• Published 25th May 2017
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Spectrum - Sledge115



Secrets come to light when a human appears, and the Equestrians learn of a world under siege – by none other than themselves. Caught in a web that binds the great and humble alike, can Lyra find what part she’ll play in the fate of three realms?

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Act II ~ Chapter Sixteen ~ An Angel's Wings

Spectrum

The Team

TheIdiot
Is now a college student.

DoctorFluffy
I WAS AT BRONYCON, WUBBA LUBBA DUB DUB
(you will not see my cosplay. This is to protect the innocent)

VoxAdam
Angels Have Fallen.
So Too Shall We.

Sledge115

RoyalPsycho

TB3

Kizuna Tallis

Featuring Concepts By

ProudToBe

Chapter Sixteen
An Angel’s Wings

* * * * *

“Devils are depicted with bats’ wings and good angels with birds’ wings, not because anyone holds that moral deterioration would be likely to turn feathers into membrane, but because most men like birds better than bats.
C.S. Lewis, from the preface of The Screwtape Letters

~ Boston, USA ~ November 15th, 2024 CE ~

A city was burning. And the skies were awake.

The Imperial threat, Ana understood, had warranted their evacuation. With the Imperials set to cross the Charles River, her outpost here in Prudential Tower, one of the tallest skyscrapers in Boston, would be emptied out – and she would be one of the last to leave. The order had just gone through her radio, in the minutes before an explosion rocked the Great Equestrian.

With no luck in the thirty minutes that had passed since the massive airship’s materialisation, the artillery batteries present within Boston had persisted in firing at it, but their enhanced shells had squashed against the shield like flies on a windscreen. This explosion was not their work. It came from the inside.

As the last person to evacuate her post, still on her perch, Ana listened carefully to the order.

“Potential high value target on board,” repeated the dispatcher, a fellow she and the other PHL task force members present knew only as Starfall. “Captain Shining Armor and Archmage Twilight Sparkle. Kill on sight. Confirm kill, over.”

Only those two unicorns could have jointly teleported the airship.

Ana didn’t know much about the Captain of the Guard. His diplomatic visits had been only for truly special occasions. The kick-off of the Football World Cup and its final match, six years ago, were the two instances she was aware of, because she’d been there herself. Back then, Shining Armor was always seen by his wife’s side. Ana had seen the Russian media praise the royal couple’s commitment to peaceful relations with Earth.

Now, there was only Lady Cadance.

The Archmage, however, was a more prominent figure still. After all, Celestia’s faithful student had built up a reputation in Equestria as one of the more moderate, scientifically-minded members of Court even prior to First Contact. In the days before the war began, Ana had spent long hours in the dingy Moscow apartment, listening in eagerly to radio broadcasts of Twilight’s eagerness to marry magic with science, an outlandish but hopeful, years-long endeavour hosted by CERN.

What a blow it had been for Earth’s scientific community, when their best hope at shared talks between intellectuals had finally denounced humanity as wasteful and ruinous, in a last and most disastrous of interviews.

And here Ana was, under orders to put a bullet through the Archmage’s skull.

You should,’ the voice in her head said sternly. She’d been more quiet than usual, Usually, the voice would blur together with Ana’s own thoughts, regal, wispy, maybe snarky at times. Yet here, the voice dropped to an icy chill. ‘Duty calls, Ana

Ana sighed. She’d always imagined the voice as a kindly tease of a woman...

Archmage or High Captain
Shoot to kill
15 rnds .338
36 rnds .45
Ask Frieda/Tanner fr xtra

She finished re-reading what she’d noted down on her pad, then gazed out the window. The North Bank of the Charles River was coming alive as the Imperial Guard and their allied troops were set to cross it. Without air support, they would be unchallenged.

Ana glanced down the ladder. Frieda was speaking to Harwood about something. Normally, Harwood would’ve been sent off first, but he was also the only medic around here.

What would they do in her place? Frieda would not hesitate, true. Neither would Harwood. The Archmage, whoever she’d once been, was a target. Ambassador Heartstrings, too, would have pulled the trigger.

Or would she, though?

She had only met Lyra Heartstrings that one time. One time was more than most. An encounter that, for the Ambassador, must have been just another meeting with a wide-eyed admirer.

Context, as in everything, was king. The Indonesia of 2021 had been a hotbed of insurgents and radicals fighting over pieces of land. And Ambassador Heartstrings, beloved to some and controversial to others, had been an all-too-enticing target.

Lyra had insisted on meeting the counter-sniper who’d put a bullet into that would-be-assassin. In doing so, she’d comforted Ana, with the voice of one who faced such choices every day.

And when I think on how low I am, I remember,’ she’d said then, a hoof on Ana’s shoulder. We can’t go back. And in a way, that's beautiful... because it's like the ultimate reassurance that even if you could, you shouldn't.

Starfall to Nordlys,” Ana heard her radio crackle. She saw Harwood down below, waving for her to come down. “Confirm position, over.”

Ana gave her sniper rifle a last glance. The same trusty rifle she’d used to prevent the death of Ambassador Heartstrings – or at least, stave it off another few months. It would be used to give the Archmage her due.

“Nordlys reporting in,” said Ana. “En route to Assembly Point Sierra, over.”

Life was ironic, that way.

~ The Great Equestrian ~

Silence had fallen. The winds blew.

Luna drew a gasp.

A smell of burning wood greeted her senses. She was lying on the floor, eyes opening blurrily. Her vision was limited. In her addled state, her first thought was that she saw the world through the slot on a letter-box.

Then it came to her. Her armour’s visor was fully shut now. And odd though it was to look out through a slit in the obsidian, the protection it offered was to be dearly valued.

She raised herself, groaning, on aching legs. She heard something stir beside her. There stood the Princess of the Crystal Realm.

“Luna!” Cadance yelled, hoisting her up by a wing. “Are you alright?”

Luna looked at Cadance. Her descendant wore the crystalline purple armour worn by the Royal Guard of the Crystal Realm, but tailored for her lean, alicorn build.

“I'm fine. Just… how did you get here? What happened?”

“Well, Gala–”

“Cadance!” Luna hissed, eyes darting around.

Walls had ears. Especially in the enemy’s lair.

“Oh…” Cadance said, sheepishly. “I mean, the, um… the G-Mare sent me here. Saw you needed backup. “Shining’s shield did respond to me, but I had to add some brute force to make it through, right?”

She looked around, and Luna followed her gaze. All around, the floor was littered with debris. Curtains had shredded, crystal pillars had shattered. The chandelier had fallen, scattering in pieces everywhere. Here and there, photos were burnt or torn, and Luna grimaced at their loss. Whatever they represented, they’d still held a little more of humanity’s memory.

The wind was blowing in from a gaping hole torn at the side of the gallery. This must have been the point of entry for Cadance through time and space. Few candles had been left alight in this gust, but they kept the room from plunging into total darkness. Yet Luna saw no other soul stirring in the gallery.

“Sorry about that,” Cadance added. “Brute force is brute force and… all that residual energy had to go somewhere.”

“You were sent here?” Luna asked quietly. Her eyes darted around for any sign of the Guards, or the Archmage, before settling on Cadance once more. “Why? How?”

“Like I said,” Cadance replied. “They had to send backup, and there was no-one else who could help you.”

Luna nodded, firmly.

“Alright, then,” she said. “Thank you, Cadance. I’ll have to thank–”

Then she heard the scream.

Cadaance!

It was only thanks to Cadance that whatever spell was blasted at them got stopped short, her light blue shield absorbing the fiery spell.

As another spell impacted, Luna saw the Archmage emerge from behind two smashed-up wooden crates, exactly like the one Discord had been carried off in. Twilight’s piercing glare was fixed upon her and Cadance both, her helmeted mane billowing in the icy wind. Behind her, there rose the groans of the few Guards that remained – two Equestrians and the hippogriff named Shearwater – and the Archmage’s protective bubble dissipated.

With a yell, the Archmage summoned her sword aloft, and rushed forwards, the orichalcum blade trained on Cadance.

It was met with Luna’s own, in mid-air. Silver as the Moon above and enveloped in her aura, her longsword let out a stinging cry as it forced the orichalcum sword back, shattering it into its twelve individual pieces.

Wasting no time, Luna stomped between Cadance and Archmage, her weapon raised.

“Step aside,” the Archmage growled, her Guards lining behind her. “I will have her. You traitor, how dare you crawl back here, after everything you’ve done–”

“Nay, Lady Archmage,” Luna rebuked her icily. From the corner of her visor, she could see Cadance’s eyes widen, too. “You forget to whom you speak.”

“What difference does it make?” the Archmage hissed. The Guards moved to flank her, spears lowered and swords drawn. Sergeant Shearwater in particular seemed poised to strike, her wings flared threateningly. “Cut from the same cloth, aren’t you, Cadance?”

“Twilight. I–”

“She is not your Twilight, Cadance!” Luna retorted. Her longsword was held firm in her aura, yet the first cracks had begun to form from where the Archmage’s sword had struck it. “Whatever she is now, the Twilight you knew is not–”

“Look out!” Cadance cried.

Luna braced herself a second too late.

The orichalcum blade, its steel lining protected by the Archmage’s aura, struck her armour again. Before Luna could raise her sword to meet the Archmage’s, her opponent’s horn lit up brightly, and Luna felt her obsidian envelope burn and screech as the blade scraped it.

The Guards moved forward, weapons out, but thus far stayed in a semi-circle around Twilight.

Luna’s attempted parry was met by a volley of spells and thrown debris – broken marble, great big splinters, pieces of chandelier, anything. It was a crude assault, but harrying with the sheer rage Twilight threw into it, eyes blazing and teeth clenched.

Slowly, her conjured longsword began to fall apart.

“Twilight, stop!” Cadance yelled. “This isn’t you!”

“No, it’s not!” Luna shouted back. At Cadance, not the Archmage. “That’s the whole problem! You’re wasting your breath, Cadance! Get out of here!”

Amidst the unrelenting assault, Luna spotted a single, bronze shard speed through the air, moving to strike Cadance...

“You… I loved you, I trusted you, you traitor!” the Archmage screamed.

No!

As the Archmage turned, Luna flew towards her with outstretched hooves. Enraged, the Queen’s faithful student stepped out of the way, the orichalcum shard changing its course to meet Luna midway through.

It didn’t.

With a screeching noise as metal clashed against crystal, the shard ricocheted off Princess Cadance’s armour as she threw herself into the melée, taking Luna’s defense. But Cadance had not just thrown herself. She’d flown.

And her wings, outstretched, remained so as she came to land, shielding Luna.

The Archmage saw.

“Alicorn…” she whispered.

Her face had turned deathly pale. For the first time since the capture, Luna saw that she looked truly at loss for words. Even the Guards went slightly wide-eyed. If only for an instant.

“You don’t deserve to be an alicorn.”

Cadance let her lips thin out. “The earthponies of Oleander raised me, the sorceress Prismia tested me, morning dew and gossamer carried me,” she said quietly. “And I’d have gladly let you follow me, Twilight…”

“Follow you, away from the Light?” the Archmage snarled. “I think not. That’s how you led Lyra to ruin. Shearwater?” she said, not looking back at the hippogriff sergeant. “I will take Princess Luna alive. All other intruders… Draw to kill.”

“Your Ladyship?” blinked Shearwater. “Our orders concerning Cadenza–”

“I am superceding those orders!” shouted the Archmage. “They do not apply to her alternate.”

Shearwater nodded, reaching for her spear. “Yes, Lady Archmage.”

“Oh, boy,” muttered Cadance. “I don’t have time for this… Hush, Twilight.”

“What are you–?!” the Archmage exclaimed.

But her words were cut short by the cloud bursting out of her horn. Enveloped in the cloud, the Archmage and her Guards gasped and coughed, but one by one they fell – and Cadance, without a moment’s notice, blasted the remaining Guards against the wall.

As for the Archmage, Luna observed, she collapsed where she stood, a dreamy expression upon her exhausted face.

“A sleeping charm,” Luna deadpanned, and Cadance shrugged. “And strong. Huh.”

“Just a simple trick,” Cadance said bashfully. “Just… needed to overwhelm her and her friends there for a moment. Oldest trick in the foalsitter’s book, hah…”

“Something to be said for personalised spells,” muttered Luna. “I would not have been able to make them all fall asleep…”

Suddenly Cadance staggered. Alarmed, Luna held out a wing to support her.

“Thanks…” gasped Cadance. “So… that should keep her down, but… that felt weird. Harder than it should. Don’t expect her to stay down for long… Doubt it’ll work twice...”

She looked around, briefly.

“Where’s Discord?”

Luna shook her head, grimacing. Silently, she levitated the pink tuft of mane Discord had held. In the chaos of Cadance’s entry, it was miraculously unharmed, and now Luna held it before Cadance’s eyes.

“Gone,” said Luna bitterly. “Petrified. And this is the only way to track him.”

“Wh-what?” Cadance exclaimed. “But– how?”

“It appears I… misjudged the Elements of Harmony,” Luna admitted. She glanced at the collapsed wall of the gallery, the gigantic hole Cadance’s entry had created yawing wide open. “They have turned him to stone, once more. But here, here is his last memento from the mare he loved.”

She pressed it into Cadance’s outstretched hoof.

“They said he’d be placed in the cargo hold, nothing more,” Luna continued. “And you, of all the ponies my sister could have sent… find him. I will meet you when this is concluded, at a place Captain Reiner referred to as Fenway Park.”

The other Princess looked up, from the tuft of Fluttershy’s mane, back onto her. Cadance’s purple eyes were wide and afraid.

“Are you sure?" Cadance replied, glancing at the debris. “I’m not sure if I–”

But Luna held a hoof against Cadance’s shoulder. Her grimace turned to a gentle, pained smile.

