Flash Sentry, Defender of the Peace S7

by Banshee531

Shadow Play PT2

In the castle of friendship, a bright light filled one of the rooms as the Rune Gate opened, Twilight walking out of it first. This was followed by Flash, then the rest of her friends. Finally, the six newly returned Pillars of Equestria stepped out of the light. "Blithering bagpipes!" Rockhoof shook his head, "Travelling like that just isn't natural."

"Don't worry," Applejack chuckled, "Yah get used to it."

As she said that, Twilight led them out of the room, Mistmane commenting on the place, "Such a beautiful castle." She placed a hoof on the crystal walls, "I can just feel the love flowing through the structure. This is certainly an amazing home."

"Thanks," Heart responded, "We like it a lot."

Magnus turned to the pony named after him. "So this Trial creature. You say it was created by magic?" Flash nodded as he lifted a hoof and illuminated it.

"It's after my Sacred Light. We don't know who's sending them, but we've managed to beat five of them already and this one should be the last."

"It's a magically created clone that's been enhanced using science and technology." Twilight continued. "They don't seem to have any kind of mind of their own, and they only care about capturing Flash...and causing destruction."

"Then why would it go after the Pony of Shadows?" Soul asked her, Twilight frowning at this.

"It's possible it's hoping to team up with the Pony of Shadows. After all, around a Trial, Flash can't use his Sacred Light to its full extent. It would suck it right out of him."

"Which means we'll need to deal with the Trial before Flash can use his Sacred Light to kick that jerk's butt!" Rainbow exclaimed, Lightning and Iron nodding.

Starswirl hummed disapprovingly. "Considering you refuse to finish the Pony of Shadows off, attempting to use the Sacred Light on the Pony of Shadows is pointless." The others glared to him as they reached the map room, the map activating as soon as they entered. The Pillars went wide-eyed at the sight, soon circling around the crystal device as Starswirl added, "Something about this magic seems familiar..." After another second, he fired a blast of magic from his horn and it struck the map.

Everypony gasped as the map suddenly unleashed a projection of the Tree of Harmony. "Did you know he can do that?" Rarity asked Twilight.

"He's Starswirl! He can do anything!" Flash had to hold back a laugh at this.

"This map..." Starswirl whispered, "And indeed this very castle, are grown from the seed we planted over a thousand years ago."

"Then it did work!" Rockhoof cheered, stomping his hoof happily onto the table.

"What worked?" Sunburst asked next.

"Each of us infused a crystal seed with our magic in hopes that it would grow into a force for good."

Mistmane nodded at this. "We wanted to leave something to protect the realm in our absence, but we never dreamed our gift would become so powerful."

Everypony slowly put the pieces together, Applejack then chiming in, "Y'all mean the Elements came from you?" The Pillars tilted their heads at this, Pinkie then hopping between them.

"You know, the sparkly crystal things that grow from the Tree of Harmony and represent each of us?" She then began listing off the elements and showcasing the pony that was connected to it, embarrassing them slightly while doing so. She then reached Flash. "And the newest addition to the elemental abundance, Courage!" A bunch of confetti exploded and rained down on them.

Somnambula giggled at the sight, "They are reflections of our own elements of hope, strength, beauty, bravery, healing, and sorcery."

Each of the ponies connected to said element smiled, while Heart spoke up. "Excuse me," they turned to him. "Shouldn't bravery be a reflection of Flash's element. How come there isn't a Pillar for him?"

"Flash forged to Element of Courage himself," Twilight reminded Heart. "In a way, he's a Pillar like the others."

"Plus," Grand continued, "Courage and bravery aren't the same thing. Being brave means you simply ignore any and all fear that you feel, which is a powerful trait to have, but also lacking in certain aspects. But being courageous means one allows themselves to feel the fear, to listen to it and still carry on regardless." He gestured to Heart, "You remember the first rule of being a knight, don't you?"

Heart smirked and nodded, "Always be afraid."

"Exactly. Every courageous pony can also be brave, but not every brave pony can be courageous. It's just a fact. The Elements that each Pillar possesses...is an incomplete version of the Elements Twilight and the others have."

The ponies in question blushed as five of their six predecessors smiled at them, Meadowbrook choosing to speak up. "We had no idea our small seed would bloom into the living spirit of the land." She placed a hoof on Fluttershy's wing, "I am glad our mantles have passed to such capable ponies."

Fluttershy smiled as Starswirl spoke up, "More importantly, we no longer need Ponhenge to send our foe back to limbo. We can use the stored magic in this Tree of Harmony."

Twilight grimaced at this, "But doesn't a banishing spell take a lot of power? We'd have to sacrifice the Elements for that."

Starswirl did a confident nod, Fluttershy then asking, "Then...they'd be gone...forever?"

Twilight turned to her idol, "Starswirl, I don't think the Tree can survive without the Elements. If it dies, Equestria will suffer."

Starswirl glared back at her, "If the Pony of Shadows has his way, your land will not exist! So unless you have a better idea..."

The alicorn flinched at this, the sight making Flash growl as he chimed in, "Well maybe if you didn't ride her coat tails every five seconds, she wouldn't feel so bad and actually be able to think."

"Flash!" Twilight yelped, "Don't say something like-"

"No Twilight." Flash interrupted while pointing at Starswirl, "He has no right to talk to you that way. You're a million times better magic user than him."

"What did you just say?!" Starswirl barked back, "Do you have any idea the amount of magic I've discovered?! I have faced evils and monsters the likes of which you can't even imagine-"

"Oh, I can imagine it alright," Flash spat, "We've had to clean up enough of your messes to get a good idea of the villains you've beaten. Though I guess beaten isn't really the right word, since you never did beat any of them. All you ever did was lock them up someplace and not even bother to put any real defenses to make sure they didn't come back." Starswirl looked ready to burst, but Flash's next words made him stop. "Malafear sure comes to mind."

Starswirl's eyes went wide, "What did you say?!"

"Malafear. Didn't you hear Pinkie mention him in the list of villains we've had to stop, mainly because of you. He came back and why? Because you put the book holding his soul behind a pretty picture. That's just begging somepony to hang around it and eventually locate it. Would it have killed you to have added a warning?!" Flash began gesturing with his hooves, "Maybe put a sign: Evil book behind this wall. Stay fifty feet away at all times." Flash's friends laughed at this, even Twilight and a few Pillars snickering. "Heck, we barely managed to beat him, and it took Spike almost sacrificing his life to do it!"

Starswirl turned to the dragon in question, his eyes going wide when he realized the little drake was a mix of two dragons he knew quite well.

That is, till Flash spoke up again, "Then there's the Sirens." This made all the Pillars turn to him, "You sent them into another world, hoping they wouldn't cause any issues, but not putting any thought into what might happen if that world got any kind of magic. For the record, it did, and they almost used it to take complete control of the place. If it hadn't been for Twilight and our friends in that world, they would have conquered the whole place and maybe even come back here to do the same thing!" He pointed at Starswirl again, "So don't go thinking you're anything special! And don't go blaming Twilight for trying to help you! She might have messed up, but it's only because you decided not to explain exactly what you did in your book! If you had, Twilight might have realized she couldn't bring you back without freeing the Pony of Shadows!"

"You little-" Starswirl growled as his horn began to glow.

"Flash is right," Rainbow interrupted, "Don't go thinking you're hot stuff. Twilight's probably got more skill in one hoof than you have in your entire body."

The others nodded, mentioning their own statements in Twilight's defense. And as they did this, Magnus let out a laugh as he pointed at Flash, "You've got a lot of spirit. I like that."

"Thanks."

Starswirl glared at Magnus, only to see the other pillars staring at him. Letting out a long huff, "Very well. Your friend Twilight may attempt to find a way to defeat the Pony of Shadows, but I assure you nothing short of limbo banishment will be able to keep him from returning." He struck the map again and the tree image vanished, the map returning to normal as several dark clouds appeared above it. "Our foe will seek dark places from which to draw power. I will prepare my spell so that we may strike as soon as you find him."

"So what are we waiting for?!" Rainbow asked, Magnus nodding in agreement along with everypony else.

Twilight stared at her friends, feeling relief that they had such faith in her. She smiled, knowing that she would probably be depressed right now if Flash hadn't spoken up. "Let's go Spike," she told her assistant before the pair rushed out of the room.

Grand turned to Flash, "We'll need to come up with a way to stop the Trial. I don't think this is something just the five of us can accomplish."

"No kidding. Maybe we should call in the other Royal Knights? If you all fight against that thing, it won't stand a chance in battle."

They all nodded as Magnus turned to them, "You mentioned these Royal Knights before. How they are the protectors of Equestria?"

"And you also appear to be wielding weapons forged from alicorn magic," Starswirl pointed to their Celestic Gears. "I can assume they were forged from the magic of Celestia and Luna."

"Well..." Flash slowly replied, "Most of them are made from Celestia's magic." He held up his sword, "Mine was first made from just that, but it later got a tune up with Luna and Cadance's magic."

"Yes," Grand nodded. "Let's just say Luna had a few...behavior problems after you left that lead to her going into...exile until rather recently."

"Another thing you can thank Twilight for," Flash added, "Basically, we're the best of the best when it comes to the protectors of Equestria."

Iron tapped his weapon at side, "We might not have saved Equestria as many times as Twilight and her friends, but considering the kingdom's still going after a thousand years, I think we're doing a pretty good job."

Grand, Springer and Lightning all nodded before Grand said, "I'll get in touch with the knights. The rest of you focus on training for the battle that's to come."

