Sweet Affection 3

by Masterob

Battling the Enemies

Outside of Ponyville, the Equal Villagers along with the foals finally got far away enough to catch their breath.

"Finally, got far enough away," Double Diamond said.

"Feel kinda bad for leaving the others back there," Night Glider said.

"We didn't have much choice," Sugar Belle said. "We have foals to protect."

"Plus we really to get Flurry Heart to safety," Rumble reminded. "I know what's what her family would want."

"Plus we do have two injured ponies," Dinky said.

"I'm fine now actually, I was just a little banged up," Sugar Belle said. "So you can put me down Party Favor."

"Are you sure, I don't mind carrying you around a bit more," Party Favor said, his struggling hooves stating otherwise.

"Ugh, I'll get off myself," Sugar Belle said, leaping off of Party Favor. "It's sweet you want to help, but try not to push yourself too hard."

"Yeah, you're not exactly muscular, I was better off carrying Sugar Belle," Double Diamond said.

"Or mah brother, Big Macintosh," Apple Bloom said.

Sugar Belle giggled a bit as she blushed, "There's a pony I wouldn't mind being carried by."

"Don't blame you, he's got that tall, silent thing to him that's kind of attractive," Night Glider said with her own blush.

Both Party Favor and Double Diamond looked a little annoyed at hearing that.

"What matters is that yer fine, and we gotta hope none of them Changelings followed us here," Apple Bloom said.

"We shouldn't have to worry about that, Flitter and Cloudchaser fight hard, they won't let any Changeling by," Rumble said.

"We gotta find a way to contact somepony though," Dinky said. "We could go to Canterlot, but that's pretty far on hoof."

"I can fly there and back fast, but would you all be ok without me here?" Night Glider asked.

"If you do, maybe you can take Flurry," Rumble said, trying to hand over Flurry, but the young Alicorn refused to let go of Rumble. "Flurry? Come on you have to go with Night Glider." He tried prying her off again but she maintained a strong grip. "Flurry!"

"Considering she just got back to ya, she probably don't want to let you go again," Apple Bloom said, somewhat teasing the poor colt.

"It's not safe for her here!" Rumble said, still trying to pry her off. "How is she so strong!?"

"Don't worry, I'll pull her off," Sweetie Belle said. She used her magic to grab Flurry, but Flurry countered that with her own magic, creating a forcefield around herself and Rumble and sticking her tongue out at Sweetie Belle.

"How can a little toddler get me so furious!?" Sweetie Belle shouted, trying to pierce the magic barrier, "LET GO OF MY COLTFRIEND!"

"My col'frien!" Flurry shouted back, further infuriating Sweetie Belle but getting a snicker from Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Babs, Dinky and even Night Glider.

"Not to make this any worse," Double Diamond said. "But maybe it'd be better if Night Glider brought Rumble to Canterlot as well, he's still hurt after all."

"I can still carry the both of them, it would be no problem," Night Glider said.

"Well I don't want this spoiled Princess to keep hogging my coltfriend!" Sweetie Belle shouted.

"Sweetie Belle, that ain't exactly important right now!" Apple Bloom said. "Rumble's hurt and Flurry doesn't want to leave him, they both need to go to Canterlot!"

"Technically you all need to go," Night Glider said. "But I can't carry all of you on my back."

"Just focus on Rumble and Flurry, we'll be fine with yer friends," Apple Bloom said.

"You're one brave filly, I respect you for that," Night Glider said. "All of you take care."

"Please keep Rumble safe," Sweetie Belle pleaded. "I love him a lot."

Rumble blushed at hearing that, "I love you too Sweetie Belle, and don't worry, soon we'll be with each other again."

"You heard the colt, I'll be back for the rest of you later," Night Glider said and flew off, with the others waving.

Tender Taps looked really worried about this situation, "I wish Twilight was here, she'd be able to protect us, she's the strongest pony I know, if anypony could keep us safe, it'd be her."

"Wow, you really look up to Princess Twilight," Double Diamond said.

"Of course, she's really amazing after all," Tender Taps said with a blush. "And I know she's doing everything she can to figure out a way to save us."

Sugar Belle brought Tender Taps in for a side hug. "I'm sure she is, but for now, let us be your saviors, alright?"

Tender Taps nodded, "I have faith in you too, Twilight did tell us about how you all saved her Cutie Mark, as well as the Cutie Marks of her friends."

"As a Cutie Mark Crusader, y'all have mah respect on that," Apple Bloom said.

"Thanks for that," Double Diamond said. "Though I do wonder where Twilight is right now?"

---

With Twilight, she and her team were trotting toward the Crystal Empire, going through the snowy weather. It wasn't easy for any of them though.

"Just a little bit more," Twilight encouraged, trying to will her friends on.

"This is pointless, I wish I had my carriage," Trixie said.

"We're almost there Trixie, try to endure a bit more," Twilight said.

Starlight looked ahead, "Are we really almost there? Because I don't really see it."

"Kinda hard to see anything through this snow," Sunburst said.

Twilight sighed, almost losing hope for the situation. "We have to keep trotting, Equestria depends on this."

"Honestly it's a waste of time," Sunset said. "We know what to do against The Sirens, going To The Crystal Empire is pointless!"

"We don't know that, I know you said we have to match their pitch but for all we know it won't be enough, their voices might be far superior to our own!" Twilight insisted.

