family. His parents, Nightlight and Twilight Velvet both hugged him but it did little to improve his mood.

"Come on son, you gonna be moapy all the whole time your in Ponyville?" his father, Nighlight asked.

"I'm not moapy, I'm brooding. Moapy implies sadness."

"Now is that the kind of attitude a representative of the Princess should have?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"No, mom, but I cant help it! I know I'm on to something, why else would Celestia be so vague and dismissive?"

"Maybe because there's really nothing more to tell and you're looking too deeply into it like you always do?" the fifth figure smirked. A young woman just a few years older than Dusk clad in royal guard armor.

"Gleaming Shield! You're supposed to be on my side! What happened to 'SSSFF'?"

"Aren't you two a little old for that 'Super Shining Siblings' thing?" Twilight asked?

"We'll never be too old for triple S F," Dusk and Gleaming said in unison, then high fived each other.

"Well, we're ready to leave," Spike called out from inside the transport.

Dusk sighed and gave his family one last farewell. "Take care of yourself Sweetie," his mother called to him as he boarded the transporter, "and don't forget to write home!"

"Come on mom, its not like I'm going to be living in Ponyville from now on."

Dusk barely said a word the entire flight from Canterlot to Ponyville, his mind replaying last night's meeting with Princess Celestia over and over again.

"I don't understand, how could Nightmare Moon not be real? I spent days studying ancient history and it all points to the same conclusion!"

"I never said she wasn't real, Dusk Shine, but I promise you its not something you need to worry yourself about." Celestia never lost her loving smile as she placed a hand on Dusk's shoulder.

"Why not? Do you think I can't handle it? Do you... not trust me?"

Celestia's smile faltered a little at that, "Dusk, my dearest, most faithful student Dusk. You know that a value your diligence and trust you completely." Her tone was reassuring but authoritative at the same time, "but I need you to understand, there is more to a person's life than studying. That's why I have an important assignment for you." At that, Dusk immediately looked up, devoting his full attention to her. "I'm sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year's location: Ponyville. But, in addition to that, I have an even more important task for you," her face turned serious, "quite possibly the most important task I can ever give you."

Dusk gulped, "yes?"

Princess Celestia smiled once again before she spoke.

"Make some friends?" Dusk said to himself, "why is she treating me like a child? This is whole supervisor thing is clearly meant to keep me out of the way, and friends? I have plenty of friends!"

"Name one," Spike said without looking up from the list of supervisory tasks he was checking over.

"Hah, there's you, and Gleaming, and-"

"That's family, name one REAL friend."

"What do you mean real friend?"

"You know," spike waved a claw in the air nonchalantly, "someone you met that you hang out with and share hobbies with? A friend."

"Oh well there's, um..." Dusk thought for a moment, "there's Twinkleshi... no we talk at school but we don't really hang out. What about Mr. Astr... no hes a teacher. Huh," Dusk blinked, "I guess I don't really have any friends."

"Look on the bright side, the place we're staying is part of the town's library. Doesn't that make you happy?"

Dusk thought for a moment then smirked, "yes, as a mater of fact it does. You know why? Because I'm right! I'll check on the preparations as fast as I can then get back to my research. I'll find proof that Nightmare Moon is returning."

"And then will you work on making friends?" Spike asked, "it was part of the Princess' order after all."

"Her order's were to check on the preparations and I intend to do just that. But the friend part was just her trying to coddle me," Dusk returned his gaze to the window. The fate of Equestria does not depend on me making friends.

The transport arrived in Ponyville where Dusk and Spike unloaded into the town square. The pilot turned back to his two passengers, "We'll drop your suit case off at the library where you'll be staying," He said.

"Thank you Sir, I appreciate it," Dusk said as the pilot nodded and lifted off again. Dusk took in his surroundings. The square was bustling with people from all walks of life moving to and fro. Terrans walked about on the ground while the sky was filled with seraphim. As the duo took in the sights, Spike noticed a perky young girl coming their way. If he had to describe her in one word it would be... pink. Everything from her curly hair to her T-shirt, even her skirt and socks were all different shades of pink, all except for the emblem on her shirt which consisted of three balloons, two blue and one yellow. She bounded towards them, seemingly lost in her own rhythm.

"Maybe the people here are more interesting than you think," Spike gestured to the bouncing young woman as she came ever closer to the pair. "Come on just give it a try."

Dusk sighed, "fine." The pink girl came to a stop just as she reached Dusk. She eyed the two carefully for a moment, her smile slowly shrinking into a more neutral expression. "Hello," Dusk said as he offered his hand to the girl, "my name is Dusk Shine and I-" He never got to finish his sentence. The pink girl let out a huge gasp, her face taking on a look of shock and horror. Though she said nothing, she immediately dashed off in the opposite direction, running faster than Dusk thought humanly possible.

Dusk blinked, his hand still outstretched, "well, I guess we found the neighborhood drug dealer..."

***

Dusk and Spike walked down the dirt path leading to the outskirts of Ponyville coming to a stop at a large gate. The fence on ether side seemed to stretch on for several hundred yards but the gate itself was wide open. "Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres," Spike read the sign that arced over the top of the gate. "Come on in y'all".

"I don't think that sign was proof read," Dusk commented, "so what's the story with this place?"

"Well according to this, Sweet Apple Acres was founded by Apple Seed and his family 87 years ago. It's the major supplier of apples for nearly all of central Equestria and even as far south as Dodge City. They're famous for their Apple Cider, Zapp-Apple Jam and-"

"Ok I get it, they grow apples. They're also catering the Summer Sun Celebration, so who's in charge?"

"Um," Spike flipped through a few pages of his notes, "a woman by the name of Applejack. Huh, according to this shes only 21, thats pretty young to be running a whole orchard."

The duo ventured further into the orchard where they heard a commotion growing in loudness. As they approached what looked to be the main house on the property, they saw a sizable crowd of people, all terrans and all laughing and dancing merrily. Suddenly a loud ringing followed by a folksy accent rang out across the gathering. "Soups on everybody!" a chorus of "Heehaw"s followed.