The group then spilt up, Twilight and Starswirl both preparing their magic as Twilight tried to find a way to banish the monster without losing the Pillars while Starswirl prepared to do just that. As this happened, the rest of the Mane Seven and the Pillars headed out to search for dark places. During that time, Flash, Springer, Iron, Lightning and Heart all trained as Grand sent out some messages before joining them for the next few days.

And then after three days since the Pony of Shadows returned, the others returned from their search with news about where the Pony of Shadows was hiding: They had no idea. As it happened, Starswirl's suggested locations had undergone some radical shifts in the last ten centuries, and now none of them were a suitable environment for the creature to reside in.

"It seems there are fewer dark corners in the realm these days," Starswirl sighed as he crossed off the last location on his map.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Rainbow asked as she and Magnus were enjoying a pint of apple cider.

"True," the bravery pillar nodded, "The Pony of Shadows will have a hard time regaining power. When he rears his head, we'll be ready!" He and Rainbow lifted their cups and thunked them together.

Fluttershy turned to Meadowbrook, placing a hoof on hers. "Isn't there some way to banish him without losing all of you?"

"Oh, I wish there were." the healer sighed. "But to save our home, we are willin' to leave it." The pillars all nodded, but then the doors shot open and Twilight ran inside.

"I don't think you'll have to!" She trotted up and placed a piece of paper on the table, "My spell isn't finished yet, but I think we can send the Pony of Shadows to limbo without all of you having to go as well!"

"Alright!" Flash cheered, "I knew you'd find a way to pull through!"

The others nodded, only for Starswirl to let out a huff, "Are you really willing to risk everything on a half-baked spell?!"

"How is it any different from what you did a thousand years ago?" Lightning chimed in, "You didn't know if the limbo banishing spell would work, but you still did it!"

"Besides," Applejack added, "Twilight doesn't do anythin' halfway!"

"Especially not magic!" Pinkie responded as she leapt up next to the alicorn.

"Seriously!" Rainbow grabbed her wing, "She got her wings by finishing one of your spells!"

Rarity and Fluttershy trotted over, "I think you'll find her work is worth reading before you dismiss it out of hoof!"

"Mm-hmm!" Fluttershy nodded as Flash flew over.

"I've already made my opinions clear," he told the Pillars. "If Twilight says it'll work, it'll work."

Meadowbrook looked over the parchment. While not a unicorn, the earth pony had a great degree of magical knowledge. "While it is an unconventional approach, I believe it could work."

Starswirl grabbed the parchment and let out a hum, "I suppose there is a chance."

"But we still have no idea where to find the villain," Sunburst chimed in. Twilight crossed her hooves at this, only for an answer to not come not from her brain...but from her flank. The sound of shimmering caught their attention and everypony turned to the Mane Seven's cutie marks, all of them glowing before flying off their flanks and over to the map.

Twilight's cutie mark floated over a section of the map, with the other six circling around it. "Maybe we should try there?"

"The Hollow Shades," Applejack read the name, "Ah think a branch of the Apple family lives there."

"They'd have to be pretty distant," Sunburst replied, "The Hollow Shades was abandoned eons ago."

"Hmm," Rarity rubbed her chin, "That's odd. The only time the map's called all of us to one place was Starlight's village."

"So it's like a super-villain tracker!" Rainbow exclaimed before turning to Starlight. "No offense."

Starlight raised an eyebrow while Twilight turned to Starswirl. "Do you think the map could be trying to tell us where the Pony of Shadows is?"

"Hmm..." he stroked his beard in thought, "The Tree of Harmony acting to protect the light of the realm...Yes. A good thought, Twilight." This caused Twilight to silently squeal, Flash chuckling as Starswirl raised her spell. "I will make my notes on this spell. Ready yourselves for battle."

The others smiled and nodded, only for Starlight to chime in, "Uh...I know I'm not as experienced as all of you, but is banishment really the only option? I mean, it's been a long time. Maybe the Pony of Shadows is ready to talk?"

"I doubt we can save our homeland with a conversation," Starswirl replied.

"But we could try," Starlight countered.

Twilight leaned her head between them, "Starlight, I'm sure Starswirl and the others did try."

"The Pony of Shadows was not interested in reconciliation," Starswirl responded, "Once a villain, always a villain." But as he walked toward the door, Lightning spoke up.

"Well then, I guess I'm still a villain." This made Starswirl stop and turn to him. "I did something pretty villainous once. I threatened to blow up all of Canterlot if I wasn't made king." This made the Pillar's eyes go wide. "I made a mistake and let my anger get the best of me. When I was beaten, Celestia could have easily locked me up and thrown away the key."

"But she didn't," Starlight continued, "She gave you a second chance and you used it to make yourself into a better pony. A hero." Rarity and Grand nodded while Starswirl hummed. "I was also like that. I made a mistake and in doing so, caused many ponies harm. But Twilight helped me see there was another way."

Flash frowned at this. "That's true." He turned to Twilight, "I mean, how is this any different from how we saved Luna? Nightmare Moon was just as dangerous as the Pony of Shadows, but we were able to save her. And because of that, she got to start over. One mistake shouldn't mark a pony for life. If there's one thing I've learned since coming to Ponyville, it's that committing a crime doesn't make somepony a villain."

Twilight blinked at this, about to respond before Starswirl said, "It matters not what you believe. While I am happy you two and Luna were able to put your dark pasts behind you, this villain is not one that can be so easily turned from the darkness. And if you keep offering ponies the chance to change, then one day you'll find yourself in a dagger in your back. I will not allow the Pony of Shadows that chance. Twilight, Sunburst, would you accompany me? I wish to refine this spell for our use." With that, he left with the two magic users following after.

"Come." Rockhoof turned to the others. "We must prepare for the struggle ahead." They all nodded and headed out of the room, leaving only Starlight, Spike and Soul.

"Sorry Starlight," the alicorn turned to her, "Honestly, I think you might be right." A big frown appeared on the filly's face, Starlight realizing she was remembering the one she had met during her friendship mission. "Everypony deserves the chance to do the right thing."

Starlight nodded. "I know Starswirl is a great wizard, but this whole plan seems...wrong. The map's only ever sent us to solve friendship problems."

"Maybe so," Spike added, "But the Pony of Shadows doesn't really seem like the friendship type."

Starlight shrugged at this, "Honestly? We don't know anything about him."

"Well, nopony does."

Starlight blinked at this before shining a grin, "That's not entirely true!" She trotted out of the room, soon finding the others. Rainbow was polishing Magnus' shield as he prepared his armor while Applejack and Rockhoof were sharpening his shovel along with the knights making sure their Celestic Gears were ready.

Starlight, Soul and Spike stepped down the stairs as the unicorn spoke up, "You all knew the Pony of Shadows before he became what he is now. You must've been friends. So what happened?"

The Pillars all turned to her, all frowning before Rockhoof spoke up, "The tale of our rift is a sad one." And thus, the five of them began to tell the tale of a pony named Stygian. A unicorn with little skill, but who brought the Pillars together and made them realize the power they would have if they united their strengths. And together, the Pillars became an unstoppable force for good. But Stygian grew jealous of not having the amazing powers they wielded, so he stole the relics and attempted to do something at Ponhenge. Luckily, the Pillars managed to stop him and cast the unicorn out. They had hoped he would return to ask for forgiveness, but instead he returned only to wield an evil force that was hellbent on darkening all of Equestria. Thus, the reason for the Pillar's sacrifice and his banishment to limbo.

"But why did he steal the artefacts from you?" Starlight asked, Meadowbrook stepping forward and lifting her mask.

"No doubt it was an enchantment to take our powers for himself."

"Wait..." Flash slowly said, "Did he actually say that? Did he actually say he wanted to steal your powers?" The Pillars turned to one another, then back to him before shaking their heads. "Don't you think it would have been smart to ask before jumping to a conclusion?"

"I'm with Flash," Springer nodded. "I've assumed things about others before without asking for a good reason. Blaming somepony without hearing their side of the story sounds kind of..."

"Ignorant," Mira suggested.

"Self-indulgent," Ace spoke up.

"Stupid," the two jakhowl stated together. The Pillars all turned to the two youngsters, but no response came.

As this happened, Starlight headed for the library, Flash going with her. He wanted to hear what Starswirl had to say about this, only to find the floor completely covered in piles upon piles of books. How so many were meant to help make one spell, Flash could never know. "That looks like a lot of work," Starlight commented.

"It is what must be done," Starswirl replied, "And it would be best if we were not disturbed."

"I'm sorry, but we can't stop to talk." Twilight added while reading a book, "The stakes are too high, and we have to-"

"Banish Stygian to limbo," Starlight stated as Starswirl flinched. "I get it."

"Uh, who?" Sunburst asked from his spot atop a ladder, Starswirl frowning.

"Stygian was the name the Pony of Shadows gave up when he turned to darkness."

"And I'm just trying to figure out why," Starlight added before Starswirl slammed his book shut.

"Envy." He turned to Starswirl. "He wanted more power than he had, and that desire led him down a path from which there is no return!"

"Are you sure that's what happened?" Flash asked, "The others say you never actually found out why he took your relics."

"It's obvious," Starswirl responded, "Those lacking power always want what they should not have, not caring at all who is harmed to facilitate their selfish desires." Hatred filled the stallion's eyes, along with a look of sorrow.

