Dusk Shine in pursuit of Happiness II

by bigsnusnu

Chapter 14 - Hidden in the shadows

Hidden in the shadows

In the palace of the kingdom of Thicket, all was silence. After King Aspen's arrival, the ponies had been speechless at his imposing presence. Furthermore, the deer king kept glaring at each pony with a fierce gaze, dispelling any doubt that they weren’t welcome in his kingdom. With that in mind, neither Dusk nor anyone present dared to say a word, afraid of disturbing the great deer king.

"You ponies are barred from our kingdom and your Princess well knows it. Centuries ago, we severed all ties with the kingdom of Equestria!" King Aspen said, walking in front of the ponies. "Centuries of peace, and now, in just a few weeks, the forest is threatened by dark magic. Then the Lord of Chaos returns, and zebras and ponies appear in my kingdom without warning!"

"Zebras?" Dusk asked. He completely forgot about the tension in the room when he understood the implication of that statement. "Have you seen a zebra!? Do you know where Zecora is!?" Dusk asked worry and approached the king.

Aspen narrowed his eyes. A little surprised by that question, and by the fact that that pony dared to speak in front of him. It was then that something powerfully caught Aspen's attention, and his eyes focused on Dusk's cutie mark. He had seen that double six-pointed star once before.

"Answer me! Do you know where Zecora is!?" Dusk asked again with a little more force in his voice.

The young stallion forgot all the political protocol that he should have before a foreign king. The only thing that mattered to him was whether the deer knew of Zecora's whereabouts. If so, was she his prisoner? Was that why Zecora had disappeared so suddenly? It all made sense! Zecora also lived in the Everfree Forest, perhaps she had gotten too close to the deer kingdom, and they had captured her. Imagining that, Dusk began to get irritated and angry at the king in front of him, who kept looking at him and his friends with disgust.

For his part, Aspen raised his head and looked at him contemptuously. That look from Dusk, full of anger, made him remember something that had happened centuries ago, and that filled him with more mistrust than he already had initially.

"What is your relationship with the zebra named Zecora?" Aspen asked, looking at Dusk with contempt after he spoke to him in such an insolent way.

"I knew it! They have her prisoner!" Dusk thought, getting angry when he imagined his friend locked up in a cell.

"She’s my teacher." Dusk answered, staring defiantly at the great white deer. "Are you holding her prisoner?"

For a few seconds, Aspen didn't respond. He simply stared at Dusk's eyes, as if he wanted to search for something in the depths of the unicorn's eyes.

"What would you do if it were?" Aspen finally answered. He noticed how the unicorn's gaze showed even more anger upon hearing that. "For weeks, Zecora has been our prisoner. We ordered her to tell us who sent her to spy on us, and since she didn't want to cooperate, we had to force her... It wasn't easy. But we finally got her to talk, by force." Aspen added with a gloomy look, making a small mocking face to the angry stallion.

"What!?" Dusk exclaimed, clenching his teeth furiously, completely forgetting that he was speaking before a king.

At that moment, Dusk felt so angry at imagining his teacher Zecora being tortured, that little sparks of magic jumped out of his horn as he exhausted the little patience he had left. The only thing he wanted at that moment was to attack that deer for having hurt one of his friends. For their part, the guards who were behind King Aspen looked at each other in confusion while their king didn’t take his eyes off Dusk's eyes for a second, still looking for a certain “something”.

"Dusk! Calm down!" Fluttershy said suddenly, seeing Dusk's furious look and instinctively jumping to hug and reassure him. She hated more than anyone to see someone suffer, and seeing Dusk so angry, she knew that she had to help him before he did something drastic. "Everything will be fine, we’ll work it out. Now, you must calm down..." Fluttershy said, speaking in a motherly tone as she continued to hug Dusk.

Hearing the sweet and calm voice of his shy pegasus friend, Dusk couldn't help but close his eyes and calm his breathing. As he did so, his magic was also controlled and his horn stopped shooting magical sparks. Whereas Aspen narrowed his eyes with a suspicious look and then looked away in annoyance.

"That is why my people live isolated here in the forest. Pony magic is dangerous when they lose control of their emotions." Aspen said, looking up for a moment, as if he was remembering something. Then he narrowed his eyes again, advanced a couple of steps and crouched down to look closely at Dusk, both of them being face to face. "With your unicorn magic you could do it. Face me! Defeat me and my guards and save your teacher. It's the only way you'll ever see her again." Aspen said grimly, looking at Dusk with large and penetrating eyes.

It was as if Aspen wanted to provoke Dusk, as if he wanted him to lose control and use his magic against him. That even made little Bramble, who was nearby, startled to see that attitude in his father. For his part, already calmer after Fluttershy's hug, Dusk simply lowered his gaze and took a deep breath to calm down and cool his head.

"Take me instead." Dusk finally said, with a calm but firm voice. "I’ll not fall for your provocations. I'm not going to attack anyone. But if you want to imprison and torture someone so badly, I ask you to take me instead and free Zecora."

For the first time, anger and contempt left Aspen’s face as he was surprised at Dusk's attitude and words. Then he approached again and looked at Dusk's eyes again, as if he wasn't convinced that he would find something hidden and dark behind that pony's purple eyes.

At that moment, everyone was distracted by a murmur coming from outside the castle. Soon, a guard rushed in and gave King Aspen a shocked look.

"M-My king. There is… There is someone who wants an audience with you…" The deer guard said with fear.

Before Aspen could even reply, two large, bright, unmistakable figures burst through the castle gate, causing everypony present to sigh in relief at the sight of them. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna looked at Aspen and bowed their heads as a sign of respect towards the King of his kingdom.

"King Aspen, I am sorry to enter your castle so recklessly." Celestia spoke politely. "But this morning I received an urgent letter saying that my student and his friends had been wrongfully detained."

Aspen couldn't help but frown at the alicorn. Then he turned and looked directly at her, taking advantage of his height, which made him one of the few beings in Equestria who could see her face to face directly.

"No one has been wrongfully detained. Apparently it was just a misunderstanding caused by my son." Aspen replied, still looking at Celestia. As for Bramble, he didn't even take notice when he heard his name being called. The little fawn just kept staring at Celestia in amazement, never having imagined that a pony could be so impressive.

"Aspen! I'm glad I can see you again!" Luna suddenly said with cheer. She stepped forward to approach the deer King, already used to the fact that all eyes were always focused on her older sister when they both entered a place together.

"Princess Luna!? How…?" Aspen exclaimed in shock. Taking a step back, confused and a little scared when he saw Luna. Meanwhile, seeing Aspen gave that look, Luna stopped immediately and lowered her head in shame.

"It’s true… The last time he saw me… It wasn't at my best." Luna thought sadly as she remembered that the last they had met she had been Nightmare Moon.

"Princess Celestia. You know very well that you’re forbidden to enter my kingdom." Aspen said, looking away from Luna and returning to focus on Celestia. There were many questions to answer about Luna's return, but the most immediate thing now was to remove that potential danger from their lands.

After quickly verifying with her eyes that Dusk, his friends, and the fillies were fine, Celestia looked at Aspen again and bowed her head as a sign of respect.

"King Aspen, I know I broke our agreement, but I'd like to take this opportunity to chat with you for a moment." Celestia said, with a slightly sad tone in her voice. "Please." She lowered her head and looking guiltily at the deer king.

Having Celestia in her kingdom was the last thing Aspen wanted. Once the two of them had fought together and defended their kingdoms as a great alliance, but now, everything was different. However, there were two things that kept Aspen from turning down Celestia's offer to chat. The first was that he needed to know how Luna had returned from her exile and had returned to being the same as before. And the second was that Celestia might know something of the strange ill that was invading the forest.

"Okay... Just a chat." Aspen finally said, reluctantly accepting Celestia's proposal.

Then the King began to walk, heading to his chambers to have a private chat with the Princess of the Sun. Whereas Celestia immediately followed the big deer, relieved that he had accepted her offer to speak, after so many centuries without doing so. For her part, Luna also moved forward to follow them.

"No sister. This is something I need to discuss alone with Aspen." Celestia said, glancing at her sister with a sad look.

Celestia's words totally shocked Luna, who set about claiming that she too was a princess. However, seeing that they were no longer alone, but were being watched carefully by ponies and deer, Luna simply frowned and reluctantly complied with her sister's request.

Before leaving, Aspen ordered Captain Blackthorn to come closer. He whispered something in his ear, then continued on his way with Celestia out of the main hall.

"The Princess of the Night can stay here to wait for her sister and the King." Blackthorn said, turning to look at the ponies. "The other ponies must return to their rooms until the King decides they can leave."

Deciding that the best thing for them was for the princesses to resolve everything diplomatically, Dusk, his friends, and the fillies followed Blackthorn up the stairs back to their rooms.

