Chapter Eight: Regrouping
The Crystal Empire was, just the like the rest of Equestria, in a state of deep panic. Grogar's chilling announcement had brought fear and unease to the Crystal Ponies. It had gotten so bad, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor had deployed the Crystal Guard to restore some semblance of order. They'd been reasonably successful, convincing ponies to stay indoors where it was safe, not to mention reminding everypony that the power of the Crystal Heart still protected them, but there was still an aura of terror hanging over the empire. Ponies felt as though this was the end of everything they held dear, which wasn't altogether unreasonable.
The ponies who were the most capable of ensuring that Grogar's vision didn't come to pass were inside the Crystal Palace, strategizing. Well, perhaps strategizing was too strong a word, given everypony's current condition. The former bearers of the Elements of Harmony had all had their physical wounds seen to by the Empire's best medical unicorns, but no magic could do anything about the mental scars. Especially for one pony in particular
Tempest Shadow trotted out of the spare bedroom, closing the door behind her. She moved slowly, her head lowered in something that might've been shame, before she finally reached the throne room. Gathered there were Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence, Shining Armor, Spike, Sunburst, Starlight, Trixie, Flurry Heart, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash.
"So how is she?" asked Rainbow, walking over to Tempest.
"Still unresponsive," replied the scarred unicorn. "I tried everything I could think of, but nothing got to her. At this point, all I can suggest we do is give her time, but—"
"Sugar cube, we ain't got time!" Applejack exclaimed. "Grogar's gotta know we'd run here, and he could be coming as we speak! Not to mention he could go for Ponyville, Appleloosa, or anywhere else in Equestria to try and draw us out! We need her up and running now!"
"I was just about to say that, but thank you," Tempest snorted.
"I'm not surprised she's acting like this," said Shining Armor. "Twily's always had trouble dealing with defeat, and this is easily the worst one she's ever faced."
"No one is denying that," said Rarity. "We were beaten, and beaten badly. We didn't even get a chance to try the Elements of Harmony against Grogar. Discord, our best backup, fell like a chaff in a windstorm. But we can't simply sit around moping."
"I don't know what good it would do to attack Grogar," said Fluttershy. "Sure, we wouldn't be caught off-guard again, but we don't have any more power than we did in the Everfree. They'd probably just defeat us again."
"Even if that's true," replied Pinkie, "we can't just let that meanie Grogar have his way with the world! We have a responsibility to at least try!"
Celestia, meanwhile, kept her forlegs folded, resting her chin on her hoof, deep in thought. The conversation continued, with everypony suggesting various ways to try and bring Twilight's spirits back up. Finally, the solar alicorn got to her hooves.
"Let me speak with her," she requested. The others, having no other substantial ideas, all shrugged in agreement.
Celestia's golden magical aura lit up the doorknob, before she pulled open. She moved slowly, not wanting to disturb Twilight more than absolutely necessary. She looked around, finding the room to be relatively undisturbed. The only exception was the bed, where Twilight sat, facing the window, not even bothering to try and pull the covers over her body.
Celestia winced at the sight. There was no denying the obvious truth: her former student was a mess. Twilight's mane was frazzled and messy, and the feathers on her wings were ruffled and uneven. Her face probably didn't look so good, either. Celestia swallowed as she stepped over to the bed.
"Twilight...?" she ventured, reaching up to touch the purple pony on the shoulder with one hoof.
Twilight made no sound, but slowly rolled over to look her former teacher in the face. Celestia tried to prevent herself from cringing at her appearance. Twilight's face was all wet from crying, and her eyes were red. Her nose had clearly been running, as the skin was all chapped. Her expression was stuck in a permanent state of despair.
"Twilight? Are you alright?" Celestia asked, then mentally kicked herself. As if the answer to that question wasn't obvious enough.
Twilight's only response was a mumbled "I'm sorry." She didn't even bother trying to get up from the bed.
Celestia apprehensively reached for Twilight's shoulder. "Twilight, it's okay," she insisted. "You didn't do anything wrong."
She shouldn't have said that. Twilight eyed began to water, and she burst into tears once again. She covered her face with her hooves, as though she were ashamed to have Celestia see her in this state. Celestia flinched back at the sight, unsure of what to do.