The voice belonged to a young blond woman about Dusk's age. She wore an orange flannel shirt that hugged her midsection and a par of shorts that, in Dusk's opinion, differently warranted the name. On the side of said shorts were a stitching of three bright red apples. Her skin was golden brown which, along with her well toned physique and the nature of their current setting lead Dusk to conclude that she spend a great deal of time out doors, most likely working the farm. Topping off the look of "farm girl" was the leathery brown cowboy hat she wore on her head. All things considered, Dusk assumed she was most likely to be the "Applejack" they were looking for, or at least she would know where to find her. He sighed, "Well, lets get this over with. Excuse me miss? My name is Dusk Shine and I-"

"Well howdee-do there partner!" the girl exclaimed, grabbing Dusk's hand and shaking it vigorously. "Name's Applejack, but you can call me 'AJ'. We here at Sweet Apple Acres love making new friends! So what can I do ya for?"

Spike could barley contain his snickering, the look on Dusk's face was priceless.

"Thanks..." Dusk rubbed his hand, he was more than certain a few of his finger bones were dislocated by her grip. "I'm overseeing the preparations for the Summer Sun Festival and I understand you're in charge of catering the event?"

"Sure am, would you care to sample some? We got a whole spread laid out here." Although Applejack phrased it as a question, it was clear that she wouldn't take no for an answer as she grabbed Dusk's arm and pulled him towards the table where the rest of the gathering were already feasting merrily."Let me introduce you to the family, This here's Apple Fritter, Apple Bumpkin, Red Gala, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Caramel Apple, Apple Strudel, Apple Tart, Baked Apples, Apple Brioche, Apple Cinnamon Crisp..." She continued to name off family members one by one, each time she did the family member in question would wave, or tip their hat at Dusk. Finally she got to her core family members, "And this here is my brother Big Macintosh, my sister Applebloom and my granny Granny Smith," she pointed to an old lady sleeping on the porch. "Granny!" she yelled "Wake up, we got guests."

The old woman snorted in her rocker "We Wha- I don wanna fight no union..." she fell back asleep, oblivious to the world.

"Well lookie there, Granny nearly woke up from her nap. That makes you practically family!"

Dusk attempted to compose himself as he processed everything that had happened in the last minute. After a moment he turned his focus back to the apple farmer. "Well, I can see you got the food situation well in hand. I'll be off then," he tried to say but he felt someone tug on the back of his shirt. He turned to see a young red headed child about 8 or 9 years old, Applebloom if he remembered correctly, giving him the most heart wrenching puppy-dog eyes he ever saw.

"You mean your not gonna stay for lunch?" the sincerity of her otherwise obvious ploy was too much for Dusk to resist.

Dusk sighed, "Fine".

"Heehaw, clear a space at the table y'all!"

***

"Well I'll be, so ya really hatched from an egg?" Applejack asked spike. After the two sat down for lunch they were bombarded with questions about themselves, particularly Spike, being a dragon after all.

"Sure did, and Dusk here was the one that hatched me," Spike gestured towards Dusk while he happily munched down on his 3rd apple fritter.

"Ha Ha! I just imagined you sittin' on an egg like a spring hen."

Dusk turned a soft shade of red, "it wasn't like that! Spikes egg was artificially incubated with magic, I merely cast a time dilatation spell to accelerate his hatching."

"He sure did, went a little overboard too according to Celestia. I went from just hatched to a full grown dragon in just a few seconds! Although I don't really remember any of that since I still had the mind of a newborn."

"I was just a kid, besides it turned out alright. Celestia was able to revert you back to your natural age," Dusk retorted. "And slow down on the fritters, you know what sugar does to you."

"Why cant he have sugar?" Applejack asked with a raised eyebrow.

"He can just not a lot," Dusk explained. "Dragon stomachs have magically enhanced enzymes that rapidly break down almost anything. It allows dragons to eat pretty much whatever they can fit in their mouths but it also means that if they eat to much sugar, it will ferment into alcohol. In other words, were normal people would get a sugar rush, dragons get drunk."

"Well aint that somethin'..."

"Isn't," Dusk said absently.

"Whats that?"

"You said 'ain't', the correct word is 'isn't'."

"Oookay," Applejack blinked in confusion.

"Say Miss Applejack..." Dusk started but she interrupted him.

"Shucks partner, you can call me AJ!"

"Right, AJ. So, do you mind if I ask you a question? I've been curious about something since I came here."

"Go right ahead."

"I've been wondering, how did you come to be in charge of Sweet Apple Acres? You must be remarkably talented to have received your job at such a young age."

"Well honestly, it isn't so much my talent as a matter of circumstance," AJ's upbeat attitude seemed to falter a little. Reaching up, she removed the hat that had remained stationary on her head during the entire meeting. "My Ma and Pa were running the place but well, they're no longer with us."

"Oh," Dusk said, surprised "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to dig up old memories."

"Nah, it's ok. I miss em to death but I've already done mah grivin'. Anyhow, when they passed, some one had to take over the farm. Granny Smith is too old, Applebloom was just a kid and Big Mac, bless his heart, hes good with numbers but he ain't got a lick o' business sense. So that left me," AJ let out a sigh. "Lemme tell ya, it wern't easy..."

"Wasn't," Dusk said which earned him an annoyed look from AJ.

"Y'all got a problem with the way ah talk?" she drawled out the "all" in talk but whether this was intentional or not Dusk couldn't tell.

"No, not at all," Dusk waved his hands defensively, "I was just pointing it out for future reference. Oh, would you look at the time?" Dusk glanced at his wrist, which had nothing on it. "Listen, thank you for the meal, it was wonderful, truly, I'm more than convinced you'll have the catering perfect for tomorrow morning but I really need to go now and check on the rest of the preparations." Dusk rose to his feet, grabbing Spike, making him drop what would have been his fourth apple fritter as he went. "I appreciate your hospitality, and hope to see you again."

Applejack tipped her hat, despite the fact that she was still a little miffed at her guests some what rude behavior, the tolerant attitude instilled upon her by her late parents won out. "Same here, shame we couldn't get to know each other better. Y'all come back and see us again some time, ya hear?" She shook his hand, albeit with less force that last time. A good firm handshake was for greeting people after all.