And as Flash saw this, he let out a sigh, "So that's what this is about. This isn't just about Stygian. It's about Silverbolt and Fira." The stallion turned to him. "You lost them to a creature exactly like you were describing, and because of that, you developed a crippling fear of the same thing happening. So much so that you instantly jumped to the conclusion Stygian was doing something evil just because he didn't tell you what happened. Paranoid much?!"

Starswirl glared at him, only to hiss out, "You're right. I have lost those I care about to a monster like that. And by the look in your eye, you haven't. It's clear you've never felt the sting of failing to save somepony you care about like I have." Flash flinched at this, knowing he was right. The closest thing to that was...he reached up and scratched the scar on his chest. "Though I hope you never have to feel the pain I felt when that happened, maybe it would make you realize why something like this must be done. You may state that one bad deed doesn't make somepony a villain, but if that deed is bad enough, then it's clear that pony can not be persuaded otherwise."

Starlight shook her head at this, "I know from experience that's not always true." She turned to Twilight. "When the map called you six to my village, it was for a friendship problem. Are you sure this is different?"

Twilight slowly opened her mouth, "I-"

"Stygian wants to destroy all that is good in this world!" Starswirl interrupted, "There's no way to befriend a pony like that!" With that, he trotted out of the room and slammed the door shut. When he did, Starlight turned to Twilight.

"I guess I'm lucky your idol wasn't around when you decided to be my friend. I might've been banished to limbo, too." That statement clearly caused Twilight grimace, only for Starlight to run out of the room and slam another door shut. Sunburst, feeling the tension in the air, quickly left while Flash watched Twilight sit down in a chair with a huge frown on her face.

"I don't know what to do Flash. I want to believe Starlight is right, but how can I go against Starswirl?"

Flash sighed as he moved over to sit across from her. "I've already made my feelings for him known. But you need to decide what you think is right. And if that means going against what Swirly Mcbeard-face thinks, then so be it."

Twilight laughed at the name, only to let out another long sigh, "But what if I make the wrong decision?"

"How is that any different from what we've done before? We've made plenty of mistakes. If its wrong, we'll fix it. But I know you'll make the right one and do you know why?" The alicorn shook her head, "Because you're Twilight frigging Sparkle." Twilight smiled at that before hugging the defender.

"Thanks Flash."

"No prob."

With that, the pair headed out of the library and went downstairs. Twilight had yet to make a decision, but Flash knew she would figure it out eventually. The others were also down in the hall, the Defenders now absent, and ready to head out. "Alright," Twilight announced, "Let's go get the elements and save Equestria!"

"YEAH!" The others excalimed as Heart punched his hoof into his other one. "Let's kick some Shadow Pony butt!"

"Not you Heart," Flash added, "Too dangerous. And since your fire won't hurt him, you'll be staying here."

"What? But...but what about the Trial?! You're gonna need all the help you can get to beat that thing."

"And he'll have it!" They all turned to a new voice before seeing the entire Royal Knight squad. Alongside Grand and Iron, there was also Ruby Scarlet, Heather Bloom, First Aid, Tidal Wave, Skybreaker and Cold Steel. Springer and Lightning stood with them, the ten ready to help in this battle for Equestria's survival.

Flash smirked at them all, "You all ready to save the world?"

"Nope," Heather giggled.

"That's your job," Cold deadpanned.

"We're just gonna be keeping that annoying Trial creature out of your way, amigo." Flash nodded back before turning to the others, the group nodding before the adults headed out of the castle, leaving Heart, Soul, Mira and Ace behind.

They made their way through the forest and eventually reached the castle of the two sisters, Starswirl explaining that it was once their castle and that they had planted the seed in a cavern located below it. And sure enough, that was where they found the legendary Tree of Harmony. "So this is the Tree of Harmony," Cold commented as they all looked up at the crystal arbor. Ruby and Heather had stars in their eyes at the sight of the tree, which made sense since it was a fusion of their natural elements.

"I am glad we have the chance to see what has grown from our efforts so long ago," Somnambula smiled while Mistmane shook her head.

"It seems a shame to harm it."

"A necessary sacrifice," Starswirl added, "With the Elements' power, we will bind the Pony of Shadows in limbo. And thanks to Twilight, we will remain to watch over the realm ourselves." Twilight smiled at the compliment, only for Starswirl to fire a beam of light at the tree.

But before the magic could strike it, the Element of Courage glowed and unleashed a beam that struck Starswirl's and cancelled it out. Starswirl spun around at this, soon glaring at Flash, "Don't look at me," Flash shrugged, "I didn't make it do that."

"The Element of Courage acts as the guardian of the other Elements," Twilight chimed in, "It must be trying to protect the Elements because it knows we intend to sacrifice them."

"A rock can do that?" Lightning asked.

"The Elements are more than just magically charged crystals," Grand added, "They and the Tree of Harmony are living beings. What would you do if you discovered somepony intended to sacrifice you and your friends, especially if it's for something you're against doing?"

"So what do we do now?" Rainbow asked, "If the Elements don't want us to sacrifice them..."

"The Element of Courage is the perpetrator," Starswirl growled as he pointed at Flash, "You said you were the one that created that Element?" Flash nodded. "Then it can only be a few years old. It won't have stored as much power as the others. We'll simply destroy it and take the more powerful Elements."

"Hey!" Flash yelped, "Don't destroy my Element!"

"I don't think that'll work Starswirl," Twilight added, "Flash used the other Element's power along with his own to form it. The Element of Courage holds just as much power as the others. And even if it was weaker, it's still part of the Elements' link. Removing it would make it impossible to use the other Elements."

"Then how do you suppose we get it to cooperate?" He asked as Flash sighed.

"Give me a second." He flew up towards the tree, the Element putting up a barrier around it. "Hey bud. Sorry about the grumpy guy. He really needs to see a doctor about that stick up his rear." Starswirl frowned at that. "Look, I know you're scared about what's gonna happen, but we need your help. If we don't do this, Equestria might be doomed." He reached out and placed his hoof on the barrier, "I know you don't want to put the kingdom in danger. And I promise, Twilight's gonna find a way to fix things without sacrificing you. Just watch. At the last second, she's gonna pull a miracle out of her hat. I mean, come on. It's Twilight."

A few seconds after he said that, the Element of Courage stopped glowing and the force-field vanished. The Element then flew out of its pedestal, allowing the Element of Magic to be revealed before it and the other Elements flew off towards their owners. One by one, they reached the ponies and formed the necklaces to hold them. Flash and Twilight both gained their headgear, the Elements located on the front of the helmet and crown.

The Knights and Pillars were all amazed by the sight, Rockhoof leaning in, "Um...how do we use them?"

"Well, you..." Rarity tried to explain, only to shrug, "Oh, I'm not sure. They just simply work for us."

"The Elements are attuned to you," Starswirl added, "We must use their magic in pairs while Flash Sentry's Element gives them the final boost." He turned to the pegasus. "Though I do find it strange that you were so chummy with the Element, only to lie to it about finding another way to vanquish the Pony of Shadows without losing them."

"I wasn't lying," Flash replied, "Like I told it, I'm confident Twilight's gonna find a way to save the day without sacrificing anything."

"Well I just hope you're willing to live with breaking that promise when it is confirmed that sacrificing them is the only way." He turned to the others, "We must make haste! We will use your Rune Gate to transport ourselves to the Shady Hollows."

"No problem," Rainbow chimed in, "We're used to banishing evil before breakfast." She and Flash Magnus hoof-bumped, as Applejack chuckled.

"And it'll be an honor to save Equestria with y'all." They all nodded and began to make their way, Starlight and Spike at the back of the pack.

"I really hope Twilight knows what she's doing," the unicorn gulped as they followed them.

Once they were back at the castle, Twilight activated the Rune Gate and sent a locator rune to the area. She gave everypony one final look back before they all nodded and headed inside. In a flash of light, the army of ponies appeared in the area. They looked around and frowned when they saw the way the place looked. It was covered in large jagged rocks that stuck out of the ground and pointed up at an angle to cast a large shadow over the environment. For some reason, the sky above the area was a strange purple color and the sun's light barely managed to break through the dark clouds. And at the bottom of the valley, surrounded by large jagged rocks that hid it in shade, was a small abandoned village.

"I don't remember reading anything that said the Hollow Shades was like this," Sunburst commented as they began to make their way down to the village.

"Ohhh," Mistmane shivered as they got closer, "The Pony of Shadows must have twisted it to his purposes."

"Everypony be on guard," Flash told the knights. "Remember, he's not the only pony we have to deal with." The Pillars noticed the uneasy looks on many of the ponies faces, the six clearly still not understanding the danger they were in. But then, Springer's ears twitched.

"Over there!" He yelled as he pointed to one of the nearby rocks. The others turned, only to flinch as a figure walked out from behind the rock.

Cold charged in at this, slamming his hooves into the ground and unleashing a blast of cold. But before the ice could reach, the figure fired its own ice blast that struck Cold's, causing both to shatter. "What?!"

This got the Pillars 'attention as the figure stepped out to reveal their true form. "Good gravy!" Meadowbrook cried at the sight of the cyborg pony, Starswirl now seeing what the others had been worrying about.

"It's...it's an abomination."

"It's Trial-C," Flash sighed, "Figures he's the final one." The cyborg turned to him as its eyes narrowed, the unicorn's hooves unleashing a frost that caused the ground beneath it to freeze before it lifted its tail. A blast of cold air exploded out of the hose and pushed the cyborg forward, its hooves continuing to freeze the ground and form an ice lane under it.