“You are the Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Realm, born of my line,” Luna stated. “You stepped forth to defend the Realm from Sombra’s evil once more, and succeeded. As you will succeed today. Go. Find Discord, and bring him to safety. The battle is not yet lost.”

The Princess of Love, hesitant as she was, nodded. And gave her aunt, if that was what Luna truly was, a quick embrace.

“Just… stay safe,” said Cadance, wrapping the tuft in her aura. “They’re counting on us.”

“As they should,” said Luna. It was enough. “Go, NOW!”

With a nod and final glance, Cadance turned, and rushed towards the door, where the hinges had broken and its handle had shattered.

But Luna got no time to catch her breath. No sooner were these words said that something heavy struck against her. Once, then twice.

She raised her shield, in time to intercept the next shard. And there she saw the Archmage rise, haggard with a steely glare. Another shard flew, towards Cadance…

And Luna knew what had to be done.

She flew past Cadance, catching a brief glimpse of her wide-eyed look, before she met the Archmage head on.

Luna crashed against the Archmage, sending them rolling towards the open, windswept edge of the room. Amidst the cries of the guards still present, and the rapid, desperate spells firing off from both her and the Archmage’s horns, they fell.

And with a booming crack, they impacted the wooden deck of the airship.

Coughing out dust, Luna stirred, and looked up just in time to conjure a shield, meeting the Archmage’s scorching blast head on.

“Do not think for a moment that you will harm nor lay a single hoof on Cadance, Twilight Sparkle!” Luna exclaimed fiercely. Her sword had been reconjured, and her parries matched the Archmage's frenzied yet precise strikes. “I will not allow it.”

But her longsword, magical as it was, would not hold forever against the orichalcum blade.

With a gust of wind, she flew back onto the wider deck. She needed space, yet with the commotion and judging by the screams she heard, the Guards and crew would stir soon.

Even as she struck the Archmage with another blow against her armoured side, Luna hoped it wasn’t all too late for Cadance.

Around them, the nighttime skies were alight with the fires of battle...

~ Boston, USA ~

A small patch on the left side of the Great Equestrian burst into flame.

“What,” Major Bauer said, “In God’s name. Is going on.”

Nobody answered.

“We have no idea,” Starfall’s voice crackled over his earpiece. Princess Luna seems to be inside there, but… it looks like something’s gone South.”

Stephan watched debris from the hole coursing down towards the city streets.

You don’t say.

He reached for his radio. Around him, his men were lining up into APCs, ready to mobilise.

“This is Major Stephan Bauer,” he said. “All available units South of the Charles River, prepare for the enemy push.”

He glanced North. The river had provided a natural barrier, but now, with the battle reignited, he wondered if the Empire had been humoring them.

“Hold the line,” he said firmly, to a chorus of acknowledgment from the radio.

“Yes sir,” Yael Ze’ev said, over his radio. “We’ll give them a welcome they won’t forget.”

Yet even as he holstered his radio and drew his sword, Stephan wondered if they’d hold.

~ The Great Equestrian ~

With the winds blowing and floor splintered around them, Luna fought on with gritted teeth.

The Archmage’s blows, magical and not, were stronger than she’d expected, even as she parried them with shields and charms. Yet she was an alicorn, and the Archmage was not. Her wings flared, she rose above, and she blew a gust of wind at the Archmage, forcing her back. Twilight glared at Luna, yet this was no reprieve for either of them.

There was a commotion at the door. A squadron of Guards, Equestrians and hippogriffs alike, rapidly streamed in. Their spears were aimed at Luna, crossbow bolts fired at her – deflecting harmlessly or outright shattered against her armour. One spear managed to embed itself in a crack between plates, but that was all.

Yet that was enough to give rise to a small cheer from the Guards. How full of conviction these unyielding opponents were. Luna glanced at the spear, and snorted. She was not amused.

“Did you ever think your loyalties would be rewarded?” she yelled, parrying another spear thrown at her. The zebra who’d thrown it now valiantly charged her, only to be easily thrown back by the gust she’d summoned. “Tell me, all of you! When was the last time you remember the sound of Reindeer dancing in the night sky? What gifts did Sint Erklass bring this year, or the year before?”

There she saw the Archmage, flanked by her Guards, keeping her distance with her sword split into several pieces.

“You speak nothing but slander, Luna–” the Archmage began, but Luna stomped a hoof, thunderously cracking the deck.

“Silence!” Luna boomed. Yes, they would hear her, even above these winds. “What did you do to them. What did you do.”

“Adlaborn remains in the Frozen North!" the Archmage shouted defiantly.

But it was not she who needed convincing, Luna hoped. Wherever their loyalties may lie, she could only hope her words would reach the Guards. They had amassed again by her side.

She did not have to fight them all.

Luna hissed. “There were children, cast aside and burnt, whole families put to the sword!”

The hippogriff, Shearwater, flew down from the hole above, and boldly stepped forward between Luna and Twilight. But Luna saw the faintest of hesitation in her eyes.

“And you still serve her!

Twilight shook her head. “Step aside, Shearwater. All of you,” she told the Guards. “You focus on the false Cadance.”

“You can’t fight this alone, M’lady!” Shearwater protested, raising her spear a notch.

“I won’t be alone,” said the Archmage. “The richest fruit of the Queen’s providence will aid me.”

If this was a cryptic statement to Luna, Shearwater appeared to understand it instantly, as the hippogriff lowered her spear, nodding, and turned to her fellow Guards.

“Fall back!” she cried. “We let the Archmage deal with this! And you heard her, find Cadenza!”

“Very clever, Twilight,” Luna said acidly, while the Guards beat their retreat towards the nearest doors, leaving them alone on the deck. “What, are you afraid our little chat may have sowed doubt in them after all?”

“Shut up,” the Archmage spat. “Shut up!”

Luna’s horn glowed. Her silver longsword and midnight-blue shield were conjured anew.

She fixed her glare upon the Archmage – who now stood alone, orichalcum shards circling her. Alone, as when she had begun her studies.

“And what of Spike, the little drake you called brother?” Luna continued fiercely. “Did you cast him aside too? Chain him in a dungeon for defiance!”

Twilight flinched. “You don’t know what I–”

“You’ve sacrificed your very mind to this wretched cause, Archmage!” Luna interrupted. Contemptuously, she telekinetically snatched the spear from her armour, snapping it in half, and threw it to the floor. “But even I never thought you, of all people, would treat family that way!”

“You dare,” hissed the Archmage. “How dare you… he made his choice, and I won’t have you question–”

“His choice, or yours Archmage?!”

“We helped him!” the Archmage protested. “He’d made a mistake, and we fixed him when he was done! Now he c–”

This time, Luna answered with a lightning bolt, fired from her horn.

“Sentient beings are not things to be fixed!” Luna yelled, punctuating that burst of lightning. “Did Celestia’s little venture teach you nothing?!”

“Don’t you dare talk to me about what she would want!” Twilight yelled.

The Archmage’s lavender shield flared and burnt, yet held. But it sufficed for the Archmage to be pushed a pole’s reach away, hooves scrabbling for a hold on the wrecked floorboards,

Her orichalcum shards, though, continued their fluid motion in the air. The Archmage had not forgotten them, Luna found out, for she riposted. One by one, they struck down, hard, upon her midnight shield. Even Luna’s alicorn power could not withstand that. Her shield sparked and frazzled as chunks of it were ripped away by the blows.

However, the blows were finite, and Luna needed only to break the Archmage’s concentration. As soon as the last of the shards had come down, Luna let her horn glow once more.

A burst of blue fire erupted from the deck surrounding her. Hovering close to the floor, the orichalcum shards, which had seemed intent on next cutting at the base of Luna’s shield, now tumbled into the flames as their wielder cried in alarm.

There, with the Archmage distracted by the spreading fire – rising in the wind – did Luna see the chance to seize her enemy and drag her off the airship. She fired another lightning bolt, one that would surely remove the Archmage’s last wards with ease…

Except a shadow flew past, and took the brunt of the blow, landing in a smoking heap.

Her gaze turned in time to see another shadow come barreling at her, with an unequine snarl. Though it was with ease that she tossed it aside with her head, it was far from alone. The doors were full of these equine shadows – no, not shadows. Ghouls, all bearing the same, hostile, blank expressions.

These, Luna knew what these were. They had crawled out from Alexander Reiner’s nightmares.

To the Archmage!” the lead Newfoal cried.

Clad in armour, clearly made with function and cost-efficiency in mind, he was a brown earthpony. He joined his brethren in charging right at Luna.

They galloped, ignoring the flames before them.

Each second slowed to a crawl. At the sight of these figures, Luna had been seized by an inarticulate sense of wrongness. Those forced grimaces, like little foals trying too hard to look intimidating. Those flat and glassy eyes. Eyes that reflected the fire and held no fire within.

“Stay back!” Luna cried out, her own voice muffled and faraway. “We can–“

The lead Newfoal charged through the flame. In an instant, it was ablaze. It slammed against her shield with the weight of its entire body. Memories and reality blurred into one. The nightmare that haunted humanity was hers now.

Another one, also a unicorn, picked up a nearby bench and tossed it at her shield.

A pegasus screeched, and rushed Luna’s shield, its wings’ tips sparking.

It hit it bodily, with one shoulder, the wing folded back. And in that same moment, the burning unicorn that had bodily slammed her shield hit it again with its head, in perfect synchronicity.

Its head, the pegasus’ shoulders, both slammed against her shield in perfect time, a ghastly music with the crackle of flames for a lower key.

“You don’t have to do this,” Luna said desperately. “You will only hurt yourself. You–”

The Newfoal headbutted the shield. This time, when his head came back up, Luna saw bone, under the melting skin…

What?

The split-second was enough for the shield to falter. And the weakness in the shield was enough for the unicorns to barrage it with magic, enough for the pegasus to hit the shield again, enough for that earthpony to headbutt it again.

Enough for him to push through.

He fell to the floor, bleeding from his head wound, a fiery knot consuming him. But the terrible cascade of bodies continued, some alight, some not.

“Get back!” Luna screamed, raising her weapon.

But they were too close for the long reach of her sword. They hit her like a tidal wave, relentless, unforgiving, too massive to stop. Worse than a tidal wave. A wave comes in only one direction. A Maelstrom, the conflagration spreading.

They pushed, they stabbed, and her armour grew tighter, and tighter still. It was too hot. Armoir could not protect her from the heat of the blaze. Their hooves struck again, and again, against the smooth obsidian plating. Wherever she looked she saw wide, frenzied eyes, eager to serve, empty as the puppets they were. And they all wore the same, distant, furious glare, as they pounded against her again, and again.

“Yield!” they cried. “Yield now!

“Surrender, Nightmare Moon!”

“For the Queen!”

Traitor!

Luna staggered, and faltered, but she couldn’t fall, as they pushed from all sides. Soon the noises blurred together to a rabble, a droning sound that pounded her psyche. It was too hot. She needed to breathe. Her chest felt short of breath, the armour’s protective grip turned to a prison she was bound to.

Then the light through her visor went out, covered in dark a mass of fur and hide, and she had nowhere else to go.

Puppets all around. Unfeeling. Unnatural. They moved, pounded in rhythm, grappling onto her. Metal against glass, burnt flesh, on and on it went. She needed to breathe. Only darkness remained. Amidst the droning, amidst the tightening grip of the puppets that swarmed her.

She thought of Celestia. Of Cadance. Even of Discord, and of Galena. But they weren’t here. Her sister most of all, and she needed her, warm and kind and compassionate.

She shouldn’t need her. She was Luna. She was the Princess of the Night. Yet here she was afraid and alone amidst the growing mass and–

She couldn’t breathe.

Enough!”

Her horn shone the brightest it ever had. In a split second, all those who had covered her in their body, grappling at her armour, were blasted aside. A blast so strong that fires blew out.

Luna’s wings spread open in a display. A desperate stand, but she didn’t care much about that. Her breathing was shallow and rapid. She needed to breathe. She had to avoid them. Had to cast them aside. She needed her room. She needed her sister here.

They didn’t scream. Groans here and there when they crashed against the wooden deck and metal railing, but not a single oath or cry. Even from those few unfortunates blasted off the deck, who fell like a stone to the city below. A few had stayed alight, and so they fell, like stars.

Between her ragged, hoarse breathing, Luna glanced up long enough to behold the Archmage, her robe torn and tattered by the fire, through the dissipating smoke.

She spat.

You...

“I… they… they were supposed to…” said Twilight.

No, not Twilight.

“What did you do to them?” Luna yelled.

The Archmage stepped forward. Trying to regain footing. Trying to stay confident. “I accomplished our mission,” she said, and Luna could not tell if it was forced. “We… we made them better! Stronger! Happier! We uplifted th–”

“You’ve done no such thing!” Luna roared, in the full Royal Canterlot Voice.

She paused, taking a much-needed breath. Her lungs felt tight.

“Is that all, all there is to them? Slaves and tools and puppets for you?”

The shadows around Luna grew ever so darker. Deeper. They were her shadows now. And the burnt-out smoke swhirled around her. It was mist. Her mist.

“We,” she hissed, trembling as she adjusted a gauntlet, “are going to burn this atrocity you’ve perpetrated down to ash. Inch by inch.”

The Queen’s faithful student took a step back. Luna lunged forwards, longsword at the ready. And in her power, she ordered the mists to blind the Archmage.

Twilight yelped, staggering as her hooves rose, too late, to cover her eyes. Ther lavender shield flickered in and out of existence, and Luna saw an opening.

Her swing missed, by an inch. It sliced a tuft of the Archmage’s mane. Cursing, Luna stepped back while her enemy coughed raggedly, her reunified sword flailing blindly.

Help!” the Archmage yelled. “Anyone! Help me, please...

Luna could have essayed another strike, here while her enemy cried helplessly.

Something held her back.

She looked down, and saw where the tuft of Twilight’s mane had landed. A vision swam before her then, of another tuft just like this, not one hour ago… A precious keepsake to someone who, like her, had been an enemy of Equestria, until kindness and compassion had saved them.