"Yea, sure," Dusk said absently has he and spike made their way down the trail leading to the gate and back into town. "Ok, Spike, food preparations; check. Lets hurry back, we need to make up for lost time."

"Ugh, don't make me run please," Spike begged while he held a claw over his belly. "I think I may have eaten too much." Dusk merely rolled his eyes and from his hand a purple aura began to form, the aura enveloped Spike, lifting him off the ground and on to Dusk's back.

"If you vomit on me, I'm dropping you," Dusk said as they made their way into town.

***

"Ok, so, food is taken care of, whats next?" Dusk asked.

"Lets see, next is weather. There's supposed to be a seraphim by the name of Rainbow Dash clearing the clouds." The pair looked skyward, while there were several of the winged humanoids happily going about their business, Rainbow Dash didn't appear to be among them as there were a great many clouds filling the sky.

"Well ether she's slacking off or she and I have an extremely different idea of what a clear sky is," Dusk let out a sigh, he found he was doing that a lot lately. "Come on, lets go ask around and see if anyone knows where to find her."

"That girl there is heading our way, maybe she knows," Spike pointed to a seraphim girl that was flying towards them.

Dusk turned to look at where Spike was pointing, and before he could react, the girl in question slammed into him knocking him face down in the mud. Wiping the mud from his eyes he was able to see the girl shaped missile was sitting on her bottom, legs spread and one hand supporting her weight from behind while the other was rubbing her head. Her hair was short and unkempt but its most striking feature was the fact that it wasn't one, two or even three colors but the entire spectrum of a rainbow. Around her neck were a pair of round flight goggles that dangled just above her somewhat small bossism. Her sky blue T-shirt boar a white cloud with a rainbow colored lighting bolt which most likely represented her cutie mark. Her grey gym shorts also had the mark on ether side. The color of her shirt matched that of her feathery wings which folded into her back.

"Ow, sorry," the girl said, "wasn't watching where I was going." She climbed to her feet and helped Dusk up as well. "Here let me help you with that," she offered after taking notice of the mud. With a flap of her wings she lifted off the ground and in the blink of an eye she was several feet in the air. Seraphim magic flowed from the tips of her wings into her hands as she grabbed a small tuft of cloud and brought it back down just over Dusk Shine's head. Striking a pose, she balled her fist as air began to swirl around it.

Dusk, realizing what she was about to do tried to protest. "No...no that's really not nec-" but he was too slow as the girl hit the cloud with the air ball she'd conjured causing it to release its moisture in the form of rain, completely drenching Dusk. Free of mud but soaked from head to toe, he let out a quick burst of air from his mouth to displace a rogue strand of hair on his face.

The seraphim girl, upon seeing this, chuckled sheepishly. "Ops, hehe, guess I over did it. Oh I know how about this!" With another flap of her wings she began to circle dusk, going faster and faster until she was nothing more than a blur. Dusk soon felt as though he was in a wind tunnel as she picked up speed. The skin on his face stretched back as if he had accelerated extremely quickly. Finally, the rainbow haired girl stopped and landed right next to Spike who had been content to simply let events unfold.

"Tada!" she declared, "I call that the Rainblow Dry, patent pendin-" she stopped short as she got a good look at Dusk's hair. It was, in a word, ridiculous. Tangled and curly with ends split in every direction and his pink highlight was meshed in with the purple. The rainbow haired girl couldn't contain herself as she fell to the ground laughing. Spike, having been caught in the gravity of her laughter, joined in as well.

Inhale, count to four, exhale. Dusk repeated in his mind to calm himself. "I take it you must be Rainbow Dash?" he asked as the girl picked herself up.

"The one and only. Did my reputation precede me, or was I too quick for it?" Rainbow radiated with pride.

Great, another jock. At least she seems to have some sense of empathy or she wouldn't have helped me up. "So your the girl in charge of clearing the clouds for the celebration tomorrow. Were you planning on actually doing that?" Dusk waved his arm at the cloud filled sky.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll take care of that. I just got to finish up practicing," she said.

"Practicing? I mean I understand wanting to do something right, believe me, but from my understanding there isn't much to cloud dispersal."

"Pift, not that! I could cloud bust in my sleep. I'm practicing for..." she paused to make a dramatic pose, "The WONDERBOLTS!"

"The Wonderbolts?" Dusk deadpanned.

"Yep, greatest flyers in all Equestria, and as soon as I turn twenty-one, I'm gonna rock their world with my awesomeness!"

Dusk suddenly had an idea. "Well don't get you're hopes too high..." he said with a grin.

"And just what the hey is that suppose to mean?" Rainbow's disposition changed from smug to angry in the blink of an eye.

"Oh nothing," Dusk replayed absently as he walked around her. "Just that I doubt the Wonderbolts would take a seraphim who can't even keep the sky clear..." The incredulous look he got from Rainbow told Dusk that he had her.

"Listen buddy, Ill have you know that I could have this whole area cleared out in. Ten. Seconds. Flat." She poked Dusk in the chest with each word.

Time to go in for the kill, thought Dusk as he prepared the ultimate weapon against arrogance. Two single syllable words that were like mind control command phrases for over-inflated egos everywhere, "Prove it."

And just like that, Rainbow Dash was airborne. She flapped her feathery wings furiously as she hit cloud after cloud, vaporizing them one by one. Sure enough, precisely ten seconds later, she landed in front of Dusk, panting heavily and the sky was completely clear. "Ha, what'd I tell ya. Ten seconds flat."

"Ok I admit, I'm impressed," Dusk said.

"Damn right you are. Now I'm gonna get back to practicing, catch ya later," and with that, she was off once more.

"Y'know," Spike said "That new style suites you."

Dusk rolled his eyes as he straightened his hair with a bit of magic. "Bite me, Spike"

***

Dusk and Spike made their way towards the town hall and Dusk's nerves were starting to wear thin. So far, he'd had his hand crushed, his legs worn out from walking, been dumped face first in mud, drenched with water and now his clothes were a complete mess. At least there's only two more items on our list, then I can go to a nice quiet library and make sense of this whole Nightmare Moon thing.