"Of course I did something wrong!" Twilight wailed. "You trusted me to be good enough to rule Equestria, and I failed you! I let the Tree of Harmony get destroyed, costing us the only things we could've used to stop Grogar! We can't defeat him now! Even Discord couldn't stop him! Equestria is doomed and it's all my fault!" She buried her head in her wing. "You trusted me, and I failed you...I should never have been made a princess...I'm so sorry..."
Celestia's heart was filled with empathy and guilt as she looked down at her former student. She reached forward again, managing to successfully touch her this time. Twilight ceased her sobbing for a moment, looking up at the solar alicorn, even as her eyes continued to drip.
"Twilight," she began, "the entire time I have known you, you've never let me down. Even when you used the Want It, Need It spell, that was because I failed to adequately inform you of the details of you friendship studies. I did not take into account your anxiety. If anypony is at fault in our relationship, it is me." Celestia looked down somberly. "I didn't believe you at your brother's wedding. I made myself such a distant authority figure that your greatest fear was me abandoning you, which Sombra exploited when you first visited the Crystal Empire. I didn't even tell you about the Elements of Harmony when Nightmare Moon was returning. I was an awful teacher. I thought I was teaching you to be self-reliant, but my methods were wrong."
Twilight opened her mouth, presumably to object to Celestia's self-assessment, but the solar alicorn continued. "Yet, in spite of my failures, you still managed to rise to the occasion every time. You found the Elements all on your own, and found the perfect friends to embody each one. You figured out how Star Swirl's final spell worked, when even I had no clue. You saved Luna and myself when the Tree of Harmony was dying. With Discord's help, you figured out how to unlock the chest from the tree. Nopony understands the power of friendship more than you." She looked down at Twilight, and now there were tears in her eyes. "I've always been so proud of you."
"But—" Twilight started to respond.
"It wasn't your fault that the Tree was destroyed," Celestia insisted. "Grogar has been observing Equestria from the shadows, gathering power, planning this attack for a very long time. He caught us off-guard, but we still live. That means there is still hope."
"Yeah, and we're gonna kick his sorry butt!"
Celestia and Twilight turned to look at the entrance, the former having an annoyed look on her face. Gathered at the entrance of the room were Rainbow, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Spike, Tempest, Starlight, Luna, Shining, Cadence, and Flurry.
"Uh...sorry," continued Rainbow, scratching her head. "We just....we wanted to support Twilight."
Twilight sniffed, wiping away her tears with one foreleg. "But we tried to fight them," she wheezed out, "and they completely destroyed us. Plus, they have Discord's magic divided between them. How can our friendship win against that?" She trembled and looked down at the ground. "What good is friendship when the world is ending?"
"Twilight, darling," Rarity interrupted, "our friendship is everything. It was friendship that led us to follow you into the Everfree Forest to find the Elements of Harmony. It was friendship that drove you to restore us when Discord corrupted us. It was friendship that made you give up the alicorn magic to Tirek, which ended up saving us. I'd say friendship counts for a lot more than you're giving it credit for."
"If it weren't for my friendship with all of you, I never would've been brave enough to help save Equestria," added Fluttershy.
"Friendship stopped me from being consumed by greed and destroying Ponyville," said Spike.
"Friendship is what brought us together to save Equestria in the first place," said Applejack. "And nopony understands the power of friendship more than you, Twilight."
"It was friendship that brought me back from the darkness," added Luna.
"Same here," said Starlight, "and I wasn't even corrupted by dark magic, I was just delusional."
"You've gone up against impossible odds before," said Tempest. "From what you've told me, you had nothing on your side those times, too."
Twilight seemed to gain a little of her strength back, climbing out of the bed and standing on her hooves. Her face remained unsure, however. "But what if this is the time that breaks the pattern?" she asked. "What if...this time, we lose?"
Pinkie Pie trotted up to Twilight, placing a comforting hoof on her shoulder. "Then we'll do that together, too. Like we've done everything else," she replied.
Twilight swallowed, closing her eyes and wiping away the last of her tears. Her vigor seemed to come back to her, bit by bit, as her posture shifted, standing taller. Celestia could've sworn that her coat looked a deeper shade of purple than it had a few minutes previously.
