The Rings of Dusk

by Scribblestick

Destination

Twilight woke early the next morning. Luna watched her hurried movements with slight amusement. "I see you are excited for the day."

"Anxious is more like it," Twilight answered as she stuffed their supplies into their bags. At least, that was the idea. She was so used to using magic to pack, her by-the-hoof efforts made more of a mess. Luna chuckled and packed the bags. Twilight blushed. "Thanks."

"You'll be happy to know that I surveyed the area at first light," Luna said. "Based on our hidden map, I believe I have located our next destination."

"Great!" Twilight put on her saddle bags. "Let's find Spike. Then, we can figure out what this mystery is all about."

The two alicorns made their way through the forest, carefully following the tracks Spike and the mysterious pony had left behind. Twilight's heart fluttered with each step. We're coming, Spike, she thought. I hope you're in good hooves.

Around mid-day, they found themselves at the trail's end. A squat log shelter huddled beneath the thick forest branches, barely visible in the underbrush. If they hadn't been looking for it, they may have missed it entirely. Twilight marched up to the wood-plank door and knocked. After some scuffling, the door opened wide.

"Twilight!"

"Spike!"

The two embraced. "I was so worried about you," Twilight said. "How did you escape?"

"A little dragon fire shook it off," Spike answered. "Then, I met this guy, and he gave me a place to stay."

Twilight peered into the dimly-lit cottage. An orange earth pony with an enormous, unkempt blue mane stood grinning at her. "Hey," he said. "Name's Tinker. You must be Twilight. Spike here's been telling me all about you."

"Thank you for taking care of him," Twilight replied. "I didn't know anypony lived this deep in the forest."

"Well, you have to if you're going to study Inky and Spooky," the pony answered.

"That's what he calls those shadow monsters," Spike explained.

"Really?" Twilight couldn't believe her luck. "You have to tell me everything you know."

"Heh, I don't know. That's quite a bit," Tinker said, standing aside to give Twilight the full view of his collection. "Spike here tells me you've been looking for something. I bet I can help."

"As a matter of fact, we are," Twilight said. "Luna, can you hand him that map?"

Luna stood just behind Twilight, watching Tinker with a look Twilight couldn't quite place. Silently, she pulled the map from her bag and set it between Tinker and Twilight. Tinker moved forward to get a good look. "Yeah, I know this topography," he said. He pointed with a hoof. "We're right here. Where are you headed?"

"Here." Twilight pointed to the spot where the cloud arrow and the unicorn horn met. "Do you know it?"

"Sure do. That's the Salty Sea. Well, it's more of a lake, actually, but Salty Lake doesn't sound as cool," Tinker said. "I can take you there, if you want. I'd love the chance to talk to a real alicorn."

Twilight blushed. "Oh, you don't have to do that."

"Nah, it's no problem. I needed to head out there anyway. Got another shack to check in with." He stepped back into his shelter, and a moment later emerged with two huge saddle bags. "For herbs and samples and stuff," he explained.

"Indeed," Luna said, breaking her silence. "How long will it take us to reach this Salty Sea?"

"About half a day," Tinker answered. "We'll be arriving just before dusk. Hey, you'll get to see the sun set over the lake! Fantastic view."

"Of course." Luna maintained her stiff tone. "I'll just need a moment to repack my things. Twilight, could you lend me a hoof?"

"Uh, sure." Twilight wasn't sure how helpful she'd be, but she followed Luna a short distance away. Luna removed things from her bags, seemingly at random. "Is everything okay?" Twilight asked.

"Something is wrong with him," Luna whispered. "His aura is wrong for an earth pony. I can't quite explain what it is, but it's unlike anything I've seen before."

Twilight shot a glance back toward the shelter. Tinker and Spike were laughing about something. "He seems nice."

"He seems convenient," Luna replied, finally arranging her things just as they'd been before. "Keep your eyes open. We need to be ready if something happens."

Twilight nodded. She wasn't sure she shared Luna's concerns, but she had to admit this strange earth pony was an unusual stroke of good luck. The two returned to Tinker and Spike, and soon the four were off.

Tinker had all sorts of questions as they traveled, from what it was like to fly and use magic, to how Twilight's ascension had altered her relationship with Equestria, Ponyville, and her friends. Twilight deflect any inquiries she deemed to personal, but was more than happy to share her story with this strange pony who kept Spike safe. Spike, for his part, couldn't stop gushing about Tinker's notes, and how helpful they'd be in learning more about the shadow creatures.

"You know, I've never heard of a pony turning into another kind of pony," Tinker said as they waded through a shallow stream. The cool water felt good on Twilight's sore hooves.

"Nopony has, until Twilight turned into an alicorn," Spike said. "Like I said, she's pretty awesome."

Twilight did her best to brush off the compliment, but she couldn't stop the color from rising to her cheeks. "It wasn't really a big deal."

"Hah! I know you're just being modest with that one," Tinker laughed. "Come on. How'd you do it?"