As they entered the town hall building, Dusk noticed, to his relief, that the decorations seemed to be in perfect order. The walls were lined with beautiful lace and strings with tiny flags were strewn across the ceiling. "Well it looks like the decorations are taken care of. What do you think Spike... Spike?"

Dusk looked down towards Spike and saw that he was starring straight forward as though in a trance. His mouth was slightly ajar and his slanted reptilian pupils were so dilated they almost looked like normal round ones. "Spike, bro, are you alright?"

"B-beautiful..."

"I know, the decorations are pretty good, but I didn't think..."

"Not the decorations, her!" Spike pointed over to the stage where an attractive young woman had walked out from behind the curtains with a box of odds and ends. She wore an elegant white dress shirt which showed just enough cleavage to draw the eye but not so much as to be considered scandalous and a royal purple skirt which matched her hair almost perfectly along with her high heeled shoes. On the hem of her dress were three light blue diamonds arranged in a triangle pattern. Even from a distance Dusk could see that her skin was silky smooth and her nails were perfectly polished.

"Dusk, how do I look? Do I have anything in my teeth? I knew I should have polished my scales before we left." Spike frantically checked over himself making sure nothing was out of place, running one claw through his dorsal fins while breathing into the other to check his breath.

"Spike, I highly doubt she'll give you the time of day. Shes obviously one of those stuck up pretty girls that only date rich guys."

"That's why I need you to be my wing-man."

"Your what?"

"Talk me up, tell her how awesome I am and laugh at my stupid jokes." Spike tugged at Dusk's sleeve as he begged.

"Even if you were to get her attention, aren't you over looking something? Namely the fact that your only twelve years old where as shes in her twenties?"

"So? Your dads ten years older than your mom."

"They met as adults though that's different."

"Please, Dusk, just do me this one favor? As much as I do for you?" Spike put on his best puppy dog eyes.

"Ugh, fine, but this better not turn into a recurring thing."

The girl seemed to be in her own world at the moment and didn't notice Dusk and Spike's approach. "No, no, hmmm no, definitely not." Dusk noticed something that he hadn't before, namely that she was using magic to sort through the various decorations. On her forehead was a sky blue oval shaped mana gem that was the distinguishing trait of all djinn. So she's a djinn just like me, first one I've seen since coming to this town. Beautiful, eye for perfection and a magic user? This girl is going to be a class A snob if I've ever seen one.

"Good afternoon miss, my name is Dusk Shine and I..."

"Just a moment, please! I'm 'in the zone', as it were," she grabbed a a ribbon out of the box with a reflective sheen. "Oh, yes! Sparkle always does the trick, does it not?" she beamed, "why, Rarity, you are a talent. Now, um, how can I help yo..." she turned to face the young djinn boy and froze, her eyes fixated on him or rather, his outfit. "Oh my stars! What in the world happened to your ensemble?!"

"My on san... you mean my clothes?" Dusk ran a looked at the mangled mess that was the result of Rainbow's parting gift. "Well, I ran into a seraphim named Rainbow Dash who-"

"Say no more, darling. I can already imagine what that rambunctious woman-child did." Rarity said with a sigh. "Oh but were are my manners, My name is Rarity, Fashion designer extraordinaire. Please to meet you Mr. Dusk."

"MY NAME'S SPIKE!" Spike yelled out before Dusk could respond. "Ahem, I mean, I'm Spike, Spike the... el Draco, yep, Spike Del Draco." Spike took Rarity's hand and gave it a kiss then looked up at her while arching his eyebrows in what he at lest believed to be a seductive manner.

Smooth Dusk thought while rolling his eyes.

Rarity looked down at Spike and, for a moment, Dusk thought that by some miracle Spike had managed to charm her. He wasn't entirely wrong.

"Oh aren't you just ADORABLE!" Rarity declared as she picked Spike up in a bone crushing hug, though given the placement of his head relative to her breasts, he didn't seem to mind. "Oh your like a little plushy doll, I could just pinch your cheeks!."

Dusk cleared his throat to get the djinn girl's attention. She dropped Spike on as she came back to reality. Spike sat on his rear with a dazed look about him. "That. Was. Awesome." He whispered.

"Apologizes darling, I have a soft spot for cute things," she said.

"I'll say," Spike giggled, still some what dazed.

"It's fine, really. I'm just here to check on the decorations. I'll let you get back to work." Dusk turned to leave but Rarity grabbed his arm.

"Oh no, no, no darling, I can't allow you to walk around in those wrinkled, mud-stained cloths all day. Come!" she said as she dragged Dusk out the door of the town hall. "My boutique is just across the road, I'll have you looking ravishing in no time!"

Dusk tried to protest but it fell on deaf ears, Rarity unwilling to take no for an answer and Spike lost in an infatuated daze. With a sigh, Dusk resigned himself to be herded towards Rarity's shop. Maybe some clean clothes would improve his mood. As they entered the shop, The Carousel Boutique as it was called, Dusk had little time to take in his surroundings as he was immediately ushered behind a privacy curtain and magically stripped down to his underwear. "E-excuse me!" Dusk stammered, suddenly feeling self conscious about his average physique. "What do you think your doing?"

"Relax, dear," Rarity said as she donned a par of red glasses and began taking his measurements. "I'm a professional tailor, I see men and women in their underwear all the time. Now hold still, so I can get an accurate measurement." Dusk did as instructed but was still a bit embarrassed despite Rarity's assurances. He decided to distract himself by wondering how he had gone from walking into town hall to half naked and being more or less felt up by a not unattractive woman in less than five minutes. There's a sex and politics joke there somewhere, he mused, but I cant think of one.

Rarity, to her credit, seemed completely neutral regarding the fact that her hands were coming dangerously close to some intimate areas and after a few more moments she rolled up her measuring tape. "All done, I think I have just the thing for you," Rarity dashed off taking Dusk's clothing with him. He wasn't quite sure what to do with himself while he waited and Spike wasn't helping by sitting there with his head in his claws just gawking at Rarity while she worked.