"You're right, everyone," she replied. "Like Rainbow Dash said, if we're going down, we're at least gonna be able to say we went down swinging. We're gonna need a plan."
At the top of Tambelon Castle, Grogar continued weaving his dark magic. After the message he'd delivered to Equestria at large, ponies were terrified and hiding anywhere they could, cowering and crying, as though it would bring their precious princesses back. Grogar smiled wickedly. The despair of this pathetic race was the most amusing thing he'd witnessed in millennia.
Just above Tambelon Castle, the swirling portal of darkness remained. Grogar's plan to call forth the beasts of Tambelon, which would then proceed to lay waste to Equestria and the rest of the planet, was coming along very nicely. Of course, there was still the matter of Twilight Sparkle, her friends, and the other princess to eliminate. The ram angrily stomped his hoof, recalling his frustration after the ponies had managed to escape, ruining his plan to force them to watch as he destroyed everything they loved. Still, he supposed it didn't matter. After his speech, he knew that none of the creatures they'd fought so hard to protect would lift a limb to help them. If they did manage to rally after the humiliated defeat he'd handed them, they'd be alone. No Elements of Harmony, no allies, no Discord, no nothing. They'd never win a rematch.
However, Grogar was never one to shy away from stacking the odds in his favor. And there was something he could do right away to achieve that goal.
Grogar rang his bell once more, and the portal began to shift. From withing the swirl of shadows came a long, snake-like tendril of darkness, which descended towards the earth, only stopping once it rested right across from Grogar. Inside the mass of darkness, two blood-red eyes opened, staring into the eyes of their master.
"Your wish?" hissed the creature in a cold voice.
"Gather the knights," said Grogar, "and prepare them for battle."
Back at the Crystal Empire, Twilight and the others had all gathered in the throne room to discuss how to challenge Grogar. Internally, Twilight still felt a fair amount of terror at the prospect, but the others were right. Even if Grogar did win, they had to at least try to fight back. They couldn't let Equestria go quietly into the darkness.
"Okay, so Grogar created counterparts to the Elements of Harmony," said Celestia, "which he used to destroy the tree. Do we have any idea what element each one of his goons represent?"
"We don't even know what the Elements of Disharmony are," replied Starlight. "How are we supposed to figure out who has what?"
"Well, I'd say it's a safe bet that Tirek's element is greed," said Rarity. "After all, what's greedier than wanting to take all the magic in Equestria for yourself?"
"Yeah, and he came after you during the fight," Applejack added. "I'm guessing that's because it's the opposite of your generosity."
"Hey! Chrysalis came after you too!" Rainbow suddenly chimed in. "And her element's gotta be deceit or something like that. What's more opposite of honesty than deceit?"
"That would explain why they attacked who they did," said Twilight. "So if we go from there..."
"I fought the Storm King," Rainbow continued.
"And your element is loyalty," Tempest replied. "And the Storm King...you remember how he betrayed me as soon as he got what he wanted?"
"That would make him the Element of Betrayal," Twilight continued. "Pinkie, Fluttershy, you fought Sombra and Cozy Glow, right?"
Both mares nodded.
"Sombra plunged the Crystal Empire into a state of despair, and that's definitely the opposite of laughter, which is meant to bring joy. Cozy tried to eliminate all the magic from our world for power, which was a very cruel thing to do. Cruelty is the opposite of kindness."
"So that leaves Grogar," said Shining Armor. "If he's the opposite of the Element of Magic, what does that make him?"
"Doom..." Twilight whispered, feeling more terror at the thought. She remembered the power the Element of Magic alone had unleashed in the dimension Sunset Shimmer now called home, and the idea that there was a pure evil version of that unnerved her.
"Well, okay, we know what element they each have," said Applejack, "but how does that help us? They're just gonna go after the same ponies they attacked they first time."
"Well, if they work anything like the Elements of Harmony," said Fluttershy, "don't they all need to be together to work properly?"
"Not necessarily," replied Celestia. "Luna and I originally wielded three elements apiece, but when she became Nightmare Moon, I was able to temporarily use all six, though not at full power. It's possible Grogar could do the same."