"We have magic, let's use it!" Sunset said.

"I doubt it would be that easy," Twilight said. "Come on, we have to keep-"

Suddenly a white light appeared, and from it was a flash, causing the others to shield their eyes. Afterwards Twilight looked and noticed a very familiar Pony. "Starswirl?"

"Twilight, glad I found you, especially in the middle of this awful snowstorm," Starswirl said. "Come now, we should get you someplace warm, you look cold as an ice cube."

"But, we need to get to The Crystal Empire," Twilight said. "Equestria is in danger due to-"

"I know about the Changelings and Sirens, your friend Fluttershy filled me in and trust me when I say, you don't need any information at The Crystal Empire that we can't offer you," Starswirl said. "Come now, before you catch a cold."

Starswirl warped himself and Twilight's group out of the snow and into a small home that belonged to Stygian. The Unicorn in question quickly grabbed a blanket and threw it over the four ponies. "There you go, you must have been trying to get to The Crystal Empire, I heard about the snowstorm surrounding it."

Twilight shook some snow off her mane and noticed that Sonambula, Mage Meadowbrook and Mistmane were there as well. "I see most of you have gathered here."

"Yes, after your friend Fluttershy warned us of the threat to Equestria, I sent Flash Magnus and Rockhoof to assist her and her team. Then I sensed a great evil and brought Stygian and the others home while I went to find you," Starswirl said.

"That great evil might be King Sombra," Twilight said.

"King Sombra? I hear he's the one who caused the disappearence of The Crystal Empire for a thousand years," Starswirl said.

"Yes, me and my friends defeated him and destroyed his body through the power of The Crystal Heart, but he somehow survived that and is trying to return and get his revenge," Twilight said.

"I see, and he's likely utilizing the aid of the Changeling Queen for this," Starswirl said. "This might prove to be a bit troublesome."

"Now not only do we need to stop Chrysalis and The Sirens, but also King Sombra, we're getting in over our heads here Starswirl, I don't know what we should do now," Twilight said, starting to really worry.

"Fear not Twilight, I'm confident you and your friends will be able to solve this, besides me and my comrades will be delighted to assist," Starswirl said.

"That's great to hear," Twilight said. "But we don't want to be a burden on any of you."

"Nonsense, Equestria is our home as well, we'll be more than happy to help in protecting it," Starswirl said. "Now let's all try to come up with a plan shall we?"

Twilight nodded as she and her team discussed the situation further.

---

Back with Fluttershy's team, she along with the two Pillars were returning to Ponyville, ready to fight the Changelings and Sirens.

"Are we really going to sing?" Lightning Dust asked.

"If we must, that may be the only way to save all of Equestria," Fluttershy said.

"I still think it's kind off stupid though," Lightning Dust said. "I mean singing? That seems so...weird."

"Nothing weird about singing, it's good for your soul after all," Rarity said.

"Good for your soul huh? Sounds like some made up crap," Lightning Dust said.

"Will you please stop being such a downer?" Fluttershy asked. "If you don't want to sing that's fine, you can help Flash Magnus and Rockhoof fight off the Changelings."

"See that I'm cool with," Lightning Dust said. "Let's just hurry back to Ponyville, how long will it take to get there?"

"It might take while, we should probably stop to rest somewhere, all this traveling has been agitating my hooves," Rarity somewhat whined.

"Why did we bring her along? Why bring along anyone who will slow you down?" Lightning Dust asked out loud.

Fluttershy sighed in annoyance, "Can you please drop your attitude Lightning Dust, quite honestly it's started to frustrate even me."

"I'm just saying that-" suddenly some dark clouds formed overheard, making the land completely dark. "What's going on?"

The clouds took the form of what appeared to be a pony, glaring down at the group with it's glowing green eyes, stopping them in their tracks.

"What's going on?" Applejack asked, glaring up at the clouds.

"It's been a while, little ponies," the cloud said.

"Do we know you!?" Rarity asked.

"You have forgotten who I am? Or do you simply not recognize me?" the clouds said. "After all, I'm the one who you took an empire from, and all my crystal subjects too."

"Crystal..." Cadance wondered, then had a realization. "Wait a minute, King Sombra?"

"Good, one of you recognize me, how fitting it be the very mare who rules in my rightful place," Sombra said sinisterly. "Now you will know who it was that defeated you."

"I don't know who you are, but you messed with the wrong ponies, I'm taking you down!" Lightning Dust shouted and flew at Sombra.

"Lighting Dust! Don't! Get back here!" Fluttershy ordered, too little too late as Lightning flew closer to Sombra, only to be zapped down by some strong magic, knocking her out cold.

"Lightning Dust!" Rarity shouted in concern.

"What a fool, not even worth the effort," Sombra said, then focused on Rarity. "Your magic might do nicely though." Sombra then lifted Rarity up with his magic and pulled some of hers out, leaving her in a daze as he tossed her aside. I'll need some more."

Cadance flew over to Sombra and started blasting him with her magic, "You will not return King Sombra!"

"You have no power to stop me!" Sombra shouted and zapped Cadance down, "But your magic will satisfy me for the time being."

Before he could do anything, Flash Magnus flew in to attack, but Sombra knocked him aside, then knocked aside several other ponies. Applejack rushed over to help Cadance but found herself lifted into the air.

