The Siege on Equestria

by Nintendoboy1000

Chapter 1: Preparations

Chapter 1

Winter… the season lulled Equestria to sleep under nature’s white blanket. Through cold and dark nights, the spirit of Hearth's Warming Eve kept the ponies safe and warm. The ponies in Ponyville, Canterlot, and Cloudsdale had shared their harmony towards each other for a very long time. No matter what type of ponies they were, the bonds of friendship they had treasured since long ago ensured the harmony and peace in Equestria… then and forever. It was five months since the day of Discord’s downfall, along with his chaotic schemes, and Ponyville remained strong.

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“Spike!” Called Twilight Sparkle from the first floor of her library, “Get your lazy dragon butt out of bed! We gotta go! We’re going to be late for our daily checkup around Ponyville! Hearth's Warming Eve is only a week away, and I don’t intend to slack off! Now come on!” Twilight was hyped up and ready to fulfill her assigned duty as task manager. The fact that Spike always had a tendency for sleeping late made her even more anxious to start the day. Having been given the role of organizer made her feel proud, and she was determined to get things done as effectively as possible. Another ten seconds of waiting later, Spike walked slowly into the room while rubbing his half-open eyes. He let out a tired yawn, and proceeded to scratch his back with his claw.

“*Yaaaawn!*… Tell me again… why am I involved in this?” Spike grumbled. Twilight knew Spike wasn’t used to getting up at such an early hour, but the fact that she had been given such a responsible title made her very hasty this time around. Seeing that it was almost time to go, she decided to get her things ready. She placed a checklist in her saddlebag, along with one of her favorite quills and an ink bottle as well. Once Twilight was prepared and well-equipped for her duties, she levitated the bag and strapped it around her waist. Then, she gave out a slight sigh and turned to Spike, who hadn’t moved an inch.

“Because you’re Ponyville folk now, it’s also your responsibility to make sure everything goes according to schedule!” Twilight responded. Spike could only answer with a groan of annoyance.

“And… when did I actually agree to thi-“ At that moment, Twilight used her telekinesis to lift Spike up and levitated him onto her back. Once Spike was in position, Twilight gave him a glare of finality.

“Last month, when I was assigned my job! Now let’s get to work!” Twilight said, and then trotted her way out the front door. Outside, the snow on the ground was roughly a foot high, and it still continued to snow lightly. The temperature was a bit chilly, but warm clothing wasn’t really necessary yet for an average pony. There were a few ponies walking around the town, and the rest were most likely still asleep in their homes. The sun was just barely visible on the horizon, preparing itself for yet another day. Ready to do her job, Twilight and Spike went out to check on the preparations for the holiday’s approach.

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Their first order of business was to check on the food preparations for the Hearth's Warming Eve party in Canterlot. And what better place to perform such a task than at Sweet Apple Acres? Twilight noticed a few stallions plowing through the snowy fields, while some others were bucking whatever remaining apples were left on the trees, and a few that were working on baked goods inside the farmhouse itself. She could practically smell the delicious and scrumptious food they were baking from a mile away. So far, so good. Twilight checked off a few squares, seeing as things were already in full motion. Right after that, she spotted three very familiar ponies working on harvesting apples from some nearby apple trees. Willing to spare a bit of time to chat, she went over to meet Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Big Macintosh. The apple family noticed her arrival and immediately greeted her with a trio of warm, welcoming waves.

“Howdy Twilight,” Applejack greeted, “We’re just finishing up harvesting whatever apples we can find on them trees. And boy did they turn out to be great apples.” Twilight smiled, as she checked the remaining entries on the food department checklist. She was, however, a bit sad that she hadn’t had the chance to check up on all the things on her own, but nonetheless, she was happy.

“Oh… great! I knew I could count on you guys to get the job done in a timely manner.” Just then, Twilight heard someone snoozing right behind her. She looked back and noticed Spike curled up with his eyes shut. Annoyed, Twilight used her magic to lift a small pile of snow up into the air, and then dump it on top of Spike’s head. The cold mass caused Spike to immediately sit back up in shock. He gasped and swerved his head around.

“W-What?! I-I’m awake! I…” Spike paused for a brief moment, only to be confronted by an irritated Twilight. He let out a tired grumble, realizing he had dozed off.

“What? Look, I don’t know what to do, okay? You didn’t really give me a job.” Spike said, and Twilight rolled her eyes.