Quietly, Luna lifted the tuft in her aura, and let her null-space pocket it.

The Archmage’s desperate screams faded into the night air. Soon only the ambience of the battle raging below was left. But Twilight found Luna again, and glared at her with red eyes.

Nothing happened, for a moment, as both considered the other, their weapons pointed.

Luna’s horn glowed dangerously, and so did the Archmage’s. Whatever spell she was going to cast next, Luna thought, had to end this as quickly as possible.

But then, it came.

At first she felt something move, deep inside the airship. With its rumbling, ragged breaths, it was as if the airship itself was coming alive. Then the floor began to rumble, and the airship moved with each slam and thump of whatever it was. Luna turned – to be met by a giant claw ripping through the deck, right onto her face.

She wasn’t fast enough.

The scaly fist met her head on, and pain coursed through her body as she was flung away, crashing through the deck’s floor until she came to a halt at the opposite end of the airship.

Through a ringing in her ears, Luna gazed upon the monstrosity before her, and gasped.

The dragon that emerged before her was no small drake. Its voluminous head alone was easily half as tall as a human, and twice as long as Alexander Reiner was tall. Enormous as it was, clad in heavy steel armour to boot, the beast crawled out as if it was much, much lighter. It raised itself besides the Archmage, a muscular wing draped protectively around her.

Yet despite the muscular wings swept across its back, the dragon was much too small to be full-grown. Its scales were so stained and dull, Luna could barely tell if they were purple or grey. It stared at her with glassy, barely-seeing eyes.

There was something about it that seemed curiously... stretched. Like the scales didn’t quite fit over the body, with stitches and curiously thin patches all over. Something about its scales made her think of a stallion wearing a colt’s clothes. Or–

No...

And all of a sudden Luna knew.

“Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said, horrified as she stared at the thing that had once been Spike. “What have you done?

* * * * *

Cadance hurried herself through the depths of the airship, armoured legs making an audible ‘clink’ sound as she galloped across metal flooring. She had to have caught up with the ones who were transporting Discord by now. And how come she’d met no further resistance yet? Then again, this was a big airship. Maybe she still had ground to cover.

Held in her aura, the tuft of Fluttershy’s mane served as a guide, her magic sympathetic to the proverbial red string tying the pegasus, in body and soul, to Discord.

I’d better make this quick.’ the Princess of Love thought to herself, ‘I can still hear Aunt Luna’s fight elsewhere. Hopefully that’ll draw the Guards away, but I can’t be too long...

She didn’t know much about airships. That was more of a passion that belonged to Blueblood. But time spent with her cousin had allowed her to glean a few details. If memory served her well, a ship’s cargo hold would be at the back.

Much of the ship was lined with wood, but here in the depths, Cadance saw this give way to riveted steel, as its innards grew more utilitarian in design. Letting her magic lead her, she popped through an open hatch, and found herself in a metal corridor. Here, she noticed, the bulbs dotted the walls, not the ceiling. And their pale white light was fluorescent, rather than the comforting yellow of incandescence.

At the far end was a flight of metallic stairs, leading down. They stopped before an entrance. This had to be it.

Cadance heard a hiss of steam, and almost jumped. She looked up. Pipes of all sizes ran the length of the ceiling, connected to the vast doorway at the bottom of the staircase. A ticking noise caught her attention. Gears, clicking. To her marvel, the entrance was closing, a sturdy pair of double-doors sliding shut, venting steam as it did so.

She sensed no magic, only machinery.

Amazing… just like Kirin clockwork…’ Cadance thought. ‘And… and shoot! Must get through before those doors close!

With a beat of her wings, she whooshed down the corridor. The mechanism’s slowness proved her boon. Those doors looked heavy, and even as she passed them by a comfortable margin, Cadance grimaced to imagine their weight crushing her sides.

Crates both metal and wood greeted her, to the side. Instinctively, she dove into a gap between the crates, landing silently as she could.

She took a breath, waiting, as the doors closed behind her. Would she be going back that way? In any event, if they’d been open, that could only mean someone had recently come in here.

“...We don’t want to break him,” she heard a voice say, “be careful!”

It was Rainbow Dash.

Warily, Cadance peeked up from her hiding spot. She soon saw that recovering Discord wouldn’t be easy. There was a row of five smaller airships – or sky-boats, Blueblood would have corrected her – lined up to the left of the cargo hold. In front of one, a small group of cadets – at least they looked like cadets, if Shiny’s descriptions were still accurate – was working to load a large crate off a cart. And overlooking them were Dash and a vaguely familiar orange pegasus in a crystalline cadet armour.

Cadance couldn’t recall if she’d seen the other mare before, yet still there was something familiar about her...

I need to focus.’ she thought, taking in what was before her.

If the four cadets and Dash were all she had to face, this would be quickly over and done with. She did have surprise on her side, after all.

Hopefully, this could be simple. Simple and not a drawn-out engagement. Charging up her horn, Cadance stepped out and made her presence known with a bolt of magic.

It flash-struck the startled cadets, but not their two pegasi overseers, who were quick to open their wings and evade the bolt with angry cries. The crate containing Discord – that was what it had to be, given its size and shape – fell to the floor.

Or rather, it would have, if not for a magical aura that caught it before it landed. From its intended sky-boat emerged the one person who could have given Cadance a shock.

Clad in a modified armour, still purple-coloured, still proudly displaying a crest of a shield and star, it was Shining Armor. And the second he locked eyes with her, his gaze turned from cold and empty into a vicious glare.

Cadance felt her breath hitch, the crates behind pressing her in.

“Shiney…?”

“Rainbow Dash, Starstruck.” Shining’s horn shone as he stepped off the airship, effortlessly loading the crate inside, “pack in the cadets up and prepare to disembark. We’ll handle this… Cadance.”

He said her name with such venom.

The two pegasi complied, swooping down to pick up the unconscious cadets.

Not knowing what else to do, Cadance lashed out again with her magic, but a translucent purple barrier appeared before Shining, upon which her lightning-bolt broke like tinder.

“Can’t pull the same trick twice, Cadance!” Shining snarled. “I don’t know where you summoned the energy to bypass my shield, but I’m ready for it this time… And I know your magic like you know mine!”

A violent gust of wind buffeted Cadance, knocking her off her hooves and sending her crashing into the crates.

Coughing, aching, Cadance tried pushing herself up. She felt pain in more ways than one. She’d lost hold of Fluttershy’s tuft of mane.

“Shining…” she croaked. “Shining, it’s me. I helped raise your baby sister.”

From across the bay, he gave a bitter laugh. “Of course,” he said. “The old bleeding-heart trick… If you’d really cared, you’d never have left.”

His horning was resplendent with intensifying light, that cast long shadows.

“It’s…” Cadance started. “It’s not like that!” Her mine was addled, by fear and pain and sorrow. “Oh, Shining…” she whispered. “Where did you go so wrong?”

“Funny you should ask that…” Shining said, still laughing bitterly. “You used to think something wasn’t right with you. I wondered how a filly like you could notice me… Never had thought, until we got engaged, how you felt about your wings… As if I needed your wings to love you.”

What…

That didn’t gel with the history she knew of her and Shining.

Hesitantly, Cadance raised herself. She didn’t use hooves. With calculated, practiced grace, she let her wings spread, feathers tickling the air. They made her feel less heavy, somehow. As if, in raising them, it was all her burdens that took flight.

She heard Shining gasp.

“This is me, Shiney,” she said quietly. “I’m whole.”

It was then that Cadance was blindsided by two things. Firstly, a delayed realisation about Shining’s phrasing from earlier. He’d said “we’ll” instead of “I’ll”. Secondly, more literally, was when she got rushed by something that charged into her like a buffalo.

Forced across the cargo hold, Cadance managed to stop herself from hitting the wall by taking to the air, thanks to her spread-out wings. Upon landing back to the floor, Cadance found a blurry shape rushing towards her, from the air.

Acting quickly, she activated her shield. This caused her assailant, who reacted with swift wit, to instead land before her with outstretched wings.

“What the–” Cadance uttered, taking a look at the foe.

“I love him,” told an unknown voice, disorienting to hear. “I will always love him. I cherish him every day and night. For I’m his.”

What is this?’ Cadance strained to think through disorienting emotions. ‘It’s not natural.

“I would die for him, for I love him that much,” the voice continued, the words toxic to Cadance’s senses. “I will always love him. Never less, and always more compared to anything else.”

Cadance lashed out with another blast of magic, this one forcing the foe to duck, and granting her time to compose herself.

The Princess of Love was quick to determine a few facts. The one facing her was a pink pegasus mare. The golden armour she wore was scuffed and scratched, clearly dented. And then there was… there was this thing about her.

This mare was feeling something, but not on her own. It couldn’t be love, it was too… unlike love for it to actually be love.

“Who are you?” Cadance asked the mare, whose barrel twitched upwards slightly.

“I’m his wife,” the mare answered, her dark purple eyes empty and sardonic, “and I’m–”

“Ardor!” Shining called out, affection in his voice. “Get yourself to safety. We’re holding this fort.”

The mare – Ardor – beamed with what was absolutely not a smile, and immediately trotted off towards Shining. On her way, however, she came across the tuft Cadance had dropped.

“Ah, yes,” said Ardor, picking it up with her wing and turning, to smile at Cadance. “I think I’ll be taking that, too.”

And Cadance saw red.

Give that back, you–”

Before Cadance could follow, Shining unleashed the spell he’d spent the last few minutes building up. A split second too late, and the full force of the spell would have been on Cadance. Her shields went up, just in time. More than that, they expanded.

If she’d been thinking rationally, Cadance would’ve been as surprised as any when her shields, in absorbing the energy of her husband’s assault, flickered and rumbled, as the push of excess magic burst out all around the cargo bay, and destroyed it.

* * * * *

Spell, fire, lightning. The wooden deck, ablaze.

Yet the dragon, protected doubly by his scales and armour, refused to yield. And neither did his master and once-sister.

Luna’s obsidian armour held against yet another strike of the dragon’s fist, one she met head-on. This time, she stood her ground. Her forehooves, though dwarfed by his fist, caught it mid-blow. Momentum took over, and the deck buckled and splintered as the dragon’s feet dug into the carved wood.

Yet herein lay the problem, Luna thought. She could push back, her hooves against his claws, but the Archmage would turn her attention to her once more.

As she did now.

A flash as bright as her sister’s Sun struck her visor. And with it came the dragon’s fire.

The armour was invulnerable to this element, even as it glowed from the pressure. But the Princess who wore it was not, for the heat was not of Luna’s realm. And it burnt. A hundred times worse than when the Newfoals had rushed her, it burnt.

She flew back in a burst. That split second of the fire grazing her was too much. Luna felt sharp pain all along her lower lip, and felt she’d bitten herself, hard. Thank goodness she had not bitten into her tongue… Worse, though, was the sight of her wings, where red embers still fizzled on the tips his flame had singed.

The dragon gave her no time to recover. On a command from the Archmage, he leapt, his great tail arcing behind him, curling his fist to strike Luna from above.

The armour did not falter, but Luna wished it could have done more, as the impact sent her crashing through the decks of the airship, through metal and wood and glass, into open air.

Cold air caught her, shocked her senses back into action. Her wings flared open, just in time to move her away from another jet of fire. She glared and flew to meet the dragon. Below her, the city sang an infernal cacophony of battle.

Is he conscious?Luna wondered, as the dragon swatted his tail towards her.

On his back, hooves secured on a harness, Twilight was either yelling or cackling, her dignified mane billowing in the wind.

“Don’t make me do it.”

Luna stared, confounded, at the huge drake, as he rushed her again. ‘What was that?she thought, rolling ever so slightly to one side and narrowly avoiding a blast of green fire.

“Spike, we have to go. Now. I can’t do this. They’re planning something bad. I’ve spent so long tending to the wounded, bringing back beauty and helping to rebuild, that they haven’t gotten to me yet.”

Rarity? No, a memory of Rarity, Luna folded her wings and diving down while Spike blew a powerful gust of green flame at her. ‘How am I sensing these?

But dragons, the academic side of her remembered, even as she plunged, had strange minds. Immune to most forms of mental enslavement, with some exceptions, like the gaze of a Changeling Queen...

Seeing the monstrosity that faced her, this thought brought her no comfort. No matter the cost, there were those who’d pay dearly to master a dragon.

“What happened to Twilight? To Pinkie? They’d never consider thi–”

”But somehow, they are. I don’t know, but I need to leave. We can stop this. We have to stop this, but we can’t do it from here.”

“We will find you!” the Archmage screamed. “We’ll make you–”

It was almost a blessing to hear the other words, rather than that hateful screech, as they whispered in her ear, chiming above the whistle of the wind.

“I swear to you when I came back, I didn’t know them. I had to remind myself that these were my best friends.”

Rarity, then.

… The wind whipping against their faces. The two of them leaving Manehattan and rushing for the forests outside the farmland that ringed Fillydelphia. They’d make their way to Hope Hollow, and hide on a boat headed East. If only the dragons were still out there…

“You can’t do this! This… this is sick! Wrong! Evil! And you’ll never make me into…”

“Oh, Rarity. Spike. You’ve made your choices.”

What has she done? Luna thought, dodging another burst of fire.

Whatever had been done to the poor drake, it called to mind forgotten magics from the time that Celestia and she had unified Equestria. Or perhaps “forgotten” wasn’t the right word. “Buried” was closer.

Dark, evil spells.

Spells that only the Royal Sisters would know of. Spells only they could have performed.

“How could you?!” Luna yelled.

Whatever the Archmage’s answer was going to be, Luna didn’t know or care. She jerked her horn forwards, a blue-purple beam lancing forth from it.

It hammered into the armoured torso of the beast, just ahead of his wing. He roared in pain. A look of panic crossed the Archmage’s face as she struggled to hold onto its back.