"Put me down you oversized waste of a King!" Applejack shouted.

"As you command," Sombra said and tossed her aside. Before Applejack could land, Rockhoof jumped in and rescued her.

"I got you lass," Rockhood reassured.

"Whoo, thanks partner," Applejack said, nervously wiping her forehead.

Sombra then sent more magic down at them, which Rockhoof was able to swiftly dodge. "Sorry to say but this guy might be out of my league."

"Don't blame yah, he's huge, and what's freaky is that he's not even at full power! We can't let him return to his physical body, that'd be a nightmare!" Applejack said.

"Aye, tis would be trouble for us," Rockhoof said, then dodged another attack. "But on a postive note, this means he can't be in this form too long, otherwise he'll begin to tire out."

True to what Rockhoof said, Sombra was beggining to fizzle out. "Even with Cadance's magic, perhaps it hasn't settled in yet." He started to disappear from sight, "Know that I shall return, and all of Equestria will bow to me."

He then disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving the ponies scattered about. Fluttershy was tending to Lightning Dust, who was completely out cold.

"Why do you have to be so reckless?" Fluttershy lamented as she began to patch up Lightning Dust.

"She's got high spirits, though not a lot of room for thought," Rockhoof said.

Applejack looked around to all the injured ponies, "Much as I'd like to move on ahead, we gotta make sure all these ponies are alright first."

"Right, not much we can do as we are now, through we'll have to be ready if King Sombra returns," Rockhoof said.

Rarity felt lightheaded, "Can't believe he took my magic, well not all of it, but still, I'm getting tired of having my magic taken from me or being distorted."

"Probably won't be the last time that happens," Applejack said, somewhat joking.

"Right, I so look forward to that," Rarity sarcastically stated.

"Ah just hope Twilight and the others are having better luck than us," Applejack said.

---

Back with Night Glider, she had made her way to Canterlot, setting Rumble and Flurry Heart down near Celestia's castle, "Alright, get Flurry to Celetstia quickly, and get yourself to a bed to heal up."

"Are you going back for the others?" Rumble asked.

"Yeah, shouldn't take too long, I'll try to bring Sweetie Belle back this time, I'm sure you'd like to be in her company again as soon as possible," Night Glider said.

"You can say that again," Rumble said, then felt Flurry's hug tighten. "Though it's gonna be hard to seperate from Flurry Heart."

"You make her feel safe, be proud of that, a Princess likes your company," Night Glider said, then took off. "Be safe!"

Rumble waved good-bye, then looked down at Flurry, "Let's get you to Celestia." Flurry then puckered her lips at Rumble again, much to his annoyance. "Flurry, I only kiss Sweetie Belle like that." Flurry glared and moved in closer, so Rumble again moved her face to kiss her cheek. "That's all you get."

Flurry didn't look to pleased, and glared up at Rumble. "Kissy!"

"Seriously?" Rumble said, then heard the door open. He turned to see Princess Luna standing there. "Oh, Princess Luna, good to see you."

"You're Rumble correct?" Luna asked, then noticed something interesting. "Flurry Heart? I heard she had been captured by Chrysalis."

"Yeah, but I got her back," Rumble said. "With a little help from my friends, but yeah, I got her back." He tried prying her off again, to no avail. "But she won't let me go."

"I can see that," Luna said, then attempted to pull Flurry away, though felt her strong grip on Rumble. With more force she could easily pull Flurry away, but she figured it's best to leave her since she seems to feel some comfort with Rumble. "Well if you don't mind, keep watch over her little bit longer, though it seems like you'll need some tending to, especially with those wings."

Rumble looked back, lamenting over his broken wings, "Yeah, one of the Sirens did this to me, it's how Flurry got captured in the first place."

"Quite detestable, it's time I go and put a stop to those Changelings myself," Luna said, then called for some guards. "Tend to these foals, I'm going to find and defeat Chrysalis and those Sirens."

"They're in Ponyville right now, but please be careful," Rumble said.

"I will be fine, you need not worry about me," Luna insisted, then extended her wings to fly off.

Rumble looked on in concern, hoping Luna would be able to handle this like she says she can.

---

Back with Twilight, she and her team had finished discussing their plans with Starswirl, hoping to put them into action soon.

"Alright, first we return to Ponyville, then we'll gather all the help we can get from there," Twilight said.

"And find a way to lure out Chrysalis to unleash your counterattack," Starswirl said.

"Through the power of voice," Mistmane said.

"Yeah, we'll actually have to sing, to the best of our ability," Sunburst said.

"Hopefully we find my friends, it might be more affective if we sang as a group," Twilight said.

"Let us return to Ponyville," Starswirl said. "It's quite a jump from here, but our combined magic should do the trick."

"Let's get to it," Twilight said, then assisted in using her magic, as did Starlight, Trixie, Sunburst, Mistmane and Sunset.

"Ponyville...Ponyville..." Trixie chanted.

"What are you doing?" Sunset asked.

"A trick Starlight taught me, to teleport somewhere, or teleport something, just think where you want it to go," Trixie said.

"That's nice, but you don't need to think it aloud," Sunset said.

"I know, but it helps," Trixie said.

Sunset rolled her eyes, "Fine, do whatever makes you comfortable."