“Well then, I suppose I’ll leave the checklist up to you!” Almost immediately, Twilight used her magic to teleport the checklist and quill to Spike’s hands. Not even close to being amused or enthused, he let out yet another grumble. Apple Bloom gave a friendly chuckle at seeing him being treated like this.

“It’s alright, Spike. I know gettin’ up early ain’t yer type of thing. But you’ll get used to it eventually.” She said with an encouraging smile. Spike looked at her and displayed a friendly smile of his own.

“Heh… thanks.”

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After a while of chatting, Twilight departed Apple Acres and headed straight towards the Weather Team dispatch center, located at the Town Hall. There, she quickly spotted Rainbow Dash giving out orders, such as choosing which pegasi were supposed to manage the clouds, move the birds to a different location, or make sure that the weather was behaving properly. Twilight was surprised to find that not only had Applejack already gotten started, but Rainbow Dash too. Seeing as though job was underway, Twilight thought to herself,

“I wonder if it’s best to wake up earlier next time, just so I can oversee everything, and make sure that things are going exactly as I scheduled.” But despite her thought, it was probably best not to, since Spike would no doubt refuse to wake up at that kind of hour. Putting aside the thought, she decided to check up on Rainbow Dash. She walked towards her, calling out her name.

“Hey! Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called. Dash turned around, a big smile forming on her muzzle.

“What’s up!” Dash flew into the air, performed a frontal loop, and gracefully landed in front of her. Twilight hoped that there would be at least ‘something’ for her to check up on.

“I’m just here to check up on some things. Got anything ‘disorganized’ for me to fix?” Twilight asked with a helping hoof. But sadly, Rainbow Dash replied with a simple shaking head.

“We already got everything organized. We got the weather planned, we’ve already sent the birds to the south, and practically have everything else set up! Guess your job is going to be easy today!” Once more, Twilight was sad to discover that she couldn’t help out. But she kept her usual smile and her enthusiastic spirit up.

“Oh… well… that’s great! I… I guess. Y-You sure there isn’t anything I can help with?” She hoped that she would get some sort of assignment, but Rainbow Dash’s only response was a shake of her head.

“Sorry, Twi. We got everything running smoothly. But hey, why don’t you check on the others? See if they want any help. Now, I gotta go. See ya around!” And with that, Rainbow Dash flew skywards and soared through the sky, where a bunch of pegasi were awaiting her. Twilight felt a bit disappointed from not being able to help her friend, but she still didn’t give up. Seeing as there were three more major areas to check up on, she departed in hopes of finding somepony in need of help.

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Only a few minutes later, outside of Ponyville, Twilight and Spike went to meet the caretaker of all critters. Not wanting to be left out on the preparations, Twilight picked up her pace, as her speed went from trotting to galloping. Spike held onto her neck and prepared himself for a bumpy ride.

“Guh! Twilight, slow down! It’s hard for me to hold on to you!” Spike yelled, but not a single word came through to the anxious purple unicorn’s head, so he quickly gave up and continued to hold on.

A minute of galloping later, Twilight arrived at her destination and stopped. She let out a small gasp, as she couldn’t see any critters in sight. Once more, Twilight was too late. But, she did manage to spot a pink mane on a yellow pegasus, going from hole to hole. Perhaps there was still a little bit of work left for her to do. Without wasting anymore time, Twilight galloped over to Fluttershy in hopes for a small assignment.

“Fluttershy!” Twilight called out. Fluttershy heard her sudden voice, and quickly yelped in fright. She quickly dove past a huge boulder to hide herself from sight. It took only a couple of seconds for her to recognize the voice and regain her former composure. She looked up from her hiding place, and was immediately greeted by Twilight’s friendly smile.

“O-Oh… it’s you. I’m sorry about that, you startled me there.” Fluttershy said. Twilight gave an apologetic chuckle.

“Hehe… sorry. Anyways,” Twilight then proceeded to lean closer towards Fluttershy with eyes of anticipation. “Is there anything I can do to help? I-I mean, that is if you REALLY need help.” Twilight’s compulsive behavior was starting to get the better of her. Fluttershy was not aware of her anxious behavior, and began thinking of what she had done so far. Each second that passed by, Twilight’s hopes were rising. But alas, Fluttershy finally responded with a shaking head.

“I’m afraid I got all the assignments done. Sorry, there isn’t anything for you to help with.” Just as she thought, Twilight let out a depressed sigh. Fluttershy felt a bit guilty by not being able to let her friend help out.