"But the Elements of Disharmony would be weaker then," asked Twilight. "Maybe if we separate them, they'd lose the power of their best weapon. That would at least give us a fighting chance."
"Might work," Tempest added. "And if we all join together, we would outnumber them, though not by much."
"Well, we can't all go," replied Twilight. "Cadence and Shining Armor have to stay here to protect Flurry."
"No, we can leave her with Sunburst," said Cadence. "I'm a princess of Equestria just as much as you. I'm going to fight for it, just as much as you are."
"Whoa whoa whoa, wait a minute!" interrupted Trixie. "What's this all of us business? Trixie never agreed to—"
Starlight lit up her horn, telekinetically closing Trixie's mouth. "Trixie, we need all the help we can get. Besides, you fought the changelings to save Equestria. Why should this be any different?"
Trixie opened and closed her mouth several times, as though trying to come up with a response that would get her out of this adventure, but she found nothing. Eventually, the showmare closed her mouth and sat down on her rear end, looking defeated.
Twilight swallowed again. This would be the fight for the future of Equestria, and they were going in without the Elements of Harmony, or anything like that. She wasn't sure she liked their chances. But if they didn't fight, those chances dropped to zero.
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Contact Sunset Shimmer, maybe they can send Grogar to the human world where there is no magic
10797098
Actually that might backfire horribly.
Especially since Equestrian magic is sort of flowing into the human-world.
And most likely if any of the dark Elements were there, it will cause havoc.
Speaking of Nightmare Moon there, wonder if that might get touched on?
Shame the show didn't touched on her dark powers much though..
They could have had Luna accept those powers in order to protect Equestria and show darkness isn't always evil there.
Nice job how they determined which members of Grogar’s group represented which Elements, and a potential weakness they have.
Celestia’s pep talk to Twilight over how Twilight never failed her was also very sweet.
10797161
But they will attract the Human Police and Military. And they NEVER have dealt with Guns!
10797261
Most likely guns might be rendered ineffective due to some barrier, regeneration or something.
Or just outright blasting the police before they can do anything.
It will be a much worse mess than the other magical incidents in the human-world.
Messes like She-Demon Shimmer, Midnight Sparkle, Gaia Everfree, etc would be just minor punks compared to how much damage Grogar or even one of his minions can do when in the human world.
Especially with that dark magic right there.
10797268
They can't be that OP! And we shouldn't underestimate humanity ourselves.
10797366
Really going to get messy anyway.
Even with the human Mane 7 using the Geodes, most likely Grogar will destroy those Geodes too.
Good idea except they won't do that since their hatred for the Mane 6 is fueling them to be together and Grogar did say that working together would counter their teamwork
10797383
Luckily, that very bad situation won't even happened IF the Mane Six and their other Friends/Family finally wins this.
10797416
Wonder what happens with human-world Spike if Grogar ends up affecting the human-world?
10797593
Oh my god, you're right? But who is which sin? Sombra must be Pride given his behaviour.
If the "Knights" are who I think they are, it'll be ironic yet devious.
At this point, I would say that the only viable course of action is go underground and wait for these bastards to turn on each other.
10797725
Wrath - Emperor Grogar
Gluttony - Lord Tirek
Lust - Queen Chrysalis
Envy - Pony of Shadows
Pride - King Sombra
Greed - Cozy Glow
Sloth - Storm King
If Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker return, here's what sins they'd represent:
Vanity/Vainglory - Nightmare Moon
Acedia - Daybreaker
10800283
I thought there were 7 deadly sins, when is there a eighth or ninth?
10800595
Vainglory and acedia are the precursors to pride or envy and sloth, respectively.
10775305
So how’s the next chapter coming along?
10812921
I haven't started it yet. I've put this story on hiatus for a little while. Just until I finish some other stuff.
10813067
Ok how long?
10813068
Until July at the latest. I'll probably go back to it by mid-June.
10813084
Oh boy.
10813084
This is gonna be a long wait.
10782873
Hey just because they chose to ‘turn into the girls to confuse the trio‘ doesn’t mean that they can’t fight. Sometimes you save direct combat as a last resort.
10825247
They would have directly fought anyway regardless since the trio are massive threats.
They gotta do more than mere distracting. Direct combat has to be used, I mean the mane 6 and Spike were literally doing that just now.