"Let's do this," Twilight said, then all the Unicorns used their magic to transport themselves all the way to Ponyville in a flash.

They arrived in the center of town, just in time to see all the ponies running around frantically as they avoided the Changelings.

"Good heavens! This town's in trouble!" Mage Meadowbrook exclaimed.

"This is bad, if Chrysalis is here, that means Rainbow Dash and her team couldn't find her, or worse..." Twilight didn't want to think of that. "It should be fine, my brother was in that group, he wouldn't have lost, so maybe they just missed them and are on their way back to Ponyville, just in time to help us stop him."

Just a moment later, Cloudchaser landed with a thud near Twilight, the Pegasus looking really hurt. "Ow..."

"Cloudchaser!" Twilight and Mage Meadowbrook went to assist her, the latter looking over her injuries.

"Oh Twilight, you're back, sweet," Cloudchaser said.

"What's happening in this town?" Twilight asked.

"Oh nothing too unusual, just another invasion," Cloudchaser said with fake casualness. "Happens so often you'd think the ponies would be more relaxed about it."

"This type of thing shouldn't be a regular occurrence," Twilight said. "But that's why we're here, to put an end to it before it gets bad."

"Oh it's getting pretty bad now, since your brother's kinda been mind controlled and has been kicking my flank," Cloudchaser said.

"Wait, what!" Twilight shouted, then saw her brother making his way over.

"Twiley, Queen Chrysalis will be happy to see you!" Shining Armor said as he began trotting towards his little sister.

"Oh no, you're not taking my brother again you stupid queen!" Twilight shouted and used her magic to zap Shining Armor in the head, knocking him a little dizzy.

"Hey, what just-" he was then grabbed and held in the air by Starlight's magic, "Hey! Put me down!"

"After I wipe away your mind control," Twilight said. "Thing is, this doesn't seem to be from Chrysalis."

"Sirens can control ponies too," Sunset said. "You're going to have to break their spell."

"Time to utilize your vocal chords," Starlight said.

"Or I can do it," Trixie insisted.

"Let me, he is my brother," Twilight said, though became concerned. "Though I can't think of a song off the top of my head, normally I can sing when I'm feeling relaxed."

"Huh? According to Rainbow Dash you start singing even when you're freaking out, she mentioned you breaking out into arias," Starlight said.

"Just sing something familiar then, you don't need to think of a brand new song," Sunset said.

"What song makes you think of your brother?" Made Meadowbrook asked.

Twilight had the answers, then cleared her throat as she began to sing, "Love is in Bloom, a Beautiful Bride a Handsome groom, So please undo this spell, if then then things won't turn out well..."

Trixie looked confused, "Um, was that part of the original song?"

Twilight shook her head, "No, I just sorta improvised, guess I felt desperate to help my brother."

"Maybe I can try a song, like the one I sang to you when you first came into my village," Starlight said.

"You mean the village you brainwashed?" Trixke asked. "That's not really going to help here."

"Wait, you brainwashed a village?" Sunset asked.

"That was a long time ago!" Starlight defensively stated, blushing a bit angrily. "That's not even the point here!"

During this arguing, Mistmane approached Shining Armor, keeping her horn near his head. "Please keep singing dear."

"Ok, um...Love's in Bloom, A Beautiful Bride and Handsome groom..."

As Twilight sang, Mistmane used some magic to clear Shining Armor's head, relaxing his mind and allowing the song to take effect.

"Oh, my head," Shining Armor said, then looked around in confusion. "Twiley?"

"Big brother!" Twilight said, getting excited. "You're back to normal!"

"I relaxed his mind so your singing could get through," Mistmane said. "By the way dear, you have a lovely singing voice."

Twilight blushed at the compliment, "Oh, thanks Mistmane."

"Twiley, what's going on?" Shining Armor asked.

"You were being mind controlled by The Sirens," Twilight explained.

"Mind controlled?" Shining Armor asked as everything started coming back to him. "Aw man, not again."

"Yeah, maybe work on not letting that happen," Twilight teased. "Though now that you're ok, maybe you can help us battle against Chrysalis and The Sirens."

"Right, I still have to get my daughter back," Shining Armor said. "If the Changelings and Sirens are here, then Flurry Heart might be here as well."

"We'll help you find your daughter Prince Shining Armor," Starswirl assured.

"Should we split up?" Sunburst asked.

"It sounds risky, but we might need to if we want to search the area faster," Twilight said.

"I can take my fellow Pillars," Starswirl said.

"Good, me and Sunset Shimmer can go with my brother, Starlight you go with Sunburst and Trixie," Twilight said.

Trixie brought Starlight and Sunburst close to her, "We'll be the best team!"

"This isn't a competition Trixie," Sunset pointed out.

"Won't stop us from being the best," Trixie said, garnering a confused reaction from Starlight and Sunburst.

"We'll keep her enthusiasm at moderate level," Starlight reassured.

"Please see that you do," Sunset said. "Let's not dawdle, we have a town to save."

The three groups split into three different directions, with The Pillars going toward the entrance, Starlight's group going near Sweet Apple Acres and Twilight's group going toward the castle.

Near the center of Ponyville, Chrysalis is observing all of the damage, as well as staying near some capsule pods that contain captured ponies. A Changelings then flew over to whisper something, to which it caused some amusement for the queen.