"Scatter!" Grand ordered as they all leapt or teleported away, Trial-C shooting past them before sliding to a stop and spinning on its ice. A moment later, its icicle horn fired multiple blasts that struck the ground, causing spikes of ice to shoot out of the frozen dirt.

"Wow!" Rainbow yelped, almost getting speared by a spike. "Maybe we should have brought Heart."

"We won't need him." Cold growled, "I will destroy this imposter."

"He's right. This is why we're here," Ruby added, "You deal with the Pony of Shadows and leave this copycat to us."

"Flash?" Twilight asked, her boyfriend turning to her.

"It's me it wants," he took off his helmet and threw it to Iron. "Go with them and take him down." He nodded and put the helmet back on before he, the Pillars, and the rest of the Mane Seven ran off. Flash then turned back to Trial-C and held up his sword. "You want me...come and get me!" He quickly ran dashed back up the hill, the other Royal Knights following after him.

Trial-C stared at his retreating form, its ice-like horn glowing and created a cloud of freezing mist. Then, the mist solidified into several ice arrows that it sent flying. "Watch out!" Skybreaker cried as he, Tidal and Springer deflected the attacks.

Flash turned back to Trial-C. "That all you got? I thought you were serious about taking me down! Guess your creator's lost interest after I beat the last five freaks he sent!" Though the Trial's face remained stoic, the ponies couldn't help feeling like they had struck a nerve.

The cyborg's tail unleashed a blast of cold air that rocketed it towards them. The knights sped up and reached the top of the hill, Ruby slamming her hoof into the ground at the same time Grand struck it with his hammer. A large slab of rock with a crystal wall behind it shot up between them and the Trial. Cold's clone slammed into it and completely shattered both materials, barely slowing it down as Heather threw her chain weapon. It wrapped around the clone's leg, the knight pulling it down, smashing the cyborg into the ground as they circled around it.

Springer, Lightning, Flash, Grand, Heather, Ruby, First, Tidal, Skybreaker and Cold glared at it before each of them took something out. They were knives with runes etched into the metalwork. Before Trial-C could pick itself up, they stabbed them into the ground before jumping in front of them. The runes on the blades began to glow and unleashed a bright light that connected to each other before flying up and forming a large dome around the eleven. The Trial stared at the dome, realizing it was complete trapped. "Now you're stuck," Flash chuckled as he trotted up to him, "Meaning the others can deal with your new friend without issue."

The clone turned to glare at him before his horn unleashed a burst of cold air that formed into an arrow. It was pointed straight at Flash's wing, preparing to rip right through him. And as it struck it, he cried out before it went through and struck the barrier. "GYAH!" Flash cried, his friends gasping as the ice arrow shattered against the energy field. He continued to cry out in agony as he fell to his knees, clutching his damaged wing.

His friends were looking horrified as Trial-C moved up to him, relishing the sounds of Flash's screams. But as it got closer, those screams...turned to laughter. "Gotcha!" Before Trial-C could react, Flash grabbed his sword and pointed it at him. "Iron Fury!" A tornado metal filled wind shot out of it, hitting the drone as it created a half shield of ice, blocking only some of the attack.

It began to skid back as Ruby and Cold both leapt at it, forming swords from their elements. Both tried to slash it, but Trial-C leapt up using a blast of cold air from its hooves as rockets. "Now!" Springer yelled, making it down to see the jakhowl, Grand, Lightning, Heather, Tidal and Skybreaker fire their force attacks as the cyborg. The six blasts came for the clone, but Trial-C formed a sphere of ice around itself as they struck. The ice shattered, but the attacks were deflected as Trial-C then fired off several ice shards that forced all its opponents to leap back.

This allowed the drone to land and turn its attention back on Flash, its robotic brain burning as it stared at Flash. That is, till the defender held out his wing. The limb Trial-C had shot was completely undamaged despite the ice arrow definitely going through it. Flash then held up his sword and showed off a strange looking gem attached to it, one that had never been on the weapon before.

And when Flash flicked the gem off, his entire body began to shimmer and change. It became more bulky, the wings vanishing as his coat turned gunmetal gray and his mane turned black. His weapon morphed into a spear, reveal his opponent's true identity: Iron Core.

"Surprise!" Iron laughed. "I do a pretty good impression of that feather-brain, don't I? Good enough to fool you anyway."

Springer chuckled as he formed and Aura Blast in his paw, "Now Flash can go a deal with your new partner without needing to deal with you." He threw the sphere, Trial-C cutting it in half with an ice sword as its opponents all got into a battle ready stance. "If you wanna get to him, you'll have to go through us."

"YEAH!" The ponies cheered before charging.

---

The group had now got to the village, Iron lifting his spear and removing the gem that had secretly been placed on it. When he did this, his body shimmered and shrank while a pair of wings appeared on his side. Within seconds, Flash Sentry was standing in the Metal Guardian's place. "Glad that worked." He took out a piece of paper with some runes on it, "Good thing you were able to find a way to dim the power of my Sacred Light."

"Well, since these things seem able to track you down no matter where you are, it was obvious they were able to trace your Sacred Light over a long distance." Twilight replied before seeing some light shining over the hill, "The barrier's up. The Trial's been contained."

"Meaning we can focus on dah Pony of Shadows," Applejack added as they continued through the town and up to a well in at the center of the town.

"Prepare yourselves," Starswirl barked, "He is here!" They all got on guard as the magician called out, "Stygian! Show yourself and face us!"

Nothing happened for a moment, but then the sound of laughter filled the air. They turned to that sound and the ground around them began to shake before a large crack appeared behind Somnambula. The crack spread around the entire town, trapping them all as the opposite ground seemed to pull away.

The shaking grew stronger and stronger...only to stop. "Huh?" Flash turned to the others, "Well that wasn't so BAAAAAAAAAAAAAD!" The others cried too as the area they were standing on suddenly fell out from under them, causing them to all fall. Luckily, the drop was only a few feet, letting them crash rather quickly.

They all landed in a heap inside what appeared to be an ancient temple, Sunburst moaning as he picked himself up and adjusted his glasses, "I definitely would've remembered reading about this."

Flash pushed himself up to his hooves, then suddenly felt a wave of weakness wash over him. "Augh!" He moaned as he fell over.

"Flash!" Twilight yelped, "What's wrong?!"

"I don't know..." Flash muttered, "Suddenly I feel like...like I'm ten times heavier." He glanced around, "Something about this place is draining me."

As he said that, the maniacal laughter from before filled the air, the Pony of Shadows exclaiming, "I guess I didn't need that useless creation after all. Just being in this place has rendered your greatest weapon to nothing." As this was going on, shadows began to appear all around them and Starswirl put up a barrier. The shadows began to form the shape of the pony in question, "Welcome to the Well of Shade! When you turned your backs on me, I discovered this place. The darkness spoke to me of a power beyond any I could imagine, and I listened."

Twilight gasped at this, now seeing Flash's weakened state and the damage his light did to the Pony of Shadows. "Corrupted Shadow...you found Corrupted Shadow! This must be a temple to that magic," she turned to Flash. "Just like the temple you were born in."

The others all went wide-eyed at this as the Pony of Shadows laughed, "So that's it's name. I never did figure out that. But either way, the shadow and I became one." He started circling around them, "Soon, all of the realm will be the same. Then all ponies will feel the despair I did when you cast me out!"

"We did what we had to do!" Starswirl yelled, "You tried to steal our powers for yourself!"

"No!" He cried, moving over to Starswirl. "It was you who were selfish!" He stepped back and stood tall. "And now, you will pay!" With that, he fired a blast of dark magic from his horn and struck the sphere. The magic cracked as Starlight turned to Twilight.

"Are you still sure this isn't a friendship problem?"

"Ready? Open the portal..." The Pony of Shadows fired another blast and shattered his barrier. "...Now!"

With that, almost all of the Element Bearers grabbed the relic of their Pillar ancestors and the magic of them began to grow as they floated into the air. Flash, the only member who didn't have a pillar, simply dug deep and unleashed the power within himself. The only one who didn't activate their elements was Twilight, who watched as six of the seven elements unleashed the energy and combined into a rainbow. Starswirl and Sunburst fired their magic too, the group striking a spot behind the Pony of Shadows and a portal appeared behind him.

The monster turned to the portal and gasped as it began to unleashing a pulling force that sucked him in. He tried to fight, but then they fired another blast that slammed into his chest, pushing him into the portal. "No!" He grabbed the sides and continued to fight, "You will not trap me again!"

Starswirl turned to the alicorn. "Twilight! Push him in!" Twilight summoned the power of her element...only to let out a gasp.

"Huh?" Her eyes stared at the creature, now seeing another pony that was trying to pull their head out of the murky chest of the Pony of Shadows. "There's...a pony in there?"

And before anypony could stop her, she opened her wings and took to the air. "Twilight!" Flash yelled as she flew up and then dived into the shadow monster, "NO!" The others gasped and Flash wanted to dive in after her, but the magic of his element locked him in place. "Twilight...please be careful."

---

"Ruby Shot!" The Crystal Knight fired several arrows, but the cyborg shifted its body, dodging each with ease. "GYAH!" She cried as the clone unleashed a blast of cold air at her.

"Sky Cutter!" Skybreaker slashed with his axe, sending a blade of wind, but Trial-C easily back-flipped away. And as it landed, its hooves unleashed a burst of ice that shot out in all directions and created a bunch of spikes.