Keep it together. If I knock her off of Spike…’ Luna thought fleetingly.

Her dive had taken her close to the rooftops, now. Below a few, even. She arced back and shot up into the sky, the windows of tall buildings rushing along beneath her. Shot up so fast, she passed the Archmage and her steed in a straight line.

Spike roared, releasing a gout of scorching green fire after her. She felt the heat licking at her, at her tail.

“Luna!” the Archmage cried. “You’re going to come back here, face the consequences, and–”

Luna folded her wings to her sides, bat-like, letting herself drop back. Channeling magic through her wings, she cannoned towards the Archmage like an arrow from a bow, her aura-held sword preceding her.

It was a gamble, and she knew it.

The Archmage’s horn glowed. A shield began to form over her, then spread over Spike…

In a way, they were both too late. Finding an exposed, unguarded spot above his armour’s neck-line, Luna’s sword slashed a long, but shallow runnel through Spike’s throat, scraping through scale and against bone. She was close, so close!

And then she saw the shield, mere inches from her face. The worst possible option would be for her to get trapped inside with the dragon.

She folded her left wing to her barrel’s side and rolled to the right. She almost didn’t make it. The rim on the closing shield caught her. Gasping, Luna bounced and skidded off of its surface, tumbling towards the ground.

“Spike!” cried a voice from above. “You hurt Spike!”

Luna spread both her wings, banking to the left and finding her balance once more.

“You have no right to accuse someone of that!” Luna yelled, staring up and trying to ignore the burning pain in her wings. Her own shield was cast in time to intercept another pot-shot from the enraged unicorn. “None!”

But even as she said so, a touch of guilt remained. She hefted her longsword in her telekinesis, pointing it towards Twilight.

She was about to pick up speed. About to rush the Archmage and Spike again, but then there was a change in the wind. Something that stood out from the spells cast in the streets. Luna turned her gaze above, to the great airship brought by the Empire.

And there she saw it happen.

An explosion at the airship, far above the streets. A sky-boat burst out of the smoke, its balloon set ablaze, spiralling out of control. And next to it, something small and pink fell from the smoke.

'Cadance.'

She had to think fast.

Her horn glowed. The dragon rushed first, onto her, his claws open.

And then she grabbed on. With all her strength, she grasped his arm with her aura. He screeched, and the Archmage yelled. Luna held.

In a burst of speed, she flew back, dragging the dragon and his master with her. Her invisible shields glowed as the Archmage’s speels impacted it with desperate blasts. The foul stench of the dark, necrotic magic crept in, but Luna ignored it.

She took one last glance at Cadance, unconscious and helpless, and strengthened her resolve.

With a terrific cry she took off, and spun around, the dragon in her vice-like magical grip. He screeched and roared, trashing with all his might. Strong as he was, broken and enhanced and twisted, he was not the Princess of the Night. And then Luna let go, sending dragon and rider both hurtling into the nearest skyscraper.

Please tell me no-one’s inside…’ Luna thought, feeling faint.

She tore her gaze away before the deafening impact of metal against concrete, and soared. She needed to reach Cadance.

The winds rushed by. The city below grew smaller. She was getting close.

Closer.

She saw Cadance. Her singed mane. Missing pieces of armour. Her wings hanging limp. And she was speeding to the ground.

She hastened her flight. Her teeth gritted. She had to reach her.

So close. She couldn’t fail now.

And–

She succeeded.

She reached for the Princess of Love, her aura enveloping them both. And there Cadance was, wrapped in her protective embrace.

Luna didn’t let go for a long, long time. Not when the explosions in the skies intensified. Not when she saw the dragon crawl out of the rubble that had been a skyscraper. And not when the Imperial forces began to move against the human positions nearby.

Only when, atop a wrecked high-rise, Luna found a small, burnt café, did she set down Cadance.

~ Boston, USA ~

The first thought that went through Major Bauer’s mind was, ‘Well, scheisse. I knew that the Blue Spy should have looked into this…

He was aware there had been a number of rumours surrounding Rarity and Spike.

Gladmane had pressed his Resistance colleagues as hard as he could about the topic, even broken out blackmail material on government contacts. In broad strokes, what Stephan understood was Rarity had expressed some disagreement with the other Bearers. Then she had disappeared, taking Spike with her. But, soon enough, she’d resurfaced as the picture of poise and dignity, designing uniforms for the Solar Empire, a pillar of their propaganda.

But Spike, curiously enough for the family of one Bearer, had been nowhere to be seen. Rumours circulated that he’d been killed, or the Empire was keeping him somewhere secure like Erebus or the Castle of the Two Sisters. Yet the Resistance had never been able to pinpoint where.

Now, he had.

Hölle und Fegefeuer, Stephan thought, watching as the dragon’s breath illuminated the clouds again in an eerie glow. ‘A real, live dragon. That should be so awesome! Why did they have to go and ruin that, too?

“Major!” Alicia called out, from the nearest APC. “Ready to move!”

Stephan gave her a stern nod. He’d hated the moniker, really, but it seemed as if there’d always be a need for the Knight of Germania.

He climbed on.

“Let’s go.”

* * * * *

In truth, a skyscraper was no small obstacle. Not least one of the tallest skyscrapers that had once adorned the Boston skyline. Yet here Twilight was, coughing in the debris, very much alive. She’d been protected from the impact of Luna’s strike by her shield, cracked yet resolute, and the embrace of her companion.

Alive, yes. But pleased, not at all.

Luna... she betrayed me! Us! Equestria! she seethed, looking over the skyline. ‘For humanity. Why?

Twilight almost felt hurt by that question.

Why would she do that? Why does anypony, especially an alicorn, want to?

She shook her head, weakly. Were it not for Spike’s mass, she’d be buffetted by the winds. Past the great broken windows, she saw a yellow sky-boat approaching.

No. This isn’t Luna. This is... not m- ours. We can still save her. I… I need time. I’m sure I can convince her. Once she sees the magic of our friendship, she’ll return.

But deep down, she wondered how easy that would be. She thought of all the ponies that had failed themselves and Equestria by joining the PHL or hiding on Earth. Some of them had come back around, with some… convincing. But quite a few hadn’t.

Spike rumbled, his claws wrapped around her fatigued body. He pushed debris aside with his wings and growled, thus alerting the Guard unit on the sky-boat.

He didn’t speak.

So gentle, Twilight thought.

“Here! There she is!” she heard them calling, amidst the clatter of their armour.

“Lady Archmage!” a blue-eyed unicorn officer hailed from the sky-boat. “Are you alright?”

Twilight coughed. “In one piece. Thanks for asking!” she called back. “Spike,” she told her steed. “Help me up, please.”

Her companion rumbled approvingly, and stretched out his arm, forming a bridge to the boat. Gingerly, Twilight hopped on and followed its length. When she reached Spike’s upraised palm, he gently set her down beside the unicorn captain.

Twilight contemplated the stallion. His armour was well-worn. And from the accent, she reckoned he was Fillydelphian born and bred.

“What’s your name?” she asked, breathing raggedly. “So… so good of you to come.”

“Captain Sparks Timber, Ma’am,” he stated. “15th Fillydelphian Regiment, escorting the Trailblazers. We’re part of the front-liners who were assigned South of the river to root out Captain Reiner.”

“Trailblazers, eh? I’ll see you get an award for this,” Twilight said. “You’re so very kind.”

“Well, ah…” Sparks Timber rubbed the back of his head with one foreleg. “Means a lot to hear that, but it’s nothing special. Only what anyone should do.”

Twilight’s reply died away when Spike made a noise that wasn’t quite a growl or mewl. He rubbed his slashed throat, clearly in pain. When his claws came away, they were stained with blood and something that was very much not blood.

“Spike, shhh… It’s okay, it’s okay,” she turned to coo at him, gently. “I’ll… I’ll ask for a proper neck-guard on that armour, when we get back, okay? I’m… so sorry. You’ll never get hurt again.”

Spike made that not-growl noise again.

She leaned over the sky-boat’s railing, precariously, deaf to Timber’s alarmed warning, and pressed her head to his. It felt soothing, she knew it did. Yet, even as she did so, the question in her mind tugged once more.

Why couldn’t Luna understand? No, it wasn’t her Luna. It never was. But she could be.

She had to try. Had to turn her away. The Luna she knew would have never turned her back on the Equestria she loved, or her sister, or even hers–

Concentrate,’ Twilight thought. She needed to. ‘Find Luna. Bring her home. Help her.

Help her, as she had in the Crystal War. All the research they’d done, all the depths they’d explored into finding a way to end it. And beyond, with Luna’s visits and lectures and studies in the night, watching stars align, stolen little moments in her garden...

Now her own libraries and laboratories were that much emptier, without the Princess who’d once livened them up with her love for the magical arts.

It had started before then, of course, from the moment a very displeased, sleep-deprived Luna had stepped into a war-torn Canterlot, overrun by Changelings.

Of course, Luna later insisted she merely acted as a distraction for the real heroes to step in. Yet Twilight hadn’t cared to take her at face value. How she hoped she‘d repaid it in kind when her own new spell-craft had helped Celestia and Luna end the Crystal War, together.

Twelve years of friendship had, begun one Nightmare Night, ending in a stone statue in the Canterlot Palace Gardens. She hadn’t cried then. She shouldn’t cry now.

Yet her chance was slipping away with every second.

It had been a blow for Equestria when their beloved warrior princess adamantly refused to join the war on Earth. And a personal heartbreak when she’d outright deserted, with the traitor Cadance.

Twilight moved her head away. She had to make this right.

“Captain Timber,” she spoke aloud. The unicorn stood straight. “Any word from Captain Armor?”

Great Equestrian’s secure for now, Ma’am,” said Timber. “The last we heard is of a… package being transferred to one of the lifeboats… which then crashed. We got the Trailblazers looking for it. I’d just received a confirmed sighting from Captain Plow, then we saw you land into this building.”

“A sighting? Where?”

The captain pointed to a column of smoke, from a location bordering the Boston Harbor.

“Over there, Ma’am. Don’t look like much but, earlier, we saw a flare go up. Somewhere in the North End, probably Langone Park.”

Twilight rapidly sifted through her inner library for Boston geography.

“East of the North Washington Street Bridge,” she muttered. “They were that close to making it to Charlestown… too bad the Bridge’s been blown up. And enemy forces will have noticed their flare as well.”

“Trailblazers got a boat,” the captain said. “But they might not make it for long without backup. Shall we assist them?”

“Absolutely,” said Twilight firmly. “Prepare to set course for Langone Park, captain. But, if I may have just a minute?”

The captain saluted. Twilight turned to regard Spike. Her Spike.

He shouldn’t be this large. The dragon instincts within him started a growth that was far too much, in far too little time. He was broken, too. Wounded and crippled in his flight from Canterlot. Yet they’d persisted, and worked, and he was whole once again as he should be. And that was good, wasn’t it?

“Spike?” she said. The dragon rumbled. “It’ll be over soon. I need you to do one thing.” She leaned closer to his ear. “Cover us. Keep them distracted. And if you can… Find Cadance. Draw her out, if you have to,” she whispered. “Would you kindly do so, Spike?”

The great dragon purred contently, and Twilight saw that it was good.

* * * * *

“Fire! It’s all arou

I can’t put it out! I can’t put it out

“What the hell is tha–”

The radio crackled and chittered, yet always told the same story.

Hardly an hour had passed, yet Ana saw that Starfall was absolutely correct in evacuating them. Her previous sniper nest was on fire. Well, somehow ‘on fire’ didn’t quite encapsulate it. It was more like a green wall of flame that couldn’t be extinguished.

Minutes ago, something had flown from the Great Equestrian, fought the dark alicorn, and crashed into what used to be the John Hancock Center, before it crawled out, none the worse for wear. At least, that’s what she’d understood, from scattered radio chatter.

All over the city, it was the same. Buildings burned green, and Ana heard screaming and crackling in every direction. All as that thing flew overhead, green fire raking over the city.

They passed a gaping hole in the building, scored out by some Imperial weapon weeks before. As the nine of them – Ana, Tanner, Harwood, Frieda, some PHL whose names Ana didn’t know, for they’d met them during the tower’s chaotic evacuation – ran by, Ana caught a glimpse of the thing. She couldn’t quite call it a dragon. It looked…

Well, Ana couldn’t make herself look at it.

“Where are we going!” she yelled to Tanner.

“Somewhere we won’t be on fire!” Tanner answered.

It was tempting to disagree with that, but it wasn’t like there was a good answer. Besides. Who was Ana to disagree with that?

“Where the fuck is it going?” someone yelled out, and Tanner shook his head.

The squad, all nine of them, halted when he did. The gunfire rang incessantly, from the heavy, booming noise of artillery to the hail of small arms exchanging fire with spells.

Ana shuddered to think of whatever poor unit the dragon was pursuing.

“Here it is,” Tanner said, drawing to a close a few metres from a building that had very clearly been a restaurant at some point – but the sign had fallen onto the ground, and was just more rubble. There was a large hole in the wall, barricaded with sandbags, barbed wire, and a very big machine-gun.

Ana vaguely recalled it as some M60 variant.

“This is Tanner, does anyone copy, over?” Tanner spoke aloud to his radio. “We are at Assembly Point Sierra, I say again, we are at Assembly Point Sierra, does anyone copy, over?”

No response as they crept towards the former restaurant.

“It’s no use,” Harwood lamented. His armour was dirtied and tarnished, yet Ana could still see the medical cross clearly across his chest. “They’ve probably evacuated from here already, Tanner.”

“No bodies, though. Curious. And they left the M60,” said a soldier. French, by the sound of it, or possibly Québecois. Ana couldn’t tell. Perhaps she should have taken French.

They were all filtering inside, staring over the modifications the PHL had made. Not that there was much left. Everything, including a large military-grade radio, had been burned and scarred by something.