“I’m sure Pinkie Pie and Rarity are working on some big things. Surely you can check up on that.” Fluttershy added. Twilight’s anticipation level sparked back up from hearing her say that. Pinkie Pie was in charge of the holiday decorating, and Rarity was asked to prepare seasonal clothing for the pony folk. Indeed they would have a lot of things for her to check on, and Twilight was not the pony to miss such an opportunity. Before she managed to drift off into her own world, as per usual, she snapped back into reality and thanked Fluttershy while Spike checked off another box on the to-do list.

“You’re right. Thanks Fluttershy… I just hope my friends don’t think that I’m just a useless pony.”

“Oh no, you are not a useless pony, Twilight.” Fluttershy added. “If you truly care about the ponies and your assignments, I’m sure you’ll have your share. I mean, it’s not like you’re being labeled as worthless and weak, right?” Hearing this boosted Twilight’s confidence a bit, and she quickly nodded before departing.

“Right! Well, take care.” Twilight said. Spike waved goodbye to her as well, and they both took off. Fluttershy returned the wave, and watched as they went over the snowy hill. At that moment, she lowered her hoof, and placed it next to her heart. She let out a slight sigh, while looking up at the morning sky.

“And I know you’re not worthless and weak too. I just hope your doing okay…” Fluttershy quietly said to herself, as she began thinking of a certain somepony… or rather, a certain someone.

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“WHAT?! You’re both finished as well?!” Twilight exclaimed loudly at Pinkie Pie and Rarity. Pinkie Pie had just finished with decorating the flares and Rarity had finished with her daily dresses thirty minutes ago. Twilight had ran into them as they were having their morning breakfast together. Pinkie put down her cupcake and shrugged at Twilight.

“Sorry, I guess we were just as excited as you were, and managed to get things done early.” Rarity nodded and put down her newspaper.

“Twilight, dear, I know how much it means to you to help us in our preparations, but we’ve already done this before without your organizing skills. It’s sort of natural to us.” Spike leaped off of Twilight’s back and finished checking up everything on the list. Then Spike looked at Twilight with a smile.

“Well, that’s everything! Looks like our job was downright easy! And with that done, I’ll be going back to my bed! And…” At that moment, his smile dropped, as he started seeing a change in her behavior. “Twilight… are you okay?” Spike asked. Twilight was both shocked and sad to know that her only chance at helping was but a fading hope. Without anything to check on, how was she supposed to do her job? She felt left out, tossed aside, and even forgotten. This almost made her depressed, but keeping a strong face, she held her composure.

“Oh… I’m… I’m all right. I… I never thought you all… didn’t need my help. Wow… I feel like… like…” Starting to lose it, she could feel tears begin to well up in her eyes. She didn’t want her friends to see her cry, that’d only make them feel bad. So she slowly backed up, turning her head away, and headed straight for the door.

“Never mind… I’ll just… go back home… and study…” She said, her voice slowly breaking down. Pinkie and Rarity exchanged concerned looks at each other, and then back at Twilight. The awful memories of failing to help during Winter Wrap Up started to claw their way into Twilight’s mind. She could hear negative words floating within her noggin, words like worthless, lazy, pitiful, and many more. Most of them weren’t true, but they hurt her nonetheless. Each word was bashing against her sensitive mind, making her weaker.

She couldn’t hold it anymore, and she made a dash towards the exit. Spike followed after her, calling her name. Out the door, Twilight ran straight towards her library, tears falling from her eyes and landing on the cold snow.

Spike ran as fast as he could to catch up with Twilight, but his stubby little legs couldn’t compare to a regular pony’s speed. Plus, his eyes were becoming heavier from the lack of sleep. Luckily, the Library wasn’t too far away. After half a minute of catching up, Spike arrived at the Library. He went inside and closed the door. There, he spotted Twilight sobbing with her head hung low. Spike’s feet were numb from running on cold snow, but he didn’t worry about that. Taking a second to catch his breath, he went over to pat her reassuringly on the back.

“Twilight… are you okay?” He asked sincerely. Twilight didn’t bother to look at Spike, ashamed for performing such a rash action. She just continued to let out all of her frustration.

“I… I’m… I’m so sorry. *Sniff*… It’s just… I never thought… of being… left out! Now my schedule is all messed up! I wanted to help so badly… but they never bothered… to leave me anything to help with! Oh Spike… I feel so awful…” Just hearing that made Spike roll his eyes, but he felt a little bit of empathy towards her.