"Look out!" Lightning yelled as they all leapt away to avoid the spikes, which went straight up the barrier and turned the battlefield into an icy wasteland.

Springer and Cold didn't seem bothered by this, both leaping from one ice spike to another as they got closer and closer to the cyborg. "Steel Paw!" Springer yelled as his paw spikes turned to metal claws while Cold formed another pair of blades.

Trial-C formed its own blades and as it leapt up and over a slashing Springer, it crossed its swords to block Cold's blades before kicking him in the chest, knocking him back. As this happened, First was busy healing Ruby's freezer burn. "This thing is strong."

"And somehow it's able to avoid everything we throw at it," Ruby moaned as Heather threw her chain mace at it. Trial-C looked up and barely avoided it, the mace slamming into the ground as Heather pulled back and the retraction dragged her forward. In a flash, she slammed her hoof into Trial-C's chest, knocking it back.

"Not all our moves," First commented as the clone skidded along the ground right as Lightning and Iron leapt above it. Lightning fired a bolt of lightning next, but Trial-C spun on its back like a break dancer to avoid it before creating a shield to block Iron's slash. As it did this, Tidal jumped off a spike and hit the ground with his trident. A wave of water exploded out of it and hit Trial-C with ease.

The machine cried out as it was washed toward the barrier, Cold teleporting between them with a sword ready. Grand leapt beside him and prepared to do the same. But before they could strike, the Frozen Wanderer's clone suddenly unleashed a wave of cold that froze the wave with it inside. But before anypony could ask what happened, the ice exploded and shot out in all directions. They all had to duck and cover to avoid the shards as Trial-C stood up before leaping at Skybreaker and slashing at him, smacking the pegasus away. And as it did this, Tidal fired several blasts of water, the Trial feeling the liquid push him back.

'It was able to avoid so many of our attacks, yet Tidal and Heather seem to have it at a complete loss.' First thought, only to see Springer miss another attack, "That has to be it!" He turned to Ruby, "You battled one of these creatures, right?"

"Yes." Ruby nodded as Trial-C dodged Skybreaker's attack and blasted him back with an ice blast. "It was a clone of me."

"Augh!" Skybreaker slammed into the ground in front of them, First quickly beginning to heal him.

"And Springer, Lightning, Iron and Grand have all battled many of these creatures." Ruby nodded as Skybreaker pushed himself back up right as Grand tried to slam Trial-C in the head. "That has to be it." Trial-C leapt back and fired several icicles at Grand, pushing the old knight back. "These things are partly computers, which means they can record things. That must include fighting styles." Ruby and Skybreaker's eyes went wide hearing this. "It is able to fight back so well because it knows how we fight."

Heather threw her chain at Trial-C, but it leapt back to avoid it again before she pulled herself forward. But as she did this, Trial-C managed to grab her hoof before spinning Heather around. "Gyah!" She yelped before being flung away.

"And it's learning," Ruby gulped.

"But I've never fought one of these!" Skybreaker groaned as Grand leapt back to avoid another icicle blast. "How does it know my techniques if I've never faced one?!"

Grand heard this and sighed, "Flash based much of his base fighting style on you," he told his fellow elder knight. "It must have figured that out and realized it could counter you just like him." He watched as Cold created an ice dragon and sent it toward his clone, but Trial-C did the same and the two collided into destruction. "And since this thing has the same powers as Cold, it would know how to counter him."

"Great," Skybreaker pushed himself back to his hooves. "How are we supposed to fight something like this if it knows all our moves?" Tidal slashed at Trial-C, but the clone then grabbed his trident before freezing it. Tidal cried out, forced to release the weapon and allow Trial-C to throw it away.

Grand stared at the monster, a bulb going off in his head, "That's it!" He turned to the jakhowl as he leapt away from an ice tiger that tried to pounce on him before blasting it with his Aura Blast. "Springer, connect our minds!" Springer nodded and quickly linked them, "Everypony, there's only one way we can beat this thing. By working together."

"But aren't we already doing that?" Cold asked.

"Not exactly." Grand replied before explaining his plan.

---

When Twilight opened her eyes, all she saw was darkness. She illuminated her horn at this, only to now see the pony she had seen curled up. He was a scrawny looking gray unicorn with a blue mane and tail and a brown cloak, who looked more depressed than anypony Twilight had even met before.

"Are you...Stygian?"

He nodded back. "I was, once. Until my friends betrayed me."

"But Starswirl says you betrayed them," Twilight replied, "You wanted their magic-"

"No!" He interrupted, "I wanted their respect! I brought them together. I planned strategy, and I read all I could about the beasts we faced. But I didn't have magic or strength, so nopony ever noticed me." He looked away, almost in shame, unaware that everything he was saying could be heard by those outside. "I went to Ponhenge to make my own copies of the artifacts. With them, I thought I could be a Pillar, too, and stand by their side in battle."

The Pillar's eyes went wide at this as they turned to one another, only for Stygian to add, "I never wanted to steal their power." Starswirl's eyes went wide as dinner plates at this.

"You all really needed to work on your communication skills," Flash told them all.

Back inside, Stygian began to sound bitter, "But instead of sharing and letting me help, my friends threw me out." He turned to glare at Twilight, his body beginning to flicker with darkness. As he spoke, his voice deepened, "So I became stronger than any of them! The darkness welcomed me when no pony would, and I will do what I must to protect it!" As he declared this, his eyes turned white, his body now almost completely cloaked in the shadows.

"Wait! This is all a misunderstanding!" Twilight yelped, "If the Pillars knew how you felt, I'm sure they wouldn't have turned their backs on you. The shadow isn't who you really are." She reached out to place a hoof on his shoulder, "Let me help you be Stygian again."

"Even if my friends did still care, what makes you think you have the power to help me?!"

"Because it's what she does." They both looked up and saw Starlight, surrounded it a bubble of magic, floating down to them through the darkness. "I wasn't so different from you, and Twilight helped me change." The light bubble popped as she trotted up to them, "If there's one pony in Equestria that can save a friendship, it's her."

Twilight smiled at this, Stygian glancing between the two as his eyes turned back to normal. "I...I want to believe you..." But then, he flinched in pain as his eyes went white again. "But the darkness will not be stopped!" He let out a howl, a pair of shadow wings appearing from his back that sent out a shock wave and slammed both mares away.

But as this happened, Twilight quickly fired a rope of magic that wrapped around Stygian's leg, the alicorn flying to the exit with Starlight. As this happened, Stygian was pulled along and the mares flew out of the darkness, the Pony of Shadows crying out in pain as they did. Twilight skid along the ground, her magical rope still inside its neck. She pulled, but she couldn't get the unicorn out of his own creation. "Fight the darkness, Stygian! You don't need it anymore!" Stygian began to get pulled out of the shadows at this, "Revenge isn't what you want! Friendship is!"

But as Stygian's front half was freed, shadowy tentacles reached out and wrapped around him. It pulled the unicorn inside and Twilight was pulled toward the monster with him. "Twilight!" Starlight gasped, firing a magical rope that wrapped around Stygian's other hoof.

They soon began a tug of war, the winner getting Stygian's soul. And as they did this, Twilight turned to Starswirl. "The shadow won't let go of him! He wants to stop, but he can't do it alone." Starswirl stared up at his former friend, seeing the fear that was in his eyes.

"Then we must help him!" Starswirl launched a spell at the Pony of Shadows along with Sunburst, while the others re-channeled the magic of their elements and relics. They each unleashed a beam that stabbed into the darkness and grabbed Stygian, burning away the shadows that held him.

"One last boost to really make sure this thing doesn't come back!" Flash roared as his body was consumed with light. His Shining Guardian, minus his helmet, formed on his body and he fired a blast of Sacred Light from each of the gems on his armor. They struck the Pony of Shadows, causing it to scream as it burned away the darkness. And as this happened, Stygian was yanked out, pushing the Pony of Shadows right back into the limbo portal. And as the Sacred Light continued to blast him, he felt his body break apart piece by piece.

"No!" He cried as he began to dissolve, the light burning him away. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Those were his last words before his form completely shattered and the portal closed, the vortex unleashing a rainbow explosion of light that shot out in all directions and was funneled through the hole in the ceiling. It shot straight up into the clouds, blasting them away and allowing the light of the moon to shine down upon the abandoned village. And as it did this, Twilight and everypony else began to fly or pull themselves up out of the hole. Twilight grunted as she did so, sighing when she reached the top along with everypony.

"YEAH!" She heard Rainbow cheer as she, Flash and Magnus lifted Rockhoof out of the pit and placed him down. "Oh, it felt sooooo good to do that again!"

"Friendship power rush!" Pinkie exclaimed before leaping a good twenty feet in one direction, landing in a bush. "Whoo!"

The others smiled as Rarity looked down at her necklace. "The Elements! They didn't disappear!"

Fluttershy nodded at this, "Maybe because we used them for healing magic instead of banishing?"

The others nodded at this, only for Applejack to point back at the pit. "Look!" They turned to see Starswirl pull Stygian out of the hole.

"Long ago, you needed our help Stygian. But instead of listening, we turned our backs on you." The wizard let out a long sigh, "Pride clouded my judgement. I owe you an apology." He turned to Twilight, "Thank you for helping us see the errors of our ways, Twilight. It seems I never accounted for the Magic of Friendship."

Twilight's heart felt like it was ready to burst. "Thank you, Swirlstar! Uh, Starswirl!" She blushed for a moment, then they all heard the sound of their cutie marks shimmering.