Ana stopped in her tracks. “This doesn’t feel right.”

“You’re right…” Tanner said. “Damn it all. But this is a defensible position. We need to at least figure out what happened.”

“Well, they couldn’t have just left us here!” Frieda complained, her beak twitching.

Ana’s gaze fell upon the radio, left behind in this former restaurant. She moved past Frieda and Harwood – the latter of whom had begun arguing with Tanner on what merited an evacuation.

The radio was burnt, its knobs and switches destroyed. And there lay a note, simply taped to it.

They got us,it read, in hastily scrawled handwriting. Leave as soon a-

It cut off after that point. The pen lay on the floor.

“Hey, Tanner?” Ana asked aloud. “I don’t… I don’t think we should stay.”

She reached for her pistol. Two magazines left. Twenty rounds.

Tanner nodded. This was, after all, very clearly not a safe place. He turned to Harwood.

“Where’s the closest unit to us?”

“That’d be Ze’ev’s, as far as we know. There’s also one in the subway tunnels, but… I don’t have a good feeling about that,” Harwood said grimly. He nodded towards the Frenchman. “Look, Henri, we just separated from them not ten bloody minutes ago. We should call ‘em in.”

So, Henri was their current comms officer, Ana deduced.

“I’ll get right on... it...” Henri’s voice trailed off. “Tanner. Something’s wrong here.”

Part of Ana wanted it to be nothing. But, in her experience, that was the surest sign that it was very much something there. Even as she bounced between both positions, something changed in the wind. It reminded her of a cold forest night. Empty and devoid of warmth, or any sort of comfort outside the oasis that was a house with a warm bed. The winds around her neck, blowing her hair back.

Yet something stirred. Something that hungered. They were the deer in a wolf’s sight. And the hairs on Ana’s neck stood up.

“Shit.”

She spun around, pistol in hand, towards the counter, and fired a single round.

“Ana, what the hell is–” Tanner started.

But it was drowned out in the sound of the explosion. For an infinitesimal fraction of time, the muzzle flash revealed a unicorn who’d been silently charging up a spell behind the bar…

… And the shattered remnants of a horn, flickering like a child’s sparkler.

Everything in the next two seconds was a blur. The spell, once contained within the horn, had no direction and so it went everywhere.

The Guard, still screeching as he reached for his ruined horn, fell quiet when Ana fired another round into his horn, still emitting sparks. And a second, louder explosion blew his head apart in a cloud of smoke.

She looked away, meeting Harwood in his eyes, and they knew to look outside.

“Contact!” Frieda yelled. Her rifle at the ready. “Lots of contact!”

Amidst the cacophony that erupted, she saw them.

Newfoals.

This would be the part where her blood would run cold. Naturally, it didn’t – Ana was experienced enough to start aiming at them, instinctual enough to know when they moved – but there was always that reflexive sense of wrongness when she saw them.

They all stood, watching them with glassy eyes and stony glares. And for a second, Ana was reminded that these were once people.

Not anymore,’ she thought.

“All masks on, now!” Tanner yelled. Harwood knocked a table down for cover.

She put her earplugs on, and fitted her gas mask. The squad did the same. Even Frieda pulled out the mask designed to fit over her beak. One could never be too sure.

Seconds after Ana had done so, a chair flew across the room, and she flung herself to the right, towards what had once been a comfortable booth.

“Bring them in!” a mare yelled. Someone commanding.

An officer?’’

A ball of blue fire soared over Ana’s head, melting the few remaining shards of glass.

She led the squad here! She… she got them.

Another blast of blue fire.

She’s going down.

“Submit to the queen!” the officer commanded, in a tone that made it clear she did not expect disobedience.

‘Sorry to disappoint, Ana thought, as she rushed towards another section of the former restaurant, passing by anti-Solar Empire graffiti. Harwood and Tanner followed, keeping themselves low to the ground.

They all rushed through a doorway that led into a bar, kept separate from the rest of the restaurant, and leading into a hotel.

Bullet casings littered the ground.

They put up a fight here.

One of the other soldiers slumped against the ground, behind a former booth that Ana could imagine had once been fairly cozy. “You think this is any more def–”

A burst of pink lightning with no obvious source lanced into his suit’s shoulder. He screamed, and Ana was thankful for the fact that her suit’s gas mask made her unable to smell it. She knew from experience that part of his suit would have melted, as would his skin – and that he was probably in intense pain.

“Fuck!” he yelled, clutching his upper arm. “Fucking balls!

He lay on the floor, back arched, screaming in agony.

“Curzon!” someone yelled, poking themselves out of cover…

… and taking a crossbow bolt straight through the faceplate of their helmet, above the gas filter.

There was only one thing that could mean. Ana watched the unfortunate soldier clutching their helmet, before they started spasming uncontrollably, twisting from side to side at angles impossible for the human body, the spine bending far more than should be possible.

Harwood shot them in the face. It was hard, at this angle, this far away, to see what the look on his face was, even with the transparent faceplates on their suits.

And all the while, as spells ripped through that doorway, as the Newfoal militia advanced, as she heard hoofbeats on the ground, she could still hear the officer ranting and raving.

She wished it would end, even as she continued to fire pot shots with her pistol.

Have to reload soon.

“–happiness above anything you could have had on Earth!” the officer shouted, sounding for all the world like she was about to burst a blood vessel at the sort of intensity usually measured in the megatons. “All are equal before Harmony in the Solar Empire, unlike your home, all your–”

“Ana!” Frieda yelled. “Officer, one o’clock! Take it out!!”

The griffon didn’t need to say it twice.

Holstering her pistol, Ana rested her rifle, bipods and all, against the overturned table. Spellfire flew overhead, the roar of assault rifles deafening to the ear. Designed for combat beyond fifteen-hundred metres, the AWSM rifle she held was more than overkill at such short distances. But it would suffice, more than her pistol ever would.

She held her breath. The rifle was full.

Thirteen rounds. Five in the mag.’ Ana recited. ‘One in the chamber.

The zoom was adjusted. And there the officer stood, barking orders to her underlings. A brown unicorn mare with blue eyes and a close-cropped green mane. Her armour was old, much like that of the unicorn whom Ana had dispatched – 2020 make, if she had to wager. Veteran, then. And that meant an exposed neck. Classic design flaw. They weren’t used to humans then.

She released her breath. Another breath held.

Harwood yelled. Henri responded. Another burst from his rifle, another Newfoal down.

The officer’s torso was in sight. A fallen car covered most of it. But Ana saw enough. The trigger was pulled, and the bullet flew.

And the Imperial's next orders were cut short, for she had no throat left.

Ana released her breath. Ducked just in time for a spell to hit the wall where her head had been.

Whoa.

“Target down!” she yelled.

She’d have to confirm it later on, but for now, the Imperial officer was as good as dead. She breathed, in and out. It was just another kill, but somehow, she knew she’d dwell on it later.

Twelve rounds.’ she recited. ‘Four in mag.

She glanced over at Arthur Tanner. The hardy Englishman was still firing from his G36. He’d have to run out soon. Then she looked down at her pistol in its holster. It felt lighter, much lighter. She must have fired one round too many.

Before she could wave at Tanner, though, it happened. A shield lowered, cover lost too soon, when a spell burnt at Tanner’s table.

A vial of serum flew towards his face, its purple glow sickening. And when she yelled for cover, for her friend and superior to duck, it shattered at his head...

But nothing happened. The serum dripped down his visor, and for a moment, both of them were left sighing in relief.

And then his faceplate exploded. Shards of plastic coated in serum lacerated his face, and Tanner began to scream.

Ana tried to aim for his face. But it was in that moment that a blast of pure concussive force ripped through the room, splintering the words for and driving a gouge between her and Tanner. It knocked her AWSM rifle clean out of her hands, over the counter.

No no no no no...

She saw it. Of course she saw it. Something that had once been Tanner was screaming at the top of its lungs, bending backwards at an angle that hurt Ana to watch.

Ana could see those eyes darting to and fro. Looking for – begging for – a way out. Or maybe begging her to join him? And all the while, he was screaming wordlessly.

She didn’t want to know.

The wet, meaty cracking noises Ana heard as Tanner’s bones cracked and shortened simply hurt to hear. She watched Tanner’s rapidly changing legs and torso render him a full foot shorter, but no wider.

The potion of 2024 was not the potion of 2019, as she and her R&D colleagues concluded after months of study. It wasn’t made for comfort or for healing. It was made to convert men into weapons of war. And that meant some shortcuts had to be taken, with the side-effects of such a frantic transformation.

She knew from experience that there was a scent of burning flesh, and she was grateful, again, for the fact that her mask filtered out the sickly-sweet smell.

A hoof pressed against where a human’s knee would have been, once.

And then, silence.

Something crawled out from his suit. Like a bug from a chrysalis. And there was a Newfoal that had once been Lieutenant Arthur Tanner.

It stared at Ana with glassy eyes. Smiled at her with a mouth that seemed less like a friendly smile and more like an open wound.

“Oh, now this is better, isn’t it?” it said in a voice that sounded like Tanner. “I can’t believe I ever fought against this! Oh my Celestia, this is so much… f… better!”

It had been about to swear. But for a second, it was like something was strangling it physically and mentally.

“I can’t believe how much better it feels,” it repeated. “I don’t think you’ll be able to believe it, either, Ana, hah!”

Ana stared dumbly at it.

"Tanner…" she said weakly.

“I’m not Tanner,” it said. “I’m… ah… Loving Sunbeam, that's it. I’m a better pony than that fellow ever could have been! Happier, too! None of his depression, none of those vile, poisonous movies he liked, none of his anger towards you.”

It felt like someone else talking to – no, talking at her, rifling through Tanner’s memories. Because in the end, wasn’t it?

This wasn’t Tanner anymore. This was something that had been made from bits and pieces of Tanner. Something that had more restrictions in its brain than independent thoughts. Something that couldn’t say no to a native-born Equestrian loyal to the Solar Empire, something that couldn’t swear and rejected its former humanity with a passion.

To think,’ Ana thought, trying not to vomit, trying not to scream, anything to stay composed. ‘I wanted to be a pegasus once.

The same question, all these years, and still no answer whatsoever.

Fall back!” Harwood yelled, and they rushed towards the hotel. Frieda slammed the door with her entire weight, and it flung open at an angle, listing to the side ever so slightly.

Behind her, she heard the Newfoal that had once been Tanner galloping, towards her.

They slid behind a wall dividing the elevators from the lobby. Ana collapsed against the wall, breathing heavily.

“Listen to me, you’re not Tanner!” Ana said, half-pleading. “Tanner liked those dumb action films we watched, remember that! All that downtime, just talking and talking and– Tanner never, Tanner would’ve never left us. Please. Just… just listen–”

She knew it was useless. But she had to try. She gripped her pistol tightly.

“Ana, come on, hey, it feels great. Come on!”

“Like hell it is,” Ana said, sadly, and pulled the trigger.

Click.

She held her breath. The Newfoal’s smile grew wider.

Ana shivered. She didn’t want it. The voice too. It begged her, but all turned to a blur when the Newfoal moved to her. Her fingers felt numb, as she fumbled to reload the pistol.

“Please, Tanner,” she pleaded. “I don’t want it. Don’t do this. Please, please don’t. Please. Don’t make me take it.”

“Hey, Ana,” it said sweetly. “It’ll be alright soon. Don’t– uck.

What the Tanner-Newfoal was going to say, Ana did not know, for Harwood had thrust his sword through his neck. Her partner’s face, partly hidden beneath his helmet, was contorted in rage.

“Fucking hell,” he said, simply. His hand trembled, even as he turned his gaze on her. He withdrew the sword, leaving a spurt of blood and the Newfoal to choke on its own blood. “Ana, you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m, I’m ok,” replied Ana. She shook her head. The Newfoal collapsed in a gurgle. “Tanner…”

Harwood nodded. “Tanner’s gone, fuck, I know,” he said quickly. “Fuck.”

He wiped his sword off blood. Ana looked at the twitching corpse of Not-Tanner, whose face slowly twisted to a rictus grin. She looked at her partner. He was forlorn.

She reached out for his arm.

“Hey,” Ana said, softly. “We’ll talk about it later. I’m… I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” replied Harwood. Tanner had, after all, been one of their friends, throughout the war... He lowered his visor, averting his gaze from Ana. Yet she could tell that something stirred behind those eyes of his.

Now wasn’t the time to dwell on it, though. They were still coming. Ana felt cold. Only six of them now, versus the inevitable next wave of Newfoals.

“Requesting backup,” Henri spoke into his radio. His tone was desperate. “I say again, requesting backup to…”

The voice within her grew louder. Ana had never heard her sound so afraid, so hopeless.

Don’t let it touch you don’t let it touch you don’tANA PLEASE. Whatever it does to us–’

Wait.

Us?

That was a new one to her. But she didn’t have time to think about it as Newfoals appeared.

“You’re going to be happy just like us,” the lead Newfoal said with a booming voice, giggling madly. “Just like me just like me just like–”

“There’s something on your face!” a new voice called out.

Who–’

A machine-gun roared. The Newfoal dropped dead.

It was pain!

“Who did tha–” another Newfoal started, before another round silenced him. They fell against the wall, twitching slightly.

And a block or two away, Ana saw them – a unicorn projecting a slightly reddish wall of magic across the street, and several figures behind it. One of which was a tall, lanky figure carrying a heavy machine-gun, mounted with an underbarrel launcher of some kind.

It was–

Kraber and Aegis!

* * * * *

It had all made sense to Yael before she’d heard the screaming.

With the dragon raining fire down on Boston, being holed up in a skyscraper seemed like a worse and worse idea every minute. So they’d tried to regroup with Tanner’s unit.

“You know you’re supposed to do suppressive fire, right?!” Yael called over to Kraber from their spot behind Quiette Shy’s magical shield.