"So, Twilight's back, and she saved her brother," Chrysalis said. "A temporary problem, but a chance for a wonderful solution." She turned her attention to the Changeling, "Go alert the Sirens, they'll want a chance to play as well."

She flew into the air, hoping to find Twilight or any of her friends. She figured the best place to look would be the castle, as that's where Twilight is likely to go. Though on the way there, she noticed somepony in the distance. It was Princess Luna, and she looked ready to fight.

"Chrysalis!" Luna shouted, as she stopped right before the former Queen.

"Princess Luna, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Chrysalis asked, feigning interest.

"Are you really going to be that cliché?" Luna asked. "You know why I'm here, so let's get right to the fight."

"You're feeling pretty confident today, not sure why since our last few encounters haven't been favorable for you," Chrysalis said. "I mean my Changelings have easily captured you the last time we interacted, and before that, you didn't even show up to save your sister or The Elements, tell me, where you sleeping during my invasion of Canterlot?"

Luna looked really annoyed at the question, "Why does everypony keep asking me that? No I was not sleeping, I too helped protect my city." Luna shook it off, "Never mind that, stop stalling and do battle with me!"

"If you insist," Chrysalis said, then blasted a beam at Luna, which the Alicorn Princess quickly blocked and sent out a blast of her own, hitting Chrysalis in the face.

Luna flew in to attack, but a couple of Changelings attempted to block and attack. Luna quickly blasted the Changeling out of the way, but the distraction allowed Chrysalis to blast her down through the roof of a home.

"The energy I can get from Princess Luna will be extraordinary," Chrysalis said as she lowered down. "This could work out very well for me."

Near the center of town, Starswirl and his allies are searching for ponies when they heard a nearby voice.

"Starswirl the Bearded, never thought I'd see you in these parts," Adagio said.

Starswirl turned to the brash siren, "A siren, if I'm not mistaken."

"Name's Adagio Dazzle, you and your Pillars have caused some trouble for my fellow sirens," Adagio said.

"Yes, I do seem to remember your sirens terrorizing a village quite a long time ago," Starswirl said.

"Can you blame us for trying to feed?" Adagio asked. "Which is exactly what me, my sirens and our Changeling friends are trying to do."

"I can't allow you to do things that endanger the lives of others," Starswirl said.

"What you're doing is endangering our lives, tell me what makes your lives much more important than ours!?" Adagio asked.

"We're sure if we figure something out, there can be a way for all of us to live together in peace and harmony," Mage Meadowbrook insisted.

"If The Changelings can find a way, then so can your sirens," Sonambula said.

"Yes, we can still talk this out rationally, call off this attack," Mistmane pleaded.

"You really think after being banished for as long as I have that I really give a damn what you have to say!?" Adagio asked. "Besides even if by some miracle I did want to call off this attack, there isn't much I can do, these Changelings listen to Chrysalis, and I don't think she cares much for what any of you have to say."

Starswirl sighed in sadness, "I hate to have to do this, but you leave me no choice, if you stand in our way, we'll have to settle things the hard way."

The four pillars got into a stance, ready to fight against the siren. At that moment, some Changelings and mind controlled ponies stood by Adagio.

"Don't think for a second this will be easy for any of you," Adagio warned, getting into a fighting stance.

---

Elsewhere Starlight was leading Trixie and Sunburst towards Sweet Apple Acres, though on the way there they had bumped into Aria Blaze, along with her group of changelings and mind controlled ponies.

"Look who finally returned to Ponyville," Aria said, stepping forward. "Truth be told, I was hoping you wouldn't come back, that'd be less work for me to do right now."

"Are you one of the Sirens?" Starlight asked.

"Good guess, I take it you've never met a Siren before, so you don't know how tough or dangerous we could be," Aria said.

"We know you feed off negative emotions," Trixie said. "Which is unfortunate for you, because our team is full of positive energy!"

"Please, I can sense some hostility within you, even hints of jealousy," Aria said, getting a look of annoyance from Trixie.

"I fail to see what you mean," Trixie stated.

"Face it, most ponies don't even like you, they know that you're a fraud of a magician and that you've caused this town more trouble than you're worth," Aria said, then focused on Sunburst. "I can feel some uncertainty within you, like you don't even believe you're worthy enough to fight by Twilight's side." She then focused on Starlight, "Don't get me started on you, I know about your village."

"That was a long time ago," Starlight insisted.

"But the emotions are still there, you still don't think of yourself as a good pony, you know that deep down that old hatred of yours is still there," Aria said.

Starlight shook her head, "No, I've come to terms with my past!"

"Emotions don't deceive," Aria said. "Even the tiniest bit of negativity can grow massively, completely overtaking what you thought you knew."

"Don't let her get in your head Starlight," Sunburst warned. "She just wants to feed and possibly control you."

"Push her out Starlight, better yet," Trixie charged some magic. "Let's teach her a lesson the hard way!"

"You really think the three of you can defeat me?" Aria asked. "Starlight might put up a decent fight, but you two lackeys won't stand a chance!"

"We're not her lackeys, we're her friends!" Trixie stated.

"Same difference to me," Aria said.

Trixie looked mad, "Come on Starlight, let's teach this mare a lesson!"

"Right, you've given us no choice," Starlight said, getting into a stance.

"Like you had any other," Aria said, ready to order her group to attack.