"Bean pot!" Flash cheered as Starlight stepped over to Starswirl.

"Soooo...apparently a conversation can save Equestria?"

This caused Starswirl to chuckle, as he turned to the others. "Something tells me I will be making a lot of apologies today." They all laughed at this, only for an explosion to ring out, making the earth tremble.

"Damn it!" Flash pulled his helmet off and gave it to Starlight, "I gotta get over there and help everypony!" His Shining Guardian armor faded as he took to the air, the rest exchanging glances before running after him.

---

"Everypony understand?" Grand asked the others mentally, the group nodding as Cold turned to him.

"You sure this is gonna work?"

"Yeah," Grand held up his Celestic Gear, "Let's show this thing why Flash isn't the only Royal Knight you need to worry about."

"YEAH!" They all exclaimed as Trial-C made a pair of ice swords to appear. He swung them at Springer, the jakhowl leaping away as he formed an Aura Blast before throwing it at the clone. Trial-C was about to evade, but then the attack went wide and circled around it.

It probably would have laughed if it could, only for Heather to swing her chain mace and strike the Aura Blast, knocking it back into the clone's head. The cyborg staggered forward at this as Iron and Lightning jumped in front of it. Iron stabbed his spear into the ground and created a line of spikes that shattered the icy ground, only for them to circle around it and form a ring of metal spikes. Lightning then slammed his hooves into the spikes, sending a bolt of electricity surging through. The pair smirked as the electricity lit up the metal ring, zapping the clone.

"Couldn't keep up with that move, could yah?" Lightning asked as the Trial began to stumble at this.

"That's because it's a move we never used before," Iron laughed.

The other knight began to charge at this, only for the Trial to unleash a bunch of cold air. "It's gonna make another ice wave!" Cold yelled.

"Not this time!" Ruby slammed her hooves into the ground and like Iron, unleashed a line of spikes that reached the Trial and circled around it seconds before it unleashed the ice attack. But when the ice spikes struck the crystal ones, they shattered upon impact. "When it comes to durability, crystals have ice beat hooves down!"

"Now is my time to lend a hoof," First told them as he raised his crossbow. "Aid Force!" The weapon unleashed a burst of energy that struck everypony and healed their minor wounds while also increasing their energy. "Take him down!"

"GLADLY!" The others exclaimed as the Trial propelled itself upward, Tidal pointing his trident at the creature. "Tidal Shot!" As the water blasts shot out the trident, Cold leapt behind him.

"Cold Force!" His horn unleashed a tornado of cold air that struck the water, accelerating it as the liquid was also frozen over before striking the clone. And as this happened, Heather swung her mace at it and wrapped the chain around its leg. She pulled it around and yanked it toward Springer, who formed a Bone Breaker and swung it like a baseball bat. He aimed for its chest and managed to give it a serious dent as it was knocked back, hitting the ground and sliding along the ice.

"It's down!" Ruby yelled as Grand leapt next to her.

"Don't give it a second to recover!" Ruby nodded as she fired a volley of crystal arrows. "Grand Force!" Grand fired a rock laced tornado that struck the arrows, making them spin like drills. Trial-C pushed itself up as the tornado got in close, the arrows slashing into it before the rocks did the same. And as it was thrown back, Iron and Skybreaker charged in, Iron's spear now summoning some metal that turned into a buzzsaw blade. Skybreaker then fired a powerful blast of wind, causing the saw to spin around at incredible speed. The cyborg saw it coming and raised its hoof to blast it away, only for Heather's chain mace to wrap around the hoof and pull it away seconds before the saw struck its chest, cutting into it.

Springer and Cold ran up next, both nodding as they mentally made a plan. And as the cyborg managed to pull its hoof free and knock the saw away, Springer formed an Aura Blast as Cold slammed his hoof into the ground. Springer let the sphere go as an ice dragon shot out of the ground and swallowed it, the serpent ascending into the air before curving toward Trial-C. The clone stared at it and used its ice to make its own dragon, only for the first ice dragon to open its mouth and unleash a blast of cold air that made the Aura Blast explode out and strike the second dragon. It exploded, crumbling the beast to flurries as the first dragon then slammed into Trial-C.

The force of the impact knocked it flying, the clone just now trying to move. But before it could, Grand leapt up and swung his hammer into its chest. The beast would have probably screamed if it could as the damage to its metal chest was increased by the impact that slammed it into the ground.

As this happened, Iron charged in, "Armorize!" He was consumed by light and morphed into his armored form, quickly dealing several armored punches and kicks to its body. He then spun around slashed at its chest with his tail, ripping the dented metal off the monster before bucking it away. It then landed into an area surrounded by Lightning's daggers. And as this happened, the unicorn began warping around it several times while slashing at it with energy charged blades. Several cuts appeared around its body, only for the clone to propel itself away from the daggers with its tail.

"Mega Mode Power!" Trial-C looked up and saw Springer leap up as his body was consumed by light. When it faded, the jakhowl was in his mega form and holding up a paw to form a giant sphere of aura. First used his magic to boost Springer's power, allowing the Aura Blast to triple in size. Skybreaker then unleashed a burst of wind that swirled around the attack, forming something Trial-C had never seen before.

"This ends here and now!" Springer yelled as he pulled the attack back before throwing it, "Aura-Shuriken!" The attack spun into Trial-C, which tried to escape, but found its hooves stuck to the ground. It looked down and found that each of its hooves was concealed in a different element. Ice, crystals, rock and metal. These four locks kept it in place, making it try to form an ice shield, but the shuriken struck before it was fully formed, shattering the ice before it slammed into its chest. Everyone watched as the attack sliced into him before exploding, the force ripping it out of its confines. And as it smashed into the ground, its chest exploded with smoke flying out.

The knights stared down at their opponent as the beast clutched its chest, as if trying to undo the damage that had been done. The metal doors that had once been there was completely destroyed, allowing its inner body to be revealed. The energy source that had once powered its strength was gone, destroyed by the onslaught of attacks. The clone looked up at all ten of its opponents as each of them glared down at it. "I don't know who sent you," Grand said, "But if they're listening, I have a message for them." He pointed his hammer at Trial-C, "We will not allow you to do anything that endangers anypony in Equestria. If you want Flash's power, come and get it yourself so we can finally take you down." The others nodded as the Trial's body began to spark and twitch.

And so, Springer, Grand, Iron, Lightning, Ruby, Cold, Tidal, Heather, First and Skybreaker prepared to end this. "Aid Force!" First hit them all with his magic and powered them up as they charged up their attacks.

"Aura-"

"Grand-"

"Iron-"

"Lightning-"

"Ruby-"

"Cold-"

"Tidal-"

"Bloom-"

"Sky-"

"-FORCE!" The nine attacks exploded into the Trial as it tried to protect itself with an ice shield. But the ice was nothing against the onslaught, striking the cyborg as it actually made a scream of agony while being pinned between it and the attacks.

This continued for several long minutes until the force proved too much. With one last scream of pain, the Trial exploded with enough force that it filled the entire barrier with smoke. As it did this, Flash and the others arrived over the hill just in time to see the dome of light begin to vanish.

"What's going on?" Stygian asked, but got his answer when ten figures began to step out of the dust. Springer led the Royal Knights as they marched, all filled with dust and bruises along with smirks on their faces.

Fluttershy and Rarity ran over to hug their boyfriends while the others began to congratulate the knights. "Way to go bud," Flash and Springer bumped hoof/paw while Twilight smiled at Grand. "Hope he didn't give you too much trouble."

"You kidding?" Springer asked, "Nothing we couldn't handle."

"Right..." Flash chuckled, "So you decided to go Mega Mode because you felt you hadn't pulled it out in a while?"

Springer rolled his eyes before reverting back to normal, "What about you all? Manage to defeat the Pony of Shadows?"

"Nope," Flash replied before pointing his wing behind him. "We saved him." They turned to see Stygian standing with the other Pillars, all smiling as they also noticed they still had their Elements. It was just like Flash had said. They had found a way to save Equestria and kept their Elements from being lost.

As they did this, Flash walked over to where Trial-C had been and noticed part of its mechanical body laying on the ground. It was one of its robotic eyes, which still seemed to be recording. He picked it up and pointed it at him. "I don't know what you want with me and my power, but you lost. We've beaten all your Trials and we're stronger than ever." As he said that, Twilight and the others stepped over as they were now in view of the eye. "So do yourself a favor and stay where you are. Leave us alone. Because the next time you try something...we'll be ready to take you down." That was the last thing he said before the light from the eyes died, the signal to its source lost. "I hope you got that message."

---

Signal lost.

Void stared at the screen as it turned to static, his entire body shaking as his breathing began to accelerate, "RAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" He threw his hoof through the monitor, shattering it before grabbing and throwing it across the room. The monitor hit a table, only for Void to slam his hoof into it, splitting the monitor and table in half, "RAGH! WHY?! WHY DO I KEEP LOSING?!" He then grabbed half the table and threw it across the room. "CURSE YOU! CURSE YOU, YOU-AUGH!"

He clutched his chest, falling over as his breathing became irregular. He began to fiddle with the dials on his suit until he got it under control, Void now just laying in the floor, panting as he gasped for air.

That is, till a beeping sound rang out. He pushed himself back to his hooves and pressed the button, "What?!"

"You have been summoned."