“Being dead counts as being fokkin’ suppressed!” Kraber yelled back, letting loose a short four round burst into a Newfoal building up energy for a spell.

“Does it? I mean, really?”

“Well,” Oscar Mikkelsen said over their comms, Suppressive fire is meant to keep enemies in place. They’re dead, they stay in place. On a technical level, he’s not wrong.

Yael couldn’t help but notice that Oscar had very deliberately not said Kraber was right.

“You and Heliotrope are approaching them?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Oscar said.

* * * * *

The Newfoals in that restaurant room fell to the floor, clutching gaping wounds.

“What’s–” the last pegasus asked, looking around frantically.

And in that moment, a heavyset human crashed through the former storefront window, and hit the Newfoal with the weight of their entire body. Before Ana could react, they were firing off rounds from an enormous rifle that looked to be the size of a small bicycle.

Spikes the size of a finger perforated the walls and Newfoals alike.

Before Ana knew it, all was done. The Newfoals that had menaced them lay on the floor of the restaurant, dead, pinned, and bleeding.

Heliotrope materialised beside the heavyset human, Oscar Mikkelsen, who had bodyslammed the pegasus out of the air, breathing heavily.

“Need a hoof?” Heliotrope asked, holding out one foreleg.

“Or hand?” Oscar asked. “Really, I’d hope either are good.”

Ana breathed a huge sigh of relief. She held Heliotrope’s hoof, and was pulled to her feet. “Helvete… I didn’t think I’d ever be so glad to see all of you.”

She nudged Harwood, who grunted out something that might’ve been a thanks. He, Ana recalled, wasn’t the biggest fan of the penal squads.

“Thirded,” said Frieda gruffly. “Might as well hop on you all.”

Lorne looked over to Aegis. “Wait, so do you mean literally or…”

“No,” Frieda said. “Very much no, dingus.”

“Think that’s all of it?” Henri asked, dazed.

Ana would have to ask for his contact, really. And all the others’ names. Apart from one guy, a frazzled-looking young man currently shaking hands with Heliotrope, he was the only of the other PHL members to survive.

Lieutenant Yael Ze’ev came in, a stern, desert-burned figure. Ana had always felt vaguely unsettled in the woman’s presence.

“Where’s Tanner?” asked Ze’ev. Harwood shook his head.

“Converted,” he said grimly. “Cut him down before he could… proselytise. I’m the highest-ranked officer here. Sergeant Harwood.”

Ana gripped his hand tightly. When this was all over, she thought, he’d need a talk.

“I’m sorry. Right,” said Ze’ev, equally grim. “So, looks like we still got our hands full.”

“Well, then we’re not out of the woods yet,” Heliotrope said. “We still have to deal with, uh…”

“Everything?” Quiette Shy asked, quizzical.

“Everything,” Ana agreed. Her rifle, which she’d picked up from behind the counter, felt full. Frieda threw her another fresh magazine for the pistol. “Sure. Why not.”

“Then let’s get to work,” Yael Ze’ev said. “Battle’s not won yet, not now they’ve got a dragon wrecking shit, and we’re not going anywhere till that damn airship’s retreated.”

“Actually,” Ana finally said aloud. All eyes turned to her. “There’s… there’s a high-value target we still need to dispatch. Someone from the airship… I… we think it might be whoever’s keeping that shield up. Especially seeing that dragon.”

Harwood nodded. Ze’ev exchanged an uneasy glance with Kraber.

“And… well,” she said, patting her rifle. “Might as well finish the job.”

“Well what’re we waiting for?!” Kraber declared. “Let’s go dragon-hunting!”

Here, amidst the cheers of wolves, Ana felt distant.

The doubt over the Archmage clouded her mind, once again, as adrenaline wore off. And so, as they moved to intercept whoever the target was, Ana reflected the old question anew – what would Ambassador Heartstrings do?

* * * * *

There was a tune playing.

A rhythm that ebbed and flowed alongside beats of something unknown. There was a repetition, but it helped keep her centered as she laid in this void. It was a strange music, something she’d never heard before, yet it granted her peace. Peace from what was beyond her control…

The tune began to change and–

“Cadance,” a voice spoke to her, interrupting the music. It felt strange, familiar yet not. “Awaken.”

Cadance’s eyes shot open as she gasped for air, before violently coughing. Her body felt sore, like she’d been caught in an explosion.

Oh. wait, I was,’ the Princess of Love thought, grimincing as she forced herself up. ‘I should have seen it coming.

“Are you alright, Cadance?”

She heard Aunt Luna’s voice. Looking to her left, Cadance caught sight of the older alicorn, her own armour damaged. The obsidian plating was cracked, the metal scorched, yet it was whole overall, still serviceable.

“Sore, but I’ll be alright.” Cadance said softly, pushing herself up with some difficulty and pain. Her own armour had been damaged in the explosion, unfortunately. Also, her mane was singed, but that was negligible. “What happened?”

She looked around. They were in a café of some sort, but abandoned, the windows cracked, tables toppled over, the whole covered in a thick layer of dust.

“Twilight had assistance.” Luna said simply, grimacing before spitting out some blood, “Her Spike has been transformed into something else. Something foul and terrible. It was only by our best wit that we were able to outmanoeuver him and recover you from that explosion.”

“Right, that…” Cadance began glumly. “I followed after Discord’s body, trailed the other Rainbow Dash into the cargo hold.” She swallowed. “Shining Armor was there, but he had help. There was this… mare with him.”

Luna’s eyes narrowed as she seemed to recall something, “Mare? Was it a pink mare? A pink mare with wings?”

“Well, yeah...” Cadance paused for a moment, “There was something else about her.”

“What else?”

“I could feel her love, but it wasn’t love.” Cadance said slowly, “it was intoxicating, whatever it was. And it was all based around Shining. It’s almost as if everything about her was made to function against me.”

“Or your counterpart.” Luna mused aloud.

“Yeah,” Cadance sighed. “Aunt Luna, I’m… I’m sorry. I lost the tuft of Fluttershy’s mane. That pink mare… she took it from me. And I got so angry, and… and… It’s my fault. Now we’ve got no way to track Discord.”

Luna said nothing. She sighed, turning her gaze away, contemplating the ruined café. Then she looked to Cadance, with a resolute expression.

“It’s alright, Cadance, dear,” she whispered. “You’ve done more than enough. All you can do now is locate Fenway Park. It’s not too late to find Stephan Bauer.”

Luna paused before coughing, hoarsely and roughly.

“Aunt Luna, you’re… hurt,” Cadance said, more statement than a question. Luna merely sniffed.

“I suppose reality sets in,” Luna said, with an inappropriate chuckle. She tapped her helmet. “War isn’t something I’m a complete stranger to. But I’ve had my moments.” Again, she sighed. “I… might have gone over the limit, up there,” the Princess of the Night said grimly. “Things I never could imagine I would have done… I would have done it then.”

“I guess we’re out of our depth?” Cadance asked. She shook her head. “Luna, we can’t give up on Discord already. If he falls into the Empire’s grasp… there’s no telling what they might do with him. How'd they even catch you in the first place?”

In all the commotion, this was the one thing she’d forgotten to ask Luna upon her arrival.

"They moved the whole airship, all around us,” Luna replied sourly. “Through what means, I do not yet know.”
.
Cadance thought quickly. “Could they have shifted it across universes?”

“Without a gateway?” Luna’s eyes narrowed, and she wiped the blood off her cheek. “I find that highly unlikely. It’s theoretically possible, yes, seeing as… the G-Mare told us they’d already harnessed the power of their Discord.”

And Cadance chuckled weakly at her aunt’s use of the nickname she’d found.

“But doing so without a portal nexus,” Luna continued musing, “that would be deeply cost-inefficient. No, given we know Twilight and Shining were on that ship… I think the likeliest answer is that they worked together in teleporting it. If any pony can do that...”

“So, then…” Cadance suggested. “They probably haven’t left this world yet. They need a portal. That means we’ve still got a chance to rescue Discord.”

When Luna looked at her, Cadance saw hope commingled with apprehension in her face.

“Cadance… you’re right,” Luna said, whispering urgently. “Quick, tell me. Did you see where they took Discord? If he’s still on that ship…”

“He isn’t,” Cadance said instantly. “I saw Dash loading a crate onto a sky-boat. And I’m positive it wasn’t a decoy,” she added. “Fluttershy’s tuft drew me to it.”

“A sky-boat?” said Luna, her face falling. “Where did it go?”

“I… don’t know,” Cadance admitted. “But… that explosion. I think it must’ve sent the boat crashing down… Oh, Luna. If that broke the statue...”

“Not Discord, not he,” Luna said darkly. Her eyes were scanning the horizon. “You were only out for a few minutes. Spike has been raining Tartarus…” She gestured at green plumes of smoke all over the city. “But if we are looking for a fire, it should be easy to spot the odd one out.”

“Like over there?” Cadance asked.

She pointed towards a smoke pillar in the distance, rising from a spot that looked to be on the very edge of a great channel.

“Perfect,” whispered Luna. “I shall go there immediately.”

Cadance felt her heart in her chest. “I can–”

“No,” Luna said firmly, meeting her eyes. “I will. You need to find this Stephan Bauer. The Archmage might be waiting. And there are things I... wish to pry from her, myself.”

“How?” Cadance protested. “Even after… ten days with Redheart, Luna. You told me you couldn’t get a single peek into her mind. She… she was just a regular soldier a-and… and you’ll be going up against Twilight.”

“I have a secret weapon,” Luna said. “Gleaned during my fight with the Archmage.”

Her horn glowed, conjuring a swirling blue mist. And from the mist, something emerged. A small tuft of purple mane.

“Is that–”

“Yes,” Luna said, simply. “I thought it may be of use. As Fluttershy’s guided you to Discord, so too shall this guide me into Twilight’s dreams. I only need your magic, Princess Cadance.”

“My magic? But, Aunt Luna, I don’t really see how that’ll work…”

One look at Luna’s blank expression gave Cadance the answer.

She nodded. Her horn glowed, wrapping the tuft in pink, and the same charm she had placed to track Discord, through the one memento he had of the mare he loved, was given to Luna...

The pink glow dissipated, and there they were once more. Standing in half-darkness, atop the blasted skeleton of a building on a war-torn, alien world. Cadance stepped back, and stared out onto the smoke rising from the channel’s edge.

She thought she saw a sky-boat heading towards it.

“There… that should do,” she said. “Follow the thread, and you’ll pass her wards. And hurry, I think they’re sending backup.”

Luna had gone from blank to a forlorn look in her eyes. But it passed, and she smiled.

“Go, Cadance,” said Luna. The tuft of mane disappeared back into her null-space. “I’m afraid I… cannot accompany you, once again, but do be careful.”

Cadance let out a sigh of resignation. There was no way she would convince Aunt Luna. Not even if she had a century to spend trying.

“Alright. Try and be careful.” Cadance said reluctantly, spreading out her wings. “There’s no telling what else we’re bound to face here.”

She then took off without another word, leaving her aunt to stand by herself.

Though as she flew, the Princess of Love wondered. It wasn’t her imagination. There truly had been something else in the air, which she had felt when Luna mentioned the Archmage – or Twilight Sparkle. When she’d cast the charm. Something… something familiar.

Well, if that was the case, was she one to judge?

* * * * *

...Over and out, finished Lieutenant Ze’ev.

“Roger that, we’ll converge on your location. Over,” Stephan Bauer said, clicking off his comms. Maybe getting that close to such a heavy-duty part of the Solar Empire was dangerous, but…

Well. The promise of slaying a dragon, perhaps even capturing the Archmage? That was intoxicating.

“So… ” said Blank Canvas, a Baltimarean artist who had been assigned to his squad. “Major. If we do take down that dragon… What’ll we do when we get the Archmage?”

“That’s for the higher-ups to decide,” Bauer said. It was – thankfully – out of his hands. Much as he’d like to be in on that planning session, he had to admit was for the best that at least some responsibility was out of his hands.

“We use her as a hostage, I think,” said Alicia. “Ah, Starfall?”

“Yes?” asked the communications officer, a diminutive grey unicorn with a radio for a mark.

“You knew a bunch of ponies from Ponyville, right?” Alicia asked. “Cos’, what I heard is... She saw Twilight like a daughter. You think that’d be enough to make her let up on our planet?”

His best marksman laughed slightly.

“It… could work,” Starfall said, tentatively.

“Don’t hold your breath, Starry,” Canvas said. “She’d either level everything for miles around where we keep her, or just enslave us all. Student or no.”

Everyone stared at the white pegasus.

“That’s... frighteningly grim,” said Daniel.

“She’s gone this far,” Canvas said, scouting ahead. “That momentum won’t just disappear.”

“Still,” Stephan said. “It’ll be a–”

Blank Canvas, and the street around him, exploded into colour.

What!

For a moment, Stephan thought his scout had literally burst. Then he saw him staggering about in the street, blinded and spitting out paint – the same paint of every hue he was covered in from top to bottom.

“Shit,” gasped Daniel. “Is that…”

It was. Stephan knew it when he saw the staggering Canvas slow down, lift a forehoof, and freeze in mid-stride as the paint dried, a colourful statue.

“Grenade!” called Stephan.

And not just any grenade, but an idea that had started life as a party-toy, until its Equestrian creator had turned from friendly to fiendish.

The squad fragmented, rushing to a nearby parking garage, adjacent to a hotel that still bore an outline of the words ‘Residence Inn’.

“We got contacts!” Daniel yelled. Stephan followed his gaze, peering over the concrete wall of the garage. Not far from them, he saw Imperial troops massing at the corner of two streets, just below a sky bridge.

Earthponies armed with crossbows held in Equestria-made assault saddles. A lens over a Newfoal unicorn’s horn, a few hardbucker cannons.

“Get dow–”

There was a buzz. A beam of light, so intense that Stephan felt it even through his armour, cut through the concrete nearby. Crossbow bolts, firing faster and straighter than bolts ever should, peppered the concrete.