"I guess the Princess of the Sun will be able to intercede for you to free you..." Blackthorn said surprisingly when they were already in the corridor where the rooms were. "But I highly doubt she can do anything for that zebra we're holding prisoner. After all, she’s from another kingdom."

Hearing Zecora name again, Dusk stopped short, scared at the idea that his friend and teacher was still a prisoner. As his words affected the stallion, Blackthorn smirked.

"You know, she's not in a comfortable room like you guys are. In fact, she's not even within the boundaries of the kingdom." Blackthorn said, turning around and looking at Dusk with a mocking laugh. "What's wrong? Are you worried about your zebra friend?"

Knowing that for some reason the deer captain wanted to provoke him, Dusk forced himself to try to calm down and pressed his lips together in frustration.

"What's wrong with you!" Rainbow Dash said angrily at the captain.

"Dusk, calm down, hun." Applejack said to Dusk, noticing that her coltfriend could hardly control his anger.

"Fate is curious, don't you think?" Blackthorn ignored the other ponies and only focusing on Dusk, looking at him face to face. "I am the one who takes you prisoner to your room. And it was I myself who tortured your teacher… with my own hooves.” The deer added, laughing wickedly.

Dusk couldn't take it anymore. He lit up his horn with magic and launched himself at the deer captain, causing him to fall on his back with him on top of the deer. Then Dusk pointed his magic-charged horn threateningly at Blackthorn's face.

"Dusk!!" The mares shouted, scared to see Dusk so angry and worried about what he might do.

As soon as Dusk heard the scream of his friends, it seemed as if he had woken up from the blind rage that he was in. Then he looked below him and saw Captain Blackthorn, who simply stared at him with a blank expression as if waiting for Dusk to attack him. Dusk closed his eyes tightly, remembering precisely the self-control lessons that Zecora had taught him, and he slowly calmed down while the magic of his horn slowly faded away.

'Pony magic is dangerous when they lose control of their emotions.' Those had been the words King Aspen had spoken minutes ago. A phrase that bothered Dusk a lot, since for him, magic was something beautiful that was used to help others. However, he now realized that if he attacked the deer with his magic, he would be proving the King right. That would keep the deer mistrusting the ponies and their magic.

With one last big breath to calm down, Dusk got up and got off Blackthorn. Then he turned for a second to look at his friends and smiled, grateful to have them by his side to calm him down. Dusk looked at Blackthorn again, put a thoughtful look, and finally activated his magic again to trap Blackthorn in a magical bubble.

"No matter what you’ve done to Zecora, I’ll not be as cruel as you. I’ll show you and yours that the magic of the ponies is for the good of all." Dusk said seriously, now much calmer. "This magic bubble won't hurt you, but it’ll stop you until I can rescue my friend." The stallion added, determined not to hurt the deer, but also determined to rescue Zecora from her cruel captors.

After locking the captain in a room, Dusk and his friends told the fillies to watch that no one approached him. Then Dusk and his friends hurried down the spiral stairs again to get to the lower floor. Only this time, they didn't go to the main hall. They couldn't be seen by Luna or the other guards, so they escaped through another corridor, looking for a side door or window to escape through. Fortunately for them, as Birch the majordomo told them, the castle was mostly empty, so no one saw them. The six ponies were able to exit the castle through a window on the other side of the great front door.

"Now what?" Applejack asked once everyone left the castle and hid behind a bush.

"I don't know… Blackthorn said that Zecora wasn’t locked up in the kingdom. That means she must be somewhere else in the Everfree Forest." Dusk responded with a thoughtful look. Then something distracted Dusk's gaze.

There, not far from the bush in which they were hiding, Dusk could see that there was a large black root full of thorns, just like the one he had seen in Applejack's field. The only difference was that this root was much larger and longer and seemed to come from within the Everfree Forest.

"I'm not sure... But I have a feeling 'that root' is the root of our problems." Dusk said pointing to the dark root, running towards it.

"Ugh! Dusk and puns do not mix well at all." Pinkie Pie said with a look of disgust, rushing to chase after Dusk and the rest of her friends.

As they walked away from the kingdom of Thicket, the six ponies fell completely silent, remembering that deer had very good hearing. They all stealthily followed the dark thorny roots, which became more numerous and wider as they advanced; a clear sign that they were on the right track towards their origin.

The six ponies were well aware that they were on a mission of the utmost importance, since not only were they being fugitives from a foreign kingdom, they had also captured a guard, were looking for a friend who was being held prisoner and had been tortured, were in the middle of one of the most dangerous places in the world, and they were also following the trail of a strange dark root. However, despite that, four of the ponies couldn't stop thinking about something else. Despite all the latent dangers around them, the silent journey had made Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Rarity unable to stop thinking about one and only one thing...

"So... what happened between you two?" Rainbow Dash suddenly tried to ask casually once everyone was far enough away from the deer kingdom.

Hearing that question, both Dusk and Applejack blushed. And as if neither of them had heard anything, they both just kept walking, making their way through the thick Everfree Forest.

"Yes... I mean, no one else woke up so haggard and disheveled... Just you two." Rarity added, also feigning disinterest. Although the truth was that she and her three friends were all very expectant to be answered with the truth.

Guessing that his friends wouldn't stop asking until they got an answer, Dusk looked at Applejack, who simply put on a worried look. Then Dusk sighed and tried to speak as casually as possible, despite the fact that his face was red with embarrassment.

"When Birch gave us the rooms, he guessed that Applejack and I were a couple and… well… we ended up sharing the room." Dusk said with embarrassment. Meanwhile, Dusk's friends simply stared at him as if Dusk hadn't said anything really surprising.

"What else?" Pinkie Pie insisted while looking at Dusk with an expressionless gaze. "What did you two do while alone?"

Before Dusk could say anything, the black roots that they had been following had begun to move, and suddenly attacked the six ponies that were walking among them. Dusk, Pinkie and Applejack managed to avoid the roots, while Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash couldn't escape, and the roots caught their hooves and start pulling them into the forest.

Pinkie and Applejack quickly helped their friends to hold them up and keep them from being dragged down by the roots. While Dusk quickly used his magic to cut those roots. Once everyone was free, more black roots appeared and charged at the ponies. Then Dusk continued cutting them with his magic while his friends fought against them in their own way. Applejack used the same cut roots as a lasso and tied several of those roots together; while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash flew around the trees so that the roots would tie themselves to themselves. Rarity and Pinkie made the roots follow them, jumping up and down over each other, until the roots couldn't extend any further and got tangled together.

"Huff… that… that was dangerous." Dusk huffed, sighing in relief after everyone had gotten out of danger. Then Dusk approached the roots that he had cut with his magic and was surprised to see that they began to grow again. "Those black roots are definitely not normal. I think it's best that we move quickly and get out of here."

"Yeah, I think you’re right." Rainbow Dash agreed. "But... What happened between you two?" Rainbow Dash added, looking suspiciously at Dusk and Applejack again as if nothing had happened.

"SERIOUSLY!?" Dusk shouted, unable to believe that his friends cared more about what he and Applejack did in their room than about being saved from the attack of a strange and dangerous magical root.

"Enough!" Applejack suddenly yelled and looked very seriously at her friends with a hot blush. "I know you guys are my friends, and I know there should be no secrets between us. But Dusk is my coltfriend, and... and there are things that are ours... only ours. Sometimes there are secrets you want to keep with the pony you love, and… and whether or not something happened in that room, it's one of those secrets. Because no matter what happened there, for me it was special, and although it sounds selfish, I want that to remain only between Dusk and me!"

After Applejack finished speaking, with her last cry being a mixture of pleading and annoyance, they all fell completely silent. Dusk couldn't help but look away with a blush, thinking that Applejack was right. He also felt that there were certain things that he preferred to remain a sweet secret between them. For their part, the rest of the mares gave a sheepish look, also thinking that perhaps they were being too invasive with Applejack's privacy. The five mares had promised that they would accept that one of them would be Dusk's marefriend, and respecting the couple's privacy should be one of those things to accept. They all finally decided to stop insisting and continued walking, trying to focus on the important mission: rescuing Zecora.

"There's nothing to worry about, after all, we all promised that none of us would do 'THAT' with Dusk. There's no way Applejack would break our deal." Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy thought. The pegasi a little more relieved to remember that her honest friend would never break a deal or betray them.

Rarity and Pinkie Pie had a more worried look, unable to be as calm as their other two friends. They both knew that there was actually a way to avoid the third rule that they had set for themselves, and that made both mares unable to stop thinking that something could have happened between Applejack and Dusk.