---

Finally with Twilight, she and her team were closing in on the castle, hoping that none of the foals had been hurt. Just as they reached the door, something sped by and knocked all of them over.

"What in the..." Twilight turned and saw Sonata standing there, with Changelings and controlled ponies of her own. "Was that you?"

"Yeah, I can move pretty fast, think you can keep up Princess?" Sonata taunted.

Shining Armor stepped forward, "Where is my daughter!?"

"Oh, you actually broke free, that's a shame, at least for you," Sonata said.

"Answer his question, what have you done to my niece!?" Twilight asked.

"Nothing, like I'm going to hurt a toddler," Sonata said, sounding offended.

"Didn't you hurt a colt?" Shining Armor asked.

"That was Adagio, for what it's worth, I don't condone hurting foals," Sonata glared angrily at the three ponies. "I can't say the same for you though, I have no problems ridding Equestria of the three of you, especially if that means I get to keep Flurry Heart all to myself."

"You are NOT taking my daughter from me!" Shining Armor shouted. "I'll defeat you and save my daughter, now where is she!"

"Ugh, if you must know, I left her with a couple of Changelings, and don't worry, they won't let anything bad happen to her, I gave them specific orders not to let anything bad happen to her," Sonata said.

"Wow, that was...actually kind of you," Twilight said.

"Yeah I didn't do it for you so save your gratitude," Sonata said. "I want Flurry nice and safe for my own reasons."

"Let me guess, you're gonna make her one of your little pawns, is that it?" Sunset asked.

"Sorry, I'm not telling you anything about my plan to raise Flurry as my own so we can have a powerful Alicorn ally to rule over the new Equestria Chrysalis plans to make," Sonata said, gaining curiosity from the others.

"What New Equestria?" Sunset asked, getting a look of disbelief from Sonata, "Ugh, I mean...ignore what I just said...I'm gonna destroy you now!" She held her hoof out, "Attack minions!"

"Brace yourselves for a fight!" Sunset said, charging her horn, with Twilight and Shining Armor doing the same.

Four fights happened within the town of Ponyville, the first one containing between Luna and Chrysalis, the former shooting magic zaps at the latter. Chrysalis easily placed magic barriers and sent her own zaps, which Luna dodged through teleportation.

Luna charged with her horn, but Chrysalis blocked it and created a shockwave to knock Luna back. She blasted Luna through some houses, knocking her near the town hall.

"She's gotten stronger since last time," Luna said, charging some magic. "Nevertheless, I can't let her triumph!" She sent a strong blast towards Chrysalis, the queen putting up a shield and deflecting the blast away.

Luna quickly teleported behind Chrysalis and sent another blast, this one hitting the evil queen and knocking her to a wall. Luna flew in with another charged attack and sent Chrysalis through some homes.

"I really hope the ponies of this town will be understanding of the damage," Luna said, quite worried about the damage to the houses.

As Luna flew over she saw Mage Meadowbrook flying through the air, looking like she was hit by a strong attack. She used her magic to catch the Pillar and set her down gently.

"Much appreciated Princess Luna," Mage Meadowbrook said.

"What happened to you?" Luna asked.

"One of those Sirens, she's doing battle with Starswirl, Sonambula and Mistmane," Mage Meadowbrook said.

Before Luna could ask more, Chrysalis landed before the two, ready to continue her battle. "One of The Legendary Pillars, you'll make a nice source of energy."

Mage Meadowbrook took a step back, though looked ready to fight if she needed to. "I take it that's the Changeling queen."

"Yes, at least the former Queen," Luna charged up her magic. "One I shall defeat."

"You keep sprouting that, but remember this, I defeated your sister once, what makes you think you can defeat me? What makes you think a Princess can overpower a Queen?" Chrysalis said.

"Do not underestimate me, unlike my sister, I show no mercy to foes, that especially includes ones who would hurt my friends!" Luna charged again, resulting in another clash with Chrysalis.

Meanwhile Adagio is using her powers in an attempt to overpower her foes, mainly utilizing her vocal blasts against her enemies. Starswirl had effectively used his magic to block the attacks, but they were proving tough for Mistmane and Sonambula, especially since they had to fend of Changelings and mind controlled ponies.

"How are you gonna banish me without the rest of your friends old man!?" Adagio asked, attempting to ram Starswirl.

"I would prefer to talk things out nowadays," Starswirl said, teleporting out of the way of each attack. "Perhaps if we did a millennia ago, maybe there would be less hostility between ponies and sirens."

"I bet you're only saying that because you know you lack the power to defeat me!" Adagio said, then sent a blast to Starswirl, that he deflected.

"No, I say that because in my past, I have let my pride get the better of me, had I talked things out with my pupil instead of resorting to banishment, we wouldn't have spent eons stuck in limbo, and I'm sure you don't want to suffer that same fate," Starswirl said.

"I won't, because I'm going to defeat you here and now!" Adagio went to ram Starswirl again, but Sonambula arrived in time to kick her away.

"Starswirl, I understand you wish for a peaceful solution, but I don't think we'll do eons of damage within a few minutes," Sonambula explained. "I'm afraid we have no choice but to use force."

Adagio then blasted Sonambula toward a building, "Your power won't be any match for mine!"