"No, no, uh-uh. Too green. Too yellow. Too poofy. Not poofy enough. Too frilly. Too... shiny. Ah HA! Perfect," Rarity returned with a new pair of jeans a white undershirt along with a medium purple button down shirt. She passed them on to Dusk who quickly put them on, relieved to finally be dressed again. Rarity magicked a mirror in front of him and he had to admit, he didn't look half bad. As he looked himself over, Rarity started to make adjustments. "So, Mr. Dusk, tell me about yourself. Where are you from?"

"Oh I'm from Canterlot."

Rarity suddenly stopped and spun Dusk to face her. "Canterlot?! Oh, I am so envious! The glamour, the sophistication! I have always dreamed of living there! I can't wait to hear all about it! We are gonna be the best of friends, you and I... Emeralds?! What was I thinking? Let me get you some rubies! There!" she exclaimed as she switched out the emerald cuff-links with the ruby ones, "Rarity you've done it again!"

"Yea, I have to admit, I rather like it. How much do I owe you?" Dusk asked.

"Nothing, dear, consider it a welcome gift." Rarity said as she placed Dusk's old dirty clothes in a plastic bag.

"Really? Well that's awfully generous of you. Thanks"

"Think nothing of it! Will I see you at the Summer Sun Celebration tomorrow?"

"Yes, in fact now that you mention it, I have another stop I have to make. Thank you again."

"The pleasure was mine. Ta-ta Mr. Dusk, you too Spikey-poo," Rarity waved as Dusk left the building, dragging Spike by the tail.

Now that Rarity was out of sight, Spike was finally able to speak again. "Wasn't she wonderful? And she thinks I'm cute!"

"Focus, 'Del Draco', that wasn't even proper Spanish by the way. Whats next?"

"Huh? Oh right, next is music," Spike said as he took the list out of his pack and looked it over. "According to this, its being headed up by someone named Fluttershy."

Dusk stopped in his tracks, "wait, doesn't D. J. PON3 and her cellist sister live here? Why aren't they handling the music?"

"Doesn't say, maybe they're just out of town for the weekend. What difference does it make?"

Dusk shifted, "no difference, come on lets go meet this Fluttershy."

"You wanted to get PON3's autograph didn't you?" Spike grinned

"Shut up."

***

The sun was approaching the horizon as Dusk and Spike made their way to their final stop to oversee the preparations. A cozy looking house tree on the edge of the forest just outside of Ponyville. The sound of birds singing soon reached their ears, but this wasn't ordinary singing. These birds were harmonizing with each other. Upon reaching their destination they soon saw why. A pink haired seraphim in a yellow sundress was standing before a chorus of birds, directing their tweets and whistles into an actual song. Her feathery wings were the same bright yellow color as her dress. She had the look of one who could be drop dead gorgeous if they wanted to but settled for simply pretty. What was really interesting about her, however, was the fact that she seemed to be talking with the birds.

"How is she doing that?" Spike asked.

"She must have Druid's Tongue," Dusk explained. "It's a rare phenomenon in the common races, only present in less than one percent of individuals. I wonder if she'd be willing to help me with some of my studies..."

"Um, stop please, everyone, um. Excuse me, sir? I mean, no offense, but your rhythm is just a teeny-tiny bit off," The girl said to one of her birds, having not noticed Dusk and Spike approaching. "Now, follow me, please. A-one, a-two, a-one two three-"

"Hello," Dusk said tapping the girl on the shoulder. This proved to be a mistake, however, as the girl let out a startled shriek, causing her birds to scatter. Dusk, seeing that he scared her, quickly withdrew his hand and tried to make himself unintimidateing. The girl whirled, seeing a stranger and a boy at that, blushed a deep red, grabbed a lock of her hair and stroked it with her hands.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you and your birds," Dusk said and paused for her reply. It didn't come.

"Um...I'm Dusk Shine, and you must be Fluttershy, pleasure to meet you..." Again, no reply, Fluttershy simply starred at the ground, stroking her hair with her hands.

"Well... I'm just here to check up on the music and it's sounding beautiful."

This time, the girl did reply, sort of. "...nk you," she said quietly, never looking up.

"Sorry, what? I couldn't hear you."

"...aid, ank you," she replied in an even quieter voice.

"Sorry, I still didn't catch that."

"..." This time she was so quiet that whatever she said was completely unintelligible.

Dusk wasn't quite sure what to make if this girl but by then the birds had returned. "Well, um, it looks like your birds are back, so I guess everything's in order. Keep up the good work!" That was easy, Dusk thought.

As he turned to leave Spike, who'd been standing behind Dusk admiring the scenery, came into view. "Oh my GOSH!" Fluttershy exclaimed, far louder than she had anything so far. "A baby dragon!"

"Baby? I'm not-" he cut off as he saw the shy seraphim mere inches from his face.

"I've never seen a baby dragon before! He's sooooooo cute!"

"Well, well, that's twice in one day. I really am a charmer," Spike beamed and Fluttershy squealed with delight.

"Oh my, he talks. I didn't know dragons could talk. That's just so incredibly wonderful I, I just don't even know what to say!"

"Well," Dusk started "I'm pleased to see you found your voice."

"Oh, um, I'm sorry," She said looking towards the ground again with a blush. "I'm not very good at meeting people."

"Hey, it's ok, nether is Dusk here," Spike said. Dusk grumbled while Fluttershy giggled a little. "So you can talk to animals? That's pretty cool."

"Oh yea, I just love animals. My mother says I get it from her, she's a dryad." Fluttershy suddenly put her hand to her mouth as a look of pure horror came over her. "Ohmygosh, I... Oh no. Oh nonono." She turned from the confused boys and hid her face acting like she had just exposed herself to them.

Dusk was confused. On the one hand, being a half-dryad explained both her Druid Tongue ability and her shyness, two traits that dryads were generally attributed. On the other hand, dryads, or at least pure blooded ones, hadn't been seen in centuries. They were few in number to begin with and it was commonly believed they had been breed out. This girls mother must be one of, if not the last dryad in existence. He thought.