Finally, after going quite a long way into the forest, they all reached a part where the forest began to descend, entering a cavern full of lianas. Thus they continued advancing, seeing how the black roots became more abundant, until they reached a part where they could no longer advance past a part of the deep forest where thick vines blocked access. That caught Dusk's attention, since the lianas that blocked the access were the normal green lianas of the forest, like the ones that the deer had moved when they entered the kingdom of Thicket.

"I guess we'll just have to force our way through from here." Dusk said, touching the vines with his hoof and lighting up his horn, ready to use his magic to cut the vines. However, just then the vines moved on their own, opening the path in front of the ponies.

"What was that? I didn’t do anything." Dusk mused, realizing that the passage had been opened just like when Blackthorn used his magic.

Thinking that the fact that the vines moved on their own could be a sign of danger, Dusk kept his horn shining to defend himself from any attack, and slowly he and his friends continued to advance along the now open path. Once they passed through the mysterious blocked path, everyone was shocked at what they found.

"Zecora!" The five mares shouted excitedly, seeing that their search had paid off.

Sure enough, there was the zebra they had been looking for so long. Zecora was standing on an esplanade in front of a large tree, which was surrounded by those black and pointed roots. Around the zebra were dozens of vials, as if Zecora had used a lot of potions in that place. Furthermore, it seemed that Zecora was exhausted, with dark circles under her eyes, as if she hadn't rested for days.

Zecora turned around and made a surprised face, as if the last thing she had expected was to find the familiar group of ponies there. The five mares ran to hug Zecora to see if she was okay.

"How come you are all here? And how come you all remember me!?" Zecora asked in surprise, since, like Dusk, she was unaware that the five mares remembered everything that happened and how they met Zecora after Discord’s spell.

Oblivious to everything that happened with Zecora and the mares, Dusk had also been surprised after arriving at that place, which looked like a cave covered with lianas and black roots. However, unlike his friends, Dusk wasn’t perplexed when he saw that his teacher was actually there, but rather because of the tree that was in front of Zecora.

Despite the fact that the huge tree was covered with black roots, as if it was being suffocated by them, Dusk could notice that it was far from a normal tree. It didn’t seem to be made of wood, rather it seemed to be made of some kind of crystal rocks, which seemed to have some faint glow of its own. Another thing that caught Dusk's attention was that there was a large emblem carved in the middle of the tree. The emblem had a very particular shape that made Dusk freeze and gave him a slight chill on his back... That figure engraved in the center of that strange tree, was identical to the central star of his cutie mark!

"Dusk... Dusk!" Applejack's voice said, shaking Dusk out of his train of thought.

Returning to reality, Dusk saw that his marefriend had been calling him. She and all her friends were with Zecora, waiting for him to come too. Only then was Dusk completely distracted from the strange tree and returned to focus on the mission that had brought him there.

"Z-Zecora! I'm glad you're fine." Dusk said as he approached his teacher and friend with a relieved smile. "We came here to rescue you."

"Rescue me? Rescue me from whom?" Zecora asked. Her confusion was mirrored by Dusk and his friends.

After Dusk explained that they were coming to rescue her from King Aspen, who was keeping her captive to torture her, Zecora laughed and said that everything seemed to be a big misunderstanding. Then Zecora began to tell Dusk what had happened.

Weeks ago, apparently a few days before Discord's appearance in Ponyville, the Lord of Chaos had appeared at the old Castle of the Two Sisters searching for the Elements of Harmony. There, Zecora had confronted him, but she was no match for Discord, who put her into a trance. It was there that King Aspen rescued her, taking her to the Kingdom of Thicket. After that, Zecora spent days asleep under Discord's trance, and it was only thanks to the magic of the deer and King Aspen that she was finally able to wake up. Once awake, the deer accepted her to stay with them, since she, like the deer, believed in the magic of the forest and its protection.

For days, Zecora kept learning about the deer's magic and their connection to the forest until King Aspen took her to where she was now, where those dark and terrifying roots had begun to grow.

"King Aspen took me to see the Tree of Harmony. For days, we have tried to stop these roots full of dark magic." Zecora said, finishing her story. "Sadly, we have only managed to slow their progress. The roots slowly continue to spread, and we fear that if we don't do something, they’ll end up engulfing the entire forest and perhaps all of Equestria."

"So, King Aspen isn't evil?" Fluttershy asked.

"But why did he and Blackthorn say they tortured you?" Rarity pondered, looking at Zecora just as confused as her friend.

"And more importantly... What is the Tree of Harmony!?" Dusk pointed towards the strange tree that had his cutie mark engraved on it, guessing that this must be the famous tree that Zecora was referring to.

"The truth is that I’m not completely sure. The deer haven’t told me all their secrets." Zecora answered, turning to look at the tree behind her. "All I know is that this tree seems to be connected to the Elements of Harmony in some way." Zecora added, narrowing her eyes and then putting on an annoyed look. "I knew that without the Elements the Forest would be corrupted at some point..."

Dusk stared at the big Tree of Harmony for a while and saw how slowly the black roots advanced, trying to cover it completely.

"I could bring the Elements of Harmony and use them against the black roots, but..." Dusk said with an insecure look.

"You feel it too, don't you?" Zecora said, guessing what her student was thinking. "Looks like those black roots... are also part of the tree."

"What!? So that makes it easier, right?" Rainbow Dash said shrugged. "If that tree is the one that is growing those roots, let’s use the Elements of Harmony against the tree."

"That's the problem..." Dusk replied with a worried look. “This tree exudes a strange magic… It resembles the magic exuded by the Elements of Harmony, but… it feels wilder, like the magic exuded by the forest itself. If I had to define it, it doesn't feel like something evil... I don't know if it's a good idea to use the elements against the tree."

"So, we don't know if the tree is good or bad?" Fluttershy asked. “But… If we don't do anything, those black roots could keep going all the way to Ponyville.

“They have already started to arrive.” Applejack remembered seeing those roots in her farm. It was frightening to imagine that those roots could grow in her farm just as thick and wild as they had in this part of the forest.

“We must know what the origin of this tree is.” Dusk said, looking seriously at Zecora. "We have to convince the King to tell us the truth about the Tree of Harmony."

"Hmm... I doubt the King wants to tell the secrets of his forest to you ponyfolk." Zecora replied thoughtfully, remembering her conversations with King Aspen noting his aversion to ponies. Then Zecora looked at Dusk curiously, remembering something. She reached over to her potion bag and pulled out a small glass bottle filled with a purple liquid. “For years, my mother kept this potion. Apparently, it’s a potion that allows whoever drinks it to see the past. If we could use it, we might know the true origin of this tree.”

“That… That's amazing! It's just what we need!” Dusk said excitedly, since he had never heard of a potion that allowed him to see the past. Then Dusk took the bottle, ready to take the potion, however, Zecora quickly removed it from his hooves before he drank from it.

“This potion is not ready; it’s still missing an ingredient. And it’s because of that missing ingredient that neither I nor anyone else has been able to use it before. To complete it, Alicorn magic must be used on it until it changes color.” Zecora said with a worried look. “Years ago, my mother requested an audience with Princess Celestia to help her learn more about the Lord of Chaos and his past. But the Princess refused to use her magic on the potion." Zecora added with some resentment in her voice.

“The Princess refused? Perhaps she didn't trust your mother to use that potion well..." Dusk said with surprise. "But now it's different, if I ask her, maybe-"

"I'm sorry, but I doubt my sister will help you." A voice suddenly interrupted, causing everyone to turn around. Entering the same way that Dusk and his friends had arrived was Princess Luna, accompanied by the deer captain, Blackthorn. “Unfortunately, my sister likes to keep her secrets. I doubt that she wants someone to see in the past.” Luna added, approaching to where Dusk and the others were.

Dusk didn't know how to react to the arrival of the unlikely pair. He thought that the captain would probably be furious that he had been locked up, however, it seemed that the deer captain wasn’t angry at all. In fact, once he reached Dusk, he bowed his head slightly and apologized.

"I'm sorry I provoked you in the castle, but it was the King's orders." Blackthorn said calmly, as if all that discussion between him and Dusk had never happened. "I guess your teacher already told you that the torture thing was just a lie."

“Wait… You were the one who opened the path covered by the vines, right? You’ve been following us all this time.” Dusk realized that with how stealthy the deer were, it wouldn't be difficult for the captain to follow them without them noticing. "But I don't understand, why did the King want to provoke me and make me angry?"

“Apparently the King is very afraid of the ponies' magic. There is an old legend of a raging pony who nearly destroyed the forest in its madness." Blackthorn answered with a more serious look. “I guess the King was testing you. Still, I think you passed it. No matter how much I provoked you, you ultimately didn't use your magic against me. You did lock me in a pretty harsh bubble though… If it wasn't for the Princess of the Night, I'd probably still be trapped.” Blackthorn added with a small smile.