Void let out a low hiss before staggering to the door, which led up a flight of stairs. When he reached the top, he was in the remains of a rundown old castle. The castle had several holes in the walls and cracks in the ceiling, showing its age. He marched through the dilapidated halls until he came across a set of rotting double doors, pushing them open into a dark room, where two lines of large bulky ape-like creatures in black armor could be seen.

The pony walked inside, growling as he walked up to the back of the room, where a large stone throne was waiting with something sitting in it. "So," the shadowy figure stated, "Your final creation went the way of the dodo, just like all the others."

Void let out a long groan, "True, which means we'll have to go to the more extreme route."

"I only allowed the creation of your little monstrosities because you told me my plans would fail unless the wielder of the Sacred Light was taken out of action. You said you could kill him, but all you've done is waste time."

"There were just too many factors to take into account," Void replied, "I believed Sentry was the only obstacle we had to worry about, but the rest of those Royal Knights have proven just as annoying. But there's no need to worry about them thanks to the relic you brought me." He glanced away at this, "We can take them out of the equation before dealing with the rest of the meddlers."

"Strange. I seem to recall you telling me something similar when I allowed your little project to begin. Why should I believe you now?"

Void turned to glare back at him, "Because even if you're able to find the other relic you're looking for, you'll be dead by the knight's hooves before you can use it on one of your targets. My way, you at least have a chance."

The figure stared at him for a moment, but eventually nodded. "Very well." As he spoke, two figures stepped out of the darkness. One was a purple unicorn mare with a broken horn, scar over her right eye and black armor. The other was a porcupine-like creature in similar armor. "I will allow you to continue with your work, but Tempest and Grubber will be keeping a much closer eye on you."

"Yes, my king," the three responded. As they said this, a blast of lightning exploded out of the castle. This illuminated the room, allowing them to see the creature in the throne was a tall white ape-like creature with goat legs and horns coming out of his head.

"Do not fail me." The three left the room and as they shut the door, the two new figures turned to Void.

"I hope you know what you're doing," Tempest growled, "You do not wish to suffer the king's wrath."

Void laughed as he turned to her. "Relax. I know what I'm doing. And unlike you, I can actually show results. Maybe he'd be better simply sending me to lead the assault instead of you." He cackled as he began to walk away, Tempest glaring at him as sparks began to explode out of her horn. She let out a roar as she fired a blast from the damaged horn, which shot at Void like a firework.

The creature named Grubber gasped at this, but then Void spun around and held up his hoof. The electricity struck it and instead of hurting him, it was absorbed into the suit and flew up his leg, chest and neck before arriving at his head. There, it vanished into his forehead. Tempest and Grubber's eyes both went wide at this, only for Void to pull his hoof back as the light shot back out of his head and travelled back down to his hoof. "Don't do that again." With that, he thrust his hoof forward, the electricity exploding outward and striking Tempest.

"Gyah!" She cried as she shot back, slamming into a wall. Grubber quickly ran over to her, the mare moaning as lightning continued to spark around her while Void turned to leave.

---

Back inside the throne room, the creature calling himself king sat in his throne, trying to look broody. But no matter what he tried, the idea of what they would soon do couldn't stop him from smirking. "I can't wait. Soon all the power of the world will be at my command."

As he said this, another figure in the room just stared at him. It was a pony-shaped being that was dressed head to hoof in bulky armor along with a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness. He turned to king and despite his face not being visible, one would only need to look at him to realize he was frowning. "Fool."

---

With their battles over, the large group of ponies had travelled to Canterlot in order to inform the princess of what had transpired. "I simply cannot believe how tall you've gotten!" Starswirl told Celestia as the alicorn giggled.

"Well, it has been over a thousand years. Will you stay here and teach magic once again?" She turned to Luna, "My sister and I have such fond memories of your lessons."

The pair hugged at this as Luna added, "As long as you don't ask for those essays we owed you before you disappeared."

"I would love to say yes, but I'm not certain Canterlot is where I belong," he replied, "The realm has grown, and I believe I'll have a look around before I settle in any one place."

"And I long to see what has become of my home," Meadowbrook added.

"I believe we all do," Mistmane agreed as the other Pillars nodded.

Celestia smiled and nodded back, "Then I hope you will return to Canterlot on occasion and share the wisdom of your great experience with the next generation of ponies."

"We would be honored," Starswirl bowed, "But if it is wisdom you seek, look no further than your own pupil." He gestured to Twilight, who blushed at this. What he said next made the mare tear up. "She showed me that the power of friendship is a magical force indeed." The Pillars gathered around one another. "And that in turning away from others, you hurt yourself as well." They all hugged, some of the others doing the same.

Twilight turned to Starlight. "It's funny. I thought meeting my idol would give me all the answers I ever wanted. But instead..." She frowned, "I forgot what I already knew." Starlight placed a reassuring hoof on her shoulder, Twilight smiling at her. "Good thing I had a student of my own to remind me."

The two mares hugged at this, showing that Equestria had once again been saved and was stronger than ever. But a great storm was forming on the horizon. Whether or not the kingdom could ride it was a question with many possible answers. Only time would tell whether or not the future of Equestria was a bright one. And what must be done to make it so.

The End.

Author's Note:

And thus, Season 7 comes to a close. I hope you enjoyed it just as much as I did. I once again give thanks to my editor, to the TVTropes page writer and to all of you who comment on the video, You guys keep this series alive.

Now, I know a lot of you are looking forward to what comes next. But you're still gonna have to wait a little while. I'll be taking next week off to prepare myself and relax and the week after that I have something else in mind to publish. But then we'll get to it, I promise. The movie is coming soon. Just be patient.

Comments

[mdwyer]

You go, Flash!

Starswirl is has NO right to treat Twilight like garbage!

[PrinceAxzzelle]

As he said this, another figure in the room just stared at him. It was a pony-shaped being that was dressed head to hoof in bulky armor along with a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness. He turned to king and despite his face not being visible, one would only need to look at him to realize he was frowning. "Fool."

So i don't want to spoil anything but that was evil Flash wasn't it???

[Ragnarok17]

A great way to end this season off! I like Flash and others calling Starswirl's bullshit and I like Royal Knights having their own moment! Especially destroying the last Trial on their own!

I have a feeling your take on the movie will be more intense than the canon!

Here's highlights

"No Twilight." Flash interrupted while pointing at Starswirl, "He has no right to talk to you that way. You're a million times better magic user than him."

ROASTED!!!! 🔥🔥🔥

"Wait..." Flash slowly said, "Did he actually say that? Did he actually say he wanted to steal your powers?" The Pillars turned to one another, then back to him before shaking their heads. "Don't you think it would have been smart to ask before jumping to a conclusion?"

Flash got a point.

"Ignorant," Mira suggested.

"Self-indulgent," Ace spoke up.

"Stupid," the two jakhowl stated together. The Pillars all turned to the two youngsters, but no response came.

OH!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥

And as Flash saw this, he let out a sigh, "So that's what this is about. This isn't just about Stygian. It's about Silverbolt and Fira." The stallion turned to him. "You lost them to a creature exactly like you were describing, and because of that, you developed a crippling fear of the same thing happening. So much so that you instantly jumped to the conclusion Stygian was doing something evil just because he didn't tell you what happened. Paranoid much?!"

He may be a dick but Starswirl still haven't got over their deaths and hopefully he would talk with Spike for next season.

"And he'll have it!" They all turned to a new voice before seeing the entire Royal Knight squad. Alongside Grand and Iron, there was also Ruby Scarlet, Heather Bloom, First Aid, Tidal Wave, Skybreaker and Cold Steel. Springer and Lightning stood with them, the ten ready to help in this battle for Equestria's survival.

Royal Knights…. Assemble

Twilight gasped at this, now seeing Flash's weakened state and the damage his light did to the Pony of Shadows. "Corrupted Shadow...you found Corrupted Shadow! This must be a temple to that magic," she turned to Flash. "Just like the temple you were born in."

You got to be kidding me! Of course his power source came from Corrupted Shadow!

The Pillar's eyes went wide at this as they turned to one another, only for Stygian to add, "I never wanted to steal their power." Starswirl's eyes went wide as dinner plates at this.

"You all really needed to work on your communication skills," Flash told them all.

BURN!!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

As he said this, another figure in the room just stared at him. It was a pony-shaped being that was dressed head to hoof in bulky armor along with a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness. He turned to king and despite his face not being visible, one would only need to look at him to realize he was frowning. "Fool."

Why do I had a feeling this guy would be true main villain and who is this pony? I feared this pony might be their dangerous enemy to deal with.

Now, I know a lot of you are looking forward to what comes next. But you're still gonna have to wait a little while. I'll be taking next week off to prepare myself and relax and the week after that I have something else in mind to publish. But then we'll get to it, I promise. The movie is coming soon. Just be patient.

You deserve a break, Banshee and I am curious to see what is this you're publishing for… but for now, take a break!

[AstralFlare42]

If you need an OC for the next story, let me know.

[SpikeSmolder fan]

Quite the S7 finale indeed! Glad that Beardy got called off on his magic *solutions* so to speak (Sirens & Malafear) with the latter one almost costing Spike's life!

The fight against the final Trail was spectacular, with a very sneaky move by Flash/Iron!

And speaking of sneaky that was a clever way to leaves us on that cliffhanger for the MLP Movie, not to mention that *guy* at the end there hmmmm...

Still hope that Beardy & Spike get to compare stories regarding Silverbolt, not to mention him mastering his powers & his upcoming molting (hoping you don't skip that one since it was a big moment for the little dragon)

Huh that last Trail memory banks had some Highlights on it :

Starswirl glared back at her, "If the Pony of Shadows has his way, your land will not exist! So unless you have a better idea..."