But since all they could do is just distract, it shows they are pretty much de-fanged upon reforming.
The main issue could be Chrysalis sees the changelings reforming to toss away their dignity and identity as changelings but also putting the hive at risk due to de-fanging themselves pretty much.
10832911
It doesn’t mean that they weren’t doing combat “off screen”
Can't wait to read this :))
[Cozy Glow]
I think I know a way that we can grow
Time to try something new, something better
No more solo, trust is the way to go
And all we need to do is work together.
Lord Tirek: Ah, please!
No thanks, no way, I feel the need to say
I'm smarter, stronger, and I don't need you lot.
Queen Chrysalis: Ha!
Stronger? Okay, I guess we'll downplay
How bad you got your fell on you plot.
King Sombra Hump
Your one to speak, your not so Unique. Please tell again you got defeated by the power of love twice.
The Storm King
Yeah Well what about you King Spooky when those ponies swat you like a lice.
[Cozy Glow]
It's time to try a better way to be bad.
Lord Tirek: [groans]
[Lord Tirek King Sombra, Storm King, and Queen Chrysalis]
Do we really need a better way to be bad?
[Cozy Glow]
United as one!
[Queen Chrysalis]
Teamwork? Please, what a fad.
[Cozy Glow]
Combine all our strength, we'll go to any length
Once we have a better way to be bad
Let's go begin, this time we're gonna win.
[Queen Chrysalis]
The ice you're on is thin, so watch what you say!
[Cozy Glow]
I know you're in, I think I see a grin!
[Lord Tirek]
For all this pain and torture, I swear you'll pay!
[Cozy Glow][/b
Don't give up give in we'll have the power times ten!
King Sombra
Why am I following this child's way?
[Cozy Glow][/b
Victory will be ours once we become thin.
The Stom King
I really wish I'd destroy this kid but....Hey!
[Cozy Glow]
This time, we've got a better way to be bad!
[Lord Tirek King Sombra, The Storm King, and Queen Chrysalis]
Sounds like a long shot, this "better way" to be bad!
[Cozy Glow]
United as one, we'll make those ponies so sad
[Lord Tirek]
If we say "okay", would you just go away?
[Cozy Glow]
Once we have a better way to be bad
We want to break their friendship
We want to make them weak
You want revenge on Starlight
You want that huge physique
You want the Crystal Empire
You want to control the Weather
So let's increase our chances
By working as a team
To crush our enemies to dust
And laugh as they all scream!
All: [laughing evilly]
[Lord Tirek]
I think I see a better way to be bad!
[Queen Chrysalis]
Just put me in charge....!
The Storm King
Make me King you'll be Glad!
[Cozy Glow]
No! Listen to me, I'm the best you'll see!
[All]
Then you'll see a better way to be bad
[tempo increases]
Cozy Glow: Wait!
This is my thing, a better way to be bad!
[Queen Chrysalis]
You shall do as I command.....!
King Sombra
I shall rule this Legion!
[Cozy Glow]
Hey! This is my song!
[Lord Tirek King Sombra, The Storm King, and Queen Chrysalis]
Sorry, not any longer!
[All]
A better way to be bad!
[Cozy Glow]
Now you're making me mad!
[Lord Tirek]
Won't the ponies be sad?
[Queen Chrysalis]
That would make me so glad!
The Storm King
Those Cute ponies thing will Had!
King Somba
Guess isn't a fad!?
[All]
Now we've got a better way to be baaaaaad!
10838701
*Grogar barges in*
"NO MUSICAL NUMBERS!"
10838705
The Storm King
"Aw what's a matter Grogar can't sing?"
10833231
Nope, it clealry looks like they were just flying around instead of properly fighting the trio.
Through out all of the scenes, it clearly doesn't look like they were directly trying to fight them.
Despite the Mane 6 being strong, they got beaten due to the buggos swarming at them.
Even though the trio is stronger now, swarming at them would surely do some damage to them than just simply buzzing around and distracting them. It just shows them turning into rainbow buggos de-fanged them pretty badly.
10838819
Agree to disagree.
10938580
Well, I spent a lot of time getting into Cozy's headspace, and for Chrysalis... I read a lot of Animorphs as a kid