Dusk was surprised, but then he couldn't help but look away with a worried expression at the memory of what happened.

“That's right, I didn't use my magic to attack Blackthorn in the end, but I almost did!” Dusk thought, scared with himself. “If it hadn't been for my friends… how would I have really reacted!?”

While Dusk and Blackthorn talked, Luna slowly approached the large tree trapped between the black roots.

“This is the Tree of Harmony. It’s the original guardian of the Elements of Harmony.” Luna said, recognizing that huge tree immediately. “With Celestia, we got the Elements out of here when we had to face the great evils that threatened Equestria. However… I have never seen these roots before.” Luna added, carefully touching one of the black roots and seeing that it reacted violently in a twist.

“Well, that's a clue. But we still don't really know where the tree or the black roots came from." Dusk said to Luna and then looked at Blackthorn. Who, seeing Dusk's look, simply shook his head, making him understand that he didn't know more about that tree either.

"Great, it seems that the only two who know about this tree are now in the castle, and neither will talk..." Dusk thought in annoyance.

Suddenly, a brightness next to him pulled Dusk out of his thoughts. Turning around, he saw that Luna had used her magic on the potion Zecora was holding. Just as the zebra pointed out, upon receiving alicorn magic, the potion changed color from purple to white.

“Celestia is no longer the only alicorn in this kingdom.” Luna said with a serious look, after having transformed the potion. “If I heard correctly, with this I’ll be able to see the past? Will I be able to see what my sister hides so much?” Luna asked, looking at Zecora. To which, the zebra nodded seriously.

"It’s not Princess Celestia's past that we seek, but the origin of this tree and the dark roots." Dusk said as he approached Luna. "Though... Perhaps they’re related." Dusk added with a thoughtful look, opening himself to the crazy possibility that his teacher, symbol of light and perfection, was somehow related to the dark magic of those roots.

“Whether or not my sister is related to this is something I’ll find out soon.” Luna said, taking the potion and bringing it to her lips to drink it.

"Wait! I… I also want to use it, I need to see the origin of this tree.” Dusk said quickly, stopping Luna before she drank the potion. Then Dusk looked at the tree out of the corner of his eye and again put on a worried look when he saw his own cutie mark engraved on it. “Since the potion is only activated by alicorn magic, I guess only a Princess can use it. But if I use a mind-binding spell, maybe I can see what you see too.”

Luna widened her eyes in surprise and then averted her worried gaze. That request to somehow affect Dusk's mind reminded her of when she accepted that Dusk put himself at risk when he wanted to alter his own memories. That had been a serious mistake, one that Sunset Shimmer had luckily managed to avoid. However, Luna continued to blame herself for having been foolish enough to accept that Dusk put himself at risk.

"I know it can be dangerous to mentally join two minds, but if I use-" Dusk said, thinking of a way to not put Luna at risk.

"You’ll do no such thing!" Luna yelled, causing Dusk to shut up. Then Luna stared at the colt face to face. “You're going to tell me that you want to take all the risk to protect me, right? Enough of wanting to sacrifice yourself for others! I'll use the mind-binding spell, but only I’ll expose myself. I’ll not let anyone, especially you, take risks in vain.”

“Especially me?” Dusk thought. A small blush rose up in his cheeks.

Luna lit her horn and stretched out one of her hooves for Dusk to hold. Dusk reluctantly took Luna's hoof, and his horn lit up in a spiral just like the blue alicorn's horn. Luna then levitated the vial with Zecora's potion and drank it.

For a few seconds, it seemed like nothing happened. Until Luna's eyes glowed brightly, as did her horn. A second later, Dusk's eyes lit up in the same way, and thus, both ponies stopped seeing what was in front of them, and their minds traveled to the distant past of six hundred years ago...

---

In the heart of the Everfree Forest, was the Castle of the Two Sisters. The castle already had parts of its roof destroyed after the battles fought there, but it was stiill in much better condition than the ruins in which Dusk Shine and his friends met it in the present. In the middle of that place, Princess Celestia stood in front of a great altar where the six gems that represented the Elements of Harmony were.

"Why…? Why don't they work anymore!? Why don't they respond to my magic!?" Celestia said with desperate frustration. Dusk had never seen such a destressed expression on his teacher’s face ever before.

“Celestia? What are you doing here?" King Aspen said suddenly, walking through the old castle gates.

"I need to use the Elements, but... I can't resonate them." Celestia huffed, not even turning to look at Aspen and just focused on the altar in front of her.

Aspen was also surprised. Then he narrowed his eyes and looked away with a thoughtful look, as if something unpleasant had occurred to him.

"Maybe you can't use them... because your heart isn't in harmony right now." Aspen said, walking over to Celestia with a concerned look.

"What are you talking about?" The princess questioned the deer.

“You know what I mean…” Aspen answered, looking seriously at his friend. "Ever since you were attacked by 'that creature', you haven't been the same... Ever since that day, you can't seem to stop thinking about the past."

At the deer's words, Celestia looked away in annoyance.

"You don't understand. 'She' didn't just attack me and my kingdom." Celestia said with an angry look. “She reminded me of all the mistakes of my past… Luna, Starswirl, Crystal… She knew how much it hurt me to remember them. Not just because I missed them, but because it was my fault that none of them are by my side now." Celestia added with a look full of anguish.

“You’re letting yourself be blinded by pain. You weren’t to blame for anything. They made decisions that affected their lives, you only stopped them for the sake of your kingdom.” Aspen said with worry, noticing that his friend Celestia seemed to be too emotionally unstable.

What Aspen said was totally true and deep down, Celestia knew it. However, after defeating the last threat that attacked her a few days ago, the remorse and guilt that Celestia felt for centuries finally overcame her... Years of suppressing her own emotions made them accumulate until they finally exploded like a raging volcano. In such a state, the white alicorn was unable to control her emotions, an inner despair forming in her heart, one that made it impossible for her to think clearly.

At that moment, Celestia gave up on the Elements of Harmony and glared at Aspen, blinded by pain.

“You have always been surrounded by your own. You’ve never had to say goodbye to a sister, a teacher, a student. You don’t know how I feel!" Celestia yelled in frustration, closing her eyes in anger. Then she made a decision that she had wanted to avoid making, but in such an emotional state, it seemed to her that it was her only option.

Celestia's horn gradually lit up, and the air around her grew thin. Instantly, it was as if she and Aspen were immersed in a deep and terrifying silence while Celestia gathered dark magic in her horn, ready to use magic that she herself had prohibited in her kingdom.

“I'm sick of being alone… I'm sick of trying to be perfect… I'm sick of making the same mistakes…” Celestia said as the air around her slowly began to swirl. Her eyes became bright, and her horn was covered in a strange green, purple and black aura. “If I can't use the Elements of Harmony to bring Luna back… Then I'll use other methods to obtain that power…” Celestia added, with so much pain accumulated in her heart, that she began to cry. Tears that, due to the heat of her magical aura, turned into flames running down her cheeks.

Aspen looked terrified when he saw Celestia using dark magic, slowly unleashing all of her enormous Alicorn power. In all the years that the two of them had fought together, he had always been surprised and terrified by the great magical power that his friend had, which always made him thankful to have her as an ally. However, now he saw before him a power that he could hardly face. He had to make her see reason, but he didn't know how.

“Celestia! Stop!" Aspen yelled to make himself heard, as they were surrounded by the great gust of wind that now enveloped Celestia. He was only able to stand there thanks to his own magic, given by the Heart of the Forest. “Do you think Luna would have wanted this!? Do you think Starswirl would have wanted it!?”

"I'll never know, because they're not with me anymore... But that is something, I plan to fix right now..." Celestia added, finishing charging dark magic into her horn. She then began to recite a spell; one she had found written in stone many years ago where her former master had disappeared.

~Spirit of eternal darkness, master of war and power, hear my call. Turn me into the flame that burns everything, turn me into the sea that drowns everything~ Celestia began to recite in ancient ponish.

That spell was actually a curse, the first of six stanzas. A very old spell that bound whoever said it with a very old and powerful being. One that was capable of bringing unimaginable power to whoever summoned it. But like all curses, this one had a huge cost. A cost Celestia was unaware of, but one she hoped she could control, thanks to her own power.

~Hold my enemies down to bow to my power, give me the strength to reach my desired goal. Turn me into the light that sees everything, turn me into the darkness that engulfs everything~ Celestia recited the second of the stanzas of the curse.

Celestia's magic turned completely dark, as her eyes seemed to slowly fade, turning completely black.

“Celestia! Don't make me your enemy! Don't make me stop you!" Aspen yelled desperately, trying to appeal one last time to the reason of his oldest friend.