Near Sweet Apple Acres, Starlight, Sunburst and Trixie are fending off a wave of Changelings and mind controlled ponies, doing their best not to hurt the latter.

"Ugh, what do we have to do to snap these ponies out of their trance!?" Trixie asked, zapping a Changeling.

Starlight was using a forcefield to keep some ponies away, "I'm sure they'll snap out eventually, but it's possible Chrysalis's magic might be too strong."

"It might be more than that," Sunburst said, attempting to restrain a pony. "The sirens can manipulate control as well."

"Yeah, you basically have no chance at our combined magic," Aria said.

Starlight used her barrier to knock the ponies away and blasted a few Changelings, "How come you're not fighting us then!?"

"Why get my hooves dirty when I have others to do it for me?" Aria said. "Plus I'm just not in the mood to actually fight."

Trixie knocked a pony away, "How about I come to you then!" As she rushed to Aria, a few Changelings pounced on her. Fortunately Starlight was quick in blasting them off, much to Trixie's relief. "Appreciate the help."

"Aw, how sweet," Aria said in condensation.

Sunburst charged at her, but she side stepped out of the way and he went crashing through a fence. "I'm alright!"

"You're not going to beat me, so just give up," Aria said.

"The fight's just started, we'd be crazy to stop now," Starlight said.

"You were crazy the moment you thought you could beat me," Aria said, commanding more Changelings and ponies to atack.

With Sonata, she used her speed to avoid the magic blasts from Twilight, Sunset and Shining Armor.

"Why is she so fast!?" Shining Armor asked, trying to zap her.

"Why are you so weak?" Sonata taunted, much to Shining Armor's annoyance.

"Sirens do have good mobility, she seems to have perfected hers," Sunset said, attempting to zap Sonata.

She speedy Siren appeared beside Shining Armor and kicked him toward Sunset, knocking them both over. Twilight rushed over to zap her but she again disappeared from sight. She reappeared behind Twilight and rushed to attack her but Twilight was quick in putting up a forcefield to block the attack and stun Sonata for the moment, a moment Twilight used to blast her back.

Before the others could capitalize, several ponies and Changelings launched themselves at the three, attempting to pin them down.

Twilight used her forcefield to knock all the enemies off her, then zapped them away from her brother and friend.

"I'm not stopping until I get my niece back!" Twilight said.

"And then what? You really think that's gonna help you defeat Chrysalis!?" Sonata asked. "Maybe you should get your priorities straightened out Princess, if you take Flurry back then what's to stop her from being destroyed along with the rest of Equestria!?"

"What in the world are you talking about!?" Twilight asked.

"Chrysalis wants to wipe out all living creatures in Equestria and replace them with creature of her own, can't you see I'm trying to protect Flurry from that!?" Sonata said.

"Well sorry if we confused taking a pony against her will with trying to save her!" Twilight said. "You can try to justify your plan all you'd like, in the end it's wrong! What you're doing is evil!"

"Me and my friends just want to feast, is that really so bad!?" Sonata asked.

"I'm not saying it is, but you need to go about this better!" Twilight said.

"Kind of late to tell us this after spending countless years banished from Equestria!" Sonata said.

"Is this about Starswirl?" Twilight asked. "Was he the one who banished you?"

"Yes, he was, just because we were hungry," Sonata said.

Twilight softened her gaze, "I'm sorry if you went through hardships, but you need to understand things from our perspective, what you're doing is essentially taking our life energy, you're doing what the Changelings did, except they changed for the better, they feed off Friendship."

"That doesn't help me, I feed of negative emotions," Sonata said.

"Well, maybe there's a better way to utilize that gift, like letting a friend talk out their pent up frustrations? Releasing negativity is a good thing, and you can help with that. It sounds like you need someone to do that for you," Twilight said.

Sonata felt hesitant, trying to figure out what exactly Twilight was up to. Unfortunately she didn't have much time to think as she suddenly had to avoid a blast from Sunset Shimmer.

"Sunset wait! I'm trying to reason with her!" Twilight urged.

"You want to reason with the mare that captured your niece and attempted to overthrow Equestria?" Sunset asked.

"It's better than fighting!" Twilight argued.

"I don't think they can be reasoned with, which is probably why you've had to fight Chrysalis a bunch of times," Sunset said.

"Well maybe she's different, Rumble did say one of the Sirens was pretty nice," Twilight said.

Before Sunset could argue her point, Sonata rushed in and rammed her down, then glared at Twilight. "I know your game Princess, I'm not gonna betray my friends. If you really cared about your niece, you'll leave her with us where it's safe, nopony is getting spared from the Pony Eradication that Chrysalis has planned. Quite frankly, that's just the start too, there's tons of creatures we'll have to be rid of as well, including the traitor Changelings."

"No, there has to be another way," Twilight said. "Do you really want to hurt ponies? Can you really live with that? Especially all the little foals that might be in danger?"

"Don't try that on me," Sonata said. "I don't have it in me to care about every single foal in this world."

"Are you sure about that? Because it's very possible, I know you can't be all bad, somehow I just don't sense that much hostility in you," Twilight said. "Tell me, did you approve of Rumble getting hurt the way he did?"

"That doesn't matter!" Sonata shouted. "I can't control what my friends do!"

"But you can control what you do Sonata!" Twilight said. "You know deep down that this isn't the right thing to do."