“Twilight… don’t let this get to you. You have other things you could be doing. Don’t let this ruin your day, cause I don’t want to see you be like this.” With that supportive statement, Spike started to walk upstairs.

“I’m going back to bed to recover my lost hours. And please don’t wake me up early when I’m not needed… please.” He spoke, yawning ever so loudly. From all the harsh yet truthful words Spike spoke, Twilight stopped her crying, and looked depressedly at the floor. During her time alone, she began to remember all the things she’d done. The scheduling, her work, and her friends were popping up inside her mind in order. Sure, she was a busy pony, but most of the time she wanted things to go the way she wanted. And that’s what made her different from any other pony in Ponyville. Yet, all she ever thought about when she was busy was to not let her friends down. Starting to realize herself, Twilight let her gaze wander over most of the books in her library.

“Well… at least… I’m not a total complete booknerd… right?” She solemnly mumbled to herself.

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Meanwhile, at the Royal Castle, Princess Celestia finished raising the sun. Next to her was her long banished sister, Princess Luna. Both of them had very important roles to perform, raising and lowering the moon and sun. Luna was in charge of the night, while her older sister was in command of the day. With Luna back to reclaim her position, both princesses ruled the land the way it had been before the banishment. The two of them glanced at the rising sun, ready to start another new day.

“Well, it looks like I’ll be heading back into my room now, sister.” Luna said, as she started walking away. “But… sister?” She suddenly asked. Celestia turned her head around with a puzzled look.

“Yes?”

“I... umm...” Luna wanted to say something, but didn’t find the needed courage to push her words out. She just gazed at the ground, mumbling with nervosity.

“I-If… if it’s alright with you… m-maybe someday… we both can… well switch jobs. J-Just for a day.” She stuttered. Celestia knew that she wanted attention and to be loved by her subjects more than anything else, and she could see it in Luna’s eyes that she didn’t want to be resentful, but to experience it herself. Seeing that Luna had changed for the better, Celestia smiled down at her sister.

“We’ll see… raising the sun is a tough job, you know. But if you can manage to grow your magic, we’ll give it a shot. How’s that, sister?” Excited, Luna’s face beamed with joy.

“Oh thank thee- I-I mean… thank you!” Luna said. Celestia nodded her head.

“Okay, well then…” She was about to continue, but something had struck her mind. She could sense something coming their way… something truly dark. She silently gasped and snapped her head northwest with a distraught look on her face. Nothing in sight, but she could feel the threatening dark presence approaching. It was not like anything that had ever been felt by mortal minds. She could feel the terror, the destruction, and chaos

“What… what is this I’m feeling? What In Equestria could be sending such dark vibes?” Celestia spoke in her conscious. “That power… it’s so huge… so frightening…” Luna began questioning her behavior, wondering what was on her mind. Unlike Celestia, Luna wasn’t powerful enough to sense any energies or presences. She slowly walked over to her sister, and attempted to learn what was going on.

“Sister? Is there something wrong?” She asked. Celestia didn’t respond, since her focus was on the source of the foul presence. Pearls of sweat were rolling down her brow, while her teeth were clenched. Praying that the presence would go away, she tried to calm down. But it was too hard to let go, her sensing prowess never betrayed her.

“But… why is this sense so familiar to me…? Who on earth is this…” Celestia once more spoke to herself. She was about to lose connection to reality, when Luna asked once more.

“Sister?” At that moment, Celestia finally snapped out of her traumatized state. She exhaled in relief, and looked back at her sister.

“Nothing… it was nothing.” She said. Luna tilted her head to the side, wondering if that was entirely true or not.

“You sure? Are you really okay, sister?”

“Yes… I am. Now go and get some rest… you’ve got a busy night coming up later.” Celestia replied. Luna nodded her head and went out the door. With Luna gone, Celestia drew her attention back to the daunting presence at hoof.

“I just hope it won’t come our way… whatever it is.” She silently said to herself. And from that moment on, the sun shined across the land, ready to start its day.

Comments

[Panic Manic]

Yes :D

On to the reading.

[Gangsta Sasquatch]

T o quote a certain Noble Five: "No........... no, somebody tell me this ain't happening!!!

[JazzTheFox53rd]

I wonder what that dark presence could be. On to the next chapter.