“It's too late…” Celestia whispered, determined to gain power to get her sister back and end all evil in her kingdom.

~Abate the light, goodness and freedom from my mind, consecrate my soul to darkness. Turn me into the sword that cuts everything. Turn me into the spear that pierces everything ~ Celestia recited the third stanza of the curse.

Celestia's mane and tail seemed to burn in the air, their beautiful rainbow color disappearing into the colors of fire, or rather, her own mane turned into raging flames which would burn as long as her heart was filled with anger and darkness.

Understanding that he couldn't make Celestia reason, Aspen decided to attack with his own magic. Green fire surrounded the deer's antlers, a flaming heart formed between his antlers and a strong bolt struck Celestia's chest squarely.

~Dismiss any doubt and hope from my heart, cradle me in the icy eternal night of the abyss. Turn me into the storm that destroys everything. Turn me into the tremor that breaks everything~ Celestia recited the fourth stanza of the curse.

Celestia's magic increased exponentially. Her royal ornaments changed shape and color, becoming terrifying and spiky, a deep crimson color, as if they were cast iron glued to her fur. A bright yellow pupil finally appeared in Celestia's eyes. Finally, a strange and crooked devilish smile appeared on her mouth.

With a simple movement of her wings, Celestia blew away Aspen's powerful magic as if it were a simple breeze. Causing the great deer king to fall hard on his back in complete helplessness.

"Celestia... Please don't succumb to the darkness..." Aspen begged his friend weakly.

“I haven’t succumbed to the darkness… Can't you see!? I am pure light! Now my light will illuminate everyone!” Celestia laughed, causing her mane to catch fire and shoot flames all over the place and collapse the few remaining good walls of the old castle, burning everything around her. “There will be no more danger in my kingdom, no more evil… In place of a dark lord, there will be a bright lord. And I shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the morning and the night! Fair as the sea and the sun and the snow upon the mountain! Dreadful as the storm and the lightning! Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love me and despair! They will all bow down to their Queen, DAYBREAKER!!” Celestia screamed, spreading her flames, burning everything in her path.

With the little magic left in Aspen, the deer tried to shield himself from the enormous heat spread by Celestia's fire. However, the heat was such that the gold in Aspen's necklace began to melt, slowly burning his neck as it melted into his skin.

~Old wraith, I offer my life to the shadows in exchange for the eternal power of the void, present before me, lord of darkness. Become my guide. Become my shadow. Become my eyes. Become my strength~ Celestia recited the fifth and penultimate stanza of the curse.

Celestia's consciousness was about to fade. There was only one verse left, only one to complete the ancient curse.

“Submit to me… Save your sister… Save your kingdom… Immerse yourself in the shadows…” Celestia heard as her consciousness shifted to another plane of existence. A dark voice that seduced her. There was no turning back, Celestia would no longer exist... Daybreaker would just be one more container, one to house its new owner... now its name would be...

"NO!!" Suddenly another voice yelled, a voice that made Celestia's eyes widen in recognition. The voice of a very old friend. "What do you think you're doing? I didn't teach you this! You’re more than this! Cease this foolishness!!" The old pony's voice yelled, with a mixture of fear and concern.

Celestia's soul felt disembodied in this place, wandering in what seemed to be a limbo. Yet despite barely being able to feel anything, she somehow knew she wasn't alone. At her side were other beings, other souls, who had also fallen into despair. All floating in a limbo struggling between existence and non-existence.

"Princess?" Said a weak voice next to Celestia, one that she didn't know how to recognize.

At that moment, Celestia could feel that in that dark limbo six small lights approached her, filled her with warmth, and slowly moved her away from the realm.

“Never say the sixth verse… Never!” The old stallion’s voice said, berating Celestia as if she were a filly. Then the old pony's voice softened and Celestia felt as if a hoof brushed her face. “Now go, and remember… You’re not alone… You never will be…”

In that instant, Celestia was able to regain her consciousness.

“Ahhh!” Celestia cried out in pain, feeling the incomplete curse fight not to leave her body. "Get out of my body!!" Celestia yelled at herself. She forced herself to control her power and expel the dark being that was trying to merge with her soul.

With a great explosion of fire, Celestia's appearance returned to normal and fell back onto the fall in complete exhaustion.

After several minutes of silence, Aspen slowly stood up, barely enduring the pain in his body, and walked over to where Celestia was. There, he saw that the alicorn could barely keep her eyes open. Fighting the curse made her use up all her magic, so now she was totally defenseless.

Seeing her in such a state, Aspen touched his sore neck where his gold necklace had melted and left a nasty burn. Then he looked at Celestia with an expression full of anger.

“You’re a danger to everyone in this world… I… I cannot let you live.” Aspen said furiously, raising his hoof, ready to attack his oldest ally. However, Aspen's heart couldn't help remembering the centuries of friendship the two had shared. He closed his eyes in pain, knowing he wouldn't be able to do what he should. "I’ll let you live, but I don't want you to come near me or my kingdom ever again... Today, you have lost your last ally and friend."

With those words, Aspen slowly withdrew. Celestia was too exhausted to say anything, she could only shed a small tear before completely passing out.

---

As if everything they had seen had been a very vivid dream, Luna and Dusk saw a great flash of light, and finally their consciousness returned to the real world. When they did, the first thing they saw were the worried faces of Dusk's friends, who were very worried when they saw that Dusk and Luna simply stayed frozen for minutes with their eyes shining like headlights.

“A-Are you alright?” Fluttershy asked with concern once she saw that Dusk and Luna's eyes stopped shining.

“I… I think so.” Dusk said, shaking his head, still surprised by what he saw.

“Did the potion work? Did you see anything? Zecora asked.

"Yes. We saw something, but… It wasn’t what I expected.” The lavender colt explain. Luna was still in shock what she had just witnessed. "I thought we would see the past of the Tree of Harmony, but we didn't see anything related to either the tree or the strange black roots."

"That... maybe it was my fault." Luna muttered, looking down at the ground with a confused look as if she was still trying to understand what she had just seen. “When I took the potion, all I could think about was knowing a little more about my sister's past. Perhaps that was why… We saw that vision.”

After putting on a thoughtful look for several seconds, Dusk narrowed his eyes at a very dangerous idea.

"Perhaps... the potion did show us the solution." Dusk suggested. "Perhaps with the spell Princess Celestia used, we may have the power to stop these roots."

"What!? No! Are you insane!? Didn't you see what that spell did to my sister!?" Luna said with terror.

“I've already tried cutting the roots with normal magic. No matter what I do, they just grow back.” Dusk said, also fearful of the idea he was proposing. But the truth was that he had no other idea at the moment. "But if we use dark magic, even just a little bit, maybe-"

"NO!" Luna said with a stomp of her hoof. “Dark magic cannot be controlled. You should know by now, you saw it in the vision, you saw it with me when I was Nightmare Moon!”

“But this curse is different, isn't it? I'm not entirely sure, but it seems like it's not the same kind of magic that turned you into Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago, is it?" Dusk asked, testing his theory.

Luna was surprised at the suggestion and averted her worried gaze. What Dusk said was precisely one of the things that scared her the most about that vision. She never thought that Celestia also had a dark side, that it even called itself 'Daybreaker', just as she had when she became Nightmare Moon. But the methods they used to obtain power were very different. Nightmare Moon had been born from her desire to be recognized. And for that reason, even though Luna had also used dark magic from a cursed book, Nightmare Moon was still a part of her. But seeing the vision of the past, Luna realized that Celestia's curse was different. Her power came from merging her soul with a dark and ancient being, and that could be much more dangerous.

"As long as I don't say the six stanzas of the curse, I'll be fine." Dusk said, thinking that his idea was crazy, but perhaps the potion had shown them such a vision for a reason. “Besides, if I were to lose control, you can stop me. After all, I'm just a unicorn. Even if I gain power with dark magic, your alicorn magic will still be stronger than mine."

Luna lost her nerve and put on a completely terrified look. She wasn’t only horrified by what Dusk was asking of her, but also because he wanted her to make the same mistake again.

"Enough!... Don't ask me a second time to accept that you risk your life." Luna said, looking at Dusk with a pleading look. “You're not 'just a unicorn' to me… Please, don't ask me to just look to the side while you hurt yourself…” Luna begged with glazed eyes, almost on the verge of tears.

At that moment the ground under their hooves shook, and all the black roots that surrounded the Tree of Harmony grew, spreading into the air, and started attacking the ponies. One by one the roots attacked and separated each of those present, forming a great vine, trapping each pony, preventing them from seeing each other.

While Dusk used his magic to cut the roots that attacked him, which immediately grew back; he heard the screams of his friends next to him.