"No Twilight." Flash interrupted while pointing at Starswirl, "He has no right to talk to you that way. You're a million times better magic user than him."

"What did you just say?!" Starswirl barked back, "Do you have any idea the amount of magic I've discovered?! I have faced evils and monsters the likes of which you can't even imagine-"

"Oh, I can imagine it alright," Flash spat, "We've had to clean up enough of your messes to get a good idea of the villains you've beaten. Though I guess beaten isn't really the right word, since you never did beat any of them. All you ever did was lock them up someplace and not even bother to put any real defenses to make sure they didn't come back." Starswirl looked ready to burst, but Flash's next words made him stop. "Malafear sure comes to mind."

You go Flash, lay down the burn on the pompous Bearded one! 🔥🔥🔥

"Malafear. Didn't you hear Pinkie mention him in the list of villains we've had to stop, mainly because of you . He came back and why? Because you put the book holding his sole behind a pretty picture. That's just begging somepony to hang around it and eventually locate it. Would it have killed you to have added a warning?!" Flash began gesturing with his hooves, "Maybe put a sign: Evil book behind this wall. Stay fifty feet away at all times. " Flash's friends laughed at this, even Twilight and a few Pillars snickering. "Heck, we barely managed to beat him, and it took Spike almost sacrificing his life to do it!"

Starswirl turned to the dragon in question, his eyes going wide when he realized the little drake was a mix of two dragons he knew quite well.

Be glad Silver didn't see you right now Beardy!

"I'm with Flash," Springer nodded. "I've assumed things about others before without asking for a good reason. Blaming somepony without hearing their side of the story sounds kind of..."

"Ignorant," Mira suggested.

"Self-indulgent," Ace spoke up.

"Stupid," the two jakhowl stated together. The Pillars all turned to the two youngsters, but no response came.

LOL out of the mouths of babes!

And when Flash flicked the gem off, his entire body began to shimmer and change. It became more bulky, the wings vanishing as his coat turned gunmetal gray and his mane turned black. His weapon morphed into a spear, reveal his opponent's true identity: Iron Core.

"Surprise!" Iron laughed. "I do a pretty good impression of that feather-brain, don't I? Good enough to fool you anyway."

Well played Iron, well played!

As they did this, Flash walked over to where Trial-C had been and noticed part of its mechanical body laying on the ground. It was one of its robotic eyes, which still seemed to be recording. He picked it up and pointed it at him. "I don't know what you want with me and my power, but you lost. We've beaten all your Trials and we're stronger than ever." As he said that, Twilight and the others stepped over as they were now in view of the eye. "So do yourself a favor and stay where you are. Leave us alone. Because the next time you try something...we'll be ready to take you down." That was the last thing he said before the light from the eyes died, the signal to its source lost. "I hope you got that message."

You hear that Faker!!!

As he said this, another figure in the room just stared at him. It was a pony-shaped being that was dressed head to hoof in bulky armor along with a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness. He turned to king and despite his face not being visible, one would only need to look at him to realize he was frowning. "Fool."

*announcer speaks* A new challenger approches*

Good wrapup for S7 Banshee, take a well deserved break cause we'll be here when you get back!

[SuperSonicHeroes]

Impressive Season 7 finale! I admit, I was expecting a bit more interaction between Flash Sentry and Flash Magnus, as well as Starswirl and Spike after he realize Spike was Silverbolt's and Fira's son, but I enjoy what we got.

Flash defending Twilight against Starswirl and calling him out on how he half-assed all the previous foes he faced was surprisingly satisfying. Bringing in all of the Royal Knights to fight Trial-C and pulling a bait-and-switch with Iron on it was clever. So while the Pillars and Mane 7 fought the Pony of Shadows, the Knights fought the Trial. The strategy they used to defeat the Trial was pretty epic. I also thought it was clever that the darkness that made Stygian the Pony of Shadows was the Corrupted Shadow. Pretty smart since it was never elaberated on in canon.

We also got confirmation that Void was working for the Storm King, which means that he'll probably play a major role in the Movie next time. Plus a small cameo from Tempest and Grubber. That pony in armor with the Storm King though, I can't quite put my finger on it, but is it possible that it is... Armalum?

"I hope you know what you're doing," Tempest growled, "You do not wish to suffer the king's wrath."

Void laughed as he turned to her. "Relax. I know what I'm doing. And unlike you, I can actually show results. Maybe he'd be better simply sending me to lead the assault instead of you." He cackled as he began to walk away, Tempest glaring at him as sparks began to explode out of her horn. She let out a roar as she fired a blast from the damaged horn, which shot at Void like a firework.

The creature named Grubber gasped at this, but then Void spun around and held up his hoof. The electricity struck it and instead of hurting him, it was absorbed into the suit and flew up his leg, chest and neck before arriving at his head. There, it vanished into his forehead. Tempest and Grubber's eyes both went wide at this, only for Void to pull his hoof back as the light shot back out of his head and travelled back down to his hoof. "Don't do that again." With that, he thrust his hoof forward, the electricity exploding outward and striking Tempest.

"Gyah!" She cried as she shot back, slamming into a wall. Grubber quickly ran over to her, the mare moaning as lightning continued to spark around her while Void turned to leave.

Yikes! I was starting to think Void was just a mad scientist and not a fighter, but he might be a physical threat afterall if he can manhandle Tempest like it is nothing.

Back inside the throne room, the creature calling himself king sat in his throne, trying to look broody. But no matter what he tried, the idea of what they would soon do couldn't stop him from smirking. "I can't wait. Soon all the power of the world will be at my command."

As he said this, another figure in the room just stared at him. It was a pony-shaped being that was dressed head to hoof in bulky armor along with a pair of red eyes glowing in the darkness. He turned to king and despite his face not being visible, one would only need to look at him to realize he was frowning. "Fool."

Scary... This scene, plus Void having his breakdown after the last trial was destroyed, sorta reminds me of this moment from Amphibia:

Looking forward to what happens next time in the movie!

[TharsianBoreas]

Wow

Just absolute wow

After reading the whole Flash Sentry series, I must say that you hit the jackpot when it comes to writing OP characters/main character. Flash is humble, witty, and wholesome. He has many flaws, which after working his flaws, progresses his character development. You still left him with some flaws, which is good, since he doesn't turn up into this 'I have all the answers to your problems' person. He shows to have many failures. That backstory is just absolute perfection, and since he's not a Mary Sue, doesn't just end up being an insult to actual struggling people. Just because he has Sacred Light and became a Royal Knight, you don't let those things tarnish his character. He is shown to be equals to the Mane Six, not above them, which is a bane to authors of self-insert OC elements of harmony gimmick.

So many authors wrote sad backstories on a Mary Sue character that it end up being an insult to people who struggles in their life. So many talented authors cuddled a character, usually the main one, that they put them on a high pedestal of Moral Righteousness: That the character is always right, making that character unable to be relatable to normal people. And most importantly, so many authors wrote an OP character that usually becomes Mary Sue (Canon Twilight is an exception, since she is well written). Some authors even have all of these problems above.

Very few of Elements of Harmony Additionals story have good OC character; you being one of them. I will see your next story with great interest.

[KennyBrony19971]

It. There going to be A S8. To this series. Because im would really make some ideas for it at all. And im can't wait for the movie. And im gotta say this was Cool story

[Iacon Scholar]

I after reading all of Season 7, you deserve a break Banshee. Your stories are amazing! Your added plots are amazing! I really wish your stories were canon instead of what was made! Keep up the good work!!!!!

[AstralFlare42]

If you need an OC for next season, send me a PM.

[Banshee531]

11148235 Yeah, I get it. I'll PM you if the need arises.

[AstralFlare42]

I think you might've missed The Perfect Pear. Either that or I missed something.

[SuperSonicHeroes]

11149233
He didn't "forget" it, he just didn't do a chapter for it. Not every episode gets an adaptation.

[Foxhelm]

"Oh, I can imagine it alright," Flash spat, "We've had to clean up enough of your messes to get a good idea of the villains you've beaten. Though I guess beaten isn't really the right word, since you never did beat any of them. All you ever did was lock them up someplace and not even bother to put any real defenses to make sure they didn't come back." Starswirl looked ready to burst, but Flash's next words made him stop. "Malafear sure comes to mind."

And I guess you have forgotten about Salix, Terror Card, Storm Blade, Tempera and Windgill? Aye Flashy. Five of the objectively most dangerous ponies you've face are just out in the world wondering. Atleast the Sirens were in a world were they had no power before you, Sunset and Twilight fought over Twilight's crown, and Malafear was barred away before some dragon decided that he could do X without thinking if it was a good idea that he should. You have no legs to stand on or wings to fly/hover with here Flash. Also you did play apart in undoing a spell without bothering to understand why it was done in the first place.

Also, much of Twilight's own magical prowess comes from the foundation laid by StarSwirl. So yeah he does have the right to critise her. She decided to undo his spell without wondering what else could happen.

[Godslittleprincess]

"Well then, I guess I'm still a villain."

AAAAAAH! My heart!

[Suligana]

Hi, don't call in which part of the fanfic Soarin meets The parents of Rainbow Dash.

[SuperSonicHeroes]

11260446
That was all the way back in Season 2, during the "Hearts and Hooves Day" chapter.

[Suligana]

11260881
Thank you