Sonata shook her head, "You're...I know what you're doing, you're trying to separate me from my friends, my family. Sorry but I'm not going to allow that!"

Sonata rushed to attack again, but Sunset blasted her back, knocking her away from the two. "You're plan isn't working Twilight, not everyone can be saved by Friendship!"

"You know Starswirl said that when he believed his friend Stygian couldn't be reformed," Twilight said.

"Twilight, they're Sirens, it's in their nature to feed off negativity, it's not like with the Changelings where you can just share love and everything's all better," Sunset said.

Twilight furrowed her brow at her friend's negativity, "I still think there's something we can do for her."

"Twilight-" Sunset was interrupted when Sonata knocked her over, taking Twilight by surprise.

"You're just filled with negativity aren't you?" Sonata said, looking down at Sunset, a sinister smile forming on her face. "It looks so tasty, I bet you'll fill me up for a good while."

"Wait, don't!" Twilight pleaded.

Fortunately Shining Armor took the chance to blast Sonata from behind after he had finished dealing with his own distractions. "I'm not done with you!"

Sonata looked a bit annoyed, "Can't you stay down!?" She rushed to attack Shining Armor, but Twilight teleported in front and blocked the attack with her shield.

"Enough!" Twilight demanded. "I order you all to stop fighting!"

"You can't order me around!" Sonata said.

"Twilight, she had my daughter somewhere! I'm going to find out where if I have to force the information out of her!" Shining Armor said.

"Good luck finding her, I left her in the care of a couple of Changelings, they likely vacated the area by now, not tough fighters, plus I didn't want them in the way, it would have endangered Flurry," Sonata said.

"You...you left my daughter with Changelings!?" Shining Armor shouted. "Are you insane!?"

"Relax, they may be useless insects but they at least know how to watch over a baby, I specifically warned them what would happen if she got hurt," Sonata said.

Shining Armor looked around, "Where were they last!?"

"I left them at the edge of town, good luck finding them," Sonata said. "Not like you'll get far, even if I allowed you to leave, you have plenty of others ready to attack."

"Not if I can help it!" Shining Armor said, rushing to attack some more.

---

Back with Rainbow Dash, she's still tending to her injured Wonderbolt allies alongside Pinkie Pie, Ember, Thorax and Spike.

"A Shadow King? Is she talking about King Sombra?" Thorax asked. "I thought he was destroyed?"

"Well it looks like he came back, and probably wants revenge," Rainbow Dash said.

"Kind of worried he'll take his revenge on me since I was the one who pretty much destroyed his empire," Spike said, sweating a bit.

"Pretty sure he wants revenge on all of us," Rainbow Dash said. "We all took his empire away after all."

"It sounds like he's working with Chrysalis, but how did that partnership even come to pass?" Ember asked.

"Any idea Thorax?" Spike asked.

"Beats me," Thorax said. "Chrysalis has kept some secrets from us though, I wouldn't be surprised if she's had run ins with Sombra at one point."

"First Chrysalis finds Sirens, then she resurrects King Sombra," Ember said. "She's been quite busy lately, hasn't she?"

"No doubt about that," Thorax said. "Her determination to destroy Equestria and get revenge is really frightening. I knew Chrysalis had ambition but this was more than I even imagined."

"Considering she's not only lost a few times to Twilight, but the fact that she lost her Kingdom and most of her soldiers, it shouldn't be that surprising," Spike said. "I think we've really made her mad."

"At least she didn't bring back Tirek," Rainbow Dash said, though it did make her think of something. "Hey Thorax, Chrysalis never met Tirek, right?"

"Hey if King Sombra is a surprise to me, then Tirek could be as well," Thorax said.

"Right..." Rainbow Dash said. "Maybe one of us should go check Tartarus and make sure he's still there."

"I don't think we can spare any forces," Ember said. "Right now our plan should be to heal your Wonderbolt friends and find Princess Twilight and the others."

"Yeah but-" Rainbow Dash's explanation was halted when she heard something ominous outside. Heading outside, the group saw some black clouds form overheard, a pony's face emerging from within.

"More ponies..."

Spike started to tremble in fear, "K-king Sombra!"

Sombra's clouds took on a full pony form as he glared down at the group, "More Elements of Harmony, luck had been shining down on me thus far, getting my power back is become far too easy."

"Sombra!" Ember shouted, getting into a fighting stance. "Whatever you're planning, it won't work! There's no way we're letting you destroy our world!"

"Am I to be intimidated by your newfound alliances? Pony, Dragon, Changeling, it makes little difference to me in the end," Sombra said.

"We'll show you!" Ember shouted, as she and Thorax charged up fire and magic respectively at Sombra, which did very little to hurt him.

"Not bad, unfortunately Dragons have no magic so there's not much you can offer me, as for your friends," Sombra said, charging up some magic.

"I'm not losing another battle!" Rainbow Dash shouted, flying at the evil King, only to be zapped down through the roof of the building they were just in.

"No! Rainbow Dash!" Spike shouted in worry. He didn't have time to check as Sombra then started blasting down some more, hitting him, Ember, Thorax and others, knocking them out and allowing him to drain whatever magic he could from them.

Sombra started to feel whole again, but he was still missing some magic, fortunately for him, he knew just where to get it from.

"Prepare yourself, Twilight Sparkle," Sombra said, flying off in his clouds.