"Girls!! Are you okay?!" Dusk shouted as he tried to look past the thick roots. The walls of black roots prevented him from seeing his friends, and it grew thicker with each second which muffled the screams.

Dusk could slightly see some flashes of blue lights, which were probably from Princess Luna trying to free herself. However, it seemed that even her aliocrn magic had trouble getting through the roots.

“Normal magic doesn't work!” Dusk thought with absolute terror. He knew that it would only be a matter of time before the sharp thorns of the roots would overcome his friends.

Seeing that the ponies' normal magic didn't work, Dusk remembered the idea he had had just before the roots attacked them. Then he closed his eyes tight and sighed, determined that it didn't matter if it was dark magic, he would sell his soul to the devil. If it meant that he could save his friends.

~Spirit of eternal darkness, master of war and power, hear my call. Turn me into the flame that burns everything, turn me into the sea that drowns everything~ Dusk recited the first stanza of the curse.

---

In the castle of the Kingdom of Thicket, Celestia and Aspen chatted after centuries without having exchanged a word. As suspicious as the Deer King was, he decided he didn't want to be alone with Celestia in his chambers, so they ended up talking alone in the castle's great library.

“Thank you so much for giving me this audience, King Aspen.” Celestia said solemnly.

“Don't think anything has changed between us, Celestia. The only reason I agreed to see you is because there are many doubts that I need to be cleared up.” Aspen answered coldly, touching his neck. Under his necklace, the scars that Celestia herself had caused six hundred years ago were hidden. “How is it that you managed to get your sister back? What's more, it seems that there is no trace of the darkness that consumed her. I thought bringing her back was-"

"Impossible. I know." Celestia interrupted. “It wasn't me who got Luna back. It was my student, Dusk Shine, along with his friends. They managed to activate the Elements of Harmony and expel the evil that had taken over Luna's heart."

At that moment Celestia's gaze was distracted, and she looked curiously to her right where there was a large shelf with very old books.

“Strange… I feel a residue of magic here. But I thought Aspen banished ponies from his kingdom…” Celestia thought, with a suspicious look.

"Still, I thought that even with the Elements of Harmony, it would be impossible to return Luna to her true form." Aspen said, remembering how Celestia had almost turned into a monster by using that cursed power.

"I haven't talked to Luna about where she got the dark power to become Nightmare Moon, but apparently she didn't use the same method as me." Celestia said with a sad look as she remembered her past. “After banishing Nightmare Moon, I searched Luna's old room for any clues as to what caused her to transform like that, but all I found was an old blank book. I guess the magic of that book affected her heart somehow. In Luna's case, there was 'something' that gave her power, but in return it filled her heart with rage. Still, she was still Luna on the inside... When Nightmare Moon came back, I could tell. Luna was still there, even at times, she herself was fighting against her own dark side. However, in my case, it was… different.” Celestia added, revealing the theories she had been thinking about for months since Luna's return. “I used a cursed spell. A curse that wasn’t tied to any object, but to the words themselves when reciting them. That curse made my own soul go to a limbo, a space far from this world, perhaps outside of the same time. There, something wanted to take over my soul, replace my existence with someone else's... It wasn't part of me, it was... something else. If it hadn't been for-” At that moment, Celestia raised her head and widened her eyes in horror.

"What's going on?" Aspen asked, confused and worried at the sight of the alicorn's face.

"Someone... Someone is trying to use the cursed spell, I can feel it!" Celestia exclaimed. She immediately thought of her sister and Dusk and prayed to the heavens that neither of them were making the same mistake that she had made centuries ago.

---

~Dismiss any doubt and hope from my heart, cradle me in the icy eternal night of the abyss. Turn me into the storm that destroys everything. Turn me into the tremor that breaks everything~ Dusk recited the fourth stanza of the curse.

The magic emanated from Dusk's horn had turned almost completely dark, just like in the vision he had had about Celestia's past. However, Dusk's horn still released some sparks of his own magenta magic.

Unlike Celestia, who had been willing to accept the curse in her heart, Dusk internally kept fighting to prevent 'something' from taking control of his body. All he wanted was its power to help save his friends, but deep down he still refused to accept the consequences of that power. However, his resistance grew less and less with each stanza of the curse.

~Old wraith, I offer my life to the shadows in exchange for the eternal power of the void, present before me, lord of darkness. Become my guide. Become my shadow. Become my eyes. Become my strength~ Dusk recited the fifth and penultimate stanza of the curse. Thus, arriving at the same point he had seen Celestia arrive in the vision.

Like the Celestia of the past, Dusk's consciousness faded into another world that was no longer governed by the same rules as the real world. A world cut off from time and space, a world he would later learn was called: limbo.

Dusk lost all sensation of his body. In that instant, he understood that he had lost the battle. He could no longer exert any resistance to the curse in his current state. Dusk realized his serious mistake too late. He thought that like his teacher, he could stop the curse in that state, and thus control its power. But he understood far too late that this was the trick of the curse. It wasn’t necessary to say the last stanza of the curse, as his own self-control disappeared after the fifth stanza.

"Submit to me... Save your sister... Save your kingdom... Immerse yourself in the shadows..." Dusk heard a dark voice seduce him as his consciousness went into limbo.

Fleetingly, Dusk's mind managed to remember that those were the words he had heard in the vision of Celestia's past. But… Why did he listen to them there again? Was it a memory? Or was someone repeating them to him? Dusk couldn't know for sure. That world was so ethereal and confusing that Dusk couldn't even know if he himself continued to exist or not.

"NO!!" Suddenly the same voice that Dusk heard in Celestia's vision shout. It was the voice of a desperate old pony who was trying to save someone close to Dusk. "What do you think you're doing? I didn't teach you this! You’re more than this! Cease this foolishness!" The old pony's voice shouted, again yelling at the presence that was next to Dusk.

"Princess?" Dusk whispered weakly, fleetingly acknowledging the presence that was now at his side.

“Was it my voice?” Dusk tried to think. His whole world was a swirl of confusion and anguish. He couldn’t tell if this was Celestia's vision, a memory of him, or if it was happening right at that moment. Well, the truth was that everything happened at the same time, in a world isolated from time, which had only been created to lock up a monster.

Dusk felt how six warm auras approached the being by his side and took him away from that world, away from danger.

“Never say the sixth verse… Never!” The old pony's voice said from afar as he moved Celestia's soul away from the kingdom.

"Submit to me... Save your friends... Immerse yourself in the shadows..." The dark voice said again. Taking advantage of the fact that the six warm auras had moved away to seduce its new prey.

"NO!!" The old pony's voice shouted from afar, trying to return after having saved Celestia.

“You chose to save her… Now this one is mine…” The dark voice said, laughing triumphantly.

Then Dusk began to feel a cold sensation began to cover him completely. And even though he didn't feel his body or his mouth move, somehow he knew that his real body, somewhere, was about to say the sixth stanza of the curse. Because what was his body, no longer belonged to him. Now his body belonged to that deep darkness.

"Everything will be fine." A soft voice said. A very distant voice, but so powerful that it made Dusk regain his consciousness and feel warmth in his soul again. A warmth that chased away the icy shadow that had nearly eaten his soul.

"What's this!? Who are you!!" The dark voice screamed in terror, as if it had never faced the light and heat that had saved Dusk before.

The world around Dusk began to shine, while the sensations returned to his body, and his mortal soul returned to the real world.

“DUSK!!” A female voice yelled. A scream that made Dusk slowly open his eyes, so confused that he still didn't know where he was or what was happening.

"Princess?" Dusk said slowly, saying the first thing that came to his mind. That, because the voice that he had heard until just a few seconds ago, and that had saved him from the darkness, he had heard before somewhere.

'Everything will be fine' It was the voice that Dusk had heard when he got his cutie mark. A voice that calmed his magic out of control, and that Dusk had associated with the princess, because when he woke up, the first thing he had felt had been Princess Celestia's soft hooves supporting him. Now, he had heard that voice again, and again someone was hugging him, only this time it wasn't the princess but his friends. They had called out his name and now they were hugging him tightly.

“That voice… It wasn't the Princess… Who was it?” Dusk thought, not understanding how he had heard the same voice twice, more than ten years apart.

Dusk looked to his side as he slowly came out of his confusion. Around him were his five friends hugging him tightly, all of them covered in scratches. Apparently, seeing that they had all been separated by being attacked by the black roots, they all felt when Dusk began to use dark magic. They all felt that their beloved stallion was in danger and fought with all their strength against the black roots, making their way to Dusk to hug and contain him. They prayed that he would return to the real world after seeing his body being eaten away by dark magic.

"You gone and did something stupid again, didn't you?" Applejack said with a voice trembling with fear and relief. Tear were freely flowing from her eyes as she hugged the colt that she loved.