Spike on the other hand took a more empathetic approach. "Hey, you alright? Whats wrong?"

"Y-you think I'm weird now don't you?" she sniffed

"What? Why would anyone think that?"

"Be-because... I'm a-a half breed, a freak, my dad married a tree!" She was on the very edge of tears, her face and gentle sobbing told Dusk a story of childhood torment regarding her genetics.

"That's ridiculous," Dusk said. "Dryads are a Homo Genus race just like anyone else. You might as well mock some one for being a terran or a minotaur."

"S-so, you guys aren't going to tease me about it?" Fluttershy timidly asked.

"No. Of course not," Dusk and Spike answered together.

"Oh, thank goodness. Um could you please, if you don't mind, not tell anyone else? I know its nothing to be ashamed of but I've had... bad experiences with telling others," she said sadly.

"We wont," Dusk said as he looked at the sun, which was touching the horizon, "well, if there's nothing else, we need to be getting back to our room. My poor baby dragon needs his sleep after all."

"I'm NOT a baby, I'm twelve years old!" Spike said.

"Aww hes so sweepy, hes getting all cranky," Dusk said in a mocking tone.

"Oh you poor little thing!" Fluttershy picked up Spike cradled him in her arms. "You simply must get some sleep. Don't you worry about a thing, I'll carry you to your room."

On the way to the library where Celestia had arranged for Dusk and Spike to stay, they learned a little bit more about Fluttershy. Though she was still reluctant to talk about it much, Dusk was able to gather that her father was a seraphim who injured his wing in a crash in the nearby Everfree Forest. He was found and nursed back to health by her mother, a dryad living among the trees. From there it was a text book example of the Nightingale effect, her father fell in love with her mother while he was recovering and they eventually married.

The sun was half way set by the time they reached the Golden Oaks Library. Soon Celestia would have to put it to rest and set the moon on its path through the night. "Well, here we are," Dusk said, "I enjoyed chatting but I have work to do so... good night." He took Spike's arm and walked into the library, closing the door behind him before Fluttershy had a chance to say anything else.

"Wow rude much?" Spike said

The room was dark and Dusk needed a moment for his eyes to adjust so he could look for the light switch. "I'll make it up to her tomorrow." he said dismissively, "right now I have to finish my research. I have to convince the Princess that Nightmare Moon is coming and I have less than 24 hours. What I need is some peace and quiet. Ah, here's the light switch..."

Dusk flipped the switch, expecting his eyes to be assaulted by light. What he didn't expect was for his ears to also be assaulted by a loud chorus of people cheering "SURPRISE!"

"Gah wha not yet I'm too young!" Dusk stammered about in confusion. While recovering, he saw that the common room of the library had been decorated with balloons and streamers along with a banner that said WELCOME TO PONYVILLE! Around the room were various people from town, including the three girls he'd met throughout the day. They all wore party hats and a few had party blowers and noise makers. The door opened and closed as Fluttershy entered, quickly making her way over to Rainbow Dash who handed her a party hat as well.

"Surprise!" shouted another voice as Dusk's world was suddenly filled with pink. "Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie, and I threw this party just for you! Were you surprised? Were ya? Were ya? Huh huh huh?" As Dusk pulled back, he saw that it was the girl he first saw when he arrived in Ponyville.

"Oh, I'm surprised alright. Aren't libraries supposed to be quiet?" That wasn't really what he wanted to ask but his mind was still rebooting.

"Well, that's silly! What kind of welcome party would this be if it were quiet? I mean, duh, bo-ring! Y'see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were all 'hello' and I was all fawoom" she mimicked herself dashing off. "Remember? Y'see I've never saw you before and if I've never saw you before that means you're new, 'cause I know everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY in Ponyville!"

Dusk groaned and rubbed his temples. Looking around he spotted a table with a punch bowl and figured that he might as well have a drink. Pinkie Pie followed him, still talking at an impressive rate. "So you see when I realized that you were new, I knew I had to welcome you but I didn't have my welcome wagon and that's why I ran off so fast but when I came back you were gone so I asked one of the guard guys that dropped you off if he knew where you'd went and he looked at me and asked if I knew a Pinkie Pie," she paused for only a moment to take a breath before starting off again. "So I told him yea, I'm a Pinkie Pie and so he handed me a letter and you'll never believe who it was from, Princess Celestia! It said that she'd heard how I was the Super Duper Party Planner of Ponyville and asked if I would be willing to throw you a party so you could meet friends because you didn't have any and I thought if you don't have any friends then you must be lonely, and that made me so sad. So I said to myself, 'I must throw a great big ginormous super-duper spectacular welcome party and invite everyone in Ponyville!' See? And now you have lots and lots of friends!"

By the time she'd stopped her run-on paragraph, Dusk had fixed himself a glass of punch and took a drink.

It wasn't punch.

Dusk simply stood frozen as a fire in his mouth shutdown all capacity for rational thought. "Water..." was all he could say as he dashed off to the kitchen.

"Huh" Pinkie said to no one in particular, as she took a sip from the punch bowl. "The Trinidad Moruga Juice seems fine to me..."

***

Celestia let out a deep breath as she rested her hands on the balcony railing. Tomorrow would come the date she'd waited a thousand years for. All the arrangements had been made, Dusk was safely in Ponyville for the time being. Part of her was afraid that, despite all her efforts, fate would force Dusk's involvement.

She remembered the day she first met him, she would never forget that day, when he earned his cutie mark. It had taken all of her considerable will power to maintain her composure when she first laid eyes upon it. That six pointed star, The Star of Harmony. It was the missing peace to the puzzle, one she and her sister had searched for. It was why she took Dusk as her personal apprentice, something she swore she'd never do again after what happened with her first one.

Dusk had shown an incredible natural talent for magic, learning in days that which would take average djinn weeks. His potential combined with his curiosity and desire to know everything he could about magic ensured we would become one of the greatest mages in history. And over the years, Celestia had grown to see him as the son she never had.