Twilight summarized her struggles to complete Starswirl's unfinished masterpiece. "Once I helped my friends, I just sort of knew," she said. "You can't fulfil your own destiny by sacrificing the destiny of others. You have to do it together."

"Together," Tinker repeated. "Yeah, I've been thinking the same thing. I mean, not turning into an alicorn, obviously," he added with a hasty grin.

"Yep, that's a whole new level of special," Spike agreed.

"I like your rings, by the way," Tinker continued as they trotted up a hill. "Bit of an odd fashion choice for somepony with wings, though."

"It's..." Twilight hesitated. It was one of those questions that bordered on too personal to answer. "It's complicated," she decided.

Tinker nodded, seeming to understand her reluctance. "I'm sure we're about to get to the bottom of... well, whatever you're looking for." With a grin and dramatic flourish, he moved a tree branch out of the way to reveal the Salty Sea.

Twilight gasped as she stepped forward. The grassy waterfront gave way to bare rocks, against which small waves lapped gently. The salty air filled her lungs, and for a moment, she saw herself curled up on a particularly large rock that jutted out into the water. "This is it," she said, voice barely a whisper. "This... is where it all started."

She trotted, almost in a daze, toward the water. Spike followed close behind. Tinker held back, smiling. She looked at the rock expectantly, not sure what she wanted to find. She wasn't surprised to find two circular grooves etched into the rock - the perfect size for the rings she wore. She looked at Spike and nodded. As he carefully removed the rings, she braced herself for a magical surge. To her surprise, none came. Spike placed the rings in their corresponding grooves and stepped back.

"This is it," Twilight said.

"Yes," Tinker agreed. "This is it."

The shockwave nearly sent Twilight flying into the water. Magic pulsed out from the rings, and she felt as though her weight had increased tenfold. Her body pressed against the stone. Spike landed somewhere in the grass. She heard Luna scream. When her vision cleared, she saw a bright haze of magic surrounding her on all sides. Squinting, she could just see a similar aura surrounding Luna, trapping her as well.

"Come on, Spooky," she heard Tinker say. "Time to come home."

Lighting flashed across Twilight's vision. Her head exploded with a thousand splinters as her own magic turned against her. She thought she heard her own screaming as she felt the uncontrolled magic within her taking a shape of its own, ripping its way out of her skin. When the pain finally ended, she could do nothing but gasp and peer dimly at the shadowy figure that had detached itself from her and floated to Tinker's side. The other one, the one Tinker called Inky, flitted from the forest and joined him as well.

"Hah! There you are!" Tinker did a little prance with the two shadows. "I had a feeling you'd latched on to her. Hope you haven't been getting into too much trouble!"

"Tinker!" Luna's voice boomed with rage. "Explain yourself!"

"Me?" Tinker said. "What about you? Blasting poor Spooky like that, after they were kind enough to show you where Twilight had been. Nearly killed them when you broke their connection to those rings. Good thing Twilight has plenty of magic for them to feed on."

"Is that why Twilight has been having visions?" Luna demanded. "Because that... thing was living inside her?"

"Oh, don't you dare blame Spooky for this!" Tinker said. "If anything, it's Twilight's fault for running away. If she'd just waited for Inky to get bound, she would have been just fine!"

"What are you talking about?" Twilight asked, finding her voice at last. "What did you do to me?"

"Tried to do, until you ran away," Tinker said. "You're powerful, I'll give you that, but you could have been more. You could have been... Enmity Dusk!"

The way he said that name, Twilight knew he meant for it to sound impressive, but she was too angry to put up with his bravado. "What in the hay does that mean?"

"Enmity Dusk," Tinker repeated. "You know, like how Nightmare Moon is just a different word for Luna mixed with a twisted version of one of her powers? Twilight is another word for dusk, and enmity is the opposite of friendship. Enmity Dusk."

Twilight was so stunned, it took her a moment to find an answer. "You mean to tell me," she shouted, "that all of this was because you wanted to make another Nightmare Moon?"

"Yes!" Tinker's wide grin indicated he hadn't realized how strongly the two alicorns opposed this idea. "Come on! Imagine the power! Of course, it didn't go as planned. I guess the same pony can't be absorbed twice. But hey, now you can absorb somepony fresh - and another alicorn, of all things!" He paced back and forth excitedly. "Maybe running away was the best thing you could have done, after all. Ah, but what if we had another alicorn?" He frowned. "The power of three alicorns fused into one... now that would be a sight!"

"You want one more alicorn?" A new voice boomed across the lake. Twilight twisted her head to see a blinding light emerge from the setting sun. She blinked. Princess Celestia emerged from the glow, the dying light glinting off her white body. "It appears your wish has been granted," Celestia said, "although you may very well wish it hadn't."

Tinker didn't appear the least bit shocked. Instead, his grin widened, and he took an offensive stance. The two shadow creatures mirrored his movements. "I see you got Spike's note," he said. "How fortuitous for me."