"You have to stop trying to sacrifice yourself and trying doing everything alone!" Pinkie Pie said, looking at Dusk also with tears in her eyes after seeing him in such a terrifying state.

“Never forget that we’re a team.” Rainbow Dash said as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

"We’re more than friends, Dusk. Our destinies are forever entwined with yours." Rarity said with teary eyes and sighed in relief when she saw that the lavender stallion was okay.

“You’re not alone… You never will be.” Fluttershy said with a tender smile, and her eyes shining from having been crying until recently.

At Fluttershy's words, Dusk remembered the vision he had of Celestia and how that old pony's voice had said exactly the same thing to the alicorn just before saving her. Then Dusk smiled and hugged his friends, immensely happy and relieved to be able to feel their warmth around him.

"I'm sorry... I'll never forget... Together until the end." Dusk said happily as he hugged his friends. He almost made the biggest mistake of his life and was so relieved that he was saved from it.

After a while, Dusk looked up and was surprised to see that the black roots that were around him began to recede. They retracted quickly and hid again under the ground just below the great Tree of Harmony.

"What happened?" Zecora asked, approaching where Dusk and his friends were. The zebra wasn’t present for what had happened between Dusk and the mares, so she had no idea why the black roots were receding.

The Tree of Harmony began to glow as the black roots receded. And then, Zecora was surprised to see that the cutie marks of the six ponies next to her also began to glow.

"The Tree of Harmony... is giving you its protection..." Zecora said in amazement, bowing in front of the huge tree that now glowed. For her, who had a strong connection with the forest and nature, this was a powerful sign that those six ponies had been recognized by the magic of the forest.

"Wait, are you saying that tree can think and choose who to save?" Rainbow Dash asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I know it sounds crazy, but... I think so." Dusk said, looking in amazement at the Tree of Harmony while the last black roots were banished. “It’s more than just a tree...”

“Was it your voice I heard?” Dusk thought as he looked at the Tree of Harmony, still not understanding everything that had happened.

"But what were all those black roots?" Captain Blackthorn asked, approaching the rest of the ponies. “Were they part of the Tree of Harmony? Why did it attack us?

"Perhaps... It wanted to test us." Dusk theorized, looking at the magical tree again and noticing that a black root hadn’t gone away. A dark root stood firm, standing right next to the tree. Specifically, very close to the engraved mark that was identical to Dusk's cutie mark. "I think it's a sign... That we should be careful about falling into the dark..."

The green vines that blocked the access to that cavern opened, and Aspen came down the path. He was surprised to see his captain, the Princess of the Night and the ponies that he had captured there. However, what surprised the King the most was seeing that the Tree of Harmony had returned to normal. All the black roots that had been suffocating it had disappeared. Even more so, the tree now had a faint glow of its own, something Aspen hadn't seen in ages, as if it were much healthier now.

Without saying a word, Aspen looked at everyone and saw that they were all very scratched after being attacked by the black roots, especially Dusk and his friends. The white deer opened the crystal heart that hung from his necklace, and with a quick movement he splashed the liquid that he kept on the ponies. Instantly, the ponies were surprised to see that as soon as that water touched their bodies, their wounds completely healed in an instance.

"Follow me." Aspen said once everyone was cured.

Immediately, they all followed the deer king as they left the cavern in which the Tree of Harmony was hidden. Then, when everyone was gone, Aspen again spilled some of the water from his crystal heart onto the ground. Causing the vines to once again block access to that important place, the true Heart of the Forest: The Tree of Harmony.

Once outside, everyone saw that Princess Celestia had accompanied the deer king, who sighed in relief seeing that everyone was okay. For her part, seeing the Princess of the Sun, Zecora couldn’t help but narrow her eyes in disgust, since she couldn’t fully trust someone who kept as many secrets as the alicorn.

When Celestia looked at her sister, she saw that Luna was looking at her with a sad look for some reason. Then she saw what her sister was carrying and recognized the potion. This potion was very similar to one that Starswirl himself had made once, one that could only be activated with alicorn magic and that allowed one to see events that had occurred in the past.

“Luna… What part of my past did you see?” Celestia thought with worry, understanding that her sister must have seen a part of her that she had wanted to keep hidden.

“Luna, I-” Celestia said fearfully. However, before she could say more, Luna walked over to her sister and gave her a big, warm hug.

“Please stop carrying all the weight of the world alone. I need you to trust and believe in me. I love you sister, and nothing you say or do will change that." Luna said, completely forgetting about her princess status. For a moment she didn't want to be the Princess of the Night, or an alicorn. She just wanted to be a normal pony, who hugged her sister and wanted to make her feel like she wasn't alone.

Fully understanding her younger sister's feelings, Celestia hugged Luna, smiled and shed a tear of happiness. It was such a relief that her sister didn't judge her for her past.

As both alicorn sisters hugged each other emotionally, Aspen kept looking at them thoughtfully. Remembering how both of them had made terrible mistakes, how both of them had even fought each other. But still, now both forgave and loved each other.

"What was it that happened here?" Aspen finally asked, turning around and focusing her serious gaze on Zecora and Dusk.

Dusk proceeded to tell the deer king what had happened. He explained how he and his friends had gotten there, the potion he and Luna had used to see the past, how the black roots attacked them, how in his desperation Dusk used a dark spell to gain power, and how their cutie marks glowed and the Tree of Harmony itself pushed back the roots. Dusk deliberately omitted the part where he had seen Celestia using dark magic in the past vision, since that could strongly affect the image that others had of her. As for Aspen, it wasn’t necessary for Dusk to explain that missing detail, since he himself had been in Celestia's fall, and he still remembered that moment very well. For her part, Celestia lowered her head sadly, realizing that she had failed Dusk as a teacher, since he had seen her selfishly using dark magic that could have ended Equestria itself.

“So you used the same cursed spell… And a voice managed to save you?” Aspen said with an incredulous look.

"I believe it may have been the Tree of Harmony itself who saved Dusk." Zecora said, looking at the deer King and pointing at the tree. Specifically, to the mark at the center of the tree. "It cannot be a coincidence."

Aspen looked at the tree and then at Dusk's cutie mark. The truth was that the Tree of Harmony was older than Aspen himself. He didn’t know all its mysteries, and that mark in its center had always attracted his attention. That was why when he met Dusk in his castle, he was strongly struck by seeing his cutie mark. Was it really a sign that the Tree of Harmony had chosen this lavender pony? Why a pony? They were just dangerous creatures that could endanger everyone with their magic. Or maybe… ponies were trustworthy, and he couldn't see it?

As Aspen looked thoughtfully at the Tree of Harmony, Dusk's and Celestia's gazes met. Seeing his teacher's sad look, Dusk simply smiled affectionately, making her understand that it didn't matter what he had seen. It didn't change the fact that she was his teacher, and he continued to admire her. Celestia was also able to smile at her student’s tender one, relieved to know that her dear student still seemed to love her, despite having almost fallen into the shadows.

“You also heard voices when you were in limbo, didn't you?” Celestia thought with a serious look. “We’ll have many things to talk about later, my dear student.”

“I don't know if the Heart of the Forest chose them or not, but what is certain is that the dark roots no longer threaten my kingdom. For that, I and my people are grateful to you.” Aspen said, bowing his head slightly in front of the ponies as a sign of thanks. “However, now you must go. You must return to your own kingdom.”

“King Aspen! Please." Celestia quickly pleaded, stepping forward and bowed at the great white deer. “I know that it’s impossible for us to return to the way we were before. But I beg you, please, let us return to our old alliance. I fear that dark times may come, and in the face of darkness, we’ll be stronger if we are united.”

Aspen narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the request, thinking that the only darkness that could threaten his kingdom was the one the ponies brought with them. However, then Aspen glanced sideways at Luna, who was also looking intently at him, waiting for him to accept her sister's request. Aspen couldn't believe that both sisters had forgiven each other after everything that had happened between them. If they could forgive each other… could he also forgive them?

"I refuse to form an alliance with the pony kingdom again." Aspen finally answered, looking seriously at Celestia. Who lowered her gaze sadly. "However, I’ll agree to resume diplomatic relations with your people... Ponies will no longer be barred from my kingdom." He added, looking at Dusk and the other ponies. He couldn't fully trust the ponies just yet, but he would at least take the first step to see if he could.

Celestia sighed and smiled gratefully. It wasn't what she had expected, but it was the first step. After six centuries, she had finally managed to talk to her former friend, and perhaps in time, their relationship could finally fully heal.

After both regents formally said their goodbyes, and Zecora chose to stay in the Kingdom of Thicket for a few more days; Celestia used her magic and all the ponies were transported out of the forest and back into the domains of the kingdom of Equestria.