“Okay…” panted Starfall. He glanced at the frozen Canvas, out in the middle of the street. “Anyone got any vinegar, at least?”

Alicia breathed. “Yeah, got my supply,” she said, thumbing her backpack. “If we can get to the poor devil, that is… Oh, shit.”

“What?” said Stephan. “What is it?!”

“Another Imperial unit on the other side. We’re fucked.”

As if to punctuate that, a stream of purple liquid lanced through a gap in the parking structure, splattering upon the ceiling. Stephan ducked away reflexively, despite his armour’s protection.

“Alright,” Bauer said. “We can get to a sky-bridge out. We’ll–”

“We’ll be huge targets if we do that,” Daniel said.

“Well, we have to–” Stephan started. His voice trailed off.

Because right in front of them, wings flapping gently, was a pink alicorn with a purple, pink, and yellow tail.

Wait… There’s only one pony that could be.

When the Newfoals in the squad saw the alicorn, it was like they shut down. Bauer saw one twitching on the ground, another one foaming at the mouth, and almost uniform looks of shock, horror, and disgust on the faces of the Solar Empire ponies.

Suddenly, everything went pink around the parking structure, the alicorn’s horn glowing. And the Newfoals and Imperial Guards closest to it were flung away.

A shield!

“Is everyone alright?” she asked, but no answer came. For around Stephan, the same, awed expression were on their faces.

“Who…” asked Daniel.

Das ist doch Cadance,” Alicia said, staring at her in amazement.

“Can’t be,” Starfall said, but he sounded unsure. “Cadance isn’t…”

“... an alicorn,” Stephan Bauer breathed. “How… how did you do it, Cadance?”

And her reply left him only further baffled.

Ich befürchte, das sei eine lange Geschichte,” the alicorn said in perfect German. “Eins braucht ihr nur zu wissenich bin nicht die Cadance, die Sie kennen, aber ich bin da zu helfen. Ich suche den Major Stephan Bauer, mit einer Nachricht vom Kapitän Alexander Reiner.

“By the Golden Lyre,” said Starfall. “She’s got the Gift of Tongues.”

The mysterious alicorn blinked. “Pardon?”

“You just spoke German,” said Stephan. He stepped forward cautiously, weapon unlowered. “I’m Major Bauer. And you spoke in my native tongue.”

“I did?” the alicorn said, surprised. “I’ve never heard of German. I just heard your friend over there speaking… differently, and it seemed the most natural way to address you, sir.”

~ New York City, USA ~

The whole situation, Cheerilee presumed, was still up in the air. Here she stood, at the head of her staff, in the PHL war room. The UNAC leadership must have received the same feedback from Boston. Though communications had indeed gone dark, fleeting images and frantic broadcasts still made it out through cracks in the Imperial shield-dome.

And they all told the same dissonant, bizarre story.

There was an alicorn in Boston, engaged in a life-or-death duel with a dragon. Or rather, there were two alicorns. One of whom stood right here in this room.

The plasma TV screen did not flicker, and it remained paused in one peculiar shot – that of a pink, armour-clad alicorn flying through the streets, towards UNAC positions. And there was no mistaking that mark of hers, too.

Cheerilee turned to face Cadance. Lady Cadance, who was standing right here, whose presence in New York could be confirmed by no less than three hundred attendees at the UN.

And she looked just as bewildered as Cheerilee herself felt.

“I… I don’t understand,” Cadance spoke, saying what lay on the mind of each and every single person in this underground room.

“Yeah, well,” Vinyl said, her usual snarkiness gone, her red eyes equally confused. “That’s… that’s an understatement.”

“Changeling?” Gladmane spoke out. “Could be a straggler.”

Moondancer shook her head. “Chrysalis’ Hive is dead,” said the bookish unicorn. “And if there were any that could mimic an alicorn, they would’ve been taken a long time ago. No… no, this is something else.”

Cheerilee got up, moved around her seat, and gripped it by the headrest.

“Doctor,” she said. Time Turner blinked as Cheerilee faced him. “If we have any way to get reconnaissance into Boston, now’s the time to pull a rabbit out of your hat.”

But something stirred, she felt. Something else changed in the air, before Turner could reply.
And who else but Bonbon should suddenly be standing in front of the plasma screen, against the backdrop of Not-Cadance. Standing behind the vacant chair with the sign of a golden lyre.

Moondancer was first to react.

“Bonbon?” she spoke, heading to seize her by the shoulder. “What are you doing here?”

“Wait, how– how’d she get in?” blustered Spitfire. “Secu–”

And then the Oracle spoke, not in her own voice. Her eyes glowed white.

Cheerilee just heard Cadance tell Moondancer something about hold on, she’d seen this before, then the voice reverberated throughout the room and within their heads.

“Have no fear, Miss Cheerilee,” Bonbon said. “The Princesses Luna and Mi Amore Cadenza have joined the battle on your side. And they are here at Captain Reiner’s request.”

“Look sharp!” barked Corporal Red Shift, as he and his fire-team moved spread out into a perimetre around Langone Park. “We gotta keep a tight vigil!”

While all knew they would be outclassed if the dark alicorn reappeared, Captain Timber’s instructions had been clear. Every inch they could deny her was worth its weight in crystal. And there wasn’t just her to protect the site from. Given how active this city was? They had to hurry.

For Captain Timber, for the Archmage, for Equestria.

Besides, I may get a promotion.’ Shift thought, stopping to signal his fire-team to take cover. ‘Heh. To think, this place was someone’s home once.

Shift had been in Boston before. Back before the war even started. He’d happened upon this city while traveling across America’s Eastern Seaboard. Funnily enough, it was the history that had got him interested. A revolutionary history, that was almost a reverse of Griffonstone’s, he’d thought then.

Griffonstone. Not the most picturesque of places, at least before the Restoration. But still, there had always been something special about griffons for neighbours, a stone’s throw across the sea from dear Fillydelphia...

Maybe we could save some of it.’ Shift thought, motioning for halt a moment, before nodding at his fire-team to resume their pursuit. ‘Maybe as a display of man’s wasted potential, their failures in the aftermath of war. It would be educational, at least. Besides, erasing everything would probably doom us to repeating it, or

“Lost visual, sir!” called out one of his team, an earthpony stallion, shaking Red Shift out of his thoughts.

“What was that, Private?”

“We’ve lost visual, sir,” the private repeated. The team closed formation without command, as their training had dictated.

Red Shift focused himself. He and his closest units were currently situated a street named ‘Foster Street’. He needed to act quickly before anything else might happen. Especially seeing how reconnaissance stated the HLF still held ground in this part of the city.

And I’m not keen on getting tortured...

Red Shift turned to another private, a unicorn. “Private Cosmos, use a deviner spell to get us back on track. We need to regain visual immediately.”

“Yes, sir.” Private Cosmos said, closing his eyes to ready his horn and cast the spell.

However, it was then that the coat on Red Shift’s back began to stick up.

Something’s wrong.

His eyes began to itch as he searched for what his sixth sense was yelling at him.

“Sir?” the earthpony private said.

“On your guard, all of you.” Red Shift replied, still looking.

“Sir?”

“We’re not alone!” Red Shift snapped, his team understanding immediately and now looking for themselves while Cosmos continued working on his spell.

The threat had to be around here somewhere–

What was that?

Something landed near his hooves. Looking down, Shift saw something that made him froze. He’d been briefed about human explosives. Despite their small size, grenades were deadly and came in all kinds of variants.

It was little wonder the Bearer of Laughter had tried her own spin on it.

If Red Shift had a moment, he could have ordered his team to take cover. Or ordered Cosmos to try and contain it. Or dived for it and tried to shield his team from the attack. Or–

Aaaahhhh!

They all screamed as soon as it went off. Except what erupted from the small device wasn’t a conflagration or blades or needles. No, what instead resulted was a bang that left the entire fire team blind, deaf and disoriented.

What Red Shift had forgotten was that humanity had developed a type of grenade that wasn’t immediately deadly. No, this explosive was none other than a flashbang, employed to disorient and confuse its victims.

Had this been a flashbang, Shift’s team would have had a chance at recovery within a minute if they were lucky, with only a terrible ringing noise in their ears for some time after.

Except this wasn’t a flashbang, or rather, it was a different take on the concept. UNAC had commissioned the PHL R&D for a type of explosive that would disorient enemy troops only. And since Equestrians were known to have magic, in theory, it shouldn’t be difficult to create a type of flashbang that would disorient them by screwing with their magic.

Of course, the problem there was how to avoid ‘friendly fire’ on allied Equestrians. The very existence of PHL R&D owed itself to this not being a mere war of the races. So when that little hurdle had proven harder to overcome than expected, the anti-magic flashbang had never gone beyond prototype stage.

Unfortunately for Red Shift and his team, their assailant had no qualms about indiscriminately using such in the field, and did have the contacts to obtain a few.

Wh what…’ Red Shift thought, struggling to open his eyes. His head was killing him. ‘What w-was…

There was a dull sound in the distance. He couldn’t make it out…

N-Need… N-Need to…’ Thoughts were struggling to come forward, except they weren’t quite his thoughts. ‘Need to… check on my finish theno, no. I need to…

Another dull sound. Still so far away, but it was closer this time.

We’re…’ Red Shift struggled to push himself up. ‘Why c-can’t I think…?

Another dull sound, but it was starting to get clearer. Maybe his ears were working after all. Now if only his head wasn’t killing him…

What–’ Red Shift thought as he began to finally find himself.

He was still in the middle of Foster Street, in the human city of Boston. His snout was bleeding, his head was killing him and it was hard to think. And his team–

CRACK.

The sound shocked him awake, at least as awake as he could be right now.

“Make them pay,” a voice whispered, “gotta make them pay.”

Finish the Who’s there?’ Shift thought with some difficulty as he forced himself to look towards his team–

“My team,” Red Shift whispered, as he saw all four of his comrades. Dead.

CRACK.

And the one responsible had just finished shooting Cosmos in the head, using a high-powered rifle. The attacker was dressed in military fatigues, including a blue helmet with the letters ‘UN’ marked in white on the front. A couple strands of golden hair hung loose under the rim of the helmet.

“Y-You…” he whispered. “What did you…”

Standing over Cosmos’ dead body, the human figure glanced at him, making him freeze at what he saw. It was her eyes. Cold, unfeeling, dead eyes. Green eyes whose light had been long since snuffed out by a great and terrible pain. A pain that still ached.

Red Shift could tell everything about this human female by just one look. And it wasn’t her own people that had done this to her. No, the look in her eyes, aimed squarely at him and the dead in his team, told of a hatred destined only for them.

Had they done this? Were they the ones responsible for her pain?

Why…’ Realisation began to consume him, before he felt himself drowning in horror. ‘We’re doing this. We’ve done this to them. All of them. We… we’re Chrysalis. We’re Sombra. We’re the Storm King, we–’

“What, who–” the words came out of his mouth clumsily. She glowered at him.

“Die curious.”

Red Shift couldn’t say anything. There wasn’t time to even try and face penance for all that they had done. All he could do was what he and most of Equestria had been doing for years.

Just close his eyes, and–

CRACK.

* * * * *

“Starstruck! Hurry up with that, will ya!” shouted Green Sprout. “We don’t have the time for it!”

“Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time!” said Scootaloo, her teeth gritted. Her wings, reliable as they were, struggled against the wooden crate. And the scout’s incessant yelling was of no help.

“Give it a rest, Sprout,” Fleetfoot rebuked the earthpony. Though he had experience, like any who’d fought on Earth as part of the Imperial Recovery Division, Scootaloo privately thought the ‘Trailblazer’ as green as his name. “Not exactly a planned mission, is it?”

Scootaloo swallowed her pride and kept pushing.

Of course she felt grateful none had died in the crash, though it had pained her when she’d found one of her cadets with a broken wing. Whistle Stop was currently being tended to by the Trailblazers’ medic, a crusty hippogriff named Salty Breeze, who’d ordered the cadet and her three fellows to stay put.

It had seemed harsh, but the poor cadets all looked pale and frightened. While extra hooves might be welcome, it’d help no-one if they couldn’t move Discord’s statue for shaking...

And grateful she was, too, that Captain Plow and his Trailblazers had been so swift to find them. These were troopers who spent day and night risking their lives in the heart of hostile terrain. No, Scootaloo couldn’t complain.

With the original crate all smashed up, they’d wasted precious time just moving Discord into a new one, a miraculously-intact surplus from aboard the sky-boat. At least that part was over, thank Celestia. Not so much because of the statue’s weight, but applying hooves to Discord’s petrified frame had left her with a deep, physical unease.

Green Sprout grumbled, and walked away. Fleetfoot moved over beside her, and with a tug and push from them both, the crate was pushed further towards the shore.

“You okay there, Starstruck?”

“I’m okay,” Scootaloo replied. Wiping sweat from her brow, she leaned upon the crate. “Just…”

“... Overwhelmed?” Fleetfoot added, and Scootaloo nodded. “I getcha, girl. One time you’re in boot camp, next you’re with the Wonderbolts.”

“Three years and I’m still never used to it, gah,” Scootaloo bemoaned. “I almost want to thank Spitfire.”

Fleetfoot sighed. “She might be a Betrayer, but it’s just not the same without her.”

Scootaloo nodded. At the beginning of this war, a considerable amount of Wonderbolts had been among the Stranded, stuck on this strange mudball where the weather and Sun moved all on their own. Soarin’, for example, had been near the Great Lakes, marveling at some of the winter storms.

Spitfire had not been. First opportunity she’d gotten after various “Peacekeeping actions” on Earth after the Purple Winter, she’d put together a squadron of selected elites and others, volunteered for a suicide mission in France, and surrendered to the locals. It had gutted the command structure of the Wonderbolts, but it had left Rainbow Dash, then Wing Commander, the most logical choice for leadership. Which also drew in a glut of new recruits.