That was why she had sent him away. Perhaps it was a mistake, perhaps he would have made the difference, considering his talent and his mark. But the funny thing about fate is that it's not a river, its an ocean. There are currents that you can follow or fight against, or, if your know how, you can swim away from all together. Magic had come a long way in a thousand years and Celestia was confident she could save her sister this time without putting Dusk Shine at risk. Well, mostly confident.

"It's time." She said to herself as she reached out with her magic towards the sun. Grabbing it with her great power, she moved it below the horizon, where it's energy would gather in preparation for the next day. Satisfied, she then reached out to the moon to move it into position so that its ambient magic could ward the night. But something was wrong, the moon, which had always heeded her in the past didn't respond to her commands. She reached out again and still, it would not budge. It was as if something was holding it, keeping her from moving it no matter how hard she tried. Celestia froze, there was only one being in Equestria with more power over the moon than her.

"Playing with mine toys without my permission again, sister? We see some things never change." An icy fear the likes of which she hadn't felt in millennia took hold of Celestia's heart. She turned and there in the doorway to her personal quarters was the one she had both desired and feared to see.

The woman in the door way was a nephilim like Celestia, but her skin was pure black and covered in a silver armor that looked at once beautiful and terrifying. Her wings bellowed from her back like a ghostly white mist and held a more ridged form unlike Celestia's which flowed like ribbons in water. And most terrifying were her eyes, they were not the worm gentle eyes Celestia remembered but the slanted eyes of a snake.

"Nightmare Moon," Celestia said once she composed herself, "You're early."

"Is that all thou hath to say to Us after a thousand years?" Nightmare smirked as she sauntered over to Celestia, "And here We hoped we could be family again," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You may have Luna's body, but your are NOT my sister." Celestia stared down Nightmare, "You're a parasite, feeding on the bitterness and envy of a misguided mind. Your ambitions will only lead to destruction."

"Ha, We're not here ten minutes and already We must suffer one of thine lectures," Nightmare shrugged. "Oh well, t'would be a lie if We said We did not look forward to this." With that, a black tendril shot forth from Nightmare Moon's shadow. The tendril struck the spot where Celestia had been standing but she was already in the air. Nightmare followed soon after, in her hands she conjured a mystical poleaxe with a blade curved back so as to resemble a waxing crescent moon. Umbra, it was called, The Warden of Night. "Make it easy on thine self, sister, and surrender."

Celestia closed her eyes and channeled her power. Great golden armor seemed to emerge from her body, replacing her royal trappings. She rose her hand to the sky and with a thundering crash, a white-gold spear appeared in her hands. This was Corona, The Warden of Day. Celestia took the weapon and prepared herself as Nightmare charged.

They matched each other blow for blow. Nightmare slashed and Celestia parried, Celestia thrust and Nightmare simply teleported out of the way. For the first few moments of the fight, it was a stalemate.

"Come now, sister," Nightmare mocked as she charged a ball of dark energy in Umbra's cusp. "Quit holding back, or is this really all thy can muster after a thousand years?" She let lose the energy ball but Celestia deflected it with one of her own. Her breathing coming harder and harder. "Granted, We did intentionally wait to engage thee until after thou had expended most of thine power lowering the sun and then struggling to raise the moon."

It was exactly what Celestia had been afraid of, the plan was to meet her during the day, when her power was at it's peak and a contingent of battle-mages at her side. But now, she was running out of magical energy, while Nightmare on the other hand was just getting started. She needed to end this and fast. Gathering her remaining strength, Celestia shot forward with blinding speed. Blinking back and forth, Nightmare couldn't land a single blow. Celestia prepared to deliver the strike that would disable her opponent but then, Nightmare simply chuckled.

"Dost thou know-est what We love best about thee, dear sister?" Nightmare said as she produced a dagger from her left hand and placed it in a vacant area in front of her, right as Celestia appeared on top of it. A searing lance of pain shot through her as her body materialized around the razor sharp blade. The shock momentarily paralyzed her and she could do nothing but stair into Nightmare's slanted eyes, "Thou art predictable." Nightmare placed her hand on Celestia's chest and released a powerful blast of magic that threw Celestia back and down from the sky. She crashed through the roof of the palace and onto the floor of the throne room.

Her energy all but spent, Celestia could barley stand, using Corona to support herself. Weakly, she gripped the dagger still lodged in her abdomen and pulled it out, liquid light pored from the hole left behind. Nightmare landed softly a few feet away, holding Umbra upright like a walking staff. "Tis is familiar is it not? Thou lie battered and beaten before us, only this time, thou does not have the Elements of Harmony to banish Us. We win, sister."

Celestia fell back to her knees, unable to even stand anymore. She searched her mind for something, anything she could do to buy time, to come up with a plan. "I-indulge my curiosity, Nightmare, how did you escape before the longest day?"

"Tis thanks to a trick We learned from the Nix, those nauseatingly adorable denizens of the moon who create dreams. As fortune would have it, some of their abilities are quite powerful when applied properly. Twas extremely tempting to simply enslave them all and use their power to rain night terrors down on all of Equestria, but then thou would have suspected us and interfered so we did not. For you see, We are a being of vision, We saw the true potential of that power and over the centuries, we created a new magic, oneiromancy."

Nightmare grabbed Celestia by her collar and lifted her up to eye level. "With oneiromancy, We can not only see into people's dreams, but alter them and through dreams, read memories and even implant false ones." Celestia's eyes widened as she began to peace together the puzzle. "Sadly, it isn't as exact as true mind control but with practice and subtlety, one can make a mind even as strong as thine own believe what one needs it to. So, to answer thine question, sister, We did not escape a day early, thou forgot what day it was." Nightmare finished with a laugh.

Celestia gasped as the realization came to her. For the past year she had felt as though she had been losing time. Ten minutes here, thirty there, she had chalked it all up to the stress of preparing for Nightmare's return, never did she expect that she was being manipulated in such a way.