“It's been a very hectic day, and Raven is probably stressed about me escaping my royal duties all day. But having reconnected with King Aspen, it was definitely worth it." Celestia said with a tired smile. She went to Dusk and gently touched his face with her hoof, while looking at him affectionately. “There's a lot we need to talk about, but rest for now. Also, there is someone else I owe a long talk.” Celestia added, looking away to look at Luna. She realized it was time to stop hiding things from her dear sister.

Without another word, Celestia spread her great wings and took flight, ready to return to her castle. For her part, Luna barely had time to say goodbye, and quickly imitated her sister and flew with her. Determined that at another time she would also talk more with Dusk, but for now, she and her sister had a lot to talk about.

After seeing the alicorn sisters fly away, Dusk turned and looked towards the forest with a smile and a look of astonishment.

“The Everfree Forest really is full of mysteries. Who would have thought that there was an entire hidden kingdom there? An entire race who live daily surrounded by the magic of the forest.” For the first time, the dark Everfree Forest didn’t seem so dark to him. "I hope this is the beginning for new friendships... And I hope we can see each other again soon, King Aspen..."

“Hmm, yeah… Uh… It might be sooner than you expect.” Pinkie Pie said, scratching her head and putting on a nervous smile. "Don't you think we forgot something?"

After looking at Pinkie Pie for a couple of seconds, everyone finally understood what she meant.

“The fillies!!” All the ponies screamed in fright.

Then they all ran back into the forest, unable to believe that Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had been left behind in the King's castle.

---

In the middle of the destroyed Castle of the Two Sisters, there was no one in the corridors or in the great hall, or at least, no one who could be seen with the naked eye. The ghost that had haunted the halls of King Aspen's castle had escaped from the kingdom of Thicket and was now wandering the ruins of the other castle.

"I suppose there's no need to be invisible here anymore." Said a voice in the middle of the room. Then, like a ripple in the water, a reflection began to appear until the figure of a pony appeared. "That invisibility spell was more useful than I thought." That pony added, while looking again at its hooves, which were now no longer transparent.

That pony continued to search the rubble of the old castle, with the certainty that what it was looking for must be there.

"I would have liked to see where Princess Celestia and King Aspen were going in such a hurry, but it was too risky to continue there, the Princess could have detected my spell... Surely that both of them left so quickly is related to that explosion of magic I felt not far from here.” That pony said while it continued in its search. "It was strange, first a dark magic was growing, and then the opposite, a great light magic overshadowed the dark magic until it faded away."

Not finding what it was looking for, that pony levitated a book with its unicorn magic and looked for a drawing in it, to remember what it was looking for looked like.

“It's a pity that the deer library didn't have any magic books. But at least it had excellent history books. Books that tell many things that don't appear in our history books…” That pony said with a smile while closing the book and looking through another set of rubble.

Suddenly, the pony opened its eyes in surprise to finally find what it was looking for. Then, that pony lowered its hoof and picked up the shattered helmet of the defeated Nightmare Moon's armor.

“There are many ways to gain power. But I prefer the safe path.” That pony said with a mischievous smile. "Now I just have to fix you up so you can fulfill your true purpose..." That pony added laughing. A laugh which resounded throughout that dark castle, predicting a new danger to the already threatened kingdom of Equestria.

End of chapter 14

Author's Note:

Many thanks to 'Scribe of the Nightwings' for his help

Comments

[MLPMekarm]

hmmm. things are gonna pick up soon.

[New Rebellion]

“predicting a new danger to the already threatened kingdom of Equestria.

Well, THAT'S not ominous at all. Gotta admit though, I'm a tad surprised Dusk could be so stupid when it comes to something magical related. I mean, it'd not like he spent the better part of his life training with and being partially raised by the single most powerful and knowledgeable magic user in the entire kingdom.

Oh, wait a sec...

[GreatDragonLord]

*The vines open and the Luna enters the cave.* files.everypony.ru/smiles/a9/4d/2dc2a2.png - Did you think Celestia was coming? But came me - Luna!
Luna drank Zebra hooch and caught a bad trip about her sister's past.
For some reason, when Celestia started talking about the Dark and Light Lords, I remembered the game "Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor". Why would that be?
Interestingly, we have at least three new creatures, neither the names nor the appearance of which we do not know.
I am waiting for new chapters, it will be quite interesting at the end to find out who our heroes are still opposing.

[Darth_krayt]

Love this chapter love the Lord of the Rings reference please bring back Nightmare Moon as a filly for Dusk Shine to take care of

[Kiue Jin]

If I had to guess, our 'ghostly' friend is in fact that Archmage that fucked Sunset up.

[cornholio4]

Not sure what to make of this since so many stuff has happened

[BrawnyBold]

My thoughts:
- Looks like those vines from Season 4 have been taken care of.
- I wouldn’t blame Dusk if he wanted to hurt those deers. Especially if they say they would harm Zecora.
- Celestia said some about Crystal. Did she mean the Crystal Empire or someone named Crystal?
- Daybreaker?! I figured Celestia would have been desperate to use the elements.
- Who was that hidden pony at the end? I think it could be Trixie.
Another good chapter!

[Nightslayer]

Wow you were good at this. I am so impressed about this work. chapter 14 was amazing.

I didn't know why you added daybreaker early in the story.

now. I'm interested in the other plaque that's going on. when Nightmare Moon comes back around reality. will She steel Dusk Shine away. from his friends and family. because she knows that Luna likes him and that will make her counterpart very angry.

oh the possibilities of Comedy.

sorry for sounding stupid in this poet garbage. but you did good I like your work. This is the best story so have a nice day

[bigsnusnu]

11180003
haha yes, sometimes Dusk is too reckless. He's very young and likes to learn more about magic, and that sometimes brings consequences

[bigsnusnu]

11180044
haha that entry by Luna is an interesting change haha
About the reference to The Middle Earth, you're correct. In fact the phrase that Celestia says is identical to the one that Galdriel says when she almost took the one ring.
And finally, yes, there are still many mysteries that we'll reveal little by little
thanks for comment

[bigsnusnu]

11180059
we'll have to wait to see what happens with Luna, Dusk and Nightmare Moon's helmet

[bigsnusnu]

11180174
who knows, we'll have to wait to find out

[bigsnusnu]

11180315
yes, it was a chapter with many things haha
I hope you like it

[bigsnusnu]

11180475
Well, the deer didn't hurt Zecora, it was a lie to see if Dusk would react
About what Celestia said about Crystal, who knows, we'll have to wait to find out
And the mysterious pony, we'll also have to wait to find out haha
thanks for comment

[bigsnusnu]

11180862
thank you very much I'm glad you liked the chapter and how the story progresses
soon more chapter
Thank you so much for the comment

[cornholio4]

11181005
Thanks

[FictionPony21]

Another amazing chapter! Pretty deep and intriguing.
I loved the Lord of the Rings reference, it was quite spectacular, very well done.

[bigsnusnu]

11181702
I'm glad you liked the chapter and also the little references I added
Thanks for commenting and I hope you like the next chapters too

[howard035]

You really do a fantastic job of combining the lore of MLP in New and unexpected configurations.

[bigsnusnu]

11182324
thank you so much I'm glad you like my work
soon more chapters

[DavisSentoV5]

11182982
I know I'm like a quarter done I hope

[bigsnusnu]

11188859
I hope you liked it so far

[DavisSentoV5]

Finally finished this. My eyes hurt, but glad the KIng is making a small process with the ponies and I was dying that the gang's reaction leaving behind the CMC. Awesome as always and it's Cozy at the end, isn't it?

[bigsnusnu]

11195537
haha yes, you're finally up to date very soon the next chapter will be
I'm glad you liked the chapter and the little jokes it has
and about the mysterious mare, who knows, we'll have to wait to find out

[DavisSentoV5]

11196145
Very well I shall wait

[Xalok]

I am start to think Dusk loves being in danger for he seems to throw himself into it every chance he gets, good on Luna for stopping him for a bit there

[bigsnusnu]

11208404
xD I guess you're right. As a good talented young man or pony, sometimes Dusk is too reckless

[f0st3r21]

I’m glad they remembered the fillies. The roots came a little sooner than I anticipated.
***
Dear Princess Celestia,

Today I learned that deer-folk are liars. The prince lied to his people. The king and captain lied to us. Oh, but they have a library! So they might be okay. Unless they lie in their books? Nopony would do that, right?

-Dusk Shine
***
Celestia: Hm~ I’m going to assign you some fiction to read, Dusk… new chapter of ‘Forbidden Love’ starring, ‘Mustache Sentry?’

[bigsnusnu]

11637676
Mustache Sentry? haha yes, I guess it could be a character that appears in the Lyra comic haha