“Don’t tell her I said this,” Fleetfoot continued, “but Captain Dash still misses her just a bit.”

Scootaloo wasn’t surprised. “She’s not the only one. No regrets, though... it’s what I always wanted, isn’t it?”

Fleetfoot laughed. “Like you said, every week, every day, every hour,” she said, nudging Scootaloo. “C’mon, I’ll help ya with that, the Captain’s waiting.”

Truth was, until rescue arrived, there wasn’t much of a place they could push the crate to. Langone Park, like most parks, consisted mainly of greenery – turned grey and bare in the harsh winter – and concrete paths. Their best hope was that a sky-boat could use one of those wide paths as a landing zone, so this was where they were pushing the crate – well aware of how in the open they were.

“Okay,” Scootaloo panted, after a few more pushes. “I think that’s as far as we go.”

Around them, Sprout and four other Trailblazers were forming a small circle.

“Yeah. Now all we can do is wait for that boat,” Fleetfoot nodded. “And pray the Archmage can keep them distracted long enough with her dragon…”

“I’ll go check on Whistle Stop,” said Scootaloo.

Exiting the fragile protective circle, Scootaloo headed for the treeline, under which the wounded cadet was still being looked over by Salty. The medic nodded curtly, then returned to bandaging the cadet’s wing, while her friends stared anxiously.

“Hey there, Whistle,” Scootaloo said gently, kneeling. “How are you coping?”

The little white pegasus bit back a grimace and bravely tried to smile. “I’ll pull through. Thanks, Starstruck.” She was a little hesitant, still not used to calling her teacher by her nickname. “Besides, if something goes wrong… I can always be like you, right?”

Scootaloo glanced back at the contraption she wore.

Crystal-forged and charmed, the harness allowed her what she’d dreamt of since she was a filly – flight, by her own power and will. And it was liberating. Gone were the days of chasing after her idol on her scooter, dreaming of the wind in her wings.

“Of course,” she told Whistle, smiling faintly.

Now she flew besides Rainbow Dash, proud and dutiful, a loyal protege of the three years she’d been in service.

Salty Breeze coughed, staring at something up the parkway. “Easy, cadet. Looks like we won’t have to cut off your wing just yet,” he said gruffly. “Cavalry’s arrived.”

There was some low-level whooping from the cadets, which Salty instantly shushed. But Scootaloo could have joined them as she saw the sky-boat, coloured the soft yellow tones of the Fillydelphia Regiments, drifting gracefully between the trees and up the path.

They were flying low. With luck, the humans wouldn’t have seen them in a half-abandoned city.

Rainbow Dash flew down, hovering in mid-air to greet the boat as it lowered its ramp.

“Twilight!” she grinned. Scootaloo’s heart skipped a beat. “Well, I’ll be! Took ya long enough!”

The Lady Archmage, flanked by a blue-eyed officer clad in regular Guard armour, descended the ramp, and Dash swept in to pull her into a crushing hug.

“Is that the package?” Twilight asked once they’d pulled apart, indicating the encircled crate. When Dash eagerly nodded, she said, “Good job, Rainbow. Any casualties?”

“One cadet, broken wing,” Dash said, her grin fading. “But that’s about it.”

“We don’t have much time, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “Captain Timber here dropped off some troops to keep the area clear,” she explained, to a nod from the blue-eyed officer, “but Princess Luna’s still loose. And we’ve got another problem. Cadance is here.”

“Huh? But–”

Their Cadance,” Twilight cut her off. “She’s fully-powered and twice as dangerous, at the very least. Rainbow, the boat won’t be fast enough. We need to load up Discord, but once that’s done, I’ll ‘port you across the river.”

Dash gawped at her. “You even got the mojo for that, Twi’? After you and Shining already ‘ported the ship?”

“I should have enough ‘portation mana left for this. Now, let’s hurry.”

The Lady Archmage lit her horn, aura surrounding the crate to lift it with ease. Steadily, it levitated above the concrete path to ascend the ship’s ramp…

The lodestone on Captain Timber’s breastplate crackled, glowing red. He stared at it in alarm.

“Breach!” he exclaimed. “That was Red Shift’s unit. Ma’am, we’re going to have company.”

In the dead trees further along the path, Scootaloo’s sharp eyes caught something. “I think we’ve already got it.”

Evidently, she was not alone in noticing. Arriving from behind the landed sky-boat, the earthpony captain of this unit of Trailblazers came rushing up the concrete path.

Oaken Plow was the veteran of numerous daring recoveries on Earth, and he looked afraid.

“Positions, now!” he called. “No time to waste!”

Yet there wasn’t that much cover. Concealment, yes, but Rainbow Dash and her own experiences had told her about how easily human weaponry could tear through wood like paper. And all around this ruined park, there were only trees… and whatever it was that lurked within the darkness.

Moving up, Fleetfoot readied her spear. So did the Trailblazers who moved ahead, with the unicorn of the group using his horn as a beacon.

“Whistle Stop...” Scootaloo muttered. She ran to Captain Timber. “Captain, I need a stretcher! One of my cadets is hurt, you must get her onboard, now!”

“Will do, Miss,” Timber said grimly. He called into the sky-boat. “Medic!”

Then came the scream.

A scream, and a clattering crash of armour as a Trailblazer was thrown back onto the concrete.

Green Sprout barely had time to shout, right before it emerged from the trees – a shadowy, ethereal alicorn, clad in black obsidian armour.

The clouds parted above, illuminating her in moonlight. Nightmare Moon.

“Greetings,” she said impassively. “I believe you have something of mine.”

“Over our dead bodies!” yelled Plow. “Trailblazers! Cover the Archmage!”

A spear was thrown, but the alicorn cast it aside easily with a flick of her horn. A second flew forwards, passing harmlessly through the mist that comprised the alicorn.

Scootaloo saw Twilight almost lose her grip on the crate, helpless to interfere while she focused on getting Discord onto the boat.

“Relinquish your custody,” the alicorn stated. “And no fighting will be necessary.”

“Traitor!” Scootaloo cried, though she found her voice far, far too shrill against the dark alicorn’s booming voice. “Come and get it, then!”

She moved in front of Rainbow Dash.

“Scootaloo, what are you–”

Before the alicorn could move, something struck at her, bouncing off her armour – a bolt of lavender light.

Twilight?’ Scootaloo thought, startled into looking back.

The Lady Archmage had let go of the crate, dropping it just before the ramp. She was galloping, firing off spells as she went.

The alicorn recoiled, and dissipated at the face of this onslaught, retreating into the trees.

“Dash,” shouted Twilight, “forget the boat entirely! I’m opening up a portway to Charlestown!”

Lending credence to her words came a spark in the air, which swirled and expanded into an orange-rimmed, upright halo that manifested in front of the dropped crate. On one side of the halo was Langone Park – the other side led to a different part of town.

“Go!” Twilight yelled. To Scootaloo’s shock, she was sweating beneath her illuminated horn. The effort this was costing her must be tremendous. “It’s right there! All you have to do is give the crate a last push, and you’re home safe! Captain Timber, get them all to safety!”

“Aye, Lady Archmage!” the blue-eyed officer yelled back. “Medics,” he called to Salty and the brown pegasus helping Whistle onto a stretcher, “the cadets go first… And we push that blasted box in after you!” A somber pause overcame him. “Red Shift…”

“Your corporal’s already dead,” Twilight said softly. “I’m sorry, Captain Timber.”

He just nodded, wordlessly, then began directing the evacuation.

While all this was happening, Twilight fired another blast into the trees, setting a grove ablaze. The blaze cast new shadows. Some of them, in Scoot’s eyes, seemed to grow lengthier, by no natural light.

Twilight cast a dome around them, the boat and the glowing portal. She cried out, showing pain.

“Twi’, no!” Dash shouted into her ear. “You’re draining yourself! You won’t have enough strength left to face her!”

“Someone’s gotta hold her off,” Twilight winced. “Rainbow… Fly. Keep the statue safe, and I’ll be back with you soon. Get it to the Queen. Nothing else matters, not even me.”

Something passed Rainbow Dash’s eyes, Scootaloo saw. But then she nodded, and beckoned Plow and his Trailblazers to follow. The medics and cadets, including Whistle, had already gone. One by one, they stepped through, each giving the crate a push further. Sprout took the lead, Timber and Fleetfoot brought up the rear. Each and every one of them paid Twilight a salute.

And just as Scootaloo was about to go last, holding onto Dash’s hoof, the enemy returned.

Above their heads, the dome cracked, darkness engulfing it. Twilight’s magic flickered, and the Lady Archmage almost collapsed. The magic in the air cried and screeched, yet somehow, Scootaloo made her voice heard.

“Twilight!” she shouted. She let go of Rainbow Dash, despite the other mare’s yells. The portway began to flicker.

Yet Twilight remained calm as she would in a parade. She turned around.

“I got this, Scoots,” Twilight said, with a pained smile. “You need to go.”

Her horn glowed brighter. The enemy’s assault continued on her dome, a torrent of encompassing darkness.

“Twilight, no– you can’t! Please–”

“I’ll be fine, and that’s a promise,” Twilight’s voice was dissonantly serene. Somehow, Scootaloo could hear a certain pink pony gasp. “Now– Go!

And Scootaloo felt herself pulled back, Rainbow Dash’s grasp taking her through the portway. Dash pulled so hard, they both fell on their backs, their armour clanging, in a heap at the foot of the wooden crate.

Her comrades’ shouts went unheard, for she stood and looked, seeing the Lady Archmage on the other side of the portway. Her horn glowed bright, but the dome had yielded. And the alicorn, back in her true, armour-clad form, was advancing.

Twilight!

Then the portway winked out of existence, and there was nothing else to see.

* * * * *

As the light closed, taking the Imperial Guard with it, Luna stopped dead in her tracks.

“It’s over, Luna!” the Archmage yelled. “Discord’s on his way home. You failed!

Failed…

The words stung deep. She had indeed failed. From the moment she’d showed up and broken her cover. From the moment she’d been held in a gilded cage. From the moment her unlikely companion was turned to stone.

Her gaze turned from where the portway had been, besides the discarded yellow sky-boat, to the unicorn who stood before her. Panting, sweating, her magical defenses gone, her armour cracked, her helmet ajar, and hunched in her stance – Luna saw only defiance in her eyes. And something like triumph.

Around the Archmage, orichalcum shards conjured into view, reforming as one sword. Luna cast her own, the silver metal gleaming in the moonlight.

“You’re right,” Luna said. She stomped a hoof. “I did fail. As you did me. My other self.”

Something brimmed in the Archmage’s eyes. Was that regret?

“Was that all a lie, then?” Luna said bitterly. “The Empire, your cause… and… you?”

The Archmage said nothing. No, that was not good enough. Whatever it was, whatever she might say or not… it had to end here.

“Yield, yield, damn you!” the Archmage hissed, raising her sword.

“Never,” said Luna. With a concussive blast from her horn, she struck the Archmage’s helmet, shattering her concentration. The enemy’s sword fell apart, and the Archmage stood alone. “Not until I have my answers, Twilight.”

She advanced. The Archmage stood where she was.

“And you won’t get them,” she replied. Her horn glowed. The shards were rising once again. “I promised the Queen I’d return with you, or die trying. And I’ll do it either way!”

A shard flew. Right then, Luna disintegrated into blue mist. The shard went through harmlessly. Her shadowy gaze fell squarely upon her target.

Redheart’s mind, warded from her, had been like tar. The Archmage’s mind would be, too.

But no wall was truly solid. Always there were cracks in its shifting state. Truly, what was that to formless mist? A risky endeavour, for her misty state could be blown away and dissipated in a protected mind, should she weaken in her resolve. Yet one she would do nonetheless. And at the heart of the form she’d assumed, something solid remained. The tuft of Twilight’s own mane.

The Archmage’s eyes widened.

“You wouldn’t–”

Oh, yes I would.

She braced herself, and lunged forwards, shadow-tendrils grasping at the Archmage. The door to the mind lay wide open. While Twilight screamed in fear and rage, Luna let that small piece of her guide the way as she stepped into the void.

Author's Note:

Spectrum 2.1 - Autumn 2021

VoxAdam:

  • This chapter features no noteworthy modifications.

Spectrum 2.0 - August 18th 2019

Sledge115: Phew! Sorry for the delays, but planning out a chapter this long is an effort by itself, and an action-filled one too at that, heh. Believe me, it’s pretty hard to balance out Luna’s battle with the human POVs, and ultimately some had to be trimmed, not to mention the pacing.

Cadance, surprisingly enough, was a late, late addition, quite literally right before we wrote down the full outline of Act Two. As for the Archmage, well, the decision wasn’t made from the beginning of the story, either. But hey, it worked out just fine :twilightsmile:

Spike… the question was easy enough, really. What if the Blue Spy hadn’t found him in time?

Yes, Twilight’s last stand is framed as a heroic one.

And here we are, with Luna stepping into her realm. What horrors await, I cannot say for sure. But buckle up, we’re in for a ride.

DoctorFluffy: So, I feel the need to mention this: The erratic, extremely poorly-spelled part with Spike’s thoughts is intentional. I wanted it to be erratic, frantic, poorly spelled… so I typed it as poorly as I could. Believe it or not this was actually a lot of work.

VoxAdam: Behold, this is the first true action chapter of our story.

I mainly worked on helping to make sure events flowed sequentially throughout, trying to keep each of the Imperials’ actions a direct consequence or response to what came before. It’s one of my many disliked tropes regarding villains in fight scenes, particularly video games, when it’s as if they’re just popping out of the woodwork like figures on a shooting range.

Thankfully, the effort was helped by the fact this is also a chapter which, at last, shows us events from the Imperial POV. :twilightsmile:

Now Cadance makes her entrance, and contact is established on Earth between Sunny Equestria and humanity along with its allies…

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