"Do not worry, sister, We shan't kill thee yet. No, first thy must know the pain We felt." Nightmare jabbed her hand into Celestia's chest, it melted through her as though her body was made of water and slowly, from the point where they were connected, outward, she began to turn to stone. "We will keep thee alive long enough to see the fate of Equestria. We would not want thee to miss seeing thin precious world remade as a land of darkness." The stone covered all of Celestia's body and finally her face. She was completely petrified but, to her horror, still fully conscious and able to perceive everything going on around here. "And now, We must away. For We have an invitation to extend to a certain, individual in Ponyville. That's right, We know all about Dusk Shine from thy dreams," she grinned wickedly. "Shame on thee, by the way, a teacher should not have such lecherous dreams about a student." Nightmare Moon's cackle could be heard throughout the palace, and might have continued if a blade hadn't erupted from her chest in that moment.

"Don't move," came a harsh voice from behind her. "I shift this thing a few centimeters left or right and your vital organs are sliced."

Nightmare recovered from her momentary shock, "Thou art a master of stealth to sneak up on Us. Alas that it should serve no purpose." In an instant, she turned to smoke, causing the would be assassin to stagger for a brief moment due to the unexpected loss of balance. The smoke cloud arched into the air and hit the ground behind where they had been standing moments before and reformed into Nightmare Moon. Her ever present grin faltered for a moment when she saw that her attacker was no longer in sight.

The attacker had taken to the shadows, glancing at the stone statue of Celestia and then at Nightmare who was currently looking around for him. Placing two fingers to his head he reached out with his mind to another presence he knew was waiting outside the palace. "Gleaming Shield, this is Kevin, we have total eclipse, I repeat, we have total eclipse. Take Romeo and get him somewhere safe."

"What about you?" a female voice answered, "and my brother, and Celestia? We cant just leave them!"

"I'm going to stall her for a moment while you make your escape, then I'll head to Ponyville to get Dusk. Now go! Get as far away as you can!"

K'Vann cut the link. He surveyed the situation before him. He could never hope to match a nephilim in one on on combat, but he didn't plan on doing that. Wait for an opening, strike from the shadows, retreat and repeat. That was his style, and he was damn good at it.

"Come hither, stealthy one. Thy skills are admirable, bow to Us as thy Queen and thou shalt be rewarded."

Her back was turned, he took the opening. He jumped from the shadows and struck with the twin blades protruding from his wrists. Nightmare was just barely fast enough to parry with Umbra. As he struck, she caught a brief glimpse of his black chitinous skin. "Sorry," he said, "I've had bad experiences with queens."

"A changeling? How interesting, I thought your kind were wiped out long ago." K'Vann jumped back and fired a bolt of magic. Nightmare easily deflected it but in that brief moment, he was gone again. As he moved from shadow to shadow, a plan began to form in his head. Transforming was useless, since Nightmare knew what he was, but he had other ways of getting away.

"Dost thou think to beat me with darkness? We art darkness itself!"

"Who said anything about beating you?" he said, drawing her attention as he darted back to her. From the glands in his mouth, he fired a sticky green resin right into Nightmare's eyes. She screamed in indignation as he retreated once more into the shadows with a back flip.

"Argh, VIAL INSECT! Wretched fel spawn, thou shalt pay dearly for that!" Wiping the goop from her eyes, Nightmare looked again for her opponent, weapon at the ready. "Thou thinkist to hide from Us? We shall bring down this whole palace if We have to!" She began tossing magic bolts at random, leaving destroyed pillars and walls in her wake.

K'Vann had already made his way to the hole in the ceiling and took to the skies. Silently, he made his way south, towards Ponyville. I don't know what she want's Dusk for, he thought to himself but I'll be damned if I fail Celestia again...

Comments

[Fire Seeker12]

Great start!.

[Lunara]

You have definitely caught my interest. This is one of the best alt Twilight stories I've read, keep it up!

[Heroicloser]

Interesting so far, it's rare for someone to take the Dusk Shine + female cast set up and NOT use it to set up a harem plot, so that's refreshing. Seems like there's the possibility for that later but for the immediate future it seems like straight up drama/adventure.

The use of djinn, seraphim, and nephilim as stand ins for unicorns, pegasi, and alicorns is neat. I can understand prefering to use humanized characters instead of ponies as it's hard to properly describe scenes with non-human characters because "hooves, how do they work?". Kind of curious if they're going to be outright cut and paste replacements or if they'll have their own twists on the history of the setting.

The Moondancer scene quickly made me ship her and Dusk as my OTP....and sunk it hard when I realized that Dusk, like Twilight, completely forgot about her. Certainly will make an interesting twist on Amending Fences if/when you get that far.

Dusk seems like an interesting twist on Twilight's character. He seems more 'snide' I guess? Definitely putting out more snark then the purple pony original. But I can accept that as in my experience antisocial males tend to be more vocal about being annoyed by other people.

Kevin the changeling as an agent of Celestia. I can dig it. You took him from being a joke to actually involved in the plot. Look forward to seeing this develop.

Around her neck were a pair of round flight goggles that dangled just above her somewhat small bossism.

I think you meant so spell bosom, or you could use the word bust or breasts here.

As for the Rarity scene I don't think jeans would go with any shirt you'd wear jeweled cuffs with. Maybe slacks? Trousers? Dress pants? Jeans are a bit too 'working casual' for that sort of thing.

Fluttershy a half-dryad? Well guess that makes sense. To be fair I was already okay with the explanation of "Druid's Tongue" being a thing to exist but I suppose it gives her another reason to be painfully introverted and the half-breed bullying would also help give her an aversion to social interaction. Feel like that reveal could of been drawn out more or delayed for a later chapter. Kinda feels like you're front loading character info here.

Nice take on Nightmare's escape also, actually gave some reasoning for how she got out and overpowered Celestia instead of just having Celestia's grand plan be "let the protagonist deal with it".

This story has my interest. Some typos here and there but nothing too horrible, and I'd point them all out but I don't feel like re-reading the entire chapter just yet. I shall continue my reading...

[NightCoreMoon]

Your Dusk is a pretentious douchebag...
I love him.

[Snowdrifter]

"Huh" Pinkie said to no one in particular, as she took a sip from the punch bowl. "The Trinidad Moruga Juice seems fine to me..."

I had to google this fruit.
I learned something.
Pinkie is scary.